Blog
Busting the myths: what Graphic Design ISN’T
May 27, 2009
For a bit of fun I’ve put together a list of things that Graphic Design Isn’t, based on my own experiences and those of others. I hope this will be helpful for designers and clients alike.
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How twitter broadens my horizons
April 16, 2009
Like many designers, I gain lots of inspiration (large volumes of it, in fact) by going online and looking at the work of others. There are plenty of websites set up to showcase design, but I’m finding that one of the nicest ways to come across great work is through twitter.
When I joined twitter, I imagined I would use it primarily to talk with people I already know: friends, and designers I’ve come to know via blogs. Then, I started visiting links tweeted (and retweeted) by others … and looking at the work of the people who follow me on twitter. I really enjoy discovering fantastic designers, artists and bloggers this way. Here are some of the people I’ve encountered (and whom I now follow) thanks to twitter:
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Urgent! How to handle those last-minute design requests
March 11, 2009
Good designers know how to make realistic deadlines and then stick to them. But there are times for every designer when an urgent job materialises and must be squeezed into the work schedule.
Some designers dread getting the phone call or email requesting work to be carried out at breakneck speed; others thrive on the adrenaline rush. Here are some ideas on how to manage the unexpected workload. Read this article in full
Provocative street art in label design
February 10, 2009
Osama bin Laden is a popular subject for graffiti artists: his image is highly recognisable and can be guaranteed to evoke a strong response. Coincidentally, those can also be desirable attributes for someone fronting a product promotion … but bin Laden on a wine label? In fact it’s a stencil image of bin Laden, with a ghetto blaster, used on a label for wine produced by Tasmania’s Moorilla winery.
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More Fantastic Illustration Resources
January 8, 2009
Learning how to draw, from the basics to the finer points of illustration, is a popular activity which brings a lot of people online searching for as much information as they can find. A few months ago I wrote about some great drawing tutorial sites I had found, and that post continues to send a good flow of visitors to my site from search engines.
Much of my own work in recent months has been illustration, and I will be blogging more about illustration in graphic design in the near future. To begin, I’ve put together a broad range of resources to be found online about illustration; these are among the best I’ve found in recent months. Read this article in full
E-cards or traditional cards: which are better?
December 27, 2008
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If you’ve been participating in the holiday season, it’s likely you’ve been part of the seasonal exchange of greeting cards. Most are traditional paper-based cards, although there are also plenty of e-cards landing in in-boxes at this time of year. That’s no surprise, as many of us are spending increasing amounts of time communicating via electronic means. But are electronic greeting cards an acceptable alternative to the paper-based variety? Would you consider sending them to business clients, friends and family?
What is the cost of compromising on good design?
December 3, 2008
Let’s face it, there are times when designers and their clients don’t see eye to eye over a project. When all else fails a designer may comply with client requests which are at odds with their own professional judgment, simply to make the client happy. But is this an ideal solution in the long run? Read this article in full
Steps to choosing a successful colour scheme
November 25, 2008
Choosing the right colour scheme takes a combination of research, design know-how and inspiration. Whether you’re creating a website or a print publication with lots of white space, your choice of colours is an critical element to the overall design. It’s important to do this early in a design project, in order not to waste time later by altering colours. In this post I’m providing a guide to the questions I address when selecting a colour pallette to work with. Read this article in full
Fundamentals of good design: Colour schemes
November 19, 2008
The importance of colour in design can never be overstated. Colour choices influence mood, emotion and tone; a carefully chosen colour scheme can clearly express a specific design style.
When I begin work on a new design project, I usually work at length on creating a good colour scheme. You’ll find more detail on this side of colour selection in my post Steps to choosing a successful colour scheme. To begin with, I have collected several examples of interesting colour schemes online for inspiration. Read this article in full
Fresh ideas for creating seamless websites
November 3, 2008
When I wrote about seamless websites it was done with the intention to showcase designs which I thought were cleverly bridging the gap between designing for small and large resolution computer screens. It proved to be a very popular topic, one of the most popular to date on this blog.
I’m revisiting the subject now because of the launch of a new site design which stylishly demonstrates the seamless principle.
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