TBWTLITT

Although graphic design often starts with pencil and paper, the majority of professional graphic design work is edited and submitted digitally. With this in mind it might not be known to some people that there are different tools that can be used digitally to help either improve the quality of the work or to speed up the editing process. These tools are known as peripherals in the computer world. In this post I will discuss three peripherals that greatly affect graphic design work.

1. Monitor

One of the major factors when working with digital graphic design is color accuracy. By this I mean that a color you see on one screen might look like a different color on another screen. Different models of monitors have different levels of color accuracy often measured by either sRGB accuracy or by Adobe RGB accuracy. sRGB is a color space created by HP and Microsoft and is used more often than the Adobe RGB. The main advantage to using Adobe RGB is a wider color selection. However, not all monitors are suited for Adobe RGB and if not checked could lead to color errors when printed. Be sure to check the color accuracy when shopping for monitors. If you don’t see it listed don’t be afraid to use the Q&A section to get more information on the product.

2. Mouse

A color accurate monitor is needed for all great design work. These next two peripherals can either be each others substitutes or working side by side. Either way, in order to create digital graphic design work you’ll need an I/O (input/output) device that will allow you to draw, edit, and submit your work. The most common peripheral is the mouse. The mouse is the first device used to draw on a computer, but not all mice are created for the same purposes. Some mice are intended for playing video games, other are designed to be ergonomic and help prevent injuries such as carpel tunnel. When it comes to graphic design, there are two major features to be looking for in a mouse. The first is if its ergonomic, you want a mouse that feels good to use because you will more than likely be using it for long periods of time. The second feature is if it has buttons intended for performing keyboard shortcuts. It makes editing a lot faster if you can save or undo with the touch of a button on your mouse. Keep these features in mind but know the right mouse will be based on preference and the only way to find the right one is to try different types until you find the right one for you.

3. Drawing Tablet

If you’ve tried some mice and didn’t find one you like or if you just want to try something new then a drawing tablet is the next step in graphic design peripherals. There are three major types of drawing tablets: pen tablets, screen tablets, and stand alone tablets. First I’ll discuss pen tablets. These are the most simple and cheapest of the three types of tablets. They come in several sizes and may included built it shortcut keys similar to a mouse. What makes them stand apart from the other two is they do not have a screen. With a pen tablet you draw on it like a sheet of paper with a special stylus but you have to watch your monitor to know what changes you are making. They do not necessarily have to be used for drawing, you could instead replace your mouse with a drawing tablet. The next kind is a screen tablet. This is similar to the pen tablet but instead of having to watch your monitor it comes with a built in screen so you can draw of the screen itself with a near 1:1 drawing performance. Some screen tablets have better screens that allow more accurate drawing so its best to read reviews and research their specs before making a purchase decision. The final type of tablet is a stand alone tablet. The stand alone tablet differs from the first two because it does not require being plugged into a computer for use. Stand alone tablets have a computer built into them are drawing tablets best for those who need the ability to use a drawing tablet while having to change location several times a day. These are also the most expensive due to both having a screen and computer capabilities.

Screen Tablet
Stand Alone Tablet
Pen Tablet

Not all great graphic design work came from people using peripherals such as these but they do help improve quality of your work and decrease the amount of time it takes to create them. Hopefully I’ve helped you by introducing new tools to help you along with your graphic design careers.

Unlike my last post where I discussed free editing software for beginners, this post will cover editing software that is used by the professionals. This means that the software won’t be free but I’ll provide a cost vs. benefit for you. Before I get into the topic I would first advise those interesting in using these products that are currently attending school to ask if the school provides a student version that would be free to use as long as you are a member of the institution.

Software Providers listed by least to most used:

I’ll discuss these software companies in order of least to most used. Affinity isn’t a recent editing software company. They started in 1987 and originally created software for Windows. In 2014 they broke off from Microsoft and started creating their own software starting with Affinity Designer. This was then followed by Affinity Photo, and their recently released, June 2019, Affinity Publisher. Affinity Designer is their vector graphics editor used for projects such as business logos. Next is Affinity Photo which is their raster image editor. This software can be used for both photo editing as well as creating digital art. Finally, Affinity Publisher is for creating digital documents for the intent of printing. This includes posters, brochures, and business cards.

Each of these programs costs a one-time payment of $50.00 USD. Depending on your situation this might be a bit much upfront but it’s the cheaper of the two in the long run. All three programs support a large variety of file formats that can be imported for use, including Adobe file formats. This makes it a great tool if working with someone who prefers to use Adobe over Affinity products. I’ve used these programs personally and have found it has a learning curve. I was first introduced to Adobe products so the first thing I had to do was figure out what was the same, and what was different. Overall, the layout is fairly similar with a few minor differences when it comes to layout presets. The biggest difference that I noticed was the tools. Some tools were the same, others were renamed but shared the same purpose, and a few, such as their Persona’s, were only in Affinity. Overall Affinity has great products for a more consumer-friendly price tag.

Now it’s time to discuss the most recognized and the most used editing software company in the market, Adobe. Adobe opened in 1982 and slowly built their table of Adobe elements. They provide over 50 different programs so for the same of reading I will only discuss the most relevant to graphic design. These products include, but are not limited to, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere, and Adobe Audition.

The pricing for these programs can get complicated so I’d highly suggest following the Adobe link at the beginning of the post for more accurate details. Through Adobe you have two options, either get the programs individually or get them in bundles. You might be able to find a copy of their older versions for a one-time payment but if you want their current and supported versions you have to pay a subscription to use them. For example, if you planned on only using Adobe Photoshop it would cost $20.99 USD a month for the annual plan, or $31.49 USD if you only intended to use it a few months within the year where you only pay for the month you want to use it. They also offer smaller bundles created for specific purposes, such as graphic design, or they have the Adobe Creative Cloud which has all of their software included. This option costs $39.99 a month for the annual plan, or $79.49 if you want to pay for a month.

Now that we’re past probably most peoples cons we can get to the pros. The reason why Adobe has the creative cloud is due to the fact that all of your files can be saved into the cloud. The largest benefit for this is the fact that files from one program can be imported and edited by another program. Adobe Illustrator is used for vector graphics, Adobe Photoshop for raster images, Adobe InDesign for printable files, Adobe After Effects for video special effects, Adobe Premiere for video editing, and Adobe Audition for audio editing. Files creating from Adobe Audition or Adobe After Effects can be imported into Adobe Premiere to make final edits before finishing any video or audio projects. This has been very helpful for me when working on class assignments that needed specific edits made that might not have been available in the program I used to begin the project. Adobe is the best editing software company in the market but may not be for everyone due to their subscriptions.

If you can’t afford the Adobe products then I’d highly suggest trying out the Affinity software if their programs suit your needs. Either way there are always cheaper options with similar features if you’re willing to take the time to search for them.