For Speaker, Spainhour, and Dorn, who got me this far. And for you, to help you go even farther. I’m so proud of you!
The Roadmap A.K.A. THE TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Hey There!
When You Get Stuck
10
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Project Time Client Contracts Client Responses
Finish That File! Magnificent Mockups Imposter Syndrome Keep Going, You Matter
CHAPTER ZERO
CHAPTER ONE
20
CHAPTER TWO The Beginning Ideating
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CHAPTER THREE Paper Sizes Bindings Finishings Images Sizes Keyboard Shortcuts Typography Color Illustrations
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
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STICKER TIME
Chapter Zero WELCOME TO THE FAMILY
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Hey There! LET ME INTRODUCE YOU Welcome to the graphic design family, we’re all crazy! But it’s like a fun Thanksgiving dinner crazy. Let me introduce you to everyone. There’s your wild wine aunt who uses Comic Sans. Over there is your overachieving cousin who makes her own paper for each project. And I’m your design big sister, a little annoying sometimes but really wants the best for you and has your best interests at heart. I’m your biggest fan, and can’t wait to see the amazing wonderful things you are going to create!
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“It is very important to embrace failure and to do a lot of stuff —as much stuff as possible— with as little fear as possible.” STEFAN SAGMEISTER
Chapter One SO YOU HAVE A PROJECT
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Project Time WHO IS IT FOR Ooh, what are you going to create? A sick website for a local business? An album cover for your favorite band? An entire magazine about dogs? Whatever it is, I’m sure it will rock. Let’s get going, we’ve got ideas to come up with and projects to make!
SCHOOL PROJECT So, you’re a graphic design student who just received their project brief from your professor. Super exciting! Make sure you take notes on all of your project requirements, make a list of what you need to get done, circle the deadline on your calendar, and get going on researching!
CLIENT WORK Whether it’s your first-ever freelance client or your 24th, here are some key things to include in your contract. Learn from my mistakes and make sure to include these so you don’t have a five-month-long unresolved client project (what...no...I’m not speaking from experience…) 12
“Good design is honest.”
DIETER RAMS
Client Contracts FOR EVERYONE’S SANITY Okay, I’m definitely speaking from experience. My first freelance client contract left out way too many important aspects that led to a less than ideal experience. Hopefully this list will help your freelance jobs go a little more smoothly. The next page has a list of some of the most important items to include in a contract.
DEADLINES The most important thing to include (besides payment) is the deadline. Make sure you and your client agree on the deadline, that way you aren’t rushed in designing and your client can hold you accountable. Don’t provide an unrealistic deadline; make sure to add at least three days to the amount of time you think 14
it will take you to complete the job, emergencies happen (computer crashes, WIFI going out, files getting lost, the list goes on and on!). Also, if you have trouble with time management, list out a few milestone deadlines for individual aspects of the project. Informing your client of when you will provide mood boards, sketches, progress updates, and then the first draft can help keep you accountable and on track to complete your project.
REVISIONS Ensuring you include the intended amount of revisions you will provide to the client will help both you and the client stay on track. Without a set number of revisions, the back
and forth between you and the client will be endless. When you set a limit of three revisions, it ensures the client takes the time to fully air all of their desired changes, and you then have the time to make them all. It’s a win-win for everyone!
PRICING Whew. This is the hard one. Pricing varies per designer; there isn’t one right answer to how much you should charge. However, there are two basic ways to go about pricing your work: by the hour or a flat rate per project. A flat rate per project is, in my opinion, best for smaller jobs, like a single logo, social media graphic, or one page design. The benefit of a flat rate price is that you are able to get paid a defined amount no matter how long it actually takes you to complete the job. This is also good when your client has a set budget
that you need to fit within. However, don’t undervalue your time by working many hours for a flat rate. You want to ensure that your investment of time in the project is equal to your compensation. The other method is an hourly rate, which is what I prefer, as you are being more accurately paid for the work you complete. You may run into an issue with this method of payment if your client has a more restricted budget. To calculate your hourly rate, you must take into consideration your level of experience with the value of your time. Personally, I charge time and a half from my regular ‘day job’ for freelance work, as that is a job I complete in my off-time. This will be different for everyone, but trust me when I say, don’t be afraid to charge people! Your time is valuable, and you deserve to be accurately compensated for your creativity and ideas.
Don’t let someone undervalue your skills just because they exist in the realm of the arts!
COMMUNICATION This may come about naturally when coming into contact with your client, but in this age of social connection, I think it is important to establish modes of communication with your client. Whether this is restricting contact to just email, or providing your personal phone number or Instagram page to stay connected, figure out your communication comfort level and set those boundaries with your client from the beginning.
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“Great ideas come from problems. As designers, we call problems, briefs, and we call reactions to problems, concepts.” KATE MOROSS
Client Responses WHEN WORDS ESCAPE YOU Often I don’t know what to say when a client has a request or crazy idea. These responses are for when you don’t know what to say. Feel free to rewrite, copy, plagiarize, and steal to your heart’s content.
CAN YOU MAKE THE LOGO BIGGER? Hello there! In regards to making the logo larger in your design, I have attached some options for how large I would recommend making your logo. I want to make sure we are utilizing space the best we can for you, which means making sure we have space to include (either other elements of the design, or blank space for the viewers’ eyes to rest). Let me know what you think of these options, I’m sure we can find a well-balanced option for you.
CAN YOU MAKE THE LOGO SMALLER? Hello there! Unfortunately, when you apply 18
your logo in this size, it will not be legible to the viewer. I’d recommend one of these sizes, as it helps make sure everyone will be able to identify this (insert product or design here) as a part of your brand!
I’LL KNOW WHAT I WANT WHEN I SEE IT! That is totally understandable! However, I want to make sure I successfully create (insert project here) for you, and it is difficult to draw from nothing. Here are some sketches and inspiration (either that you created or source images you collect) for you to look over and let me know what speaks to you!
WE CAN PAY YOU IN EXPOSURE! Hello! As I am a freelance/student/ professional graphic designer, my rates are already established to ensure I am fairly compensated for the work I provide you. I have listed them below for you, let me know if these are within your company budget. (Insert flat or hourly rates here) I look forward to hearing from you!
Chapter Two RESEARCHING
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The Beginning DEFINE, DEFINE, DEFINE
The dictionary is a very good place to start! The best way to get started on a project is to define your terms. It’s way less intimidating than jumping straight into a blank sketchbook page! Whether these are words connected to a school assignment, or just general terms your client said they wanted their logo to feel like, start with the origins. Then move on to synonyms and antonyms to broaden your search. (Throw in a quick idioms search as well, you can find lots of very interesting phrases you’ve never heard before!). Once you have some words surrounding your field/topic, these words can help lead your ideating process. Need a place to jot down these notes? The next pages are for you!
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“Good design is honest.”
DIETER RAMS
Ideating TIME TO GET THINKING
WORD MAP Can’t get past your first ideas? Let’s move on by mapping out some connected ideas. Start with a word in the middle of the map. Then, think of the first word that comes to mind in an attached bubble. Keep going outwards until you’ve filled all of the bubbles and have some completely new words to get inspiration from! Here, I filled out an example one for you to help get you started!
FREE WRITING Literally, write anything that comes to mind when you think of your topic. Even if you are creating packaging for snacks, if a moose comes to mind, write it down. It helps. Put in your headphones, and brain dump on the next page.
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Wow these are some great ideas!
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Ooh, this page is going to be full of great thoughts.
Keep going, you’re onto something!
STRANGE CONNECTIONS Okay, hear me out. Do you have two completely different (or even just slightly different) topics for your project that you don’t know how to connect? Then this is the ideation process for you! Start with your two words, and those synonyms we looked up earlier. Put one word on the left, with its synonyms below it, and do the same on the right with word two. From there, use the blank spaces between the words to find a connection. In the example on the right, I started with hope and book. but I’ve ended with many more words that even if they don’t lead to anything, could inspire further research and thought. Use the blank spaces on the next page the next time you are at a dead end, and hopefully this ideation 28
exercise will help spark some new paths to follow. Oh and just in case you can’t find your sketchbook, the next pages include some grid paper for sketching!
Hope
Improve
Growth
Self-Help
Book
Ambition
Grades
Graduation
School
Textbook
Promise
Vows
Wedding
Bible
Volume
Goal
Achieve
Career
Creativity
Portfolio
Optimism
Feelings
Poetry
Progress
Writing
Chapter Three LET’S GET BUILDING
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Paper Sizes ALL THE PAPER, ALL IN ONE PLACE
Here we go. It’s time. Time to bring your idea to life and start building! First off, let’s start with the size of your project. Crack open your Adobe program, find the right size, and create your file!
NORTH AMERICAN SHEET SIZES The North American Sheet Sizes are based on the measurement of 8.5x11 inches, but not really. I don’t even know. The metric system makes so much more sense. However, if you live or work in North America it’s what we use! Here are the typical sizes of paper for your standard design projects.
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LETTER 8.5x11 inches Great for a flyer, handout, or fold in half for a brochure.
LEGAL 8.5x14 inches Good for...slightly larger brochures?!
LEDGER 11x17 inches Standard size for regular posters.
POSTER 18x24 inches Slightly larger posters!
INTERNATIONAL SHEET SIZES
2A0
Spoiler alert: these paper sizes make a lot more sense, in my opinion. International Sheet Sizes are all based on the metric system, and are multiples of one meter. The A0 size is one square meter and every size down is one half of the size above it. The same goes for the paper sizes larger than the A0, they are two times larger than one square meter.
A0
1189x1682 millimeters
841x1189 millimeters
A1 594x841 millimeters
A2 420x594 millimeters
A3 297x420 millimeters
A4 210x297 millimeters
A5 148x210 millimeters
Bindings KEEPING IT TOGETHER Making a book, magazine, or other kind of publication? Here are the most popular binding options to keep in mind.
PERFECT BINDING Once you fold your pages into stacks (called signatures) the spine side is milled down to remove the folded edges. Glue is applied to the edge of the spine and the cover is wrapped around the book.
SADDLE STITCH For a saddle stitch bound book, the book cover and signatures are nested within each other, and then stapled through the center of the fold.
PLASTIC COMB BINDING A common binding for presentations or folders, the plastic comb binding is readily available at most print shops. The cover and pages of the book are assembled, holes are drilled into the paper’s edge. Then the plastic comb is inserted into 38
these holes and then closed to create a bound edge.
SPIRAL BOUND Yep, it’s pretty much exactly what it sounds like. The cover and pages are assembled in order, holes are drilled into the paper, and plastic or wire spiral is spun through the holes. This holds together the pages and cover, and can easily be removed to add more pages to the book.
Finishings GETTING FANCY There are many ways to add unique elements to your designs, finishings being among them. These finishings listed below, when utilized well, help your print designs stand out!
EMBOSSING Embossing is a super cool way to add interesting textures to your printed materials! To emboss a design onto a piece of paper, the paper is pressed between two molds to leave a raised impression. Fun Fact: If the impression is made lower than the paper’s surface, it is called debossing.
FOIL STAMPING Ever wanted to make invitations with shiny metallic gold borders? Foil stamping is how you make that happen! For foil stamping, heat is used to press paper against a thin film containing colored metallic pigment. The heat transfers the pigment to the paper, resulting in an opaque layer of shiny foil. 40
DIE CUTS A die cut uses a specifically shaped piece of metal (like a cookie cutter) to cut a shape out of the designed object. If that seems kind of vague, that’s because it is. Die cuts vary so much, it’s hard to narrow them down! But everything from a window cut into the front of a greeting card to cloud-shaped stickers use a die line. Fun Fact: When you make a sticker sheet that the stickers peel up from, that utilizes a kiss die cut, as it doesn’t cut through the entire sheet, just the sticky layer!
SCORING Scoring is the act of gently creating a crease in your sheet of paper so that ink that has been printed on it doesn’t crack when fully folded. I’d suggest using a bone folder and using the edge to press a line on the paper where the fold will be before fully folding the paper along the ridge. Then, once the paper is fully folded, run the bone folder along the top edge of the fold to make sure it’s pressed into place. Definitely use scoring when folding heavy cover stock paper or a design with a lot of ink on the paper. This will improve the overall craftsmanship of your project!
PERFORATION Perforation is the act of utilizing a line of small holes to make tearing your paper easier. Small holes are punched in the paper in the desired shape, so that a certain part of the paper can be torn away. Perforations are very helpful when your design has a specified area that needs to be removed, like a coupon in a magazine, or information ticket at the bottom of a poster or flyer.
DRILLING/PUNCHING Since certain binding methods require holes to place a spiral or plastic comb through, drilling and punching are more common finishings. Printers use a drill to create these holes before binding the project together.
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“Everything is designed. Few things are designed well.”
BRIAN REED
Image Sizes FOR THE INTERNET Yes, the Internet changes every day so these may go out of style soon. But here are the most common design sizes for the web and social media. These measurements are all in pixels, not inches, as they are being designed for the Internet. Upload quality is the most important aspect of web sizing, so make sure you double-check before you design!
WEBSITE IMAGES Image the width of the browser: 2500 pixels in width, height can be whatever you want! Image is less than the width of the browser: 1800 pixels in width Thumbnail images: 1500 pixels on longest edge
BANNER ADS Large Rectangle: 336x280 pixels Medium Rectangle: 300x250 pixels Leaderboard: 728x90 pixels 44
Skyscraper: 120x60 pixels Large Mobile Banner: 320x100 pixels
FACEBOOK Profile: 170x170 pixels Feed: 1200x630 pixels Banner: 820x312 pixels Event Cover Image: 1920x1080 pixels Highlighted Image: 1200x717 pixels
INSTAGRAM Profile: 110x110 pixels Feed Landscape: 1080x566 pixels Feed Square: 1080x1080 pixels Feed Portrait: 1080x1350 pixels Stories: 1080x1920 pixels
TWITTER Profile: 400x400 pixels Banner: 1500x500 pixels Feed: 600x335 pixels (This is the size of the image preview. As long as the image is a 16:9 ratio it will be able to be viewed larger when clicked on.)
LINKEDIN Profile: 400x400 pixels Banner: 1548x396 pixels Company Logo: 300x300 pixels Company Cover Image: 1776x444 pixels Feed: 1104x736 pixels
Article Cover Image: 2000x600 pixels
YOUTUBE Profile: 800x800 pixels Banner: 2560x1140 pixels Video Thumbnail: 1280x720 pixels
PINTEREST Profile:n165x165 pixels Pin Images: 236 pixels in width, height will be different depending on where the image is displayed, recommended ratio is 1:3.5 to 2:3.
SNAPCHAT Geofilter: 1080x1920 pixels Image Ad: 1080x1920 pixels
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“Design is thinking made visual.”
SAUL BASS
Keyboard Shortcuts FOR THE BIG THREE The amount of times I search up the keyboard shortcuts for the same actions on each of these programs is astronomical, so this list is just as much for me as it is for you! Here are the basic keyboard shortcuts for Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop.
ILLUSTRATOR Bring Forward: Cmd + ] Bring to Front: Shift + Cmd + ] Decrease Type Size: Shift + Cmd + < Deselect All: Shift + Cmd + A Direct Selection: A Duplicate: Opt + Shift + Cmd + D Ellipse: L Eyedropper: I Export: Cmd + E Gradient: G Group: Cmd + G Hand: H Increase Type Size: Shift + Cmd + > Magic Wand: Y 48
New File: Cmd + N Open File: Cmd + O Pencil: N Pen: P Print Project: Cmd + P Rectangle: M Rotate: R Save File: Cmd + S Select All: Cmd + A Send Backward: Cmd + [ Send to Back: Shift + Cmd + [ Scale: S Selection: V Show Grid: Cmd + â&#x20AC;&#x2DC; Show Guides: Cmd + ; Type: T Ungroup: Shift + Cmd + G View Actual Size: Cmd + 0 Zoom: Z
INDESIGN Add Page: Shift + Cmd + P Bring Forward: Cmd + ] Bring to Front: Shift + Cmd + ] Check Spelling: Cmd + I Deselect All: Shift + Cmd + A Duplicate: Opt + Shift + Cmd + D Export: Cmd + E Find/Change: Cmd + F Forced Line Break: Shift + Enter
Group: Cmd + G Hand: H Hide Guides: Cmd + ; Increase Kerning/Tracking: Opt + Shift + Right Arrow Increase Leading: Opt + Down Arrow Increase Point Size: Shift + Cmd + > Lock: Cmd + L New Document: Cmd + N Open Document: Cmd + O Package: Opt + Shift + Cmd + P Paste in Place: Opt + Shift + Cmd + V Place Image: Cmd + D Print: Cmd + P Rectangle Frame Tool: F Save: Cmd + S Select: V Select All: Cmd + A Send Backward: Cmd + [ Send to Back: Shift + Cmd + [ Type: T Ungroup: Shift + Cmd + G View Actual Size: Cmd + 1 Zoom: Z
PHOTOSHOP Brush: B Clone Stamp: S Crop: C Decrease Brush Size: [ 50
Dodge/Burn: O Eraser: E Eyedropper: I Gradient: G Hand: H Increase Brush Size: ] Lasso Tool: L Magic Wand Tool: W Move Tool: V Pen: P Rectangle: U Rectangle Marquee Tool: M Spot Healing Brush: J Zoom: Z
Typography MORE THAN PICKING A FONT Every designer has a love/ hate relationship with type. Sometimes you get along great, and sometimes youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re screaming at Montserrat on your computer as if it can hear you and kern itself. But take my word for it. If you take time and put in the work, it can be a wonderful marriage. (Yes, a marriage, unfortunately thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no getting away from type as a designer.) Just in case you forget which is which, here are the different kinds of typefaces, as well as a hit list
ends of each letter are called serifs. These typefaces feel more handwritten and are easy to read, making them great for large paragraphs of copy.
of my personal (and therefore universal) worst typefaces.
strict cousin to regular serifs. These typefaces seem similar to a serif, but a slab serif is much bolder and blockier. A slab serif has the small stroke on the ends of letters like
SERIF A serif typeface is based on Roman chisel-cut letterforms. The little extra strokes on the 52
SANS SERIF Sans serif typefaces, you guessed it, are sans (or without) the serifs. So, no strokes on the ends, which helps these typefaces be more legible in larger applications. Headers, titles, billboards, everything benefits from a sans serif!
SLAB SERIF Slab serif typefaces are the
a regular serif typeface but they are much thicker and more squared off, creating a sometimes imposing typeface. While often overdone, a nice and polished slab serif can help a headline stand out, or create clarity in small amounts of body copy.
SCRIPT Script typefaces are tricky. They are trying to emulate something analog, the cursive handwriting, but digitally. As you can guess, this results in a wide variety of script typefaces but very few decent ones. Script typefaces are best in very specific applications, like wedding stationary, where an elegant and flowing hand-lettered look is desired. Be choosy when deciding on a script typeface; better yet, just write it yourself!
DECORATIVE Ah, the wildcard, decorative typefaces. Also known as,
every typeface on Dafont.com. Now donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get me wrong, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a pretty big fan of the wacky typefaces that website has to offer. However, there is a certain time and place for a typeface party. These typefaces are each usually created for one purpose and one purpose only, unlike a good sans serif that can be applied across many types of projects. Be especially careful with choosing decorative typefaces, sometimes they hurt more than help!
Type Tips
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ONE
FOUR
It takes time to develop type skills and type sophistication, practice makes progress.
Sick of using the same three typefaces? Branch out by utilizing the favorite typefaces of @Typetopia on Instagram!
TWO
FIVE
Type pairings can be hard! Check out Typewolf.com online for their great type pairing resources.
Typography is synonymous with concept, the concept is reflected in the type chosen
THREE
SIX
Immerse yourself in the field to find success, find the masters and follow them!
From vintage to script to holiday typefaces, Losttype.com has some great typefaces you can download for free, definitely check them out!
Typeface Hit List Just donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t use these, this is the opposite of a Top 10 Typefaces list. In my opinion good typefaces come and go, but bad typefaces never change.
COMIC SANS
PAP Y RU S COMIC PAPYRUS
C U RL Z TRAJAN Zapfino
AMERICAN T YPEWRITER
BR U S H S CR I P T
Lucida Calligraphy BRAD L EY H A N D
Color CULTIVATING COLOR PALETTES The saying goes, ‘Graphic Design is my passion’, but I actually think creating color palettes is my passion. A great color palette can make a design, so check out these great resources to help you form yours!
COOLORS.CO Nothing beats Coolors, they make creating a color palette so fun and easy! Create palettes with multiple colors, export the builds in RGB, CMYK, HEX, and more. You can even drag in a photo for Coolors to help you make a palette from it’s colors.
PIGMENT.SHAPEFACTORY.CO A wonderful website with a great user interface to help find the exact right shade for you!
COLORHUNT.CO Search through recently created color palettes, or sort by most recent, trending, or random for new palettes.
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DESIGN-SEEDS.COM This website features color palette inspiration based on photography and cultivated by season.
COLORS.MUZ.LI A great website to visit if you know what initial color you would like to work with, as it provides additional colors to match. The site also generates a mockup interface to show what your color palette would look like applied to design.
PANTONE.COM/COLOR-FINDER A super helpful website if you are needing to find a specific Pantone swatch, or need to match your color to itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pantone equivalent!
Illustrations WORDS MADE VISUAL Sometimes a clean icon or illustration is the key to a successful project. Here are some great places to visit to find free graphics to kick-start your inspiration or finish out a design.
UNSPLASH.COM THENOUNPROJECT.COM VECTORSTOCK.COM FLATICON.COM VECTEEZY.COM COLORS.MUZ.LI VECTR.COM
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“God is in the details.”
LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE
Chapter Four STUCK IN THE MIDDLE
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When You Get Stuck ART BLOCK IS THE WORST Art block can hit you like a train, one minute ideas are flowing and you’re tracking along just fine. The next minute you’re stuck and it’s like your brain has never had an original or creative thought in its lifetime. It feels impossible to think of anything, or when you do have a new idea you are quickly reminded of where you got that inspiration from. And your idea is a little too close for comfort. I’m here to remind you that this is a problem almost
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everyone struggles with (I can’t speak for everyone, unfortunately). You are not alone if you feel stuck. In fact, it’s so normal, it was a natural inclusion in this book about the design process. At least once during each project
or job I feel like i shouldn’t be allowed to be a designer anymore, because surely a real designer doesn’t feel like this. But since I haven’t figured out how to completely get rid of art block forever, here are my best ideas to help you overcome your art block.
VIEW SOMETHING NEW It may seem simple, but often I find that my art block is caused by looking at the same pins on Pinterest, or design accounts on Instagram. It’s true that it’s incredibly difficult (or impossible) to have an original idea, but taking inspiration from more sources results in more informed ideas. Flooding your brain with new and exciting work from other designers modern and historic, can help wash away the stagnant thoughts currently occupying your brain. Your brain only has so much real estate,
and those old ideas haven’t been paying rent in a while.
break from design to be able to do design. Watch a new movie, embroider a hat, read a EXPAND YOUR HORIZONS classic novel, go rock climbing. Okay, definitely getting closer to cliché with this one, but don’t Look to the rest of the world discredit the power of other around you, after all, they are methods of art when looking who you are designing for. for new inspiration. Pick up Spend time in the world some watercolors or pastels outside of design, so you have and just dump what is in your new resources when you go head onto paper. Hands-on back into the design world. art can help you mindlessly These experiences are what sort through your thoughts you can fall back on, when it and set your mind back on feels like you are stuck in the the right track. same place. Even if you aren’t really into fine art, I’d highly recommend taking a break from digital work on your computer, even if the extent of your exploration is a coloring page and crayons.
READ A BOOK Alright, now I’m really going to sound like your mom. I promise I just want what’s best for you! Sometimes, usually a lot of the time, you need to just take a
DIG DEEP Sometimes to overcome your art block, you have to face the root of your block. Is it the fear of not being able to execute your ideas perfectly? Is it fear that your work will not be good enough? Or maybe your work has failed in the past, and you just know it will again. Is it laziness? The want to put off completing your work until tomorrow can’t be overcome.
These feelings of resistance manifest in the form of art block. While it may not be fun or great to sit and figure out these ugly roots of not having an idea, identification is the first step in overcoming. Once youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve dug deep, reflected, and identified, you can move past. You can conquer like the incredible designer you are. Past fears can be put to rest by the reassurance that growth happens through failure. You can hold steady in the fact that each design is a step towards your future, a building block that must be completed one step at a time. Take a deep breath, you can and will do this. Even though it may be hard, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve identified your source of resistance. You have the tools to overcome, so go out, cultivate new horizons, and come back 64
to your work refreshed and brimming with ideas.
“Styles come and go. Good design is a language, not a style.”
MASSIMO VIGNELLI
Chapter Five THE FINISH LINE
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Finish That File! SAVING OUT PROJECTS Well, almost! Make sure to hit save on that file...but wait. How should you save out your file? Listen, we’ve all been there. We’ve all forgotten they stand for. It’s okay. We have this list now. Take a deep breath, we’re almost there.
AI, PS, INDD
because the file size is usually small enough to store and share easily. On the flip side this compression reduces the quality of the image, so be careful if you lower the file size too much!
PNG
One of my top favorite The main characters, these file file types, PNG files have types are the default file types lossless image compression. for each program. PNG stands for Portable Network Graphics, and PNG AI stands for Adobe Illustrator, files can have transparent PS is Adobe Photoshop, and backgrounds. PNG is best INDD is Adobe InDesign. for detailed, high-contrast
JPG The same as JPEG, it stands for Join Photographic Experts Group and is the most widely accepted image format. It is such a widely used file type 68
images, especially those that need transparency. Use a PNG when exporting something with a transparent background into another file!
EPS
The Portable Document Format, or PDF, file type is the standard for most documents including text and/or photos. You and PDFs will get very close, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re the most common way to save out multi-page publications, brochures, and presentations.
Last but not least, the EPS, or Encapsulated PostScript file! This file type is typically used when saving out vector illustrations as it prints them at the highest resolution. As vector graphics are scalable without losing quality, they are great for logos, graphics, or signs and banners that are going to be used in many sizes.
SVG The SVG file type stands for a Scalable Vector Graphics file. These files use a text-based format to describe how the image should appear (yeah it blows my mind too). This results in the image being able to be scaled without losing any quality. These are best for web and print graphics that may need to be resized for different applications! I always download SVG files from thenounproject.com, as I can open them in Illustrator, scale them to any size and then edit them easily!
Magnificent Mockups TIME TO SHOW OFF You have your final project, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all wrapped up and finished right? Nope! Show off your work to your client or professor, then share it with the world! Below are some great, mostly free, mockup resources to make your projects feel real and to make your portfolio look BOMB.
CREATIVEMARKET.COM GRAPHICPEAR.COM MOCKUPWORLD.CO UNBLAST.COM GRAPHICBURGER.COM PIXEDEN.COM
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“There are three responses to a piece of design, yes, no, and WOW! Wow is the one to aim for.”
MILTON GLASER
Imposter Syndrome IT’S REAL, AND IT SUCKS I would hazard a guess that almost every artist has, at one point or another, felt the crushing weight of the Imposter Syndrome. Comparison is truly the thief of joy and is often the thief of productivity and the cause of stress, worry, and anxiety. This weight of measuring your work to your peers, your favorite artists, or anyone else can quickly overtake and feel like it’s suffocating you. I know my design friends and I have all felt it at one point or another. I’m even feeling it right now as I’m writing and designing this book! It can come and go, or stay a while, but how do we get cure Imposter Syndrome? Can we cure this feeling of dread and worthlessness, this anxiety that you are 72
just pretending to do art and someone will surely find you out soon. It can feel like drowning in expectations and standards that you place on yourself, with no life guard to help bring you back to the surface. While I am no expert by any means, I hope that I can help you realize the root of these thoughts (spoiler alert, it’s fear) and help you take the steps to reassure you of your worth (spoiler alert, you matter a whole lot!), I’ve read a few books on the feeling of comparison and resistance in art, and the root of these feelings is almost always fear. This fear can come from many different sources, but it does seem to be the common denominator when
having feelings of being less than or worthlessness. These fears manifest themselves in thoughts of not being enough. But what causes this fear that leads to Imposter Syndrome? Well, it can come from many sources, fear of your credentials not being enough, fear that you don’t have enough natural talent, fear that you will be surpassed by your peers, fear your work isn’t ever perfect, fear that you aren’t meeting expectations, and even fear that your work won’t be liked. These fears usually stem from fears about yourself, or fears about others, both of which (while natural) are not often founded in truth.
boil people down to soap packaging and highway signs. But that’s ridiculous! You are a person, filled with thoughts, ideas, a beautiful personality, an incredible brain, and probably some really funny jokes. You are so much more than your work, even though you create your work. Your value is not directly connected to how well you design, you are worthy and valuable. Period. End of story. Fully believing in your value and yourself is the first step in moving past feeling like an imposter in design. Because if you have value, then you add to the world of art, you belong there.
Fears about yourself often connect your worth or value to the things you create. This simply is not true. You are
Another place fear stems from is the fear of others, whether or not they will like your work, is their work better than yours, will they get a job and you won’t, the list can go on and on. And just like
not only what you create. If that were true, you could
you have to disconnect your own value from the value of
your work, you have to disconnect others from your work. To a degree. While I’m not saying that what your professors or boss say about your work holds no water, I am saying that your fear of what they will say shouldn’t hold you back. Once you realize that you and your work are valuable, outside of what others think, it helps combat those feelings of being an imposter. Design is all about creating for others, balancing making effective work that is helpful, while still detaching your value as a human from the success or failure of what you create. I try to remember, when a design piece ‘fails’, gets a bad grade, or a client doesn’t like what I made, that it just isn’t the right solution yet. It needs improvement before the piece serves the client the best that it can. Failure is a step in the direction of growth, and I firmly believe
that it is better to experience failure than compare yourself to a peer that hasn’t. You will learn so much more from failure than from easing through design, always going with your first idea and never digging deep. Hopefully, these ramblings will help you see that Imposter Syndrome is rooted in fear, fears that don’t have much of a basis in reality. I hope you see your value outside of your design work, and how the act of disconnecting the two will go a long way in you feeling confident in yourself and combating fear. I hope you fight fear with the truth, embrace failure, strive for more, stay curious and remember that you are not an Imposter. You create art, you are a designer, and you are valuable, no matter what anyone else, or your inner self has to say.
KEEP GOING, YOU MATTER You did it! You’re done! You made a wonderful project and it looks amazing. Now, it’s time to go do it all again. This may seem exhausting, but it is the greatest part of design, is that it’s never done. The world is never done improving, and designers are on the front lines of creating change. Take a minute (...or a day, or a week...) to rest, refill, and then jump back in! You are doing productive and important work that is uniquely you.