There is the saying "You should not judge a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes." This principle applies to many areas in life, especially the realm of design. It's easy to get upset at the guy at the print shop for being so hard to work with. What you may not realize is that he's probably swamped with other people trying to get their work done ASAP! As somebody who is now working on the print side of the fence, I want to share some pointers that could be useful before, during, and after your next encounter with the printer.
Before
Research
Before you start your next print project, Find out what printers are in your area. Research on the quality of the work, and if possible, who else they have worked for (i.e. businesses, not-for-profits, etc.). Also find out how much they charge for certain items (like business cards, flyers, posters, etc.). Ask them about quantity as well. This could help determine budget costs on your next project.
Plan
After you have decided on which printer to go with, plan your time accordingly. Find out how much time your printer will need in order to print your project. Add a couple of days to that to make room for revisions, as well as provide time for the printer to produce your work without rushing it.
Design
Once you have determined your time, find out what paper sizes (8.5 x 11, 11 x 17, 12 x 18, 13 x 19...) and types (text, cover, C1S…) are available for use. Design your project so it makes the most use of the paper. For example, maybe instead of doing 8.5 x 11 flyers why not do 5.5 x 8.5 flyers and get double the quantity. Also, design a template that you could regularly use. If you are working with a printshop that offers design work, ask if you could use one of their template to layout your project. If your project has a bleed, make sure to provide crop marks and design with an 1/8" bleed. This will allow some leeway in case the paper shifts (which it does) during production. Lastly, make sure to use the correct format for your printer. Do they take PDF's? Do they prefer Adobe files. Find out before hand before you get your project printed.
During
Schedule
You've done the research, planning, and designing for your document. You're now ready for production. Here are a few tips to make sure your project makes it safely through the next stage (as opposed to having a really shoddy product and angry client). If you scheduled a date to bring in your project, make sure to get there on time, or earlier. Being late with your project could result in additional charges for rushing the project, and a higher likelihood that something bad will happen to it. If you are dropping a project off and picking it up later, make sure to be readily accessible for corrections / modifications. Provide your printer with your phone number and e-mail and phone number. If they do contact you, make sure to respond quickly to make sure that your project moves forward.
Prepare
Even though you have prepped the document the best you can, there is bound to be an issue of some sort. It could range from a simple typo, to being the wrong format / layout. Be prepared to provide corrected / modified files as quickly as possible. Make sure to save in the compatible format and provide all the necessary files. For example, if your printer uses Indesign CS4 for printing, package the file (so it will have the necessary fonts and links), and make sure to save your file as an .idml file (for older formats). Hopefully, with these helpful tidbits, your project will come out on time, on budget, and on target.
After
So you've made it through the prep, design, and printing of your project. You're done right? Wrong. There's still a couple of things to take care of, payment and follow-up. When you started the project, you received a quote on how much it costs. Keep tabs on any changes or additional charges that could come up. When the invoice arrives evaluate the actual invoice and the estimate. RESPECTFULLY ask about any additional costs or charges that do come up. If there are no issues, don't cause one by paying late or griping about the price. If the printer did a good job, show your appreciation. Send a Thank You. Recommend the printer to fellow designers or businesses. Perhaps even build a working relationship with them. This appreciation, commendation, and connection could prove beneficial for future clients, discounts on future work, or both. Even if the service is lousy, handle the situation discretely and respectfully…Then find a quiet place to vent. There are other printers out there and you will find the right one just for you.
I hope that this article is beneficial for your next printing endeavor. Do you have any questions, comments, or suggestions? Post them here. I'd love to hear from you. Thanks!
Next Post: Up to You! That's right reader! You determine the next blog post. Anything! A Book Review? Process? Design Advice? Q&A? Submit in your ideas. Hope to hear from you soon!
Friday, April 19, 2013
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Thou Shall Not Use Comic Sans By Sean Adams, Peter Dawson, John Foster, and Tony Seddon - A Book Review
Hey Gang, sorry for the delay of this post. Life in the graphic design and print business can prove challenging at times! However, I'm glad to be back am really excited to share with you about the book, Thou Shall Not Use Comic.
Brief Summary
The book is a compilation of wisdom and knowledge from noteworthy designers (including Sean Adams of Adams-Morika). The compilation consists of 365 different rules or "commandments". These commandments are broken down into six, color-coded categories ranging from Type and layout, to imagery and design. Each author takes one rule and explains it further in a brief "Commentary" section.
The Pluses
+ The book is nicely broken down for easy access and quick reading.
+ The book offers, when appropriate, helpful exceptions to a commandment, usually in the form of another rule.
The Minuses
– Some language
My Personal Take
Thou Shall Not Use Comic Sans should be a standard part of anyone's library. Whether you're curious about design or a design veteran, this book provides insightful instruction and helpful advice to help you on your design journey.
Where Can I Get My Copy:
Hard Copy
Alibris , Amazon , Barnes & Noble , Books-A-Million , and E-Bay
Digital
Kindle , Nook , eBook , and iPad
I hope this book review was helpful and informative. I would love to hear what you would have to say. Please feel free to leave a comment or suggestion!
Next Time: Helpful Tips for Print Production
Brief Summary
The book is a compilation of wisdom and knowledge from noteworthy designers (including Sean Adams of Adams-Morika). The compilation consists of 365 different rules or "commandments". These commandments are broken down into six, color-coded categories ranging from Type and layout, to imagery and design. Each author takes one rule and explains it further in a brief "Commentary" section.
The Pluses
+ The book is nicely broken down for easy access and quick reading.
+ The book offers, when appropriate, helpful exceptions to a commandment, usually in the form of another rule.
The Minuses
– Some language
My Personal Take
Thou Shall Not Use Comic Sans should be a standard part of anyone's library. Whether you're curious about design or a design veteran, this book provides insightful instruction and helpful advice to help you on your design journey.
Where Can I Get My Copy:
Hard Copy
Alibris , Amazon , Barnes & Noble , Books-A-Million , and E-Bay
Digital
Kindle , Nook , eBook , and iPad
I hope this book review was helpful and informative. I would love to hear what you would have to say. Please feel free to leave a comment or suggestion!
Next Time: Helpful Tips for Print Production
Thursday, March 14, 2013
What You Didn't Learn in Art School
Don't get me wrong. I learned a lot in art school. Stuff like design fundamentals, color theory, typography, and creative problem solving. Art school taught me the fundamentals and academics. What it didn't teach me was real world experience.
We've heard the stories...Clients who think they're creative and feel like they know how to design better then you. Requests that break every design rule / style (Comics Sans anyone?). Last minute deadlines. Design changes on a whim. The worst part? Having to satisfy your client...over your own preference. Not the sort of thing you pictured in your design career.
Unfortunately, this is the norm for those of us in this profession. So how do we handle these challenges (other then curling up in the corner of your favorite coffee shop or changing your profession entirely)?
Realize That It Will Happen – Even the Greats in the design professions had to deal with challenging clients. If they had to deal with them, you will too.
Determine to Learn – View these challenges as opportunities to learn and grow in your profession (That's how the greats became great).
Rise to the Occasion – This is what separates the greats from the average designer. Take the limitations and use them to your advantage. Design No-No's? Make them extraordinary. Last Minute deadlines? Make it an exercise in simplicity. Design change mid-project? Use it as a time of exploration.
Now could art schools benefit from exercises that incorporate these challenges? Absolutely. Hopefully, someday they will. Until then, experience will have to do for the things that you didn't learn in art school.
Am I on track or way off? I'd love to hear your real world experiences and how you handled them. Thanks for tuning in.
Next Time: Thou Shalt Not Use Comic Sans - A Book Review
We've heard the stories...Clients who think they're creative and feel like they know how to design better then you. Requests that break every design rule / style (Comics Sans anyone?). Last minute deadlines. Design changes on a whim. The worst part? Having to satisfy your client...over your own preference. Not the sort of thing you pictured in your design career.
Unfortunately, this is the norm for those of us in this profession. So how do we handle these challenges (other then curling up in the corner of your favorite coffee shop or changing your profession entirely)?
Realize That It Will Happen – Even the Greats in the design professions had to deal with challenging clients. If they had to deal with them, you will too.
Determine to Learn – View these challenges as opportunities to learn and grow in your profession (That's how the greats became great).
Rise to the Occasion – This is what separates the greats from the average designer. Take the limitations and use them to your advantage. Design No-No's? Make them extraordinary. Last Minute deadlines? Make it an exercise in simplicity. Design change mid-project? Use it as a time of exploration.
Now could art schools benefit from exercises that incorporate these challenges? Absolutely. Hopefully, someday they will. Until then, experience will have to do for the things that you didn't learn in art school.
Am I on track or way off? I'd love to hear your real world experiences and how you handled them. Thanks for tuning in.
Next Time: Thou Shalt Not Use Comic Sans - A Book Review
Saturday, February 2, 2013
How Are You Spending Your Nine Years?
designtaxi.com shared an insightful infographic on how we spend out our lives (here). In a nut shell, after you factor out elements of eating, sleeping, education, work, etc..., we have, on average, nine years in how we use our time. Nine years. So, the question is how are we spending those nine years? Too be perfectly honest it's very easy for me to camp out in front of my Macbook, fire up the Netflix, and spend the time working away on design projects while enjoying some witty entertainment. However, in the grand scheme of things, that sort of thing doesn't matter. What does matter is the investments we make with our family, friends, and loved ones.
I had the chance of enjoying one of those moments earlier today. It had snowed during the morning and my wife, a Florida native with minimum experience with the weather phenomenon, wanted to go outside and walk around. Personally, I wanted to stay indoors, work on design, and enjoy the day off. However, we went out and had a nice leisurely walk around the apartment complex. The walk concluded with some coffee at the apartment offices and quite a few rounds of pool. We didn't take our i-phones or laptops for the entire excursion, and we had a wonderful time just being together. The time could have been spent quietly working away on the computer. Instead, it was spent in personal time with my wife. A great investment don't you think?
So, how are you spending your nine years. I'd love to hear your thoughts, ideas, or comments!
I had the chance of enjoying one of those moments earlier today. It had snowed during the morning and my wife, a Florida native with minimum experience with the weather phenomenon, wanted to go outside and walk around. Personally, I wanted to stay indoors, work on design, and enjoy the day off. However, we went out and had a nice leisurely walk around the apartment complex. The walk concluded with some coffee at the apartment offices and quite a few rounds of pool. We didn't take our i-phones or laptops for the entire excursion, and we had a wonderful time just being together. The time could have been spent quietly working away on the computer. Instead, it was spent in personal time with my wife. A great investment don't you think?
So, how are you spending your nine years. I'd love to hear your thoughts, ideas, or comments!
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Is Social Media...Social Enough?
Technology is a funny mistress. One minute it's the best tool on the planet. The next minute it's either a complete annoyance, or worse, you become so dependent on it, that you can't live without it. Take Social Media for example. It's a very useful tool for keeping in touch with friends and colleagues around the world and get latest news and opinions on global events. However, is it possible that it is causing us to miss out on real life?
Now I'm not advocating that social media is evil or that it is not a great useful tool. I like social media. I enjoy checking my Facebook and Twitter accounts to find out what's going on with my friends. My concern lies on our dependance on it to the extent that we freak out if we haven't checked our Facebook, Twitter, etc.... in the last ten minutes. Are we so concerned with what's going on online that we forget to value people and events that are right in front of us?
It's funny. This dependence on social media has not gone unnoticed. In 2011, an ad for Toyota Versa (here) showed a daughter who was concerned about her parent's social interaction because they only had six friends on Facebook. Turns out, they're out enjoying life while she sitting at home looking at pictures online. Point taken. Recently, Kit Kat created "Wi-Fi Free Zones" (here) to encourage people to get off their devices and spend time enjoying the real world. Who would have thought in a day where companies are encouraging the latest app, fan page, or website, that a company would be encouraging people to dis-connect from technology. Don't be surprised if other companies start creating "Technology Free Zones" in order to encourage person-to-person interaction.
So how do we deal with our dependance on social media? One idea is to create a day of rest from technology. In a 2011 article for Communications Arts Magazine (here), Ernie Schenck, a contributing writer, described his "Sabbath Project" as "The idea is to take time off, deadlines and paperwork... In the Manifesto, we’ve adapted our ancestors’ rituals by carving out one day per week to unwind, unplug, relax, reflect, get outdoors, get with loved ones.” This time of rest away from technology, in this case social media, allows the individual to focus on the people and events going on around them. Another way is limiting your access whether with time or equipment. Use a cell phone for calls and texts only, limit time to an hour or two a day, whatever allows you a break from the dependency. Finally, ask yourself, is this more important then what's going on around me?
Social media is a great tool of communication and interaction. However, if we're not careful, we may become so dependent on it that we'll miss out on the important things in life. In short, don't let life pass you by. Treasure the moments and the people in your life. Besides, it'll make a great post online (and who doesn't want that).
Now I'm not advocating that social media is evil or that it is not a great useful tool. I like social media. I enjoy checking my Facebook and Twitter accounts to find out what's going on with my friends. My concern lies on our dependance on it to the extent that we freak out if we haven't checked our Facebook, Twitter, etc.... in the last ten minutes. Are we so concerned with what's going on online that we forget to value people and events that are right in front of us?
It's funny. This dependence on social media has not gone unnoticed. In 2011, an ad for Toyota Versa (here) showed a daughter who was concerned about her parent's social interaction because they only had six friends on Facebook. Turns out, they're out enjoying life while she sitting at home looking at pictures online. Point taken. Recently, Kit Kat created "Wi-Fi Free Zones" (here) to encourage people to get off their devices and spend time enjoying the real world. Who would have thought in a day where companies are encouraging the latest app, fan page, or website, that a company would be encouraging people to dis-connect from technology. Don't be surprised if other companies start creating "Technology Free Zones" in order to encourage person-to-person interaction.
So how do we deal with our dependance on social media? One idea is to create a day of rest from technology. In a 2011 article for Communications Arts Magazine (here), Ernie Schenck, a contributing writer, described his "Sabbath Project" as "The idea is to take time off, deadlines and paperwork... In the Manifesto, we’ve adapted our ancestors’ rituals by carving out one day per week to unwind, unplug, relax, reflect, get outdoors, get with loved ones.” This time of rest away from technology, in this case social media, allows the individual to focus on the people and events going on around them. Another way is limiting your access whether with time or equipment. Use a cell phone for calls and texts only, limit time to an hour or two a day, whatever allows you a break from the dependency. Finally, ask yourself, is this more important then what's going on around me?
Social media is a great tool of communication and interaction. However, if we're not careful, we may become so dependent on it that we'll miss out on the important things in life. In short, don't let life pass you by. Treasure the moments and the people in your life. Besides, it'll make a great post online (and who doesn't want that).
Friday, January 18, 2013
(UN)INSPIRED: Breaking Through the Inspirational Barrier
You experienced this situation before. You decide to do a personal design / illustration project. You get everything set up to work on it...and nothing. No inspiration. No spark. No "Ah Ha!" moment. So what do you do when you hit the inspirational barrier?" Here are a few ideas to help you break through.
Procrastinated Projects: Are there any projects you wanted to work on, but haven't had the time? Well, dust off the cobwebs and start crackin'.
Start a Series: Pick something you are interested in (i.e. cars, vintage cartoons, etc...) and build a series based off that interest. Here's a great example.
Make Something Useful: Design or Illustrate something that could be used by others (a set of icons or generic rendering of a product). This could be a great project and promotional tool.
Look Around You: Take a few minutes, or a few hours and observe your environment. For that matter what about a change in environment. Variety is the spice of life...and the jump start to inspiration.
The bottom line. Don't give up! Keep at it. Inspiration does not come on it's own. Sometimes, you have to work to bring it out.
Did this article help? Do you have any additional ideas for breaking through the inspiration barrier? Please leave a comment, thought, or insight. I'd love to hear it!
Procrastinated Projects: Are there any projects you wanted to work on, but haven't had the time? Well, dust off the cobwebs and start crackin'.
Start a Series: Pick something you are interested in (i.e. cars, vintage cartoons, etc...) and build a series based off that interest. Here's a great example.
Make Something Useful: Design or Illustrate something that could be used by others (a set of icons or generic rendering of a product). This could be a great project and promotional tool.
Look Around You: Take a few minutes, or a few hours and observe your environment. For that matter what about a change in environment. Variety is the spice of life...and the jump start to inspiration.
The bottom line. Don't give up! Keep at it. Inspiration does not come on it's own. Sometimes, you have to work to bring it out.
Did this article help? Do you have any additional ideas for breaking through the inspiration barrier? Please leave a comment, thought, or insight. I'd love to hear it!
Friday, January 11, 2013
New Year / New Changes
Happy 2013 everyone! Sorry for the lack of posts. But don't fear bloggies! With the new year comes a new opportunity to blog more (and hopefully, this will not be like most New Year's Resolutions). In those blogs, I hope to fulfill the original purpose of the blog, to share insights on design and life to benefit others.
Along with additional blogs, for 2013, the website and blog are being revamped. The new website will automatically update via my dribbble account and have links to my Facebook, Twitter, and this blog. Special thanks goes out to my family, fellow designer, Shaun Moynihan, and the great guys at pixel2html.net.
Thanks for stopping by and come back soon to check out the posts! Happy New Year folks. let's make 2013 a rockin' one! (Now, to those other resolutions...)
Along with additional blogs, for 2013, the website and blog are being revamped. The new website will automatically update via my dribbble account and have links to my Facebook, Twitter, and this blog. Special thanks goes out to my family, fellow designer, Shaun Moynihan, and the great guys at pixel2html.net.
Thanks for stopping by and come back soon to check out the posts! Happy New Year folks. let's make 2013 a rockin' one! (Now, to those other resolutions...)
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