RECENT ADDITIONS
Though Larry Jon Davis' art for this book was very beautiful, there was a bit of a challenge for us to fit it on the cover—no fault of Larry's. His single illustration needed to span front and back covers, with parts of the hoop showing on each. However, the four boys on the left were positioned too far to the right in the original. The boy in the yellow shirt stood directly under the hoop, and would have wrapped around the spine. The random texture of the court surface presented a bit of a challenge to fill in the blank spots where the boys once stood. But Adobe Systems came to the rescue with a new feature of Photoshop called "AI [for Artificial Intelliigence] generative fill", which was able to automatically generate the randomness of the court surface to fill the gaps seamlessly and quickly.
Darlene and Daniel Swanson walk you through each step of this process. They pay attention to every detail to make sure your book ‘shines.’ This was a walk in the park compared to my previous experience. I highly recommend them—their expertise, their experience, their suggestions, and their grace and patience. The finished product made me say aloud – “I LOVE IT!”
—Carol Graham, author, Pray the Answer, Not the Problem
Prior to deciding on Van-Garde Imagery, Inc,, I would estimate that I contacted at least two dozen similarly advertised services. Darlene answered her own phone, listened to my expectations and confidently confirmed she and her husband, Dan, could execute my project on schedule and as promised. In contrast to the cookie-cutter approach to attracting new customers, Dan and Darlene went to work immediately, which was over a weekend and they proceeded to complete every task expertly. It was refreshing to work with people who treated my project with the care I'd give it myself.
—Kevin McKinney, author, SOVOK: The Memoirs of a Liar
Wow x 1000!!! My second time hiring Van-Garde Imagery, Inc., and I am ECSTATIC by the exquisite and spot-on design of my second children's book- part of a twelve-book series.
At the outset, I had an ideal image of what the book would look like. Darlene and Dan's excellent craftsmanship, attention to detail, and artistic sensibilities produced a product that far exceeded my highest hopes.
In 2021 during my first outing as a self-published author, there was so much I didn't know or understand hence an improperly formatted design. Thankfully I was referred to Darlene and Dan, who corrected all issues to ensure a successful publication.
When it came time to publish the second installment of my twelve-book series, I did not hesitate to reach out to Darlene and Dan to design the book from scratch. I am THRILLED that I did!
I cannot reiterate enough how happy I am with their creative and design choices as well as how listened to I felt throughout the process. All of my requests were considered and implemented resulting in a beautiful final proof.
Undertaking a very unconventional children's book concept is no easy task and I am just blown away and THRILLED that I have a team like Van-Garde Designs to be supported throughout the process.
David Bensimon, author of The Little Crab Makes a Friend series