In Freebies

200+ Big and Beautiful Highly Detailed Icons

Posted by on Jan 5, 2010 | 29 Comments

If you’re one of many web designers suffering from an icon collecting addiction, you should probably skip over this article. It might be too much for you to handle. However, if you’re addiction is under control, read on. In this article, we’ve rounded up over 200 icons that are big, beautiful and have lots of detail – and with such a wide variety of subject matter in these icons, you shouldn’t have trouble finding some that you will want to use or add to your icon library. (more…)

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In Inspiration

40 Brilliant Type-Only Logo Designs

Posted by on Jan 4, 2010 | 36 Comments

Logos do not always have to include some type of symbol or icon to be effective. When done well, using type only to create a logo can be very effective in representing a company. These types of logos often cause particular typefaces and letter styling to become synonyms with a brand. Here we’ve rounded up 40 brilliant type-only logo designs for your inspiration. Be sure to click the images to learn more about each logo. (more…)

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In Updates

The Most Popular Articles of 2009

Posted by on Jan 3, 2010 | 7 Comments

The end of 2009 marked WDL’s first full year in existence, and what a great year it was. We feel that we’ve put out a lot of valuable content that has been helpful to our readers who we greatly appreciate. So before we start publishing new content for 2010, we thought it would be interesting to take a look back at the year that was for WDL by listing some of our most popular articles from 2009. (more…)

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In Premium

WDL Premium: PhotoSpin CS Flash Component

Posted by on Dec 31, 2009 | One Comment

Today we’re giving you the PhotoSpin CS Flash component from, Digicrafts. FotoSpin provides a unique touch and spin control experience to the user. This component normally goes for $49.90, which proves it pays to be a WDL Premium member. If your not a member yet, be sure and sign up. (more…)

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In Inspiration

40 Breathtaking Examples of Aerial Photography

Posted by on Dec 30, 2009 | 31 Comments

Aerial photography can be very inspirational since it provides a view of our environment and surroundings from a perspective we are not used to. It was first practiced in the 1800′s by photographers in balloons. Today, with the advancement in equipment and technology, aerial photographers are able to get a wider variety of photos from above. Here are 40 breathtaking aerial photos for your inspiration. (more…)

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In Tips

Adding Depth with Pixel Perfect Line Work

Posted by on Dec 30, 2009 | 28 Comments

A pixel is a single point in a raster image. Computer displays are capable of showing millions of these at a time. So how can one lone pixel have an impact on a web design? It probably can’t. However, if you extend that pixel in one direction, it becomes a line, and in the hands of a masterful designer with an attention for subtle detail, the 1px line is a powerful design element. It can be used in many different ways, but in this article we’re going to take a look at how pixel perfect line work can add depth to a design. (more…)

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In Resources

11 Blogs to Help You Become a User Experience Expert

Posted by on Dec 29, 2009 | 29 Comments

In today’s web design world, so much emphasis is put on SEO, which forces us to design for machines. Even though this is a necessity for web designers, the focus of a design should be on that of the user – the breathing, typing, mouse clicking kind of user. The user experience (UX) design portion of the website building process is often overlooked, usually due to a lack of knowledge in the area. Luckily, there are UX focused blogs out there that are loaded with info, tips, and insights that can help you in your journey to becoming a user experience expert. Here are 11 of the best. (more…)

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In Updates

Ronin: Online Time Tracking and Invoicing

Posted by on Dec 26, 2009 | 4 Comments

Here at WDL, we greatly appreciate our sponsors. They help make it possible for us to do what we do, and we feel that all of our sponsors offer services and products that can be very useful to web designers, developers, and online creatives. In order to let you know more about what our sponsors have to offer, we’re going to periodically feature one of them. Today we’re going to tell you about Ronin, an online time tracking and invoicing service. (more…)

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In Freebies

A UI Design and Prototyping Treasure Chest

Posted by on Dec 23, 2009 | 41 Comments

When designing a user interface there are always times that you will find yourself using the same graphical element over and over. So in order to be more productive, it’s a good idea to keep a library of common elements such as form elements, buttons, icons, browser templates, and windows. Having these close by will save time and speed up your design and prototyping work flow. Here is a collection of these types of elements that should be a big help to you. (more…)

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In Inspiration

40 Awesome Examples of Tilt-Shift Photography

Posted by on Dec 22, 2009 | 32 Comments

Tilt-shift photography refers to giving the subject of a photo a miniature look or toy-like appearance. This affect can either be achieved with a special camera lens and other shooting techniques, or it can be done in post processing with applications like Photoshop. There are a number of tilt-shift tutorials available that will show you how to achieve this effect on your own, but in this article we’re going to inspire you. Here are 40 awesome examples of tilt-shift photography. (more…)

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