Some of them manage to do something really special. Here are 10 examples of the best and most creative portfolios online.

1. Jan Ploch

This excellent portfolio design from German designer Jan Ploch shows a great deal of ingenuity. The whole thing is based on the idea that the creative process is like a bottle, and he proposes the means of filling it. Even the website itself has a bottle design with an old fashioned touch, and everything is done in beige and brown shades. Despite this, it is extremely dynamic.

2. Tiny Big Studios

A fun and interactive portfolio design, there are plenty of little features to discover in this quirky design. If you touch the cursor to the logo in the corner the ant spins, and there is an arrow to the ant itself stating that it was not responsible for the creation of the site design. This leads to a link that takes you down to another section of the same page to introduce the branding company that did build it. You get a look at what they do, who they are and what they have done in the past, all on one page that manages to present a ton of information without looking messy or cluttered.

3. iLussori

This sleek website shows us what can be done with a fast-paced design aimed at providing an immediate look at the company’s capabilities. As a multimedia business, they gave us plenty to look at. There is a slideshow in the background that has been subdued with black and white and slight blurring. Then, you get a choice of a few examples on the front page, along with a link to a wide portfolio. Simple flash at its best.

4. Lois Jeans

You start off being brought to a home page that gives you three language options. When you select your own, you are then given two other options: Utopic or Dystopic, meaning your vision of the future. Each one gives you a series of bubbles with both images and videos, creating a marketing campaign based on either a perfect world of harmony, or one of miserable living conditions and dangers. Very cool, very modern and it taps into the current trend of expanding on both of these ideals in fiction.

5. FS Designs

A beautiful woman and an animated car on fire make up the logo design for this company. The overall website is dark and trendy, with a simple thumbnail look at some choice projects. It shows how you can make simple portfolio design look extremely complex and cool.

6. Scotch & Soda

Not technically a portfolio design site, this is a shop that shows off a lot of their work so I figure it applies. They have regularly changing ideas, and they are all pretty cool. Right now you can watch a slideshow, or play with the moving snowflakes that switch direction when you move your cursor.

7. Dan123

Meet Dan. He is a very friendly-seeming front end developer who has created this website to show us all the things he can do. His website is fun and cartoonish, with a kind of retro sci fi look. He even has a postcard motif for the contact page, which is a nice touch. He has a collection of thumbnails to see his work in the center, and they are nice and evenly space without a lot of frill.

8. Indubitablee

Formerly operating under the name Cornerd, they used a unique and interesting grid design for their site. They put an emphasis on communication, with a large portion of the home page dedicated to the contact link, their RSS feed and their Twitter profile. That is something unique that you will probably begin to see more often as freelancers and small business owners continue to see the link between their portfolio and social networking.

9. Otterball

When you first go to this link you will see an animation of a bunch of messed up thumbnails. They move in a circle pattern and then slide onto one side, aligning on the left hand of the page. This is a simple thumbnail presentation of their past work. They also have an About Us and Contact page, but everything is very simply made.

10. TauaDesign

This site is even better when you say the name out loud and hear the "tada!" sound it makes. They went completely minimalist, with nothing but a white page with a couple of gray sections on the side that takes you to different parts of the site. This includes a portfolio page, which is brought up with a flash animation of black boxes that turn into thumbnails.

Conclusion

If these portfolio design don’t inspire you, nothing will. What are some of your own favorites? Show us in the comments.

If you are a designer too, do tell us what is a graphic design?

What Is Design by gravitymachine

Graphic Design Poster by Juanma Teixidó

Graphic Design is Love by benspopshop

Graphic Design is Masking Your Ideas by Gage Batubara

Graphic Design Poster by riz0

The Art of Speaking Without Making a Sound by piotr.delawski

Graphic Design is a Mindtrip by pullemuts

What is graphic design? by Ancient Wisdom Productions

Graphic deisgn is About by Two Fish 77

Design is
to make a synthesis by Juanma Teixidó

Thinking Made Visual by ck/ck

Design is Capturing by tonyxprice

what is graphic design 2 by morfeusz

Graphic design may be extensive use of symbols by piotr, the flaneur

The Brainiest Heart by increibleignatz

Graphic design is… by sursly

down through the centuries by w.i.n

pix by bryancastro777

design is more than a sassy typeface by Trev Stair

Design is lighting up by DeaPeaJay

100% Intentional by Juanma Teixidó

What is Graphic Design? by ale.pixel

graphic design is drawing the line by fiveIron

graphic design is… by my way home

What is Graphic Design Poster by batco

Here is a list of 10 brilliant resources to put into your own little grid-based design box.

Boilerplates

If you feel like doing it without having to create your own CSS framework (I can already see a bunch of you nodding your heads with great enthusiasm), you can check out these boilerplates.

HTML5 Boilerplate

HTML5 is fast becoming the No. 1 used, experimented on and recommended format for just about any project. The versatility provided by the update to the old classic is a big reason for that, and there have been some amazing experiments that show what it is really capable of.

Gridless

Compatible with both HTML5 and CSS3, this boilerplate makes it easier to create websites viewable on multiple browsers, with design specifics like layout and typography as a main focus.

Traditional Frameworks

If you want to go with what is affectionately referred to as "old" frameworks – showing how quickly new technology truly is released – you can try out these dinosaurs that are still just as good as the day they were released.

960 Grid System

This is one of the original sites dedicated to existing framework and design. A great deal of new designs originated from this source. You can find a lot here to get you along.

YAML

Standing for "Yet Another Multicolumn Layout," this framework describes its products as "bulletproof and flexible." That is a promise it is able to keep, as it gives you the tools you need for simple and rapid CSS framework development. It has everything you need, so YAML is a must to check out.

Brand Spankin’ New Frames

Sometimes you want something new and cutting edge. These websites offer that, though most of them take bits here and there from the old classics to keep them relevant to the original grid we have all come to know and love.

Columnal

This grid system is a really nice one. It was created by taking a number of CSS layouts and combining their elements. Then, custom coding was thrown in the mix to provide a unique style. Each piece for the new system was taken from both 960GS and CSSGrid, based on their elastic grid design.

Skeleton

If your main concern is having a boilerplate that is mobile friendly, this might be the choice for you. The CSS/JS mixed files are made to allow for development that works at any screen size. The flexibility makes it easy to create one site that will work on mobile screens as well as standard laptop or computer screens.

G5 Framework

For front-end framework compatible with the standard CSS3 – as well as HTML5, jQuery and PHP – your best bet is G5. It is a great starter for any basic website, made specifically for fostering efficiency in web development. It has a great list of features.

Easy Percentage Grid System With HTML5

The name is a bit of a mouthful. But the layout is clean and simple, working on a six-column grid. If you are a beginner who doesn’t know that much coding, you will want to stick with this one. It has a full tutorial on how to change things like the column titles and content. It also shows you how to add or remove columns without disrupting the design.

jQuery Masonry

This is a jQuery-specific plug-in that creates a unique layout with a great image-heavy design. The whole build is based on a grid that is different from many of the standard column designs you see today. It pushes it all into a much more compact and well-organized design than the CSS floats standard.

Less Framework 4

Less Framework is extremely simple. It takes a single grid and gives you four layout options and three typography presets in one package. The idea is that you have a more basic layout, allowing for a more adaptive website without the need for future framework. Whether it is viewed on a PC, laptop, tablet or mobile device, it will fit properly.

Conclusion

Whether you are a fan of frameworks or not, you will find what you need to take advantage of simple grids for web designs on these 10 sites. They give you amazing resources, and they are only a few of what is out there.

Leave your suggestions for other great tools to put into your grid-based design resource box in the comment section below.

As more and more stock images are being evolved, more options are becoming available for the photographer and photo buyer. Image licensing is an important aspect which the buyer as well as the photographer must know.

Royalty Free

Royalty Free stock photography gives the image buyer the option to use the image in as many ways as desired while only paying one fee. License pricing are generally lower with Royalty Free. This license is cost effective because the buyer is choosing not to protect against competitive usage. The images are easy to use because the buyer doesn’t need to determine or track usage and is free to use in the images in multiple ways. Of course, there are also disadvantages. For the buyer, there is no protection against conflicting use by competitors and photographs offered in the Royalty Free domain are generally of lower content quality.

Rights Protected

Rights Protected license prices are generally higher then Royalty Free. In this case the buyer has control of the license and there is protection against having the photo used by a direct competitor for a competing use. Records of every use of a photo or image are kept to avoid conflicting rights between competing end users. Usually, images tend to be higher quality in content and subject matter for Rights Protected license. Rights protected images are licensed for a specific period of time and for a specific application which is negotiated in advance. The reason one would use rights protected imagery is to prevent competitors from using the same image in the same marketplace.

Rights Managed

Rights Managed is a license type similar to Rights Protected but does not guarantee exclusiveness unless an additional fee is paid. Usually, license prices with Rights Managed are somewhere in between Rights Managed and Royalty Free. Rights Managed means that the buyer pays for a license to use the stock photo for a specific use for a defined time period. Usually, the licensing is not transferable. They are only granted to the person or company who purchased them. The buyer may not sell, rent, loan, give, sub-license, or otherwise transfer the photograph or the right to reproduce the photo to someone else.

Use of stock images must be appropriate to your design and content. There are certain points you must keep in mind while using the stock imagery:

a – Don’t use a stock photo when you can easily illustrate or get a photo shoot yourself.

b – Don’t use Cliché or over used images.

c – Avoid using images that have been masked or have bad paths clipping. Instead you can do it yourself if you are really good at cropping the backgrounds.

(Image Source: hand with clipping paths)

d – Never use pictures that do not relate to your concept or content.

(Image Source: nature photography)

Don’t use the image just for decorating the page or the element you thought was nice, but use image that is in reference to your content.

a – If you buy the low resolution version of the image just because it is cheap, you’re going to ruin your effort and the whole design.

b – Do not use images that look out dated or non professional.

c – Using pictures in which the model has over posed will not look good.

(Image Source: Man with happy facial)

d – If you want to use the image that is extended better use the professional ones instead of using the image that has poor cloning.

(Image Source: Cloned dog)

e – Placing the selling product directly over the image looks really retard and non professional.

(Image Source: boy with hand)

Stock images are found in wide variety and it has become so easy to find almost any image on the internet through certain specified sites. E.g. ShuuterStock, Corbis, Gettyimages or masterfile. These images are available on low resolution so since they have the copyrights issues, therefore cannot be copied directly to be used in print ads. Either the client buys them or orders similar images. Use of stock images is hassle free, you don’t have to hire a photographer or create backgrounds or pay lot of money for the photo shoot. Stock image sites get all the information, how much is the viewership determines the price, in which region the image will be used and whether royalties are due to the image creator or owner. Sometimes you just have to pay once to use the multiple images or pay in a bundle and use a series of 3 or 4 images annually. Use of stock images in ads can be as creative as possible. Do you really want to use the image just as it is or should you be thinking more on conceptual basis? One important question….

Use of simple stock images without tempering.

(Image Source: Sweet couple of red fresh)

Now this is an example of treated stock images using the creativity and not just placing the image as it is. Use of different colors in the back ground have been treated.

Stock images have copyrights, you just can’t pick up any image from internet and use it, you either buy it or order it. On the other hand many ad agencies use stock images to present the concept to the client and on approval later arrange the photography in the same atmosphere and replicate the images with their own models. E.g. if you are selling shoes obviously you will not use the images of shoes of some other company, rather will present the concept and then use your own shoes in the photos. The appealing look of the product or the appetizing appeal of any food item is just through the right image. Stylists, experts and photographers put in their best efforts to make the product look amazing so the audience is compelled to buy it. This is the art of stock imagery not achievable by any layman.

(Image Source: Food Passionate)

Tempting…isn’t it? This is the art of stock images.

When we use an image that we’ve bought, begged or borrowed from someone else, we are implying (to potential customers) that it is our work because it’s showing the service we are selling. This is breaking the law…lying to your clients is not just good. Take reference from images, think and then re establish the images yourself. You may use a part of an image or just the background but selling somebody else’s product is not just good. In this way only you will be able to develop the trust and confidence of your clients who might not know at a later stage that you have actually stole somebody else’s images.

(Image Source: Bungalow Interior)

This is not your work so just use this image for reference.

This is not your product but you can use it to refer to the concept, can replace with your own imagery but leading to the same concept.

Treatment of images as discussed above can be a very creative thing. Use of different softwares can make the process easy but just treating the image for the sake of treatment won’t work, you have to give it a certain character.

You will be able to see lots of images being used in this poster. All these images represent glamor and glitz though even without treatment those would have worked, but giving them a distinct character make the whole image look more vulnerable and appealing. Not necessarily you have to pick an image and treat it, even a simple dot can say a lot. But stock images make life easy…you believe it or not, without them in today’s world, half of advertising wouldn’t even be possible.

Vintage elements, fonts, and textures bring back feelings of nostalgia; but what’s more important, they let a creative designer breathe a new shiny life into a website look and feel.

Here are 9 modern day tutorials to recreate an amazing design era.

1. 1960s Psychedelic Style Concert Poster

The ’60′s were the kaleidoscope world that saw swirling patterns of colors and wavy typography. This tutorial shows how the use of the Warp Tool and applying texture can achieve a realistic psychedelic graphic design.

2. Wicked-Worn Vintage Pop-Art Design

This is a basic to intermediate tutorial that calls for real-life elements such as an old and dirty piece of paper. This tutorial shows how to achieve a "wear and tear" style that shouts vintage without having to ride a time machine.

3. Retro Pop Art

Back in the day, half-tone dots and Ben-Day dots were heavily used to economically print comic books. This tutorial recreates the retro comic book style by implementing half-tone effects and big burst background that can get any graphic design into real retro action.

4. Abstract Retro-Pop Wallpaper

This tutorial sets you up to explore and learn some fun skills such as creating the familiar flowery retro abstract shapes, using transform and desaturate, and that familiar 3D vintage game effect. Tetris, anyone?

5. Retro Grunge Poster

Eight steps are all it takes to rock a retro grunge design with this tutorial. Take note that grungy does not equate to dirty. This guide will teach you to use the pen tool and some textures to achieve the real "grunge" effect.

6. 1950s-Style Movie Poster

A very friendly and entertaining lesson on how color, geometric shapes and text can bring back modern photos in "reel time." The point of this tutorial focuses on achieving authenticity and presenting maximum impact.

7. Sweet Old School Album Cover

Your newest digital camera may be sweet but it surely doesn’t have the vintage sauce of old-school lomo cameras such as the Holga and the Diana. This tutorial shows how a pseudo cross processed method achieves that old yet groovy style.

8. B-Movie Poster Art

Flying saucers, giant creatures, and invaders from Mars. Don’t you just love B movies that’ll make you crack up? You can bring this cinematic experience to your graphic design with the help of this tutorial. Learn how combining 3D renders with stylized photography, text and smoke emulates the 1950′s popcorn experience.

9. Make Your Own Pop Art

This five-page tutorial brings to light the birth of the consumer culture of the 1950′s. The era saw product posters and even soup cans make their way to the art galleries. Learn how to glorify mundane things using this style via layering, the Live Trace tool, filters and image selection.

Are there any great retro tutorials you are aware of? Please share them in the comments!

Refreshing, something you would really want to have. Same is the case with other items, the more appealing to the eye, the more sales and more customer demand.

This is a poster by Island Oasis representing few drinks it serves. Anyone looking at this, tired, thirsty would not let it go. It looks amazing with the beauty of bright colors and thirst quenching delights.

Designed Items Used for POP

Several items can be designed in reference to the establishment of the brand and services its providing. Few examples can be posters, shelf markers, mobiles, wobblers, door stickers, drop downs or even a kiosk.

Posters

In-house posters can serve an effective way of developing a reasonable relation of the brand and the customer. It serves as a reminder to people walking in the store that this brand prevails here. Poster is a good way of describing your product in detail or the services since the interaction level of the poster and the target customer is just of a few meters. He can read it see the images in detail and also can have a direct idea of what the brand is about. Posters come in general sizes like 18×23 inches or 20×30 inches. But other than these custom sizes can also be made depending on the availability of the size of the panel or wall on which it has to be displayed.

This campaign was developed in order to promote nestle delights in the season of Christmas. These in-house posters serve as a prominent platform not only to promote the brand, but in the clutter of all the other desserts being introduced in the Christmas season, these Nestle desserts look better, appealing, mouth watering. Use of words starting with “in” gives these posters a unique character.

Posters can also serve as a good way of depicting a certain promotional program of a certain brand. Just like in the above example, a contest being held by Sunsilk is being promoted through this poster which can reach thousands of people coming to retail markets. It can be placed in the beauty parlors, jewelry shops or anywhere where lots of women come. Thus posters are effective ways of reaching thousands of masses by being placed just at few places.

Shelf Markers

Shelf markers are labeling solutions. The shelf on which product is placed can have a label showing the product details or just the name or just the image. This catches the attention of the viewer as soon as he sees this branding. It compels the viewer to pick up the product being displayed in the form of shelf marker.

Shelf markers are usually very simple and direct since the space available to paste them onto the shelves is very small. It’s just a methodology to attract the customer.

Mobiles

Mobiles are hanging from the roof. They can be in cut outs or simple ones and pretty mobiles not only enhance the beauty of the shop but also serve as continuous reminder to the customer of a certain brand. With air when they revolve and rotate they look beautiful and movement always catches the eye.

Wobblers

Wobblers are 3D unique printable items which are very eye catching. One part of the wobbler is pasted against a flat surface and the bended extended portion hangs in the air giving a feeling of 3D. It’s wobbling around in the air which increases its credibility of being seen more.

Their construction can be very creative as to how they will wobble, which bending part is more durable that the whole structure does not get tore off.

Door Stickers

Door sticker printing though serve a purpose of telling a person either push or pull, but now they have become an effective way of endorsing a brand.

The new thematic of KitKat expressed different personalities different form ordinary based on the concept of “Have a break”. The same campaign showed two different characters along with the signs of push and pull and at the same time giving the concept of break.

Drop Downs

Drop downs are any printable item showing the direction towards the product. It’s a form of branding that shows the customer where is the exact place of our product so he doesn’t have to look for it in the whole retail outlet.

Kiosk

Kiosk is a small, separated garden pavilion open on some or all sides. Kiosks were common in Persia, India, Pakistan, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward. Today, there are many kiosks in and around the Topkap? Palace in Istanbul, and they are still a relatively common sight in Greece.

In the Western hemisphere and in English-speaking countries, a kiosk is also a booth with an open window on one side. Some vendors operate from kiosks (see mall kiosk), selling small, inexpensive consumables such as newspapers, magazines, lighters, street maps, cigarettes, and confections.

Kiosk is a stall/booth where separately any product is available from the rest of the products. It gives a product unique identity and by separating gives value to a product. Glamorous, bright, colorful graphics have been seen on the kiosks to attract the customers.

In order to decide which items should be part of POP, it’s important to know the true essence of the brand and the target market.

But in the last few years – and especially the last five or so – there are some design trends that are everywhere. This is generally because they are actually very good and easy to adapt to other changes in the marketing world. They are also able to be included in plenty of other more unique or new looks, which makes them basic style staples.

The problem is that this means they are overused. In particular, there are seven design basics that you will see all over the place, and you might want to keep an eye on if you want to try to use them yourself. Mainly because you run the risk of creating something that looks like any other logo or design that you will come across on the web. Who wants that? No one hoping to set their skills (or personal businesses and sites) apart from the pack, that is for sure.

Below are these seven trends that you have to be very careful if you decide to use them yourself.

1. Badges and Buttons

It used to be that you would see badges or buttons all over the web, and that wasn’t a surprise. It is a much more attractive way of presenting a gateway than an average link, especially with the dull, active and inactive text settings of the days or yore. You can also stack, line or place them in locations that are more pleasing to the eye, rather than just laying it out list a list or burying it in text.

Most commonly you will see these badges presented as bright, glittery boxes. They seem to shine thanks to the often-blended white gradient layers along with the block lettering and creative logo use. Since they appear to glow at you from the screen they can be really appealing.

But have you noticed who is using these the most? Companies such as Apple or social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook have more or less monopolized the use of badges in the last couple of years. Need proof? Look at app download pages or the share buttons on blogs all over the web. It is almost a shock to see them used for anything else anymore.

This overuse added to brand association spells death to the badge and button as a multi-purpose design option for others.

2. Speech Bubbles and Megaphones

Social media and networking has presented a new way of communicating to people all over the world. Since that is its primary function on a user to user level (even marketing is within this line of usage), it stands to reason that speech bubbles and megaphones would be used in logos and banners.

After all, those are direct visual representations of what these sites have sought out to do.

But the idea of showing it to be a "talking" logo has become old and stale. I have lost count of how many companies use this now, and they all seem to look the same. It isn’t that a visual showing talking and listening can’t be utilized, but perhaps something a bit more creative than the now overdone comic-era speech bubble?

3. Fun With Opacity!

I think all designers have had their fair share of fun with the lovely Multiply and Overlay features in  Photoshop? By changing the opacity of any layer you can create a really cool effect with next to no effort on your part. It can change the entire look of a logo in an instant, and might make the difference between something standard and boring and something elegant and well designed.

Possibly the most recent example of how this old technique is being utilized is in the Microsoft Silverlight logo, which was a beautifully done one that is immediately recognizable to even those who only occasionally use Internet Explorer as their browser.

Since it is so versatile and is a tool of design rather than a method, this once doesn’t have the same problem of becoming boring like some others on this list.  But it is still easy to use the wrong blend of colors or shapes, which will be less than appealing.

4. Kawaii Illustration

I keep seeing these logos all over the place, especially when it comes to apps such as Seesmic and GitHub, two very adult, industry-oriented tools for power users looking for marketing opportunities on the web.

It is not something you would expect to see advertised by adorable, fluffy, giant eyed woodland creatures.

But lately they appear to be everywhere, and that in itself shows the popularity of the trend. No one seems to know what started it, but it doesn’t look like it will be going away.

The problem with using it is that if you are not very specific about how you are presenting it, the brand you are marketing might get lost in the cuteness that is the adorable animal.

Make sure to be clear about what it is attached to, and watch to make sure it is not too similar to those used by other companies and web apps.

5. Scripts, Slabs and Other Cool Fonts

I am going to take a wild guess and say you have used Archer more than once in a logo design. I don’t think there is a single designer among us who hasn’t, or used one very similar to the point of being almost indistinguishable. Since it was probably the most popular font of the last three years it would be silly to scold you for it.

But I will tell you to step away from the Archer now. Slab serif fonts are still a great tool, but keep in mind how often they are used and the way they have a tendency to make logos all look very similar.

Instead, try to go with a more unique, lesser used alternative to the old boys. If it is something you haven’t really seen before, use it! Try building a logo to fit the font rather than the other way around. This will give an immediate creative boost and set you apart with next to no additional effort.

6. Verdant and Plant-Inspired

In this case I am not going to say "be careful when using" this design choice. I am going to say to ‘be careful not using it’, because it a really ignored look. That is unfortunate because flora and fauna are great ways to present a natural and pleasant looking logo.

Depictions of nature give people a sense of ease, and even a plant related silhouette will seem warmer and inviting than many more modern and bare looking designs that have become the norm online.

But too much of flora is still no good.

7. Quadrangles

What are these things? Seriously, they are lopsided and fit no actual shape known to man. They are somewhere between a rectangle and a trapezoid, and they are everywhere these days. Which is interesting, because symmetry was once considered a great ally to the designer, especially for logos.

The problem here is that quadrangles can appear so uneven that it gives an off-putting look to the entire logo. You have to balance it just right, and without proper color schemes, font and placement it just looks wrong. I have never personally liked one I have seen, though I can see why those who like fun and modern designs might get into it.

Tell Us Your Own!

There are so many trends out there we can’t keep up with them all. Which do you see that could be used correctly, and what ones are a flop? Let us know in the comments.

Faults in Site Structure 

Many designers fail to offer balance between the space occupied by information and white or blank space. Text, images and menus should appear on a contrasting background and distances between the designing elements should give a clean and clear look. Overcrowded web pages fail to hold attention of the viewers. Check out the margin, “padding” style while creating a site.

Example of clean web design

Browser Issue 

The site should be displayed perfectly with all commonly used browsers. Many designers simply forget to check the browser compatibility or skip it in haste. Web developers relying on website templates often commit this mistake. There are several browsers and each have various versions to complicate the issue. This happens because many users avoid upgrading their browsers. Identify the popular browsers used by the website’s target group and check compatibility of your site with them. 

Miserable Navigation 

This mistake can drive out interested traffic instantly. Visitors look for desired information while visiting a site. The desired information should be maximum three clicks away. Many designers bury the content too deep and frustrate the visitors. Portion of the text and navigational elements should be properly highlighted to guide the visitors. Many designers use unconventional names for Home, Product, About and other sections that can confuse the user. Website templates are great way for small and medium businesses to develop or redesign their site with proper navigational elements in place.

Using Flash and Music

Budding designers have a fascination to use Flash and background music. This slows down the response time and page loading is disturbed. Many users don’t have access to high speed Internet connection and need to wait a long time for the page loading. This disrupts the smooth browsing experience of users and they often skip to another site. Website templates using flash should be tested before developing. 

Websites with background music are rarely appreciated by users. While it may be good for websites promoting music or audio guided tour, the viewers should be given an option of controlling the sound rather than auto-playing from the beginning. 

Unlabelled Links

All the links of a site should be properly labeled. This is crucial when you are designing a site from scratch or using any website templates. When this is not followed users get confused about the destination where the link will lead. Grouping similar links with same color or fonts, changing the color of used links, using clearly visible buttons are encouraged. Designers sometimes fail to distinguish the text links within content. 

Typographical Faults

Using too small or too large fonts creates wrong impression. Messages are best delivered through smart web safe fonts of optimum sizes. Style of the font should not be so clumsy that the user has difficulty in reading or understanding. Experimenting too much with fonts is a common mistake that should be avoided. Using website templates may minimize chances of such mistakes.  

Images Not Optimized

Images used on a website should be resized or compressed to save space and loading time. When it is not done, images take long time to load and the viewers often leave the site without waiting. Providing thumbnail view and linking those to larger images is a smart solution that many designers fail to implement. JPG, PNG and GIF are commonly used formats. Other formats of images may take a long time to load. When an image or few images are used as background the designer should be cautious about the loading time and level of optimization. 

Wrong Color Combination

Many designers fail to take into account the purpose of site and target viewers while selecting colors for a site. Colors used for designing a corporate site should be different than a health site. Using contrasting colors or too many colors is a bad practice. Most designers fail to adhere to the principle of using three primary colors. Shades of these complementary colors may be used if required. Many website templates offering excellent color combination may be used as reference.  

Poor Text Format

Visitors searching for information prefer to scan the content before going to details. Chunks of text repel them. Many designers fail to present content that can be easily scanned. Using bullets, numbers, headings, sub-headings, highlighting with bold or color are some simple steps that are often overlooked. Website templates can be a smart reference point for developing a site.  

Designing a website involves several critical stages and a designer should be careful about the errors that may happen. While some errors may happen inadvertently some are due to lack of proper knowledge. The tips mentioned above may be followed to minimize chances of mistakes. 

Create a Bleed

All magazine covers need to be designed by first choosing the option of creating bleed. In latest softwares this option is available itself, otherwise you create cutting margins yourself just by dragging the rulers and leaving certain space on all sides.

Creating borders will help you fix your image right in place. Also don’t forget to write the copyrights of the image you are using. The name of the photographer, phone number, e mail address and usage rights.

Creating Frame

Rectangular frame will help you to place your image in a way that it touches the margins of the document and you will exactly know which part of the image will be in cutting area of the paper and which part will be visible.

Fit the Image

Scaling the image to your exact requirement needs to be in proportion. Never stretch the image haphazardly to distort it. Always use shift key to stretch the image if you are working in Adobe Photoshop.

Creating a Masthead

Masthead is the upper portion of the magazine cover which has the title of the magazine. The text should appear on the top portion, why? The answer is very simple…viewer’s eye always travels from top to bottom so of course you would want to show the name of the magazine first, so always use the title on the top. The problem with the above image is that there’s no head room. Where will you place the title, it will come on the nose or on the eyes which definitely will ruin the whole image and the cover. So the photographers are always told to keep the space on top of the picture for the title. The title if already established is in certain type or font, otherwise for new names you can be as creative in typography as possible.

Adding of Date, Issue Number and Publications Name

Apart from creating the masthead, you need to write the publications name, date and issue number. That separate place can be on left or right but at a readable corner, since it is as important as the masthead. It clearly states the volume number, date, website or publications which must also be in larger font. Graphic element can also be added to create its enhancement.

The Story

When somebody looks at the magazine they want to know what’s the lead story behind using this model. What is inside the magazine that I would want to buy this magazine. Create a text box that will have the least impact on your main photo but surely reflects the model’s use. Use a bold font but never use the same font as masthead.

Colors

Colors can make a drastic change in your cover. Choose a color for your text that best suits the image as well as stands out. Graphically text can be as creative as possible. Swatches and color palettes can be exported also from some other software but you must know which ratio of color will appear after printing. The drop shadow trick works very well in highlighting the text. Same goes for glow or bevel techniques.

Magazine doesn’t necessarily have to be a fashion magazine, but mostly yes, it is. Any corporate magazine cover would definitely be more sober, minimal colors and no glamour. Product magazines highlight the product and cover will definitely state the usages. Whatever magazine cover you are designing, it takes lot of strength and creativity with good composition.

Some of the Best Magazine Covers

Here i have colleced some beautifuly designed magazine covers for your inspiration.

Similarly many ads can be published in the newspapers but since newsprint quality is not too good so ads with lesser colors will appear good.

Press ads refer to advertising to a mass number of people mainly through the following steps:

• Awareness
• Knowledge
• Liking
• Preference
• Conviction
• Purchase

Starting from the initial level of awareness, newspapers and magazines are the best way to create it in lesser amounts, till the end result of purchase. With the growing rate of internet usage, web ads and web banners are becoming more useful, even in these circumstances, newspapers still sell more. Easy, readily available and cheaper medium to advertise.

Press ads can be in varied sizes, the width of ads depends on columns of the newspapers, e.g. you can have 1 column or 2 column or 3 column or 4 column upto 8 column ad with varying heights.

1 column =3.8cm
2 column=7.8cm
3 column=11.8cm
4 column=15.8cm
5 column=19.8cm
6 column=23.8cm
7 column=27.8cm
8 column=31.8cm

1 column press ad

2 column press ad

3 column press ad

This is a very interesting example of 4 column ad, with spaces in between to make a complete image.

These are the standard widths of press ads depending on columns; the more columns the more expensive.

Placement of Ads

Placement of ads is also an important issue. If the brand is endorsed on the front page of the paper, more likely it will grab more audience but more expensive it will be. Similarly on the back page, inner second page are the places where you can draw more attention of people. Moreover it is also important to know which other ads are being published on that page. If the other ads are brighter, more colorful more vibrant, then definitely you have to work more on your ad to make it better than others. Classified section can also be used to advertise, but in that case you don’t have much space for creativity, either it will just be text or minimal imagery, or just the logo or the tagline. This is a very cheap method but risj factor is involved, what if you do not get the right response.

Now you can very well se hoe ads are placed in newspapers, size and matter does matter.

Copy of the Ads

Copy of the ads is the most sensitive issue. The copywriter must exactly know what to address and to whom. It should be crispy and witty, less words and more meaning. Lesser the copy, greater appeal will your ad have. Press ads have the ability to reach to people through words, therefore when you have details or more information about the brand, press ads are preferred since they can accommodate more text. Press ads give all the information and the contact for future reference. Weekend newspapers are more selling, therefore people prefer to advertise in the newspapers on weekend edition since they have more chances to reach to a greater number of people.

Now this ad has the ability to reach to people through words and mostly press ads are like that.

The brand issues or opportunity that the new communication must address

• To stay top of the mind and bring brand closer to the consumer we need to give a fresh look to the communication
• Build brand further on its positioning

The target consumer affinity group

• Gender (Males or females and which age group)
• Belonging to A, B, C or which class
• The target audience profile (Students, career oriented people or any other)

Current consumer usage, attitude and mindset

• Usage: e.g. Chocolate is an impulsive buy that is done frequently
• Attitude e.g. Treat yourself
• Mindset e.g. knowing a certain brand that delivers chocolates and how many variants, flavors, ingredients

The desired consumer behavior, attitude and mindset

• Choosing the chocolate of that certain brand maybe for a pleasurable break (Kitkat), choosing a chocolate that gives me an exotic feeling (Bounty), mindset that my appetite will be filled with the most desirable taste (Snickers).

The consumer understanding the brand can leverage to achieve the desired consumer change

• Desired consumer understanding: e.g. for Kitkat people are bored at times and they look for a break from their monotonous routine, or for Debeers, Diamonds are forever the desired consumer behavior is spend some but enjoy for the whole life, keep them with you forever and never worry.
• Desired consumer change: Kitkat gives me break from my boring routine so I have to buy it, or I should get nike shoes because I just have to do it, I need to have the power and should be able to achieve the impossible. This is something very conceptual and depends mainly on the concept and the taglines.

Role of brand in relation to the insight

It goes same as the tagline or the concept; Kitkat a break from monotony, Philips Sense and simplicity, Horlicks taller, stronger, sharper and so on.

What should the communication say

• What medium to be used, whether photographs, images or vector based or just typography
• It should highlight the concept of the campaign and brand personality
• How is it communicating with the target audience

The brief implies to the total information about the brand and communication style. It also indicates certain USP’s (Unique selling propositions) of the brand and complete list of the designed items which need to be developed. The timelines, language of communication and reference material are also mentioned. The purpose of the brief is now very clear since without it no creative campaign can be developed.

First of all you need to decide which souvenirs a company needs according to its brand personality. It really isn’t necessary to design typical mugs or key chains, but promotional items can be very dynamic and varied. They should carry the message that a company is carries a certain insight. What is the concept of the company, how it works and what does it offer. Is it giving you a souvenir which is practical and can be used or is it just for enhancing the beauty of the table.

The souvenirs must carry a logo ofcourse, but apart from it what else is required. The contact , the tag line and probably in some cases the services a company is offering. Whatever items you decide to design you must know the construction and technical aspects of printing. If it’s a mug is your design going to be printed on a sticker sheet or any other material; thermoplastic resins, wood, metal, glass, crystal, silver… is the design embossed, carved or sand blasted. Experience, know how, advanced search, passion, originality and quality are the keymost features to design good souvenirs.

Cribs, components, diorama – Gadget-Souvenirs – Icons – Religious – devotional articles – Silverware items are all considered to be part of promotional items. Either the company decides to give away one item or a series of items, you as graphic designer have to decide it’s presentation and packaging. Is it going to be dispatched in a box or envelop or a basket, totally depends on what items you are making and what is the identity of the company.

These are usable items but in the above examples you can see that merely sending away non usable items can be creative also.

This a very interesting example of a promotional item. It’s a fun foam puzzle, beautifully made and definitely fun to use.

The aim of making souvenirs or promotional items is that the client’s mind is bombarded by company’s name several times a day. It serves as a reminder that you need to give us more work, keep contacting us. As long as it’s on the table, more people are watching it, more business. As long as you are using it you will keep thinking about the good things certain company has sent you. It enhances the image and produces more publicity and more business.

The target market must be kept in mind in order to design the souvenirs. Obviously you won’t design a technical pen for women who are being sent the promotional item from a ladies boutique, you might send them a t shirt or maybe a beautiful scarf or any piece of clothing with the logo stitched or knitted or woven. Whatever items you decide, they must be properly presented and should carry the complete profile of the company.

Hopefully you will enjoy these logos and will tell us the best logo by leaving comments.

You may also be interested in:

42 Creative Logos With Human Expressions
Top 15 Logo Design Inspiration Galleries
Using Negative Space Effectively In Logos
50 Burning Logos – Amazing Must See!
40 Beautifully Designed Bird Logos
50 Beautiful And Creative Logos With Heart
The Branding Difference – More Than Just a Logo

Types of Portfolios

When trying to get a job or get acquaintance with the most well reputed organizations, your portfolio is the most solid asset to reach to the employer who will decide whether to take you or not.

Creating Portfolio by Website

In today’s world this is probably the most used way of showing your work. Online showing your portfolio is not easily accessible but also looks very dynamic and professional.

Benefits:

• Easy to send to anyone, you can just send a link.
• You can very well play with the graphics, can give it a proper designed form, can use colors and can use unlimited effects which would actually depict your own personality too.
• You can have interactive presentation of your work.

Drawbacks:

• Though it has its own positive aspects, this is the most time consuming to make.
• Since it’s completely produced on the computer you don’t know whether it will open on other systems, how it will behave, how it will appear.
• Incase you are not aware of developing a website yourself, it will be very expensive to hire someone to make it for you.
• Payment for the domain and web hosting will also be done by you.

Creating Portfolio in the Form of PDF

Creating portfolio in the form of PDF is becoming more and more popular since multiple pages, images can be sent together in one piece and the result is a brochure like file which looks professional.

Benefits:

• It’s easy to e mail.
• You don’t have to worry about the systems and browsing issues, you can actually represent it the way you have made it.
• The PDF depicts a well knitted layout and creates an automatic balance.
• It can be printed with proper and uniform results.
• It’s quick and free of cost to develop.

Drawbacks:

• It’s completely dependable on the user wither to open it or save it.
• You cannot show your web design projects in it.

The Classic Portfolio

This is in the form of small booklet and actual printed form. In today’s digital world this still looks nice and appealing. Several ways can be developed to develop the hard copy, either putting in prints in a pre made booklet or designing your own custom designed booklet.

Benefits:

• Shoes your work in its actual printed form and format, it’s a hard copy of your work
• Due to this reason the clients can consult it or look at it several times whenever needed, he doesn’t really have to open his computer every time.
• Since it’s tangible, it can be given away to show it to others.
• It can be placed on anyone’s working table and if it has a dynamic beautiful graphics, it increases the value of the table and anyone walking in or passing byy can actually have a look at it.
• No computer required, can be brought in any time anywhere.

Drawbacks:

• It can only be delivered by post and not thorough e mail. Else can be delivered in person.
• If you don’t have several copies of it, you leave it with a client and you have nothing left.
• If the printing is not upto the standard, it can destroy your very well worked and excellent graphics.
• Making several copies of it can be very expensive.

After the portfolio comes the step how to promote it

Ways to Promote Your Business

Word of Mouth

This is the oldest and most effective way of publicity. It always feels good when someone says “have you heard of that person who has designed my logo and stationer, He’s really good.” This might seem very good but actually even this needs reminders to people. This can be done in several ways, quarterly newsletters or press ads would work. Even small flyer printing can be a good option.

Design a Business Card

This is the most organized way. Giving your personal visiting card to potential clients helps you gain popularity instead of giving your contact information by writing down on some piece of paper which later might be lost. Creative cards and good business card can bring you more work. Few business cards are so well designed that even if the client does not intend to give you work, he would just keep it with him because it’s beautiful, but later some time he would definitely consult it to give you work.

Credit Line

When you work for somebody he or she will definitely promote you to his or her clients through word of mouth. But isn’t it too cool that you get through that person’s clients yourself. There is no harm in it since you are not violating anyone’s rights. It’s just you are getting the credit for your work yourself instead of involving any third person.

Get a Blog

Creating your website isn’t enough. Try making a social network where people can directly approach your portfolio and can comment on it. In this way your publicity will get social.

Along with this learn to organize your work by keeping them up to date. Use softwares to keep backups, use time tracking softwares to see how fast you can work. Meet deadlines yourself. You must organize your work in the most manageable way in order to use it for future references.

Dealing with the clients might not be as easy as it appears. But it’s important to know what to talk to clients when you meet them. Ask them

• Who is the target audience
• What is the message of the campaign
• What is their brand identity
• What are the designed items required and their specifications
• What is the budget of the client
• Is there any deadline for the project
• Does he already have any references
• Does he prefer certain colors or fonts

You must decide on the contract first, either you take a certain amount of initial advance payment or a token amount just to assure that he doesn’t run away after getting you hooked up by making several options. If you are using stock images make sure you have the copyrights or buy the images. Never cheat, never borrow or copy the images. Decide on the concept first, then work accordingly in schedule given by client. Make sure you work on the images and backgrounds so that they can be produced in high resolution later for artwork.

Web Design Portfolios for Your Inspiration