The only frame of live reference that I have for this type of concept that immediately comes to mind is the official site of JKRowling, which has been using her very messy version since inception 4 years ago.. http://www.jkrowling.com/en/index.cfm
I have to say I do prefer what you've done. There is a good balance of elements such that it's not too busy (imo). The Firefox Logo you can loose - it adds nothing significant beyond functioning as product placement. The coffee actually looks like tea - Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger actually. Agree with Damian that it would good to see something else on the notepad page underneath your Contact details. Love the Post-It note - nice humorous touch that I think everyone can relate to!
I hear you, but when this was originally created over three years ago, it was definitely not a fad or major design trend. I had actually never seen a working site with this similar concept. I had seen some wallpapers that were similar but never seen it implemented as a web design.
But, as you say, inspired by someone else. All art is, after all.
Busy desk is in fact a very nice concept, yet it's not very original - I have seen at least few live portfolio sites using this kind of composition, some design blogs even started making '30+ Busy Desk Designs' showcases.
Also, from the front-end dev standpoint, it's basically 'uncodeable' due to the fact that text is rotated and effect like this is not possible in a real-life environment unless you put everything in as images, which kills your SEO.
It would definitely have to be developed in Flash, which is why I never implemented it. It has been basically implemented here (much to my chagrin): http://gerbet-mikhael.com/
Excellent composition. I love a messy desk in any graphic... it's just so "us" (designers, artists, etc). :-)
Did you ever code this page? I'd have liked to see how you would code it since everything is at an angle. (unless of course you're developing in flash)
There is something about this kin of design that really pushes the button for me, and you've executed it pretty damn well. I'd also like to know how it would be implemented into a live web page.
Perhaps you could use flash to provide a 'movement around the desk' kind of interface. So if you clicked the camera it would take you to a bunch of photos, etc.
Also, the firefox thing has to go - it doesn't seem to fit in. The coffee doesn't look so much like blood, just more like coffee that has been left stagnating for a number of weeks! It'd be more appealing if you made it look like really tasty coffee, nice and hot and steam :)
Awesome work. But I think that the coding will be the hardest part of the design. Because of the text and all of the other "items" that are on the design.
I agree with damian in the firefox thing, and the coffee. One really small thing that i notice is that the camera is a little bit blurred in comparision with the coffee or the laptop. Maybe a sharpen mask just do the trick.
Very creative concept. I looks a bit busy but that's the style. I love the footer with the 'yes global warming is happening'. The coffee looks like blood. I don't like the firefox thing at the top beause it doesn't seem realistic in a sense.
On the 'contact' page with the scribbles, I think you could have placed some sketches there or doodles of websites maybe. That'd be a nice touch.
Other than that, I wonder if the method for it. I'd love to see it developed because it'd be interesting to see how it works real live.
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