ok whats your approach to layout of a website.

i usually make things to complex and try to do the impossible thats why i am always rebuilding.

currently i am thinking of just making some simple banners with a gradient that fades to white or black and then putting a nice text over it in a good font.

or my second idea is to find a cool photo and fade it into black or white using a mask over it.

have any of you guys ever used a faded image for a banner?

i usually make some tricked out banners and thats where i always run into a snag by making them to complex.

sometimes i have tried to make one and then cut a section of it for a repeating background between differing resolutions and that works sometimes but it depends on a persons browser and settings,

so the question is whats your approach?

i think im gonna try simple this time but somehow make it look tricked out.

i will include an example of what i mean by too complicated of a banner.

My approach is with a piece of paper and a pencil

youre one of a kind lol lets see some of the paper and pencil layouts!

I don't have my scanner plugged in at the moment ... once it's back online I'll scan a few doodles in for ya'

Usually I'll draw a layout or two, get some ideas down ... create the box-model CSS layout on the PC then totally balls up the graphics and end up with a site that looks nothing like my drawing

yeh that happens to me to but i just dont draw what i envision hehehe.

this is a more simple banner not my final just an experiment so you guys know what i mean by a more simple banner with just a gradient.

I usually go paper and pencil as well... I'm not at college right now so I don't have access to a design but when I get back tomorrow I'll try and remember to scan it.

cool yeh i never even considered drawing one out i did consider a mock up layout in fireworks mx using the panel sets, but then i figured i might as well just do it because using the panel sets takes some time.

I do that too! but I usually scrap my 'doodles'.

I never scrap em' ... never know when they might come in handy

they might... but I've already got alot of junk I think might come useful someday..

wow some good graphics there dan good one i like them keep the good work up(if thay are your graphics j/k)