Tutorials

Diving Deeper

Graphic Design, Tutorials

In my last post we discussed logos and typography, which are both important elements to graphic design. However, this is not the main reason why people choose to become graphic designers. What people enjoy doing the most is either editing photos, or creating works of art such as banners and posters. To stick with the earlier subject of tutorials, I have found and reviewed two more with more complex techniques.

Playing with Masks

Some of these programs I have mentioned can be expensive. That’s why my next tutorial suggestion is talking about Procreate, a graphics editor for the price of $9.99. The only requirement for Procreate is an iPad. In this tutorial Brad Colbow takes us through the wonders of maskings and clipping masks. With the use of masks we can have images show through the layers above creating wonderful effects.

Although you might not have Procreate due to not having an iPad, the concepts of masking apply across all photo editing software.

Creating magic with Photoshop

It’s fun enough creating designs from scratch, but it’s also beneficial to create designs using already existing materials. That is why I chose this tutorial from PHLEARN. In the tutorial Aaron Nace shows us how to take four separate images, and put it all into a single composition using Adobe Photoshop.

Another great part about this tutorial is when Aaron Nace mentions and labels the shortcuts to perform different actions. It can take a while to complete a project if you have to keep looking and clicking on the tools or actions you need compared to simply using the keyboard shortcuts. I’ll link some shortcut sheets on some of the popular design software.

Links:

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Getting Our Feet Wet

Graphic Design, Tutorials

It can be difficult deciding what to do for the rest of our lives. A majority of the time, people change their dream career numerous times before they settle on something they like. The best way to know if you like something is to try it. I have found and reviewed tutorials that would suit someone interested in graphic design as their career.

Designing Logos

Whether it’s for your business or working with a client, logos are a significant factor in a company’s identity. In this tutorial, Will Paterson covers how to create a logo using the negative space of shapes in Adobe Illustrator. Not only does Paterson talk about how to design logos in Illustrator, but he also briefly covers the idea of making slight adjustments until you’ve developed a logo that fits the project. This could be a change in color scheme, adding objects, or removing them. I’d recommend making a copy of each version, that way you can decide on your final logo from an extensive collection.

When I have personally worked on designing logos, I typically start on a sheet of paper. Once I draw something, I like to shift over to Adobe Illustrator. From there, I can develop copies and modifications a lot faster than redrawing it by hand. Adobe Illustrator is an excellent software for logo design, and I’ll cover it in more detail in a later post.

Developing Typography

Similar to logos, another part of a company’s identity is the typography used for their brand name. GCFLearnFree.org discusses the definition of typography, along with some common do’s and don’ts when using typography. I chose to talk about this tutorial because not many people think twice about the typography they see every day. But it is an essential tool when it comes to graphic design. A banner, poster, or brochure with the wrong typeface could send the wrong message.

I’ve played with typography for school assignments, and I typically used Adobe Illustrator. Before I used Illustrator, I’d put my ideas on paper first because practicing either creating fonts or copying current ones is a great way to understand the kind of decisions that go into developing typography.

If you are looking for some inspiration I’d suggest looking at these famous typographers:

Links:

  1. How to Design a Modern Logo in Adobe Illustrator by Will Paterson
  2. Beginning Graphic Design: Typography by GCFLearnFree.org
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