Add-ons, Plug-ins, and Extensibility for Creatives

Have you ever said, “I should really look into using some plug-ins for my work in InDesign (or Illustrator or Photoshop)…” and then forgot about it? This session is your chance to see some great demos of time-saving solutions that other people have invented to save you clicks in your day-to-day workflows. From the shortest script snippet to the deepest enterprise integration, “extensibility” has something for everyone.

Topics include:

  • Time-saving solutions for Creative Cloud products
  • Learn how you might get started building your own, if you know where to look (we’ll tell you where)
  • Amazing new add-ons for Adobe Express!

Microsoft Lunch Session: Presentation Design in the Copilot Era

This session is sponsored by Microsoft.

Get an inside look at how the PowerPoint team sees design of presentations evolving with AI and Copilot.

Watch the session here:

Microsoft Breakfast Session: Meet Microsoft Designer—Your Creative Partner

This session is sponsored by Microsoft.

Learn about the new Microsoft Designer, and how you can leverage it in your work and personal life to generate engaging graphics and images with AI.

Watch the session here:

Santa Cruz Software Breakfast Session: Scaling Banner Ad Creation with AI

This session is sponsored by Santa Cruz Software.

Join Luis Mendes as he showcases the power of BannersUI, an automated banner ad creation tool from Santa Cruz Software. Using AI, BannersUI resizes, repositions objects, and then exports various ad sizes while ensuring brand consistency. Transform your ad creation workflow with cutting-edge automation for maximum efficiency in marketing campaigns.

Watch the session here:

PageProof Breakfast Session: 5 Game Changers for Creative Workflow Efficiency

This session is sponsored by PageProof.

Unlock massive efficiency gains with PageProof! Discover 5 groundbreaking features designed to revolutionize your creative workflow. Harness best-in-class creative collaboration, seamless design tool integration, and AI-powered productivity boosts. Perfect for design and creative teams facing increasing workloads, this session will show you how to achieve more with less effort.

View the session here:

Walsworth Breakfast Session: Getting It Right, Right From the Start

This session is sponsored by Walsworth.

When you begin any print project, it’s very important to set your document up correctly, using the right trim size, margins, bleeds, and other settings. Join us for tips, tricks, and best practices for building documents destined for professional print output. Whether you’re building a catalog with hundreds of pages or a gate-fold brochure, there will be something for everyone.

Watch the session here:

Ignite CreativePro 2024

Come join us for dessert, plus a heaping helping of tips, tricks, and fun! Or sign up to present 20 slides in 5 minutes. It’s your opportunity to have five minutes of fame, in the relaxed and friendly confines of an after-hours get-together with your colleagues.

When: Tuesday, July 9, 7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Where: Arlington Ballroom

Who’s Invited: All conference attendees, speakers, sponsors, paparazzi, etc.

Cost: Free!

We’re putting on our annual fun “IGNITE”-style show and need your help! Do you have:

  • An unusual design or production-related technique that you use?
  • A “from the design trenches” anecdote to share — funny or serious?
  • Some hard-won lessons you’ve learned? Or wish your clients would learn…
  • Tips for getting the most out of a conference?
  • An incredibly complex table you created, or special effect, or the world’s best workspace?
  • Advice for designers or computer users or ?
  • Some other pro design topic that you’re passionate about?

Yes? Then take this opportunity to share it with your colleagues in 5 minutes or less! Only 12 spots are available, and it’s first-come first-serve, so don’t wait till the last minute. We’ll confirm via email with our final roster of 12 Ignite presenters and 2 alternates by Friday, June 28. If you’re not sure of a topic yet, but definitely want to do this thing, then fill out the form with a placeholder idea now to save your spot! You can fill it out again later (before June 28) once you’ve decided on a topic.

Rules (for audience members)

  1. Relax, have fun, and enjoy.
  2. Be supportive of your fellow attendees!

Rules (for presenters)

Sign-up for your slot below, but first read the rules:

  1. No prior speaking experience required. Don’t worry—the audience is very supportive. You’re among friends.
  2. Create a series of exactly 20 pages or slides in landscape format, which you will export to PDF and we’ll project it on screen during your talk. The first one’s your opener, the last one is your closer. Email the 20-page PDF to us or bring it with you on a USB Flash drive. Keep your slides simple!
  3. Content: Your topic must be about something related to the field of design or graphic production — tools, projects, tips, rants. It’s okay to be funny, but keep it clean and appropriate. Please don’t use this as a sales presentation or portfolio review. Violators will get “the hook”! If in doubt, ask Khara, your friendly MC, beforehand.
  4. Be prepared to talk about your topic for 5 minutes while we project your slides on the screen.
  5. The slides will auto-advance every 15 seconds! That’s the Ignite rule. And what makes it fun for the audience, too! 20 slides x 15 seconds = 5 minutes.
  6. When your five minutes are up, take a bow, enjoy the applause, and hand the mic back to the MC.

That’s all… nice and simple! Fill out the form below to sign up for fame, fortune, and hilarity. (And did we mention all IGNITE speakers earn a special conference keepsake for their efforts?)

Notes

2024 CreativePro Ignite Sign-up Sheet

Closing Session

It’s time to bring this five-day CreativePro extravaganza to a close. Join us for one last opportunity to catch a tip, win a prize, and learn what’s next on the horizon.

PowerPoint Add-Ins

Are you using PowerPoint add-ins? You should be! Add-ins are third-party plug-ins that expand PowerPoint’s capabilities and solve loads of problems, for users of every skill level from beginner to advanced. There are a lot of add-ins out there including some unbelievably great free ones. But how do you know which are worth having and which are best to ignore? Industry veteran and BrightCarbon Director Richard Goring has ideas for you!

Making the Most of PowerPoint Templates

Okay, we can all admit that making PowerPoint templates makes us nervous. Can we delete that layout? How should we handle page numbers? What about the color palette? Why can’t we set a font theme on a Mac? Will the client call us up in six months saying complaining about their bullet points formatting?

Templates are admittedly a big topic, but in this session we’ll take a look at some of the major dos and don’ts as well as best practices for putting together a basic PowerPoint template.