I have been completely amazed at how friendly and supportive everyone has been to a newbie with absolutely no experience. It has been fun to see the different approaches and styles, as well.
good luck, welcome, and whaddayaknow... I'm somewhat amazed by our little community at times too... for better or worse, it is a crapshoot some days, as to how a thread will turn out.. for example, this thread had all the ingredients of some of the notorious train wrecks in recent months (or years)
...but you seemed to disarm the first offenders (a rotating job description, I've held as often as many others) by a few important distinctions... namely your apparent familiarity with the underbelly of this site & willingness to attempt to step in the ring, without stepping on toes. Well done!
It's often a shame to see the regularity of n00b bashing tendencies from time to time, but as with any forum, it is anarchy, and you never know which way the wind will blow...
..but anyway, enough about the underbelly of this great place... I wanted to comment on the opportunity of this place. You have succeeded to be welcomed, encouraged & helped in your first thread (I think) and I want to share an observation from my years on sign forums, dating back to when I was much less confident, and did a lot more asking & learning then I did answering and teaching...
I noticed you said something like "stay tuned for the results" but, I would encourage you to engage in this incredibly successful dialogue about your immediate design challenge because you offered up one design, and you have witnessed half a dozen other ones, from people taking the time to help you. You have at least remained in the conversation, and showed appreciation, which is great, and has contributed more then you know (in my opinion) to the continuation of this topic, while others fall out of site in an afternoon..
I suggest you draw up another layout or two at the earliest opportunity. Folks here enjoy offering help, and if you showed us what you gave your church, and we see evidence of one or more design tips that seemed to help create an improvement, that will bring this exercise full circle.. to a degree..
...but i over ten years, the BEST design assistance threads I have seen, and have benefitted from tremendously... are the ones where someone like yourself (or myself on many occasions) has been offered feedback, drew changes, posted them, been offered more feedback, posted another layout... and these interactions work more like the old saying "give a man a fish -you have fed him for a day... teach a man to fish-you have fed him for a lifetime"
I have no doubt that those more permanent lessons, leading to more permanent growth is what you seek, and what you will find... and I just wanted to say this thread could still lose enough interest at any moment, but seize the opportunity ASAP, and submit your own new layout here, before deciding on one & making the sign..
I have little doubt this will lead to renewed interest in this thread, this project, and your educational opportunity on this forum.
This is just an opinion, but as a form of evidence to the experience from which I speak... I had the honor to be written up in a "Signs of the Times" article last year, where 3 of the images I provided of my work were printed. I actually just made this connection in my mind while typing this post... but 2 of the three images were not only two of the signs I am most proud of in my 22 year career, but both of them were designs spawned out of lengthy threads in this and another forum, where I was given great support, advice and encouragement.. but I also did a lot of redraws, that resulted in more refined & continued advice.
In the end, I had a design I took great pride in, for my efforts, while knowing I had also received a great deal of help too! I won't go find them right now, but I might hunt down the links later.
...
Just another laugh for you all and further confirmation that there is not any competition from me!!
- I can't open your Latitudes links.