According to the U.S. Dept. of Labor...

Graphic Designers

Ladies & Gentlemen, I'm on the Web

Visit rjrasmussen.com

Interactive is to change as Production is to taste

Does that title work?
You know something...I'm actually not sure.
But hey, did it catch your attention?

Diving right in…Interactive is all about change. And apparently, the speed of change challenges everyone’s imagination. Ok Roz, I’ll give you that one. It is fairly amazing to see how quickly this ENTIRE industry switches gears, not just Interactive Media. But considering the short history of the short history, I’d say interactive has come along way.

See but…there again, you could say the same for the entire design field. After all, the utilization of computers in design firms began shortly after the Macintosh and the PC were introduced in the early 1980s.

Because I don’t particularly have an interest in interactive media, I’m kind of picking and choosing what it is that I’d like to respond to this week. Yeah, sure, I do that anyway, but more-so this week than in the past.

We obviously must be creatively dominant, but many echo the fear that seduction of instant gratification is changing the way we think and design—but not for the better.

About twenty minutes after reading the appropriate chapters in Careers By Design, I decided to rest by brain a little by letting it watch some news on the telly. Unfortunately, the saying no news is good news still seems to hold true. But anyway, I saw a commercial where this guy was in a hurry for everything. He keeps making these references about how same-day stuff…(i.e. same day dry cleaning, hour photo development, et cetera) just aren’t fast enough. The demographic in mind was clearly a younger crowd involved with today’s business world—as this man was dressed in a suit and tie.

So what’s the point? Well, the point is that this guy was in a hurry. And America is in a hurry. Where the hell we’re going so fast is beyond me, but in seeing this commercial, I felt like I was in the right place at the right time. Ever have one of those moments? I was just laying there letting what I had just read sink in and sure enough this commercial comes on. And it pisses me off. That’s the gist of this whole thing.

If our design processes are affected by instant gratification, then damn it, we need to slow down. But of course, it’s our jobs as designers to keep up with the rest of the world, as we are the culturally advanced ones…or at least that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Designers have this awesome ability to shape what the world sees and what ‘trends’ become…well…trends.

And so if it isn’t obvious, I’m saying that I don’t like the notion that instant gratification is taking over design, and is worsening it. Perhaps it’s not worsening the physicality of the design, but it certainly is affecting the business…something that I’m sure will only continue as I enter the working world.

Just worth noting: The good news is that although we are celebrating style more than ever, design is about content, context, and relevant innovation.

An always-reoccurring theme—making things look pretty isn’t enough.
Take that for what it’s worth.

As a general note to designing a portfolio and having your resume on the web, I was attracted to this suggestion:
Make your resume section versatile. The resume should be able to do gymnastics if possible. I should be able to print it out, download it, and it should be easy to attach to documents.

Thanks Rira…and oh yeah, Roz, too…I’ll keep that in mind.

The last piece to interactive mentioned is to think on a global level. The most successful…uhh…EVERYTHING…is on the web. Well, no, that’s not necessarily true. And because of that, we have a job.

As far as Production Jobs go, can we simply say this…?
…all production decisions require design knowledge, ability, and taste.

But seriously, this chapter doesn’t do a great job of explaining what, precisely, a production professional does. I don’t fully understand what the difference is between a designer and a production professional. Can someone help me out here?

More than anything, I’m not seeing the career opportunities, even though there’s a whole section labeled Career Opportunities.

However, directly within that section is a quote that I found important:
Advancing your career while still staying on the computer can be difficult but is highly recommended.

I can understand that, and in fact, I tend to believe it’s the right idea to have. As tough as it might be to, say, leave the hands on portion of your work, advancing one’s career is also important. But if there’s an eclectic mix between the two, take it. Advance the career but attempt to keep your hands dirty with the soil and roots of the project.

As Austin Powers would say, …and I’m spent.

"Organizing Isn't Sexy"

That title (and quote) is totally a ‘me’ line, isn’t it? Well, actually, I got it from chapter five in Designing A Digital Portfolio. While I don’t have a ton to say about organizing my work and how much WORK it is going to be, I do believe that it is important enough for its own post.

Baron gives us five things for a naming/organizing files…

1. Group
2. Name
3. Show
4. Weed
5. Backup

Well, back up your work. Duh.
Honestly, I think one of the first things I learned in my time at Quinnipiac is to back up my work. I suppose in a crazy way I owe them a huge thank you for corrupting some of my biggest files early on in my design career. Not only did it teach me to back up my files, but it also taught me how to use the keyboard commands to recreate the posters with speed—while still maintaining the quality of the first round.

As far as everything else is concerned, it’s really all about folders within folders.
Subfolders, that is.

At this stage of the game, I have to reorganize so that it will be easier in the future for me to not have to wade through a mound of cd’s to find what I want. However, I love the quote on the first page of chapter five which reads, Creatives aren’t supposed to be organized…it’s part of our mystique.

Fuh Fuh Fuh Format.

There’s no right choice for a format…but oh yeah, there are wrong choices. Hmm…not sure I like that idea, but ok, here we go looking at format.

A novel concept brought up in the first parts of this chapter: Don’t use zip disks.
Well, I’d like to thank you, author, for telling me not to use an outdated piece of media. No, but seriously, I can understand the need to at least mention the warning not to use this type of material.

CD’s are commonplace, or so it’s mentioned. But I’m not really swayed to use a CD format, when I’m still moved by the whole, Print is Beautiful thing. I love print. I love being able to have a tangible ….ANYTHING…to hold on to and present. To me, it makes the viewing experience more pleasurable. There are obviously people who would disagree with that, but hey, it doesn’t matter. But if you do choose a CD format, use CD-R’s or CD-RW’s.

Mini CD’s….not an idea choice for me.

DVD…hey, I was getting worried that this wouldn’t be mentioned. But I’m convinced that a DVD might be too big for a print based portfolio. As the book says, a DVD is a great way to demonstrate moving image work. I will say that DVD’s are great. I’ve burned several DVD’s of my work, and it’s been worth it in all cases. Still, I’m wondering if DVD writers and readers are industry standard yet…and if they’re not, it’s not an ideal choice.

Hey, we could use laptops, too! No way! I didn’t think of this one. Just kidding. Ok, ok, drop the sarcasm, I know. Well, I suppose using a laptop could work, although I wonder if they’ll care that it’s a Dell instead of a Mac—assuming, of course, it’s a Mac based company/lab. What do you think? Will they care? Now, I’ve used laptops for many-a-PowerPoint presentation, and unless I rehearse time and time again, it hasn’t been worth it. Fortunately my graphic skills are enough where my professors have found my PowerPoint’s to be A-quality work….but again, rehearsals might take up more time than necessary, making a lap top a less than worthy choice.

If I really had to pick, I’d pick a CD. Then again, I’d rather just create a book as a secondary portfolio to my website.

For me, it comes down to taking the digital out of digital design. I’ve been talking it over with myself….and while that sounds crazy, I’ve been saying, “Let’s go beyond the digital realm and show potential employers tangible pieces of work in a well crafted book.” The way I look at it, employers spend enough time in front of the computer. How about I try to get them away from that to experience something different? A book…sure, it’s not entirely different, but considering the choices listed here, it sure seems to be.

The online portfolio is a must. We know. And that’s where we are right now.
Exciting? You bet.

Who hired Snap, Crackle, & Pop?

Looking first at Advertising and Design, the first thing I feel the need to comment on is:
The myster of the design process is seemingly gone because the computer has made design more transparent.
Well, wait a second...how is it that the design process is gone? The reason our profession exists is because people cannot do what we do. In fact, the more non-designers I talk to, the more I hear, "I have absolutely no idea how you're able to do what you do." People just don't get it. Again, that's why our profession exists. The computer makes it more accessible to non-designers, but without the creativity, among other things, this transparency doesn't make it any easier to develop concepts.

The other thing, too, is that designing on the computer is the last step of the process. Think about what we go through prior to designing on the computer. All of the research, sketching, collaborating, et cetera. Do you see everyone with a computer and Microsoft Paint doing that? Nope, so I disagree with Roz here. The element of surprise still exists in designing, and the mystery is still a reason that I love what I do.

But enough rambling. Down to business.

Similar to previous chapters, we're left with lots of choices for designing positions, although in marketing they seem to have different 'titles,' if you will.

General Advertising is categorized as the advertising that is found in print and television.
Stop. Found in print? Good enough. Ok keep going...
This form of advertising is the one tha tmost peopel will associate with advertising, and the work of the advertising agency covers all advertising found in magazines, newspapers, billboards, radio, and television.

Outstanding! I love the fact that so much of print is covered in general advertising. Scratching my chin, I tend to wonder if this is something that I should pursue. I was kind of excited in reading this, because I have always found the connections between design and advertising somewhat intriguing. But lets move on, shall we?

Promotion represents an exceptionally broad area, one probably least known to most young designers, and yet offers the largest number of employment opportunities. Sales promotion is also the place where design and adversiting meet.

Time out. Did I not just say that I was intrigued by the connections bewteen design and advertising? Now, I finished up this short section by reading that the promotional designer has to connect these elements to produce a printed piece that will cry out for attention and sell an idea, service, or product.

I'm running out of words here. Outstanding times two! How's that?
Well, I had the opportunity to take a basic Public Relations class last semester, and promotions was covered in a certain segment.....I managed to find out that Promo. is a very lucrative business, and hence salaries may be higher. But even in leaving that out of the equation, promotion sounds very interesting as well. Where can I learn more, said the man with the blog.

Integrated Advertising started out as interesting, then I read that these groups require the talent of designers who can think of marketing strate--
Cue the Buzzer. You're out. Marketing strategies? No thank you. Roz mentions that this position could be for the designer who is looking to think on a different scale, and it's not that I don't like to think differently, but marketing strategies aren't something of great interest to me.

Sales promotion basically seems to include many print based outlets, and again, although it's advertising, we are seeing designers throughout the workforce under various and sometimes hidden titles. This seems to make the job market for designers very specific. Remind me never to try to use Monster again. Oh wait, I stopped doing that when PB laughed at me and said yeah, don't go there. I didn't get it until about a week ago when I put myself head first into finding a job. And so, as always, it comes back around to me thanking PB.

I've skipped over a couple of the other job areas, and I'm thinking that's ok because I don't have too much of a reaction on them other than not knowing that they existed and that I wish I had known this stuff in my freshman year. Or, perhaps, sophomore year.

Anyway, I have a comment to make. Go figure--and hey, isn't that the point of the blog?
One needs a healthy ego to handle the process says Sylvia Laniado.
I'd like to know how it is that you're supposed to be seemingly cocky but humble....
And I know that cocky sounds like a bad word, but really, what word would you use? I use it here minus the connotations of being conceeded. You just have to know your work is good. You have to know that you're in the position you're in because you earned it...and while it's important to always be open to new ideas, you still have to have some basic concept of self-praise.

On the page just before, Connie Wolf mentions not talking too much and keeping eyes and ears wide open. I can completely understand this, although I think it's just as important to ask questions as it is to remain quiet and listen to those around you.

Quickly onto Industrial Design...

ID...is...Product. Development.
That's it.

...

Well, ok, this field relies heavily on training, and for good reason. I doubt very seriously most people start out wanting to be Industiral Designers, but then again, most people I know want to work in 2D, not 3D.

Although this falls under being design, I don't think I'll spend any more time on it.

Oh, my dear Roz, how I appreciate you're introduction and short, short chapter on Industrial Design. Call me.

...the things I say for a good laugh. HA!

(Designing A Digital Portfolio gets its own post this week)

A New Quinnipiac University Record

We had one, count em' one design firm at the 2006 Career Fair!
Here's to you, Quinnipiac!

Maybe next year they could shoot for 2. WHOA NELLY! TWO? A whole TWO?
That might be asking too much.

Basic gist of the career fair AFTER talking to Modem Media:

Me: Hi there, do you have a corporate art department or graphic design department?

HR rep: That's a very good question to which I do not have the answer.

Me: Ok then, have a nice day.

I'm not really sure why companies send HR representatives that have no concept of what design is or what jobs are offered within their company for designers.

Here's the best part...I went to one company...I forget if it was Target or Peoples Bank or one of those...and the lady was like, oh well we don't have designers in our company. I said, "not even freelance?" She simply said, "nope."

I laughed and said, "tell me, who do you think designed that big poster you're standing in front of? ....I enjoyed meeting you."

It wasn't meant to be sarcastic, but it was kind of funny.

I wanna be like Mike...

Designing With Conviction

The thing that I'm learning as I go...and the opinion that I'm formulating....is that when you design, there is no such thing as a "wrong" design. Now, there certainly is such a thing as a BAD design, but I don't believe that a design can be wrong if you're designing it with convicion.

What I mean by this is simply that our business is a creative one. We are paid to develop concepts--and through creativity--we come up with winning solutions. Here's the key in ANYTHING you design: Have some conviction. Know that no matter what you design, it's correct. If you design with this mentality, not only will your end product be much better, but you will be more intimate with it once it is completed.

Conviction. Being completely into what you're designing, even if your art director will find that it's not what the client wants, can never be wrong. Because, really....if you don't design this way, you're not being as creative as you could be.

Comments?

What's the deal?

This picks up where my last entry leaves off...

Four years comes down to this, the creating of a portfolio and looking for a job.
I see these people around me kind of nervous and almost in a panic to get everything together.
Well, wait just a second...try to enjoy it, will you? I know it's tough in some spots, but think about it...this is exciting stuff.

Am I, personally, worried? No, not really. Do I think I'll find a job? I don't have the answer to that. But what I can and will say is that this is a journey I wouldn't trade for anything.

Hell, I'm setting myself up to work in a profession that I am extremely passionate about.

PB Hastings had mentioned earlier that at least once a semester students end up in her office in tears or with some kind of breakdown. Now, I won't count my chickens before they hatch because the truth is that no one knows what tomorrow brings....however, I can honestly say at this point that I'm enjoying what we're doing...

...and really, it's only making me MORE excited to get out of college and find a job.

We'll see how the rest of semester goes...
But to my colleagues I say, "GET EXCITED!"

Hey Roz, are you hiring? HA!

Print design, the final frontier. No no wait....sorry, I just heard a commerical for Star Trek and couldn't help myself.

Some of the tools of the trade include a deep consideration of the aesthetics of page layout (which can also be applied to Web layout) and the utilization and/or art direction of illustration and photography....typography is the heart and soul of design. Without typography there is no written message, just image.

Where to begin, eh? It seems to me that my goal, as Roz says we should always keep in the back of our minds, rests with me in print design. This is where I'd like to end up...and honestly, this is where I see myself in the very near future. There's something about working with print that seems so unique to me, as opposed to web design where everyone and their brother seems to reside.

I, myself, enjoy web design, but I don't think I'd want to spend my days creating web sites. Ok, ok, the truth is that I don't know what tomorrow brings...and hey, I may very well get bored with print at some point in the future, but right now, my passion is with creating a tangible piece of work...and watching it grow...and in a sense, watching it come alive--eventually to be printed.

Page layout? Love it. Grids? Oh yeah, I can thank some professor named Pattie Bell Hastings for drilling that into me.

As far as typography is concerned, I am forever in love with the shape, form, direction, and use of type. Both typography classes I took in my time at Quinnipiac served as the greatest examples of the detail I wished to focus on. Even though all detail is important, there was something about typography that always stuck with me.

My point in all of this...I really believe designing for print mediums is where I belong.

Corporate Literature: Roz doesn't go into much detail, probably because there are very few limitations. I could see myself working for a corporation, especially after my time at IBM, although I'm still not positive what this particular area includes.

Information & Systems Design: You'll have to excuse me while I spend a very small amount of time on this because, really, it bores me. As Roz mentions, System design is most appropriate for designers who thrive on analytical and organiational systems and typography. Heh...just doesn't sound like it's for me...and quite frankly, it's something I'd PREFER to stear clear of.

Annual Reports: You know, for a while now I've heard about the importance of Annual Reports, although it wasn't enough for me to go out and do any research on it. Shame on me, because I'm deciding now that this may be a direction that I wish to go. Too bad the "Interactive Digital Design" program at Quinnipiac showed us NONE of this. I'm actually really disappointed with the lack of exposure we've had to this, because with the way Roz words it, I tend to wonder if it's going to affect my ability to find a job.

I love the idea that corporations are using something that is more information and research based as a design status symbol. It makes me really excited to know that something I'm interested in...well...that people feel the need to use it to stand out. It proves to me, yet again, that I am in the right profession.

As a sidenote and tangent, when I was asked at the end of my IBM internship what I had learned, my first and most profound answer was simply that, I'm in the right profession.

Editorial Design: Referring to magazines, I could understand where the design process is limited in this. Once a magazine is established, as mentioned, the creative boundaries become fairly rigid, leaving room for a designer only to work within a style. All the while, it seems appealing to me. Just because I have to conform to one set of rules or design boundaries doesn't make the idea less ideal. For the most part, the break down of job listings here in Editorial design is what I've learned in my time at Quinnipiac, including publishers, creative/art director, designers, et cetera.

In this segment, I liked this quote the best: Designers are hired because of their ability to understand the subject matter and visually realize the magazine editor's focus.

Book Design: Anyone else bored yet? Considering I read minimally outside the realms of bowling and design, I have no interest in this. The layout of the total book is a subject that requires insight into the character and purpose of the book. And it is, therefore, not for me. Even though the author could just tell me about the character, I'm not intrigued. Sorry Roz, but thanks :-)

Catalogs: Cool beans. I love...yes, LOVE the following quote: If a designer is interested in photogrpahy and art direction, as well as a more editorial approach to design, this is an excellent venue. While I could use some explanation as to what an editorial approach to design is, I certainly love my photography and KNOW I would love art direction. This is something I'll have to look into a bit more.

Overall, even with money as the least important factor at this point in my career, I am very happy to hear that the needs and scope of the design industry, particularly print, have broadened...

Now, as far as Environmental Design is concerned, I'm going to have to be honest and say that I wasn't impressed.

I really don’t have too much to say on the topic of Environmental Design, but the one thing that did seem to click with me was that We have seen in the past five or ten years an increasing sophistication brought to environmental design due to the increased sophistication in understanding the user and the way people respond to the spaces they are in whether as workers, travelers, purchasers, or learners.

That quote seems to put the whole notion of environmental design in perspective for me, and because of it, I can appreciate the need for this area of specialty.

Now the only questions are…how on earth do you become an environmental designer? And how to you jump right into this particular profession right out of college? Is it possible? And who needs a oreo’s and milk break??? ME!

And now, with oreo’s in hand…well…sort of…
Onto Chapter Three of Designing A Digital Portfolio.

Audience. Not so much the final frontier, but certainly a frontier all its own.
When we design, we should be looking at who we want our portfolio to speak to…or at least that’s what I’m getting out of it. Here’s a quote, just to spice things up a bit: Find out what niche you're most effective at and make this the focus of your portfolio. Since this is what you're best at, it will most likely something that interests you anyways…

So is that basically telling me that I should keep my portfolio focused on print design, with perhaps a touch of Flash? I think so. I don’t know, though, I feel like if I limit myself to just two things, my web skills won’t be shown off at all. Is that the trade off? Seriously, I don’t know the answer to that.

Design Engine was the only other thing I planned on mentioning. It’s cool stuff, actually. I went and roamed around for a while, and once I have a little more time….say, Friday, I’ll take a much more in-depth look at it. Four years and it comes down to this…I’m kind of excited.

See, that’s the other thing I wanted to mention. I’ll make its own post.
Time to null my brain with the one hour of television I allow it per week.

Really, really excited to see where all of this goes.

Just a recommendation...

Granted the idea is to go and spend some time looking through business card/logo/letterhead/design books to gather a plethora of resources and to build ideas, I think it should be done anyway.

I'll admit, my first few trips to Barnes & Noble as a design student were filled with doubt. I just didn't get why I was there and what good it was going to do me to look at work that...well...exists now. I couldn't comprehend how work that had been done already would help me with MY NEW projects.

Well, as I walked to the art section in that same Barnes & Noble today--three years later--I understood why I was there. I was and continue to be on a mission. Even though I was only there for an hour, the creative juices began to flow.

And so my recommendation to underclassmen, and to others who still haven't quite figured out what research will do for you, is to spend as much time building your chops by researching in places like Barnes & Noble.

Now, for those of you who are seniors and/or understand the need to research, I recommend this:
Be amazed. Be astonished. Be humble. Think about how many art books there are around you, and how many of those books pertain to you as a designer. Then with all of that floating around upstairs, understand that you, yourself, can use those resources to your benefit.

Personally, I have started spending money that I don't have on design books. I know that they're that important, and one day, I know they will have payed for themselves.

Whoever said 5:30 in the afternoon is too early for a revelation was out of their mind.
Stay tuned...

Vecchitto strikes again!

Mr. Daniel Vecchitto, a model American, sent this link to me:


How To Find A Design Job While Being Young, Naive, And Full Of Hope

Striking, isn't it?

Here's to my goofy sense of humor.

...and oh yeah, he bowls, too.

Hey, it's all in how you look at things.

You gotTA gotTA dig deep.

I just thought I'd throw this out there...

You're in a profession where personality matters because it is so frequently reflected in how you approach concepts and ideas.

So basically...let your personality shine through in your portfolio, because it may be the deciding factor in whether or not you get the job you want.

Site-Seeing in IDD410 spent a great deal of time talking about the concept of personality. Who am I? What am I trying to say in my design work? Who am I directing myself and my website to? Et cetera...

So get excited...here we go.
It's time to create a digitial portfolio.

Now we can cue the Rocky music.

...I said cue the Rocky music.

CUE IT!

Cough...cough...Rocky Music...cough...

Ugh...I have to do everything myself around here.
I'll get back to you on the Rocky theme.

It's like Reading Rainbow......without the Rainbow.

Reading through chapters three and four of Careers by Design was a bit disappointing, actually. I was so fired up after the first two chapters that I could literally hear the Rocky theme music playing in the background. Then came the business aspects of the design world. While I know for certain that these two chapters weren't my favorites, they are just as important in the learning process.

And so we begin...

1.)Corporate branding & corporate identidy
2.)Retail branding & branded environments
3.)Consumer product branding & packaging design

...are the three biggies that good ol' Roz lists for us. She goes into each with some solid detail that wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be, but still brought about some interesting points. I was especially fond of the quote just prior to these three main categories. It reads, If there is one essential word we could attach to any part of graphic design or advertising, it is image. We are all in the image business in one way or another.

This pretty much summed everything up for me, because the truth is that no matter how we look at it, we're in a business of creating images for people. With that having been said, it's important to remember that we are not just creators of pretty design; we must be able to articulate a message accessible to many different media and relevant to many audiences. That quote courtesy of my buddy Roz, as she quotes Marc Gobe--president and CEO of Desgrippes Gobe in New York.

I decided not to call Roz my buddy once I got about half way through the chapter. I read with my jaw on the floor, slowly realizing how much there is to think about in and around the design world. I was like...ROZ, you're CRAZY! She just looked at me and shrugged her shoulders.

I found it very important that graphic designers must learn the company's marketing strategy before they can begin to tamper with the design.

On the whole, it seemed like much of this discussion revolved around the fact that many people are involved in the design process, not just us--the designers. That's cool though, because while complex, it really gives us a sense of what it takes to create a winning design. I mean, as it's been said, talent alone is not enough.

So go designers!!!! Here's where I hold up my foam finger, blow the air horn, and maybe even say cheers to designers! Because hey, we're not in the shadows anymore. Now we're key players. But, of course, we still have to work together with more business involved individuals to create a winning design.

There's a whole bunch of titles listed in chapter four that I'm not all that interested in. Well, all except for one. I think I'd really like to become an account executive. I started reading about what makes for a good AE, including servicing the peojects, liaising between clients, creative possibly working in production, and having responsibility for scheduling and delivering the project on time and on budget. I know I don't know enough right now to consider the position, but I do think it's something to strive for....perhaps a longer term goal of my career that our other book, Designing A Digital Portfolio spends some time talking about.

I won't lie...I definitely did pump my fist and dance around a few times during this reading. I was excited to see that I had so many of the qualities that were listed. No, I'm not out to be cocky, but for as crazy as it is to be graduating and looking for a job, I was a bit relieved with the ideas that someone with great communication skills, along with writing, talking and listening skills is wanted. I have creativity...I have a sense of humor, even if my jokes aren't always the funniest.

And still, while I know I have some of the best qualities that were mentioned, I also realize that I am a baby in the grand scheme of things. There's a line from a movie called "The Rainmaker," written by John Grisham.

I'll leave off with this book with a line that Rudy Baylor, new attorney at law, saws in an aside to the audience:
I've memorized the Black files cold...I've read all the books on Jurisprudence, the rules of Evidence & Discovery, but I take one look around the courtroom and I realize I haven’t even been born yet.