CHOPPER PROFILE 7
This Chopper joined in 6th of May 2004, with 33 images posted and 9 wins this chopper has found a winning style. A proud member of TEAM BUCETA, 24 years old and Canadian, (But we wont hold that against him). So sit back relax put on your comfy shoes, because its time to meet…
1. What is your nickname and how did you get it.
That's my name that should help you find the answer...
2. What is your real name and age.?
Alex, for Christ sakes... I'm 24.
3. Where are you from and what’s so great about being there.?
I'm from Montreal, and it's great because all the best choppers come from here. j/k... I don't know. It's a great city, hockey, winter, cool places and stuff... I would love to say, it's great because you can use a boat to cross the streets or it's great because the Empire State Building is awesome, but I'm from Montreal. All we have here to be proud of, it's me...
4. What do you do to keep the bills paid?
I worked in design and ads... Now I'm writing.
Very interested in the writing side of things, would you like to expand on that a little?
I'm just starting in writing business. I am writing for a stage show staring some Montreal comedians, and I write for some TV shows. I expect to write a sitcom series in the near future. To compare the writers typical day compared to the designers typical day, some times when I was doing graphic design for my own company, I worked from home. You have to set deadlines and schedules. Now it's the same kind of thing. You have to be very strict on schedules and deadlines, as for the creative aspect, there's nowhere to hide. You always have to come up with something because you're paid to do so. On bad creative days, it sucks.
You will have to keep us updated on that sitcom…
5. How did you find PSC, and what do like the most on this site?
I loved PS and wanted to chop things. I thought about contests and wrote "PhotoShop Contest" in Google. As simple as that. What I like the most here is that you can always find someone with better skills than yours so it helps to improve. I learned more about PS here than anywhere else. Of course I love to win contests. That's a great feeling. Well, if I remember correctly...
I chopped half of my portfolio with a PC and PhotoShop 5.5. The rest with my actual machine, a small 12" iBook and PScs. I use images found at Getty, picturequest, sxc.hu and Google mainly, and I just use the mouse.
1. What gets your creative juices flowing, how you create that masterpiece?
I don't know. I never created a masterpiece. My best chops came from themselves. I look at a source pic and it pops up or I rotate elements trying to see something through them. As many people know, I often try to create something with a different angle or a different perceptive. It's nice to show something people haven't seen at first in the source pic.
You like the perspective change, what’s the hardest part of changing the perspective of an image?
Finding the damn idea. Look at YPA's "Flying over thaoe" masterpiece, there's no big deal finding the right angle car pic over the Internet to get a tire and a windshield. It's full of it. His biggest challenge must have been to find the idea first, and that was hard... and in that case, very well done.
2. What do you use as inspiration?
"Not much. I rarely surf the Internet or look at magazines to find an idea. Not for PSC works.
So it's all from your mind, no idea concept from images seen in day to day live?
Not really. I guess the more things you see, the more creative you get... But for a specific job or a specific chop, I rarely use external ideas. Not consciously at least...
3. Do you have a system?
Yeah. A small Aiwa sound system with two 10" and a Sub... You're talking about sound system, right?
4. Does a chop have to be done a certain way following steps or are you a messy chopper and just go with the flow.
I'm a bad chopper. Really slow. Of course you have to do things in order to chop well. You can't blend something with a background without at first isolate what you want to blend... Most of the time, the first thing you do is close cutting sh*t. And the last (speaking for myself here) is adding details, adjusting the lightning, shadows, etc.
5. Filters, brushes and techniques.
I rarely use filters, except the main ones (blur, noise, etc...) I never created new brushes. I use the provided ones. For tricks and techniques, ask Zingaro, Ledirlo, deshone, arcaico, BillTVshow, the202, anfa, Claf, chrispis...
What about technique?
THE technique is to work without erasing anything. You must chop and be able to come back and change things afterward. The best way to do that is by using masks instead of erasing tool, adjustments layer instead of adjusting colors and as far as possible work on a duplicated layer instead of the original and so on... That's called "preservative chopping"...
6. What style of chop do you like most?
Very realistic and "perspectively" twisted.
As I said above, I'm not the one to give great effects techniques. For example, to create water ripples I'm not the one who's gonna paint them. I'll try to find the right pic on Google and blend it in the best I can. Over the years, I found out some nice tricks to speed it up a bit, of course, but I'm not the best one to explain them since I'm a French speaking Quebecer out of time...
What is your favorite type of source picture and why?
a. machine (Car, boat, electronic parts)
b. people
c. nature
d. obscure views
e. all of the above
f. other
Really, I can't say. It all depends of what you think you can do with it. But I do know that I prefer the clear and simple ones. Top quality and clear source pic. A single object is always easier to chop, but it's not always the best to create impressive chops.
1. What makes a good chop for you?
Realistic. (angles, shadows, edges, perspective, proportions, etc.) The funny stuff adds something but I don't think it's necessary. And to create a masterpiece, you have to think about something unique and chop it insanely well.
2. When you chop is it, Fast and solid, or slow and steady
Too fast and solid in bed. Slow and slow in PhotoShop.
Damn French guys always bragging 
3. Do you prefer to vote on?
a. all source image
b. import and blend
c. effect i.e. rain/snow/flood/fire/blood
d. as long as it’s a good chop it gets my vote
e. all of the above
f. I don’t vote
If it is a good chop it gets my vote. And if the chop is crappy but the idea is really good, you'll get my vote too. Example:
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/67511/votes.html
(I think I couldn't vote back then tho...)
4. What chop did you do and it did not do as well as you expected?
A lot of them, cuz I place my expectations very high on each and every chop. But if I have to pick some, this one
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/69811/display.html
for the reasons mentioned above. I thought it was very good... And this one
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/54854/display.html
It was my first and last animated GIF. I think I put a too long timer before the animation starts. People didn't see it. But anyway, it was long ago... I just thought it was better than the result shows. Especially in that contest which was one of my worst of all time.
This one didn't do quite as well as I thought either.
http://photoshopcontest.com/tournament/view/398/display.html
I really thought I could beat the202 with it... But the damn NumberMan is one hard cookie. Congrats to him.
1. What's your best chop.
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/69811/display.html
This was my best. Far from the others I think. The source image is well used, the techniques are just fine and the overall result is great to look at. I think it should have been higher ranked in the contest but I ended up over 20 votes from the winner. It was a special contest with many great entries involved. For what votes worth, I was a bit disappointed. Damn PSC. I never fully recovered, but after two suicide attempts
, I realised votes weren't that important in life.
Some people never learn that lesson in there Photoshop life, it is a hard lesson to learn. The votes just dont matter.
2. Now your worst chop.
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/52098/display.html
Well, it was my second one. I didn't know how to chop then. I think this crap did just fine in the contest considering I got one vote. My first one ever. That steeplechase guy was a visionary...
3. Who do you consider to be one of the better choppers out there.
"deshone. Cuz he has a tight ass...
No, seriously, just have to check at his portfolio to know why."
Lots of people have chosen Desh for their fav, what Image of his just says it all for you?
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/62488/display.html (for the painting job)
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/67664/display.html (for the idea and much more)
But he truly amazed me with those ones... It doesn't get any better than that.
http://deshone.gfxartist.com/artworks/67865
http://deshone.gfxartist.com/artworks/72766
4. What you hate to see in a chop and why you hate it so much.
Repetitive concepts. Especially when the concept is to splash blood everywhere for no reason...
5. The best chop of all time.
http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/59099/display.html
If you want to see the best chopping, just take a look at deshone's portfolio, but if you want to see my best "good-eye-twisted-genius-brilliant-insert-what-you-want-here-chop"... Here you go. I think it's because of this chop if I like perspective changes so much.
Sorry for my bad English. I'm still learning. I hope to chop again something for PSC one day or another. Till then, keep up the good chops...
Well Alex, its been a pleasure doing your profile, and there is nothing wrong with your english mate. Hope to see you back chopping very soon and remember to let us know how the writting is going. Well folks I hope you have enjoyed this latest profile and am looking forward to who will be next until then this is
Blue_lurker
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE CHOP.
