Studio Birdcage

Barrett Long web design and development journal

Rebuilding the Site: Astro.js Is Kinda Awesome!

I needed to get a portfolio site back online, and I had one that I really liked and had spent a lot of time on. However, a lot of that time went into creating a custom CMS (because why not?). I could have got it up and running, but it was not fun to work with and required a server and all sorts of things. Luckily, since I built it in 2018, things have changed dramatically in the development space. I had been wanting to use Astro for something for a while, so this was the perfect time to recreate the portfolio while getting to use fun tools like MDX.

  • Astro.js
  • Tailwind CSS
  • React
  • GitHub Pages

Ten Awesome Features in Photoshop CC

Adobe Photoshop CC is the industry standard at this point. There is really no arguing that. So, I figured it was time that someone sat down and wrote out a list of like ten things that they find super cool about Photoshop. That is a pretty novel idea... Right!

  • Design
  • Adobe CC
  • Adobe Photoshop

The Making of Studio Birdcage Part 1: So Many False Starts

In part one of the thrilling development story of this very website, I reminisce about all the false starts. It is a gripping tale of one man's struggle with a design that is not working, an overly ambitious plan, and a voice in his head that will simply not shut up. Doesn't that sound like something worth reading?

  • Design
  • Studio Birdcage

The Making of Studio Birdcage Part 2: Building a Backend

Content Management Systems are the bee's knees. That being said, I have never found one that I felt I truly enjoyed using. So when I started planning the build for Studio Birdcage, the solution was obvious. Why not build your own? I mean, how hard can it be!

  • Laravel 5.5
  • Development
  • Studio Birdcage

The Making of Studio Birdcage Part 3: Launch and Beyond

After taking much longer than I would like to admit, Studio Birdcage is live (kinda). It is still very much in beta, but stable enough not to crash constantly. Which is nice. In the dramatic third act of this development story, I impart all the knowledge I have gained during this journey and might even tease some future plans.

  • Development
  • Studio Birdcage