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articles
One of the hallmarks of a designer truly passionate about design is the desire to impart his or her knowledge to others. I do my part in sharing my knowledge because others have done so for me, and I am a better designer because of it. I believe in paying forward the kindness more experienced designers have shown to me, and in doing so help the industry as a whole.
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The Basics: Vector Images
One of the concepts I find myself explaining to my non-designer friends on a regular basis is the difference between the two fundamental types of images in design. This first article is geared toward those without prior experience with vector images, and offers a basic understanding of how vector images are created and edited, and the pros and cons of the medium. |
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The Basics: Raster Images
A companion to The Basics: Vector Images, this tutorial examines the other side of image formats, the raster image. Also written for the inexperienced, here I examine the basic structure of a raster image, the tricky concept of resolution, how raster images handle color, and more. |
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The Structure of Information
There are many different ways to structure the same information layout on a page. Each method has its pros and cons. This article shares common methods of information structure available in Adobe InDesign, but the principles can be applied to other layout and word processing programs. |
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Designing for (Re)Usability
Looking at the design world as a whole, there are two general types of projects—unique designs and templates. This article looks at those considerations given to assembling a digital file meant to be reused or templatized to some degree, with the goal of saving time and effort over the long haul. |
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Accuracy Is Beauty: Precision in Illustrator 
Illustrator (and other vector drawing programs) bridge that lovely gap between art and science. Read how knowledge of calculus (yes, calculus) can result in a cleaner product with fewer errors through the workflow. |
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Do Sweat the Small Stuff
Why the ellipses and the ampersand can be your enemy, and how to make them allies. A well-rounded designer is also an editor, and knowing what details in text to watch for is the first step to filling out that skill set. In this article, I discuss style considerations for copy and why sweating those small details makes you a better designer. |
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Ethics and Client Selection
One of the more difficult subjects in the design world is drawing the line separating your personal ethics and your business. Here I talk about my own personal views on what behaviors I will and won't accept from my clients, the whys and hows of my decisions, and why I think establishing your own line is crucial. |
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Technicals of Collaboration
Sooner or later, the majority of professional designers need to collaborate. When two or more designers come together, it is necessary to have a system for sharing and tracking work. Even as a solo artist, having a system of tracking, referencing, and accounting for previous work is a must to qualify as a professional. This article dissects the methods used in sharing and tracking electronic and hard copy work, and gives readers a solid base to implement or improve their own tracking processes. |
tutorials
While the articles I've written are designed to broaden your understanding of the design world, the following tutorials are meant as step-by-step instructions or guides to more detailed topics. The ultimate goal of both articles and tutorials is to teach—think of articles as the lecture portion of class, and tutorials as the hands-on lab.
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Illustrating with the Grid System Ever been overwhelmed by getting your ideas onto a giant canvas, or needed to transfer a mural design from a piece of paper to a wall? Image projectors are pricey and hard to come by. I'll teach you another way—the grid system. These are my tips and techniques for using this time-tested approach learned over years of illustrating. |
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