Banner #4 : Missing Raymond and Sammul

To accommodate a new layout, I decided to make a new banner as well. Problem is, the banner size for this specific layout is relatively smaller. As a result, my banner takes up even less space than usual and the words on my banner are barely visible. In other words, I'm not very satisfied with how Blogger decided to display it.

What's my opinion to the actual banner I just made? Well I'm happy that for once I managed to create a banner featuring male artistes for once instead of the usual female. It's a nice change isn't it? Of course I decided to feature two of my favorite artistes, both who I miss seeing terribly. (You guys have probably noticed I've been suffering from the disease of missing Sammul. :P) Also, I played around with effects on this some more. Is it too much or is it good? There are some effects on it I really like but some I'd prefer to lighten a bit.

I could've done much better but I'll cut myself some slack. Obviously, my calling is in writing and not graphics. I tend to change my banner around once a month anyway, otherwise I get tired of it. :)

Banner #3: Featuring Macy Chan

The new banner is HERE! This time, featuring Macy Chan. I've always hated looking for pictures, it's so hard to look for the right one. Then comes picking the pictures that look good together. While searching around on Google Images though, I found some pretty pictures of Macy Chan. The backgrounds were just a simple white and gray, making them match well. Out of the four pictures, Macy is wearing two white outfits and two black outfits. I thought these four pictures of her were beautiful and would go together nicely.

Macy Chan is quickly becoming one of my favorite newcomers. She is a much better actress than the pageant participants. She proved to us she can take on a mature role in Last One Standing and a youthful role in D.I.E. Again. I hope to see more of Macy soon!

First blue, then pink, now a fresh and sunny yellow! I made the tabs yellow to match as well. Recently, I've started to really like the color yellow. It feels like such a happy and optimistic color.

You probably noticed that this banner is a lot smaller this time too. Haha, that wasn't intentional, it just turned out small. I decided against making it larger since I knew it'd affect the quality of the pictures. As it was, the pictures were already a small size.

I didn't spend too much time on this banner. I tend to get tired of looking at things, so I wanted a banner change. I did the banner completely on Picnik this time, and I think it looks nice. Nothing complicated, since I don't have the time to learn to use Photoshop. Maybe when winter vacation comes around?

I like the yellow of my banner and tabs. :)

Banner #2: Smile!

After much thinking about what to do for my next banner, I finally got a theme: smiles. Many TVB fa dans have very pretty smiles, which makes them look even prettier. While looking through pictures for my next banner, the theme of smiles shot into my mind.

Featured in this banner: Selena Li, Aimee Chan, Leila Tong, and Fala Chen

These four have beautiful smiles that express different things..

Selena's smile reveals the innocence and gentleness of her cute and youthful smile.

Aimee is pretty in every series she's in, despite the extremely short hairstyle she has in series. Why? Because she has a very sweet smile that just seems to brighten up her whole face. I've always loved this picture of her because of the way she's just smiling so widely like she couldn't be any happier.

Leila has a 'baby face' like Sammul Chan, and along with her sweet and pure smile, she looks like the ultimate 'wholesome yet beautiful' beauty.

Fala's smile tends to show off her maturity and elegance. She looks beautiful and elegant in this picture with her updo, necklace, and of course, smile.

I did this banner almost entirely in Picnik. This banner looks much more clean than the Stephen and Elaine one. It's also less crowded. At the same time though, it is rather plain. However, I like it. It looks very nice.

Banner #1: Stephen Wong & Elaine Yiu - Love Can't Always Be Simple

TVB Interaction presents our first banner ever! Yay! :)

Click on the picture to see it in its full size, it looks best that way.

If you've been reading my updates on Twitter, you probably know that I have become a fan of the Stephen Wong and Elaine Yiu pairing. They're the only reason I'm not dropping Burning Flame 3. They are a new and fresh couple. I've heard Elaine was Stephen's love interest in A Journey Called Life, which I've yet to watch. However, their love line ended sadly with Elaine dying, and the two never got together. That's why I still consider them a 'new and fresh' couple. They share sweet chemistry, and is the first on-screen couple I've liked in a while. These days the on-screen pairs are either overused (Rayda and Boscolie are great, but it's time for other people to make 'sparks' together) or they just don't have chemistry.

In Burning Flame 3, the two get themselves in a love triangle with Ruco Chan. Stephen has a crush on Elaine, who is interested in Benny/Ruco. It turns out, that Ruco is married.

Out of habit, I check AsianEU frequently to see entertainment news (not that I always believe them), ratings reports, and etc. I look through the site for a couple minutes and leave. An article about Stephen Wong and Elaine Yiu was posted on July 31st, but I never read it until yesterday. I don't know how it slipped my eye.

(Read the article here: http://asianuniverse.net/forums/Elaine_Yiu_Stephen_Wong_experienced_painful_triangle_relati_t171727.html)

The article, in summary, tells how both Stephen and Elaine have been previously hurt by two timers, just like in Burning Flame 3. Elaine had a boyfriend who she didn't know was already married, and she broke up with him because she did not want to be a third person that ruins someone's family. Stephen had his girlfriend cheat on him, and even had her say that he did not meet her requirements. I feel sorry for both of them, but I can tell the experience has made them both more mature and stronger. On the other hand...who were the two stupid people who cheated on these great two? Anyway..

The story behind the banner....

When I saw the pictures in the article, I started liking Stephen+Elaine even more. The pictures are beautiful. Elaine is prettier than ever, and Stephen looks pretty good. What I loved about these pictures was how it made them really look like an actual couple, especially the first picture. They look very cute and compatiable together. After looking at these pictures, I finally had an inspiration for a banner. I thought these pictures would look very nice in a banner. I used the line 'Love can't always be simple" in it, because I think it matches perfectly with their situation in Burning Flame 3 and the personal experiences they had. Stephen quoted in the article that "In the past I thought love was something very simple."

It's not very special or complex banner. Unlike love, it's 'simple.' I did not use Photshop or any other premium photo editing program. I created the banner entirely in Paint and added the text in Picnik. (Boy, those are a lot of P's...xD) However, I really like it. I think the quote was the perfect touch, too. It's not very impressive, but it's my first banner. Also, I think it's pretty good for a banner that was made entirely in a free program that has been around since Windows XP. What do you think of the banner? Of Stephen and Elaine? Constructive criticsim, compliments, and tips on how to make better banners will be great!