Ps: I love you
This week I attended a Photoshop conference in DC, put on by Mogo Media. It was phenomenal. In two days, I learned a wealth of information that I have already begun to put into practice. Keep in mind that I have been using Photoshop for years, and I am already highly skilled. It just goes to show you how quickly software is updated and how much Photoshop can do. I encourage everyone to keep learning, whether it is through online tutorials, webinars, blog posts, conferences, or any other form of communication.
Here are a few things I came away with:
- Keyboard shortcuts are your friend. It is amazing how much faster one can work when they have memorized many standard shortcuts. Huge timesaver, especially for switching between different tools, and also knowing how to get around problematic situations.
- What you don’t know can hinder your creativity. The more technical knowledge you have, the more opportunities open up to you, particularly in design. It can be hard to bring your ideas to life when you don’t know what is possible, or how your idea can be executed.
- Adobe Bridge and Camera Raw are very useful and powerful tools. I have never really seen the need to use Bridge, and I really never knew much about Camera Raw until this class. The options available for photo manipulation in Camera Raw are extraordinary, and the organizational benefits of Bridge are eye opening.
- Non-destructive adjustment layers are the only way to design. Once you learn how to take an image and make tons of adjustments without ever affecting a single pixel of your original image, you will have improved your workflow tenfold. It is a faster way to work, especially when clients come back and make changes throughout a project.
- Don’t be afraid to try different things. There really is no right or wrong when it comes to making adjustments to your images. It comes down to whether or not those choices support your end goal, so be creative and don’t be afraid to experiment a little. You will be amazed at what you can come up with.
- If you can think it, most likely you can do it. Photoshop is unbelievably powerful, and when used in combination with Illustrator and InDesign, the sky is the limit.
I hope I have encouraged everyone keep learning and update your skills, even if it is in another program such as Word or Excel that you might be using on a daily basis. The additional confidence is invigorating.
6 Simple Steps To A Better Logo
1. Focus on the core message. A logo can be anything from a straight forward word mark to a more elaborate icon. Just make sure it communicates who you are and what you do.
2. The more, the merrier. The more sketches and ideas, the better. Usually the first ideas are the most obvious and therefore expected, so push until you can’t push any more.
3. Simplify, simplify, simplify. I can’t stress this enough. Start design in one color, preferably black. In my opinion, if it doesn’t work in black, it doesn’t work. This also keeps the focus on the form, without being swayed by extras like color variations. Remember to keep lots of unnecessary details to a minimum.
4. Small is better. Too many times I see logos that look great large, but once they are shrunk to a typical size, they lose important details. Make sure that the logo works when it is sized to about an inch and a half.
5. Get other opinions. Find out other people’s first impression. What kind of feel/tone does it give off? Do they see something you don’t? Could there be a negative connotation?
6. Add the finishing touches. Once you have found the “it” logo, then you can start to add in color, dimension, etc. as needed. This is now the icing on the cake.
A Client’s Website: Before and After
What is it about the Before and After concept that we love so much? As a culture, it seems as though we spend an inordinate amount of time comparing how people and things looked before and after a certain event. One needs only to look at the online photo montages that surrounded Michael Jackson’s death, the popularity of shows that show the renovation of a home, a look down technology’s memory lane and even the popularity of Conan O’Brien’s “If They Mated” segment. Wait. Is Conan O’Brien still popular?
In any event, it seems as though everybody loves to see how both things and people can morph and develop over time. The same is true for a company’s website. We recently helped a client complete such a transformation – from what was a static, outdated-looking, underwhelming website into one that is interactive, user-friendly and dynamic.
With so much of a company’s identity, and potential business, coming from the Internet, it is important for organizations to have a web presence that defines who they are, what they do, and why they do what they do better than their competition. Based on the Before and After images of our client’s website, it is clear that optimizing an company’s website should be a priority for any organization.
- This is how the old website looked.
- This is how the website looks now, after TBG worked on it.
What’s the big idea?
Ever wonder what the next big thing is going to be in the creative world? I’ve noticed that it tends to go from one extreme to another. Everything from interior design to graphic design. Take for instance fonts. One year it is all sans serif, lowercase fonts. The next it is all caps, serif fonts. We see it on both web and print. I’ve had clients even ask me what is the popular current trend. It is easy to simply jump on the bandwagon with the latest craze, but is that what we should be doing? Following the leader? The answer is no. I personally think it is good to see what is out there and then do your own thing–different.
Some more examples I have seen: First there was the collage of photos done in Photoshop, then came the single large photo, then it was the typography as the star, up front and center with no imagery. One leader that many seem to be copying is Apple. Everyone wants to look current, not outdated. So they start to design like everyone else.
What’s the big idea? I believe the best designs are those that stand out, are unique, and get results. So what is so unique about the latest fad that everyone is emulating? Maybe the answer is to see what is hot now, and do the opposite…or maybe we can just think for ourselves and use other channels of inspiration. The challenge is on!
The Triangle Represents Synergy
Modern logo design has become something of an embarrassment.
Reports vary, but most people who study these things seem to think business logos first appeared in the thirteenth century among traveling merchants and tradesmen (I’ve also heard they were first used as tavern markings).
The point is, they had one purpose and one purpose only: not to build brand equity, not to leverage cultural mores — simply to differentiate goods.
Perhaps we’ve forgotten this, because now virtually all logos look alike (particularly in the B2B world). Most have some sort of swoopy curve, or boxy parallelogram, or some combination of the two.
Why? Because this is what we think corporate logos are supposed to look like. Never mind that they don’t perform the ONE job that logos are actually supposed to do—-look different!
It’s just another symptom of corporate hackery. Companies that can’t decide whether they want to stand out or blend in.
Honestly, even if your logo is a bloody severed head with ants crawling out of it, you’re way ahead of these guys.
Never Trust the Atlantic
So, as it turns out, that graphic comparing Coke and Pepsi logos throughout the years (posted here by yours truly) is imperfect.
Records reveal that the iconic Coca Cola script didn’t actually appear until the 1900s, and has been tweaked over the years in subtle ways.
The crux of the Pepsi freneticism argument still stands, I believe. But for the sake of posterity, I wanted to air the revised, more accurate chart.
(Hat tip: Brand New)
What’s the Matter with Pepsi? (Part 2)
A helpful illustration I just came across:
(Hat tip: Andrew Sullivan)
What’s the Matter with Pepsi?
Plenty.
Most of which can be extrapolated from this, one of the most unintentionally hilarious would-be Juvenalian satires of the modern era (at least as it pertains to marketing extortion).
Long story short, PepsiCo CMO Dave Burwick has resigned. Looks like Tropicana was the first strike. Then Gatorade (I beg your pardon, “G”). And finally the Obama/Pepsi debacle.
So who’s really to blame? Peter Arnell, or the self-delusional Pepsi brass that commissioned such preposterous jargon. There’s an old saying, you get what you pay for.
But I’m starting to think in this industry–you get what you get, and you pay for it later.