Tuesday

Thing 6. Online Image Generators

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Image Chef

Most of us don’t have the time or the artistic talent to create specialized graphics or logos for projects. Enter the Online Image Generator! These handy-dandy tools let you create many types of images – framed pictures, slide shows, comic-style captions, trading cards, calendars, and much more.


Why use this tool?
Create trading cards of authors, scientists, historical figures, or even concepts you’re trying to teach or promote. Media specialists can support teachers by helping students create images around astronomy, algebraic equations, historical figures (“I’ll trade you two Ben Franklins for an Eleanor Roosevelt!”). Students and staff can create trading cards of themselves to help them get to know each other. Other possibilities include creating a calendar with an image related to what you’re promoting that month, or a mosaic with multiple images related to your books, videos, or other resources.

Use the images generators in summer reading programs, book clubs, training, and more. Librarians at Carleton College are using trading cards as a way to reach their students. The possibilities are endless! As is the time you can spend playing around with these sites—beware!

1. Go to Big Huge Labs.
2. Choose Trading Card from drop down list.
2. Create a trading card and save it to your computer.
3. Create another image or two to illustrate your 23 Things On a Stick activities.
4. Upload the your trading card and images to your blog to share with others.

Resources
Big Huge Labs
Image Chef
Toon Doo

Graphics are a great way to convey information and can add some fun and creativity to your Web sites. Create customized images for your PowerPoint presentations, Web pages, and other projects. This is also an opportunity to think about copyright and licensing issues–some image generators use characters from popular TV shows (The Simpsons, South Park, etc.)–is this legal or part of the Internet free-for-all?

Blog Prompts
  • Consider how you can use these tools in your library or media center. How about a license plate with the name of your program? (Created using Image Chef.)

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7 comments:

Anonymous said...

For even more fun, there's a blog that's all about generators called (appropriately enough) The Generator Blog. There are all sorts of fun generators, including a library catalog card generator.

You'll find The Generator Blog here: http://generatorblog.blogspot.com/

minnemom said...

Thanks for the tip, impromptu. Lots of generators to be seen on that site!

Tandy said...

This is easily addicting...lol.

thecrazylibrarylady said...

I could, and have (gasp) spent hours experimenting with these tools.

Hibbing Community College Librarian said...

Creating images, posters, trading cards using an Online Image Generator would allow some pent-up creativity to emerge.
I can see its value for individualizing advertisements for National Library Week and other special events sponsored by the library.

onidakitchen said...

ONIDA SAID....
This was fun. I could spend alot of time here. One of the easier ones so far.

Miss Shelved said...

Might Miss Shelved suggest "Simpsonizing yourself" as a lovely way to waste an hour. Several of these generated images were used for the sign for our Media Center's new graphic novel collection. Try it at Simpsonize.com