Virtual IT institute graphic design know how 

Graphic design is a means of visual communication. Simply put, it is an expression of ideas, meanings and values ​​through images, images, fonts, videos, etc. Interesting modern specialization. we have prepared a detailed review of this area with a large number of examples, which include:

• all kinds of graph designs;
• what does a graphic designer do;
• how to start in a profession;
• where to study and find a job;
• how much a graphic designer earns;
• what to read, how to be inspired;
• where to look for work;
• answered the most popular questions

Types of Graphic Design

Graphic design solves many different problems with the help of colors, shapes, images, compositions and typography. It is impossible to solve any problems in one way or tool, so there are several types of graphic design. Typically, designers specialize in one form, but today you need to be flexible and delve into all sectors of the industry.

01 . Graphic design in visual brand identity

A couple of definitions…

Branding is the art of searching, clarifying meanings and translating them into exact images to increase business profits.

Brand design is a project activity to create an individual visual brand environment that displays the basic value and emotional characteristics of a product or service (meanings) in communication media (images).

The visual identification of a brand is its individuality and how the company creates this connection with the audience. Identity graphic design uses visual elements that convey corporate identity and create the brand’s face. Identity can tell the story of the company, convey experience and emotions.

Designers involved in such projects work with logos, typography, image library, colors, business cards, letterheads and other visual components of the brand. To preserve the theme of branding, designers develop style guides. With their help, all products and visual representations of the brand preserve the unity of style, supporting the basic concept.

Examples:

•  
• Brand design system (colors, fonts, background, elements, style, illustrations, etc.)
• Brand book.
• Mocapas for all this.

This is a complex industry that requires extensive knowledge. The designer must solve problems with any media of visual information: advertising, packaging, information materials. Each stage of developing a visual identity can accommodate tens and hundreds of design tasks.

02 . Advertising graphics

Marketing events contribute to making the right decision by the audience. Effective marketing is based on the desires and needs of the audience. This is a way of communicating, which bears a direct benefit, for example, increasing sales. Since visual content is more attractive to the viewer, graphic design helps to solve communication marketing problems and create effective, attractive advertising.

Marketing designers create assets to implement a marketing strategy. A company may have one or more graphic designers in the marketing department. The specialization of the employee depends on this. A designer can only work on a certain type of project, like advertising on the Internet, or completely create visual marketing tools.

Traditional printed graphics are becoming less and less popular. It is being replaced by digital products that are more convenient to use, dynamic and with a large audience reach.

Examples:

• Advertising banners in magazines and the Internet.
• Postcards and flyers.
• Posters and outdoor advertising.
• Infographics and brochures.
• PowerPoint Project Presentations.
• Social advertisements networks.
• Website style.

A marketing designer must have good communication skills and analytical thinking. Work will require experience in different applications and editors. The designer creates products for print and digital media.

03 . User Interface (UI) Graphic Design

User Interface (UI) is a tool for user and application interaction. Interface design requires detailed design of all elements to ensure maximum usability of the application.

The design of user interfaces contains all the elements that in one way or another interact with the audience: screen, menu, buttons, fields and others. Design should make the interface not only attractive, but also functional, convenient. Graphic design is responsible for the aesthetic part, which must take into account the technical functionality of the project.

Examples:

• Desktop and mobile applications.
• Web Resources
•  

The graphic designer UI works closely with the UX designer. Therefore, in addition to graphic design skills, he must understand the principles of UI / UX, adaptability and web development. A professional UI designer must be proficient in programming languages: HTML, CSS and JavaScript.

04. Graphic Design Publications

Publications are long announcements for communication with the audience, which are traditionally transmitted through print media. These are books, newspapers, catalogs, magazines and other journalistic products. Digital resources have similar forms of communication that also require design and development.

Graphic publication designers work primarily with layouts. But the work also includes the creation of typography, the processing of photographs and illustrations. A large role is given to fonts and other features of the text. You can create the style of journalistic products on freelance, as part of a design agency or, working for a particular brand.

Examples:

• Books and reference books.
• Newspapers and magazines.
• Newsletters and reports.
• Catalogs and instructions.

A publication designer must have organizational skills and schematic design thinking. It is important to be able to manage color and properly prepare the project for printing or publication in a digital environment.

05 .Packaging Graphic Design

Most products of any groups require packaging for storage, identification and sale. The packaging design is directly related to the consumer and can determine the final purchase decision. A box, bottle, bag, container or box is a valuable marketing tool that must be attractive.

Packaging designers begin by creating a concept and complete it after printing the final packaging product. Therefore, in addition to graphics, the designer needs to understand the basics of marketing and industrial design. Typography, photographs, pictures and brand identity elements may be involved in creating the appearance of the package.

Examples:

• Paper and plastic labels.
• Cardboard, plastic, metal and wooden boxes.
• Bottles, cans, cans and other containers with products.
• Wraps, bags and bags.

A graphic packaging designer can specialize in a particular type of printed product or in a specific industry. But in any case, he must have industrial design skills and work closely with marketers to respond to customer requests.

06 .Graphic motion design

Motion design is a graphic that is moving. Motion design projects can contain animations and video effects , photographs and pictures, typography and three-dimensional objects. This type of graphic design is used only in the digital environment: web content, television, cinematography.

Motion graphics relatively recently opened for designers. Previously, there were only television and cinema specialists in this field. Today, animated graphics are used in advertising, presentations, interfaces, video infographics and other digital projects. New areas of application of motion design are found every day.

Examples:

• Logo and presentation animation.
• Ads and banners.
• Web sites and applications.
• Video games and animation.
• Informational and educational videos.

Motion-design specialist begins his work by creating a storyboard. Then it gives motion to static objects using animation or video. A designer must have developed communication and marketing skills. A special advantage will be the ability to work with 3D objects in motion, for example in Cinema 4D .

07 .Graphic design environment

This type of graphic design is dedicated to the stylization of the environment, the environment in which the audience is located. It unites people with the environment, increasing their degree of trust, information content or involvement. Therefore, the graphic design of the environment can act as a marketing tool, simplify navigation on the sales area or hold the attention of the audience.

A special type of design environment is the way finding. It is a set of elements that help people navigate through a commercial or public area. These are signs with inscriptions, landmarks with a direction and other tips. The rapid growth in the popularity of interactive digital products has not bypassed the way finding.

Examples:

• Printed signs and announcements.
• Museum exhibitions.
• Office styling.
• The interior of the outlet.
• Branding stadium.
• Video advertising on monitors.
• Stylization of the venue for the event.

The design environment includes a large number of related industries: graphics, interiors, architecture, landscapes and industrial design. It will be extremely difficult to plan a large-scale project without the help of a specialist in another field, so it is important to work with marketers, architects, art directors. A professional environment designer can read architectural plans.

08 .Art and illustrations in graphic design.

Designers create compositions from ready-made elements, or create new forms, styles, layouts. Illustrators create original works of art that can take any form from fine art to illustrations to books. Graphics and illustration are two different areas that are often combined to achieve one goal.

Today, almost every graphic design project uses unique illustrations created by artists. The combination of these areas is especially useful for commercial projects that are trying to stand out among competitors. The audience will immediately see the unique art in branding or packaging design, which will increase its engagement.

Examples:

• Clothing design.
• Stock Images.
• Covers for books, albums, catalogs.
• Infographics and presentations.
• Conceptual projects.
• Web design and applications.
• Motion design projects.

Unlike illustrator, a graphic designer uses a combination of media files and techniques. Often, it is a graphic designer who gives tasks to the artist in order to obtain a suitable element of the composition.

How to become a graphic designer? Walkthrough for Beginners

The profession of a graphic designer is a continuous cycle of training-practice-training-practice-training-practice…

The shortest way to the profession:

1. Take training on paid online of offline courses.
2. Register on the freelance website.
3. Gain practical experience, collect a portfolio.
4. Submit your resume to a studio or grocery company. Or raise the price tag on freelance.
5. Continue to pump your skills.

If you decide to become a graphic designer, you have to start with education.

Where to study as a graphic designer?

You can master graphic design on your own, at specialized courses, at a secondary or higher educational institution. In this area, accepted lifetime learning, that is, the process of endless education. As new programs and techniques constantly appear, trends change.

Therefore, to grow in this industry it is worth attending master classes, practicing, no matter how you learned graphic design.

How to learn graphic design yourself?

High-level specialists who have independently studied graphic design are found mainly in the countries like Asia. It is customary to receive specialized education abroad.

Here are 3 basic guidelines if you want to explore graphic design yourself.

1. Read special literature. Each specialization has its own TOP books. But the basic ideas of what graphic design are:

• Quentin Newark “What is Graphic Design?” 2005;
• Andy Cooke “Graphic Design for Art, Fashion, Films, Architecture, Photography, Food Design and Everything in Between” 2018;
• Paul Rand “The Art of Design” 1995

2. Practice. Perform real tasks. Start with a simple one, for example, repeats the identity you like.
3. Learn graphic design for free and paid from training institute. 

What courses to study graphic design in?

Some lessons are uninformative, but help to understand whether this profession is suitable for you. If you decide, you want to learn graphic design quickly, without exams and start using it in your work in a few months – choose courses.

View reviews and course programs. Find out what future graphic designers are learning. In short courses, as a rule, the main emphasis is on tools, and not on the general development of artistic taste.

Offline courses.

+ Live communication with teachers;

+ Easier to get feedback;

+ Communication with classmates.

Online courses.

+ Study from anywhere in the world;

+ The best courses available from world-famous universities and platforms;

+ own pace of learning.

The spread in cost and duration of study is very large: from several thousand to hundreds of thousands, from several days to several years. 

Where to go for a graphic designer?

You can study as a graphic designer in secondary specialized educational institutions or universities that have a specialty in graphic design.

In Bangladesh, you can enter graphic design in Virtual IT institute Dhaka Banagladesh.

What is learning in graphic design?

• history of design, architecture and art
• design theory
• computer technology in design;
• typography and fonts , drawing and painting;
• communication technology in design
• Basics of publishing, etc.

You can get the education of a graphic designer in a foreign educational institution online. For example, undergraduate programs are in such universities:

• Southern New Hampshire University;
• Arizona State University;
• Berkeley College;
• Columbia University in the City of New York.

The cost of training in them ranges from $ 6,000-50,000 per year.

How do programs and services use for graphic design?

The environment in which to work depends on the specialization of the graphic designer. Photo works are based on Photoshop, Illustrator is suitable for drawing vector graphics. Here are the top 5 programs that graphic designers use in their work.

1. Photoshop– work with raster graphics. One of the best beginner editors with intuitive tools. Used to work with the web, printed matter, etc.
2. Adobe Illustrator– work with vector, scalable graphics. It is compatible with other programs of the adobi family and it will be easier to study it for those who are familiar with Photoshop. Favorite tool for those who work with illustrations.
3. Kavina procreateis an application for creating drawings on the iPad. Using Apple Pencil and fingers is easy to create illustrations. The program is intuitive and affordable even for those who cannot draw, because modifies the elements for the designer.
4. Sketchis a vector graphics editor for iOs. Often used to create interfaces, it has tools for cutting graphics, convenient work with text, you can configure it for yourself and build plugins.
5. Figmais a cloud service competing with Sketch. Used for UI / UX design, prototyping. Several users can work in real time.

Profession Graphic Designer

A graphic designer can occupy the position of web designer, interface designer, that is, specialize in something specific, and can be a universal fighter who can do identities, packaging, and websites.

In addition to direct “hands” work, a graphic designer can occupy a leadership position, for example, a creative director develops a concept and strategy, manages a team that creates communication for a brand, a product.

The career of a graphic designer depends on various factors; here are a few of them:

• A print designer isn’t useful in a web studio;
• Ability / desire to independently seek clients and communicate with them. Introverts won’t do freelance;
• Willingness to lead several multidirectional projects. If this is not about you, remember, food companies also need graphic designers in the state.

Where to work as a graphic designer?

Graphic designer can work:

• Remote employee. A specialist does not have to be at the office all the time, so even working for an agency or corporation you can do this from home. And that means – to be an employee of a foreign company.
• In the office. If you work on freelance, but you do not have enough company or a place for meetings with clients, you can rent an office together with other specialists in related professions or work in a co-working space.

Where is a graphic designer needed?

1. Production enterprises.

Multidirectional skills come in handy: photographing and processing, prepress, web design. But you don’t have to switch between projects; you will completely immerse yourself in the concept and visual communication of one brand.

2. Design studios, publishing houses.

Narrow specialization: design of printed materials, web, outdoor advertising, etc. You will need to quickly switch between projects. The plus is that you don’t have to look for clients on your own. If you get a leadership position, you will need project management skills.

3. Freelance.

In what specialization you choose to realize yourself. A considerable part of the working time is occupied by the search and communication with customers. It is possible to collaborate on outsourcing with companies or agencies as part of individual projects.

According to collegegrad.com, the TOP 5 areas of employment for graphic designers are distributed as follows:

• self-employed – 18%;
• specialized design services companies – 11%;
• advertising, PR – 8%;
• print production – 7%;
• Newspapers, periodicals, books, publishing houses – 6%.

World and domestic studios, leaders in the field of graphic design

Pentagram – exists since 1972. The company has a special approach to customer focus and good design: each of the 24 owners communicates with customers and creates a design. The studio is engaged in all types of design, including graphic. They stood behind the creation of a recognizable identity for MasterCard, Windows, the heroes of Justice League. Worked with Fifa, Nike, Tiffany & Co. On their website you can “steal like an artist”. Sort by type of client or job and get inspired.

Sagmeister & Walsh is a boutique design studio from New York. A full-cycle company: starting from developing a visual strategy, completing a design, and ending with production. He works with large clients, including world-famous performers of the Rolling Stones, Jay-Z.

Meta design – an American company has been cooperating with large brands for more than 20 years. Among their high-profile victories are participation in the redesign of Apple’s Mac OS and collaboration with Adobe in terms of packaging and identity.

How and where to start freelancing in graphic design?

To start working on freelance you need a portfolio:

1. Choose only the BEST works and be prepared to answer questions on each of them. Better you will have 2-3 jobs, but each of the jobs will be on the level.
2. Describe the process steps. What was your task? What information did you collect? What did you do, why? If possible, what results the client has achieved through your work. For example, a product in new packaging showed sales 15% higher.

The novice graphic designer does not yet have a portfolio. Here are the TOP 5 ideas on where to get it for a novice designer.

1. Do not use your academic workin your portfolio.
2. Find the top designers, studios; freelancers … See how they design their projects. Pay attention to every detail. Your first task is to learn to at least repeat after them. In the process, you will understand more and more.
3. Develop your vision of a famous identity / packaging / advertising. If you do it cool, put it in the social. Network and mark the brand, you can attract attention and get an offer. No one forbade high-tech, but keep in mind that you must clearly indicate that this is only your vision and all rights belong to the brand’s copyright holder.
4. Take part in a social project. Free commercial projects are not worth it, and supporting charity is a plus for karma, especially for large foreign customers. If you choose the right project, then in addition to working for the portfolio, you will receive references in the press and cool networking.
5. Persistent regular practice. Do it all the time. Look for the same. See how others went their way .
6. Englishis nowhere without it. 

Where can I find a job as a freelance graphic designer?

Behance is a community of designers where, in addition to advice, inspiration and support, you can find work in the jobs section. The level of competition is high, but you will work on interesting projects.

99designs – work in the format of the competition. The customer proposes to solve the problem, the one whose solution he chooses, transfers the legal rights to use the work and receives a fee. In the future, the winner will be in the priority artists of this customer.

Guru – it is believed that this is a universal exchange, because it presents more than 200 specializations. But there are most orders for web and graphic design here. You can start working with a free account, but it is largely limited. To get an advantage, you will have to invest in the purchase of applications and a paid account.

Upwork is a universal exchange with the largest number of offers. Your rating is affected by education, profile filling, etc. A paid account does not add a rating, but gives you the opportunity to contact with a large number of customers.

Also, a graphic designer can sell finished work. For example, on evanto, etsy, etc.

What is the salary of a graphic designer?

Average annual salary for graphic designers:

• in Bangladesh – $ 5,000;
• in india – $ 7,500;
• In the US – $ 50,000.

Estimated cost of work on Bangladeshi-language freelance:

• corporate identity development – $ 200;
• creation of a business card / flyer / catalog layout – $ 10-50;
• Website design – from $ 20.

For example, on foreign freelance exchanges, website design prices start at $ 1,000. And the price of making a banner for a foreign customer will be 10-15 times higher than for a domestic one.

Revenues depend not only on the level of professionalism, but also on how you can sell your skills, and where you can look for orders.

Where does the designer look for vacancies?

1. For the self-employed, the path to freelance. We discussed it above.
2. Studios often post vacancies on their sites.
3. If you want to get a job in a production company – the road to job aggregation sites. There are also vacancies from agencies or publishers. 

Where can I get free graphic elements?

To create graphic design, it is not necessary to draw each element yourself. Sometimes the job is to combine the components correctly. A novice graphic designer will need useful free elements from which to assemble a commercial product. They can be taken at various free services.

Free illustrations on Ouch! – Illustrations for sites or applications. Broken down by styles and objects. In styles, you can download the same type of pictures, use them in the design of various pages of the site. And in objects – different styles of the same pages, for example, 404.

Free CaptainIcons Icons – 350+ vector icons in various categories: sports, weather, design, etc. Available in several extensions. The Creative Commons license is valid, which means that it can be used for both personal and commercial purposes.

Fonts on Dafont – you can’t find Cyrillic fonts on foreign sites. Therefore, if you work for Russian-language projects, look for fonts in RuNet. Trends are also changing in this area. We have compiled a selection of the latest and best in article 57 trending free fonts .

Textures FreeStockTextures – Textures can be found on various stocks. This site specializes in them. You’ll find high-resolution photos under a Creative Commons Zero license.

Unsplash photo content – more than 300,000 high-quality photos that you can use to create banners, websites and commercial projects. There is a newsletter so that you receive notification of updates.

Mocapas, phone screen displays, paper bags, business cards, on which you can demonstrate your work, are also useful.

Follow our blog. We regularly publish collections of cool freebies so you don’t break through the unnecessary in search of the very same.

Graphic Design Frequently Asked Questions

Where to get the first customers?

The first customers can be found among friends. On the Internet, in addition to freelance, specialists are searched through social networks. Publish your work with the right hash tags, promote them with ads to get you noticed.

Do I have to be able to draw to become a graphic designer?

No, but it is advisable to be able to make at least drafts in order to quickly transfer your ideas to the visual language. Enough basic sketching skills that can be trained on video tutorials or books. For example, Robin Landa “A sketchbook that will teach you how to draw.”

What to do to increase skills in graph design?

To practice. Take someone else’s work and redo as you wish. Create your vision for famous brands, even if you haven’t been asked about it.
Participate in competitions, especially well-known companies. Do something for free or cheap for a cool brand and you can raise your price tag at times. Follow trends and colleagues that inspire you.

What is better web design or graphic design?

Web design is part of graphic design. If you plan to work only with sites, you can limit yourself to courses of web designers. But, if you want to do really cool, then knowledge of composition, color, texture will not be superfluous. Therefore, first learn the basics of graphic design, and then go into specialization.

What is better graphic design or interior design?

This is an individual choice. But the scope of application of graphic design is wider, which means more opportunities to prove yourself and earn money.

Where to monitor trends?

Behance , Dribble , 99designs , blogs and accounts of the best illustrators in social networks. We recently compiled “ 12 Design Blogs .” Blogs of professional software manufacturers, such as Adobe. The latest information is traditionally in the English-language segment of the Internet. you can search for usefulness on a hub, a medium. Of the specialized publications, we recommend our blog.

We publish full guides and useful selections for graphic designers, as well as one of the first to talk about current trends.