New ZHPMafia.com banner

[Johnmadd]

Nice, I like the real pic look.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Thanks, John. Glad you like. I like the real cars, too. Casey took this picture.

[johnrando]

Didn't notice until this thread... VERY nice!

[mimalmo]

:ronald

[mimalmo]

Hah, I just posted the same!

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Thanks, Eli. Moving to the other thread, pal.

[Johnmadd]

You beat me to it Eli.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Thanks, guys. Casey Withers (San Diego photographer who kicks butt) with the picture. Jon Sibal (friend and extremely talented artist who inks for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, etc.) with the original banner conception and design.

Jon's original banner here:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/marcussandiego/ZHPMafia021-12.png

I then went back to the original Casey shot and created a new banner -- based on Jon's idea and first design. I have the new banner filling up the entire page. I also stuck the zhpmafia.com down on the left, bottom of the page. I used the hood down on my version (rather than the windshield down, as it was in Jon's original version). I removed the license plates on the black and blue cars (Kevin's and Albert's cars, respectively).

Casey, meanwhile, followed up on my version and fixed the horizontal plane.

The banner, therefore, is a true collaboration.

[johnrando]

Is it my imagination or is the banner now larger?

[Marcus-SanDiego]

It's your imagination. hehe. These are my prime working hours for the site. I experiment with different stuff. I just made the banner go across the entire top of the site.

[spencers]

I like how the banner spans the entire page width!

I just don't like how tall it is. It takes up 1/3 of the page height

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Haha. No worries, Spence. You can ignore anything you see tonight on the site. Most people are sleeping, so this is when I make tweaks to the site. Just experimenting.

[lilcdkey]

Looks so much better, great work! It would be pretty sick if someone could photoshop the front plates off of the two ZHP's on the right so the only plate that was there read "ZHP MAFIA"

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Thanks. I think this is the one (for a while).

[pleasecorrupt]

on the black and dark blue cars doing that shouldn't be too hard seeing that with darker colors the edges are not as defined as they are in the other cars. too bad i uninstalled photoshop :3

[Mike V]

I like it too! It's nice to see something ZHP-specific in the banner instead of 3 random BMWs up there (not that I don't like non-zhp BMWs).

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I am sure that I can do that.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I like it too! It's nice to see something ZHP-specific in the banner instead of 3 random BMWs up there (not that I don't like non-zhp BMWs).

True. We did lose those three BMWs a couple of months ago, but I hear you.

[C Withers Media]

Feelin it.. Glad you guys were able to make it work for the site. Happy to be a part of a bigger plan. Looks great Mark and Jon.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Casey, as usual, thanks for being part of the magic.

Also, I have edited out the license plates.

[C Withers Media]

Mark, the blend on the black car is perfect, the blue car is a little choppy...

I just know the perfectionism inside of you and wanted you to hear it from me first.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Yeah. I see that. Working on it even now. :biggrin

Thanks for looking out.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

CW, how is that?

[C Withers Media]

Way gooder. :p

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Hehe. Thanks again, sir.

Oh, and before I forget: Thanks to Rovert (Trevor) for creating the banner before this one. It was classy and served the site well.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

All right. Good night. The banner is finished. What you see is what you get. It's 2:22 AM here on the west coast. I need to get some sleep.

See you guys in a few hours.

[kayger12]

That's a beautiful thing to wake up to.

Droid X. Tapatalk. Use it.

[C Withers Media]

That's a beautiful thing to wake up to.

Droid X. Tapatalk. Use it.

East coasters are already out of bed. Maybe I should go to bed.

[az3579]

That banner is WIN!

P.S. - Why are y'all up so late???????

[danewilson77]

Well done on the banner Boss.

[macpro_racer2010]

Awesome banner. Great job:headbang:headbang

[Jon D]

very nice WIN

[gr330zhp]

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE the new banner!!!!!!!!!!! :thumbsup

[Marcus-SanDiego]

That banner is WIN!

P.S. - Why are y'all up so late???????

I was busy working on the site last night. I often, when I have projects to work on, do them late at night when everyone is sleeping. That way it's least disruptive to everyone. Just looking out for you guys.

As for Casey, he was helping me put the final touches on the banner. Additionally, Casey works on his photography late into the evening (post processing work gets done into the wee hours of the morning). If I had to guess, that's what Casey was doing at 3 AM.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Glad everyone enjoys the new look. I was told, by a member, to never take this banner down -- ever. That's a resounding thumbs up in my book.

Thanks to all who made it happen, including the guys who came down to San Diego a month ago to participate in the photo shoot. I needed these cars to get this look.

[gr330zhp]

I agree, I would leave that up for good. Perfect with the ZHP mafia euro plate in the middle too

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Stathi, yeah. Initially three of us had plates. Had to Pshop out the plates on the cars to the right. Turned out well.

We got lucky when Jorge (the white car) showed up out of the blue. Jorge had been lurking on this site and was not a member. However, he was monitoring the photoshoot thread. When the photoshoot was a go (after being postponed for a week), he made the trek down to the stadium (Qualcomm) for the shoot. We had no idea he was coming. His car rounded out the look. We had five different colors. Win.

Jorge is now a member of the site. He's following me to Bimmerfest (his first Bimmerfest) tomorrow morning.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Some of you may not see the new banner if you do not hit the refresh button. The old banner may be cached in your browser. If you still see the old banner, hit your refresh button or clear your cache.

Thanks, guys.

[billschusteriv]

+1. Love the banner. Very classy. Kudos to all involved...

Casey - I like the lighting... is that environment or did you have to set up a few lights of your own?

Also like the concept, edit, and push to refine and go live with it, Marcus.

[gr330zhp]

Stathi, yeah. Initially three of us had plates. Had to Pshop out the plates on the cars to the right. Turned out well.

We got lucky when Jorge (the white car) showed up out of the blue. Jorge had been lurking on this site and was not a member. However, he was monitoring the photoshoot thread. When the photoshoot was a go (after being postponed for a week), he made the trek down to the stadium (Qualcomm) for the shoot. We had no idea he was coming. His car rounded out the look. We had five different colors. Win.

Jorge is now a member of the site. He's following me to Bimmerfest (his first Bimmerfest) tomorrow morning.

Very very cool! Came out great

Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk

[Washburn]

Love the pic of the new banner...very nice!

not so much the text orientation of "ZHP Mafia". As it is in the corner, it's not realistic to show it as "converging" (angled). would make more sense if it was @ the center of the banner.
So in short: if in the left corner, font should be straight, if in the center, it can have the "converging" look.
(being nitpicky)

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Bill, glad you approve. It would be crappy if we had something on the site that sucked. I think this one jumps out at you. It should get the attention of new visitors, too.

When I saw the original banner (500x150), I knew that I would have to recreate this one and pull it across the entire site page (1160x160). Wasn't sure how it was going to ultimately look but it turned out as well as I could have expected.

Meanwhile, I don't expect everyone to like it. Just hoping that a large majority approve.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Wash, thanks for the tip. Originally, this ZHPMafia.com was in the center. That's probably why it had that look. When I altered it, I didn't know that the style was meant for a center placement. I will get it squared away.

Thanks again.

[C Withers Media]

That banner is WIN!

P.S. - Why are y'all up so late???????

My work day typically starts between 3pm and 5pm depending on when people schedule. 90 percent of my phone calls, administrative emails, and photoshoots happen between 5pm and 9pm when people are off of work. After that I go into the "dungeon", aka my digital darkroom and work on photos when it doesnt take away my family time.


I was busy working on the site last night. I often, when I have projects to work on, do them late at night when everyone is sleeping. That way it's least disruptive to everyone. Just looking out for you guys.

As for Casey, he was helping me put the final touches on the banner. Additionally, Casey works on his photography late into the evening (post processing work gets done into the wee hours of the morning). If I had to guess, that's what Casey was doing at 3 AM.

^This guy knows me a little too well... Bromance on the horizon.


+1. Love the banner. Very classy. Kudos to all involved...

Casey - I like the lighting... is that environment or did you have to set up a few lights of your own?

Also like the concept, edit, and push to refine and go live with it, Marcus.

Bill, this particular shot was taken in all natural light at a fairly high ISO. We were in a shaded area with harsh light all around us, so I was getting decent enough reflected light and what not. Its not a good situation to work in particularly, but I had a decent grasp on it that day.

[johnrando]

Banner looks great!

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Banner looks great!

Thanks, John. Now you see why I work late at night. You were watching the site transform last night. You must have done double take when you saw the banner changing sizes. hehe.

[johnrando]

Thanks, John. Now you see why I work late at night. You were watching the site transform last night. You must have done double take when you saw the banner changing sizes. hehe.

Yup, lol. It changed right before my eyes!

[tripod06]

loving the new banner. love the blackout of my plate! thanks Casey!

[Johnmadd]

Looks great since I seen it last night, love that it stretches across the whole screen.

[danewilson77]

Where did it go?

[az3579]

Where did it go?

That's what I was thinking when I got home; I thought I just had to clear my cookies to see if on my home computer, and I'm too lazy to do that. :rofl

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Where did it go?

It's still there. Clear your cache or refresh the screen.


iPad. Tapatalk. Bi-winning.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Banner is now complete. The ZHPMafia.com has been oriented properly.

Thanks, guys. And thanks, Jon Sibal, for making that tweak for me.

[danewilson77]

Got it. All is well.

[Hornung418]

LOVE IT!!!!!!

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Yep. Our browsers save a copy so the page loads faster. But it's also a curse when you have something new on the site, such as a new banner.

The world is well tonight (with our new banner in place).

[Marcus-SanDiego]

LOVE IT!!!!!!

Glad it's horny approved.