Our practical tips for illustrators

Our practical tips for illustrators

by | Mar 9, 2023 | Creative, Illustration, Resources

Here are our tips for all illustrators, both traditional and digital. If you are starting out, these should help you on the way. If you are experienced, you might pick up a new idea or two.

Tips for all artists:

Number one is to thumbnail your concepts. Keep these rough, you are trying to get an idea down. Once you find something you connect with, explore the idea more by refining it. The time you spend on thumbnails will be tailored to the project brief. It will vary between 5 minutes and much longer, depending on complexity and elements required.

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Tips for digital artists:

  • Firstly, split your windows. Set up one window for you to work with and another to view, scaled to the size of that window. This way, when you zoom out your artwork, you will have kept what you have drawn to scale.
  • Secondly, it is important to check your drawing by duplicating and mirroring it. This will help you check the shapes are even and/or correct to the physicality of the subject. Some illustration programs have a setting to allow ‘canvas flip’. The important point is to do this early and frequently. This tip also applies to branding or icon development in Adobe Illustrator®.
  • Layers are one of the handiest tools for digital artists. Make as many of them as you need. If the file processing slows, save a new version of your work, merge and remove layers no longer required.
  • When incorporating program effects into your work, keep experimenting and check the effects enhance your visual. Don’t be afraid to try these effects, used with skill they can add great depth to your work.
  • Save your work regularly. This cannot be stressed enough. If you are using lots of layers and effects, the last thing you want is a computer freeze or crash resulting in hours of detailed work being lost.
  • Create a layer/new document for your palettes. If your art program doesn’t allow you create colour palettes, then make your own. We suggest creating a layer or a new document and place a rough circle of the colour in use. Then if needed again, use the eyedrop tool to pick it up.

Final thoughts for all artists:

Working with graphic designers

Working with graphic designers

by | Dec 5, 2022 | Creative, Design, Marketing, Resources, Workflow

Perhaps you’ve never worked directly with a design team? Or you might be a recent marketing graduate wondering how to engage graphic designers, so you speak a common language?

Tips for getting the best from your design team

You may have experience working with designers and want some insights on improving professional interactions. The following are thoughts from us. These are by no means exhaustive or industry-standard, however, they may spark an idea on where to start.

Details, details and more details

First and foremost, designers are detail-driven. Of course, there are projects where you want an out-there solution. However, it is likely there will be parameters. The design team needs as many specifications as you can find. Make sure when briefing the project to get measurements/spec sheets from external print suppliers. If there is a booking number for an ad, supply this. If there are other vendors involved in the project, let the designer know so they can work cooperatively. If you cannot get details, let the design team know, so they understand what is missing. It’s a rare task with an open-ended budget or time, and to keep everything on track, specifications are necessary.

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Second is to explain the context of the project. The more the design team understands about your company, the wider industry, your niche, competitors, or small nuances, the more considered the solutions they will come up with. Designers are by nature curious individuals; they love research and kernels of fascinating information. Discuss current local/national/international events, how is this impacting on where your product/service is performing? Do the sales team have valuable feedback? Is another division working on a project tangentially aligned?

Getting to know you

Inject your personality into discussions. Sure, there are plenty of serious projects/topics however, it is remarkable how the sparking of conversations between client and designer can alight on a strong solution. Loosen up a little and allow the discussion, within reason, to meander. Your enthusiasm for the project will be catching. If you are engaged, this easily translates to the design team. Like team building within a company, an open and friendly professional rapport between client and designer often makes for the best working outcomes.

Don’t worry about being a ‘visual’ person, that’s the designers job. Some clients provide simply a scribble or wire frame. Some projects require a mood board – a collection of images, colours, styling ideas, previous projects – which can be valuable. The thing to remember is that the design team will take care of the visuals. It is unnecessary to spend time creating mock-ups or layout drafts to show the designer. Your time is better spent collecting information and writing the brief / preparing content, depending on the project. We suggest Milanote as an online mood board resource.

Providing information in a practical way

If you are marking up an older/previous project for updating, we suggest using Adobe Acrobat® and making clear notes in a logical progression. Some projects may require markups and a Word® file or Excel® spreadsheet to be supplied. The more concise and organised your markups, the more efficient for all involved.

From the first draft, offer constructive criticism. Avoid generalisations. “I don’t like it” might be your first reaction but the best course of action is to analyse the draft/s against the brief. Check the colours, fonts, images, positioning, prioritising. Narrow down what is working for you and what is not. There are projects where clients need to see various options to figure out what is right, and if this was agreed in the scope, then its ok to say, for example: “I like this here as its working according to the brief. How about we combine it with this other element which is also working”.

Being open to new approaches and ways of working

Occasionally, projects go back to the drawing board. This is ok too; it may be as the client you realise the brief was not quite right. The design team will let you know if this is a change to the agreed scope.

Related to this is to allow the design team space to provide creative input. If the project is too restrictive you are not maximising the skills your design team has. Step back and trust in your briefing and allow them to make suggestions. Its ok to ask the designer questions and have them explain the thinking behind the artwork. Often this will be the quickest way to clear up any queries or work out a plan for refining the layout.

Occasionally, certain projects may end up emotionally charged. This can be the case with branding. Experienced designers understand the impact a brand has on a business and should always be mindful of this. It is important to remember that while some artistic elements may be subjective, graphic design is a commercial practice that uses universal theoretical foundations to ensure enduring and functional results. There is no one set ‘answer’, try to keep an open mind and work cooperatively to ensure the best outcome.

Writing a design brief

Writing a design brief

by | Nov 14, 2022 | Creative, Marketing, Resources, Workflow

The aim of a design brief is to ensure both the design team and client are clear on the project outcome and can work with efficiency. It is a project management document and can be likened to a map.

Organising your ideas

To get your thoughts and briefing started, organising your ideas into bullet points is an excellent first step. The brief needs to be both succinct and detailed enough to inspire the designers. It is a reference for them to check back they have met the goals discussed in the meeting when going over the written brief. It also supplies a clear outline for project quoting.

Most design studios/agencies will have a briefing sheet they can supply to get you started. There is no industry standard however a briefing document should cover the following:

• Contact details (brief author, date issued, brief version)

• Project scope

• Project/Product overview

• Value proposition

• Background, including market conditions, competitors

• Business objectives

• Communication objectives

• Key messages that must be conveyed by the project

• Single minded proposition (one sentence to explain the most important factor)

• Target audience (primary and secondary including demographic information)

• Actions the creative will inspire when people receive/interact with the piece

• How will the design be used?

• Project timing/s with clear requirement of deliverables

• Current branding requirements to be followed/considered

• Further information to assist with project scope

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Requirements and restrictions

The trick to writing a brief is to make sure the project requirements are clear and that you have left room for the design team to input their creativity within these requirements.

A vital inclusion in briefing design teams is to make sure the project has context. This may be explaining how the business sits in the marketplace; plans for expansion; feedback from customers; feedback from your sales team. It might be a technical consideration/process or material. It might be a walk through the workplace or project site or dig through a room of archives. No one knows precisely which small detail will ignite the idea or tie the project together. Often, contextual information that is beyond the immediate project scope is the key to bring a design together. Experienced designers will mesh this information and pull the strands into their visual solution.

Providing content

If the project requires content from the client, the next step is to prepare the written material and collect hi res images. We suggest Word files for text, with Excel for specification documents. Hi res images should be kept in a folder and named clearly. If you have captions to write, suggest numbering a grid in Excel with image names, so it is clear what belongs where. Alternatively, embed a small image thumbnail in Word, with the caption.

The key is organisation and being methodical when collating content, which will make the project streamlined for all.

The act of creating a full design brief will help you focus on exactly what you want and need the project to be and achieve. It will also make working with a designer simple and enjoyable as ideas become reality.

260 Auburn Road

260 Auburn Road

by | Nov 8, 2022 | Design History, Resources

Our studio at 260 Auburn Road Hawthorn has an interesting backstory. Having driven past the building for many years and being intrigued by the design – prior to leasing our tenancy in 2022 – it has been captivating to learn about the building and Prentice Builders, the company who designed and built it as their head office.

Prentice Builders

Founded by George Prentice, who arrived in Australia in 1909 from Scotland. During the early years the business traded as George Prentice Pty Ltd.

Prentice Builders Pty Ltd was registered 10/02/1941 with George and his son, Robert Shields Prentice, as directors. The company was deregistered 14/09/2009.

At the time of incorporation, the registered business address was 200 Riversdale Road, Hawthorn.

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Left, Evans House, 1930. Above left, Hawthorn Town Hall, 1938. Above right, Kantay House, 1940. Right, Town Hall Hotel, 1941. Far right, Xandau, 1948.

Building projects

Prentice Builders were responsible for major building projects throughout Melbourne and Victoria. This includes Evans House (1930), a splendid Art Deco building at 415-419 Bourke Street; the extension of the Hawthorn Town Hall (1938); The Orrong Hotel (1940); Kantay House factories in Little Collins Street (1940); The Town Hall Hotel extension in Swanston Street (1941); the pipeline and reservoir of the Mount Beauty township water service (1947) and the private residence, Xandau in North Balwyn (1948).

Sheridan Close (1953) at 485-489 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, with 78 apartments and a shallow curved façade was a landmark building built by the company. In 1953 Sheridan Close was the largest development of its kind in Melbourne. The architect was Sir Bernard Evans, who later became Lord Mayor of Melbourne.

Of architectural and cultural importance, Prentice Builders began construction of the Baillieu Library at Melbourne University in March 1957. Designed by architect John F. D. Scarborough, the library was opened in 1959 by Prime Minister Robert Menzies. A key feature of this modernist building is the glass curtain wall with ‘opaque spandrel‘ panels that form the façade overlooking South Lawn on the east side. For more information, see: library.unimelb.edu.au/baillieu and library.unimelb.edu.au/baillieu/architects-story

Later works include a research laboratory at CSIRO Clayton (1982); and the refurbishment of the Melbourne GPO (1986).

George Prentice was president of the Master Builders Association during the late 1940s and early 1950s. He died October 20, 1955, aged 73 and was survived by his children, David, Robert and Jane.

Bailieu Library, Melbourne University. Left, under construction, 1957-58. Above and right, completed building 1959.

Head Office

Prentice Builders were located at 200 Riversdale Road Hawthorn – now the site of the Australia Post Delivery Centre – for many years. George Prentice and his wife Annie lived in Cotham Road, Kew before moving nearby to St Helens Road, Hawthorn East.

The head office at 260 Auburn Road was built in 1973 in the Brutalist style, featuring exposed brick and concrete. The office was developed on three blocks facing Auburn Road, with an existing residence and factory being demolished to make room. The exterior concrete facing Leslie Street includes roughened edges as a decorative element. Original industrial windows remain upstairs facing west.

The architect was Sol Sapir Pty Ltd. Sol Sapir was known as ‘Melbourne’s best-known high rise specialist’ during the 1970s. Of note architecturally, is a block of flats from Canterbury Road, St Kilda West, 1970. This too is in the Brutalist style and reminiscent of 260 Auburn Road. A fascinating biographical overview for Sol is here.

Prentice Builders built their own headquarters. Dating by interior features, the building was converted into nine tenancies during the early 1980s. This timing would correlate with Robert Prentice being of retirement age.

The building features two original staircases, both expressing the functional, modernist styling of the era. The main staircase is panelled with slats and has rounded corners and includes 4 short flights with three landings. There are two built-in interior garden boxes in the formed concrete, panelled with the same slats. Other period features remain in the building.

This image of the building was captured from the 1976 Crawfords Production, Bluey, in the episode The Changeling. All aspects of the building as filmed are intact, with the only addition of a portico to the front entrance, likely during the late 1990s.

The font used for the (since removed) exterior signage ‘Prentice Builders’ and extant throughout the building on doors is Volta, a popular 1950s typeface.

Research sources include: National Library of Australia, State Library of Victoria, Melbourne City Council, Boroondara City Council, University of Melbourne, Australian Securities and Investments Commission, The Age and The Argus.

Special thanks to Mary from Boroondara Council Building Services for specific information on the building age and architect.

Other links

https://www.anothermag.com/design-living/11801/photographs-of-brutalist-architecture-concrete-melbourne-map-blue-crow-media
https://blog.adonline.id.au/brutalist-architecture/
https://www.nationaltrust.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/MMM-Final-2014.pdf

Published on LinkedIn here.

Folio choices for an entry level graphic design role

Folio choices for an entry level graphic design role

by | Nov 3, 2022 | Career, Resources

Well done, you’ve done the hard work and your sharp application and CV has landed you an interview. Your CV will have featured a shortened folio of quality examples of your work.

Preparing for an interview

Now you need to prepare your folio for an interview, either online or in person.

This will most likely feature primarily work from your tertiary design course. Potential employers are not expecting a folio full of commercial work. It is a chance for the interviewer to recall their own time in education and the fun work on the briefs given at this point in a design career.

Check the details

An important step is to check if there are spelling errors you have missed while submitting your projects. If there are, now is the time to fix and update the work. This will be one of the first things a senior design team will spot, which goes for typos in titles or captions, depending on the folio format.

The next step is to make sure you have answers as to what the brief was and how you explored it. If you need to, make notes so you can refer to during the interview. The designer/s interviewing you will want to hear what you enjoyed, what you learnt. Designers are curious and the more depth you can demonstrate, the deeper the conversation and engagement. Examples: why you chose the font you did; how the colour palette was arrived at; what you learnt about the topic you did not know previously.

Have a range of projects

Look at the range of projects you have. If you have researched the studio you have applied for the role with, you should have an idea of the type of work they produce. Do you have any gaps? Depending on the timing, now is the time to take the initiative and either re-work a previous project from earlier study or set yourself a new brief, to include as example. Remember the interview team will be looking at your potential to develop your design skills. The more you can show your attention to detail, the better your chances of landing a role.

If you have any freelance projects, include these. However, depending on the quality level of the work, this/these should not sit in a primary position in the folio.

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CV and job application preparation for graphic design roles

CV and job application preparation for graphic design roles

by | Nov 3, 2022 | Career, Resources

How do you stand out against the flurry of CV’s received for a graphic design position? What information are employers looking for?

First step, research the potential employer as much as possible. Are they a fit for your skills? Does the workplace culture fit your outlook?

Covering letter

Always read the job description and application guidelines carefully and follow the instructions. We suggest you include a covering letter that you tailor to the ad. Check you have addressed the letter correctly. If it is an unknown addressee, address formally with ‘Dear Sir/Madam’ or ‘To Whom it may Concern’.

The covering letter should be succinct, no need to repeat information from your CV. Aim to demonstrate your interest and suitability for the advertised role. CV’s received without covering letters look cursory and imply the applicant is only mildly interested/ticking boxes on a quota of applications.

All CVs

Bullet point relevant information. Content should be concise. Include relevant qualifications and experience. Include a short list of your interests outside graphic design. It gives a picture of your personality and life experience. Remember, most design roles are in small-to-medium studios. Interaction with a team is vital. Humans are social beings and intriguing non-design activities may be the edge that gets you an interview. If you have any voluntary activities, include this.

Entry level role CV

Of course, you have only limited experience at this point. The important point is to mention you are aware of this. If employers are hiring graduates, they understand you will be on a steep learning curve. Acknowledge you have much to learn and you appreciate you will need to work hard to absorb lessons from the industry.

Include your previous employment experience. Having retail or part-time work during study is invaluable. You demonstrate your reliability, motivational and interpersonal skills this way. This shows the potential employer you have the right attitude towards working and you have learnt skills dealing with colleagues and customers.

Experienced roles

Suggest carefully balancing promoting your skills vs what you can offer the business. As you progress in your career, you should have an awareness of how your skills can add value to a new employer. You should also understand the type of team you would like to work in, the projects you enjoy working on and how it all fits into your career plans.

CV design

This is a chance to demonstrate your design skills. Keep in mind you want a professional design flair combined with clear typography, so the content is easy on the eye. Quality is always above quantity. Include the only best examples of your work. As your career progresses, tailor the projects included to suit the role you are applying for.

Word not to include

The word ‘passionate’ is overused and has appeared in CV’s – seemingly – forever. Everyone says they are ‘passionate’. We strongly advise not including it. You do not stand out from the crowd by using it. English is full of marvellous, descriptive words. Expand your vocabulary. You are engaged. You are captivated. You are immersed. Passion belongs to poetry, gardening and love songs.

Final note

Spell checking is mandatory. Further, read your CV and cover letter out loud and make the grammar is correct and flows well. If possible, have a friend also check over. A fresh pair of eyes will spot things you may have missed.

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