designlecturer:

I promised you a good post! We’ve got an interview with an amazing individual, and an even more amazing illustrator Jordan Debney!

We hope you are going to be just as excited as we were when New Zealander Jordan Debney and his amazingly crazy illustrations crossed our paths! Join us as we discover more about this fantastic illustrator and just actually what a ‘Quadricorn’ actually is…

DL: Tell us about who you are Jordan and what you do?

JD: Well I am a male human being, (self proclaimed) artist from New Zealand (it’s that tiny speck in the lower right hand of a generic map of the world). I have a great love for monsters and all things repulsive, horror movies and ice cream. I attempt to fuse all of those things into visually pleasing pieces of artwork.

DL: Do you remember the first time you felt that design was the career path you wanted to take?

JD: I have always enjoyed drawing as a child. I used to imitate drawings from comics and the collectable ‘Dragon Ball Z’ cards all through primary school and never actually knew I could make a career out of it. Although I always knew I wanted to work with art, I just never knew how. Enough drawing kind of made a career of itself. The more I drew, the better I got, the better I got, the more people started approaching me for artwork for their clothing line and album covers. Consider it a growing entity that can’t stop feeding.

A: How would you describe your design style to our readers - and how would you describe your creative process?

JD: I often find myself playing with mixtures of cornflour and water for hours, (you know, how it goes really fluid-like as well as a solid). I observe and concentrate on various parts the mixture as it flows down different shaped objects I find lying around. I do this for visual pleasure, as well as a creative study. I find it fascinating, as I try to share that fascination into my art work. It’s just a matter of making it flow and work well. I like to focus on folds of the flesh and disfigurements of the visual appearance while incorporating things that are usually considered ‘positive’ and bright colors. I usually get mixed reactions from people when they see my art, they don’t know whether to recoil in fright or give it a hug. Probably the only time a vomiting horned monster could ever be considered ‘beautiful’. A screaming monster riding the back of an ice cream is so ironic that it’s comical.

DL: Has there been one person who has had a real influence on you, and your art work?

JD: There have been many people that have influenced my artwork, as well have experiences. I didn’t want to be one of those alcohol driven people that don’t end up doing anything with their life. I want to succeed and be able to say I haven’t wasted my limited time on this earth. So I went with the one thing I knew I could do, and that was drawing. I look up to and admire the people I consider most creative. Trent Reznor for his music, Zack Snyder for his movies, James Jean and Alex Pardee for their art. I can always know that whatever happens, I will always have the things that these people do most creatively to keep me going. Seeing creativity fuels my creativity, and I have an unlimited source of it.

DL: What has been your favourite piece of art you have worked on so far, what makes it your favorite?

JD: That would have to be my ‘Quadricorn’ piece. (Shown at the top) What could be more awesome than a four horned horse with pincer hooves engulfed in gravity defying fluid?!

DL: If there was one person from the creative world you could sit down with and have a chat with who would it be?

JD: Firstly it would have to be Alex Pardee. Secondly, it would be more of a food fight, dressed as original gangsters, with marshmallow shoes and Chewbacca masks. During the violent toss of the pizza we would be telling a horror story that would make Rob Zombie’s head explode.

DL: Have you ever been asked to do a piece of work that you turned down? If you did - how did you approach this to the prospective client?

JD: A few weeks ago I got asked to commission a shirt design that infuriated me. They asked for me to design them a shirt with a specific character from a specific artist. I responded suggesting that they ask the ACTUAL artist to design the shirt instead. Artists should be approached because they like their style and their art, not to imitate another artists style or characters.

DL: With the current climate in the world, how has this affected the art and illustration industry in New Zealand?

JD: The art industry in New Zealand is very small in comparison to other art industries, everyone seems to ‘know of’ everyone. Using the internet as a tool to get your art seen is very achievable, but that can only go so far when you live in such an isolated country as New Zealand. The ‘word of mouth’ usually doesn’t even leave the shores of New Zealand, so being spotted for exhibitions in other countries best contemporary galleries and magazines is limited to ‘accidentally’ being stumbled across over the internet or books, and not to mention even more pressure to make a decent impression. Haha, I hope this answer is relative to what you were asking. (It was aha! .DL)

DL: What advice would you give to other art and design students about how to develop their own creative style?

JD: I’d suggest you first find your artistic medium and start from there. Each day just draw and draw and draw, you don’t even have to show anybody. Surround yourself with your favorite inspirations and artists you admire most. A style will eventually develop and your instinct will take it from there.


DL: Finally, do you think that creative talent is being lost due to the lack of ‘obvious’ opportunities on offer to designers?

JD: Yes indeed, and have discovered that it is very difficult to get your name into the art world, it will often require you to do work for free. You have to physically shove it into people’s faces and to do so making an impression that will be remembered. I’ve known of people with a huge amount of talent to just give up and do something that’s “easier”. So yes I do believe that talent is being lost and unseen. It’s just a matter of not giving up before the opportunities are available for you.

I hope this was a great insight into the mind of a brilliant up and coming illustrator - and as an owner of a couple of fantastic pieces of work by Jordan I can honestly say that until you see his painted work or illustrations in the flesh you cannot honestly believe how fantastically detailed they are! (as i’m writing this i’m drawn to the huge Mars Attacks print framed and adorning my wall right now!)

Hopefully we will have lots more up and coming designers being interviewed here to give you all a bit of a break from just my voice!!

…and i’m still banging through the questions so if I haven’t answered yet I will!!

Hope you enjoyed the show!

J.

Find more out about Jordan at www.eyerupture.com

But I’ve got a late meeting with some clients so may not get the chance - but fear not ill make sure the next is extra special if I can’t :)

designlecturer:

So, how do you design a decent logo?  

Here are a few tips that will hopefully give you a heads up on some good (and maybe obvious) points to consider when starting out designing a logo.

• I’ve seen this before… You should design a logo to suit the needs of the project or client. Don’t fall back onto a logo you’ve designed before - the logo and branding of a company go hand in hand, your responsibility as a designer is to create something memorable and unique for your client!

• What is it…? Every logo should convey a message to the viewer.  If potential consumers know or understand nothing about your client after looking at the logo, you have failed as a good designer (sorry).

• WHY IS MY LOGO ALL PIXELLATED?!  Your logo needs to be scalable so put down Photoshop, use the right tools for the job - Illustrator is pretty much the program you need to be using - never use Flash to design a logo (or Microsoft Word….)

• I have a gold membership on Stockphoto… Steer clear from anything expected. Remember, your logo should be memorable for the customer.  By adding cliché, clip-art  images, your logo will look unprofessional and be quickly thrown on the rubbish tip.

• What is it? Some designers complicate their logos by adding lots of detail, too many words, taglines, colours etc.  Keep it simple. You’ll be more memorable - think Nike.

• I found the filters on Photoshop - I couldn’t decide which to use…so I used all of them! For the most part, you should avoid excessive bevels, shadows, textures, filters. This will allow your logo to be used across many mediums - not to mention won’t be rubbish.

• Typography Issues. There are a number of common mistakes that are frequently made when designing a logo. Consider some below:

• The Spacing. Fonts are built a certain way for a reason. Excessive spacing between letters or very narrow spacing can really affect the readers interpretation of words (or cause confusion)

• Predictable Fonts. Helvetica is a brilliant font - but don’t use it for everything. Research new fonts, design your own! Just try to use something that isn’t predictable or the default.

• Crazy Fonts. Don’t use fonts like Party Let or Papyrus or Jokerman to create your logo. Try using simple, professional, legible fonts.

• Don’t use Comic Sans. Period.

• Ultra-thin fonts. Many extremely lightweight fonts may look nice on the computer screen but they may be difficult to use when trying to print on paper, screen on fabric, or embroider. Lightwieght fonts are also hard to read from far distances.

• Too many fonts. Try to stick to one font-style (maximum of two) in your logo design. This rule is especially true when you are doing JUST the logo design and not any of the other design work.

• What do you think? Excessive input from your client, his Mom, the secretary, your dad, your postman, the guy who sweeps the road outside your house and anyone else who will give you the time of day is well, excessive. Keep the design pure and clean by only involving those who absolutely need to be involved in the design process.

• Unable to be used in grayscale. One important thing to remember about logos is that they frequently will be used in strictly grayscale circumstances. (Faxes, copies, one-color prints) Make your logo as powerful in both color and black & white.

• Non-scalable. This is one of the most common tips around for creating logos.  Make sure your client can scale their logo. Most logos  should be usable in anything from a giant billboard to a tiny web icon.

• Not made for all mediums. People often design logos without taking into consideration their future use. Be sure to deign your logos with the intent that they can be used on the internet, in print, on a street sign, embroidered on a backpack, and screen printed on a t-shirt.

• Look at MY design. Don’t design a logo with the goal in mind that it will make your portfolio look great.  The first, and most important, goal of any logo design should be to help your client reach their target audience more effectively.

• Too abstract. While an abstract logo can be very professional-looking for a company, what does it really say to the customer? “We weren’t really sure how to visually represent what we do or how you will benefit from our services, so here’s a square with a swoosh”.

• Copy Cat Logo. BE ORIGINAL.

• Bad combination of colors.  Try to match the colors to your target audience, think about using complementary colours - neon green and red is never going to be a good look - be sensitive to the clients wishes, but design with consideration.

• Sketch it out first. Don’t just jump on a Mac - research and sketch out some ideas first - not many good logos are born out of an instant jump on the Mac session!!

I hope this helps you all out a little bit! And remember if you need any other advice please just drop me a message here at DesignLecturer!

designlecturer:

I’m a lazy bugger – what can I do to be a grade A designer?

Do your homework.


There is no question that when studying any design related course, what you put in is what you get out. It’s not rocket science, but it really does turn out that the students who work the hardest and commit themselves the most end up with the best stuff!

Uni is expensive.

Arrive on time. Stay late.


Universities now are really expensive, so make sure you’re getting your money’s worth. Arrive on time and prepared. Stay after class and ask questions; find out about more than just what the class covered. WORK A LOT.

As lecturers, we work for you.


Teachers have an annoying habit of setting up to make you feel like they’re in charge. The reality is that lecturers, administrators, librarians etc are all there in the first place because you decided to attend. And they really do work for you. So be clear about what you want and need, and team up with other students to make sure that those desires are communicated to the people in power. Use the library; ask for help. Make us work for you.

Develop your presentation skills.


 Talking a good game will only get you so far – you need to ensure you have the substance behind you to back up your mouth! No matter how good a designer you are, without a certain level of presentation skills, nobody will ever know. Practice public speaking, prepare, and take any opportunity you can whilst in uni to practice speaking to large (and small) groups! There is no underestimating the harm to your future career that bad presentation skills can cause – no one likes ‘ums’ and ‘erms…’ and ‘it’s nice’.

Read.

Anything.

…except Nuts.


This is the single best way to be and stay connected with the outside world. A talented designer with nothing to say isn’t much use to anyone, and there’s nothing more dangerous than an ignorant mass producer. If you live in a country that has a good newspaper, read it. If you don’t, find a good magazine (not Nuts…), or read countless ones on the web for free. Read blogs – whatever you need to get ahead!!

Don’t work alone.


I know you know that design is a collaborative effort, so there’s no reason why you shouldn’t practice getting along with others while you’re still in the studio. But that’s not the real benefit of doing design work with others: It’s more fun. If you don’t already know this, then you haven’t done design work with others.

Take almost any job.


There is absolutely no replacement for the real thing, and practical experience in any design related field is more than you already have. So don’t spend six months after you graduate looking for the perfect job. And, certainly, don’t wait until you graduate to look for your first design job. You should be doing everything in your power to get some practical training onto your résumé and into your brain and hands before you graduate. That means helping out somewhere once a week, or bagging that summer internship. Do anything design-related. You’ll be respected more by future employers, and have some skills by the time you get out.

designlecturer:

Jumping on the Brand Wagon!
So, every potential designer gets to that dreaded point where we have to take on that difficult client. You know the one I mean, bad tempered, foul mouthed, indecisive, the worlds biggest critic, never happy…..

Yes, that shitty client called yourself!

You could have a client list of all the most indecisive people in the world, and yet still we are our own worst enemy when it comes to branding ourselves. Most designers need an identity when dealing with freelance work, or even to utilise in your portfolio or website. It gives you a more professional look and a good brand can tell creative agencies or PR agency just how well they can sell your services to clients.

I went for years without facing up to the fact that I needed a brand. I eventually needed one quickly for some potential freelance work, and I just went bowling in and came out six hours later with about half a dozen A3 sheets of scribbles and ideas and going WHY DID I START THIS?!

Eventually at the end of it all, it was my playing around with type rather than fiddling about with some sort of icon or monogram which I was trying to do. I over thought the situation, and forgot what I hold dearest in design, typography and simplicity. (Although one can argue that i’m quite a simple person anyway so it represents me incredibly well!)

So this all begs the question - what do I need to consider when i’m jumping on the ‘brand’ wagon?

• Design for yourself. You aren’t designing for another designer necessarily, but it is your brand, you want to show off every bell and whistle of design you know - but don’t! Instead approach the project as if it were for any other client, sit down list down what represents your design style and what you stand for as a designer. Clean simple branding rather than avant-garde design will not offend other designers, and won’t alienate other companies that may want to work with you!

• Listen to other people. Collaborate with other friends that are both designers and non-designers, talk them through your ideas and concepts - tell them to be honest. Friends love this because they never get the opportunity to say something you do is shit, and other designers will give you straight honest critique, but will probably help you with constructive criticism. You want people to understand your brand, and that it connects to you.

• Listen to other people part 2: Listen Harder. Being your own branding you tend to end up working too close to it and you clutch it to your bosom never wanting to hear it doesn’t look right. You basically lose all objectivity! Talk to your lecturers, other professionals you have encountered, or other designers on your course - they will bring you back to reality and talk to you objectively about the design and how it may be improved.

• Putting off designing your brand in the good times. You have left uni and you have freelance work coming out of your ears? (Hey look, it’s that pig flying past again..) Even if everything is going amazingly well, maybe you work in a studio, it is still important for you to develop your own brand image. You never know when it is useful, even if it is just for your blog or your portfolio initially, there will be a need for it when you expect it least.

• Not developing your brand when you’re twiddling your thumbs. You aren’t getting any design work? Well perhaps this is the ideal time to show off your skills and design your brand! This can kick-start your creative process and sometimes it is the fact you don’t have that professional image is the reason why your calendar is so sparse of deadlines. Remember you most of the time have to spend money to make money. A new brand identity, some new business cards and a quick small website can do wonders for a designers self-esteem and gives you pride in your own work!

• Just Do It. A simple phrase we all know and associate with Nike, wherever we see or hear it. Now i’m not saying you need to have a catchy tagline (rather much the opposite!!) but you do need to have a consistency. Like any brand consistency is the key for it to work. Make sure you are using your brand in the same manner each time; size, colours, typefaces, layout, visual identity are all consistent! This gives you a much more professional look. But it doesn’t stop there; - answer emails - make sure you start to put a consistent footer with your details under your name, not a kiss, (it never goes down well with people in the upper echelons of the BBC take it from me…) Make phone calls, talk in a professional manner, leave your business cards with everyone - sometimes it is the person you least expect to get in touch about work imaginable!

It is the hardest project for any designer or illustrator to design their own brand identity, but it really is an essential element for any successful designer. It isn’t an ego trip, it isn’t something that makes you an instant celebrity, but rather a method that you can present your professional self to other professionals.

Don’t rush it, and garner as many opinions as your fragile designer ego can take, it is better to hear something is right or wrong before you go and have it splashed across business cards or the web, and hopefully your brand will give you pride and propulsion to expand your clientele.

Then what?

Ok,

There are two essential things to have as a new designer looking for work:

• An online portfolio
• A physical portfolio

Many designers are using Behance.net these days, and it is a really good way to show off their work. I would really reccommend setting up your Behance account with some of your work on - it gets a whole load of traffic, and you never know when a firm may come accross your work. However, there are thousands upon thousands of designers on there and it can be better to showcase your work by having your own unique website.

If you aren’t good with web development tools, don’t go for something too flashy and all singing and dancing - most designers can get to grips with basic HTML (and if you don’t i’m sure you will have at least one friend who maybe able to help!) just let your work stand out and be the highlight!

Just look at my website, i’m no web wizard, but it’s easy to navigate, shows off what I do well, and has a sprinkling of interesting elements.

My first website I was dead proud of, but I heard from a second hand source a potential client had said “it looks nice, but it isn’t that interesting..” this made me re-think my website into what it is today - a simple bit of javascripting really made the design more interesting and other non-designers seem to appreciate little things like this; I mean, I’m not trying to impress other designers, i’m trying to entice potential freelance clients - as soon as you remember this designing becomes a lot easier!

Other designers might like to show off how wonderful they are with beautiful Flash based websites, but if your client has to download the latest Flash player to view it, or is technically savvy and owns an iphone or an ipad (or even both!) they are going to be able to look at your site either! Remember you are designing for yourself first, then others.

One thing these days some designers completely forget about is having a physical portfolio. The majority of the time having an online portfolio will be sufficient, but having a physical one to does no harm - and a lot of interviews for creative positions will expect you to bring along a physical portfolio.

When making a physical portfolio, make sure it is a good format, diverse content and presented well. If you can see that an image is pixellated then chances are a creative director will too!

Spend a little time and money to put together a clean and easy to understand portfolio - and remember, you are probably going to be judged on your weakest piece!

Self promotion is key to your eventual success!

You are a creative person, you have spent a lot of time widening your experience and design style, and most likely in the last year of your degree you will spend a bit of time looking at self promotion.

Creating yourself a brand or an identity (like my Jamesydesign brand) it will enable you to guide your self promotion effectively.

What you do for self promotion is really upto your creative avenue - if you are a typographer, utilising this skill in either your portfolio or promotional material you can send a creative firm will really help you stand out.

Like all designers, creative firms really like nice things they can keep! I have stacks of packaging, postcards, zines, cut-out and keeps, toys, 3D glasses the list goes on - we are all creative magpies looking for the next shiny thing to catch our eye - in this case use it to your advantage and get yourself noticed!

Use social media to your advantage!

We all know the tales of how Facebook has ruined people’s careers with one set of drunken photos being added, and many people are scared to utilised social media sometimes when promoting themselves. I see social media as THE outstanding method to get positive attention, to both yourself and your work.

Twitter is one of the most fantastic social platforms a designer can have. Things can go viral fast, you can direct your tweets towards people, you can follow design firms and designers you both admire and have aspirations to work with. Mention them in tweets, but DO NOT twitter stalk them, ever. Directing one or two tweets here and there is great, but if you constantly direct tweets to them you run the risk of seeming really desperate. Tweet fellow student designers and build up a network of people, the last three major freelance projects I have undertaken have came from the result of people following my twitter account and seeing my work through that. (just remember if you are using twitter in this way, try to remember not to post things derogatory about companies etc - it’s a world of pain and can see you frozen out of a community quickly!)

Making friends with design companies

Be proactive; find local companies that you think you would like to work with and that you think you can offer something positive to. If it is a larger company, it is probably best to phone them up first, and most likely you will speak to either a junior designer, or the receptionist. At this point is where I recall something my grandparents always taught me - treat EVERYONE in a business like you would the most important person you could talk to. I have seen people lose job opportunities just by being rude to the receptionist - they remember these things, they are the ones who will report back to the creative director, AND they have better memories than elephants - they will remember you being rude and on the flipside, very polite.

If you fail to talk to anyone higher up in the company hierarchy, then politely ask for their personal email and send your details through that means instead.

When you do have that email address, and you go to send an email out, make sure that you have researched the company and you know what projects they have worked on - be complimentary but not over the top! Explain in the email why you would be such an asset to their company, make the email personal to each company, and attach a small example of your work, whether it be a consise portfolio, or just something fun that shows how creative you are.

Visit some design companies

Whilst completing your degree, chances are there will be lots of design companies coming to speak to you, or giving you advice, or even helping out with interview practice.

This is always an opportunity to find out more and to present yourself as someone who is enthusiastic and interested in what they do, and how you can learn off them. Ask them about the possibility of doing some unpaid work experience, it is all about getting your foot in the door!

Most design companies will look for people to come in and experience what they do this way, just keep trying, but don’t ever hound a poor design company and beat them down into giving you a days placement!

Most designers when they get their foot in the door like this it possibly will lead them further, if not with this company another - once companies can see you are being proactive in getting experience of real world design, then they are usually more interested in talking to you!

And finally….

There are many more avenues that you can take to help get you ahead in the industry, but I think that one of the best things that you can learn quite quickly is that just because your tutor tell you that you are an amazing designer and you keep getting firsts in all of your work, it does not make you the best candidate for a design job. Creative companies thrive on a good, positive and most importantly creative and hard working atmosphere, and if you come into their world as the ‘big-I-am’ most likely you will be leaving before you’ve even made your first round of coffees for everyone!

Be humble, be pro-active, don’t try and be something you aren’t - design companies want designers that will help raise their profile and earn them money, not persistent headaches!

Be actively pursuing all of these things throughout your design course, get work experience whenever you can, and build up these networks over a good amount of time - do not expect to try and do all this networking at your final show!

Chances are you will have had too many sleepless nights and glasses of wine to make any coherent sense! Utilise all of your time throughout your course to gain the best and most rounded experience and never ever give up, because it is usually when all looks lost that the best thing will come along!

Again I hope all this helps in someway to someone!

The post is photo reply enabled too - so show us your designs!!!

For more design articles and advice follow us here at Design Lecturer to get an insight and any advice you may need!

designlecturer:

So you are coming to the end of your design course?

Want to get a creative job?

Well there are a few things that you will need to concern yourself with to start getting ready now, because a job is very unlikely just to land in your lap! It’s a difficult world out there and lots of other designers competing for the same jobs you are - not just graduates, but other established designers too!

But fear not, with a good portfolio and CV (resumé for my American readers) there is hope for designers of all standings.

So here is a run down of the essential things you should be doing over the next couple of months!

Checklist:

• Existing CV’s: Research existing good and bad examples of designers CVs that reflect the area of design that you are interested in working within. Analyse those CVs thinking of their good and bad points - reflect on typography, information, effectiveness and ease of reading.

• You need 2 CVs
• One which is a creative CV
• One which is a simple black and white formal CV

This is because not every agency you may work for will require a creative CV - also bear in mind sometimes you may have to go through external agencies to get positions, they generally ask for a standard CV so it’s good to have one ready! (plus, if finding that perfect design job is taking too long, most regular companies will not be impressed with that Neville Brody-esque excellently produced CV - they just want to know you are skilled, experienced and mostly that you are not a serial killer…)

How to write your CV:

1. Keep to an A4 size
. This is pretty obvious. Who’s gonna print out an A3 CV for their records anyway? Provide your potential employers the convenience as they are really busy people. It’s politeness. They will need to print out your CV for their own records and references. Try to keep it to one A4 page, maximum two.


   
   
2. Keep It Simple, Stupid (K.I.S.S)
 - Make sure your CV looks simple, easy-to-read and not full of visual jargon. It’s too easy to get carried away with over-decorations of your CV. Easy reading and relevant content are your utmost priorities, NOT aesthetics.
   
   Type your contents on white space. Not only does it make reading easier and gives breathing space, potential employers wouldn’t want to waste so much printing ink on CVs they would throw away after the interviews, so don’t expect them to print your beautiful graphics in full colour.
   
   Try to stick with white, black and/or grey. Be creative, even within the box!

 Use 2 columns instead of one so that you can maximise the space on one page. You are the designer, so demonstrate your graphic solutions here.

If you are planning to send your CV by snail mail, you are free to be creative with it. However, content, readability and relevance are still the mandatory rules!


   
   
3. Content Structure and Relevance
 - Your CV should include the following (in order):

•  Full name
•  Job title
•  Contact
•  Objectives
•  Skills
•  Work Experience
• Clients
• Achievements
• Qualifications
• Interests


a. You don’t necessarily have to put in the words “Curriculum Vitae” or “CV”. It’s already understood that it’s a CV. Also, it saves space.



b. Your full name should be the heading, followed by your job title.



c. Avoid putting your photograph. The same applies for date of birth and gender. According to UK laws, this is to prevent age and sex discrimination.



d. Make sure your contact details are visible. Include your website, email, phone number and address so that it’s easier for the potential employer to contact you. If you are quite conscious about your privacy, at least include the postcode and city in where you live, so that potential employees will know where you are based.



e. Objectives must be written in third party format.
eg:

 Wrong
 “I am a competent graphic designer who is flexible. I can work within tight deadlines…”
Correct 
“A flexible and competent graphic designer who is able to work within tight deadlines…”


Keep your objectives to a minimum of 30 words.



f. Skills should be put first rather than your education, followed by the next important information in line. Because you will have to impress your potential employer in the first few seconds, make sure you sort the information according to priority, as stated in the list above.



Categorise your skills according to the following: Advanced / Intermediate / Basic

This will give potential employers a clear gauge on where you stand.



g. Okay, so you’ve worked as a cashier in MacDonalds, and a sales assistant in a clothing shop….but how is that relevant to the graphic design job you are applying for? If it’s not relevant, remove it.



If you had experience working in a design agency, it’ll be good to give a short description of what you did. Highlight your key skills in here.



h. Include the clients whom you’ve worked with under the category ‘Clients’. Not only does it enhance your work experience, it shows your professionalism. If you’ve none, just leave the category out.



i. If you’ve won awards or you had your artworks exhibited, list them in the category of ‘Achievements’.



j. Make sure your latest education qualification is on top, followed by the earlier ones. The same applies for achievements and work experience.



k. This may look like one of the easiest to fill, and the most neglected, but it’s actually one of the trickiest. Interests allow employers know a bit more about you. If surfing the internet is your hobby, chances are you are put in a more negative picture because it gives the impression that you may surf the net and not work! Avoid the terms ‘clubbing’ or ‘socialising’ as this may give employers the connotation that you ‘play around’.

Unless you are working for a tour agency, ‘travelling’ may be something you want to speak less about as it makes certain employers think that you may want to take more leave (or swan off to Thailand for 6 months!) Include interests that would not otherwise jeopardise your image.



4.Use bullet points - 
It makes reading a lot quicker and easier. Remember, employers scan, not read!



5. Be honest - Common sense really, but if you choose to go down the dark route, it will show, and you’ll soon be discovered.



6.References
 - Be sure to prepare at least 2 references (if you’ve got no work experience, include your tutors’ references) in advance, as some employers will request them. While you do not necessarily need to include that in your CV, it is essential that you put a phrase at the bottom: “References available upon request”



7. Use appropriate mediums
 - CVs are to be saved in pdf format, not doc.(except for a few exceptions) or jpeg. Make sure that the file is saved for web viewing (you can do this in InDesign > File > Adobe PDF Presets > Smallest FIle Size), so that it is small and does not clog up the inbox.

Moving onto looking at your preparation for interviews and portfolios:

• Write ups on any live projects or creative work experience you have done:
• 
Include examples of work done and any client feedback you have. You should also write about what you learnt in these projects, and how your design work improved through this work.
• Research the opportunities that are on offer to you in the area of Design you would like to go into:
• Research Jobs, Job requirements and necessary skillsets you may need to progress in your career.
• The link here will help you get started! http://www.ycn.org/opportunities
• Research how you can promote yourself:

For example;
    •    Facebook, blogs, Twitter, websites, flyers, business cards, instagram, Youtube

    •    How much do business cards cost to be printed? Research and printscreen and include.

    •    How much do flyers cost to be printed? Research and printscreen and include.

    •    How much does web hosting and a domain name cost?

Design your own identity to use within your promotional material:

Research;
    •    Logo
    •    Business Card design
    •    Letterhead design
    •    Invoice design
    •    Social Media pages
    •    Websites

Produce;
    •    Logo
    •    Business Card design
    •    Letterhead design
    •    Invoice design
    •    Social Media pages

SOCIAL MEDIA FAUX PAS

Don’t put unprofessional photos, comments, opinions etc onto your social media pages - it’s the first and fastest way to lose credibility and makes yourself look daft to potential employers. More and more employers are also heading straight to Facebook and Twitter to check potential employees out - so if there’s a photo of you drinking beer out of your mates bum crack as you profile picture, don’t be surprised if you don’t get that callback!

If necessary have a professional site, and a personal one - make sure that your privacy settings are set to high on Facebook - it can solve a lot of issues!

Portfolio:

Right, before starting your portfolio I suggest you read my post:
“9 Ways to Make your Portfolio Suck…”

You should produce a creative portfolio that is appropriate to your chosen path eg:

    •    Printed
    •    Personal Website
    •    On-line etc

as this is the big one that can get your foot in the door!

The images at the top of the post are from the book Flaunt by Underconsideration an essential book for any prospective designer - plus you can get it instantly via purchasing the ebook directly from their site!

Some other useful tips to consider are;

Show your best work, in a sequence that makes sense. Make sure your resume is flawless, and has excellent typography. Keep it simple.
Marc English

Do good ideas and execute them well. Do not spend an extraordinary amount of time mulling over the size and the form of the portfolio itself.
Stefan Sagmeister

In web portfolios, I rarely gravitate toward the fancy stuff . I look for functionality, simplicity, beauty, and restraint. Make the site thoughtful.
Hillman Curtis

Avoid having to over-explain your work to the viewer. Walk into a review, or interview, prepared with the best work possible. Let the work speak for itself.
Carin Goldberg

It strikes us that the digital form of the portfolio has now taken on paramount importance. We’re much happier clicking through a straightforward PDF of greatest hits than having to waste time hearing about someone’s issues with their typography tutor or how they passed their cycling proficiency test. By pre-vetting electronically, it speeds things up massively.
Michael Johnson


Don’t include work just because it’s real. The fact that something was actually printed and used doesn’t make it more valuable.
Petter Ringbom

The work should be current—ideally from the past year. It’s not a retrospective of your time in school, or proof of all of the classes you attended. It’s good to think of the collection of work in the portfolio as evidence of your skills and conceptual abilities.
Petrula Vrontikis

Make sure that your craft is tight and clean. Pick a device that comfortably holds your work—be it a leather-bound box or a fur-covered suitcase—and reflects the type of work you hope to do. It makes a big difference, since it is usually resting on a table, in plain sight.
John Foster

I hope this helps in some way to kick starting your design career - again anymore advice you may need just drop me a line here at Designlecturer!

Something that I think a lot of students find at this time of the year is the difficulty of finding their creative direction, getting stuck and getting increasingly frustrated in not finding the ideas their projects require.

Why is this?

Well mostly it is due to being stressed and trying to force creativity. If it isn’t going to happen straight away, this can really frustrate and infuriate a person and sometimes it can cause sleepless nights, worry and self doubt in their own abilities.

The simple answer is go back to the drawing board - think of what helps you to find inspiration, and reflect on how you can over come problems rather than stare them down and get despondent.

There are many of ways to over come this feeling;

• Research - go back to find inspiration from others, look at how other designers have created projects and follow their lead. Sometimes there might be just one thing you see that sets off a chain of thought and sparks an idea. In this case my research went back to basics and tried to use the basic 2x2 red LEGO brick as my basic inspiration.

Look at these websites to help give you a starting point;

• http://www.thedieline.com/
• http://visualgraphic.tumblr.com/
• http://www.graphicdesignblog.co.uk/
• http://www.youthedesigner.com/

• Sketch - we are blessed with paper and pencils in this society, yet we tend to overlook these in favour for that big shiny expensive Mac sitting in the corner. Sketching can be both therapeutic and rewarding when it comes to ideas. Above you can see the design process I came up with to produce an idea to get my students thinking about the LEGO brief they have got. I used the inspiration of the basic red block and sketched out some ideas and quotes to inspire my thinking and you can see immediately that they aren’t the world’s greatest drawings, but it gave me enough inspiration to progress the ideas forward.

• Develop - From here I was able to develop my ideas further using the Mac and after a lot of development you can see the final net that I came up with. By looking into packaging I was able to create my own basic net shape that suited my design - I wanted the direct mail box to resemble the LEGO brick when it arrived through the mail, and create an excitement and a level of intrigue to the recipient.

• Evaluate - People underestimate evaluation and analysis - it is a key element to any designing you do. Something can look amazing on the beautiful retina display of a Mac, but when it comes to printing and constructing it could look completely different. Sizes, colours, construction all might need adjusting but until you physically look at it you have no idea! By evaluating a design you could actually find more ideas and developments from this one idea! You can see my physical model above and from that I found that some tabs needed changing, a few sizes needed adjusting but overall I was kind of happy with it.

• Talk to others - by talking to other people, creative or not, it can really help you see your ideas in a different perspective. Sometimes when talking about your ideas you yourself might see things from a different slant and again this can really help you develop an idea - talk to your audience - be a more considerate designer.

You see, I hope that all these points may help others out, and show you that you are not the only designer that gets stuck with ideas - but you are in a better position to deal with these problems if you follow these simple points.

I hope this helps a few people out there and remember any issues don’t hesitate to just drop me a message or head over to designlecturer to see more helpful articles!

designlecturer:

Head over and read my editorial design support materials that I produced for my HND students (with a little help from Computer Arts!)

http://issuu.com/jamesydesign/docs/grids

Anon asked: I was warned after graduating that I would hate my first job entering the design industry. I was hoping it wouldn’t be true! but alas, it is. I don’t have the opportunity to design anything and even if I did we design strictly sportswear which isn’t my niche. Now, I realize I should obviously quit my job and find a new one but I am constantly applying for new jobs and getting nothing back. I know I’m not a shit designer. Any suggestions on applying for jobs?

This is unfortunately an all too common statement that lots of people undertaking their first design job end up making. You are already at the bottom of the ladder, and you don’t want to be looking up at the bottom rung!

Your first design job is primarily there for you to make mistakes and learn. Even though the original poster states that they aren’t designing anything, there could be other opportunities within the same firm that perhaps you aren’t noticing. For everytime you see design going on around you learn from it, ask questions, make other people aware and remind them that you too are a creative person with lots of ideas. Also, don’t ever look at a subject that you’re designing for as ‘not your niche’ - use it as a way of learning to add that to your repatoire! In my first design position I was going from designing something for a television company, to an information sheet for a sewage cleaning company, to a newsletter for a solicitors - guess which one I wish I solely worked on?

Starting work in the design industry is all about paying your dues unfortunately, and you generally have to wade through the crap to get to the pot of gold!

With regards to looking for a new job, put it on hold for a little while - use the opprtunities where you are (no matter how small) to help you get some enthusiasm back, also try to do some little ‘just-for-you’ projects that help you drive your creativity. Don’t ever quit your job without another waiting - it is much easier to find work, when you are in work!

Take stock of what you are sending to other companies. Is it a CV? Is it a portfolio? Is it just an ‘I want to work with you guys because I hate my current job’? (I have done that and it is surprising how easily you can communicate that in applications without realising!)

You have to give companies a really good reason as to why they should hire you - what do you bring to the table and how can you improve their company?

When you are applying to other creative agencies send them something to get excited about!

Things to be excited by:

• postcards!
• cut out and keeps!
• minature outfits!
• stickers!
• boxes of things!
• anything that you would love to have land on your doorstep that would encourage you to open it!

Things that don’t get people excited:

• Microsoft Word CV wizard!
• Coloured paper!
• A Basic CV with a tiny logo on!
• No stickers!
• 1200 words why you hate your job and why you want a new one!
• Things that look like a bill….

(ok i’m just playing devil’s advocate here, but if you really want to grab the companies attention you may need to put a lot of work into what you are sending them, and speculate to accumulate! If you need to spend a bit of money on printing to make it look good - well do it! You are doing it for your future!)

Another thing is ascertain is whether you actually have the skills and experience they want or require. I have seen fresh graduates apply for senior designer posts, which inevitably (unless you have Ferris Bueller style charm) they get no response, or turned down from and then they get sulky because no one is giving them a job. Do your research about a firm, reference their work, and say what you are going to bring to their company! Also, get someone you know in the industry to look over your applications and portfolio - ask them for constructive criticism, this could be a friend, a colleague your mum - whoever! Sometimes you just don’t notice something glaringly obvious that perhaps isn’t the best idea to be in your portfolio (mine was the abundance of design relating to a sex shop rebrand……)

Unfortunately there are many more unemployed designers than design jobs out there at the moment, but there is hope - just keep plugging away and sooner rather than later you will get a break somewhere down the line.

Hope this was all of some help for everyone in this situation - it happens to us all so good luck in all your future endeavors!

We all think we have the perfect portfolio. It is because we’re designers, we can do no wrong (sarcasm). But yet, we keep getting over looked for jobs and perhaps falling at the last crucial interview stage - this is a handy little list of ways to make your portfolio suck, if you can tick any of these then perhaps it is time to revisit your dreaded portfolio!

Only having an online portfolio:

In this day and age, everyone has access to the internet (well my nana doesn’t but I don’t think she’s hiring any designers soon…) so we all put a beautifully crafted online portfolio up there for the world to see. Excellent. However, this is the only way a hiring manager/director can see your work. This becomes a problem when they ask to see some of the printed work you have done….you can prod and poke at a screen all you want, but having the tactile nature of something you have had printed can tell a hiring firm more about you. Such as; can you set work for print? Can you spot any little errors? Most design companies want to see a physical example of your portfolio in addition to an online presence, with most liking a bound style book.

Work from 1999….

Try not to include items that are dated within your portfolio - yes your lecturer did like that logo you did for Cardiff Airport in a project 10 years ago but does it really reflect the type of designer you are now? Only include older examples of work if they are from a high profile client or campaign you worked on. Usually it is better to keep your portfolio fresh, only including examples from the last two - three years.

You’re here for the editorial job?

If you are going to be showing your portfolio to a company that does require specific skills, then it is more than wise to show them your proficiency in that specific skill by having examples in your portfolio. If you interviewing for a job with a specific type of work in mind, it is best to put those examples nearer the front of your portfolio, if it is for a more general position, then make sure you have a diverse range of examples.

You didn’t even say goodbye……

Don’t just up and leave from an interview and remove all trace of yourself from the room. Leave them a little something behind! Whether it be a postcard with your work and details on, a concise portfolio, or a teddy bear clutching a ‘hire me’ sign on - designers usually have a good sense of humour, but more importantly we’re like magpies - we want to collect as much cool looking stuff as possible! Remember this and chances are they will remember you!

Here are the nine volumes on my creative life….

We can all be guilty of loving all our work too much - and sometimes we do need to be reminded ‘do you really need to put that in?’

Be selective with your portfolio and don’t just put every bit of work in there, usually a dozen good quality pieces will say much more about your personality and design style than 300 pieces of everything! Less in this case is usually much much more!

My dog ate my portfolio…

Turning up with a dog eared and un-cared for portfolio is something no prospective designer should do. You want to show your work off in the best way imaginable. Don’t cram thick pieces in, keep them separate and ask yourself - do you really need to take it along? Make sure your portfolio is neat, tidy and in order.

I put the logo on that book……no sir, I did not design the logo…..

In your book or portfolio case or whatever, clearly distinguish what input you have had on each project you’re showcasing. If you were given the task of putting someone elses logo onto someone elses layout, for you to send to print, it would be hard to carry that off as ‘your work’. However if you were simply using it as an example of how you have collated ideas together and then liased with a printer to get it printed, and clearly stated that, then it is of relevance.

No sir, you cannot find me on the internet…..

Look, lets be honest here, it is 2012, you are a designer wanting to work in an industry that moves at the speed of light, people need access to information yesterday, it is your responsibility to have an online portfolio. Of course when you turn up for an interview the guys want to see a physical portfolio, but being able to just check out a concise range of work online is really convenient to flick through and get a feel for who is turning up. Make sure it looks good though, if you’ve used comic sans as your header, chances are you wont get a call…..(unless its from the asylum….)

10% of 489mb - 3 hours remaining…..

Finally, if your online portfolio is huge, because you’ve neglected to utilise sufficient image optimisation etc, it is going to take people a while to download. I have been asked in the past to check portfolios and they literally have been almost 1gb downloads. With Adobe creative suite at your fingertips it is really time you took the time to do things properly.

• Dont copy paste images into indesign - place them instead (cmd+d on a  mac)
• Dont include PSD files - save them as jpeg and place them
• Try not to use lots of clipping masks
• If it is big, use Adobe Acrobat Pro to reduce the file size - if it is only going to used on the web 72 dpi is fine!

We are all impatient devils, and i’ve been known to throw things when that little rainbow wheel appears for more than 5 seconds - take this into consideration when emailing your portfolio, if you have to use a dropbox, then it is too big!

Just remember, your portfolio isn’t a static document, it should be constantly being updated and revised to reflect how you are growing as a designer. Spending to accumulate is also something to think about here, you are investing in your future to have a well printed, well presented portfolio - you never know, your life may just depend on it!

So, every potential designer gets to that dreaded point where we have to take on that difficult client. You know the one I mean, bad tempered, foul mouthed, indecisive, the worlds biggest critic, never happy….. Yes, that shitty client called yourself!

You could have a client list of all the most indecisive people in the world, and yet still we are our own worst enemy when it comes to branding ourselves.

Most designers need an identity when dealing with freelance work, or even to utilise in your portfolio or website. It gives you a more professional look and a good brand can tell creative agencies or PR agency just how well they can sell your services to clients. I went for years without facing up to the fact that I needed a brand.

I eventually needed one quickly for some potential freelance work, and I just went bowling in and came out six hours later with about half a dozen A3 sheets of scribbles and ideas and going WHY DID I START THIS?!

Eventually at the end of it all, it was my playing around with type rather than fiddling about with some sort of icon or monogram which I was trying to do. I over thought the situation, and forgot what I hold dearest in design, typography and simplicity. (Although one can argue that i’m quite a simple person anyway so it represents me incredibly well!)

This is my identity btw, I use it on invoices I am looking to redevelop my website and make myself more ‘visible’ to potential clients…. So this all begs the question - what do I need to consider when i’m jumping on the ‘brand’ wagon?

Design for yourself.

You aren’t designing for another designer necessarily, but it is your brand, you want to show off every bell and whistle of design you know - but don’t! Instead approach the project as if it were for any other client, sit down list down what represents your design style and what you stand for as a designer. Clean simple branding rather than avant-garde design will not offend other designers, and won’t alienate other companies that may want to work with you!

Listen to other people.

Collaborate with other friends that are both designers and non-designers, talk them through your ideas and concepts - tell them to be honest. Friends love this because they never get the opportunity to say something you do is shit, and other designers will give you straight honest critique, but will probably help you with constructive criticism. You want people to understand your brand, and that it connects to you.

Listen to other people part 2: Listen Harder.

Being your own branding you tend to end up working too close to it and you clutch it to your bosom never wanting to hear it doesn’t look right. You basically lose all objectivity! Talk to your lecturers, other professionals you have encountered, or other designers on your course - they will bring you back to reality and talk to you objectively about the design and how it may be improved. Putting off designing your brand in the good times. You have left uni and you have freelance work coming out of your ears? (Hey look, it’s that pig flying past again..)

Even if everything is going amazingly well, maybe you work in a studio, it is still important for you to develop your own brand image. You never know when it is useful, even if it is just for your blog or your portfolio initially, there will be a need for it when you expect it least.

Not developing your brand when you’re twiddling your thumbs.

You aren’t getting any design work? Well perhaps this is the ideal time to show off your skills and design your brand! This can kick-start your creative process and sometimes it is the fact you don’t have that professional image is the reason why your calendar is so sparse of deadlines. Remember you most of the time have to spend money to make money. A new brand identity, some new business cards and a quick small website can do wonders for a designers self-esteem and gives you pride in your own work!

Just Do It.

A simple phrase we all know and associate with Nike, wherever we see or hear it. Now i’m not saying you need to have a catchy tagline (rather much the opposite!!) but you do need to have a consistency. Like any brand consistency is the key for it to work. Make sure you are using your brand in the same manner each time; size, colours, typefaces, layout, visual identity are all consistent! This gives you a much more professional look.

But it doesn’t stop there; - answer emails - make sure you start to put a consistent footer with your details under your name, not a kiss, (it never goes down well with people in the upper echelons of the BBC take it from me…)

Make phone calls, talk in a professional manner, leave your business cards with everyone - sometimes it is the person you least expect to get in touch about work imaginable!

It is the hardest project for any designer or illustrator to design their own brand identity, but it really is an essential element for any successful designer. It isn’t an ego trip, it isn’t something that makes you an instant celebrity, but rather a method that you can present your professional self to other professionals.

Don’t rush it, and garner as many opinions as your fragile designer ego can take, it is better to hear something is right or wrong before you go and have it splashed across business cards or the web, and hopefully your brand will give you pride and propulsion to expand your clientele.

As always, good luck!

designlecturer:

Anon asked: how hard is it to collaborate? there seems to be so much rivalry in design

Ahh you’ve hit on something that infuriates me completely, design and creativity is not something that is born and grows from insular behaviour, in fact I think it is the most detrimental thing that can occur!

I think the best answer is to work with people who share the same passion for design as you do. There cannot be any room for an ego in collaborative design, you are there as part of a team - and as the old adage goes, ‘there is no I in team…’ The most creative design comes from sharing the design process with other designers, and working on concepts together, giving each other critiques and advice.

I think collaborative design is wonderful when everyone is pulling in the same direction, because there have been so many times when I have been sat doing some design work and it almost feels like I am creatively hitting my head against a brick wall, and then just spending five minutes with someone else just talking the work through you may gain an amazing new idea or direction. There is the misconception by many designers that if you are sat there sharing work ideas and someone gives you a suggestion it is ‘their’ idea, not ‘yours’.

Bullshit. It is an idea that you have worked together to generate - it may have come out of their mouth, but it is most likely an extension of your own idea. When you get into the realms of collaboration and sharing the creative experience you have to take your own narcissism out of the equation, and be receptive for both positive and negative criticism.

I like the fact that in my studio I have a large boardroom style table, which is great for encouraging my students to work around each other and to share the creative experience. One of my favourite things we’ve done recently is an exercise where the students work in teams to design logos from just a word or words and they have to come up with as many different logos in a short space of time as possible.

This was some of the A1 sheet each group had to work on.

It got them working together and also getting them into the swing of designing concepts quickly and efficiently. It also got them into talking to each other more about design, and what’s good, what’s not and how things can be improved.

It is hard to find the right people to collaborate with, but you soon find out whether the collaborative relationship is going to work, and don’t be afraid of ending the collaboration if it is going tits up or going to ruin a friendship.

One of the biggest issues when collaborating is when other designers you are working with have no concept of when they should relent on a badly conceived idea. You see this all the time on the Apprentice, someone has an idea and they just can’t let go of, no matter how awful a concept….

Remember when ‘Secret Signals’ a semaphore flash card based ‘toy’ was chosen over the customisable robot (both below) purely because the Secret Signals was the project managers idea, and everyone said it was crap, the team, the focus group, another focus group, the toy manufacturers…that is bad collaboration. (and they lost)

WOW IT LOOKS SO MUCH FUN! WOO SEMAPHORE!!!

COME ONNNNN IT EVEN HAS A MOUSTACHE!!

There is a large amount of rivalry between designers, usually born out of a level of either jealousy or an inferiority complex, it is a horrible trait of many designers. At this point I shall recount my own experience (you may have read it before) but when I was offered a permenent design position whilst in my third year of my design course, my best friend on the course turned around and said ‘why did they offer you a job? I’m a much better designer than you.’ And from that day he uttered only a couple of words in my direction ever again. He was a good designer, able to turn in a much more beautiful final product at uni than I could, but it wasn’t hard considering he only designed things he could replicate from another style. I was a lot more random. My final major project was a rebranding of a sex shop. Yeah, I was off the wall.

Good design comes from good collaboration, even in its tiniest form, and I think like I have said you need to surround yourself with people that appreciate the need for a shared commitment to design. I love having a friend who will not only tell me if something looks shit, but rather tell me it looks shit and then we sit down for the next half an hour throwing different improvements to the design about. The more people you can work with on an idea in a positive way, the more creative and successful that idea will probably be.

Just remember, it’s good to talk.

designlecturer:

So, every potential designer gets to that dreaded point where we have to take on that difficult client. You know the one I mean, bad tempered, foul mouthed, indecisive, the worlds biggest critic, never happy…..

Yes, that shitty client called yourself!

You could have a client list of all the most indecisive people in the world, and yet still we are our own worst enemy when it comes to branding ourselves. Most designers need an identity when dealing with freelance work, or even to utilise in your portfolio or website. It gives you a more professional look and a good brand can tell creative agencies or PR agency just how well they can sell your services to clients.

I went for years without facing up to the fact that I needed a brand. I eventually needed one quickly for some potential freelance work, and I just went bowling in and came out six hours later with about half a dozen A3 sheets of scribbles and ideas and going WHY DID I START THIS?!

Eventually at the end of it all, it was my playing around with type rather than fiddling about with some sort of icon or monogram which I was trying to do. I over thought the situation, and forgot what I hold dearest in design, typography and simplicity. (Although one can argue that i’m quite a simple person anyway so it represents me incredibly well!)

This is my identity btw, I use it on invoices I am too indecisive to finalise a website….

So this all begs the question - what do I need to consider when i’m jumping on the ‘brand’ wagon?

• Design for yourself. You aren’t designing for another designer necessarily, but it is your brand, you want to show off every bell and whistle of design you know - but don’t! Instead approach the project as if it were for any other client, sit down list down what represents your design style and what you stand for as a designer. Clean simple branding rather than avant-garde design will not offend other designers, and won’t alienate other companies that may want to work with you!

• Listen to other people. Collaborate with other friends that are both designers and non-designers, talk them through your ideas and concepts - tell them to be honest. Friends love this because they never get the opportunity to say something you do is shit, and other designers will give you straight honest critique, but will probably help you with constructive criticism. You want people to understand your brand, and that it connects to you.

• Listen to other people part 2: Listen Harder. Being your own branding you tend to end up working too close to it and you clutch it to your bosom never wanting to hear it doesn’t look right. You basically lose all objectivity! Talk to your lecturers, other professionals you have encountered, or other designers on your course - they will bring you back to reality and talk to you objectively about the design and how it may be improved.

• Putting off designing your brand in the good times. You have left uni and you have freelance work coming out of your ears? (Hey look, it’s that pig flying past again..) Even if everything is going amazingly well, maybe you work in a studio, it is still important for you to develop your own brand image. You never know when it is useful, even if it is just for your blog or your portfolio initially, there will be a need for it when you expect it least.

• Not developing your brand when you’re twiddling your thumbs. You aren’t getting any design work? Well perhaps this is the ideal time to show off your skills and design your brand! This can kick-start your creative process and sometimes it is the fact you don’t have that professional image is the reason why your calendar is so sparse of deadlines. Remember you most of the time have to spend money to make money. A new brand identity, some new business cards and a quick small website can do wonders for a designers self-esteem and gives you pride in your own work!

• Just Do It. A simple phrase we all know and associate with Nike, wherever we see or hear it. Now i’m not saying you need to have a catchy tagline (rather much the opposite!!) but you do need to have a consistency. Like any brand consistency is the key for it to work. Make sure you are using your brand in the same manner each time; size, colours, typefaces, layout, visual identity are all consistent! This gives you a much more professional look. But it doesn’t stop there; - answer emails - make sure you start to put a consistent footer with your details under your name, not a kiss, (it never goes down well with people in the upper echelons of the BBC take it from me…) Make phone calls, talk in a professional manner, leave your business cards with everyone - sometimes it is the person you least expect to get in touch about work imaginable!

It is the hardest project for any designer or illustrator to design their own brand identity, but it really is an essential element for any successful designer. It isn’t an ego trip, it isn’t something that makes you an instant celebrity, but rather a method that you can present your professional self to other professionals.

Don’t rush it, and garner as many opinions as your fragile designer ego can take, it is better to hear something is right or wrong before you go and have it splashed across business cards or the web, and hopefully your brand will give you pride and propulsion to expand your clientele.

As always, good luck!

I’m really trying to make Ask me: I’m a Design Lecturer take off to give people a place where they can ask creative advice and get a good hopefully useful answer!

It would mean the world to me if people could spread the word or follow the blog if it is of use to you, i’m not doing this for any other reason than I really want to help those people who get sort of neglected by their design tutors, or feel that their question would be stupid to ask face to face.

Thanks

Jamesy

(happy valentines day)

designlecturer:

Anon asked: Hey, I study animation and I’m in my 2nd year. I keep wanting to do an internship over the summer in NYC or somewhere else over seas. What do you think about this? Should I just do an internship in the UK then see what happens when I graduate? What are your views on internships during your time at uni? This would be over the summer..

I have some what a mixed view on internships as a whole, as you may have seen from a previous post. I think once there was no need for an over-reliance of voluntary internships, but now I think, especially in the current climate that they are of more value than ever.

People generally don’t like working for free, whatever the circumstances, and most people like some reward for giving up their free time when they could be earning money from a waiting job or barstaff or whatever. Well, in this case I think you have to be objective as to what ‘reward’ actually means to you. Does it mean money now, or the opportunity to increase your desirability and earning potential for future positions?

During your time at university/college I think undertaking a variety of small workplace internships absolutely essential to enhance your chances of gaining a foothold into an industry early. They may lead to nothing, but then again you have experience that can be placed on your CV to possibly entice other companies to take you on, as it shows that you are willing to get into the industry seriously.

Whether deciding on whether design interships are for you, there are issues that you have to consider. Such as;

• What can I offer the company? Just like if you were applying for a job, give the company valid reasons why they should take time and space out to allow you to come and spend a little time working with them. Detail this in your contact with them, linking them to examples of your work or even including a concise pdf portfolio, which allows them to quickly see what your abilities are like.

• Do the company actually want me there? If you’ve beaten down a company with 500 emails requesting a days internship before they actually give you one, they may just be doing it to stop you from emailing them further - know when to give up on a company and look for another opportunity!

• Don’t just fire off email requests to large companies - chances are if they are well known they will have hundreds of these type of requests a year! Look instead for more localised businesses first. A lot of time they will be more wiling to open up some time for you to learn, and you will probably have a far better chance of finding out useful information and contacts. It is okay thinking big, but just remember, start at the bottom and work your way up!

• Decide whether you can balance your uni course with the internship. Don’t let one get in the way of the other, because remember you do actually need to pass the course!

• Be willing to learn, and be receptive to anything that is asked of you. Chances are you will be asked to make the coffee, or do small errands initially, do it - part of the time it is a test to see whether you have the attitude to work in a creative environment! (Take it from me, you will make a lot of coffee for people in your first few months of any design job!)

• Don’t just do the internship because it is offered. Find out the opportunities that will be on offer - contrary to my last point, if all you are doing is making coffee and running errands, you aren’t learning about your industry, thank them for their time and offer, but leave it well alone - you are doing an internship or work experience for the actual ‘experience’ of it all.

• Be realistic when it comes to searching for internships or work experience. You are probably not going to get paid, or if you do it will be a nominal amount, so consider if you are having to relocate for a week or two, can you afford it? Linking back to the initial question, finding a placement in New York or somewhere abroad will take time, effort and planning way in advance. You can’t just rock up at Pixar and ask them for a weeks work experience - chances are you wouldn’t get past security, but if you try to arrange something way in advance you may have more likelihood of success. You could try talking to British companies first, think Aardman, Calon, etc. - they may be more than willing to find you a place to learn for a couple of days.

• Don’t think of an internship or work experience as your big break - you are there to learn and companies as such on the most will treat you with that respect. If you start critiquing the senior designers work, or articulating that you can do better, this is never going to come across well - I have seen this first hand and it still makes me cringe even thinking about it! It may be your first step on the ladder, but that ladder is tall, very tall……

• Keep in touch with your internship - not everyday, but keep them updated with projects you are working on, perhaps even asking for their critiques, and inviting them to your final exhibition personally. It is these touches that will help you linger in their memory, but whatever you do don’t flood them with contact - treat them like the aunt and uncle you only have contact with at birthdays and social events.

• Finally, document what you have done each day in a journal - not only does this help you remember key points from your learning experience, but it is something that you could possibly utilise when putting together your CV and portfolio. Design moves so fast that sometimes it is the little things throughout the day which are the key things you should be remembering!

I think all up and coming designers can learn from an internship as long as it is the best fit for the experience you are looking for. I think being realistic you can probably learn more from a locally based company than going straight to a big name in NYC. You will probably not see the inner workings of the industry you are wanting to be a part of, which is the whole point of doing an internship. There are a multitude of companies up and down the UK that are possibly more worthy of your attention than companies who have an NYC postal code - think of what you are going to learn, rather than where you are going to learn.

Working as part of a team on a small branding project, along with a personal recommendation from the senior designer in a locally based firm, is worth more on your CV than having a generic reference from a designer who you may have never worked with about your coffee making skills?

Judge every opportunity on its own merits and always ask the question, how will it help advance your career?

Hope this helps, as with every post, if anyone else can add to this reply send me it and i’ll post up anything I think will aid the discussion!

(excuse the reblogging from the other blog - I will eventually only post these over there, but for now i’m just making people aware the blog is there! Thanks for your patience!)