How to make a simple custom Photoshop brush! Made easy. ( Updated )
Ever wanted to make your own Photoshop brush but never knew how? Fear not my design friend! This little tutorial will have you making your custom brushes in no time! ( hopefully ).
I have used these exact methods for various illustration and design projects over the years.
How to make a simple custom Photoshop brush – Answer Overview
An easy method to make a custom Photoshop brush is to either create your own shape or source a shape first. Once you have created your own shape by working with Black against White, you can use that selection to define a new custom brush. In short, you will need to make a selection around your shape and then “define brush preset” – this will then become your new brush.
You can use this method to make a wide selection of brush shapes, be it weave, denim, pencil, or any texture you can imagine.
Also, consider when making your custom Photoshop brush, how you would like it to flow and whether there are soft or hard edges. There is a wide variety of options you can experiment with when creating a custom brush in Photoshop.
How to make an easy Photoshop brush in 5 simple steps
Step 1 – Create The Brush Document
Photoshop Brush
1 ) Open Photoshop and create a new document – 300 x 300 px and 72 DPI for good measure, make sure the background is set to white. It should be noted that you can make this document larger or smaller but I tend to prefer working at a smaller scale.
If you prefer, you can copy the image above for free.
Step 2 – Draw Your Brush
2 ) Working in black and white (Shortcut ‘D’ for black and white), draw your brush shape in black in your new document.
Remember your brush shape needs to be dark /black when you come to creating your brush. For the sake of this tutorial, I have made mine a solid brush. See the black ‘blob’ above on the white background. That is the new brush being painted onto the new document in preparation.
Step 3 – Select Your Shape
3 ) Either by using the marquee tool or Apple + ‘a’ to select all (CTRL + A for windows) select your shape that is to become your brush. If the selection is active, you will see the ‘marching ants’ in Photoshop. If you have made your selection in preparation for the next stage, proceed to the next step!
Step 4 – Use Shape To Define a Brush
4 ) Go Edit > scroll down to ‘Define Brush Preset’ and click on it!
Step 5 – Name The Photoshop Brush
5 ) Label your brush, I called this one ‘blob’. Congratulations… it’s a blob!
Your new brush in the palette
Well done, you should now have designed your very own custom brush and saved it to your Brush library.
If you press F5 to look at your brush palette, you will see the brush you have just made at the bottom of your library. Why not open a new document and test out your newly created Photoshop tool, make ink splats, and draw faces.
This is just to set you on the path of making more awesome brushes.
Thank you for reading, if you would like some help with a project in Photoshop you can always drop me a line! Freelance Photoshopper!
How to fix broken text boxes in Indesign! Do not despair friend! This list of troubleshooting solutions offers a range of fixes, mends, and workarounds when editing text boxes in Indesign. Be it for card games, rulebooks or any other type of editorial design project that uses text boxes.
Whether you are a professional editor, a design tinkerer, or a new Indesign user! This list may have the solution you need to fix your Indesign woes.
Each answer has also been written in easy-to-follow, bite-sized chunks.
To fix your editorial woes in Indesign, you may need to investigate whether certain elements are locked or if there is structure and ordering issues in the document. Or is it a cluster of problems preventing you from editing your text.
How to fix broken text boxes in Indesign
Short and to the point. This article focuses solely on the ‘editing’, fixing and troubleshooting of text boxes problems in Indesign.
For those who have come to this post from my ‘how to edit the text on your card artwork‘, this article may be perfect for helping you to navigate your Indesign headache!
Here are some problems and solutions I have written up from using Indesign over the years while editing cards and various editorial projects.
Jump Menu: How to fix broken text boxes in Indesign
One of the best ways to tackle the problem of why you can’t edit the text in your document is to adopt a piece-by-piece approach to finding out why!
This may seem overwhelming at first, but don’t be put off! Using a systematic and step-by-step approach to fix your text box will hopefully have you editing text before long. Ultimately, it does come down to what is causing the issue.
How to fix your broken, locked, or hidden text frame in your Indesign document. Most common causes:-
The text box or text frame may be locked
The text box is on a locked layer
A master page may be preventing you from editing your text
Your text box is behind or underneath something else
The layer stack needs adjusting
There is too much text for the text frame
Diagnosing Broken Text Boxes Causes In Indesign – Checklist
When investigating how to fix broken text boxes in Indesign, the process of elimination can be a great way to help you problem-solve. Use this checklist to see what could be causing the issue and then decide what action needs to be taken to fix the text box.
This checklist graphic is free to save to your desktop for future reference.
Core Issue & Frustration Number 1 – Why Can’t I Edit A Text Box In Indesign!?
I covered this question in a previous post ( editing card artwork ). For the sake of clarity, I have built upon that answer in this post in detail.
Some of the most likely reasons you cannot edit your text box in Indesign, is because the ‘text frame’ is either locked, the layer is locked, or you are trying to edit a page that is locked inside a master page template. Your textbox issue can also arise from a mixture of reasons mentioned prior, which can compound the problem further and make it trickier to diagnose and resolve.
When diagnosing the root cause of your text box problems in Indesign, avoid doing so by damaging your project if possible.
Working destructively as you investigate the cause of your textbox problems may resolve one problem but cause others in the process.
Examples of working destructively in Indesign
Damaging or ruining the master template page
If it is one text box you are trying to fix and edit on ‘one page’, don’t edit and ruin the master page to fix it! Doing so can make changes across all pages based on that master page. Take care when editing master pages.
Pulling everything out of the way to repair your text box
This is akin to metaphorical open heart surgery on your Indesign project. Sometimes, it is required, but try to avoid this approach if possible.
Working destructively, as mentioned above, should only be treated as a last resort instead of as a first action! Working in this way can cause more headaches and problems than the initial fix required for your text box.
Tip – When trying to resolve an issue such as to why you can’t edit a text box. It is always wise to work on a ‘child version’ or a copy of your document – especially if it was created by somebody else. This will keep the original intact in case you need to come back to it.
Why has the text box frozen while editing it?
A ‘frozen’ text box or an unresponsive text frame in Indesign can be caused by reasons inside or outside the program.
If the text box has ‘frozen’ or is only semi-responsive. This could be caused by hardware, software, or by the limitations of your computer. In short, Indesign doesn’t have enough resources to function correctly. Speaking as a Mac and PC user, this can cause lagging, freezing and ‘jittery’ behaviour in Indesign.
Here is a detailed breakdown of what can cause this unresponsiveness in Indesign :-
Your computer isn’t powerful enough to run Indesign
You have an old computer
Software updates may be required
Graphic card issues
Program conflicts
Strange compatibility issues
Not enough RAM
There could be a whole host of other technical and processing power issues causing the text box freeze. It may be best to speak to an IT professional to see if they can help. If this is not an option, please read on.
Buying new hardware, may not be a valid option for now… but this may not be the end of the road for a temporary fix.
These are inexpensive quick-fix solutions I have used when handling unresponsive or frozen text boxes in Indesign.
1 ) Fixing & Freezing Text Box – Freeing Ram / Processing Power
If it is a performance issue that is impacting Indesign, consider closing unnecessary applications to free RAM and processing power.
Based on my experience as a designer, I have found that closing processor-hungry programs can drastically increase the performance of other graphics-intense programs on an iMac,
For optimal performance, I will occasionally ‘only’ have Indesign running to allow all resources to pool into the program. Especially for bigger projects.
2 ) Fixing Freezing Indesign Text Boxes –The Browser Conflict
I would struggle to tell you the exact reason as to why this causes issues – that is a question for an IT professional. Browsers such as Firefox can cause conflicts with Indesign and other Creative Cloud applications when running on my older iMac. ( eg also causing my Wacom to freeze and stop working in Illustrator.)
A resolve I have found works for me when working on card games in Indesign: close my web browser – Firefox.
While Firefox is open, this can cause lagging or latency in Indesign. The best solution I have found is to close the web browser in the background for the duration of working in Adobe Indesign. Drastic and annoying, maybe, but needs must!
*I would love to know why this causes conflicts with Indesign and other Adobe Creative Cloud programs; sadly, I have no idea why!
Part 2 – Fixing Text Frames Due To Locking – How to fix broken text boxes in Indesign
This section offers an in-depth breakdown of locking and unlocking particular elements of your Indesign document, specifically textboxes.
Locked ‘anything’ in Indesign can be some of the most frustrating and banal editorial headaches. Thankfully, as it is commonplace and the fixes can be relatively straightforward!
Textbox could be on a ‘locked layer’ – How to unlock layers
You can’t edit anything on a ‘locked’ layer in Indesign, including text frame / textboxes if they are on that locked layer!
Text frames placed on ‘locked layers’ must be unlocked to be edited.
If your layer is locked, this can be resolved by the following:-
In the ‘layers tab’ on your interface window. Check that the padlock is set from ‘on’ to ‘off. ‘
The ‘open’ or ‘closed’ padlock icon in your layers window represents whether that layer is locked or unlocked. ( See illustration below. )
Press the padlock on the corresponding layer to unlock it. Be mindful not to unlock something that should remain locked.
Your Text Frame Itself Could Be Locked – Unlock The Text Frame
The text frame itself could be locked. If this is the case, you will need to unlock it!
The solution to unlocking the text frame in your Indesign document can be relatively simple:
Go to –
Top menu ( top bar of your Indesign interface )
Check the drop-down for the ‘Object’
Select ‘Unlock all on spread’
If this was the reason as to why you couldn’t edit your text frame or select it, unlocking all of the spread may resolve the issue.
If this does not fix your issue, consider the options below.
Part 3 – Fixing Your Text Box in Indesign – Other ‘Non-Locking’ Issues
If your text box headaches are not due to locked text frames or locked layers, another culprit is likely at play.
Below are more troubleshooting solutions for mending your text boxes in Indesign, whether you are working on game card artwork, a rule book, or something else. These are alternative fixes.
Fixing half the text that had gone missing from the text box
The text box could be behind something else
You may need to ‘override’ the master page properties to access your textbox
You have checked whether or not your layer is locked, and it appears to be unlocked.
A potential culprit could be the ‘master page. ‘ The master page acts as the template and ‘rule maker’ for all pages in your document, from the position of your text boxes to titles to various other elements. Editorial designers can create multiple master pages if they are working with 3 or 4 types of pages.
Master pages are a great time-saving measure for large projects and are superb for making your desired pages or cards adhere to a consistent set of guidelines. But, if you are unfamiliar with them, they can seem to be an object of annoyance and obstruction.
There is a simple solution to edit the page or card without damaging the ‘master page. ‘
Try the following:-
Select the card or page from your pages panel ( all items are treated as a page in Indesign )
Right-click the page
Then select “Override Master Page Properties” as illustrated below
*Do not override and edit the ‘actual’ Master Template unless you intend for those changes to be applied to all pages of cards that are based on that master page. It can be easy to ruin your project if you do not practice care!
Make sure to keep a backup of your project. Making changes to the ‘master page’ ( master card ) will carry that change across all your pages or cards. Make sure to override only the page you want to edit and NOT THE MASTER PAGE! Unless that is your intention.
Half of the text is missing from the text frame, and now there is a little red square in the corner in Indesign!
If there is a little red square found at the bottom of your text frame, this is saying that not all of your text can fit in that single frame size. To remedy this in Indesign, there are a couple of fixes.
Your copy ( text ) needs to overflow into another text box, or that original text box needs to increase in size. This will allow more room for the text to show.
You can also consider scaling down the size of your font to allow all the text to fit.
Alternatively, you can reduce the amount of copy to fit into the text box in Indesign. However, this may not be a popular option when working with editors!
A final solution is to select that ‘little red box’ on the edge of your text frame and link it to another text frame! Allowing room for the hidden copy to flow into the second box. Doing so will show the rest of the missing text in the second text frame you have just linked to.
Keep in mind that this is more applicable if you are working on a project such as a rulebook; this may not be applicable to certain projects, such as editing cards for a game.
My text frame in Indesign is unlocked but appears stuck behind something ( It’s behind you! )
This can be an annoying and somewhat frustrating problem to have when trying to fix your text boxes. A simple case that your text frame in question is behind another object!
There is an object in front of your text box, be it another empty text box or an image frame. This prevents you from editing your primary text box properly. ( a design mess! )
There are a few simple ways to diagnose and remedy this problem.
If you can select other items in your Indesign document, be it card artwork, other text frames or images, this would infer that the project is still in working order.
If you can’t select any items on that particular page or card artwork, it could be the case that ‘all the items are locked. ‘
Alternatively, the page or card in question may need to break away from the master page by overriding the master page properties.
Lastly, if you can select other items on the page but can’t select a particular text frame you wish to edit, it could be the following :-
That textfame is locked
*The text frame is behind another object
The layers need reordering so that your text frame sits at the top/front of your layers
To reach your text frame in Indesign, you need to adjust the layer on which it is positioned or unlock the text frame itself.
*Or move the text frame to the front of your pile.
‘Is‘ your text frame behind something else?
Moving the object that blocks your textbox to the front or back is a simple fix. But, at first if it appears that nothing appears to be moving. Consider this:-
2 – Check that your text box is not under a layer ( this differs from being behind an object on the same layer ).
3 – Check that it is not locked in some other manner
If you think your object is potentially stuck on a layer or underneath another layer, read the following.
How to fix a text box stuck behind something in Indesign – solution
If your text frame or text box is placed ‘under’ another layer, this can be a reason as to why it appears stuck behind something else.
Solution: Consider reordering your layers so that the layer with the text box is at the front of the stack. Re-ordering the layers may enable you to edit your textame or textbox without further conflict or issue.
Having your layers stacked incorrectly can prevent you from editing what you need to due to the object in question being beneath another layer. The layer in front of your text box may also have editable content, which further exacerbates the problem of not being able to edit your text.
You can adjust your layers manually via the layers window by moving the layer that the text box is on up and down the stack.
How to fix a text box if it is behind an object on the same layer in Indesign
If you keep selecting an object that appears to be in the way or on the top of your textbox, consider moving the offending object towards the back. ( and shout at it for good measure to vent your rage! You may, however, have to say sorry to colleagues.)
Simple fix.
You can change the arrangement of objects by right-clicking and selecting ‘arrange’ from the menu. Then select either ‘send to back’ or ‘send backward’.
Play with the object arrangement until the text frame is exposed and accessible.
Try sending the obstructing object to the back, exposing the text box you are trying to edit.
Bonus Tip – crude yet effective hack – digging for your textbox!
A last resort. If all else fails when trying to fix an arrangement textbox issue in your Indesign project, a somewhat destructive investigation of your textbox may help identify the issue.
In essence, this resembles digging your textbox or text frame out from the rest of the page content so that you may identify and fix the issue. But this method comes with consequences.
Tecniques: Move the offending object or objects that are obstructing your text box to one side for the short term. You can always move these off your card artwork or rulebook for safekeeping. It may be wise to take a screen grab so you can remember where everything has been placed.
If your textbox is stuck behind another text box or image frame in Indesign, this may help in identifying the issue.
*This method will only work if something is blocking your text frame and it’s not as a result of the text frame being locked.This is also a destructive way of problem-solving.
If you can now select the text box, this signals a few things to you:
You can select the text box and move it – it’s probably not locked or on a locked layer.
If you can move the textbox around, this would infer the issue resides either in the layers or the object is behind something.
If it is the latter, experiment with ‘layer order’ or ‘object arrangement’ by sending the object blocking your text box to the back. Or investigate the layer order.
Hopefully, the solutions above will help you fix your broken or dysfunctional text boxes in Indesign. If you have found this post helpful, feel free to share and save it to our faves for future reference.
Here is the list of contents you can cross-reference again while you are troubleshooting the issues:-
Jump Menu: How to fix broken text boxes in Indesign
** Reference – In this post, ‘text box’ and ‘text frame’ are 2 of the same thing in this document for clarity. ( Fixing broken text boxes in indesign )
Helpful related links when working on game cards, rules, or Indesign in general – How to fix broken text boxes in Indesign
As in the creative process used by professional Graphic Designers.
This is a common question I hear from both new and old clients. I have illustrated this article to educate and explain the basics of the ( a ) graphic design process.
Before providing a generalised overview of ‘what a graphic design process’ is, and how it works, I wanted to dispel some common misconceptions about the graphic design process and discipline as a whole.
Conceptual graphic design does, or should have a process.
Graphic design isn’t just about making things look pretty. It needs style and substance. It should have an objective.
Good or relevant graphic design does not manifest from thin air.
Commercial graphic design is different from just ‘pure art’ and expression.
Graphic design existed long before the Adobe Creative Suite.
Those are some points I wanted to raise and resolve before going into the details of how a Graphic Design process works for many designers in a commercial setting.
So…
What is a Graphic Design Process? ( Short Answer )
A graphic design process is a series of steps Graphic Designers use to create visual content. This content can come in the form of logos, advertorial, online media, and print collateral. The design process will typically run in stages, often starting with the project brief and objective, the creation of ideas, through to development of the final artwork.
The design process is not only great for managing the workflow and adhering to a design brief in an efficient manner. It is also a great way for both the client and designer to explore the possibilities and potential outcomes of the design journey.
As part of the process, It is common for experienced Graphic Designers to assess a brief, plan a course of action for the design, and execute what needs to be created. While also keeping an open line of communication.
It is common for some Senior Designers ( and some Junior designers ) to openly discuss their design aims so that objectives set by a client, team lead, or managers.
As a breakdown, these steps may resemble the following – depending from designer to designer.
That is, of course, a simplification of how a graphic design process works as a commutative approach across the industry. Each company is different, as is each designer and sub-discipline with ‘design’. As well as Graphic Design.
My bias and perspective on the design process
Before going into the details of my design process in steps, I felt it responsible to mention to you as a reader, I work and have worked in graphic design.
Before becoming a ‘Freelance Designer’, I worked in-house at a company for over 8 ¾ years. During this time I had the opportunity to work on a broad variety of graphic design projects both online and offline. I learned a lot. I could have cried sometimes too!
My skills, my processes, and my steps had a significant influence on my previous employers. Not only just on creating the final design but in the processes that lead to that final design. This post is not about my skills and experiences, that is what CVs and about pages can be used for.
What is a Graphic Design Process? | The Caveats
1 ) Not all graphic designers work in the same way.
2 ) Some designers are at different points in their careers.
3 ) Some Graphic designers have worked in different sectors and industries.
4 ) It is quite likely that you will meet multi-discipline designers who may have a mish-mash of the process illustrated in this post.
All and more of the factors above can influence how a designer works. Please keep this in mind.
Graphic Design Process Diagram | Illustrated Explanation
Below is a simplified diagram of the graphic design process used by many Graphic Designers, including myself. Although this is a simplified version of the core workflow and processes, it does offer a simple overview of the whole design process employed by many graphic designers.
Graphic Design Process Steps – Overview
This is a breakdown of the design process and core stages. Each paragraph explains each step in detail and allows you to read and re-read certain stages at your leisure.
Stage 1 ) The Graphic Design Brief
The ‘brief’ is a crucial part of a design project, be it in Graphic Design or any similar field. The design brief is an opportunity to establish core goals and objectives for a project – normally set out by a client or business owner.
You can also imagine the ‘brief’ as setting a mission. This mission is given to a designer so they know what the aim of the project is. Without one, the end objective of what a design needs to achieve is left to costly guessing and piecemeal assembly of what needs to happen.
A design brief is very important. You shouldn’t work without one.
How can you or a designer find a solution when neither party can establish what the problem is?
Or… what the aim of the project is?
It is also harder to plan a budget for a project without one.
It is best to establish a clear brief as early as possible. This will save time, headache, and money for both designers and those setting a project.
What happens if you work without a design brief?
Without a brief – especially a written and mutually agreed one, proper communication between the designer and the person setting the brief is more likely to fail. This lack of clarity can also lead to the disintegration of a working relationship, poor budget control, and potential and unnecessary resentment between both parties.
Make sure to create a brief.
A brief can act as a mutual ‘project map’ to establish what, when, and how a design project needs to be fulfilled.
As for myself, I will often refer back to a brief or a “specification and agreement” to see what I’m working towards with the client. It could be regarded as a loose recipe to follow also for want of a better analogy.
1.1 Quickfire Tips For Constructing a Basic Design Brief
When creating a design brief for a graphic design project, try to consider some of the following :
Who?
What?
Why?
These are all things I consider when working on a design project.
When creating a brief you may wish to consider formats, mediums, and any restrictions or limitations that may impact the project. It is better to give detailed thought at the beginning, rather than part way through.
The “Who, What, and Why” can act as a great starting point and framework for creating a brief. If you can establish the who, what and why. Designers such as myself can establish the how and the details – it can help us better solve problems or avoid them altogether.
However, it is not also uncommon for me to collaborate and consult a client and the, who, what and why. It can be this that helps to craft a brief and point the client in the right direction.
Graphic designers don’t know your business!
The majority of designers, most likely, won’t understand your business as much as you do, especially if working on short-term freelance project.
When constructing your brief, it is better to assume that a new designer, or a designer you haven’t worked with previously, knows absolutely nothing about your business. From here, write all that is relevant to share with the designer in translating your initial thoughts into a well-rounded, well-described brief, with a clear direction.
Stage 2 ) Collecting Information & Research | An Important Stage In The Graphic Design Process
When looking at the stages and steps to a graphic design process, collecting together information, data, files, images, and text are all important aspects of the creative process. Especially when exploring new ideas.
The degree to which research is carried out for a graphic design can vary from project to project, but there are common patterns that are adhered to by many designers.
The preliminary research can be carried out by the client, designer, or both parties. In this stage, it can be a case of collating together: photos, data, logos, or anything that is useful in aiding the designer to create a compelling piece of visual design.
*Designers: When working with clients, encourage them to share research or at least mention that time will need to be set aside for research projects, this is something I do. I have listed some examples of what may be collected together for graphic design research.
2.1 ) Collecting Information
Collecting information together for a design project may consist of the following:-
Data
Photography
Fonts
Logos
Things can inspire
Plans
Initial copy or ‘text’ is a common requirement for design projects. As a designer, I tend to request this as early as possible so I can plan the space around and accommodate the word volume. This can apply to books, webpages, and many other mediums that require written words for the project.
It is quite common for a designer to also be aware that a certain amount of editorial changes are likely to arise later in the project and allow for wriggle room. It is still best practice to have as much of the word count calculated sooner rather than later.
Images and photography may also be sourced or collected together in the early stages of the design process, along with logos and brand guidelines.
2.2 ) Graphic Design Research
Research, or ‘design research’ is an important stage when it comes to the design process. Research can help form, inspire and guide the overall direction of a project.
For large or medium-sized projects, research is a vital tool in not only greasing the design wheels of your project but in helping to form a better more polished product. I am a big advocate for good research across various mediums, design being a key one.
Here are some examples of what the design research stage may consist of, noting that the criteria can vary from project to project and designer to designer.
What design research may consist of :
Studying competition.
Searching areas such as Pinterest, magazines of similar platforms for certain ideas.
Checking what types of design will appeal to your target market.
Looking for any relevant or inspirational criteria that can impact your final design.
Avoiding accidental copyright infringement.
Considering what courses of action will serve the project.
These are just some examples of what the design research phase may include.
Some freelance designers may prefer that the client does the majority of the research before contact. This can leave the designer to focus solely on the creative aspects of a project. I am of split opinions.
On one hand, I like to know that the client has at least carried out some basic research for their own product and business before speaking to me.
On the other hand, I also like to add to the research and build upon what the client has already found the further steer the course of a project, I tend to tweak and steer this from brief to brief.
Research Examples | Core Design Process
With the links below, I have pointed to where you can read more on case studies and research I used for some projects.
Here are a couple of links that may be of interest :
“On the other hand, designers have to be realistic. People change their minds.”
It is common practice for graphic designers, especially those of a more conceptual vein, to come up with an idea or a selection of ideas early in a project. However, strictly speaking, this is not a default practice for all designers.
Some designers may only work with one idea and revise this single idea as opposed to working with a variety of ideas and short-listing the strongest.
Depending on fees, time, and requirements, design ideas (ideation), can vary drastically in quality and finish. Each designer may only create a short selection of ideas and others may create a broader selection of ideas to illustrate intent and potential avenues a project can take.
In the earliest stages of ideas creation or ‘ideation’, what is presented may be little more than a rough drawing or digital sketch to illustrate what will be created.
Speaking for myself, I will often use this stage to discuss what has been created and why I have made the choices I have made. Here is an example idea.
Each designer is different, and our tools and methods may differ. But as a generalisation, design ideation may be presented in the following formats :-
The idea and the idea development stage can blur when it comes to developing a design.
To illustrate this flow – here is an image from another blog post – Design Journey.
For many conceptual-based graphic designers, the idea stage is a core stage in the design process. As a conceptual design. Here are to projects and case studies that may further illustrate how a project may go.
( Important ) The Ideation Stage May Need To Be Revisited
*There is no guarantee that the original ‘proof of concept’ from the selection of ideas will become the final product. Although costly, time-consuming and frustrating, it is not uncommon that a designer will need to backtrack to this pivotal stage once a project is near completion. I have on occasion had to do this on graphic design projects.
List of reasons as to why a graphic designer may need to revisit the ideas stage:
Executive discussion outside of design influences has come into play
Senior management wants to revisit or change course
An idea isn’t as good as originally hoped
New criteria and information have come into play that weren’t known before
Fussy clients
Too many people have differing opinions on a project
Weak project planning or thought given to the brief in the first place
A better idea came along
These are just some of the reasons why a designer may need to return to the proverbial drawing board.
Whoever said design was easy needs to actually work in design, or at least share their secrets to make it easier for them.
Revisiting or needing to backtrack to the ideas stage of a design project is sometimes required – there is no way to avoid it. However, it is best avoided for the sake of the client and the designer. Budget restrictions and time constraints can lead to rows between both parties if, for example, the culprit is a poorly written brief or the disregard for the sign-off stages.
On the other hand, designers have to be realistic. People change their minds.
If the design journey was a straight line, both the designer’s and the client’s lives would be a lot easier. Many internal and external forces will require a designer to revisit other ideas, even if the first choice was put into play.
Do all graphic designers create a range of ideas? ( Ideation )
No, not all graphic designers will create a range of ideas for your brief. As mentioned above, it will vary from designer to designer and from skill level to skill level. Not all graphic designers are conceptual designers. Some graphic designers will have certain leanings towards ‘creative artworking’ , marketing, etc.
It is beneficial to discuss with a graphic designer before embarking on a project. Ask about their process and methods. Make sure there is a clear brief between the designer and the client.
Stage 4 ) Development Stages | Graphic Design Process
How this stage translates in reality will vary from designer to designer. But as a general rule – it will work accordingly.
Once both the designer and client ( or clients ) have shortlisted the preferred design idea or ideas, this will then lead to that idea being developed. Being ‘developed’, or ‘developed further’ may consist of the following actions:-
Polishing the aspects of the design
Building upon the visuals to establish the viability of a concept
Moving the design to a delivery-ready stage
In layman’s terms, the development stages translate to the spit and polish applied to the shortlisted idea. The development stage can also be further proof of concept, in which an idea is built further.
Speaking for myself, this is the stage where I straighten up text, remove burs, tweak compositions, and add the final ingredients to get a design over that proverbial line.
The later development stages are when a design moves towards completion. Be it a piece of print media or as a digital project.
Common Situations That Arise In The ‘Development’ Stages
From my own experience, the development stage is the part of the process in which an idea is stress-tested against the brief.
It not uncommon for senior managers, CEOs, business owners and anybody else in between to have additional opinions on overall design direction – some relevant, some not. This is the reality of working with humans on a design brief.
Project requirements change. What was initially established as the winning idea, does not strictly translate to what was hoped when it comes to Graphic Design. Project scope can change, and external influences can derail the path of your project – there are many various factors when it comes to design.
Even in the development stages, I have had situations in which 2 of the same idea ( colour change for example ) have been created side by side.
Imagine A Development Tree ( illustration )
Design development can be one of the heftiest stages of design. I wanted to illustrate the development flow for the mid-to-late stages of a graphic design project.
This is a scenario.
A favourite idea has been selected. This idea has been polished and presented before the ultimate decision-makers. They like the design, however, somebody wants to see the same layout but on a different background. You have run with the same idea and made some minor changes. A sub-version of a main version – sound complicated?
A single idea has been selected. This idea will make up the trunk of the flow and energy to design.
From this single idea – the trunk of a tree – a single branch or node will stem.
On some projects, as is the case with experimenting with some minor variation of core ideas. 1 or 2 twigs will stem.
These ‘Twigs’ may be little more than a colour variation, or position change. Or some minor experimentation alignment.
Development Versions
Or to further illustrate, as a tested method I have used in the past. It makes look like so:
Version 3.1
Version 3.2
Version 3.3
Or it could also look like this.
The number 3 could represent ‘Idea 3’ and the variant or version ‘1’ and 2, and 3. And so on. It is similar to version releases.
3.0 = The main version
3.1 = May equate to almost the exact same look, perhaps a text change
3.2 = Still much the same as 3, only that the text and, text colour were changed to a lesser degree
4.1 ) How to communicate with designers regarding project development
Communication is an integral part of graphic design.
The very nature of graphic design is visual ‘communication’ and open dialogue is a must to ensure that the project is the best that it can be.
Communication should not stop with the end visuals.
Not being able to keep an open and frequent line of communication between the designer and client ( or manager ) allows more room for errors, misunderstanding, and needless time wasting which could have been easily averted with conversation. I am a big advocate for working as close with a client as possible as emails alone can miss those ‘water cooler’ moments.
Communication is important from start to finish, not only in the development stages but throughout.
Typically, communication in the development stages of a project will take the form of feedback on what has already been created by the graphic designer. A client will offer a point of view as will a designer. ( hopefully ).
Communication and feedback may come in this form :
Exchanges between emails
Phone calls
Video meetings
In-person meetings
Platforms in which you can message your team
And SMS – And Whatsapp ( both of which are my least favourite lines of communication when it comes to design )
4.2 ) Design Feedback
“ Can I just ask…”
“ This is will be quick…”
When an idea has been chosen and developed, it is at this latter stage that a client, client or team member will offer further feedback with regard to a design. And, if you are a designer reading this, it is a stage in which you brace yourself.
Once the feedback has been communicated to a graphic designer, they will then respond and act accordingly to that feedback.
This feedback to the designer may resemble the following :
Make some minor tweaks and adjustments
Listening the what the client has to say and offer polite help and advice in return
Refining the design
Preparing for completion
Or potentially going back to the conceptual stages
( Or crying )
Stage 5 ) Core Design Steps – Refine Design
Refining the design typically entails polishing ‘the developed’ artwork to completion. A project will be at a level of final draft in which the artwork is ‘near ready’ to be sent to the client, production or print. This is the latter stage of a project.
Refining a design can involve minor tweaks, minor changes, or the very last touches to the design and a once-over from the person giving a sign-off.
It is common for me to hear some of the following types of phrases at this stage ( paraphrased ) :
The final stage of the process – the Sign off. This phase may seem self-explanatory, but for the sake of completeness, I will elaborate.
The ‘Sign Off’ can refer to the stage in which a head of a team ‘signs off’ a final design or interim stage of a project. This may be a verbal or written formal declaration that what is being presented, is the artwork to be passed to the next stage.
In this instance, the ‘sign off’ on the final artwork – completion.
The ‘Sign off’ in the design process may take the form of the client saying that they are happy with what they have seen and wish to sign off the whole, or part of the project.
When at this stage, It is also wise for the client to assess their artwork closely before agreeing to sign off any design work. When artwork has already been sent to print as a PDF, it can be costly or sometimes impossible to remedy any mistakes once a project has been printed. Any mistakes need to be remedied with hacks and workarounds.
This is not strictly speaking as rigid as digital design, as projects tend to be easier to remedy and amend but this is still not a guarantee.
The Graphic Design Process | What Are ‘Deliverables’?
What are deliverables in design?
Speaking in terms of graphic design, the deliverables are the complete assets and artwork made by the designer. All completed artwork, files, and supporting documents are often referred to as ‘deliverables’ or final artwork. The completed artwork and supporting items are often handed to the client or owner when a project has been marked as complete or signed off.
This is how the deliverables may come into play at the end of the graphic design process.
Once a graphic design project has been signed off or marked as complete, it is common for the graphic designers to send the final print-ready artwork to other the new owners of the artwork.
Or if working internally the designer may package the artwork into a PDF and this is passed to another department for validation and QC for being shipped or sent to print.
* It should be noted however that companies do have their own ways of validating and signing off projects, do keep this in mind.
6 .1) Scenario 1 | Design Process | What Is a Freelance Design Project Sign-Off?
‘Sign off, marked as complete, green-lighted’ or any other similar terminology can all be markers to signal the end of a project. When working with a client on a design project, I will ask the client to sign off on the final artwork before sending the final versions across.
This is a rough example of how a Freelance project process may flow towards the later stages of a project :
Client sees work
Requires small changes
These changes are then sent to a client
The client then sends across their approval, assuming that they do approve of what they see
Project is either sent to print or packaged up and passed to a client or both
6.2 ) Scenario 2 | Design Process | Internal Design Team Sign-off
As above, ‘Sign off’, ‘marked has complete’, ‘green-lighted’ or any other similar terminology can all be markers to signal the completion of a graphic design project.
A key difference based on my experience from working in-house design positions, ‘a sign-off sheet’ or an Excel spreadsheet may be used to mark off the stages or parts of a project that have been completed.
There are often more people with internal teams when it comes to the sign-off in-house who will want to see or understand the status of a project.
What is a Graphic Design Process – Conclusion
A graphic design process or workflow is a process or system in which a piece of graphic design or visual communication is created following a sequence of important steps. These steps will often include research, collection of data and information, ideation, development of an idea, and the delivery of that idea in print or digital form.
This process is what follows as the end result of what was assigned in a brief.
How to edit text on your card artwork in Adobe Indesign! This short tutorial shows you how to make some quick and easy edits to the text in your card artwork in Indesign. This post also covers some general text frame editing.
Editing your playing cards should not be difficult if you know how, and have the right tools.
It should be noted that this article focuses purely on the card editing stages, and not the whole card creation process.
This is a general help article to edit text on your card artwork in Adobe Indesign. You don’t need to be an Indesign guru or know your way around data merge to follow this.
This tutorial is ideal for those that just want to jump and edit the text quickly and hit save. It’s short and sweet, quick and dirty – no fuss. Or however else you want to describe quick text edits for game cards. The same applies to editing text too.
Common Question | Ways of editing the card text in Adobe Indesign
It is quite common for me to hear “how do I edit text on the cards” after I have created the initial prototype for a client.
With the card artwork, it is often in my client’s interest to know how to edit the text themselves or assign somebody else to edit the text. This is especially true in the late stages of production or mass production for various reasons.
One being, I’m not a copywriter profession!
How to edit text in Indesign on your card artwork – put simply
In order to edit the text easily, open the document in Indesign ( if you’ve not done so already). Select the card face you want to edit, ( use the pages panel ) and change the text. You will then need to save your work or export it if you are intending on sending the work to print.
That is the simplified and short answer to editing the game card text in Indesign.
I cannot edit text in Indesign!
If you are finding that you cannot edit text in Indesign or you cannot edit the text on the cards. A few of the reasons could be either the text frame is locked, the layer is locked, or you need to override the master page template.
You can read more on editing your text frames in Indesign at the bottom of this post.
6 Steps to editing text in your card artwork In Adobe Indesign
1 ) Open up Indesign
Assuming that you already have Adobe Indesign installed, in order to edit the text you will need to have Adobe Indesign open.
If you don’t already have Adobe Indesign, you can download it. ( make sure to download from Adobe – DO NOT BUY OR DOWNLOAD from an unknown source )
Make sure that you have permission to install the software and that your computer has the technical requirements to run Adobe Indesign.
*Friendly Disclaimer | Adobe Indesign is not run or owned by myself. Indesign is part of the Adobe Creative Suite. I cannot take any responsibility for any loss or damage incurred should you download any 3rd party software or Adobe Indesign.Please take precautions!
Please check all the requirements from their official website before downloading. ( Adobe Creative Suite ) And make sure that you download the software from a safe source. Do not use any unauthorized 3rd party platforms when downloading InDesign. ( also based on past experience )
2 ) Open up the card artwork
You can either ‘Open’ the artwork from the ‘File’ drop-down menu in Indesign ( File, Open – Select artwork ) or you can open the artwork by ‘dragging and dropping’ the artwork onto the application icon from your desktop.
Or if you have your recent items window on view when you start up Indesign, open your document this way.
Tip – Don’t overwrite your original card artwork!
As a tip, I would strongly advise that you create 2 versions of your artwork and leave the original intact. If you edit the text, change something and save over the original artwork ( ruin it by accident ) you won’t have a way of back-stepping from this mistake.
Create another version! And avoid editing the original version. A piece of advice from past experience.
3 ) Navigating the card artwork for your game
Theoretically, you now have your card document open in Adobe Indesign. It will look something like this.
If you have used a template or a file such as the one shown in this article, then you should be able to scroll up and down through the cards. As you scroll up and down, you should see the back and front of your cards.
Or, as an alternative way of finding the card you need, go to window > pages. If this tool panel is not already open.
You can either scroll up and down to go through the cards, which is okay for smaller decks, but not as efficient if you have a larger deck. Or if you have your ‘pages’ window open, you can double-click on these to jump to the card you want to edit. This is a faster and more effective method of navigating through your cards.
( Handy tip! Did you know you can see which page you are on at in the bottom of InDesign interface when you are editing the card you want to edit? The illustration above has a close-up of ’19’ to show this. )
5 ) Find the text box ( interacting with an Indesign text frame )
Assuming that you have now selected the card you wish to edit. Go to the text box ( as shown below ) click on it, and edit your text!
Tools you should only need!
If something has gone awry, here are some simple steps to follow.
) Make sure that you have the ‘selection tool’ active.
) Go to the box or area you wish to edit.
) Double-click the text box.
) Find the word or sentence you wish to edit.
If you are having trouble being able to edit the text or some of the text, this bit of troubleshooting may help. Cannot edit text in indesign – help!
6 ) After you have edited the text
Now that you know how to edit one text box and all has gone smoothly, you can edit any basic text box in these card files.
Once you are happy with your work and your edits just make sure to save your work. You can save your work by going to file ‘Save’ or ‘Save As’. Or by pressing CTRL+S ( Apple + S ).
7 Bonus Step ) Exporting your file for print
It should be noted that this process is a bit more nuanced and may require more experience and skill in saving your work correctly. It can be easy for somebody inexperienced ( or with experience! ) to run into difficulties when setting files up for print.
Remember, when doing this that you are shouldering the responsibility for all the print production for your cards. If you would like somebody to share the burden feel free to get in touch or read more here. Card game design.
‘Export’ your file as a PDF’
Remember to Select all pages if you wish to save/export all pages for print.
Double-check that the images are above 300 DPI when exporting ( otherwise you will get a low-res file )
Check that it is in CMYK
Hit ‘Export’ and select a location
This is a simplified version of how to edit text on your card artwork in Adobe Indesign. The added end step also instructs how to save your work and export it for print.
Troubleshooting Game Card Editing in Indesign – cannot edit text in indesign!
When looking at how to edit text on your card artwork in Adobe Indesign, sometimes it is not as straightforward. There can be issues such as locked layers, master pages being selected, or even limitations with hardware.
Here are some troubleshooting steps for editing the text on your cards.
Why can’t I select the text box? I can’t edit my text frame!
This could be down to a couple of reasons as to why you can’t edit the text box in your file. Here are some of the potentially straightforward and obscure reasons as to why you may not be able to edit your text :-
You don’t have enough ram/processing power on your computer
If your computer is struggling to run Indesign properly, an odd quirk that can show up is an inability to edit or select text boxes.
Possible solutions:
1 ) Turn off other programs such as Outlook, Your Web Browser, and other non-essential applications to see if this loosens up some grunt for Indesign. Remember to only close nonessential programs
2 ) Change the view to low-res draft mode. This can also make InDesign less taxing on your computer.
3 ) If you have tried all of the above. With a minimal amount of applications still running to allow more resources to go to indesign, close Indesign and re-open it to see if this does the trick.
The object is accidentally locked
There could be a couple of reasons as to why you can’t edit the text in your Indesign document. And, fortunately, the fix for this can be as simple as unlocking your text frame to get it working again.
Here are a couple of ways to check if you have a locked object. Unlocking text frame solutions in Indesign:
– The Object has been manually locked! This is a simple case of unlocking the object. To make sure the object isn’t locked go to > top menu > and check the drop-down for the Object – Unlock all on spread. Here is an image showing the menu option.
( Here is some more accurate information from Adobe on where to find this exactly – unlocking objects )
– Your text frame is on a locked layer. Alternatively, your text frame could be on a ‘Locked Layer’. On your ‘layers tab’ in the interface window, check to make sure the editable text layer ‘is not locked’. ( With a padlock on )
You want it ‘unlocked’ – you may also need to open the ‘layers’ window open.
– You are editing the wrong layer. If you cannot edit your text, it can be as easy as having the wrong layer selected. And, having the layer you want edit locked. Make sure you have your correct layer selected and that you are unlocking the correct layer!
You are trying to edit a master template
Another potential reason that you may not be able to edit the text is that you are trying edit from A, or the Master Page. A way to check is to:-
Select the card ( page )
Right click
And “Override Master Page Properties”
*Just remember not to override and edit the Actual Master template. This may otherwise change the text or design on ‘all of the cards’ or pages. ( remember what I said about keeping a backup? Always, keep a back up file!)
Thank you for reading and editing the text on your card artwork in Adobe Indesign
That is a share of my experience on how to both easily edit the text on any card artwork or card artwork template for your board game. And, how to edit the text in Indesign – when you cannot edit text in Indesign.
Hopefully, this post has saved some time, money, and headache. Feel free to share this post if you feel it is helpful.
If you would like help in designing a card game or creating some illustrations for your game please get in touch.
Final bit of advice on how to edit text on your card artwork in Adobe Indesign
My final bit of advice on editing your text on your card artwork would be to hire a professional if you are doing this as a DIY thing for your business. Or at least find somebody that knows their way around Adobe Indesign, how to save it etc.
Although I appreciate that budgets can’t always make this a viable option it is still potentially the better option.
Getting somebody that is experienced can save headaches later on.
Tips for creating a graphic design portfolio. Getting noticed can be difficult in the design field. Whether you are a freelancer, junior or somebody that is looking at changing their career. This post is a list of 30 portfolio ideas that will help you with your design journey. – tips for Graphic Design portfolio
This will (hopefully) offer some ideas to create an interview-ready graphic design portfolio.
“There are three responses to a piece of design – yes, no, and WOW! Wow is the one to aim for.”
– Milton Glaser
Tips for a graphic design portfolio that may get you noticed
I will answer quickly the question that I was asked recently before going into the detailed list of tips on making a compelling graphic design portfolio. But before going further into these tips for graduate graphic designers, I want to share some of my knowledge and experience when recruiting for graphic design internsships.
Please bear in mind that I am not a recruiter.I’m a designer with over 14 years of experience. I was also a Senior Designer and Head of Department when I used to recruit somebody to help me and the company.
I was a Senior Designer, who hired graduates for junior ‘traditional design roles’, 3 month internships, and freelance positions. And when I say traditional graphic design – mostly print.
Myself and my former colleague, looked through a range of portfolios when trying to find a good fit for the company. Sometimes a job posting would get 100’s of applications in less than a week.
Another interesting piece of information you may like to know – I used to look at portfolios before looking at CV’s. I could write a post about the process but that is something for another day.
How can I make my Graphic Design portfolio stand out? tips
To get employers, agencies, and or anyone to hire you for a project or job. You need to have a portfolio that helps you shine, resonates with the employer and potentially be on brand with the person hiring. Look at who is hiring and ask yourself whether your portfolio is a match. What benefit can you and the portfolio bring to the role?
Take
note, you, the designer will need to put your best foot forward if
you want to win that job. You need to show that you can do what is
asked of you and that you can offer value to the next role.
What you did yesterday is nice – what you are going to do tomorrow will be what gets you the job.
Not everyone will love you or your portfolio, but you want to give it your best shot until something eventually sticks.
Onwards for 30 tips for creating a graphic design portfolio – list of ideas
1 ) Have a portfolio
In short, yes you need a portfolio to get graphic design roles. Be it in digital or print form. People, designer managers, and recruiters need to see what you can do. This is the first tip. Without a design portfolio, there is no way of ‘showing’ what you can do. Without any examples of work, you are relying on an employer, agency or client to just take your word for it. I cannot emphasise this enough.
Yes, you need to show that you are a graphic designer and you at least have some idea of what you can do. Don’t tell them – show them.
2) Include your best, finished pieces
This is not as common as you might think. Graduates, in particular, tend to can put much process stages and fluff into their portfolios. Although this offers a good insight into how you work, too much can be counter-productive. This can be better shown in asked.
Many employers are in a hurry and want to see ‘results’ but not all.
And, I may burst a bubble here and go as far as to say that you may be working as a creative junior artwork / designer if this is your first role – even if the position is sold differently on the jobs board.
Hopefully, this won’t be forever. But be prepared to see a lot of this when applying for work – especially in the early stages.
Many artworking roles are dressed as creative design work when in fact a manager or client may be telling you what to do, and… you may be pushing pixels around to begin with as a junior designer.
When you also include you best pieces of work, consider making your portfolio like a sandwich. Really great stuff at the start. Less good stuff in the middle, great stuff again at the end.
3 ) Show your technical proficiency
If you have managed to find a job that is more ‘art and design’ or ‘illustrative’ then great! But if you are looking for more mainstream graphic design roles you will need to show that you can create the artwork in common industry standards. Programs such as, Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and Indesign are common at the time of writing this.
I would no longer assume that all design graduates come out with these software skills as a standard – not after recruiting interns and junior graphic designers for creative positions. I was surprised some establishments were churning out graduates without any software skills mentioned above at all, and I felt truly sorry for the graduates who sold these design ‘courses’. If that is what you can call them.
4 ) Design notes & annotations in the portfolio
Believe it or not, whether you are going to a meeting as a freelancer, junior or senior designer. People will read your notes and they will want to understand more of what is going on in your project.
You may know what your project is about but others will not, it is often best to spell it out in short sentences. It doesn’t have to be an essay. Just a paragraph with some annotations saying what is going on in a few words.
5 ) Make it relevant and appealing
This is one of the most important points in this list so make sure to pay attention. Make sure whatever is in your portfolio – is as relevant to the job as possible if you want the position.
Employers
will want to see what you have done and also what you will do for
them should they hire you for the role.
For example, if you are going for a packaging role at gifting company, try to emulate that you can do packaging and that you have past experience in the relevant market. If you have no commercial experience in this and you want to work in packaging and print, create some of your own initiated projects and show what you can do!
6 ) Your portfolio says one thing, your CV says another
Saying that you have x y z is one thing. But if your portfolio tells a very different story to what comes out of your mouth or what is written on your CV it will be evident by the end of the meeting.
Don’t bluff too much as you will waste your time and hiring managers’ time. And managers and directors really don’t have a lot of time to waste.
7 )Woefully terrible portfolio
Subjective
but…
I recall reading a CV and thinking to myself how epic a candidate was. I jumped over to their portfolio and they had just 2 pieces of dubious graphic design work in their portfolio. There was a dinky little piece of advertorial tucked up into a corner of the page promoting a grave-digging business, the other I cannot recall. But it made an impression..!
It was pretty evident that this individual was not a trained graphic designer and that some people in the industry may have been outraged by what was trying to be passed off as a portfolio. In a word – they were bluffing it and their portfolio showed it.
Perhaps
they wanted to change their career.
If
you are looking at changing career then study design, or at the very
least have a portfolio with work that shows you are capable.
Don’t
tell hiring managers how good you are, show them!
Also, don’t get me wrong, I don’t claim to be the best designer in the universe but you know… come on. I was hiring! My reputation is on the line and anyone who would put even a basic new fresh out of university or course graduate next to this would probably giggle.
So what to do with your graphic design portfolio – Let other eyes see
So, make your portfolio as awesome as you can! Do your best, look at other designers, and ask yourself some frank and critical questions. This would be a strong tip on how to create a design portfolio. Make it as best as you can! even this will get some brutal remarks most likely. Trust me, I both seen it and felt it.
8 ) Varied but relevant
The
closer you can keep your portfolio to the job match, the better. If
you have any relevant or applicable pieces that you believe can help
land you the desired position – include them.
You want to show projects that are transferable to the position and present you in a good light.
9 ) Not enough work
It can be frustrating even as a senior designer to hear, “Have you worked for anyone else?” or when I was a graduate “is that all?” from a recruiter. As a graduate, the chances are you may only have a few good pieces of work and a final major project that takes up a large portion of your portfolio.
Don’t be disheartened.
Create
more work that will draw attention. Sounds easy, but the fact is,
your portfolio shouldn’t stop once you leave university or college.
If you can try to keep your work up to date and keep adding new and
exciting pieces, this will carry you in good stead in the future.
tips Graphic Design portfolio
10 ) Personal projects
As long as they are good, polished, and relevant, include a couple of these projects in your portfolio. It shows that you are continuously trying to develop and some of these projects are on occasion, more interesting than your commercial projects.
11 ) ‘Discuss’ projects
With your printed portfolio, be ready to discuss not just what you did in the project, but for what purpose. For example, if your aim was to sell a product, mention this in notes and be prepared to elaborate if you are asked questions.
Keep the notes small and to the point but, try to write it in a way that will invite questions and open discussion.
12 ) Real-life examples
If you have created any real-life examples of your work be it packaging, stationery, or retail displays take photos of these and add them to your portfolio too.
Aside from breaking up your portfolio and keeping it interesting, having real-life examples adds a tangible authenticity to the project that a render of a flat image cannot replace.
If you don’t have photos or real-life examples then create your own renders and visual mock-ups to show your work in action! And if you can’t create visualisations, you could always consider using a website such as Graphic Burger for freebie mockups.
Websites, such as Graphic Burger have a ton of free mockup kits.
14 ) Have real products and samples for your meeting
Another thing to accompany your graphic design portfolio is to have physical samples of what you have made. So, for example, if you have created a piece of packaging and you have the box – take it with you to the meeting.
People
like to touch things – we are tactile creatures.
You can always show some of the work in progress in your portfolio too and then pull out a “Here is one I made earlier”. It can also help to shake up dull meetings.
15 ) A ‘bit’ of the design process
Showing some of how you work can offer a little extra insight into you as a designer, as mentioned before. For me, I will often keep completed visuals alongside some of the rough drawings and processes.
This is a small break in the list! 30 Tips Graphic Design portfolio.
Hopefully,
this has given you some ideas on how to create an interview-ready
portfolio. As a designer, your portfolio is important at any stage of
your career, whether you are a graduate or a senior designer.
It should be noted right here and now, that a nice display book for your portfolio is never a replacement for good work and eye-catching design. It is just tidy a professional vessel to show your best pieces.
Since University, I
have used a tidy A3 mapac portfolio to display my work.
Your portfolio needs to look professional. No stickers, No A-level ring binders with cloudy sleeves… slick and professional.
A3 Mapac
My personal favourite
that is affordable is the A3 design book or if you have some cash for
the sleeves too, archival cases.
Don’t use the cheaper-looking A2 ring binder portfolio that you probably went to a college interview with. You are a design professional now and you need to look the part, I would also like to remind you that you are in competition with other designers – with slick portfolios.
17 ) Art vs Design
I’m going to say something controversial to some – art & design, in most commercial settings, are not the same…
So, by all means, feel free to include some of your ‘artwork’ if it is relevant to the job.
But most agencies, unless you are an illustrator, are looking for a Graphic Designer – not an artist, and there is a difference, and more so in real commercial settings.
If you look too much like an artist as opposed to a design professional when you are applying for a professional graphic design role, this can work against you in a couple of ways:
Secretly, you want to be an artist and your portfolio shows this. Therefore do you have intentions to make this dream a reality? (leave the role in 5 minutes)
They are not hiring an artist (unless they are) they are looking for a graphic design professional for the position. You have sold yourself as more artist than a graphic designer
You will be frustrated as you probably won’t get to paint. (Who doesn’t love to paint!)
Make sure your skills and portfolio are in line with the job requirements. What you have in your portfolio will reveal more than you realise. Sell yourself to the position.
Then create all CVs and portfolio and reflect this.
18 ) ‘Artwork’ in your graphic design portfolio
As lovely as some
artwork can be, these more often than not offer an irrelevant
distraction sadly. They may look beautiful, but unless relevant to a
job or project it is best left out.
Or added to an alternative dedicated artwork portfolio.
If you have provided artwork for ad campaigns, an app, or something similar, include it if you feel it offers something to the job. But only if it offers something to the role. Make your portfolio about the job and what you can offer to the job that will be applicable.
19 ) How much work should I include in my design portfolio?
This question has been
around for years and for as long as I have been designing – and in
truth. I would struggle to say how much is too little for your
printed design portfolio.
– For my printed portfolio, I try to hover around 14 pieces without it getting boring.
– I would say no more than 20 pieces in your portfolio. Recruiters would try to steer you toward around the 14 or 16 number.
Too much ‘okay’ work can dilute the great work. Be ruthless with what you include. it is a delicate balance of best foot forward and not selling yourself short. Or, if speaking to a recruiter for a role, ask them. Include work that will sing to the person hiring.
20 ) Stand out with your print portfolio
The tips and ideas listed in this post are elements of a much bigger goal – what can you do to make your portfolio stand out and get you a job?
Recruiters, HR, and businesses are busy and the chances are if you applied for a position at a company in a big city they will have received literally hundreds of applications. This is especially more likely if you are applying for work in the summer holidays.
How do I know this?
Because I have been in the position of hiring for junior design
roles.
So, this brings it back
round to this point. What can you do to stand out in a roaring sea of
busy inboxes?
Create real-world examples of how the project came out, If it is a piece of packaging then try to mock up the packaging. There are websites online that allow you to put together mock-ups if you can’t do this yourself.
If you have designed a kiosk, stand signage – take ‘in situ’ pictures that make a recruiter say “you actually made this”.
Other ‘wow’ factors for your graphic design portfolio
If it is digital design also, use web links to live websites if at all possible, however, it can be the case that website change – some make sure to take screen grabs.
If the website has
changed and you only have a UI, create mock-ups of the design inside
a computer screen or a Smartphone.
Assume that people will
only spend around 60 seconds glancing at your portfolio. What can you
do to hold their attention for longer? Also ‘show’ what something is
as much as possible.
21 ) Make your design portfolio snappy
Did I mention that
business owners are busy (or impatient)? Or both. I’m (and have been)
guilty of this. I would advise making it so that your portfolio can
be read easily and skimmed.
There may only be a couple of projects that actually catch the employers’ attention so make it easy for them to spot what they are looking for.
22 ) Compartmentalise and structure
Keep your portfolio in
some sort of sensible order. Whether this is by project or by a
medium such as print and then digital is down to you. Don’t jump
between projects.
It will help any recruiter stay on track with what they are reading and make it look like you can apply some order to your projects. Being an organized designer is a huge plus too.
Do I need a ‘digital’ portfolio?
Yes, in a very short answer. A quick step out here.
I have been asked “do
I need a digital portfolio?” or specifically a PDF portfolio. 100%
yes. You do need a digital portfolio saved as PDF. Get this sorted
first as with the digital age, this will be your first port of call.
When I was recruiting for internships ( you can read tips here on getting an inhouse graphic design internship) and hiring for a junior role, I would also need to see a PDF of work along with a CV. And shall offer a little inside sub-tip right here, right now.
Subtip – After a time I stopped reading a design CV’s first
Think that is an odd thing to add?
It was not uncommon for me to read a great CV from top to bottom and say – “Wow this person sounds great! Let us hire them now.“
Then I would look a the portfolio…
I can recall looking at some of these portfolios and asking myself whether they were even Graphic Designers, it made me feel genuine pity for Graphic designers trying to struggle through and find work in the industry when these ‘have a goes’ were trying their luck.
Secondly. I had wasted 5 minutes of my time reading a CV of somebody who clearly wasn’t a Graphic Designer. From then on I took a portfolio-first approach.
Make both your CV and
portfolio as good as it can be. It will help you secure the
opportunity you want.
And to answer again –
yes you will need a graphic design portfolio / PDF version. It is
very important. Which leads to the next point.
23 ) Create PDF or online version of your portfolio
Moving on from physical
hard copy of your print portfolio. I will now offer some ideas and
insights on creating digital versions of your portfolio with this
being the first digital tip.
Create a digital PDF version of your portfolio so that it can fit inside a recruiter’s inbox.
Make it eye-catching
and don’t make the recruiter or the person having to hire need to
work for it.
Make it as easy for
them as humanly possible.
If you are struggling to know which program to use to create a digital PDF portfolio you can use Indesign and Adobe Acrobat and ‘save as’ or ‘export’ from there.
24 ) Keep the PDF small
Don’t send a MASSIVE portfolio to the recruiter’s inbox. This will either take too long to download or may even get caught in a firewall.
So with this I mind,
and knowing that you should send a concise version of your PDF
portfolio this will probably mean that you may have to trim the fat.
Cull the stuff that
won’t help land you the job – next point!
25 ) Create A ‘light’ version of your PDF portfolio
One of the obvious ways of shrinking your portfolio is by losing some of the pages which makes it so bloated and heavy.
Lose projects and be
brutal with what you want to include.
If needs be, strip it
back to the bare essentials. And then decide what matters to you and
what you should include. I can be worth doing this every year. We can
call this maintenance.
26 ) Don’t bother sending Wetransfer links to download your WHOPPING great PDF
Please don’t.
Remember when I said ‘make it easy for them’ sending a link or a ‘Wetransfer’ isn’t making it easier for the recruiter to see your work. Don’t make ‘them’ (people hiring) have to wait to download your 2 GB portfolio as this takes time and invites more problems for you.
I tend to strive to try
and keep my PDF portfolio under 3 / 4 MB tops so that I can attach it
and get it inside an inbox.
From a recruitment standpoint making me have to download a PDF from 100 plus applications makes it time-consuming and more difficult than it needs to be.
So, don’t make a hiring manager download anything. Don’t waste their time.
It will be met with an
inner groan. You don’t want to make the person hiring burst a blood
vessel!
Don’t cause this | tips graphic design portfolio
27 ) Make it easy for the hiring manager
Make it simple. Don’t send dozens of links to various locations. Have all of the big content in a single PDF or keep it all together as much as possible.
The more actions you ask the recruiter to take, the more likely they are to get bored or move on.
And you don’t want
that. They are people behind the jobs, after all.
28 ) Links to online presence
In addition to your PDF portfolio, you should have some of your artwork online. And when I say online, I mean on platforms such as Behance, Creativepool, etc.
Putting additional work on websites such as Behance can be a great way of showing off additional work and sending follow-up links. The bits of the process you can’t fit into a portfolio or the bit of a project that didn’t quite make the final cut.
As a freelancer, it is especially important for you to have your work visible online but that is another topic for another day.
29 ) Deciding on ‘not’ having an online graphic design presence
Mixed opinions on this.
If this was for a job for a classic print house then I could let it go – maybe. But in this day and age with so much information, projects, and work being online I would have found it strange not to see any of your work online.
Even as a pure print
designer. I would advise that you have your print work online also.
Here are a few reasons:
It will most likely be the first thing people will look at when they
want to see samples of your work – in particular as a freelancer.
Not having work online will age you – in a negative way (too much of a senior designer?). It may also be perceived that you may not have an interest in design trends etc.
I’m not mentioning that
to be mean. Even a senior designer myself. I have found this to be an
issue in the past.
30 ) Website Portfolio
You may not ‘need’ a dedicated online portfolio if you are just going to focus on print design. But, if you are gearing towards working in the digital fields then I would say yes – you should have some form of a website or at the very least an online presence as a bare minimum.
If you are thinking of creating a website I have written some tips here on how to start with some very affordable web creation options – keeping in mind, that the post mentioned is geared toward small business owners as opposed to how to create a killer graphic design portfolio.
A website allows you to
sell yourself and sell yourself the way you want to.
Having online a Behance profile means that you are in a sea of designers and you have to structure portfolio according to their rules and format.
Don’t get me wrong,
Behance is great. And I believe you should set up a profile today but
not at the expense of a website – more true if you are a
freelancer.
So… do you need a
Website? Is it compulsory to have one?
No.
But having one may help you to stand out and possibly look more professional. You need to give yourself an edge.
Summary | 30 tips for creating a graphic design portfolio
I hope these
suggestions will help you in creating a graphic design portfolio that
turns heads. If you also have tips for a graphic design portfolio
feel free to share.
I have over 14+ years of commercial experience in graphic design – both digital design and print. I have also recruited quite a few graduate designers that I see falling at similar hurdles and I wanted to help you – as a graduate graphic designer (and maybe another professional designer) get to the design job you want.
Here are a couple of
inspiring quotes:
“There are three responses to a piece of design – yes, no, and WOW! Wow is the one to aim for.” – Milton Glaser
“No masterpiece was ever created by a lazy artist.” – Salvador Dalí
Graduate design tips
If you are a graduate looking for some design tips read this.
Additional Resources | tips for a graphic design portfolio
Thank you for reading, if you felt that this article was helpful please share. All the best with your portfolio. tips graphic design portfolio
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