1988 Score – Jerry Hairston Jr.
I found this picture last season while going through some older ones for the 2010 set. I was mad that I couldn’t use it because Jerry was no longer on the Reds. When I decided to just make some cards for fun no matter what team the player was on that opened the door for me to get it on a card. My first thought was the 1988 Score set, and when I centered the picture on the card it seemed to work. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Andruw Jones
Today I found out that Andruw Jones had signed with the Yankees. I was kind of sad because I enjoyed watching him while he was a member of the White Sox. I thought that in honor of his signing I would make my first Yankee card of the set. The Sox uniform works fairly well as a Yankee uniform if you ignore the name on the back, and don’t look too closely. I might have a couple tweaks to the front of the Yankee card before the real set comes out. I like the picture of one of Andruw’s big swings. He was fun to photograph because he had a great swing. It was all out, and allowed for some nice shots. (more…)
1964 Topps – A.J. Pierzynski
This card is a bit of a stretch. I made a template of the 1964 Topps card early on in my card making days. I had trouble finding pictures to put on it though. After a while I realized that unless for some reason I was granted access to the players I would never fill these cards. I ended up just putting a few players on the card to see how it looked. I used this picture of A.J. signing for the fans on the last day of the season in 2010. (more…)
2011 csd preview – Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso is a hard guy for me to get a handle on. Sometimes he looks like he can do nothing wrong. Other times he takes some mental time off. During a Cubs-Cardinals game this past year he missed an entire at bat while in the field watching a fight in the stands. I know because I missed the at bat as well watching him. He never even glanced at the plate. I guess he might be good enough to go off the crack of the bat, but I doubt it. It looks to me like he dogs some plays. Of course just when Cubs fans counted him out last year he really started playing well. (more…)
1985 Topps – Nomar Garciaparra
This was originally going to be in the short print series. I liked the idea of having a Nomar card in the set, and the only pictures I had of him were from far away with an old camera. The good thing about having the subject far away is that you can see the banner for Ryne Sandberg in the background. The card was a stretch so I didn’t post it for a while. Considering the tens of people that look at this site I figured why not post it? (more…)
1988 Donruss – Tyler Flowers
I wanted to do a few things with the rookies on the Sox last year. I made some older cards featuring two players, and I also wanted to try my hand at a rated rookie. What better player to try that on than Tyler? Tyler has had an up and down career so far. After being traded from the Braves he tore up the Arizona Fall League. He did the same in the minors the next season. Last year he had an off year at Triple A. He was once thought to be the heir apparent to A.J. Pierzynski at catcher, but doubts have started to creep in. This will be an important year for Tyler as a member of the White Sox. (more…)
1987 Topps – Gordon Beckham
Another ’87 Topps card already? I have a few of them made. I told you that for some reason I really like the set. A few pictures just really seemed to look good on them as well. By the end of the season I am sure that I will have a complete team set plus some of the White Sox from the 1987 tribute set. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Kerry Wood
This off season Cub fans got a surprise when Kerry Wood signed for less money to come back to Chicago. The popular Cub signed a one year deal to pitch for the North Side again. I used an old picture of Kerry for this card. It was taken in 2003 four cameras ago before a Tampa Bay game. The picture is so old that the team was called the Devil Rays before they had their team exorcism. The cool part about the picture is that Kerry is signing an autograph for my buddy Rob. I never would have guessed that I would put this picture on a card eight years later. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Aramis Ramirez
Since the Cubs convention is this weekend I thought that I would put out a few Cubs cards in this preview set. The first cards in the set is of Aramis Ramirez. Aramis has been with the Cubs since 2003 providing a solid bat from the hot corner. I took this picture of him last May as he was batting against Dan Haren and the Diamondbacks. I liked the picture, but it did not fit the 1985 Topps mold I was using last season. Instead of this one I used the next frame where Ramirez was a little more compact. As you can see not much different with the Cubs design. I went with the alternate logo because I liked it a little more on the card. (more…)
1989 Upper Deck – Franklin Gutierrez
I have liked this picture ever since I took it in 2008. I wanted to fit it into the set last year, but Franklin was not on the Indians anymore. Since I decided to just make some cards I was able to finally use it. For some reason part of Franklin’s pregame ritual was to stand on his head. For some reason I was taking pictures, and luckily enough just so happened to see it at the right time to capture it. I really lucked out here. (more…)
1984 Fleer – Carlos Quentin
Here is another 1984 Fleer card. I made these from scratch as well, but as you can see by the design there is not too much to them. That being said I like the simple design, and how some of these pictures look on it. This would also be an easy design to change for other teams. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Brandon Phillips
As I was making these cards yesterday I noticed that both Brandon and Grady were in the Expos organization at the same time. They were both traded to the Indians along with a bunch of other players including Bartolo Colon. As iwith all the Reds cards in this preview set, and for that matter on this site so far the picture was taken at the 2009 Civil Rights Game. I really liked the throwback unis so I took a few pictures. This is one of Brandon before the game getting loosened up. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Grady Sizemore
Grady is a great center fielder. The picture above does not show it, but he really is a great athlete. If you have seen his pictures that he posted online with his camera phone he is built as well. When looking for his rookie card for the back of this edition I stumbled upon a couple of custom cards that people had made of his cell phone pictures. Those were pretty good. As it says on the back of the card this picture was taken on what should have been the last day of the regular season in 2008 as Grady was warming up before the game. I really don’t have too many good pictures of Sizemore because I either have bad seats, or he was injured that game. Maybe this year I can see him play again. (more…)
1983 Fleer – A.J. Pierzynski
Here is yet another oldie but goodie. This is the first regular White Sox card in the 1983 Fleer set that I have been making. I made a Joe Crede card as a Twin, and a Super Star Special card featuring Mark Buehrle and Dewayne Wise. I like the 1983 Fleer design, but may have to try and use my new program to make a new template. This one looks a little rough. (more…)
1988 Score – Derrek Lee
Although he is no longer a member of the Cubs I thought that I would still put a few cards up of Lee while he was a Cub. I had a couple of good pictures that I thought would be perfect for a couple of card designs. This one seemed to fit the ’88 Score model perfectly. It seemed as if they had about seven kinds of photos that they put on a card. That is not a scientific number at all. It is just me going off of my memory. You have to remember that I take pictures because I have a bad memory. So take my statements lightly. This just looked like a Score picture to me. I really like how this card turned up. I don’t think that I could have taken an actual card and made it look better than my photoshop version. (more…)
1984 Topps – Mark Buehrle
One of the hardest sets for me to make so far has been this one. The card is simple, but trying to get the team name to look good was the hardest part. I ended up just doing a little cut and paste of the text and placing it on my card that I had made. I don’t think the card turned out badly. I love the set and would love to make more of them. The one problem is that you have to have a close up of the player for the box in the lower left hand corner. I have a couple more of these waiting around, but I need more headshots before I can get any more made. I guess I have a goal for this season. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – David Wright
I have been having fun making cards for each team. With all the snow on the ground there really is not a whole lot going on. I took this picture in 2008 when we made our trip to New York to see both ballparks before they were torn down. I was pretty far away from David, so I was surprised at how well the picture looks on the card. Usually the long shots don’t blow up so well. I guess the conditions were perfect for my camera settings that day. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Trevor Hoffman
I thought that since one of the best closers ever is going to retire that is no reason why he can’t have a card in this set. I took this picture in 2007 when I saw the Padres playing the Cubs. I knew that Trevor was good, but at the time I had no idea that the picture would end up on a card. I decided that since he doesn’t have a team that it wouldn’t matter that I made a Padres card for him. One of my all-time favorite cards was the 1989 Fleer card of Mike Schmidt where they honor his career. For some reason I have always liked that. I thought that a card showing him on the team where he did the most damage was the best course of action. If you notice I did change one thing on the front. Instead of a dash in between the players name and position I placed a diamond there. I thought that it looked good as well as being the surface that the game is played on. (more…)
1986 Topps – Johan Santana
Johan was one of the dominant pitchers if the the dominant pitcher in the American League Central during his time with the Twins. That is why it did not break my heart when he signed a contract to play in New York for the Mets. He has not really had the same type of sucess in New York as he had in Minnesota. (more…)
1988 Donruss – Jake Peavy
I was able to see Peavy pitch a few times earlier this season before he was hurt. Jake really does let it all hang out when he pitches. Looking through my pictures you can see the effort on his face as he lets the ball go. With his mechanics it will be interesting to see how he comes back from his injury. (more…)
1985 Fleer – Alex Rios
I love the look of the 1985 Fleer set. Early on in my card making days I made this template from scratch. It looks a little off, but I still like the look of the card. For some reason the gaudy cards from the 80’s are still my favorite. (more…)
2011 csd Preview – Juan Pierre
This was the first card that I tried to put on its side. I am still not sure how I feel about it. I like the fact that I can flip a card. A picture like this one of Juan would not have been usable, or would have looked weird on a regular card. I took this picture early in the season when the Sox were playing the Royals. Juan was diving back to the bag, and I happened to capture it with my camera. (more…)
1987 Topps – Trevor Hoffman
I like this card a little better than the other one I did tonight for Trevor. This is the classic 1987 Topps style with of course a new picture on it. I think that I might be one of the only people who still like this set. It is just a classic. (more…)
1986 Fleer Baeball’s Best – Trevor Hoffman
With the news today that Trevor is retiring I thought that I would make a couple cards of him. This one was probably done a little too quick. It is from the 1986 Fleer Basball’s Best subset. The original card had Goose Gossage on it in a Padre uniform so I thought it was only fitting to put Trevor in his place. (more…)
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