Any Graphic Designer's out there ... ?

[Byrne]

I will be seeking a career in Graphic Design after I've completed my course ... Few questions:

- What will I be needing in my portfolio to make it look highly respectable to an employer.

- How demanding is the industry in terms of amount of work loads to be completed within a time-frame.

- Also, anyone out there willing to give us a few pointers or maybe work experience (preferably Australian based thou).

Thanks all.

Edited February 27, 2011 by Byrne

[nCOMP1337]

You want a well versed portfolio of nothing but quality work. You want to show that you are versatile in what you can do skill-wise. Show work from as many programs as possible also to show that you have a wide array of knowledge in graphic design based programs.

Time is very important, you have to be able to meet deadlines, almost every project will give you a deadline you have to meet. Deadlines and being able to communicate professionally with clients are probably the most important aspects besides having the skill to be a graphic designer.

Treat every project no matter how small, like its that big project youve been waiting for, take care and make the best quality work you can and be sure to stick to deadlines, if there isnt a deadline, give yourself one and try to meet it. Show initiative, dont be worried about criticism, it can b e a tough business and if you cant take critiquing, your in the wrong one. Be able to receive negative feedback and use it to better yourself. Also as much as it is good to have a wide range of abilities, be sure not to spread yourself out to thin, you need to also know where your strong points, if you spread your abilities too far out, some of your better skills may suffer from it. A lot of people in the industry specialize in a certain field, such as layout design, or image manipulation, or digital matte painting, or something else along those lines

btw, lived in austrlaia for 3 years, adelaide to be exact, i saw many horrendous ads, not saying thats just australia, i see plenty crap in usa too, so do work and be good at it

Edited February 27, 2011 by kynto

[Byrne]

Thanks bud, some top feedback there I've taken into deep consideration.

I agree with you on the terrible design part, to me it just seems like a graphic designer has just discovered a whole bunch of new tools /effects and just whacked something together quickly or have taken the simplistic approach of just not using their creativity at the slightest. This sir, is where I step in and be ternin' heads haha

[jagblazer01]

From personal experience, I would work on doing some freelance work. Unless you get into a really good company then there isnt much money to be made working for someone else. Make sure you know your programs well and keep up to date on software and tips and tricks thats out there. Are you doing any web design work? I know I am getting ready to go back to school for that because there is a high demand for web designers in my area

[Byrne]

At the moment I'm still doing my course and building up my portfolio, trying to build it up to about 100 designs or more ranging from Brand advertising and what ever work I do in my own time. I havn't really considered doing any web design, but I know web designers and graphic designers work together soully so that's an opportunity, but I want to try get into the advertising industry doing campaign work for the big name's like McDonalds, Nike...etc oneday lol.