Jambi

Well, here we are. The last post in this current incarnation of Bonne Isle. My intention has always been to show the island as a snapshot in time, not as an ever evolving city journal. I may continue on in the future (I've actually laid out some new roads and dropped in a business or two already), but considering how long it took me to get this version up, who know how long it will be. Anyway, I wanted to thank everyone for their comments, including the last three from Benedict, Will, and jacqulina. They're all much appreciated. So here are the last few pics. Thanks again! Jambi

Fold up that big Bonne Isle Map. Next Time: We wrap up our trip to 1950's Bonne Isle and see what the future might bring.

Originally posted by: Nardo69 Looks nice but don't they build larger RR station at such junctions even if the next seddelemtn is rather small? quote> Thanks Bernhard. I have no idea. Maybe not around Bonne Isle. Originally posted by: Benedict Excellent stuff as always. Great name for the railroad, and I love the way it cuts through Eastwood Ridge.quote> Thanks. I don't know if that's how it would really be done but I thought it looked cool too. Originally posted by: nihonkaranws Excellent stuff as always indeed. You astounded me again. Yay, Canadians (my cousins)! Ha, hope to see more soon!quote>Yay Canada! And that's where we're going next!

Been so long you can't remember where you are? Especially when you've got a big Bonne Isle map right here. Next Time: We visit our neighbors on the Canadian side.

Charles, Silur, Nardo69, Packersfan, thanks all! I'll have a new update shortly!

Since I've been asked a few times, here's a quick and dirty visual guide to how I make my book pages. I started by making the spine, inside cover, and pages of the book. This is all done in Photoshop using various paper textures manipulated in ways I can't recall. I actually made much of the book a few years ago but didn't get around to making my city journal until recently. I'd probably do this in a different way now if I were to start over. Next, I take several screen shots of the area I want to appear on the pages. In this example we're looking east over Belle Oak Borough. Because the in-game screen only shows the borough that's in play at the time, I take shots of the adjacent boroughs and butt them up against each other so that it doesn't look like the land just "ends". At this point I take out such things as the yellow arrows at the edge of the map, as well as things like wind generators that I don't want showing up. It was difficult powering up certain areas without having to build them and I didn't want to ruin the illusion that this was a rural area in 1950s Midwest America. I also change colors of buildings just for fun too and blend the water color so it's consistent across the whole picture. When I've finished with that I add a false sense of perspective. By using the distort feature in Photoshop I squeeze the top half of the picture so that the roads look like they converge on a point far in the distance. Once the picture is all manipulated I add it to the book. I put it on a layer above and set it to "multiply" so that the texture of the paper will show through. You probably can't see it though, but I know it's there. Here you'll also notice that I added some haze up in the right hand corner to give it some atmosphere like we're looking over a long distance from high up in the air. Here I've placed border lines showing where the other boroughs begin, along with the compass that looks like the one from the game. I'm not completely happy with how the perspective on the compass looks, but it'll do. Then I add the street names which I double check for placement on the Bonne Isle map. I've put a darker blurred color behind so that the names will show up better against the map. After that a white strip with the island map is added as an introduction. I finish this step by putting in the page numbers (making sure I get them numbered right), and making up names for things that don't appear on the Bonne Isle map. To finish up the page I add this layer on multiply to add shadows and some grunge to make it look aged... ...and this page set to "screen" for highllghts At last, the finished page comes out to look like this: Next Time: We'll finally take a look at some of Bonne Isle's neighbors!

Originally posted by: Almighty Nienaber how do you do that?quote> Stay tuned and all will be revealed.

Sorry it's been so long since an update. I was inundated with work and then was on vacation away from my computer. I felt so alone being away from it for so long. Anyway, I'll have a real update shortly. Originally posted by: Benedict Another good update - I really like the name Badger Cliffs.quote> Thanks! Originally posted by: ky72x Hehe, I like that postcard. You can only guess why. This CJ continues to be a standout with the book format, excellent pics, and nice captions. Your captions blend humor and daily/long-term issues very nicely. I really like that! Impressive overview shot of the area, and that's one clever hiding spot for police cars. - Kylequote> Thanks, Kyle. It was fun coming up with back stories. Originally posted by: Opals25 Originally posted by: Jambi 10 points for anyone who can find the real world Bonne Isle and tell me what it's real name is. Hint: there ain't much there.quote> Looks an awful lot like Neebish Island. Can I use my 10 points for a new update?quote> You win! I wanted to make an island and just happened to be flipping through my Michigan Gazetteer when I saw it. Your 10 points have been allocated to the upcoming update.

Nice downtown! I like that it's not overdone, just a few nicely placed tall buildings. It looks like a nice place to live.

Originally posted by: CallbatHey, are those the White Cliffs of Dover in that first bit? quote>Probably, likely. I'm not sure where I got that photo.

Looking for a way off the island?/B] Look on the big Bonne Isle map right here. That concludes our tour of Bonne Isle... Next Time: We'll take a look at some of Bonne Isle's neighbors!

Smarty218, nihonkaranws, lucky7, thanks all! New update coming in minutes.

Originally posted by: bbfan02 Great work and update!quote>Thanks once again, bbfan02! Originally posted by: ky72x Beautiful presentation of the updates in the form of a book/tourist guide. It looks very nice! Even though you don't use too much Custom Content, the ones that you did use are great choices for a town like St. Helen. Keep it up, and I'll be sure to return for more. - Kylequote> Thanks. I found that a lot of the custom content wasn't working properly on my Mac. But I discovered that If I first downloaded it to a PC (which I sometimes have access to) and then copy to my Mac it works okay. Who knew? So in the future I might have some more custom stuff in there. Originally posted by: thatdamguy I love your photoshop skills, they are extremely impressive! I also love the small town feel of this last page! Great job quote> Thank you very much. I'm always trying to improve my photoshop skills. Sometimes I feel like such an amateur when I see what other people do. And I look at some of the stuff I did here, much of it having been done for a year or more, and already think I would have done it differently. You might not see it, but below the surface all I see is sloppy, sloppy, sloppy. I guess we're always learning. Originally posted by: farmer-alex I could spend hours reading all the pictures and narrative.... *looks at clock* Oh. I have. haha Looking forward to more. quote> Oh, thanks for that! I'm glad that I've been able to hold your interest for that long! Originally posted by: Benedict Love the wine stains quote> Originally posted by: The_Hutt The photoshopping really stands out to me, that's a big plus. Keep it up!quote> Thanks. I try! Originally posted by: Criquette Oh, great CJ concept and its realisation quote>I'm glad you took a look. ........ I've got a "how to" update coming up after I unveil Tapiola Borough. There's only a few more updates left in this 1950s tour of Bonne Isle. After that? Who knows what happens?

Who needs a GPS? Especially when you've got a big Bonne Isle map right here. Next Time: Our tour of Bonne Isle starts to wind down in the Borough of Tapiola!

Sand Island - just a coincidence Opals25. It sounds so unoriginal doesn't it? Truthfully, the shape and size of Bonne Isle is based on an actual island and that little piece of land was called Sand Isle already. So I didn't even make it up. I guess if the name fits, use it. 10 points for anyone who can find the real world Bonne Isle and tell me what it's real name is. Hint: there ain't much there.