July 1, 2011

6:00pm

The Joy of Going Live

For about three months I've been working on a really cool project for Bliss Bakery here in Vierginia Beach. I got the chance to redesign their website and give it a little zing. What made this particular website more awesome was that Joe Jacob, my brother in law, took all the photos you see on the site. (Joe...if you read this...I think you should go professional full-time...)

Absolutely no stock image was used for the site whatsoever. Every pic is of the bakery and their staff. This made the site look more human. Bliss' philosophy is to give people 100% of the best customer service. Customer service is still a human function...and that is what the website turned out to be...human.

The site coincided with a big local radio station (FM99) promotion this morning where Bliss made a cake for Rick Rumble, the morning DJ. The site went live last night (June 30) and new analytics were added prior to the event in order to track this site in comparison to the old one. With all the mention of the bakery on the air and teasers about the new site hitting Facebook a day or two before going live, traffic spiked. Amazing! I love it when they grow up...

Check them out at www.theblissbakery.com and be sure to link to their Facebook page and like them!

Current Projects:

• Bliss Bakery, Virginia Beach (website redesign)
• VEER Magazine (advertising design)
• Sentara Medical Group (translation English to Spanish)

June 28, 2011

10:00am

Hiatus...Learning to Become Ambidextrous

Well, let's just say that June has not been my month. Broken right arm (and right-handed) turns your world literally around. Amazingly enough, the opposite hand starts to take over and before you know it you begin to adapt and retrain your brain to think in mirror image. That's all fine and dandy if you have time.

One of the modifications I had to make was to work without using shortcuts on the keyboard since the hand that normally takes care of those commands is now working the mouse. In wait there was a website in mid-design, clients needing rush jobs and that was just the freelance side. On the full time work end, I am the entire marketing department and we are in the middle of launching a new product which requires all new literature, adding pages to the website, a new catalog layout along with countless other little things that happen to drop into my lap. There's no room for error and no time to stop. The human body is an amazing machine, and it is interesting to see one hand help the other.

Have a great day! GV

June 14, 2011

2:00pm

"Trust the Force, Young Luke" - Master Yoda

Ok...so that is a geeky way of starting out a blog entry, but honestly, it represents what every graphic artist adheres to deep within.

When I worked in the corporate advertising assembly line at the newspaper, it was like a modern live action version of Pink Floyd's "The Wall". Ads had to be done a certain way, had to look a certain way, etc. etc. Creative freedom was stifled and unfortunately what at one time I thought was the ultimate goal, the newspaper turned out to be the biggest disappointment of my life. Lesson learned. Move on. I may have charred a bridge or two, but when you look at the overall staff attrition from then to now, you can see why advertising designers were given the option of "My way or the highway.."

Over time I developed a "signature" design that defined me from others. I was not a cookie cutter artist and never intended to be mainstream. Instead, I designed based on what I felt, much like a singer sings about life experiences or a period in their lives, I can look back at all my pieces over the last 15 years and tell you exactly what was going on. I began to design what moved me and what struck me as awesome. I began to look at all my pieces from the audience's point of view, not mine or the client's and only got psyched about a piece after getting final approval from the client. The mix of all those qualities made me versatile and quick. By not dwelling on the technical aspects of the design, I began to design on the feeling of the moment. What drew me to the client. What would the customer like to see when seeing that advertisement. I began asking a lot of questions. I also came to terms with the fact that there are many better than me but that nobody designs the same as me.

Design what you feel, not what you feel you have to design.

June 9, 2011

1:00pm

It's Never Too Late to Learn

One of the most interesting things about being a professional graphic artist is that you learn to adapt to certain types of technology as it becomes available. Many times, not by choice...but by need.

I live in Virginia Beach, VA; a military town and home to many designers.  Because it is a female-dominated industry, many Navy wives take up design work.  Tidewater Community College’s Portsmouth campus offers great programs for graphic designers along with CIW and web-based technology courses in its Virginia Beach campus.  Not that I mind the competition….instead, I welcome it.  However, what defines a good designer from a better designer is their knowledge of the technology they design on, with and for.

As a self-taught artist, I take pride in having learned about the print and design industry early on.  I learned on MS Publisher, migrated over to COREL Draw and then moved into the beautiful, limitless world of Adobe.  The running gag with Adobe is how once you think you’ve mastered the darn thing…a new version comes out.  Each version has neat new tricks (and some annoying ones that wish they had never changed over to) and make the job easier thus leading to faster turnaround and profitability…even if you charge by the hour.

If you plan on keeping up with the designer Joneses, then I highly recommend using the Mecca of e-learing, Lynda.com.  This incredible program contains over 62,000 tutorials on all the popular software programs ranging from MS Word, Adobe, to even programming and publishing apps for smartphones.  It’s a designer’s nirvana and it allows you to learn at your own pace.  Frankly, I wish I had this resource early on when I was learning design.  It would have made things so much easier.

To learn more here are some valuable links:
Lynda.com - www.lynda.com
Tidewater Community College - www.tcc.edu
Adobe - Adobe.com

June 2, 2011

12:30pm

So You Think You Are a Designer???

I get a lot of files from clients such as logos, product photos, etc. that need to be incorporated into their marketing piece. 99.9% of the time these are formatted in RGB mode and low resolution to begin with. Clients are not expected to know what a designer or pre-press manager needs, but as a "designer" you should be be able to know how to reformat those items for press use...you would think.

One of my biggest pet peeves is how quickly people become a "graphic designer" once you put a layout program in front of them. Note to wannabes: MS Publisher, MS Paint and PrintShop are NOT design programs...no matter how many "Press Ready" options they have. They will never, ever, ever, ever be suitable for professional use. Leave the design work to us professionals and stop annoying the pre-press manager or designer laying out the advertising piece with your "camera ready" piece of poo.

If you are going to design something professionally, photos or raster graphics need to be high resolution (300 dpi or better). Vector graphics created in Fireworks or Illustrator are better yet because they are clean graphics and rarely show any pixilation. If while reading this paragraph you did not understand one iota of the terminology without going to look it up online...then stop calling yourself a "designer". You can be a "clip art artist". Printing presses print in CMYK...Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. They do not print in RGB, Red Green and Blue. RGB is what you see on your monitor or TV. Photoshop and Illustrator can convert graphics from RGB to CMYK with the click of the mouse. But if you think that if you can copy and paste a graphic from the web and try to incorporate it into your print campaign, then you are about to do one of two things...wait...make it both....1) You are about to ruin your advertising piece and 2) You are about to tick off your designer or pre-press manager. There is a common rule when sizing graphics. You can size down from high resolution to low, but you can't go from low to high. It will look pixilated, rough and like a little kid drawing with chalk on a sidewalk designed your logo.

If you are giving your designer a rough piece to start with, expect to be charged extra time cleaning up your logo. If that designer is conscientious of their work and the customer's needs, then they will try to clean up or reproduce that logo, graphic, etc. to the best of their ability. But cleanup doesn't come cheap, so be prepared. Also, if you have a photo of your product, make sure it is taken in the highest megapixel setting and then it is sent to the designer in raw format without having been modified. Let the designer do that since they know how to lighten, sharpen and modify a photo for print use.

And another word of wisdom: Never say to a designer the following phrase: "All you have to do is....". You may end up with a P.O.C. ad and stick figures.

June 1, 2011

11:00am

Negotiating Printing Costs

For the last 12 years I have worked closely with various printing companies as an employee, consultant and a client. As mentioned in a previous blog entry, it helps to work at a print shop in the pre-press department to see how it all works.

Print shops make their money on the service they provide and the markup of their materials. Like any product you buy in quantity, the more you buy, the lower the cost per unit. Therefore, if say you get estimates for 3000, 3500 and 4000 quantities, you will see a difference in price point. Take the following example:

Print shops have flexible pricing curves that allow them to work the right price for the customer. In this age of cost-conscious budgets, you would be surprised at what amount of leverage the client has in negotiating a lower price to better fit their budget. Basically, never take the first price you are quoted. In addition, get three or more different quotes from various printers. This will help in your bargaining and budgeting. And never be afraid to ask fora lower price. Print shops are hungry for work and they will bend over backwards to get your business.

May 31, 2011

4:30pm

IMHO....Adobe charges way too much money for their software. Don't get me wrong....Adobe programs are the best out there, but it's not doing the creative folk like us any good.

I think that Adobe's mission, while noble, is to try to thwart piracy. For many years, home based free-lancers like myself could not afford upward of $1300 to $2600 for their "above board" suites (click here for the cost breakdown). However, Adobe recently came out with a very palatable lease option of their software. The Adobe Subscription Plan allows you to essentially "rent" the program indefinitely. It kind of gives you the option to "test the waters" and gauge your business' income. After a few months, years, etc. then you can choose to buy it. "But what happens to all that money you spend leasing it?" you ask. Well, here's the kicker...if you have paid one years' worth of rental fees, say in this case $95/mo which equals $1140/yr, you will still have to pay the full price of $1899 for CS5 Design (retail $1899) minus a 10% discount spiff they are currently running. So I guess $1710 is better than a sharp stick in the eye.

For more information on Adobe's subscription pricing, click here.

May 29, 2011

2:21pm

A lot of people ask me about why it is that as a designer I use a PC instead of a Mac. Personally, I like the ease of a PC, but also, I was self taught and everything I learned was on a PC. Macs have come a long way over the last 10 years, especially in the last 5 with their high-end graphics capabilities and excellent processors. It's a photographer's nirvana if you ask me.

If you are an independent designer/artist/photographer that does not have to rely on being connected to a network, then go for a Mac (if you can afford it). I have worked in office environments where a designer's workstation is networked to hundreds of other computers and the network is not Mac friendly. When I worked for the newspaper and Portfolio Weekly, those networks needed to be PC compatible in order to work with the editorial and other administrators. Also, at the time, MS Office was not Mac friendly and in order to communicate properly, your Outlook and Word had to be compatible with your computer.

Another factor is cost. If you are lucky enough to have deep pockets, go for a Mac if you work out of the home. Unfortunately, in today's financially conscious world, PC's are still affordable and very upgradable unlike Macs.

Lastly, Adobe has made the platform barrier a non-issue. Since Adobe works on both PC an Macs nearly identical with the exception of a couple keystrokes, it makes no sense to spend extra valuable money. Don't get me wrong, if you are looking for great on-screen graphics (professional photographers), then buy a Mac,. However, as a graphic artist/designer, we design for the print and web industry 99.9% of the time. As we all know, we take the time to make it look as best as we can on the screen only to have it downsampled to 150 to 200 newsprint, 300 dpi glossies and the unfathomable 72-96 dpi web resolution. In the end it's all about money and skill. If you have the money and don't mind spending it, buy a Mac. Adobe already will charge you an arm, a leg and your firstborn for their software, so why go into debt more when all you need is a simple, fast PC.

Comments? Post them on my FB Page.

May 27, 2011

5.58pm

Looks like VEER is going to be a big issue for next month. Awesome. I like doing ads for them. Reminds me of the good old days at Port Folio Weekly and (grumble...) the Virginian Pilot. One of the things I learned to do was to design on the fly and let pressure and creativity blend into this giant ball of goo and throw it onto the page. The rush is fun.

One of the things I recommend that any graphic artist/designer do after getting their nose out of the school books is to get a job at a print shop doing all the layout grunt work. This is where you learn what is needed to go to press and what works and what doesn't. You will be be a better designer by doing that because the print shops and press operators will respect you for having stuff ready to go. Remember...time is money.

Comments? Post them on my FB Page.

May 27, 2011

1:30pm

By day, I am director of marketing and advertising communications for a large manufacturing company. Essentially, I do the same thing full time as I do owning GGD. Gotta pay da bills.

One of the challenges as a graphic artist is honing in on what the customer wants. Here's a trick: put yourself in the shoes of the customer who will see your piece. Never design like if you worked for the company that hired you. You'll find that if you don't know that much about the product, you will design based on what you wish you knew so that you can have a piece that interests the potential viewer of your piece.

Comments? Post them on my FB Page.

May 27, 2011

1:15pm

After much thought, I decided that a static website with what we do was boring. Instead, talking about it and highlighting various projects and topics make for interesting conversations.

A little about the company first. I started the company in March of 2000 as a web design business called Genesis Web Design. However, with the high demand of graphic design projects increasing, the company became Genesis Graphic Design. Since then, business has been steady and relatively constant by realigning the focus of the company. My main objective was to cater to small businesses who could not afford large advertising agencies. With that, I established a niche where small businesses could save a ton of money by paying per job fees instead of expensive retainers and contracts. More power to the little guy. In a sense, I'm all about the small business owner as I am one myself.

Comments? Post them on my FB Page.