design advice

Creative Contrast With a Background Blur

Creative Contrast With a Background Blur

This tutorial is great for adding quick and simple contrast to a photo. When using this in your design, it is a good idea to choose a subject that has to do with target market. To start, find a photograph with a main figure of subject in the middle, with a lot going...

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Pushing the Envelope: Design and Life

One thing that I have always vowed never to do in life is to just blend in. Blending in gets you nowhere, and it is getting noticed that gets you the things that you want out of life. Think about employment and dating for instance. If you simply blend into the...

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Equipment: does it really make our designs any better?

There have been so many times where I have been talking to colleagues and other digital artists and I have heard them say "I am saving up for a new Apple Macbook Pro", or "I am saving up to build a new super PC, I will be able to design much better on a faster...

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My Take on Steve Jobs and Flash

I am sure that everyone has heard the buzz going on around the internet with Steve Jobs not supporting Flash on Apple devices. I have gotten dozens of emails asking my take on this issue, which I will address. While I am not an avid animator, I certainly understand...

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Why I Respect Professional Photographers

1. They have an eye for telling a story. They use their keen eyes to find a scene or a place in time that tells a story to their audience. Photojournalists are some of the best at this, because it captures a moment in time and history, that can't be recreated....

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Playing Nice with Others: What Networking Can Do For You

I have been a graphic designer for a few years now, and I will have to admit that fresh out of school, I had no idea the level of importance networking had. I didn't even understand how to go about it, and what the point was. It took a long time to find a job in the...

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Methods to the Mayhem

What I have realized from being an artist for years is that we all have a different ways of doing things when it comes to creating our artwork. Some of us like to do a mainly traditional route and sketch everything out. Some people like to take a bunch of photographs...

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Does Going Green Save Green?

As Designers, especially in print, it is out responsibility to consider our impact on the world, not only visually, but environmentally. Many times we consider green printing products and think of big budget clients, but there are many options out there that are cost...

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Is Twitter really that helpful in promoting your business?

I am on twitter, and I like to post my articles daily, and I submit them to different social networking places, so that I can get as many people to come to Creative Beacon as possible to read my new article. I am sure everyone does that on a daily basis. The thing is,...

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Places to Go for Inspiration and Self Reflection

Places to Go for Inspiration and Self Reflection

Some of these sites will inspire us as designers, artists, and photographers. Others will make us think about how we are all responsible for our actions, and how what we do can make a huge impact. WITNESS DAVID B. REEVES FERIC BENJAMIN KRAIN CHRIS BUZELLI CATH RILEY...

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Designers: Identity and Branding

Identity sets you apart form everyone else it tells everyone who you are, your purpose, and what you are all about. In history, people painted their faces or wore certain colors to identify which tribe they belonged to. They flew certain colored flags, banners or...

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Things to Remember When Working With Clients

1. Always be honest. When a client can trust you, you will have their business for a long time. When they ask you a question, answer it directly and honestly. Do not mislead them or or do anything to break their trust. 2. Be upfront. Let them know your fees and what...

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What I Love About the Design Profession

It's Not All Bad It has occurred to me that I might have been a little bit negative regarding the design profession the past couple of days.  Fearing that it is coming across as if I hate my job or the profession, I decided that I might need to clarify that it is just...

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What Makes Me Sick About the Design Business

The business of graphic and web design is a difficult business to break into. Designers are no longer expected to simply be print experts, but they must also have web knowledge as well. Most designers these days are well rounded and are capable of handling both...

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Designer’s Block: Ways to Get the Ball Rolling Again

This is one of the hardest things sometimes as artists and designers. We are constantly expected to come up with new ideas and concepts. We are expected to think outside of the box and really knock everyone's socks off. We all tend to work well under pressure and...

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A Destructive Force to Graphic Design and our Profession

Imagine going into a clothing store and walking out with a completely new wardrobe of clothes, without paying or saying anything to anyone. When the alarms of the store go off, the workers confront you and claim that you are stealing the clothes. You're reply is...

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12 Essential Serif Fonts for Professional Designers

This is a list of 10 quality serif fonts that you will find in most professional graphic design work. These are all found in body copy of books and magazines. They are all beautiful and elegant for their own reasons. They all come in different weights and italics,...

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News: The Launch of CreativeEdge

Creative Edge is a new site launched by Safari Books Online that is a design resource site for creatives. They have an extensive library of creative professional design books at your fingertips. With a subscription, you can browse any topic, and you have unlimited...

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