Hi Everyone,
I hope you all had wonderful holiday weekends. I've take a look at Shannon's, Maurice's and Jim's posters. Here are my comments.

For all three of you your concepts are working out well.

Shannon, Black Hawk Down is your outlier. The first thing I noticed was that it is angular not circular as the other two are. The perspective/lighting is flatter than the others. Also the typography need to brighten up a bit -- not a lot -- but it is sinking back into the background too much.

Maurice, as far as I can tell the coastlines are working out well as are the boats. But -- two things -- the wakes are definitely not working. The line quality and style is totally off based on the rest of the artwork. The scale of them also is out of proportion. Everything else is angular -- not soft and squishy. The color palette of blue and brown is working okay but the actual shades aren't sophisticated enough choices. A third thing -- the typography needs to be refined.

Jim, the hands have to be different hands. If the two hands are different, they aren't different enough. Also on the Gran Torino poster the object doesn't actually look as if it is part of the image. Finally your type needs to be refined. It's looking pretty good but take a look at the alignment in particular.

Okay, that's it for now.

--Amy

Save The Fonts Movement -

I think what Maurice talked about seemed like a valid movement, and I think currently and for a while there has been quite a nostalgic movement for the old-fashioned style of type, fonts, hand drawn images etc.
For example, look at the show American Pickers. If you are not familiar with the T.V. show, two gents go around to older folks who own properties of older treasures (some might say junk) and pick through for items they see worth rejuvenation. One of the main things they are ALWAYS looking for are old signs. Those are always a hot items.

And I think that these items are a quick nostalgic glimpse back into our pasts - where we have been, and where our family members have been. To a simpler time. Even if they are strewn full of a commercialized product of some sort they still a captivating pieces. Now the yards and their owners may not be as captivating, but they were smart to grab these items.

There can be something said about styles that were once a trend, now being celebrated, and we have seen that for decades in the fine arts (hundreds of years worth). The cool thing about these types of pieces they are easily restorable and can be keep as small treasures in communities and even in households.

I recently ran into something interesting when I was coming into port at Juno Alaska. It is a shame I don't readily have the photos with me but at port there is a huge mountain drop which goes all the way down to the water (and the dock).
Traditionally the port is a celebrated area for this town because cruise ships are how they get a good bit of money in their pockets when cruise season is in full swing. Well, all over the rocks of the port on this mountain side are hand-painted logo's, and names of ships that have since retired (along with the captains name). As soon as I saw these I was clicking away with the camera. As all the other tourists were walking by to the breakfast buffet, I was seeing decades of history and brand representation through hand-painted signs on the rocks. All kinds of colors, names, etc.

Until... I saw a Disney cruise line rock. AHHHHH- of course you know that Disney logo was of stenciled perfection on that rock...  Jerks.
Anyway, I thought this was a really cool and recent interaction that somewhat referenced what Maurice was noting. It is shame I don't have the pics though. Whamp, whammp.

some work to do, but here it is

Eastwood Poster(s)_Progress

Here is my progress for the posters. Still working with them and the layout. They are coming along somewhat nicely. I made an executive decision to have all the hands placed at the bottom of the posters. I think it works better than the original sketchy ideas.

Everyone have a great Thanksgiving!

Feedback - Shannon

Shannon --

Looking good! Sorry I just saw this post today. I think The Gladiator poster is the strongest - I get the light shinning through the most clearly here, the effect is really, really nice. I think it gets a little lost in Black Hawk Down, it might be because the buildings aren't grounded/appear open at the bottom and the design is more "flat" than the others. Maybe if they could all bleed off the page in some way...would it make sense for the movie to just do the town/cityscape without the road? Mars is looking good - I might add more craters /definition, I might think it was the sun if I didn't know what I was looking at...but not sure if that really matters?

Ridley Scott

So based on the discussion on Thursday, this is what I've come up with for my poster series. Please let me know your thoughts. I'm hoping to work on it again Monday and possibly repost. Thanks!!!

Save the fonts! /album covers

Save the fonts!

"I believe that design should be accessible to everybody".

I happened to stumble across an interesting article about preserving part of a hometown's culture by digitizing it's signage. Jessica Krcmarik used kick-starter to raise money for digitizing 10 fonts originating from Detroit’s hand painted signage, doomed to be painted over.

The goal of her campaign was to offer fonts to small businesses in the area, as pay-what-you-can downloads. While raising 5k for the campaign started by her local font foundry, she naturally gained a lot of support among designers, along with some criticism. Some see it as a pathetic cash grab, although it has been stated that the money would go toward software and hardware to compile fonts and make them sharable. 

This campaign seems to have inspired a website allowing you to submit info about any "ghost signs" you may have discovered. 

Another article featured Krcmarik discussing a growing interest in throwback hand lettering, and talked about seeing a place replacing its original-looking signage with letters that look like Times New Roman. 

What do you guys think about this campaign, do you have any cool stories involving art or signage from your neighborhood, or have you drawn any inspiration from your own towns typography? 

Bonus: Album Covers/ packaging design

Sorry, I couldn't help but to include this one.

I may be one of the few people that go to any media store and spend a few minutes in the cd section checking out the design on album covers, and the artwork inside of the sleeves (or my own CDs). The very thought of physical CDs becoming extinct is just too much to bear. If you have some downtime, here is an interesting article about the timeline of CD artwork, and a lengthy slideshow about typography and music packaging. Both feature notable designers and inspiration behind elements on a given cover. 

Is there any type of design that always catches your eye? Do you have any favorite album covers or any interesting stories about packaging design.

Here are some of my favorite covers.

If you think you're having a bad day....

You could be Ben Carson's graphic designer...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/11/18/ben-carsons-campaign-made-a-u-s-map-and-put-a-bunch-of-states-in-the-wrong-place/

I swear I don't hate everything.

Do you guys remember going to Skateland or the bowling alley as an adolescent and ordering a suicide? Real OGs already know that's a soda with a splash from every available fountain nozzle. I felt like such a badass the first time I encountered it, then ordered it, then taught someone else about it. We were thinking outside the box of available drinks and customizing a witch's brew of caffeinated, carbonated go-juice. Then...

I was at some crappy burrito spot in the Harbor Place and encountered a machine with one nozzle, and a touch screen display featuring 50 or so different flavors. They took the suicide to the next level. These kids don't know how good they have it, being able to mix Mr. Pibb with Grape Soda, Sprite, Mellow Yellow, Surge (I wish - RIP Surge), Tab, and Cherry Ginger Ale.

Or then you've got those friends who spray two different types of cologne on along with their Axe Body spray, after washing with Old Spice. Please go stand in another room, or take yourself outside for a few hours and air out. These aromas were designed by professionals to smell a certain way, and mixing them together is akin to pouring orange juice on your cereal. Yes, they're good by themselves, but no, they shouldn't be allowed to play together in that way. People have taken it upon themselves to bastardize what could be a pleasant olfactory experience for the rest of us, instead confusing and offending those unfortunate souls in their wake with a startling bouquet of off-brand nose-fuckery.

I did know a guy many years ago who used to buy all white Air Force Ones, gussy them up with markers, then sell them at like a $75 markup on MySpace. He actually did alright for himself, and he had a knack for making some pretty cool and unique designs.

Subway started it by letting us choose our toppings, then the Chipotles and Five Guys and Royal Farms touch screens followed suit.

And you don't even have to watch what's airing on tv anymore. Tivo came along, before DVR became a thing, before Netflix and Hulu changed the game, and you can get your news on the internet, with a fully customizable Partisan tuning filter :)

Your perception of the world is customized by the things that you consume daily, and this time I'm not talking about comestibles and libation, I'm talking about what you follow on Instagram, what music you choose, what self-talk you subscribe to, the line of work you pursue (or don't), the people with whom you surround yourself, the books you read (or don't), the doctors you see, the medicine you take that you may or may not need, ugh, now I'm on a rant.

We live in a fast-paced, technocentric, back-up camera reliant, online dating world with new verbs like "google" and "shazam" and "uber it," with an ever-expanding emotional disconnect to the people around us, and an incessant entitlement to instant gratification, so why shouldn't we be able to customize a bag of Oreos that we send to our "loved ones" via Amazon Prime free shipping so that they can know how much we care without having to actually go visit.

End rant.

Customizable Products - Isn't it just an extension of the World We Live In?

When I read the post and rants on customizable products and how they are becoming more and more available, I am not surprised. Do I think it is necessary, for today's consumer it is. 

This is all and extension of having everything at our fingertips within seconds of thinking about it. How a person wants to acquire a product is now fully up to them. We now have all the control in the majority of the purchases that we make. We cannot actually customize every product we buy, but we can now determine within seconds of thinking "I would like to buy X":

• how we want to purchase an item
• at what price?
• from whom we are buying it (what company)
• how soon it can come to us
• what color we want
• is it used or brand new

we have all the control and we don't have to go to the mall or to the next county to find what we are looking for. So with all this power at our fingertips it only seems natural that customization being offered on many levels to consumers is the next step.

Does it matter that it is stupid to customize Oreos, that is just personal opinion. But Oreo will probably make a $10 profit on that one customized purchase. Being on the topic of junk food one of the first, more simpler, custom products I thought of was M&Ms. They have been around for a while now and I have seen them used quite a bit but I am not sure if I need to go that route to say "I Love You" - sort of corny to me girls, but I am guy. What do I know about True Romance? 

Thanks Pam, Ed for showing us the meaning of love.

It would be nice if we could just customize our own Starbucks cup each time we went to get our coffee but we are not ready for that.

To add to Layla's rank: I can also see where these ideas can spill over into the layman world, but it isn't just design. I think you are right more and more people think they can do professional work themselves because of the empowerment we have received our overall options, and what is available to us. But it isn't just design. So don't let them have the power when they make you feel the way you do about your profession. The do come back when they see their mess.

Home Improvement, in-home surgery are some of the others fields taking a beating. I am one who likes to attempt home improvement myself, and I am fairly good at it, barring one emergency room trip.

I can't help it, I like to learn how things work and also to work with my hands.

Re: custom products...My way or the highway

My initial post intended to be the article that Shannon posted, as seeing colleagues selling custom designed items (phone cases, shoes) is the only exposure I've had to this topic. This trend makes sense after reading the somewhat related rumors of chipotle gaining the upper hand over McDonald's by offering more choices. 

I agree with Layla about the absurdity of a custom Oreo pack, unless your significant other really cares about the design on the package of junk food. 

Services that offer custom laptop cases or anything else, in my experience, aren't convenient enough to take the time and consider. However, there could be some awesome service out there on the rise.

Re: Custom Products

Layla, I get where your rant comes from. I think it is a real gripe a lot of designers have and I know I have been there too. While I was google-hunting for interesting things to add to this conversation, I came across this article/video (posted below) talking about the mass customization of apparel that this company, Knyttan (a  fashion start-up based in London), offers. Essentially, you can manipulate clothing design online, order it, and a 3-D printer creates your piece almost immediately.


 
Background:
Founded in April 2013 by Ben Alun-Jones, Kirsty Emery and Hal Watts, who met at London’s Royal College of Art, Knyttan aims to disrupt the $200 billion knitwear market with technology that turns the industrial knitting machines, which make 20 percent of the world’s garments, into the equivalent of 3D printers for clothes, enabling users to design and ‘print’ their own customised sweaters, scarves and other knitted items, made of Merino wool, for 200 pounds (about $315) for sweaters and 80 pounds (about $125 ) for scarves. (read more on this here and how it affects the knitting industry).

The conversation around the designers focuses on how their role is morphing into how you manage your brand, that they have to set style guides rather than finished pieces. The video states that it ask designers, "what are the key things of your brand and what are you willing to let go of?" It makes designers think about all the possibilities their design can offer, but still allows enough control so it doesn't turn into a literal walking disaster with their name attached. As talked about in the other posts, it seems like customization is everywhere and is a key selling point for a lot of products. We can't really escape it, and I've definitely bought some customized pieces (maybe not oreos, but some etsy jewelry and things of the like).

 It is kind of scary how it could affect the career path of designers... it could mean less jobs (not cool) and less control (sigh) but it also challenges us to think differently and will just catapult our field into a new direction.  It's the evolution of design,  like when type-setters had to come to grips with what they painstakingly studied and learned how to do to craft printed pieces could now be down with a few clicks of a button on a computer. I'm sure that was as infuriating as it was exciting, ha ha.  I do think there will always be value for original, artfully created pieces - much like I love a beautifully letter pressed print that I had nothing to do with.

Re: Custom Products

To build off of Shannon's examples,  I found this article from the Harvard Review Board that continues to elaborate on The Four Faces of Mass Customization and finding the right approach to use.

In response to Laura's questions, I can't remember if I've really used customization in things I buy. I think the most customization I've done to products I've purchased would be wedding gifts (wine glasses, photo frames) which usually just includes the brides and grooms names and their wedding date.  I've had a couple shirts made for special events...bacherlorette parties, fundraising walks. But that usually involves me creating my own design and uploading it to a website for print.

To answer your second question, I feel torn about how this effects designers. I definitely understand why consumers want to customize their products. There is this whole movement on how everyone is unique, everyone is their own person. And yes, I agree with that so therefore everyone wants to be able to express their individuality especially on products they purchase and wear. I'm not sure I would personalize a package of Oreo's though. You eat them, then throw the ($15) bag away. I think that just like everything else, there's an extreme, and that might be it.

I also feel that there is this surge of people all of sudden who want to become designers. I see it in new technology commercials that show designers using the newest laptop, or tablet, or software (for example, Microsoft's commercial for the Surface Book shows someone developing a new shoe design in a design software). Before, you never really saw the inner workings of a designer. Now that the profession has become popular, its like a growing trend for everyone to be a designer. I think this creates an issue that not only do more people want to become designers, but that people start thinking anyone can be a designer and knowing Photoshop makes you one. But it doesn't. Sorry, I feel like this is turning into a rant but I'm channeling some not-so-pleasant encounters I've already had with people that have made me feel like my profession as a designer isn't a serious one and that they can do it (without ANY background). And while I chalk it up to many reasons why people feel that an artistic profession isn't a serious one, I think that people can get the wrong idea that because they made some doodle on their shoe, or picked some colors for an Oreo package, that it makes them a designer. But, it doesn't.

I guess you can compare it to reading WebMD and thinking you're a doctor and then self-diagnosing from there on out (its a stretch, but you get my point).

Sorry, rant over.

I do think that as a designer, designing something for mass customization would be an interesting challenge and really forces you to think about all the ways your design can be applied and changed without altering the concept.

Re: Custom Products

I found this article on mass customization, which breaks it down into four categories: Transparent, Collaborative, Adaptive, and Cosmetic. Here are the definitions of each:

1. Collaborative Customization - where companies work in partnership with individual customers to develop precise product offerings to best suit each customer's needs.

2. Adaptive Customization - where companies produce standardized products that are customizable by the end-user.

3. Transparent Customization - where companies provide unique products to individual customers without overtly stating the products are customized.

4. Cosmetic Customization - where companies produce standardized products but market the products in different ways to various customers.

Another article from Huffington Post Business gives three reasons why mass customization is the future of consumer products:

1. Every Customer Is Their Own Market

2. Consumers Are More Expressive

3. Customization Is the New Loyalty

But enough about the business aspect. The only time I can remember being interested in mass customization products for the design was my senior year of high school when I was looking for laptop cases. I'm not sure if Apple was responsible for this or I was looking at another site, but I spent hours messing around with options just to end up buying a standard case for cost reasons. Apple also gives the option to customize their products by engraving your name. The only time I've been interested in this was when it was free with the purchase.

I've heard a lot about Nike taking advantage of this. They've created an entire campaign around it called Nike ID. Again, I've never really been interested in personalized anything, especially shoes, but I can understand why it's been so successful.

More on the red cups:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ellen-has-the-best-response-to-starbucks-holiday-cup-controversy_56436385e4b060377347257a

Customizable Products

For this holiday season Oreo has launched an online store where you can customize a package of Oreo cookies for yourself or a loved one. I'm not particularly a fan of Oreos, but it piqued my interest.

You can choose from two holiday-themed, illustrated designs. (They even name the artist who created each one, which is pretty cool.) You can then adjust the scale of the design and how it is colored, although the color options are limited to four plus white. You also can add other embellishments and write your own gift tag.

Here's one I created:

Cute, huh?

I got to asking myself why this excited me so much given that I don't even remember the last time I ate an Oreo let alone bought them. And I would never consider dropping $15 (that's the cost of the custom package plus shipping) for them, although after making this one, I was really tempted to buy it. So, why is this so cool?

The term for this model is Mass Customization, and it's pretty much the result of more efficient and cheaper manufacturing technologies. It's a growing trend because it turns out consumers LOVE to customize products. This article sums up why consumers can't get enough of it...

"For customers, the benefits of mass customization are clear. A custom product allows them a wide variety of options to serve their exact needs. In the past, the benefit of a “perfect product” was often outweighed by increased delivery times or production costs. Today, the new technology at our disposal minimizes delivery times with real-time integration and also puts the costs more on par with a mass produced product.
Customers also love creating their own value proposition. With mass customization, their happiness is in their hands. Using a configurator to build their own products allows the customer to get creative. They become invested in the act of configuring and modifying each specification to their liking."

You've all probably come across examples of Mass Customization before. Are there any that have intrigued you or that you've used?

My second, more philosophical question is what do you all think the implications of Mass Customization are for designers?

I could see some designers scoffing at the idea that lay people should be designing their own products, especially ones that will carry a global brand's name and logo. But I think coming up with a way to design a product, package or whatever for consumer customization would be a really interesting and fun challenge. You have to basically think about each and every option of execution and coordinate all those things in addition to making it a fun experience that gets the buyer "invested" in what they're making.

...thoughts?

On Personal Branding

I’m with Shannon. I don’t have a personal brand yet but I’m still searching and I think about it a lot. I feel like my niche lies at the crux of writing and design. I love to make people laugh. I’ll pretty much always try to slip some humor into the situation. Having a mastery of writing helps, because you can present irony in a well-framed, storytelling fashion, and hook your reader, leading him/her right into the punchline. I don’t know how this will translate into a personal brand yet. Graphic Design knowledge is useful in getting people to read what I’ve written. If it looks cruddy, people will move right past it.

I would like to have this sorted out sooner than later though. High on my list is purchasing domain space, but I need a good name first.

Afterthought: It just occurred to me: why are there no female film directors? When reading Jim’s post, he mentions “a well-renowned director and his work(s)…” The p.c. copyeditor in me is thinking, shouldn’t that be his/her work(s)? But now that I think of it, when researching the top 100 film directors, I don’t recall encountering one female name. That seems wrong doesn’t it?

Laura -- Feedback

Laura, I agree that you found a interesting niche with the food concept and the research is interesting but I would have to wonder if someone see these posters on the wall, would they put one and one together with the movies and Tarantino? Maybe there is one more aspect to the food and the scenes that you could implement that would tie it together a little more.

For example (and you don't have to use this) but in Pulp Fiction when Butch kills Vince while he was on the toilet, Butch was making Pop Tarts, which he never ate. He sees Vince's gun on the counter and kills him. What if the poster for PF featured those finished pop tarts sticking out of the toaster, an ozzie next to it and in the far background you see the aftermath. Food, Violence and plot twist. A Tarantino smore.

For some reason this one popped in my head.

Re: Personal Branding

I've debated creating an LLC for tax purposes for the (very few) freelance gigs I have for a couple years now and I always get so overwhelmed by what my brand should be, I keep backing down. I keep telling myself that if I am going to do it, I'm going to do it right, with a name, Web site, etc - but I get so stuck on how I want to position myself and how my site should look. I have trouble finding the balance of who I am as a designer and how I want to be viewed by future potential clients. I see those quirky designers who have fun, humorous sites touting, "I MAKE STUFF" or something like that - they are super approachable and show awesome work. Then I see others who are more business oriented/serious in tone, telling you more about what their strategy and vision can do for you, etc. etc. and also have an impressive portfolio. I know there is no right answer and I need to find a balance. End ramble.

I think the "emotional selling point" and "unique selling point" are important things to think about. Sure your work should do a lot of the talking, but there are a lot of great designers out there. Honing in on your "story" as the articles say, I think is an important piece to give focus. People are emotional creatures and I think we make a lot of choice based on how we identify with brands and other people, etc. All good things to think about in the posts below.

Re: Personal Branding

I have yet to brand myself as a designer, but it's getting to be that time considering I'm taking portfolio and seminar next semester. I've mentioned designer David Airey before, but he has an excellent blog about freelancing and design. As soon as I read Jim's post, I thought of Airey's article, Framing Your Design Brand. Airey breaks down the process into 10 steps: David Airey is a great designer to follow. Here are a few more of his blog posts on the topic:

1. Mission

   What are you doing right now, today? What happens because you exist?
2. Vision

   What are or will be the results and effects of what you do in the future?
3. Core values

   What are the attitudes and beliefs that shape your business culture?
4. Unique selling point

   What’s your edge, the thing that makes you stand out?
5. Emotional selling point

   What’s the intangible or aspiration that you sell? Think feelings not facts. Connection, freedom, ego, belonging.…
6. Brand essence

   The core of what you do, the image it portrays and the signals it sends.
7. Tagline

   One line that communicates everything.
8. Identity

   How the consumer perceives your brand.
9. Name

   The verbal hook on which all of the above hangs and is communicated, the icing on your cake. Comes in all the way down here at number nine!
10. Logo
    
Last but not least the visual hook that represents your brand, the cherry on the top.




Laura- feedback

Laura, I agree with Erin that this is working, but using your own visuals might work out better. Does he have one style that he uses in all three films? i.e. light? filter? etc. I'd try to incorporate his style at least one way. Love the food idea!

Laura -- Feedback

Laura -- Well, that worked out! ha Love it. I do think it would be much stronger if you illustrated the food rather than using photographs. Could allow you to show the idea of the "power" the food holds via perspective or something. I don't think you have to worry about it being cryptic if people haven't seen the film. I know what you mean, though -- I am struggling with that for mine as well. However, from how I'm seeing the project as a whole, we are trying to play more to the director's style rather than the actual content of the movie. If he uses food to show/enhance power struggles and control in his story lines, I think that could be a unique approach to the project.

Creating Your Own Brand Personality as a Designer -

Since the beginning of class we have been dealing with some form of branding or another.

Project 1 featured using an established brand and adjusting that style to implement an auxiliary brand.

Project 2 we took an established artist/performer/sports figure..., who at one time had an established personna, or an reputation that developed into a "unseen" brand or style (well, it may have been branded after the fact) and implemented it with a 21st century appeal.

and
Project 3 we are now also looking to find an similar variable between a well-renouned director and his work(s), implanting a brand to his or her style in poster form.

(BTW: I found this site around creating a brand identity and some very straight forward approaches when you do... https://codemyviews.com/blog/how-to-find-or-create-your-brand-personality )


These have all been a challenge but what I think can even be more challenging is branding ourselves as designers. Who are you? What do you say through your work? What is the goal of your work? What separates you from the rest?

I think that finding your own voice, or your own brand can be one of the hardest things that we have to do, and I have found it to be revolving door.

Since we as humans constantly change in many aspects of our lives, our experiences, beliefs, relationships, work, it may be hard to even grasp what this could be.
But at the end of the day we are striving to contribute and tell our story through our work and we want that to be heard but how to start this process?

This links to a site that gives very informative information on thinking about your own Brand Personality -

What is a Personal Brand?
Even in the creative services industry, the meaning of the word “Brand” or the concept of “Branding,” can differ from person to person. The simplest and most common definition is this: “Your brand is what people think and say about you. It is the values that are associated with you and what you do or provide.”

Think of the first three words that come to mind when you think of Apple. Those three words are the impression that you have of their brand. That impression has been reinforced by the content they have created and presented to you, as well as your personal experiences with their products.

• Identify three words that you want associated with you and the work that you produce. 
• Identify three words that you would like people to associate with your visual style.
• Finally, identify three words that you want people to associate with the experience of working with you.

These words are your brand values. These values frame the story of you and your brand.

Telling a Story That Matters to People
Developing your brand as a graphic designer is about the story that you want to tell about you, the work you produce, and how you deliver for your clients. In truth, it’s not about simply building a presence on social media and other public platforms, but about how you leverage them to tell your story.

Don’t forget to cater your story to your target audience. Consider what audience you’re trying to reach. Are you trying to reach other creative professionals? Or are you trying to reach potential clients within a specific industry?

Keep this in mind as a point of reference when deciding how to market and promote yourself. When crafting a marketing strategy, many individuals—and even companies—often do what “they would like” instead of identifying and meeting the needs of their target audience.

These considerations and strategies are all part of your interaction with the Content-Driven Economy. We are no longer simply consumers of physical products; we are consumers of media. We consume media for both entertainment or education. We either want to enjoy an experience, or we want to learn how to solve problems and build new skills.

Quick Tips for Developing Your Brand (more in the article)

• Create a design blog showcasing your work and your thoughts on the industry
• Submit your personal design work and art to magazines, blogs and online galleries
• Participate in graphic design forums, and design sub-reddits

Finding a Niche

Finding or studying something that you passionately enjoy or love to produce and running with that is a good start into the process of establishing yourself and your brand.


Does anyone else have any ideas or questions supporting these ideas?

Thanks!