Design Experts . . .

Graphic design statistics and facts and the truth about getting a design job

2014-08-13T12:25:00.002+01:00

After receiving a fortune cookie stating "put the data you have uncovered to beneficial use" I decided to dedicate an article to graphic designstatistics regarding pay and employment likelihood within this field.Questions about job security, salary and choosing freelance over a full-time design job are always issues on a designer's mind. With this in mind, I have broken this article into three sections discussing each topic briefly.

PART 1: JOB PROBABILITY IN THE DESIGN FIELD
Aspects of employment also play a critical role with the volatile state of our economy. Currently there are 5,080 employed Graphic Designers in Michigan (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2008) – with an additional 360 multi-media artists and animators alone.
Using the most recent information and statistics I could acquire, I came up with the following conclusions.

Let us say there are 45 schools in Michigan offering design programs with an average of 11 graduates per year. This number does not include untrained designers who pursue this career, master's students or other online, trade schools, or out of state universities. That's an average of 495 yearly graduates.

In 2006 it was estimated that 261,000 people were employed in the Graphic Design industry (The Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS). The BLS expects 286,000 people in this industry by 2016 (10 percent market growth).

In theory, this would mean that every designer would successfully obtain employment upon graduation. Unfortunately within thelast two years the job sector has actually decreased from 261,000 (in 2006) to 209,290 (in 2008).

The sad truth is that there are 49 more states worth of designers, a barrage more schools teaching the designers of tomorrow and the untrained that continually expand this number. This means that the designers in the state of Michigan alone could saturate the design job market! This is great for those who need work done, but not so good for those of us who just plain need work.

PART 2: JOB SECURITY AND PAY WITHIN THIS PROFESSION

Approximately 25 percent of self-employed full or part time designers also hold an additional salaried job in design or in another occupation. (United States Department of Labor, 2006).So, if you have managed to dip your toe into this profession you may be one of the lucky ones receiving the averaging yearly income of $46,750 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2008) or other related salary amounts listed below and in the graph.

§ Specialized design services: $50,190

§ Newspaper, periodical, book, and directory publishing: $40,680

§ Advertising and public relations: $48,140

§ Printing and related support activities: $38,910

PART 3: FREELANCE VS THE DAILY GRINDGraphic designers who choose to freelance are in a category all their own. Rather than working for a design company or a related firm freelancers must anticipate inconsistent pay based on the number and importance of clients they acquire within the year. Freelancers lack company benefits such as health, dental, additional education stipends or retirement 401K options that tend to bridge the monetary gap as well.

Freelancers may have established clients through friends or referrals or by utilizing online resources. Freelance seeking websites challenge designers to keep their prices low in order to remain competitive within the industry. Sites such as: www.freelancedesigners.com, www.ifreelance.com, www.graphicdesignfreelancejobs.com andwww.project4hire.com provide contact resources to both the client and the freelancer.

If you are considering working as a freelance designer, know what your time is worth. Keep up an excellent portfolio and continue to stay current with trends in order to achieve success. When doing freelance always draft a formal contract). This will provide a resource for your clients and allow you to be viewed as a full-blown professional.

In any case, the success of your work and professionalism can build the necessary relationships that lead to word-of-mouth reputability and an ability to obtain future design projects or get that ultimate design job. Good luck!

A Graphic Artist, Graphics Designer and Graphic Designer?

2014-08-13T11:30:00.002+01:00

I apologize for the long delay.I had issues with my health. Thank God i'm okay and back again. This time with refreshed, passionate and interesting topics and guidelines on graphic designs in today's world.

There are so many freshers out there who normally confuse terms on Graphic artist, Graphics Designer and Graphic Designer. This three are not the same. What i mean is that there role in the design industry are quite different.

Now let's see their actual meanings.

Addressing a highly trained and experienced graphic designer as a “graphic artist” could put you in an unknowingly awkward place—at least in the designer’s eyes. If you interchangeably refer to a creative professional as a graphic artist, graphics designer or graphic designer it may be helpful to know the major differences between them and how they are recognized in the industry.

Graphic Artist:

A graphic artist is generally a fine artist working in a graphic or digital medium. Their creative education may vary from self-taught to short-term certificate training to trade school education. In a commercial setting, a graphic artist typically executes the ideas of other senior staff. Also, the complexity of the projects a graphic artist will work on will be much simpler than the projects handled by more senior creative professionals.

Graphics Designer:

A graphics designer creates specialized visual pieces of art that will be utilized in a design or repetitive application. The creative education for a graphics designer could include specialized training in motion graphics, computer graphics, or information graphics. A graphics designer is likely creating visual designs for a similarly specific task. Examples are the descriptive images that appear over a newscaster’s shoulder on television or a t-shirt design series for an apparel company that does not contain text.

Graphic Designer:

A graphic designer is a visual communicator who assembles into a visually pleasing and organized arrangement all of the images, typography, or motion graphics required to solve or complement a marketing challenge. The items designed are primarily for published, printed or electronic media. A graphic designer will have a two or four year collegiate degree in graphic design or advertising where they studied color theory, art history, composition, typography and more. He or she will have also mastered all of the graphics software required of the job and title; and could have anywhere from 1-5 years of experience all the way up to 20 years or more. The term is used loosely in the field with regards to creative tenure.

Another obvious term is an Art Director versus Creative Director.

Art Director:

An art director is responsible for, and works to devise, the overall concept development. Most good art directors are expected to have graphic design expertise, sound judgment and technical knowledge of production as well as be able to express ideas to clients in strategically on-point presentations.

Art directors also ensure that their graphic designers are creating visual solutions that properly address a client’s marketing goals. Art directors likely have 5 or more years of experience and a proven track record of solving visual problems using text, images and art composed in a way that controls how a viewer absorbs the information presented in a brochure, advertisement, website or other promotional materials.

Creative Director:

The creative director is the creative professional with the most weight on their shoulders when it comes to creativity. The responsibilities of a creative director include leading the design and concept and to guide a creative team of employees. They must have 10+ years of experience as they are ultimately responsible for the quality of the final creative work of their team. A creative director is a vital role in the design industry and may assume the roles of an art director, copywriter, or lead graphic designer in a project while having direct interaction with senior management and client executives.

What makes a good logo?

2014-07-17T13:55:00.002+01:00

What makes a good logo? A good logo is distinctive, appropriate, practical, graphic, simple in form and conveys an intended message.

An effective logo is (in no particular order):

Simple
Memorable
Timeless
Versatile
Appropriate

You can share with us if you have yours.

7 Killer Tips for Logo Design

2014-07-14T17:51:00.000+01:00

Designing a logo is simple, right? Think again. There's more to crafting a brand's visual identity than just placing a name in a square and calling it a day. Logo designers are in high demand, and it's for good reason — a logo is often a company's first impression, one that can impact a customer's brand perception, purchase decisions and overall attitude toward a product.

We live in a society painted with brand logos. Even toddlers who can't yet tie their own shoelaces recognize many logos or are able to deduce what a company sells just by looking at its brandmark.

For those who are about to embark on a brand design journey, or think it's time for their company's visual identity to undergo a face lift, Mashable asked some some design experts to provide tips on creating a great logo.

1. Be unique and clever

A logo is what helps distinguish a brand from its competitors, so it's important that the image stands out from the rest — something many brands struggle with.

In many cases, imitation is the best form of flattery — with logo design, this is not the case.

"What’s important is to create something that you believe is different from anything already out there,” David Airey

"What’s important is to create something that you believe is different from anything already out there,” David Airey, a graphic designer and creator of website Logo Design Lovesays. "It’s highly unlikely (some say impossible) that what you create will be original, but that should be the goal."

Deborah Harkins, creative director at crowdsourced design website 99designs, reiterates the risk of plagiarism. "Once something appears online, there’s simply no way to guarantee it won't be used in some shape or form in another forum." Designers who are unsure of the originality of their design can actually check for plagiarism on sites such as Logo Thief.

Creating a unique design isn't all about avoiding imitation, but also about designing something out-of-the-box. It’s tempting to just throw an industry icon on the page, but it’s important to think creatively. "The Mercedes logo isn’t a car. The Virgin Atlantic logo isn’t an airplane. TheApple logo isn’t a computer,"

2. Understand the brand

Yes, a logo is an image, but it’s also an introduction to a brand. The logo must reach a specific audience and when designing, you must keep this in mind. Write down what you think about the brand; perhaps even create a mood board with imagery that reminds you of the brand’s ideology — check out websites like Niice for some inspiration. But be wary of becoming inspired by only aesthetics rather than deeper meaning. "Researching other visual brands can be helpful, but designers need to be careful not to take the inspirations too literally," Harkins says. "Any design work must be original and map directly back to your client’s unique brand attributes."

Is the brand utility-driven or is it more focused on evoking emotion? Is it contemporary or quirky? What does the customer care about, and what does the brand aspire to be? While it is helpful to stay up to date on design trends, it's more vital to stay true to a brand's overarching personality. Here's a quick brand personality evaluation that can help you along the way.

More than anything, know what your logo means. Every logo has some kind of a history, filled with meaning and purpose. Take Apple, for instance — the fruit is missing a "byte." OrWikipedia, an unfinished globe of puzzle pieces covered with glyphs from different writing systems. Both logos are simple, but have an added twist that circles back to brand ideology.

3. Color is key

When taking the brand’s personality into account, you have to think about every aspect of the image. Bright and bold colors may grab someone's attention, but could also seem brash; muted tones exude sophistication, but could be overlooked. Every color has a different implication and can bring nuance to your message — don't fall into the trap of conveying the wrong message because of a simple brush stroke. The Logo Company released an article "The Science Behind Colors" and an infographic displaying The Psychology of Color in Logo Design. Here’s a quick break-down:

· Red: energetic, sexy, bold

· Orange: creative, friendly, youthful

· Yellow: sunny, inventive, optimism

· Green: growth, organic, instructional

· Blue: professional, medical, tranquil, trustworthy

· Purple: spiritual, wise, evocative

· Black: credible and powerful

· White: simple, clean, pure

· Pink: fun and flirty

· Brown: rural, historical, steady

4. What's in a name?

According to Airey, a logo consists of two elements: A wordmark and a symbol. Before a company can think about solely representing itself with a symbol, a great deal of advertising must be done (think: Starbucks or Mercedes). Some companies choose to stick to Logotype entirely, like Ray-Ban, Coca-Cola and IBM.

Whether your brand can use a Logotype depends on the kind of name the brand has. "If your company has a unique name, then you could get away with a logotype. But if you have a generic name, then you're going to need something to identify the company by, which can be achieved by using a logo mark," logo design blogger Jacob Cass told Mashable in a previous article. And when considering typefaces for your text, be sure to avoid gimmicky fonts, utilize negative space and perhaps tweak an existing font — websites like Font Squirrel orHypeForType are helpful. Some logos even become recognizable because of their custom fonts. Coca-Cola originated the slanted font and now others try to rip them off.

When all else fails: Turn to your friend Helvetica, a simple font that has been utilized well by many popular brands, such as Nars, Target, Crate & Barrel, American Apparel andJCPenney.

5. Keep it easy and flexible

It’s important to have a balanced combination of simple and quirky — you want your logo to be interesting, but you don’t want someone to have to sit and stare, analyzing the logo. A good example is FedEx's logo, a simple Logotype with a twist. The image utilizes negative space to create an arrow which connotes speed, precision and direction. Additionally, the company changes the color of the “Ex” in order to classify the type of shipping. Amazon, too, uses just its name, but also refers to its wide inventory with a small arrow pointing from a → z.

In the digital age, where logos will appear on multiple devices and across social media, you must design something that transcends paper. It must look great on different backgrounds, work for apps, icons, avatars and print, and it must be flexible in size. Take Adidas, a brand that incorporates the same motif of three parallel bars in all of its designs. The visual changes slightly depending on where you see it, but it always contains similar components. "Finding a logo that can still be relevant (or not feel outdated) in a matter of years, or even months, when we don't even know what the web will feel like, seems to be a bit more of a challenge," Raj Abhyanker, CEO of Trademarkia says.

You want to design something that will last through the ages, but you must be open to small iterations along the way.

You want to design something that will last through the ages, but you must be open to small iterations along the way. Most, if not all, brands will create a style guide that lays out exactly how the company should present itself across the web — hereare some examples of great design guidelines.

6. Don't expect instant success

Nike; Puma; Audi — all iconic logos, but like with anything successful, it took time for these to gain popularity. Logos won’t become instantly iconic, even if you’ve designed the most beautiful combination of vectors. It depends on the product’s success and the market in which it exists. "What you think is your best design might very well be for a local craft store that only people in the nearby area ever see. And the design won’t be classed as iconic because it doesn’t have the reach of multinational businesses," Airey says.

"Ultimately, iconic design status can only be achieved if the client fulfills their potential, too."

But what made those iconic logos so wonderful? If you look at how they originated, you see that they derived from a great understanding of brand principles. Nike designer Carolyn Davidson was told to create something that displayed motion and would look good on a shoe — hence, the swoosh; Audi represents the company’s four marques linked together; Puma, a simple visualization of the name, along with a leaping puma.

It's important to be patient and not rush to make changes with your design just because you haven't gotten the reception you initially expected. "Don’t change your logo just because you’re tired of it, or because your competitors have," Harkins says. "If the time has come to evolve your logo, look for elements that can be carried forward."

7. Use online resources and tools

There is a vast sea of information online for those who need some inspiration, collaboration or assistance when designing a company logo. equipped with unique, hand-vetted logos for those on a tighter budget looking for off-the-shelf ideas, and the site provides an opportunity for more personalized contests where customers are integral to the outcome from the beginning. The website also helps clients make the tough decision between loads of logo submissions. "99designs customers can create a poll of their favorite submissions, and share a link via social networks and email inviting people to vote," Harkins says. "Often they’re surprised when the design they were leaning toward doesn’t come out on top! But ultimately, they need to own their decision."

For those who want to design on their own, sites like Logomaker and LogoYes are logo design interfaces that are easy-to-use and free — although, there is a fee to download higher quality versions for print.

Why using Grid is important to your web layout

2014-07-11T13:27:00.001+01:00

Use a grid system for the placement and alignment of all visual objects on the web page

From www.audi.nl

Use when

You are designing a conventional website that needs to follow the normal visual design standards. This pattern does not necessary apply to artistic web sites where the goal is to display an explicit non-standard style. The human eye 'sees' a web page a certain way, roughly from the top left to the bottom right, and the eye can be guided to see elements in a pleasing and distinctive way.

How

A grid is a technique that comes from print design but easily be applied to web design as well. In its strictest form a grid is literally a grid of X by Y pixels. The elements on the page are then placed on the cell border lines and overall aligned on horizontal and vertical lines.

A grid is a consistent system for placing objects. It works on two levels:

At the unit level of cells (e.g. 20x20 pixels) See for example the Audi example above where a strict underlying grid is used for all elements on the page. In print design such grids are called 'modular' grids
At the column level (e.g. 4 columns) See for example the Abn-amro example below where a grid is used for defining the overall layout in terms of columns and margins. In print design such grids are called 'column' grids

In literature for print design, there are many variations of grids described but most are based on modular and column grids. Often you'll encounter a mix of both types of grids.

A grid is an aid for the designer, not a goal by itself. It is therefor ok when some elements are deliberately NOT placed on a grid to create a certain effect. The grid simply creates some rhythm and guidance for the eye.

Why

The grid creates a systematic and consistent rule for placing objects. It creates a visual rhythm. It makes it easier and more pleasant for the eye to scan the objects on the page. Page designs that do not use a grid often tend to look 'messy' or 'unprofessional'.

More Examples

In this example from the Abn-Amro shop you can see a different type of grid being used. Not a strict modular grid, but a grid defining some columns, margins and horizontal evenly spaced guides.

Five simple steps to better typography

2014-07-11T13:04:00.001+01:00

The final part in this series, I’m glad to say is a little more cut and dry than the last in the series. It’s more about historical typographic theory but with a simple, practical guide to ensuring a balanced use of typeface weights.

Typeface weight, and the choice of weight, is perhaps one area of typography that to most designers is simply a matter of choice. That choice is dictated by answering a design problem which is aesthetically, or content, motivated. What many designers do not realise is that there are rules which should govern the choice of weight - a typographic pecking order - which when followed, aids the designer’s typesetting and can produce stunning results.

Solving the design problem

Let’s start by addressing the root of the decision to set type in different weights - solving a design problem. I mentioned that this problem stems from two main areas:

An aesthetic problem. This is where the designer sets type differently to add style or solve some kind of visual or compositional issue.
A content problem. The designer needs to set a different weight because the content dictates it. The language of the content may dictate special typographic treatment, the tone of voice may be different, it may be a quote, it may be a structural device such as folios.

There may be other reasons as well, but I believe these are the main cause.

First off a bit of history

I like these history bits, they really are informative. To research where the rules came from and why they should be followed goes a long way to ensuring they are used.

Uppercase and Lowercase, and the relationship between them, have been around for over twelve hundred years. Small Caps, ornamentals and arabic figures were early additions to the roman.

Italics were a strange bunch to begin with. They didn’t associate themselves with lower case roman, as we usually see today, but with roman caps and small caps. It’s only in recent times that usage of italic, within roman, was deemed to be typographically correct.

Some of the newest additions to the weights of typefaces came with bold, and condensed, as late as the early nineteenth centry. These were generally used in place of italics and small caps. Bold typefaces have now become a standard way of differenciating in typesetting, particularly on screen where italics are a little more difficult to read.

A type family with all of these weights forms a balanced series which is no only historically accurate but creates harmonious typography. If the setting of copy was reversed, so italics were used as body copy, Caps was used as pull-quotes and bold was used as access structure (folios, running heads etc) not only would the body of text look terrible, it was also be very difficult to read.

The practical bit

So, we have these weights of a typeface and they all relate to each other, and there’s a hierachy. How is this practical in everyday use?

First off we need to show the different weights and how they are related to each other. Then we categorise them into a hierachical list, from primary to sextary. This is shown in the diagram below.

Execution of diagram inspired by Robert Bringhurst’s ‘Elements of Typographic Style’

This list, as it stands, may not be that useful. It does illustrate however the relative importance of certain typeface weights. It comes into practical use in the following diagram.

Execution of diagram inspired by Robert Bringhurst’s ‘Elements of Typographic Style’

Here you can see some of the weights set out and joined by lines. The red lines represent the core typeface family. Some typographers would argue that without these core weights, typefaces are reduced to being used for titles only. I’ll leave that one open for debate!

The other lines show how designers can move along the lines when setting type. for example, if a designer has set type in roman and they need to add emphasis to a certain point in the copy. They would follow the lines to any on the second line - bold lower case, small caps, full caps, italic lower case or sloped small caps. If they were to jump to, say, bold italic lower case, or a more extreme example, bold sloped caps, the effect would be horrible.

If the designer is setting type in bold lower case they could go on to add bold caps, or bold italic lower case without much bother. You get the idea?

So, following this simple roadmap can ensure that your typography adheres to some simple hierachical rules and as a result your typography will take on a harmonious feel. don’t just take my word for it though, set some type, use the rules and you’ll see.

A final word

I’ve enjoyed writing this series. What initially started as a quick five tips turned into something a little more involved and has sparked quite a lot of debate. I’m pleased it’s bringing traditional design stuff into the web standards realm, there really is so much more we can learn and put to good practice in this particular corner of the industry.

Typography is one of those things that has unfortunately suffered from the advent of technology (and i’m not just talking about computers here). Designers on the whole have divorced themselves from the letterforms and the setting of them. As a result they’ve forgotten, or not been made aware of, the simple typesetting rules which were core to the old system of printers apprentice.

Typography to me is about design. It’s about words and the conveying of meaning. It’s about setting words that people read. A certain amount of it is creative, a certain amount is expression and aesthetics, but mostly it’s about people reading stuff. Do them a favour and don’t make it difficult.

This is the fifth, and last, installment of this “Simple Steps…” series.

Introducing the world's next tallest building -- which also cleans the air

2014-07-10T11:57:00.001+01:00

London (CNN) -- Imagine a skyscraper that cleans the air. You won't have to wait long -- two will soon be built in China.

The world's tallest towers, futuristic pink spires that "breath life" into the environment, are due to begin construction within two years.

The ambitious Phoenix towers were designed by London-based architects Chetwoods and will claim the tallest building title from Dubai's Burj Khalifa.

And the design goes one step further: The towers will be one of the world's most environmentally-friendly buildings.

Stretching up more than a kilometer into the skies above Wuhan, the capital of China's Hubei province, the Phoenix project aims to clean the air and water from its surrounding areas. It's expected to become a tourist attraction for both Chinese and international travelers.

Chetwoods chairman Laurie Chetwood told CNN the project is more than just an architectural statement. It's also about preserving the lakes of the region, he said.

"You can imagine the pressure those lakes are under, [with] a huge dense city growing around them," he said. "So we thought we could not only attract attention with the towers but also breathe life, literally, into the lakes."

The architects have looked to the natural world for inspiration, building a "thermal chimney" in the center of the taller tower. The chimney, heated by the sun, will draw air from across the lakes and use it to cool the buildings.

The air will then be filtered and churned back into the environment cleaner than before. The buildings will do the same with the water, tantamount to "putting air back into the water like in a typical fish tank.... but we're also cleansing the water and putting it back," Chetwood said.

The towers have also drawn on Chinese culture, reflecting its use of the phoenix as a metaphor. "It's two dragons or two birds -- one male, one female -- and we use this idea as a symbiotic idea, one feeding off the other for the benefit of all."

The taller of the two towers will accommodate a kaleidoscope, turned by a wind turbine, and creating what Chetwood hopes will be a "wonderful experience when you look up." Combined with photovoltaic panels, they produce electricity for the project -- with some spare for the district.

The smaller tower will feature the world's tallest "green wall," or vertical garden, which will climb to the top of the tower.

But perhaps the most controversial architectural feature are the huge celestial orbs strung between the two towers, housing restaurants and viewing platforms. The designs are unusual, the "sort of idea that China embraces, that perhaps somewhere else in the world they think you're going too far there," Chetwood said.

The towers will glow in vibrant pink, as a nod to the fuchsia flower. While architects often pivot to monochromatic colors, Chetwood wanted to mix it up with color. Also, he adds, "I hold my hands up and say I actually like the color and thought it would look stunning."

Constructions starts in 2016, and the aim, Chetwood said, is for people to "have their breath taken away."

Design Experts . . .: Bitmap versus Vector Graphics

2014-07-08T18:10:00.001+01:00

Design Experts . . .: Bitmap versus Vector Graphics: Digital images can usually be divided into two distinct categories. They are either bitmap files or vector graphics . If you work in prep...

Bitmap versus Vector Graphics

2014-07-08T18:09:00.001+01:00

Digital images can usually be divided into two distinct categories. They are eitherbitmap files or vector graphics. If you work in prepress, you need a good understanding on the advantages and disadvantages of both types of data. These pages try to explain the differences.

As a general rule digital pictures and scanned images are bitmap files. These are sometime also called raster images.
Drawings made in applications like Adobe Illustrator or Corel Draw are saved as vector graphics.

Technically both data formats are completely different. The end result however can look virtually identical in either format. As a general rule bitmaps are typically used to depict lifelike images whereas vector graphics are more often used for abstract images such as logos. There are however numerous exceptions to this rule. It is often impossible to determine whether an image is a bitmap or a vector file just by looking at it.

Vexel art, for instance, are bitmap images that have been manipulated to look as if they are vector data. The technique is used to create attention-grabbing realistic images that have an artificial and sharpened look to them.
Talented artists like Yukio Miyamoto can draw photorealistic images using vectors.

Photorealistic vector art from Yukio Miyamoto

You can convert a bitmap image into a vector file. A vector image can be transformed into a bitmap. There are even file formats that can combine both types of data into a single file.

Bitmap images

Bitmap images are exactly what their name says they are: a collection of bits that form an image. The image consists of a matrix of individual dots (or pixels) that all have their own color (described using bits, the smallest possible units of information for a computer).

Let’s take a look at a typical bitmap image to demonstrate the principle:

Example of a bitmap image

To the left you see an image and to the right a 250 percent enlargement of the top of one of the mountains. As you can see the image consists of hundreds of rows and columns of small elements that all have their own color. One such element is called a pixel – short for picture element. The human eye is not capable of seeing each individual pixel so we perceive a picture with smooth gradations.

The number of pixels you need to get a realistic looking image depends on the way the image will be used. One of the next pages goes into more detail on this.

Types of bitmap images

Bitmap images can contain any number of colors but there are four main categories:

Line-art. These are images that only contain two colors, usually black and white. Sometimes these images are referred to as bitmaps because a computer has to use only 1 bit (on=black, off=white) to define each pixel.

Example of a lineart image
Grayscale images, which contain various shades of gray as well as pure black and white.Typically 256 shades of gray (8-bit) are used even though the human visual system needs only 100 tints to perceive an image as life-like.

Example of a grayscale image
Multitones: such images contain shades of two or more colors. The most popular multitone images are duotones, which usually consist of black and a second spot color (often a Pantone color). The example below contains black and Pantone Warm Red.

Example of a duotone image
Full color images. The color information can be described using a number of color spaces: RGB, CMYK or Lab for instance.

Example of a color image

Characteristics of bitmap data

Bitmap data can take up a lot of room. A CMYK A4-size picture that is optimized for medium quality printing (150 lpi) takes up 40 MB. Compression can reduce the size of the file.

The image with the enlargement showed one of the main disadvantages of bitmap images: once they are enlarged too much, they look unnatural and blocky. Reducing their sizes also has an impact on image quality as images lose a bit of sharpness.

Bitmaps are fairly simple to output, as long as your RIP or printer has sufficient memory.

Applications that can handle bitmap data

There are hundreds of applications on the market that can be used to create or modify bitmap data. In prepress, one application – Adobe Photoshop – completely dominates the market. This doesn’t mean that cheaper alternatives like Corel Photo-Paint, should be disregarded.

File formats that are used for bitmap data

Bitmap data can be saved in a wide variety of file formats. Among these are:

BMP: an outdated and limited file format that is not suitable for use in prepress.
EPS: a flexible file format that can contain both bitmap and vector data. It is gradually being replaced by PDF.
GIF: mainly used for internet graphics
JPEG: or rather the JFIF file format, which is mainly used for internet graphics
PDF: versatile file format that can contain just about any type of data including complete pages,it is not yet widely used to exchange just images
PICT: file format that can contain both bitmap and vector data but that is mainly used on Macintosh computers and is not very suitable for prepress.
PSD: the native file format of Adobe Photoshop (which can also contain vector data such as clipping paths)
TIFF: a popular and versatile bitmap file format

Vector graphics

Vector graphics are images that are completely described using mathematical definitions. The image below shows the principle. To the left you see the image itself and to the right you see the actual lines that make up the drawing.

Example of a vector image

Each individual line is made up of either a vast collection of points with lines interconnecting all of them or just a few control points that are connected using so called Bézier curves. It is this latter method that generates the best results and that is used by most drawing programs.

To the right is an example of using Bézier curves

This drawing demonstrates the two principles. To the left a circle is formed by connecting a number of points using straight lines. To the right, you see the same circle that is now drawn using 4 points (nodes) only.

Characteristics of vector drawings

Vector drawings are usually pretty small files because they only contain data about the Bézier curves that form the drawing. The EPS file format that is often used to store vector drawings includes a bitmap preview image along the Bézier data. The file size of this preview image is usually larger than the actual Bézier data themselves.

Vector drawings can usually be scaled without any loss in quality. This makes them ideal for company logos, maps or other objects that have to be resized frequently. Please note that not all vector drawings can be scaled as much as you like:

Drawings containing trapping information can only be scaled up to 20 percent larger or smaller.
Thin lines may disappear if a vector drawing is reduced too much.
Small errors in a drawing may become visible as soon as it is enlarged too much.

It is fairly easy to create a vector based drawing that is very difficult to output. Especially the use of tiles (small objects that are repeated dozens or hundreds of times) and Corel Draw lens effects can lead to very complex files.

Applications that can handle vector data

There are hundreds of applications on the market that can be used to create or modify vector data. In prepress, Adobe Illustrator and Corel Draw are the most popular programs.

File formats that are used for vector data

Bitmap data can be saved in a wide variety of file formats. Oddly enought the most relevant formats for the printing industry are also capable of storing bitmap information:

EPS: the most popular file format to exchange vector drawings even though PDF is quickly gaining ground.
PDF: versatile file format that can contain just about any type of data including complete pages.
PSD: the native file format of Adobe Photoshop.
AI: the native file format of Adobe Illustrator.

How to convert bitmap data to vector data and back

It is sometimes necessary to transform images from bitmap data to vector data or back. Some possible uses include:

If you scan or photograph a logo, it is a bitmap image. If it is going to be used often in a layout it is more practical to have that logo as a vector drawing. That reduces its file size and you can change the image size without worrying about any loss in quality.
Vector drawings often have to be converted to bitmaps if they will be used on a web page.
Vector drawings are sometimes too complicated for a RIP to be output on film or plate. Converting them to a bitmap simplifies the file.

Luckily it is fairly easy to convert images from one mode to the other:

From bitmap data to vector graphics: the process to convert a bitmap image to vector data is called outlining or vectorizing. Some drawing applications such as Adobe Illustrator and Corel Draw have this option built in. There are also separate programs available to vectorize bitmap images. For simple jobs the easiest solution is to put the bitmap image on the background of the canvas of a drawing application and manually draw over it.
From vector graphics to bitmap data:
- Many drawing applications can store vector data as bitmap files as well (usually this option is hidden in the Export menu option).
- You can always view a vector file on screen, then take a screen capture and save this screen capture as a bitmap image.
- Photoshop can open some vector file formats and rasterize the file so that it becomes a bitmap file. A pop-up menu allows you to define the resolution and color mode of the bitmap data.

Design Experts . . .: The Art of Leaving a Job

2014-07-08T13:54:00.001+01:00

Design Experts . . .: The Art of Leaving a Job: It doesn't matter what happened. He said, she said, you left, they let you go, the list goes on and the reality is that you're ...

The Art of Leaving a Job

2014-07-08T13:50:00.000+01:00

It doesn't matter what happened. He said, she said, you left, they let you go, the list goes on and the reality is that you're no longer in the company you were with a few days ago. I recently found myself in this situation. So the question is, what do you do? Here's my short list of the great advice I recently got when going through this situation.

1. Take a moment and regroup

These situations can be stressful even if you were the one leaving and you had everything lined up for your next position. You left, and with that, both sides are going to feel a bit of a loss with your departure in one way or another.

Take a few days, get good sleep, eat some good food and get outside. This will help you stay more positive and make good decisions. It's time to start focusing on the present and most of all, the future.

2. Treat others how you'd like to be treated

There's a quote I read that went something like this, "When others criticize you, it says more about them than it does about you." Don't be one of those people. From a young age, I learned that you don't act out of any emotion other than when you are content and if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it publicly to everyone that knows that person, especially on the internet. (I may have added to that one.)

If you came out of a sour situation, the best thing to do is move on and become more successful than you were before by not focusing on animosity. Bottom line, don't burn your bridges and be ethical.

Note: On this point, one useful thing you can do to help your employer during this time is to write up everything about your job and daily tasks and turn it into them. Even if you got to train your replacement, this will help them during their transition (especially if your replacement doesn't work out) and help you fully have closure on the position. This is a great way to go above and beyond their expectations.

3. Get organized

If you were smart and you've been saving, you've got more time to really figure out what you want during this transition period. It's time to do your budgeting, look over your resume and organize everything. Get together short term plans.

If you don't have savings, time is not on your side. You may have to do these steps a lot faster but there's no shame in turning to friends and family for a little help occasionally, just make sure you them pay back in full plus a steak dinner.

4. Figure out what you really want

Life changes, needs change and your goals change. This is the time to look at your goals newly. Most likely, you have gotten to a new point in your life than you were a few years ago when you took your last job, and it's time to look toward the future.

What type of job do you want? What are your skills? What type of schedule do you want? Do you want to travel? Are you willing to move? What type of management style do you prefer? How much money do you want to make? What do you like to do? The list goes on, but this is the time to do some self discovery.

5. Promote

Okay, so now you know what you want, you are organized, you have your resume and hopefully you have your plan. If you are planning on working for someone else again, it's time to promote in any way possible. LinkedIn and the array of job sites are a good place to start. Talk to friends and family, connections, etc. If you're a hard working, easy to get along with and show up on time, you hopefully won't have a lot of trouble getting interested companies.

If you are looking to start your own business, there's a lot of great books and mentors, promote to get connected with these mentors and go from there!

6. Don't jump into the first opportunity

If you've promoted enough, you should be getting job interviews. Take a few weeks, or months if you have it, and find that perfect fit with the perfect company. Don't stop promoting during this time, make it your full time job and make sure you have that perfect ideal job that you decided earlier you really wanted. This is your opportunity to not have to go through these steps again any time soon.

Hopefully these steps are as useful for you as they were for me. If you think of any additional steps, please post them in the comments below.

Design Experts . . .: 8 Myths About Freelancing You Need to Know Now

2014-07-08T13:39:00.001+01:00

Design Experts . . .: 8 Myths About Freelancing You Need to Know Now: It's been a while pals. I sincerely apologize for my long absence. It was so busy from one job to another, anyway here i am. I'm ...

8 Myths About Freelancing You Need to Know Now

2014-07-08T13:31:00.000+01:00

It's been a while pals. I sincerely apologize for my long absence. It was so busy from one job to another, anyway here i am. I'm back once again to give regular updates.

Since I started working in Freelancer, I've gotten a lot of emails, messages, and inquiries from people who've jumped the gun, quit their jobs, and started their freelance career, then realized that this kind of life isn't exactly sunshine and piña coladas at the beach as they work on their latest projects.

In this age when big companies are mulling the abolition of the 40-hour workweek, CEOs are candidly admitting the toll of successful careers on their families, and mothers are rallyingagainst the Gwyneth Paltrows of the world who audaciously claim that the 9-to-5 job setup is not much of a challenge, the appeal of freelancing draws not a few people who aspire for a more balanced, meaningful life.

It must be said: freelancing has its perks. The option to take control of your career, the opportunity to earn more without waiting for the next performance review from your boss, the chance to say no to work that you don't want to do--all these are valid reasons why a lot of people quit their regular jobs and begin their freelancing journey.

It also must be said: freelancing has its drawbacks, with myths often (willingly or unwillingly) perpetuated by successful outliers who do not necessarily represent the experiences faced by the majority (and encouraged by scheming individuals out to profit from clueless people with their esoteric freelancing financial success e-books.)

While this is not meant to be a tome on the perils of quitting one's job and going freelance, we should acknowledge the challenges that freelancers face and prepare everyone with the world that awaits those who plan to take this route.

Here are the top myths you need to know about freelancing:

1. It's a get-rich-quick setup.

While good negotiation skills will allow you to earn more than the usual, freelancing doesn't guarantee that you're going to be swimming in a pile of money. It takes time to build your reputation--don't anticipate that you'll be raking in a lot of cash at the start. Focus on building an excellent portfolio and reach out to prospective clients. (Searching for and bidding on online jobs on Freelancer is a good way to start connecting with employers.)

2. It's easier than regular employment.

Freelancing has its own set of challenges--some which may include filing your own tax reports, getting your own health insurance (and other fringe benefits companies usually provide to their employees), and basically managing your own business.

3. You will never have to deal with a controlling boss anymore.

Yes, probably--but on the other hand, you might be soon dealing with a lot of controlling clients. While as a freelancer you can always quit on a particular job, the freelancing setup doesn't automatically guarantee that you won't have your fair share of unreasonable and demanding people.

To minimize the chances of encountering one, clearly lay out the terms of your work setup with your client. While not foolproof, this will help manage professional expectations as well as protect you from future mishaps.

4. You have total control of your time.

True for some, but not for all: there's always that chance of meetings set during odd hours (especially if you work with employers from different time zones), there are deadlines that will require you to work extra hours, and there will be times when you won't be able to peel your eyes off your inbox as you watch out for urgent revisions.

Depending on the predictability of your line of work, you may not exactly have the luxury of having more hours catching up on Game of Thrones or Penny Dreadful.

5. You lead a stress-free existence.

No. (After reading the other myths, you might have already concluded this.)

6. You don't need to socialize anymore.

Freelancing is alluring for introverts, what with the promise that you can be a lone mercenary instead of hunting with the pack. However, networking may not only make you smarter (as this study claims), it may also open windows of opportunities for potential work. Engaging in small talk also helps clients become more comfortable with you, thus strengthening your ties with them even further.

7. Being able to balance your professional and personal life is a natural consequence of freelancing.

One thing I've learned about life is that everything is work: your professional and personal life both demand time and effort. The decisions you make every day shape the life that you lead--and while external factors do come into play with those decisions, you will still need to decide, regardless.

It's not freelancing that will guarantee your work-life balance, but the decisions you make to accommodate that lifestyle you want to have. You will have more opportunities to make that happen--but the rest is up to you.

8. You have to price yourself cheaply to win clients.

I'm capping off this list with this myth, which is somewhat the polar opposite of the first myth I mentioned.

While a lot of freelancers use this strategy to get more clients, this doesn't always have to be true for the rest of your freelancing career.

Here's a secret (that's not really much of a secret anyway): people pay for value. And value is a subjective thing. Just the other day, I was at the community market where they were selling a bunch of spinach for way less than the price it was sold at the upscale grocery near my place. Considering that both were of the same quality, why do people still buy the one being sold at the grocery? It's because they believe it was worth the money. There are various reasons at play here--one could be trust in the brand, another could be the convenience the grocery offers--but whether the benefits were purely functional or emotional, the fact is that value of a product or a service depends on the people valuing that product/service.

If you can convince your client that you are valuable to them, they will definitely be more willing to pay your worth. (And how about the ones you don't convince then? It's either you need to work on your negotiation skills, or they probably weren't worth keeping in your roster to begin with.)

What do you think are the biggest freelancing myths and misconceptions? What lessons have you learned as freelancer? Share your thoughts in the Comments section below.

Graphic Designer Training

2014-07-05T17:18:00.000+01:00

Graphic designers work with companies to develop the visual components of marketing and communication initiatives, including advertisements, logos, packaging, brochures and websites. These professionals must understand their clients' goals and create designs that impact the target audience.

In order to be successful, graphic designers must be able to communicate with clients, collaborate with other design professionals and deliver unique, effective designs. These tasks require a mix of business savvy and technical design skills. On a given day, a graphic designer might meet with a client, create a communication strategy, design the layout of a Web page and make changes to an existing publication.

Graphic designers use color, typography, photography, artwork, layout and occasionally animation to convey a client's message to its target audience. Most of today's design work is done on the computer, so graphic designers must have a solid understanding of design software like Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Acrobat and Flash.

Graphic Design, Bachelor of Science (Online)

Other Programs:

· Web Design and Development, Bachelor of Science (Online)

· Game Design, Bachelor of Science (Online)

· More...

What's the job outlook for graphic designers?

Graphic design is an evolving field that continues to grow. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) expects overall employment of graphic designers to grow by 13 percent from 2008 to 2018, in keeping with the national average. Increased demand from advertising and computer design firms will contribute to this growth.

Job prospects, according to the BLS, are expected to be especially strong for graphic designers with animation and website design experience. As print media gives way to interactive sources, it's expected that more and more graphic designers will be responsible for online marketing campaigns. Increased demand for online graphic design will create jobs, though other graphic design jobs will be lost by slowdown in the print publishing industry.

There are many talented individuals vying for jobs in graphic design, but those with interactive media experience and business acumen will have the best prospects, the BLS says. Additionally, the most recent survey of design leaders from AIGA, the professional association for design, showed the highest confidence levels since 2005, which many in the industry believe will lead to increases in hiring.

What is the salary for graphic designers?

According to the BLS, the average annual salary for graphic designers in 2010 was $48,140. This number is consistent with the figure from Indeed.com, a job posting aggregator that reports an average annual salary of $48,000 for graphic designers nationwide. However, salaries of graphic designers vary based on experience, industry and location. The BLS reports that annual salaries of graphic designers ranged from $26,440 (the tenth percentile) to $76,450 (the ninetieth percentile) in 2009.

Graphic design firms employed the largest number of designers in 2009, according to BLS data, and the publishing and advertising industries followed close behind. Of these industries, graphic designers working in publishing earned the least, with average annual salaries of $41,600. Though they employ fewer graphic designers, niche design positions within the federal government and computer manufacturing firms yielded the highest average salaries in 2009.

Location also plays a role in how much graphic designers earn. According to the BLS, Washington, D.C., New York and California had the highest average graphic design salaries in 2010. The San Francisco metropolitan area was the highest-paying city, with an annual mean wage of $76,740.

What training or certification is needed to become a graphic designer?

A bachelor's degree in graphic design is generally required to become a graphic designer. According to the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, there are approximately 300 accredited art and design institutions in the United States, many of which offer a bachelor's degree in graphic design. The bachelor's degree generally requires four years of full-time study and includes a range of coursework:

· Studio art

· Design history

· Typography

· Symbology

· Corporate identity

· Computer-assisted design

· Print technology

· Business

· Psychology

Many design colleges also offer associate's degrees and certificates in graphic design, which take between two and three years to complete. An associate's degree is sufficient for many assistant or purely technical graphic design positions. Those who already have a bachelor's degree can transition into a graphic design career through a two- to three-year certificate program.

In addition to formal training, the most successful graphic designers are likely to have strong communication and problem-solving skills, high attention to detail and creativity. No certification is required to begin working as a graphic designer, though certification in tech tools such as Photoshop is a plus.

Logo Design: Pro Tips

2014-07-04T17:37:00.000+01:00

Everything you need to know to craft great logos, from inspiration to execution.

Logo design is all around us. To the general public, logos serve as an instant reminder of a company or a product; to the client they’re the point of recognition on which their branding hangs; and to us designers they represent the challenge of incorporating our clients' ideologies into one single graphic.

No wonder, then, that logo design features so prominently in our lives. In an age where everyone must have a website to support their product, service or the company behind it, the demand for a top-class logo has never been higher.

More examples of logo design are out there than ever before, and with that comes the challenge of being different. How do you create something original that stands out in a sea of identities? And how do we create something quickly while retaining quality?

In this article, we'll first look at the basic principles of creating a logo design and share some pro tips for finessing your process...

BEFORE YOU START

01. Learn logo 101

Effective logo designs: I Love NY, Apple, London Underground, CBS, WWF, Woolmark

An effective logo is distinctive, appropriate, practical, graphic, simple in form and conveys an intended message. In its simplest form, a logo is there to identify but to do this effectively it must follow the basic principles of logo design:

A logo must be simple. A simple logo design allows for easy recognition and allows the logo to be versatile and memorable. Effective logos feature something unexpected or unique without being overdrawn.
A logo must be memorable. Following closely behind the principle of simplicity is that of memorability. An effective logo design should be memorable and this is achieved by having a simple yet appropriate logo.
A logo must be enduring. An effective logo should endure the test of time. The logo should be 'future proof', meaning that it should still be effective in 10, 20, 50+ years time.
A logo must be versatile. An effective logo should be able to work across a variety of mediums and applications.
A logo must be appropriate. How you position the logo should be appropriate for its intended purpose. For a more detailed explanation see: What makes a good logo?

02. Establish your own design process

The brand identity design process

Every designer has his or her own process, and it is rarely linear, but in general this is how the branding process is completed, which can be used as a guide to establish your own.

Design brief. Conduct a questionnaire or interview with the client to get the design brief.
Research. Conduct research focused on the industry itself, its history, and its competitors.
Reference. Conduct research into logo designs that have been successful and current styles and trends that are related to the design brief.
Sketching and conceptualising. Develop the logo design concepts around the brief and research.
Reflection. Take breaks throughout the design process. This allows your ideas to mature and lets you get renewed enthusiasm. Receive feedback.
Presentation. Choose to present only a select few logos to the client or a whole collection. Get feedback and repeat until completed.

03. Price your work accordingly

"How much?" is the single most frequently asked question and it cannot be easily answered because every company has different needs and expectations. You have to take a number of factors into consideration when designing a logo/brand identity, such as how many concepts need to be presented, how many revisions will be needed, how much research is required, how big the business is and so on.

The best approach is to draw up a customised quote for each client and to do this you should learn how to price your designs, which is another topic in itself.

Jeff Fisher, a notable designer and author, had this great point in his article How Much Should I Charge: "The major point I wish to convey here is that all designers need to work smarter in independently determining what their talent, skill and expertise are worth and charge the client accordingly without question or apology. Being smart in determining what you should charge for your work will hopefully allow you to 'work less, charge more' in the future."

04. Learn from others

By knowing what other brands have succeeded in and why they have succeeded gives you great insight and you can apply that attained knowledge to your own work.

For example, let's look at the classic Nike Swoosh (above). This logo was created by Caroline Davidson in 1971 and it's a great example of a strong, memorable logo, being effective without colour and easily scalable.

Not only is it simple, fluid and fast but it also has related symbolism; it represents the wing in the famous statue of the Greek Goddess of Victory, Nike, which is a perfect figure for a sporting apparel business. Nike is just one of many great logos, but think about other famous brands that you know and check out their logos - what makes them successful?

Effective logos: Shell, Volkswagen, NBC, ABC, Chanel, Rolling Stones

For more quality logos, check out Logo Of The Day or go to your local library/book store and check out some branding books. Also be sure to check out some of these logo design process case studies.

05. Avoid the clichés

Examples of effective logotypes: Federal Express, IBM, Coca-Cola, CNN, Disney, NASA

Light bulbs for 'ideas', speech bubbles for 'discussion', globes for 'international', etc. These ideas are often the first things to pop into one's head when brainstorming, and for the same reason should be the first ideas discarded. How is your design going to be unique when so many other logos feature the same idea? Stay clear of these visual clichés and come up with an original idea and design.

With this said, please do not steal, copy or 'borrow' other designs. Although, this shouldn't have to be said, it happens too often. A designer sees an idea that he likes, does a quick mirror, colour swap or word change, and then calls the idea his own. Not only is this unethical, illegal and downright stupid but you're also going to get caught sooner or later. Do not use stock or clip art either — the point of a logo is to be unique and original.

PREPARATION

06. Research your audience

Good logo design doesn't just create something that looks nice - it has to communicate a brand message

Creating a logo design isn't just about creating a pretty visual. What you're doing, or taking part in, is developing a brand and communicating a position. It makes sense, then, that the first step in creating a logo design should be to research these concepts.

Involving the client at this early stage is advised, as your interpretation of their brand may be different from theirs, and it's essential that the message is clear before any actual designing takes place.

07. Immerse yourself in the brand

Hark back to the past, urges Martin Christie of Logo Design London

Before even beginning to sketch out ideas for a logo design, spend some time compiling the equivalent of an M15 dossier on your client's brand: who they are, what they do and what their demographic is.

Look at previous iterations of their logo design and ask yourself what doesn't represent the brand on these. Then compile a 'dos and don'ts' checklist before your creative work starts.

"Check out all the various logos your client has employed since their company was founded," advises Martin Christie of Logo Design London. "This can be particularly interesting if they go back for many decades. You may be able to hark back to the past, if they would like to position themselves as a heritage brand, or you might be able to radically overhaul their original logo into something fresh and futuristic. This has the advantage of built-in continuity even as you present a new image."

08. Keep all your sketches

Old sketches can be a source of new inspiration, suggests Martin Christie

"It’s probably a fair guess that for every logo you design you probably come up with a couple of dozen sketches before you decide which one to develop further," adds Martin Christie. "Never throw away these early ideas; they form a valuable resource.

"Just because one of your early sketches didn’t work for another client, it doesn’t mean it won’t work at all. Go back through what you’ve done and you may find the seed that, with a bit of nurturing, could grow to become the logo you’re looking for.

09. Do your online research

Logo Moose is a great research resource for logo design

Two great starting points for online logo design research areLogo Moose and Logo Gala. One thing to be mindful of is knowing when to stop your logo design research. It's best to look at what did and didn't work out of 10 relevant logo designs than swamp yourself with 50 extraneous ones.

If you’re struggling for ideas, try looking up key words in a dictionary or thesaurus or searching Google images for inspiration. If you keep a sketch book then look at previous drawings – you’re bound to have unused ideas from previous projects, so you may already be sitting on the perfect solution.

10. Fight the temptation to imitate

We all have our design heroes and sometimes we love them so much we want to imitate their styles. Well, they do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. However, in the real world it's just a lazy way to solve a creative problem.

Ask yourself whether the style you're using is appropriate for the client's needs. Do they really want a logo design that has the same typeface Saul Bass used for Quaker Oats in the '70s?

11. Don't let clients dictate

Point 2 does not equate to doing what the client tells you. Look through the brief from your client and begin to ask questions about any vagueness or lazy brief writing you might find there. 'The logo should be iconic' and 'The logo should be memorable' are two extremely clichéd phrases you need to pull your client up about.

A man kicking a chicken dressed as Father Christmas is memorable but for the wrong reasons. So, as with all commissioned design work, you need to manage your client's expectations, set realistic goals and find out what exactly your work needs to convey. Logo designs become iconic and memorable: they're not created that way.

12. Create a board and rip it up

You could research logo designs all day as there are books and websites by the score containing examples of them. Only makemood boards out of ones that share similar values. Look at your mood board and analyse what isn't successful about these logo designs. Then rip those boards up and use these rules as a guide for your own unique creation.

INITIAL DESIGN WORK

13. Sketch it out

Get the pencil and pad out before switching on your computer. Picture credit: Ben Powell at www.gogetcreative.co.uk

With a solid understanding of what needs to be communicated, it’s on to the first sketches: more often than not, these should be the pen and paper kind. This enables you to be experimental and not get caught up in the finer details.

It's tempting to move straight onto the computer first, but Ben Powell advises you resist the urge. "What did you learn to do first, use a computer or a pencil and paper?" he asks rhetorically. "Sketching is a much faster way to produce initial ideas before you even touch Photoshop CC. It doesn't matter if it's complete chicken-scratch sketching as long as it conveys your ideas correctly and you understand it."

14. Create vectors

Vectors are a good 'in-between' stage of logo design. Picture credit: Ben Powell at www.gogetcreative.co.uk

After starting with a sketch, some designers then progress to more technical sketches on graph paper. But the best way to save any pain and frustration with later iterations of your logo design is to produce it using vectors. Here Illustrator CC is your friend as you'll be able to rescale your creation without losing any quality.

15. Use smart objects

You can copy and paste your logo design into Photoshop as a 'smart object' (again with no loss of scalable quality), if you need to combine it with other elements.

If you're creating a logo design for screenbased media, be particularly careful of thin lines or very light typefaces. Also consider that different monitors can make text and graphics appear pixelated or rough.

NAILING THE TYPOGRAPHY

16. Choose your typeface carefully

Microsoft's new logo design represents a trend towards clear and functional typography

Typography is obviously central to good logo design. You have two main routes to choose from: creating your own custom typeface or adapting an existing one.

If you create a custom typeface, try not to make it too fashionable because it could date quickly. Keep it simple and legible. Consider the words that you’re depicting - if they’re unusual then a simple typeface might work best; if they’re common words then you can usually be more creative as they’re easier to recognise.

17. Adapt an existing typeface

There's no rule to say you have to create your own typeface, though: consider adapting an existing one.

Removing, extending or joining parts of letters may be enough to make your design unique. It’s amazing how little you need to see of some letters for you to still be able to recognise them.

18. Avoid gimmicky fonts

Don't be tempted to make your logo design stand out by using gimmicky fonts. They're the equivalent of typographic chintz and there's a reason why most of them are free. For sheer professionalism's sake you should avoid them at all costs.

Most gimmicky fonts are too fancy, too weak, and are most likely being used (badly) on a hundred different cheap business cards right now. When it comes to logo design, keep your font choices classic and simple and avoid over-garnishing.

19. Make the type match the brand

Fonts come in all shapes and sizes that resonate differently with strength (slab type fonts, big and powerful); class and style (fonts with elegant scripts or serifs); movement and forward thinking (type that is slanted). It's not about just looking pretty: matching the qualities of the font - be it bespoke or off-the-shelf - to the qualities of the brand is what's important here.

20. Consider a type-only approach

Jiyoung Lee created the logotype for this industrial building firm

You may want to produce a simple execution of a logo design for your client that uses the strength of the typography alone.

Bone up on your typography knowledge by reading this primerand check out the inspired logos designers around the globe have created using type alone here.

USE OF SPACE

21. Think about the space around your logo design

The British Council has an exclusion zone based on the discs that make up part of its design

Most brand books will specify an exclusion zone. This is an area around the logo design that can’t be occupied by other content, to protect the integrity of the logo (and brand by extension).

When you’re creating a logo design, you need to consider how it should be used. If, for example, your design is intended to be viewed over the top of a photographic image, make sure you present it to the client in that way, and specify that it should be reproduced in this manner each time it’s used.

22. Use negative space effectively

The FedEx identity is a well-cited example of effective use of negative space in logo design

Some of the best logo designs have hidden meaning in their negative space. A classic example is the Fed Ex logo, which uses the combination of the letters E and x to form an arrow in the negative space. There are many other great examples where a logo design looks ordinary at first glance, but reveals interesting and well-thought-out details on further examination.

23. Don't overdo it

Try to use these principle to add value to your logo design, but as always, don’t add shapes and pictorial elements in negative space just because you can! Remember that you are not trying to appeal to other designers on Dribbble - you're trying to solve a commercial problem and boost a brand amongst its audience.

GRAPHIC DESIGN

24. Make your design active, not passive

Twitter's logo design has morphed from a static bird into one in flight over the years, suggesting motion and movement

If you’re using a device within your logo design that facilitates it, consider adding a sense of movement to your design. This doesn’t mean you need to add cartoon-like motion lines, but rather think about the size, position and rotation of elements within your design.

A fish will look in motion if it’s mid-jump or swim, but will look static if drawn side on as if it’s been mounted on a wall. You also need to take into account the direction of the implied motion.

25. Cultural differences

In the west, motion towards the left of the stage suggests backwards, regressive movement, while motion towards the right feels progressive and forward-thinking. This culture-based understanding is formed because we read from left to right. Things are different in the far East, so make sure you understand where your principal market is.

26. Consider tones as well as colours

Logo designs need to work in black and white as well as colour. If your logo design uses colour to convey meaning, think about how you can reflect that meaning when the colour is removed. Sometimes this may mean changing the contrast relationship between different elements of your design so that they still convey meaning when reproduced in monotones.

27. Be experimental

Cut & Splice's logo design is ever-morphing and never the same twice

Don't feel you have to be constricted by formal notions of what a logo design is or does. For example, designer Luke Prowse came up with a highly original use of logo and brand identity for music event Cut & Splice, celebrating experimental composer's Karlheinz Stockhausen's Aus dem Seben Tagen.

Playing with the experimental composer's lifetime obsession with 'controlled chance', Luke created a logo design that is never the same twice, both online and digitally printed. In online form the logo design continually morphs and pulsates like an ever-evolving compositional soundscape.

Another incarnation of the experimental Cut & Splice logo design

KEEP IT CLEAN AND MODERN

28. Don't use more than two fonts

Obviously, there are always going to be exceptions to this rule. But as a general principle, restricting yourself to just one or two typefaces is a good idea if you want your logo design to be clear and uncluttered.

29. Ensure it works on dark backgrounds

YouTube's logo works well against any background, light or dark

The client may be happy seeing your logo design against a white background, but be wary of him coming back a year later saying that the company is producing new marketing material and demand it will work against a dark background too. Sorting that out in advance is never a bad thing. (The same goes for using the logo in monochrome.)

30. Keep abreast of trends

Pay attention to current logo design trends doesn't mean slavishly following them. But in the same way that you need to break the rules, to buck the trend (or start a new one) you need to know what you're up again.

31. Subtract as much as possible

A simple but evocative logo design produced by Luke Prowse for Tempestra Underwear

Subtraction is a great technique for removing redundancy in any creative endeavour. It means continually asking yourself questions that begin with, "Does this logo need...", "Does this make sense?", "Does this match the brief" and "Is this self-indulgent?".

Over time, most logo designs get simplified - Wendy's recent redesign is a prime example

32. If in doubt, leave it out

If you can't rationalise an element that's part of your logo design, the chances are you need to remove it from the overall piece. When your logo design is at its simplest, it's probably at its strongest.

33. Don't try to do too much

Don't try to make the logo design do too much: it doesn't have to reflect every aspect of the company's history or demonstrate what the product or service is. A computer company's logo design doesn't have to show a computer (Apple's doesn't). A restaurant logo design doesn't have show food (McDonald's) doesn't. Keep it simple.

34. Create a lock up version

The logo design and the slogan have to work in harmony as well as individually

A logo design often comes with a tagline (or strapline) that conveys a brand message. Nike, for example, has its swoosh device with 'Just Do It' usually seen underneath. Both elements can work separately but when they exist together this is referred to as a 'lock up'. It’s when both elements have a sense of cohesion between them.

As these elements can be seen separately the rule to remember is not to rely on the tagline to make sense of the logo design or vice versa. Your logo design doesn’t necessarily have to be a visual representation of the tagline but the two should be equally 'on-brand'.

35. Make your logo design responsive

The demands of responsive web design apply to logos as much as any other web graphics

If your logo design is going to be primarily used on websites and apps, consider how to make it responsive. Simply reducing or enlarging a logo according to its context isn’t always the best solution. As the content area and device capabilities increase, you may need to add extra details to the logo graphic itself. Check out this demo by Anthony Calzadilla to learn more.

FUNCTIONALITY

36. Create different size versions

Logo designs have to be consistent for all manner of different applications. Picture credit: Ben Powell at www.gogetcreative.co.uk

Your logo design is amazing, beautiful, and stunning... but only on your 24in full HD monitor. Shrink that baby down to 100 pixels and what have you got? A little undecipherable splodge.

Experiment with your designs at different sizes. If you’ve already got
them on your computer, zoom in and out to see if they work as tiny icons or when they’re full screen.

37. Make it legible

Most clients need a vector version of the logo design in order to be able to scale it up, cut it out and colour separate it. Equally, you need something that will be legible in lowest denominator media such as newsprint, and work online and on mobile devices.

Once you have something, print it out. Print variations in type weight and style, as well as inverted versions of your logotype and mark. Print large versions and paste them to the wall or lay them out on the floor. Look at them for as much time as it takes to really let things sink in.

38. Create non-print variants

As well as print you need to come up with variants that show how it can work on computer screens, mobile devices and other "real world" uses, whether on a uniform or a billboard at Old Trafford.

Show all these variations to your clients to indicate how you’ve thought things through how (if needed) their logo design could be used or teeny-tiny on a business franked letter.

Think about creating an insignia version of the logo design for when it occupies small spaces, and perhaps a clear and a greyscale version. This will go a long way to proving to your client they're getting value for money and a logo design that can be used everywhere.

Your logo design may need to be altered to work on different media, such as being reproduced in cotton embroidery

It’s quite common to have a slightly different version of a logo design for reproduction on clothing. The best way to get this right is to talk to an embroiderer, shoe-manufacturer, etc, as appropriate.

39. Make it future-proof

Redesign and re-invigoration of the Times Newspaper supplement times2 created by Luke Prowse alongside art director Neville Brody and their in-house editorial team

Most logo designs are used for years, so be careful not to use ‘of the moment’ typefaces or styles that may date quickly. Don’t to be too literal either: a company selling records today might be ﬂying people to space in 25 years.

Most identities such as Shell and Kellogg's have changed over time but have kept timeless brand elements whilst subtly 'refreshing' or modernising their typography. There should be elements to the logo design that are enduring but be mindful that other aspects of it may need to be adapted in the future for as-yet-unknown visual formats.

BUSINESS CONSIDERATIONS

40. Don't confuse 'logo' with 'brand'

Part of the 'bigger picture' for the use of the Wolff Olins 2012 Olympic Games logo design

'A logo isn't just the brand' is the most common tip to remember when creating a company's identity.

The 2012 Olympic Games logo design by Wolff Olins was universally mocked when released in 2007. Mostly this was due to media restrictions which meant they couldn't explain or show how this logo design was going to be used as part of the successful London 2012 games brand and not necessarily in isolation.

If you’re presenting a logo design which is mostly going to be seen 'locked up' with a strapline or connected to another visual device then show examples of this in your initial presentation.

41. Get the tone right

An example of three type treatments by Luke Prowse - authoritative, friendly and fun

Imagine you were looking online for an accountant and come across a firm called Harewood's Accounting Services which had a logo design made up of a weedy serif font and an image of a hare sat on a plank of wood. You'd doubt whether this crowd were worth taking seriously. This fictitious company could well have multiple awards and reams of happy solvent customers, but such a logo design wouldn’t inspire any trust or admiration for the services they offer.

A logo design represents a business's professionalism and poor visual jokes don't work. Use fonts which sum up the 'brand mood'.

FEEDBACK

42. Show your logo design around

Kudawara's logo design was memorable for the wrong reasons

Quite a few of us will remember the Japanese pharmacy a few years ago whose logo design received worldwide recognition for being unintentionally rather saucy. You of course could argue that the logo is fine and there are a lot of people in the world with dirty minds. But let's get real: how this got through final client approval is anyone's guess.

After you've completed your logo design, send it round to your mates and family for a bit of feedback. Look at it sideways, look at it upside down and reverse it. Look at it every which way you can. Then send it to the client. You wouldn't want another Kudawara on your hands would you?

43. Stick to your convictions

Regular client feedback is crucial to avoid wasting everyone's time. Picture credit: Ben Powell at www.gogetcreative.co.uk

Sheffield-based graphic and UI designer Ben Powell suggests: "It's so important to get regular feedback from your client, but equally important that you make it clear you are the designer and that’s why you've been employed.

"As soon as a client begins suggesting things like, 'Let's make that text a bit bigger, and try this typeface', your mark becomes diluted. It's your job as the designer to make this clear from the start."

44. Ask the client specific questions

When your logo design is finished, try not to ask vague questions to your client such as, "Do you like it?", or, "What do you think?". You may as well ask if they like apples or oranges.

Questions you should ask include: "Does it meet the brief?" amd "Does this represent your core brand values?". If they avoid the question and just say they don't like it, ask for specifics. After all it's their brand and they should know.

45. Test it internationally

If you can, show it to as many different nationalities as possible, especially for a logo that is going to be used globally. You never know whether something that looks completely innocent in one culture may look unintentionally rude, offensive, or both in another. For example, in 1998, the Nike Air Bakin made national headlines when Arab-American groups thought the way “Air” was written on the shoe looked too similar to “Allah” written in Arabic.

46. Check for hidden words

Some people spotted a rude word when the WeightWatchers logo went all-lowercase

Often when a logo is stylised in a certain way - such as all the letters being the same case - it can spell out words that were not intended to be read.

47. Expect your logo redesign to be panned

At Creative Bloq, we regularly report on new logo designs for well known brands, and one thing that's surprised us is that immediate feedback is normally at least 80 per cent negative. People don't like change and react strongly to it. But don't worry - it's not a bad reflection on your work, it's just innate conservatism. Sooner or later they'll get used to, and then grow to like, your logo. And when it eventually gets redesigned again, they'll react just as strongly against that!

STYLE GUIDES

48. Create a logo style guide

The Channel 4 style guide explains in detail how its logo design can and can't be used

Style guides determine the way a logo design can be used and usually include colour options, size restraints, positioning, typefaces and how the logo design works on different backgrounds. Check out any of these design style guides for a great example of the sort of guide you should be aiming to set up.

49. Dictate colour options

A style guide should illustrate all possible colour options for a logo design. It should include any Pantone colours used with a breakdown for CMYK and RGB. Other options to include are: colour and mono logo designs on white, colour and mono on black and colour and mono on an image background.

50. Specify sizes

Some logo designs only work down to a certain size. This might be because they become illegible or simply lose their impact. Specify the minimum size for your logo design and bear in mind how it looks on screen as this may differ from a printed version. Offer an alternative in pixels.

51. Advise on positioning

The positioning of your logo design may not be required in a style guide, but depending on the style and shape of your design there may be a position that you think works best. For example, text that’s ranged right might look best on the right-hand side of the page.

52. Advise on spacing

Give consideration to the amount of space around a logo design and try to explain this without using units of measurement. For example, the space below the logo design should be a quarter of its width. This ensures that whatever size the logo design is used at, the correct space can be calculated easily.

53. Define no-nos

If there are any ways that your logo design should not be used then make sure you specify them. The main reason for a style guide is to ensure the appearance of your logo design remains consistent, so explain how the logo should not be misinterpreted and illustrate your points with examples.

EXTRA TIPS

54. Download the logo design flowchart

Download the flow chart to improve your logo design process

Still not sure where to begin with logo design? No problem. Deliver winning logo designs every time by following the step-by-step processes in Johnson Banks' foolproof flowchart.

Right click this link to download the logo design flowchart(PDF)

55. Why you should avoid plagiarism

If you rip off others, Logo Thief will find you out!

There are obvious ethical reasons not to plagiarise other people's designs, not to mention the potential threat to your reputation if you're discovered. And if you think nobody will notice, then think again. There are a number of people who've made it their hobby to seek out logo rip-off merchants, and some of the worst offenders can be found out on Logo Thief - find out more about this fascinating website here.

56. Free template for social media

This template will help you design for social media platforms

Sometimes, fitting your logo into the square format that most social media platforms use can cause your design to be altered, cut or otherwise not turn out as planned. So Wickie Media have come up with this free Photoshop template to ease your logo design woes.

The template enables you to preview what your logo will look like on a variety of social media platforms. It's a Photoshop CC document, and with the Image assets generator you can live-export all the needed files to upload your avatar and cover art for all your social media websites to create a consistent look.

57. The psychology of logo shapes

The logo shapes used by big brands aren't chosen by chance. Whether your design is based on circles, triangles or other shapes can benefit from a keen understanding on the psychology of shapes. There's a great primer here from Martin Christie of Logo Design London.

58. The psychology of logo colours

Understanding the psychology of colours is also vital to designing an effective logo. The use of colour can bring multiple layers of meaning, from primitive responses based on millions of years of evolved instinct to the complex associations we make based on learned assumptions. Learn how these principles can be applied to logo design in this article.

59. Be inspired by the best

See the evolution of some of the world's greatest marks in this top book

The 50 Best Logos Ever is a definitive guide to the greatest identity work ever created. Even if you only have a passing interest in graphic design, it’s fascinating to see what the BP logo looked like in 1930, or to chat about how the Coca-Cola identity has evolved (or not) over the past 125 years.

Ever wondered how the Penguin logo started its life? Or what Shell's logo looked like in 1901? Then this is the book for you. Over 180 premium pages, the book dissects the world's greatest examples of logo design, showing their origins, their evolutions and interviewing the designers behind them - including Rob Janoff (Apple) and Lindon Leader (FedEx). It all adds up to a fascinating reference book on the best known marks ever created.

Adobe Muse CC 2014 review

2014-07-04T11:33:00.001+01:00

Adobe's push to Creative Cloud has brought a number of changes to the industry, as well as a number of new applications that are only available as a Creative Cloud member. Adobe's Muse, a web design and development application, was the first of these programs released to entice the user base over.

We've written a lot about Muse so far, and undoubtedly will have a lot more to say as it evolves. It's core selling point, that it lets designers create websites without a stitch of code, has brought with it both cheers and jeers from various groups. But whether you like the concept or not, Adobe has shown great commitment in its steady development thus far, and this new Creative Cloud 2014 release is a really important step, even if much of what you get is under-the-hood and not very flashy.

As Adobe's first Creative Cloud only application, perhaps its development was a bit rushed at the start. It was originally developed using Flash/Flex and Air technologies. While good, the result was not as robust a tool as we are used to from a major developer. Using it was rather sluggish, even on the best computers. It was reminiscent of working with an online application.

The full Muse CC 2014 interface

So the big news in the world of Muse, with this release, is that Adobe has ported the entire Muse development over to more traditional programming environments, and the new release is now a robust 64-bit application, like the rest of their line. This is an important step, and one that can be felt within five minutes of using the program. Windows now open quickly, and moving items around is fast and responsive.

New Interface

In doing the new re-write, Adobe brought Muse in line with their other current offerings. It now has the dark interface that Adobe adopted a few years ago. But if you are an old-schooler that prefers the lighter interface and background, the Preferences give you four levels of interface style options to choose from.

I'm also happy to report that another pet peeve of my own has been fixed. In previous versions of Muse, the pallets were docked in a way that made me feel like I was always chasing after the tab I wanted, like some whack-a-mole game. Worse yet, there was no way to either tear the pallets off or expand the larger ones like Layers or Assets to full height. Basically, it was a mess. This version implements Adobe's standard pallet interface, a huge improvement.

The previous Muse interface

The updated Muse CC 2014 interface

If you've been a Muse user already, you will also see a wide range of smaller and well thought out interface improvements and additions. The PLAN-DESIGN-PREVIEW-PUBLISH-MANAGE selections that used to occupy a second tier menu line along with the toolbar options, have been moved off to a smaller section in the upper right, and made to look a bit like interface tabs. The toolbar items are now in a standard floating toolbar that hovers along the left. This removes the second tier and gives us almost an extra 50 pixels of vertical working space, for free. Laptoppers rejoice!

The new interface also gives us some more powerful workflow capabilities. For example, we can now have more than one working window display at a time, using the new 'Tile' option. This will allow you to view and compare various versions of the website, say the Desktop version and the Tablet. It will also allow you to more easily swap elements between one interface and another.

This will actually help solve one much requested item in Muse. When we finish designing the Desktop version of a site, and then request Muse to create a tablet or phone version, many of us were surprised to see Muse offers no automatic way to populate that new interface with the content from the previously finished version. Granted, such automatic copying of content will yield a mess, but it still would save a couple of steps of copying items over.

Now having the ability to display two windows we can more easily copy and past. We can even duplicate/resize, and then copy/paste. So while not revolutionary, this is a nice new enhancement to the Muse workflow.

Features Wanting

Beyond interface items, the real feature list in this version is quite short. This must be why despite it being a complete software re-write, Adobe opted to only give it a small incremental version number. This is version 7.4 over last release's 7.3.

This version of Muse has also updated the link found in the 'Library' pallet which in previous version linked us to Adobe's 'Muse Exchange', instead now links us to "'Adobe Add-ons' for Muse. While Exchange was a bit of education and some down-loadable items, the 'Add-ons' section is quite obviously an online store/repository/resource for Muse enhancements (other Adobe programs have their Add-on sections as well).

Integration of such a store is probably a good thing for a program like Muse, which is unable to create interface elements from scratch the way one could in Dreamweaver. And being a designer's program, its user-base will undoubtedly always be on the hunt for the next cool widget. Like fashion knock-offs, we are likely to see a never ending stream of new widgets that replicate the style and functionality of whatever is the web's latest and greatest thing.

One important thing to note, and lay praise to Adobe for: Add-ons is not just a store but also an exchange. About 1/3 of the items on it are 100 per cent free. Let's hope this trend continues since in the long run, the more robust the platform, the more successful Muse will be.

Muse CC 2014's new 100% width feature

Another nice new item is the '100% Width Slide Show button'. This unassuming button, when clicked, makes your slide show images occupy the entire width of the screen. If I'm not mistaken, this accomplishes the very same thing that in previous versions required you to delicately drag/snap the left and right edges of the slide show to precisely align with the left and right edges of the website. If that is the case, then this is a much improved and far less delicate workflow.

Speaking of previous versions, in moving a current file from version 7.3 to this 7.4 incarnation, I have come across a minor bug or two that users may need to look out for. One is that some of my previously centered slide shows, while still looking fine in the Design interface, were off-center when viewed in Preview or rendered out to HTML. After some back and forth I finally discovered that all I had to do was re-snap the slide show edges to the website edges. I may go back and see if simply clicking the 100% Width button fixes things as well.

Clients can edit your site in Muse CC 2014

Finally, Muse has a feature I have yet to use, but really can't wait to have the opportunity. It lets you the developer grant editorial access to your client or end user. This means you can design and deploy a site and give your client limited access to make changes to it. This is great for clients that need day-to-day alterations and want to do it in-house. While this is not a new feature, previous versions had it limited to sites that were hosted on Adobe's own Business Catalyst server service. That limitation is thankfully lifted and it can be used regardless of where the site is hosted.

Balancing Work and Relationship

2014-07-03T18:23:00.001+01:00

When both partners in a relationship work, it can be difficult to balance love with career. Modern
romance often means no one is home to make dinner, and quality time can be hard to find. Here are 10 ways to still find success as a couple while pursuing a career:

1. Set boundaries. Whether it's the time you each leave the office, or how often you work from home, make sure you communicate and set clear expectations about how your careers will bleed into your life. Make a rule that you can't look at iPhones after 7:00 pm, or that you'll both work on Sunday afternoons. Career-oriented couples often enjoy working, but setting boundaries allows you to also enjoy each other.

2. Talk finances early and often. The most common argument couples face is around money. So talk now, while things are good, on whether each person is willing to support the other if a job is lost or if a new career direction is fancied. Are you willing to dip into your savings to support a relocation? How will your lifestyle change if your partner gets a promotion? Decide how you will allocate money at home and for work.

3. Carve time out for each other. It's important to create regular time to spend together. Maybe you make special moments out of running errands or perhaps you exercise every Saturday together. You can also try scheduling a date night for every Tuesday that can't be rescheduled. The point is to find quality time together to look forward to.

4. Don't go to bed angry. An old adage that is meaningful for the success of both your relationship and your career. If you wake up angry, not only did you possibly lose valuable sleep from the night before, but you also get a negative start to your morning that can affect your productivity throughout the day. Work out your issues before your head hits the pillow for the good of your relationship and your career.

5. Balance sacrifices. If one or both of you want to pursue a high-profile career, it's almost a guarantee that sacrifices will have to be made for the good of that career. Remember that balance is created over long periods of time. Accept and acknowledge the importance of your partner's sacrifice to further your career and be willing to do the same for their dreams in the future.

6. Show unconditional support. It can be difficult to show interest in your spouse's career after your own long day of work. But it's important that you're thoughtful and present in your conversations relating to your partner's career, and that your support is unconditional toward their work. Without such support, a lack of understanding and resentment can breed in your partner, making it difficult to act as a couple.

7. Love the person, not their title. For the health of your relationship, make sure you've fallen in love with your partner as a person, and not with their title or position. In today's economy, nothing is certain, and compatibility is no longer based on whether or not the other person can take care of you. Instead, know that you can take care of yourself, and decide if you still want your partner around.

8. Do the decision two-step. The first step to making a decision is you, and the second is your partner. No longer are you operating in life independently, no matter how headstrong your personality. Your decisions now affect each other, and you have to recognize your partner has equal say. Prepare yourself to handle the consequences of the other person's actions.

9. Share household duties. No one wants to come home to a sink full of dirty dishes. Divvying up household chores is often a sticking point between couples that escalates into ongoing arguments.Assign clear roles and decide who takes out the trash, who does the dishes, who cooks, and who vacuums. Stick to it, but then don't be afraid to break out the dish soap when your partner is having a tough week.

10. Forgive and apologize. In a world of career uncertainty, relationships can be a secure foundation and minimizer of stress. Don't make things more difficult by holding grudges. Communicate often with your partner; show compassion toward their bad moods and celebrate their good ones. A successful relationship is often the first step toward a successful career. Make sure you commit to the long-game.

2014-07-03T10:42:00.001+01:00

I was fascinated by this news when i first saw it. The Building of the World tallest building? I came to think of of all the work, stress, time, intellect, creativity and so on that will be put into this gigantic project.

Whether or not Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Tower will be the world's tallest building upon completion is subject to debate (last week, it was announced China just might thwart the Kingdom's ambitions).

Even if it only ties for the honor, there's no doubt that the 3,280-feet (1,000 meters) tall structure will be a luxury experience. As it turns out, even the elevators will be VIP.

Not only will the elevators reach a record height of 2,165 feet (660 meters), but the elevators responsible for shuttling visitors directly to the tower's observation deck will be the world's fastest double-decker lifts -- traveling at speeds of 30 feet (10 meters) per second.

According to Johannes de Jong, head of technology for major projects at Kone Corporation -- the company contracted to build the structure's elevators -- high-rolling residents will also be able to communicate directly with the lifts through their phones.

"You can call the elevator as you step out of your car so you have it practically there when you arrive," he says.

KONE has developed a material called UltraRope for the elevtators.

Kone, who are leaders in elevator technology, will also be doing away with what for decades has been one of the most defining elevator features: buttons.

"Instead, we will have keypads outside the elevators, where people can type in their destination," says de Jong. The advantage, he says, is that people traveling to the same destination can be grouped together in one elevator. It's a system that not only speeds up the journey by enabling each elevator to make fewer stops, but is more energy efficient as well.

Even crafting an elevator that can reach heights above 1,600 feet (500 meters) is a technological marvel.

The reason is that steel cables, which have long been the traditional means of pulling up an elevator, are heavy.

The taller the building, the more cables are needed to lift it. In order to travel the distance to the observation deck, a single elevator in the Kingdom Tower would require nearly 20 tons of steel rope. Getting that much weight to where it needs to be for installation is near impossible.

New technology, in the form of the KONE UltraRope, has made it newly possible for an elevator to reach great heights.

Made from carbon fiber, the new rope is both lighter and stronger than its steel predecessors. By comparison, a single lift would only require around three tons of the new cable to operate.

The savings in weight, says de Jong, equals a further reduction in energy consumption.

"Because of the rope, these elevators will reduce typical energy consumption by as much as 21%," he says.

How You Succeed At Every Job Interview!

2014-07-02T12:58:00.000+01:00

I´ve been intending to write today´s blog article for a long time. One reason being that over the years I´ve seen many candidates who have been very good in job interviews and who got the job they applied for. At the same time, I´ve also met and interviewed multiple people who did not make it, i.e. who did not get the job at the end.

A second reason is that I´ve arrived at the conclusion, that those who did not get the job might not have necessarily been less capable of fulfilling the role than the ones who got it. Often, they were just not able to communicate or to deliver what was expected from them in the crucial moments of the interviews. Why?

Below I´ve listed 11 interview principles in order to be successful at your next job interview and to get the job. Some of them you know. Some of them you might have forgotten about. And others, you might not have considered yet.

First, Make the “Fit Test“: Be absolutely clear for yourself that the role and company you´d like to apply for really fits with your skills, career track, professional and personal objectives, beliefs and experiences. Conversely check, if you might match with the culture and needs of the company you´d like to join. If there´s no perceived fit already in this very first step, do not move on and do not waste your nor anyone else´s time by wanting to conduct an interview. Only if you know about, and believe in, and feel about such a “fit,“ you can and you will possess - and as such radiate - a 100% motivation level towards the new role and the new company. And that´s what it takes to succeed. Every good interviewer will realize very quickly how passionate you are about her company and how excited you are about the offered position.

Research the Target Company: To be well prepared is half the victory. Still, I´m surprised how many candidates would arrive at interviews, even for senior level positions, and not having studied our values, mission statement, leadership principles, products, etc. Why would they have not reviewed our Internet site, not read our latest press releases, why would they have no idea about what our competitors are doing, what our current and future challenges could look like? Don´t get me wrong: It´s not about being or becoming an expert about the company and role in question. It´s more about having acquired a sound knowledge before the interview to be able formulating your own, knowledge-based opinion which you´ll need to express at the interview(s).

Know Your interviewer(s): Today it´s easier than ever to collect information about your interviewers. Spend 40-50 minutes on Google, Linkedin, etc. and you should be clear about titles, roles, careers, etc. of all the people who´ll interview you. If not, ask the person who´s responsible of organizing the interviews and/or with whom you´re in contact to provide you some background information about the people you´ll meet. Addressing interviewers with their names and implicitly (or explicitly without exaggerating) showing them that you know (a little bit) about their careers, achievements, etc. is not only polite, but also shows respect and interest. You´d be surprised to hear how negatively it is perceived by many interviewers, if you do not know these things. And, on the contrary, how flattered many of them will be, if you are aware of some facts and successes of their professional lives. It´s like in real life!

Arrive On-Time and Professionaly Focused: It´s never a good start, if a candidate arrives late based on her or his own fault (e.g. having taken the wrong train, not having taken into consideration heavy traffic at a certain time of the day, not having found the right entrance of the building, etc.). In case of doubt and if you live further away from the venue of the interview, you should consider arriving the night before and staying at a hotel. Good employers will not only reimburse related expenses, but will also appreciate your thoughtfulness and professional attitude. It goes without saying that a fresh mind is a much more focused and a much more confident one. And conducting a successful interview is closely linked with posessing and displaying a healthy level of self-confidence.

Adjust Your Appearance, Style and Tone: Imagine you´re wearing a short-sleeved shirt, no tie and a casual pair of trousers when meeting for a job interview with one of the country´s top insurance companies? Or, imagine – for the fun of it - you took out your favourite Brioni business suit for an interview with the founder and CEO of the hottest Internet start-up around (who is one of those Harvard drop-outs and who is absolutely not interested in any status symbols). Beyond these more obvious things like appearance and clothing, you should also pay attention to the vocabulary you´re using. You should utilize words and expressions which are comon in the target company, its markets, and its industry. Also when applying e.g. for a position as a trademark lawyer, you might want to come across as serious and thoughtful. Whereas when going for a sales or marketing position, you need to be prepared showing characteristics of vitality, drive, and stamina (among others). Finally, be aware of the first impression you convey when meeting for the very first time the interviewer(s). It counts and it will be remembered – consciously and sub-consciously - for a long time. If you were someone who smiled a lot, if you had a firm hand-shake, a pleasant and clear voice and if you had looked for eye-contact during the moment of making the acquaintance with the interviewer. Important to remark that the process of “creating the first impression“ often already starts even before the interview; e.g. when you meet the receptionist, an assistant of the interviewer, or someone offering you a drink, etc. The “influence“ of such indirect stakeholders is the stronger, the smaller the company you´re applying with.

Know Yourself and The Value You Might be Adding: Before entering any interview loop you would need to make sure that you know your strengths and your areas for improvement. Be realistic and honest about them. Be able to list and to explain them by using concrete and short examples and explaing what you mean when e.g. you were to state that “you are restless and always want to storm ahead by seizing all identified opportunities.“ You should have a clear understanding about what is looked for at your target company and the job you´re applying for. You would need to be able explaining why you believe that you´re the one “ deserving“ the job by generating most value to the company. In the short- and in the long-run.

Anticipate Questions and Possible Areas of Concern: Good interviewers will try to imagine you being on the role they´re interviewing for. How do they do it? Pretty easy! They try to match your characteristics, your experiences, examples given by you, the way you talk and behave with their culture, their business and management principles, and with the requirements of the role they´re recruiting for. Example: If you apply for head of accounting with a company which prides itself of breeding managers who think big and long-term, you would need to come up with one or two examples when you prooved being not only numbers and detail-focused in your past career, but when you also acted as a visionary and a holistic thinker. Write down possible questions, formulate answers, and even rehearse at least some of them with a friend, confidant, etc. Saying that, stay flexible during the interview and do not try to reply with pre-thought and pre-formulated answers to all questions.

Stay Open-Minded, Positive, And Always Engaged: Regardless of how the interview goes – or what you think how it goes (as these two are often dissimilar), your composure should display interest, engagement, and friendly open-mindedness. Consider the interview as an opportunity to learn and to grow. Regardless of the outcome. Whilst paying attention and asking questions, of course, you are allowed to smile. By the way, please do not forget about your body language. Communication often is not only about what is said, but mostly about how something is expressed – verbally and non-verbally. In this respect, you should not think of the interview as a form of one-way-communication, i.e. only you explaining and answering questions. Don´t miss the opportunity to establish a dialogue on a level playing field with the interviewer. If you are curious about something, if you did not understand well a statement, if you´d like to receive more explanations on an important topic, then you need to ask your questions. It´s what every experienced interviewer would expect from you: You only get out of the interview, what you are willing to put into it.

Be Yourself And Do Not Pretend: You should not try being everyone´s darling or pretending being someone else just to get the job. Neither in life in general, nor in an interview in peculiar. Sure, as mentioned previously, you would need to adapt and to show that you understood what the company, the role, and the interview is all about. Saying that, never give up easily your core values and convictions. Be ready to enter a good and constructively-led discussion with different point of views. Important to reckognize, however, to remain tolerant, open-minded and to discuss in an empathic and fact-based manner. Leaving out emotions, politics, and any extreme thoughts and positions. One final comment: Even after having done a thorough analysis of the company and the role you´re interested in, it might turn out in the interview that some fundamental aspects are not in-line with your expectations or, and that also might happen, the position itself does not seem to fit any longer. Once – and after good reflection – this should become obvious to you then you should not go for the role nor accept it, if it were offered. Most likely it would be a painful experience and it would not work out.

Finish The Interview In Style: The last part of a good interview usually starts with the candidate asking some smart final questions. For example questions about the more overall strategy of the company, about what the interviewer considers as being crucial for being successful on the job (if not covered beforehand), or – if clarification is needed – about the role and its specifics. Either way, you should have written down a list of both more generic and more specific questions. Three to four are sufficient (If there were still more on your list towards the end of the interview, this might indicate that you were not actively enough asking questions in the interview until this point of time). It is crucial not asking your questions in a manner as being percieved as feeling obligated having to ask them. Instead they should be presented in an engaged way and you should be prepared to follow-upn on answers which might not be precise enough, or not having the depth you would have expected. You need to take care that all of your relevant questions will be answered during the interview. That´s your right and obligation towards yourself. If not, you might lack important information and you might join the wrong company. At the very end of the interview ask about next steps of the interview process. Personally, I also appreciate candidates who ask for a very first assessment at the end of the interview. Most important, however, and regardless of how the interview went, it is crucial to express your gratitude for the interview and to politely say goodbye.

Two More Things Many Candidates Forget About: Firstly, nothing wrong with, if you send to the interviewers – or at least to the principal interviewer – a short mail after the interview and thanking again for the interviews and mentioning that you would be looking forward to receiving their answer. This should be done, however, in a short and non-hyperbolized manner. Secondly, and this is very relevant in case you had not gotten the job, you should contact the company to ask for a personal and detailed feedback of your interview and about your performance. This is very helpful in order to improve for the next interview. In addition, you should reflect on the previous interview(s) and go through it step by step. Reviewing what went well and not so well. Focus on the improvement areas and write down specific action steps on how to better prepare and execute in the future.

What do you think? Any other tips on how to successfully master a job interview?

Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

CREATING A BRAND STRATEGY FOR YOUR DESIGN BUSINESS

2014-07-02T10:24:00.000+01:00

“There’s tons of information about branding available online, including Design Council and Business Link guides – but as designers ourselves we still find that there’s a lot of confusion about where to start.

This is a practical, graphic designer’s guide to creating a brand strategy for any business, large or small

– what you do with it next depends on your resources but whether you are paying professionals or going DIY this is the process that will get you off the ground:

Firstly, use a blank wall and blue-tack or a big scrapbook to keep a montage of all your of ideas, words, images, names, competitor’s branding, packaging, and just about anything that you feel relates to your business.

The plan is to gradually add and remove until you have created a presentation of your brand vision that will inform everything your business does, big or small. These are the things you need to consider…

1. Who are you?

Choosing a name for your business/brand is more difficult than naming your firstborn! The important thing is not to get too precious about the final name (unless it’s a corker) – until further down the line. Approach the name as a business asset and keep your options open until more of the pieces of the jigsaw are in place.

If you are going to use your own name consider what the future implications of this are. If you have a personal relationship with your customers and your own skills are your key asset (eg you as a designer, a consultant or other professional) using your own name allows you to bring any credentials you already have with you. But it ties you to the business so if you want to expand or plan to sell it on using your own name may not be the right move.

If you need an online presence (who wouldn’t) then it helps if your name translates into a website address. This is easier said than done and many people are surprised when they find that the unique name they have thought of is already registered.

As well as checking who is already using your name online you need to check if it’s already registered as acompany and a trademark.There are many businesses that are not registered companies and brands that are not registered trademarks, but it’s better to check that you have an open field of play before you press the print or produce button! The good news is that you can do all of this yourself, for free, online.

2. What do you do?

Marketing terminology likes to talk about USP (unique selling point) but the truth is most businesses are not unique. One precious jeweller or photographer, for instance, is pretty similar to another in terms of what they offer and it comes down to other elements such as personality, user experience, recommendation and simple human relationships that turn a contact or meeting into a loyal customer.

So in simple terms: ‘what service do you provide?’, or if it’s a product: ‘what is it and what does it do?’

I like to credit people with a bit of intelligence and believe that they see through the hype, so keep your integrity and be truthful. Try to define your business in one sentence if you can, re-working the words until it captures you in a nutshell:

Fair trade jewellery for any occasion
Wedding jewellery, specially made for you, using gold and gems from fair trade sources
Precious jewellery with a heart: beautiful wedding jewellery, hand picked from fair trade sources, made with love

Whilst all three of these descriptions are accurate the last one tells a story about the business. Precious jewellery with a heart feels a bit more romantic and emotional it implies the jewellery is special for the wearer, the maker and the planet. This is jewellery hand-made by someone who is a crafts person and really knows their stuff;beautiful and hand picked adds to this special and one-off feeling. Made with love suggests they take more time than you can possibly imagine so they are a labour of love and well worth the money!

If you find this process difficult it helps to ask a friend or partner to have a go. Seeing your business through someone else’s eyes brings a lot of clarity!

3. How do you do it?

You’ve heard about brand values and mission statements but what do they mean?

In the case of fruit drinks company Innocent their well documented mission statement is: ‘make natural, delicious food and drink that help people live well and die old’.

So they are saying they are motivated by something other than just selling smoothies, the nation’s health no less! They back this up with a list of five brand values that hang above the loos at head office and these are designed to keep everyone focused on ‘what we are, how we do things, and where we increasingly want to be’.

Innocent’s runaway success was largely due to launching the right product at the right time, it is the strength and integrity of their brand that keeps them at the top.

Not everyone can offer the potential of a longer life. But articulating the things that your business stands for helps to define your brand, you could say its like setting out your stall. Think of the attributes your business needs to convey, a wedding photographer might be trusted, reliable and a good communicator, but they might alsohumourous to get everybody relaxed on the final pictures, which becomes an important feature of their brand.

This part of the exercise is quite abstract and intangible (and lets face it every brand wants to project themselves in a positive image) but making a list of what your business believes in is a very useful exercise. It can become a point of reference for everyone concerned, so that if you include ethical as a brand value it needs to inform ALL your buying, sourcing and distribution decisions, from where you bank and buy power to the coffee in your cupboard, to where you source your materials and if you employ unpaid interns.

4. What’s your ‘handwriting’?

This is the logo bit (at last I hear you say!). I like to think of it as ‘the brand’s signature’: a shorthand marque that embodies all of the above. Indeed many fashion brands such as Paul Smith, Orla Kiely and Agnes B use a signature for their logo; it makes the designer a hero, hints at celebrity status and projects confidence in their individuality.

So graphically is your business/brand hard or soft? Serious or fun? Bright or pastel? Shiny or matt? Serif, sans serif, cursive, handwritten, retro, funky, techno?

Think of it as an emerging personality and gather as many images and references as you can that hit the target – refining, replacing and rejecting as you go.

Analyse your tear sheets and move things around to group themes and similar items together. It’s not unusual to find a bit of schizophrenia going on with distressed vintage type as one theme and hard geometric patterns as another.

If something feels right can you pin-point what is it that works? Is it the typography, the texture, the colour?

As you study the brand’s handwriting you need to think about its tone of voice. Is it formal or informal, authoratitive, friendly, serious, humorous or chatty? Collect examples of written copy that works in a style you feel is appropriate.

Remember that in terms of social media your business or brand’s tweets might need to sound very different from your own!

5. Who’s buying?

Are your clients trade buyers, consumers or professionals? Are they a certain age group, male or female, parents, dog lovers, runners, … the list goes on.

For example a designer making baby clothes might sell to boutique baby shops, department stores and online gift shops (trade). Ultimately their customer is also the parent, grandparent or friend (consumer).

Collect as much as you can for your wall, e.g. logos of the retailers, catalogues, examples of competitor’s packaging and branding, their products, magazine and press coverage. You are building a visual profile of your customer and your marketplace and this will help you position your brand accordingly.

This is also a good time to ask if you could increase your customer base if you did anything differently?

6. What do you need?

Business is all about meeting and surpassing expectations in terms of the service you provide or the product you supply, and your branding needs to do this too. So you need to meet minimum standards in order to be taken seriously and exceed them to stand out from the crowd.

I like the example of homemade jam for sale in a country road with a handwritten cardboard sign hanging from the fence and an honesty jar. This delights the Sunday driver looking for an authentic rural experience. On the other hand if your solicitor was to hang a scrawled cardboard sign from their door you might have second thoughts about employing them.

Fledgling businesses need to spend their marketing budget wisely, so make a wishlist of what you need, and prioritise. Decide what is essential now and what can wait; what you can do yourself and what you need professional help for.

Remember though, that saving money on design and print can end up costing your brand dearly if it is not up to scratch, in terms of branding first (and second) impressions count!

The wishlist might include: logo, stationery, signage, websites, apps, packaging, brochures, social media sites (remember you need to fill them with content so start with the one that you feel most comfortable with), exhibition stands and advertising. You might also need a pr company, photography, illustration, copywriting and other services.

7. What next?

Refine, tweak and reject. Go back through and use everything you have learned in the process to be objective (the first round was the subjective one). This is YOUR brand vision, and if you are not happy now is the time to sort it out.

After that its all about investing to make it happen. If you are creative you can invest your own time and use some of many the online print and website templates to get you up and running.

If you need professional help ask around for recommendations. Talk to several designers, and choose one who understands your target customer and shares some of your brand values. Designers are usually lateral thinkers but they also have areas of expertise, so if you need packaging, for instance, don’t choose someone whose specialism is HTML.

2014-07-02T10:14:00.000+01:00

So guys, your graphic design business is up and running well? Your customers must be increasing by the day and business booming to such proportions that you must be planning to expand it. Also, you would be thinking to explore other horizons of graphic designing so that you can offer the world a “complete package”. But…hold your horses, folks! Although expanding your design business is a lucrative and favorable step, however it can turn out harmful sometimes.
Now I’m not implying that graphic designers should NEVER expand their business, I just wish to inform about the repercussion that may result while expanding your graphic design business. The most crucial decision of business expansion is WHEN? You need to be sure of the right time to strike the iron when it is hot.

1. Bigger the business, more the mistakes:

You must have heard of this saying…”Bigger they are, harder they fall”. Let me explain this saying in light of business expansion. When your business horizon expands to newer realms, there are more chances of failure. For instance, you decide to expand from logo designing to web designing, stationery and business card design. The process becomes more complex and you are more prone to make more errors. So, with a big set-up, be prepared for big blunders.

2. Divided attention from your design forte:

Specialization is an important skill that leads to delivering effective and personalized services. Not all graphic designers are jack of all trades. For example some may be master of logo and identity designing, some ace at web designing. When you expand you design business scope, your attention is divided among the various services that you start offering. This way, you deviate from your design forte and fail to give best of yourself.

3. Overload makes you a workaholic:

5 Clients are waiting for a logo design….7 are in line for a web design….3 are screaming for a stationery design and all have almost similar deadlines. This is a scenario that a graphic designer may face after expanding without preparation. Unable to face so much of workload will eventually lead you to become a hardcore workaholic. Handling too much of stress and client pressure is not every designers bag.

4. You overlook your existing clients:

Expanding design business is just like adding friends on social media site Facebook…you keep adding new friends, and lose touch with the previously added ones. Likewise, the more you expand your business, the client base swells to such a level that you start to overlook your existing clients. You start taking them for granted and move on to finding new clients.

5. Fail to give quality client service:

When you expand without proper planning and preparation of resources, your client service is most likely in diminish. This is pure common sense…with every growing client from your expanded business your ability to give quality service goes down. This is where you need to decide on what is more important to you…quality or money? The quality one-on-one time that you used to give to your clients won’t be the same when you have a bulk of clients to face.

6. No time for family and friends:

This is one shortcoming that needs to be addressed before thinking of expanding your design business. Increased design business demands more time from you. Ultimately, you have to surrender your family time to tackle clients. There will no longer be a fixed time schedule since your client load will increase. Therefore, before you expand your business, have a discussion with your family and find out if they are ready to see less of you.

7. You won’t be a designer anymore:

The last and the scariest situation of all… you won’t be a designer anymore, once you expand your design business. Surprised? Let me explain how. When you develop your business, you hire more and more people who need to be managed. This administration and management of employees makes you more of a manager than a designer. Since most of your client work is facilitated by your employees, you are no longer able to fully satisfy your inner designing needs.

Are you ready for it?

Let me reiterate to my readers that I DO NOT intend to discourage graphic designers from expanding their business. I just wished to highlight the indicators that need to be tackled before you can be prepared to expand your business. So are you ready to move forward and expand?

Five things make you ruin your job

2014-07-01T15:23:00.002+01:00

It may sound a little disturbing just to think of someone writing about How to ruin your job in five different ways, however, it’s not how to ruin, It's how YOU ruin.

The goal of this article is to address how everyone of us -including me at my early career stages- tends to distract himself while building his early career by adopting a specific approach. That approach is in general a good one, but the way everyone holds it is the real problem. The approach is simply "Why wouldn't I start up my own business?".

It is 90% of all employees working for companies -whether multinationals or locals- who might always be thinking of starting their own business. They keep telling themselves that they should not work for someone else and they should be their own boss considering a full time job as a full time slavery. In fact, they are absolutely right ONLY IF THEY COULD START THEIR OWN BUSINESS. What most of today's employees do is letting that idea control their emotions, dreams, ambition and future plans to an extent that minimizes their performance and shortening their long-term settings as successful calibers for their company. On the other hand they never quit and start their business.

Having the idea of quitting and starting up own business might be a good thing, but at most cases it could be the self destructing curse of all times. The result of adopting that idea -and holds it for being only an idea- makes what I call "The Five Syndromes of Failure" with which it has never been easier to ruin your daily job career.

The Five Syndromes of Failure:

(1) You start criticizing everything in your working environment as if you know everything about everything:

Do you dare denying that you have not noticed your colleague -or maybe yourself- doing so? I bet not. Once you have "Own Business" idea dominating your tempers, you start criticizing, remarking and destructively commenting on everything goes around in your professional environment, the thing that for sure demolishes your professional image and start creating a reputation of you being a negative person. As a manager, I will never promote a negative person or letting him take the lead.

(2) Everything seems stupid and it ends up with you unsatisfied:

Your subconscious mind starts making Its excuses for you wanting to start your own business by reshaping everything in its ugly side. All of a sudden the HR is dump and not cooperative. All of a sudden, your manager is not a positive person, and all of a sudden, your Team Leader is too stupid to be in charge of your team wondering how unqualified person like him/her had that opportunity as a proof of the mismanagement of your company. Do not deceive yourself, It's just your subconscious encouraging you to leave the company and do what you want.

(3) You ended up deciding that you will just do what is requested No more and No less:

Most companies possesses a very dynamic challenging environment of which all employees are racing trying to prove that they are worthy to be promoted, worthy for the good tasks, and worthy to gain trust. Try to do what is just required and you will find yourself at the end of the queue of those who take the cream.What is next? Of course, you know what is next; it is you blaming others of under estimating you, not evaluating your potentials and oppressing you. That is exactly when you start NOT DOING what is required justifying that of their prior act of under estimation. Was not that you at the first place?

(4) Start recruiting others your way:

It is not going to be a long period before you start spreading your negativity. It's not because you are a bad person, It's simply that you started realizing how rotten your environment became -inside you-; that you might be a good person warning others. Guess what, NO ONE LISTENS, and It's you who loses credit and credibility. Whether you accepted that or not, NO ONE is going to adopt your perception until he/she feels that same way you do, and since they are all busy achieving their career objectives in such a competitive environment, it ends up of you having a LOSER image.

(5) Bad comes to worse:

Have you noticed that you were so busy nurturing your ego and negative perceptions that you have not developed in yourself being an entrepreneur?

It has been years since you started your previous four mistakes that occupied most of your time leaving no time to invest in your dream -pursuing your own business-. Now, your working environment is very rotten, and you have nothing to do but quitting taking your chances. The difference is that you are now taking that step as an obligatory trend Not Optional, full of negativity and adopting the perception of "I'M NOT A LOSER" instead of "YES I CAN".

Now you know exactly where that idea is taking you. If you thought for a moment that my advice to you is to give up that silly idea and focus on your career path as employee, then you really did not get my message. My message in few words is that It's either to reshape your mind as an employee and be good at it, or to reshape it as an entrepreneur. No mix could be achieved, so when you start adopting the idea of starting up your own business you better do it and stop wasting time, otherwise you will see exactly the five previous syndromes ruining your career.

Create a Realistic 3D Sphere Logo from Scratch Using CorelDraw

2014-06-30T13:31:00.000+01:00

In this tutorial you'll learn how to make a realistic 3d sphere logo. This tutorial is for designers who use CorelDraw as their main software. This kind of logo works well for technology focused companies, as it has a high-tech feel. After working through this tutorial you'll be able to create similar designs in your work.

Step 1: Basic Elements

First of all you have to use CorelDraw with version 11+. In this tutorial I use CorelDraw X4. Okay lets get started. Let's take a look at the basic elements used to create our design:

Sphere
"S" shape
Background

Step 2: Creating Worksheet

First of all open your CorelDraw program. Now create a new file and set the paper size to A4 with a landscape view.

Step 3: Creating Circle

Create a circle using the Ellipse Tool. Find em on the left toolbar. Set it to 7x7 cm size.

Step 4: Creating Box

Create a box using the Rectangle Tool find em in the left toolbar. Make a box with the size 8,3 x 8,3 cm. Select both the box and the circle, then make it center width using buttons C + E.

Step 5: Convert to Curves

Select the box using Pick tool at the first upper left toolbar. Then convert the box into curves using Command + Q, or go to the upper toolbar then find Arrange > Convert to Curves.

This will allow you to edit the node or frame of the box. After that go to the Shape Tool. It's the second upper left toolbar, and click em. Now you will see the node of the box.

Step 6: Creating Nodes

Using the Shape Tool to add 6 nodes to the box by double-clicking the line of the box, with the position shown below.

Step 7: Dragging Nodes

Select the node in the middle-left and drag using the Shape Tool. This applies also to the right node. Drag them to the middle with the position shown.

Step 8: Convert to Curves

Now still using the Shape Tool Left-click the line between the node that you have dragged, and convert it to curves using Convert Line to Curves.

It's in the upper toolbar, until you see 2 arrows in the line. This applies also to all the lines between the middle node that you have dragged.

Step 9: Creating "S" Shape

Now still using the Shape Tool Left-click the arrow in the node and you can drag em, it will make a curvy shape. Drag the shape em until it looks like an "S" shape.

Step 10: Colorize the "S" Shape

Now the box is shaping like an "S" letter. Now let's put color so they will look a little metallic. Select the "S" shape. Go to the Fountain Fill Tool, which is in the left bottom toolbar. Choose Custom fill on the color blend and make the type Radial.

Now you will see a color box. You can change the color by left-clicking it, fill the color with 50% Black on the left, and white on the right. You can make a custom fill by double-clicking at the color box. Fill the color with 50% Black on the middle left, and white on the middle right. Two custom colors in the middle will make the color gradient softer.

If you did it correctly it will look like this.

Step 11: Colorize the Circle

Now we will work with the sphere. Left-click the sphere, and go to the Fountain Fill Tool to colorize. After you open the Fountain Fill Tool, choose Custom color blend, and make it Radial Type.

Fill the left side Color box with the Dark Red Color. you can make this by clicking in others in the left bottom color palette. Set them to dark red by dragging it. And fill the right side with the normal Red color, this will make a gradient that goes from dark to light red.

If you id it correctly it will look like this.

Step 12: PowerClip

After that we are going to put the "S" shape into the sphere with the PowerClip tools. Left-click the "S" shape, and then go to the top toolbar and find Effect > Powerclip > Place Inside Container.

Then you will see a black arrow, Left-click em to the sphere, and now you will see that the "S" type is inside the sphere. You can go "inside" or "outside" the container by holding Command while double-clicking.

Step 13: Editing Inside The Container

Okay its getting more interesting right. Now we are going to edit inside the container, which is the sphere. Hold Command while double-licking the sphere and now you are inside the container. Make a custom box inside the container, and shape it.

Shape it using the Shape Tools

Step 14: Editing the Custom Shape

Now we are going to colorize the Custom Shape that you have created. Go to the Fountain Fill Tool, which is in the left bottom toolbar. Choose Custom fill on the color blend And make the type Linear.

Now you will see a color box. You can change the color by left-clicking it. Fill the color with Black on the left and right. and you can make a custom fill by double-clicking at the color box, fill the color with Black on the middle left, and middle right, and 50% Black in the center. Use a 45 degree angle.

Do this on both the Custom Shapes.

Now Send Two of the Custom Shape to the bottom layer by selecting both of them and pressing Command + Page down.

Okay now it looks cool.

Step 15: Adding Texture into the S shape

And now we are going to add a little texture to the "S" shape. I create this in Photoshop, so I won't explain it in here. It is available in the 'source' file though

OK, now import the metal texture into your working file by pressing Command + I.

Click the Metal Texture and Place it inside the "S" shape Container using PowerClip (see step 12 for information on the process). Now if you do it correctly you will see something like this.

Here is the look from Outside the Container.

Step 16: Transparency

Now we have two containers the Sphere Container and the "S" shape Container. Now the "S" shape Container will have a texture, but it's still too dark, so let's lighten them up a little.

Go inside the "S" shape container by holding Command while Double-clicking. Inside the "S" shape container Click the Metal texture and go to Interactive Transparency Tools, it's in the left bottom toolbar. We are going to make the metal texture a little bit transparent, in the Interactive Transparency Tools go to the upper left toolbar. There you will see a transparency type, set it to uniform. While still in the Interactive Transparency Tools, you will see a set transparency point tool, make the value 80.

If you do it right, then it will look like this from Outside the Container.

Step 17: Creating Shadow

Now we are going to add a little shadow to the custom shapes inside the sphere container, which gives an aura to the sphere. Go inside the Sphere container by hitting Command + Double-click, and select the two custom black shapes. After you select them, find the Interactive Shadow Tool, which is in the left bottom toolbar. After that, you will see that your cursor turns into boxes, hold and drag them to create a shadow.

Apply this on both custom shapes, and it will look like this from outside the container.

Step 18: Applying Racing Texture

Now we are going to apply a Racing Texture to the sphere. Inside the 'source' file you will find racing-texture.cdr. Import it into your working document.

Now we are going to put the texture into the red sphere. Select the texture and put it into the Sphere container with PowerClip (process explained in step 12).

Inside the Sphere Container put the texture at the bottom of the layer by pressing Command + Page Down. After that go to the Interactive Transparency Tool and set the type to uniform and set the transparency value to 80.

If you do it right, it will look like this outside the container.

Step 19: Making the Background

Now we'll create a Background for the sphere. Make a rectangle or a box for the background, colorize it to a darker color or gray - it's up to you. Custom fill it, like in step 11. Send the background into the bottom by pressing Command + Page Down.

After that put a shadow into the sphere using the Interactive Shadow Tool (see step 17).

Now we'll leave that sphere for a little while. Now make a star shape using the Star Tool, which is located in the left toolbar. Left-click and drag into your document to make the star.

On the upper toolbar you will see a value of polygons for the star. Apply the value 8 to make an 8 corner star.

After you make a star go to the Distortion Tools in the left toolbar. When you click it, on the top toolbar will appear a Distortion Type, set it to " Distortion.

Now grab the star, by holding and dragging Left-click, and make a clockwise circle move to distort the star.

Our background texture shape is complete, now put a color in it (any color) and apply the swirl to the sphere.

Now create a shadow for the little sphere using the Interactive Shadow Tool, then drag it to the big red sphere. Instead of creating a black shadow now we are going to make a white shadow, set the Shadow opacity to max, Shadow Feathering to 62, and Shadow Color to White.

You can separate the shadow and the little circle by pressing Command + K. Duplicate the white glow and you'll have the results below.

Final Image

You can customize it and make it more interesting by adding more Shadow, Glow, or even texture. The final design is below.

Classic Logo Design in Corel Draw

2014-06-30T13:20:00.001+01:00

Smart ways to work with images in InDesign

2014-06-27T13:40:00.000+01:00

Luke O'Neill shares the wisdom of seven years creating beautiful magazines to bring you his top tips for managing images in InDesign.

InDesign is the trusty stalwart of the magazine and publishing industries: it's the primary tool used to produce everything from Vogue to Computer Arts.

Although layout and publication design lie at the core of InDesign, its versatility can be harnessed for any design project, and its file handling capabilities make it a powerful ally when working with complex, multi-layered layouts.

In this InDesign tutorial I'll run through some tips for working with layered PSDs and multi-page documents, and even how it's possible to do some image editing on the fly directly within InDesign.

01. Import options: Layers

In the Place dialog you'll find the show import options checkbox. Select this when placing an image to bring up a dialog where you'll see a set of options that vary depending on the file type. With a PSD you can turn layers on and off, enabling you to easily get rid of the background of an image, for example.

02. Import options: Alpha Channels

Another advantage of using PSDs in InDesign is the ability to employ alpha channels created in Photoshop straight into your layouts. Simply navigate to the image tab and select the relevant alpha channel. This is particularly useful for importing fine, overlapping details, such as hair.

03. Working with greyscale images

If you're using black and white images, save them as greyscale JPEGs. You can then colour them directly within your InDesign layouts. Use the Direct Selection tool to colour the foreground of the image and the selection tool for the background. This is useful for coloured details like headshots.

04. Gradients within images

Unfortunately you can't apply a gradient directly to a greyscale image, but there is a workaround. Step and repeat the image on the spot or copy and paste it in place. Next, alter the colour of the image using the swatches panel and use the Gradient Feather tool to fade out part of the image.

05. Gradients with cut-outs

You can't colour greyscale PSDs in InDesign - to colourise a cut-out or masked image, use Duotone in Photoshop and then save as separate files. The above images consist of three files: the original and two duotone files - one with solid colour and the other feathered using the Gradient Feather tool.

06. Place an image within multiple frames

As an effect you may wish to place an image within a number of separate frames. To do this, simply select all of the frames holding Shift and go to Objects>Paths>Make Compound Paths. Now just place your image within the frame and adjust until you're satisfied with the results.

07. Adjusting frame and image sizes

To quickly adjust the size of the image within a frame, select it using the Direct Selection tool and then useOpt/Alt+Cmd/Ctrl++. to increase the size andOpt/Alt+Cmd/Ctrl+-, to decrease. Use the Reference Point grid in the Control bar to increase the size from the top, bottom, side or centre.

08. Make use of the Control bar

For precise size increases, the Control bar comes in handy. Here, you can incrementally increase either the frame or image size within it by using the arrow keys or by entering a value. When adjusting image size, be sure to check Constrain Proportions For Scaling option so you don't distort the image.

09. Scaling by percentage

In the Control bar there's also the option to scale images by percentage size. This gives an indication of how big you can take your images on the page. As a rule of thumb, if your images are at 300dpi (for print) then you should try to avoid increasing the size any further then 120%.