Article: Logo Design Process and Walkthrough →

This is an article from Graphic Designer Chris Spooner.  He is an excellent resource if you haven’t yet had an opportunity to view his blog.  Excellent read.  Enjoy.  

Submission: Portfolio Review, DsgnCtrl.com

Before I start I would like to thank you for your submission.  I really enjoyed going through your works, and with that lets dig in.  First of all I want to say I am impressed at the quality of work you are creating, to be quite frank It is better than 75% of the work I have seen come out of both my Junior College and the first four year University that I have attended.   So your along the right track and you’ve only just really started your education.  

I enjoy your URL address I think it is catchy and unique.  It is a clever way to work in your initials of DC.  At first I didn’t catch the rollover effect that elaborated on the branding of yourself, so personally I feel that simple is the better way to go, I wouldn’t draw out all of the bells and whistles when you can say more with less.  

The Main graphic of your portfolio pictured below.  I really enjoy the items on the left, I feel it falls a little short with the images on the right I understand the concept behind it but I think you can come up with a better way to sell yourself versus graphics of items you can use. 

On you the actual displays of the work.  I personally feel as you had stated in your post on your blog that a lot of the issues can be solved with a different layout/theme/etc. in your site of choice.  The biggest problem to me is that it is too busy.  Especially in the photo section there are a vast amount of thumbnails (as pictured below) for the potential client, school, etc. to look through.  

To eliminate thumbnails I would only showcase your strongest pieces of work.  Most schools and jobs only recommend showing a small yet powerful amount of pieces in your portfolio.  Focus on making strong pieces so you do not feel you have to have a million different ones to make up for lack luster ones.  You also make it easy for people to see your other works by showcasing your social media outlets, so on your portfolio I do strongly recommend only showing your best pieces as I said earlier sell yourself make people take notice.  

Along the same lines with the layout I would try to steer away from having all your contents on a single page I would separate it making it a tad more easy to navigate.  It is merely a user interface issue because you’re making the client have to scroll your entire page to go back to say your about section or your contact section.  People are lazy so they are not going to do what they have to work for to eliminate that make it simple for them.  I did notice your back to top buttons, I just really feel there is a better solution to navigate your page.  

Overall though, I do feel that you have a very strong start and I look forward to seeing what you create in the future.  You definitely have talent and I hope that the school you go on to next helps you build upon you skills.  Once again thank you for your submission I hope my comments and suggestions help, and happy designing.  

(Source: dsgnctrl.com)

How To Choose a Typeface →

A common mistake with most “bad” designs is poorly selected fonts.  This is a great article highlighting the key aspects in choosing fonts for your project.

Article by Smashing Magazine.   

10 Tips to Better Print Design →

Here’s an excellent article listing off 10 tips for better print design.  (click the link above for a more in depth over view of the 10 tips.)  

Article by:  PrinterNational.org

1.  Remember to bleed

2.  Overprint is fun 

3.  Think outside the paper

4.  Paper size standards are great, but don’t let them hold you back

5.  People read

6.  Amount of content:  less is more

7.  Stick to the grid

8.  Typography is King

9.  Invert

10.  Be Demanding about photographic content

Here is a great online source.  It is an actual book as well as an online book in the basic principles of graphic design.  It also has Design Problems with examples.  It is written by professors at the Maryland Institute College of Art.  

 My only complaint about the website is that some of the links do not work properly.  You may have to hit the header to take you back to the home screen to move on to the next principle.  With that said It’s worth a look.  

Graphic Design The New Basics

Introduction

Hi all I just wanted to introduce myself.  My name is Hollie I am currently student working towards a duel BFA degree in Graphic Design and Photography from the University of Missouri St. Louis.  I am currently in my 4th year of school with about 3 more to go.  I by no means claim to be holier than thou in either of the fields.  I simply want to facilitate conversation and grow as an artist.  I first had the idea to start this blog after taking a class this past semester and seeing the results of an Identity Design project.  I was extremely disheartened to see the results people came up with, and I feel that with a little constructive criticism and some direction, that the teacher failed to offer, the results would have been significantly different.  So I wanted to create a place where people could share their ideas and pieces with and generate conversation and suggestions to improve and grow.

Here are a few examples of my works.