From the name of the tool, alone, you get the point that some kind of "air" is needed for an airbrush to work. And yet, from what I read in Yahoo Answers, it seems to be one of the most neglected topics. It appears, to most novices, that the propellant sources are limited to the cans of compressed propellent or some kind of compressor. And, regarding compressors, many think only of those noisy garage compressors one can pick up at the hardware store.
There ARE more choices. Each will be appropriate for particular application and the individual artists. There is no right or wrong choice. Your selection will depend on what you need and how much you can afford.
CANNED AIR
First, regarding those cans of compressed air that are sold in most art and craft stores, and often come included with airbrush kits: They are fine and a good way to explore what a new airbrush can do. With minimal expense and fuss, a beginner can start spraying right away and begin to get the feel of the tool. I wrote quite a bit about these in my previous post. I also described the serious problems with the continued use of these cans. Today's post will discuss alternatives to these.
GARAGE COMPRESSORS
Whan I discovered the problems with canned air, I began research and experimentation with other sources of propellent. One direction, and the one I tried first was to get an inexpensive, (relatively) garage compressor from an auto parts store. It was a name brand (Campbell Hausfield) and had the features that I thought were appropriate for my airbrush. While it was capable of generating over 100 psi, it had the capability to be dialed down to the ten to fifteen psi range in which my airbrush would typically operate.
I took it home, bought and fitted the adapters, plugged it in and found that it raised a heluva racket. It was just too noisy to run indoors. Even in the confines of my open garage, the acoustics were such that it actually hurt my ears. It wasn't exactly condusive to creative artwork. I eventually found that the noise could be made tolerable by working it in my backyard while I wore earplugs. It wasn't a perfect solution, but, it allowed me to gain valuable experience and practice in using the airbrush and it's techinques. Besides the noise, there was another issue. With each stroke of the compressor's piston, it would drive a pulse of air through the hose and out the tip of the brush. These pulses could be visibly detected in the spray pattern as a thicker, more dense application of ink. It was particulary noticeable at lower pressures and in drawing the thinnest lines. Every artist wants control of his medium and I wasn't getting the control I needed at the most critical times.
I did some further research and spoke with other airbrush artists to learn about alternatives and solutions to the noise issue. One was to get a tank in which to store the air compressed by the machine. The compressor only needs to run long enough to fill the tank to capacity, and then the airbrush could oprate from the tank. A hundred pounds of pressure, crammed into a ten gallon tank provides HOURS of airbrush time. The couple of artists I know that went this route swear that it works well for them. However, before I made this addition I went another direction.
Costs associated wth this solution: About $100 for the compressor, $50 for the ten gallon air tank, about $5 in brass fittings and adaptors.
AIRBRUSH COMPRESSORS
There ARE compressors made just for artist's airbrush applications. They plug into an electrical outlet, sit on the desk or drawing table and are relatively quiet. Not to say they are silent, but more like someone operating a jack hammer ... two or three blocks away. Really, not a bad choice for using indoors, in a studio setting. But, I have to say that I don't have any personal experience with these, other than what I learned when researching my first airbrush tools. Some pros use them. These compressors are not hard to find. Any craft store that sells airbrushes and kits will have one or two of these models from which to choose. Same with any online source. But, since I don't know much about them, I'll leave it up to you to research and learn about various makers, costs and features on them.
For my application, these desktop compressors were not the way I needed to go.
COMPRESSED GAS
My intended use for the airbrush was to go in business, making custom airbrushed tee shirts and craft fairs, art and music festivals and holiday boutiques. Many of these events, particularly the outdoor ones, don't have electricity available at the booths. More and more, larger tanks of compressed propellent were beginning to look attractive. Among the pros I spoke to, their two most popular choices were nitrogen and CO2. Neither gas is toxic, except when they replace the oxygen in the air you breathe. But, since the safe operation of ANY kind of spray gun requires a well ventilated space to work in, these gases present no health hazzard.
They liked compressed nitrogen because there was no moisture in the tanks. Moisture in the propellent is a bad thing. It can momenarily thin the mixture of ink, changing the color and texture of the spray.
But I decided that, for my purposes, compressed CO2 was the way to go. Partly because of the cost, but, mostly, because CO2 is so readily available. I would use the same tanks and refill sources that are used by restaurants, bars and other businesses that dispense carbonated bevereges. Many welding supply shops also do CO2 refills. And moisture isn't an issue because, spraying on tee shirt fabric is more forgiving than working on paper. So, I purchased a tank, a two stage compressed gas regulator, (measures the pressure in the tank and the pressure at the output) and the fittings and adaptors to make it work with my set up. Make no mistake. The tank is heavy, but can be carried by hand. (weighs about 40 pounds) But, because the booth set up at the various fairs and festivals could vary, I would need a moving dolly to carry all my gear and booth parts anyway. For those of you who'd work from home or a studio, you'd only have to move the tank to get it refilled.
The great thing about my set up was that a refill of CO2 cost less than $20 and a tank would last about a year of weekend festivals and working at home to fill mail ordered shirts.
Total costs included: about $ 100 for the tank (used), about $50 for the regulator (new), and less than $10 for fittings and adaptors.
ON THE CHEAP
While working those fairs and festivals, I got plenty of opportunities to see, work with and observe what others in the same situation did. One of the most clever set ups was a guy who bought a used auto tire and rim from a junkyard and adaptors to fit his brush. He got his refills either free or for a quarter at a gas station. One fill up of air would last him a weekend.
So, what you might want or need for a propellent source will depend on your individual preferences and situation. Look around. Do some research. Ask questions and be creative. Above all, have fun!
luv,
vince
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Airbrush, Propellent
Among the many alter egos under my artist's beret, I used to do custom airbrushed tee shirts at craft fairs, art festivals and holiday boutiques. It was just another way for a struggling freelancer to make some money. I'd seen others do it, and, although I had never tried wielding an airbrush I thought to myself that, being the master at all things visual, how hard could it be to spraypaint?
It turned out to be a bit more difficult than I imagined, but, through perserverence, I managed.
But that's not the point of today's blog. My intent is to answer the oft repeated questions of "What kind of airbrush should I get?" And "What materials should I buy?" and other "How do I ... ?" queries on the subject. I'm far from being an expert in the medium, but I WILL share my experience with all who are curious. I particulary wish to address those who have never done this or are rank beginners, wondering what the next step might be.
First, I wouldn't recommend someone purchase any high end, top of the line airbrush. They CAN be expensive and, if the interest fails, then that initial investment is wasted. Most art supply and craft stores, hobby shops and the like should offer some nice beginner's kits for a fairly reasonable price. There are many for under $100. One might be able to find some of these kits, online for much cheaper, but I can't advise on any reliable sites. These kits should include a brush, hose, adapter regulator for propellent cans, one or two of these cans, a jar or two of paint and a couple of empty paint jars with caps. It should also include an instruction booklet and some advice on airbrush techniques.
The beginner should have everything needed to get started and get the feel of what airbrushing is about. Like any skill, and particularly with any new medium, it will take a LOT of practice before even an experienced artist produces any work that looks decent. It takes practice to get a uniform spray pattern across a line. It takes practice to control the amount of ink/paint flowing onto the surface. It takes practice to make a nice, smooth blend or gradation. It takes patience and time. The artist that wants to succeed in this medium must be willing to put in that time to get there.
Use the materials in the box. What additional inks and colors you get will depend on your specific uses. For a while, you'll be resupplying what you use up, long before you need to consider any upgrades. Some of your first suggested purchases:
Airbrush inks/paints need to be of an even consistancy. It's been described as the thickness of heavy cream. It should flow like melted ice cream, but not dribble like water. These inks, particularly the acrylics and enamels need to be filtered EVERY DAY. Any solid particles suspended in the ink will tend to clog up the spray tip, resulting in "spitting," which REALLY messes up the spray pattern, or worse, a complete stoppage of ink flow. Acrylics, particularly, once they solidify, cannot be thinned down and dissolved back into the ink. These need to be taken out before the day's spraying begins. I suggest one picks up a square foot to a square yard of silk screen material from the art supply store. One can cut out a couple of square inches of this material and roll it into a small funnel through which the inks can be filtered. Once used, this piece of filter material can be tossed out. For each day's use, the expense is pennies but can be worth hours of heartache later.
Next issue will be the propellant. Those cans that come with the kits are relatively expensive and have some inherent problems. They don't last long and replacement costs will add up over time. The other issue is related to the pressure the propellant is under. Within a few minutes of use, as the pressure in the can drops, the outside of the can will condense the moisture in the air and form a crust of frosty ice. It's the same principle by which air conditioning units work. As the crust of ice forms outside the can, it cools off the propellent inside the can. The colder the can, the faster the pressure drops. When the pressure drops low enough, it effects the spray pattern and evenutally stops spraying. And, at first, it's not that the propellent can is empty. It's just that the cold keeps the pressure down. If the can is left alone, the outside air thaws the icy crust, the can warms up and pressure rises again for further use. But this waiting time could be inconvenient. When I first started, I got into the habit of keeping two or three spare cans handy, so that when one can froze over, I'd switch cans so I could keep working while the cold ones warmed up.
But even this got to be pretty bothersome. I needed a better solution. I considered compressors. They make compressors, specifically for airbrush use, but, they were relatively expensive, and not at all useful in festival sites where there was no electricity available. I knew a few artists who utilized a used tire, filled with compressed air. But, for my booth, the look of a dirty tire in my workspace didn't sit well with me. Plus, the air contained limited the working time of any one fill up. Still, for a beginner, practicing his craft, this may be a good suggestion as a step up and improvement over the canned propellent from the art supply stores.
In my next post, I will cover what I learned about compressors of various kinds and other propellent sources, including the solution that I found best for my purposes. But for now, I want to mention a couple of other upgrades and supplies a beginner might need as he outgrows his first, basic airbrush kit.
For example, the hose. This is what connects the propellant source to the brush. Many of the basic kits will include a length of cheap vinyl tube. It certainly works but it does have issues. One is that it might not be flexible enough, has a tendancy to kink, and, in the sun, may weaken and literally expand like a balloon and pop. The solution is to get a nice, rubber hose that is wrapped in a woven, fabric sleeve. Much more flexible, resists kinking and the fabric sleeve gives it the strength to work under the most severe conditions that outdoor arts and crafts festivals might offer.
Other supplies: Extra ink bottles, caps and the special caps with the feeder tubes. I found it handy to keep some of the most commonly used colors already filtered and mixed for quick changes while working. Either a running water source or a tub, vat or jug of water for rinsing out the brush while changing colors or for easy clean up after a session. Lots of rags and or paper towels and other cleaning supplies. Exacto blades, pens, pencils, markers for cutting stencils. (a great time saver for those designs the proved to be most popular. I can't even TELL you how many '57 Chevy Bel Aire tees I created any single season) Plain old Manilla folders turned out to be a pretty good stencil material. They were flexible and durable. Plus, I had LOTS of old ones stacked up on a studio shelf because I was too cheap to throw them away. I found pipe cleaners pretty handy for picking out bits of acrylic clogging up the brush's innards. A handy toolbox for storing and organizing these supplies. I got a nice, heavy duty plastic one at a hardware store, about eighteen inches across, eight inches deep and twelve inches tall. It had three drawers with dividers and a nice well open from the top. It was perfect for working in the field or in my studio.
So, notice that I didn't mention specific brands or kits. My preference may not meet everyone else's needs. I hope, however, that in general terms, I've offered some help to beginners who just want to try out a new medium. As promised, in my next post, I will go into a deeper discussion about propellant sources.
Until then, cheers.
luv,
vince
It turned out to be a bit more difficult than I imagined, but, through perserverence, I managed.
But that's not the point of today's blog. My intent is to answer the oft repeated questions of "What kind of airbrush should I get?" And "What materials should I buy?" and other "How do I ... ?" queries on the subject. I'm far from being an expert in the medium, but I WILL share my experience with all who are curious. I particulary wish to address those who have never done this or are rank beginners, wondering what the next step might be.
First, I wouldn't recommend someone purchase any high end, top of the line airbrush. They CAN be expensive and, if the interest fails, then that initial investment is wasted. Most art supply and craft stores, hobby shops and the like should offer some nice beginner's kits for a fairly reasonable price. There are many for under $100. One might be able to find some of these kits, online for much cheaper, but I can't advise on any reliable sites. These kits should include a brush, hose, adapter regulator for propellent cans, one or two of these cans, a jar or two of paint and a couple of empty paint jars with caps. It should also include an instruction booklet and some advice on airbrush techniques.
The beginner should have everything needed to get started and get the feel of what airbrushing is about. Like any skill, and particularly with any new medium, it will take a LOT of practice before even an experienced artist produces any work that looks decent. It takes practice to get a uniform spray pattern across a line. It takes practice to control the amount of ink/paint flowing onto the surface. It takes practice to make a nice, smooth blend or gradation. It takes patience and time. The artist that wants to succeed in this medium must be willing to put in that time to get there.
Use the materials in the box. What additional inks and colors you get will depend on your specific uses. For a while, you'll be resupplying what you use up, long before you need to consider any upgrades. Some of your first suggested purchases:
Airbrush inks/paints need to be of an even consistancy. It's been described as the thickness of heavy cream. It should flow like melted ice cream, but not dribble like water. These inks, particularly the acrylics and enamels need to be filtered EVERY DAY. Any solid particles suspended in the ink will tend to clog up the spray tip, resulting in "spitting," which REALLY messes up the spray pattern, or worse, a complete stoppage of ink flow. Acrylics, particularly, once they solidify, cannot be thinned down and dissolved back into the ink. These need to be taken out before the day's spraying begins. I suggest one picks up a square foot to a square yard of silk screen material from the art supply store. One can cut out a couple of square inches of this material and roll it into a small funnel through which the inks can be filtered. Once used, this piece of filter material can be tossed out. For each day's use, the expense is pennies but can be worth hours of heartache later.
Next issue will be the propellant. Those cans that come with the kits are relatively expensive and have some inherent problems. They don't last long and replacement costs will add up over time. The other issue is related to the pressure the propellant is under. Within a few minutes of use, as the pressure in the can drops, the outside of the can will condense the moisture in the air and form a crust of frosty ice. It's the same principle by which air conditioning units work. As the crust of ice forms outside the can, it cools off the propellent inside the can. The colder the can, the faster the pressure drops. When the pressure drops low enough, it effects the spray pattern and evenutally stops spraying. And, at first, it's not that the propellent can is empty. It's just that the cold keeps the pressure down. If the can is left alone, the outside air thaws the icy crust, the can warms up and pressure rises again for further use. But this waiting time could be inconvenient. When I first started, I got into the habit of keeping two or three spare cans handy, so that when one can froze over, I'd switch cans so I could keep working while the cold ones warmed up.
But even this got to be pretty bothersome. I needed a better solution. I considered compressors. They make compressors, specifically for airbrush use, but, they were relatively expensive, and not at all useful in festival sites where there was no electricity available. I knew a few artists who utilized a used tire, filled with compressed air. But, for my booth, the look of a dirty tire in my workspace didn't sit well with me. Plus, the air contained limited the working time of any one fill up. Still, for a beginner, practicing his craft, this may be a good suggestion as a step up and improvement over the canned propellent from the art supply stores.
In my next post, I will cover what I learned about compressors of various kinds and other propellent sources, including the solution that I found best for my purposes. But for now, I want to mention a couple of other upgrades and supplies a beginner might need as he outgrows his first, basic airbrush kit.
For example, the hose. This is what connects the propellant source to the brush. Many of the basic kits will include a length of cheap vinyl tube. It certainly works but it does have issues. One is that it might not be flexible enough, has a tendancy to kink, and, in the sun, may weaken and literally expand like a balloon and pop. The solution is to get a nice, rubber hose that is wrapped in a woven, fabric sleeve. Much more flexible, resists kinking and the fabric sleeve gives it the strength to work under the most severe conditions that outdoor arts and crafts festivals might offer.
Other supplies: Extra ink bottles, caps and the special caps with the feeder tubes. I found it handy to keep some of the most commonly used colors already filtered and mixed for quick changes while working. Either a running water source or a tub, vat or jug of water for rinsing out the brush while changing colors or for easy clean up after a session. Lots of rags and or paper towels and other cleaning supplies. Exacto blades, pens, pencils, markers for cutting stencils. (a great time saver for those designs the proved to be most popular. I can't even TELL you how many '57 Chevy Bel Aire tees I created any single season) Plain old Manilla folders turned out to be a pretty good stencil material. They were flexible and durable. Plus, I had LOTS of old ones stacked up on a studio shelf because I was too cheap to throw them away. I found pipe cleaners pretty handy for picking out bits of acrylic clogging up the brush's innards. A handy toolbox for storing and organizing these supplies. I got a nice, heavy duty plastic one at a hardware store, about eighteen inches across, eight inches deep and twelve inches tall. It had three drawers with dividers and a nice well open from the top. It was perfect for working in the field or in my studio.
So, notice that I didn't mention specific brands or kits. My preference may not meet everyone else's needs. I hope, however, that in general terms, I've offered some help to beginners who just want to try out a new medium. As promised, in my next post, I will go into a deeper discussion about propellant sources.
Until then, cheers.
luv,
vince
Friday, September 18, 2009
Fan Mail or a form of Spam
I may have picked up a fan on Yahoo Answers. It appears that someone is going back through many of my old responses (as well as more recent) and voting mine as "Best Answer."
Normally, I'd be very flattered by the attention and recognition. But, this person has been doing it to the tune of over a hundred a day for the last few days. Here's the problem. Everytime one of mine gets voted "Best Answer," Yahoo automatically sends and email informing me of this. The problem is that it has been clogging up my email inbox. One of my simple pleasures has always been to open my mail and see the usual three, four or more mails showing another few "Best Answers." I open the mail, see which questions got the vote and click into the link so I can re read the question, note whether it was the asker's determination and read his commments or whether it was voted on by other readers. I contribute a LOT to Yahoo Answers and these notifications are my "feedback" to my contribution.
But now, these notifications have become a nuisance. The first couple of days I was plowing through page after page of these, but found myself losing a lot of time that should be devoted to my work and other interests. I was offline for two days and this morning I found about 250 new emails, most of them from Yahoo Answers. After spending about a half hour going through them, I decided, finally, to just select and delete the messages remaining, unread. Kind of takes away that "little pleasure" I was getting from it.
If that "fan" of mine reads this blog, then please, please, show some restraint. I really don't need the points that YA offers. I'm already at the highest participation level. Thanks for the interest. I really DO appreciate it, but what I'm afraid might happens is that I'll get "reported" for using some unfair practice of voting for my own responses, via proxy, for "Best Answer." Believe me, I know, for a fact, that others get to the top levels by doing just that. But I know for a fact, as I'm sure do you, that I got my points and level the hard way, by providing the best, most accurate information I have available.
I'd hate to lose my hard earned credibility by my responses being cheapened by suspicion of underhanded "playing for points," instead of because of my desire to help. Please, slow it down or pace it out a bit.
So, thanks for the points. It's given me a boost in ego, and I hope you still show interest in what I have to offer. What I really hope is that you become a fan of what I am trying to accomplish in this blog.
Normally, I'd be very flattered by the attention and recognition. But, this person has been doing it to the tune of over a hundred a day for the last few days. Here's the problem. Everytime one of mine gets voted "Best Answer," Yahoo automatically sends and email informing me of this. The problem is that it has been clogging up my email inbox. One of my simple pleasures has always been to open my mail and see the usual three, four or more mails showing another few "Best Answers." I open the mail, see which questions got the vote and click into the link so I can re read the question, note whether it was the asker's determination and read his commments or whether it was voted on by other readers. I contribute a LOT to Yahoo Answers and these notifications are my "feedback" to my contribution.
But now, these notifications have become a nuisance. The first couple of days I was plowing through page after page of these, but found myself losing a lot of time that should be devoted to my work and other interests. I was offline for two days and this morning I found about 250 new emails, most of them from Yahoo Answers. After spending about a half hour going through them, I decided, finally, to just select and delete the messages remaining, unread. Kind of takes away that "little pleasure" I was getting from it.
If that "fan" of mine reads this blog, then please, please, show some restraint. I really don't need the points that YA offers. I'm already at the highest participation level. Thanks for the interest. I really DO appreciate it, but what I'm afraid might happens is that I'll get "reported" for using some unfair practice of voting for my own responses, via proxy, for "Best Answer." Believe me, I know, for a fact, that others get to the top levels by doing just that. But I know for a fact, as I'm sure do you, that I got my points and level the hard way, by providing the best, most accurate information I have available.
I'd hate to lose my hard earned credibility by my responses being cheapened by suspicion of underhanded "playing for points," instead of because of my desire to help. Please, slow it down or pace it out a bit.
So, thanks for the points. It's given me a boost in ego, and I hope you still show interest in what I have to offer. What I really hope is that you become a fan of what I am trying to accomplish in this blog.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
What, How to Draw
I think I can attempt to answer two common questions, here, that come up virtually every day in Yahoo Answers. "What do I draw?" "How do I draw?" And other, similar queries like, "How do I get better at drawing?" "Can someone give me step by step instructions on how to draw a ... ?"
I know, from experience, that almost anyone can learn to draw. It doesn't require any special, innate, inborn "talent" to draw well. Drawing is a skill, and, like any skill, it has to be developed and practiced. In this way, it is no different than playing an instrument, singing, dancing, racing a motorcycle, public speaking, skipping rope, driving a car, making record breaking high jumps or pretty much any skill. What it takes is to learn the technique(s), practicing the heck out of them and keep working at it until the skill is mastered. (good coaching also helps)
It's true that, for all of these "skills" it comes more naturally and with less effort for some, but, think about it. No infant is born with the ability to pick up a pencil and immediately start making good drawings. Like with anyone else, this infant has to learn how to do things. Someone with a natural born talent may learn it faster, but he or she must still learn.
But almost anyone can do it. All it takes is a desire to do it and the willingness to put in the time and work at practice to have the skill developed. Imagine, say, a world class sprinter. He or she learns the technique needed to get the most out of one's efforts. He would practice the technique of starting off of the blocks, how to pump one's arms, how to place one's feet, how to breathe, how to THINK and so on. Knowing the technique is not enough. This athlete must spend hours upon hours practicing these small techniques that add up to a set of skills. The more time he spends practicing and perfecting the techniques, the better he will perform.
It's no different with learning to draw. Just getting down a few techniques and tricks in class or out of a book is not enough. The artist must spend time in practice. Spending many HOURS in practice will yield better results that just spending a few minutes at it. In fact, anyone wishing to BE an artist should expect to spend a LIFETIME perfecting his craft. A world class runner can't expect the hours spent practicing in college to keep him at the top of his form for the rest of his life. He has to keep practicing or else his skills get rusty. Same for the motocross racer. Same for the guitarist. Same for the artist.
So, the answer to "How do I learn to draw better?" is to practice drawing. And the best practice is to draw from real life. I knew many kids in school who could draw one thing, one subject or one set of subjects very well. I knew lots of young women who could draw the prettiest little pony heads. They could draw them with jeweled harness, colorful manes and big, beautiful horsey eyes. They could draw them an any color one could imagine and impress the heck out of everyone who would see them. But if one were to ask them to draw the pony head from, say, another angle, or for them to draw the rest of the horse, or to show the horse in different poses and actions, these girls could only look at me with a blank stare. Because, of course, they could ONLY draw their little pony heads and nothing else. They spent all of their drawing time on that one single subject. They had but to set a pencil down to paper and they'd crank out a "masterpiece" pony head every time
But that's all they could do.
For others, they could draw super heros in their favorite action pose. But they could NOT do that same character, sitting down, eating a sandwich, or draw them from a different point of view, say, from above, looking down. They couldn't begin to draw the same character in regular street clothes. Or worse, they couldn't draw the character IN a scene because they never spent time drawing anything but the hero, just in an action pose.
I knew kids that could draw motorcycles and nothing else. Or rock band poses in dramatic lighting, and nothing else. Or fashion models and nothing else. Or puppies, or kittes, or birdies, but nothing else.
So, my advice to those who want to learn to draw, or to draw better or to draw specific things ... My advice is to go out and draw. Draw everything. Draw anything and keep drawing it until you "get it right." Draw the chair in your room. Draw it from the side, the front, from above. Draw it from floor level. Draw it at different angles. Draw it next to a table. Draw the table and chair in the corner of the room, next to the bookcase. Draw what you see out the window. Step outside and draw what you see through the window looking in. Draw a tree, flower, bush, the neighbor's cat. Draw other houses. Draw a car. Draw another kind of car.
Draw clouds, mountains, fountains, park benches and chipmonks. Draw kids playing on the slide and the wino sleeping on the grass. Draw everything you see and keep making drawings. Go buy a cheap sketchbook and make LOTS and lots of drawings. Don't expect every sketch to be a masterpiece. That's why they call it practice. That hypothetical world class runner doesn't expect a record breaking run every time he goes out to practice. That's why HE calls it practice. But, regarding your sketchbook: What you SHOULD expect is those quick sketches at the back of the book should look better than the sketches near the front of the book. And the second book of sketches that much better than the first book, and so on.
And, finally, as you start seeing progress, then you can start concentrating at improving what you might percieve as your "weaknesses." Having trouble with faces? Spend more time drawing face sketches. Can't seem to get the hands and fingers right? Spend time working on those. Having trouble with sketching moving people? Spend a lot of time doing quick sketches.
The ultimate answer is NOT just taking a class, or reading a book or going to some website. There are no shortcuts. It takes a lot of hard work, time and effort to become a good artist. Practice, practice, practice!
luv,
vince
I know, from experience, that almost anyone can learn to draw. It doesn't require any special, innate, inborn "talent" to draw well. Drawing is a skill, and, like any skill, it has to be developed and practiced. In this way, it is no different than playing an instrument, singing, dancing, racing a motorcycle, public speaking, skipping rope, driving a car, making record breaking high jumps or pretty much any skill. What it takes is to learn the technique(s), practicing the heck out of them and keep working at it until the skill is mastered. (good coaching also helps)
It's true that, for all of these "skills" it comes more naturally and with less effort for some, but, think about it. No infant is born with the ability to pick up a pencil and immediately start making good drawings. Like with anyone else, this infant has to learn how to do things. Someone with a natural born talent may learn it faster, but he or she must still learn.
But almost anyone can do it. All it takes is a desire to do it and the willingness to put in the time and work at practice to have the skill developed. Imagine, say, a world class sprinter. He or she learns the technique needed to get the most out of one's efforts. He would practice the technique of starting off of the blocks, how to pump one's arms, how to place one's feet, how to breathe, how to THINK and so on. Knowing the technique is not enough. This athlete must spend hours upon hours practicing these small techniques that add up to a set of skills. The more time he spends practicing and perfecting the techniques, the better he will perform.
It's no different with learning to draw. Just getting down a few techniques and tricks in class or out of a book is not enough. The artist must spend time in practice. Spending many HOURS in practice will yield better results that just spending a few minutes at it. In fact, anyone wishing to BE an artist should expect to spend a LIFETIME perfecting his craft. A world class runner can't expect the hours spent practicing in college to keep him at the top of his form for the rest of his life. He has to keep practicing or else his skills get rusty. Same for the motocross racer. Same for the guitarist. Same for the artist.
So, the answer to "How do I learn to draw better?" is to practice drawing. And the best practice is to draw from real life. I knew many kids in school who could draw one thing, one subject or one set of subjects very well. I knew lots of young women who could draw the prettiest little pony heads. They could draw them with jeweled harness, colorful manes and big, beautiful horsey eyes. They could draw them an any color one could imagine and impress the heck out of everyone who would see them. But if one were to ask them to draw the pony head from, say, another angle, or for them to draw the rest of the horse, or to show the horse in different poses and actions, these girls could only look at me with a blank stare. Because, of course, they could ONLY draw their little pony heads and nothing else. They spent all of their drawing time on that one single subject. They had but to set a pencil down to paper and they'd crank out a "masterpiece" pony head every time
But that's all they could do.
For others, they could draw super heros in their favorite action pose. But they could NOT do that same character, sitting down, eating a sandwich, or draw them from a different point of view, say, from above, looking down. They couldn't begin to draw the same character in regular street clothes. Or worse, they couldn't draw the character IN a scene because they never spent time drawing anything but the hero, just in an action pose.
I knew kids that could draw motorcycles and nothing else. Or rock band poses in dramatic lighting, and nothing else. Or fashion models and nothing else. Or puppies, or kittes, or birdies, but nothing else.
So, my advice to those who want to learn to draw, or to draw better or to draw specific things ... My advice is to go out and draw. Draw everything. Draw anything and keep drawing it until you "get it right." Draw the chair in your room. Draw it from the side, the front, from above. Draw it from floor level. Draw it at different angles. Draw it next to a table. Draw the table and chair in the corner of the room, next to the bookcase. Draw what you see out the window. Step outside and draw what you see through the window looking in. Draw a tree, flower, bush, the neighbor's cat. Draw other houses. Draw a car. Draw another kind of car.
Draw clouds, mountains, fountains, park benches and chipmonks. Draw kids playing on the slide and the wino sleeping on the grass. Draw everything you see and keep making drawings. Go buy a cheap sketchbook and make LOTS and lots of drawings. Don't expect every sketch to be a masterpiece. That's why they call it practice. That hypothetical world class runner doesn't expect a record breaking run every time he goes out to practice. That's why HE calls it practice. But, regarding your sketchbook: What you SHOULD expect is those quick sketches at the back of the book should look better than the sketches near the front of the book. And the second book of sketches that much better than the first book, and so on.
And, finally, as you start seeing progress, then you can start concentrating at improving what you might percieve as your "weaknesses." Having trouble with faces? Spend more time drawing face sketches. Can't seem to get the hands and fingers right? Spend time working on those. Having trouble with sketching moving people? Spend a lot of time doing quick sketches.
The ultimate answer is NOT just taking a class, or reading a book or going to some website. There are no shortcuts. It takes a lot of hard work, time and effort to become a good artist. Practice, practice, practice!
luv,
vince
Monday, September 14, 2009
Fonts: Serif vs. San Serif
What font should be used and WHY use that particular one?
There are hundreds, if not thousands of font families available. All of them have some distinct quality that makes them different from the others. But why are there so many and how does a designer choose the "best" one for a layout?
The fact is that many of these typfaces are just some artist's creative expression. Some fonts were created just for the sake of taking some artistic license with the alphabet. For some, they serve no better purpose than "looking pretty," or "awesome," or just plain different.
But for the designer, typesetter or artist, the main point of ANY font is to be read and the reader get some meaning for the characters. Of course, letters, words, sentences and paragraphs can have literal meanings, but, a clever designer can imbue more subtle messages in selection, use, and placement of text. It is only a secondary consideration that a designer would choose a typeface for it's "decorative" appearance. Understand, I'm not suggesting that a decorative font should never be used. But the adornment of a layout is NOT the most important use for text in a document.
I had a design teacher that insisted that the so called decorative fonts have no place legitmate page layouts, but I disagree. What I believe, and what I practice is that a typeface should be carefully selected and used in very specific applications. As I said, it must be READ first, and then decorate second.
Putting aside the "decorative" fonts, I want to point out the best uses for serif and sans serif fonts. Serifs, in most fonts, have a purpose that has nothing to do with decoration. In a page or paragraph containing muliple lines of text, the serif at the top and bottom of the line help keep the eye "tracking" along the line. With out the serif "leading" the eye, the reader tends to wander off of the line, skipping up or down, playing havoc with the comprehension of what is being read. It's not that a page of sans serif CAN'T be read, but the serifs make it EASIER to be read. And the easier text can be read, the more of the contents is retained in the mind.
Large blocks of text have a LOT of detail, meant to be remembered. It is in these blocks that serifs have the most purpose.
However, there are appropriate places in a layout where sans serif typfaces not only work, but work best in some applications. These would be in headlines, section and chapter headings and similar places. Do you remember the FIRST letters you had to learn and memorize when you learned your ABCs? They were plain, block letters, made with lines as simple as a letter could be made. The "A" was just two lines meeting at a peak and a short cross bar. The "B" was a straight vertical line and two half circles. It was the alphabet at it's most basic shape. If a word is meant to be read quickly and with no hesitation, a good, block letter, sans serif font is the FASTEST typeface the mind will recognize. That is because this style is our earliest experience with the written language. All other typfaces are derived from this one. (including the script and other decorative fonts)
So on posters and billboards, designed to be quickly read and comprehended in passing, the main headlines tend to be sans serif. "SALE!" "Clearance" "Buy Now!" The desinger intends these words to stand out, attract attention and be remembered. There ARE other tricks and methods, such as using boldface and italics, but the sans serif letter is the most basic.
Section and chapter headings serve a similar purpose. They are meant to help the reader, either, begin to set his mind to what is to come, or to help the reader navigate to the part of the document in which he may have a certain interest.
Serifed letters CAN work in these cases, but the particular typface must still be chosen well. Serifs in headline blocks of text CAN distract the reader.
That last pargraph brings to mind the more decorative typfaces. As long as the text can be read, and does not distract from the message, these fonts do have a place. For example, they might help express a mood, memory or other subliminal message. A company name in fancy, cursive font can work very well for a nail salon, romantic getaway or similar business. Old Western letters can evoke a period of American history for a rodeo, horse rental stable or old Western film revival. Other typefaces evoke other periods or cultures, like Old English, American Colonial, Victorian, even Middle Eastern and Asian. In the appropriate place, these can serve the designer very well, as long as they serve the PRIMARY purpose of legibility.
There are a LOT of fonts, out there that almost NEVER work except to make the meaning more difficult to extract. Sometimes, this is done on purpose. I'm thinking, specifically of some of the posters of the psychedelic, hippie period of the late sixties and early seventies. In many of these layouts, the designers INTENDED for the reader to pause and consciously extract the meaning, one letter at a time. It is that extra effort that the reader put into interpreting the poster that made some of those designs so interesting from a historical standpoint. But this kind of effort is almost never put out by most readers. So, if the designer wants a clear message imparted and REMEMBERED, then the best font is an EASY one that works in it's proper place and time.
Like the placement, color and arrangement of all the other elements in a layout, the designer has to make a careful choice of the right font to use.
luv,
vince
There are hundreds, if not thousands of font families available. All of them have some distinct quality that makes them different from the others. But why are there so many and how does a designer choose the "best" one for a layout?
The fact is that many of these typfaces are just some artist's creative expression. Some fonts were created just for the sake of taking some artistic license with the alphabet. For some, they serve no better purpose than "looking pretty," or "awesome," or just plain different.
But for the designer, typesetter or artist, the main point of ANY font is to be read and the reader get some meaning for the characters. Of course, letters, words, sentences and paragraphs can have literal meanings, but, a clever designer can imbue more subtle messages in selection, use, and placement of text. It is only a secondary consideration that a designer would choose a typeface for it's "decorative" appearance. Understand, I'm not suggesting that a decorative font should never be used. But the adornment of a layout is NOT the most important use for text in a document.
I had a design teacher that insisted that the so called decorative fonts have no place legitmate page layouts, but I disagree. What I believe, and what I practice is that a typeface should be carefully selected and used in very specific applications. As I said, it must be READ first, and then decorate second.
Putting aside the "decorative" fonts, I want to point out the best uses for serif and sans serif fonts. Serifs, in most fonts, have a purpose that has nothing to do with decoration. In a page or paragraph containing muliple lines of text, the serif at the top and bottom of the line help keep the eye "tracking" along the line. With out the serif "leading" the eye, the reader tends to wander off of the line, skipping up or down, playing havoc with the comprehension of what is being read. It's not that a page of sans serif CAN'T be read, but the serifs make it EASIER to be read. And the easier text can be read, the more of the contents is retained in the mind.
Large blocks of text have a LOT of detail, meant to be remembered. It is in these blocks that serifs have the most purpose.
However, there are appropriate places in a layout where sans serif typfaces not only work, but work best in some applications. These would be in headlines, section and chapter headings and similar places. Do you remember the FIRST letters you had to learn and memorize when you learned your ABCs? They were plain, block letters, made with lines as simple as a letter could be made. The "A" was just two lines meeting at a peak and a short cross bar. The "B" was a straight vertical line and two half circles. It was the alphabet at it's most basic shape. If a word is meant to be read quickly and with no hesitation, a good, block letter, sans serif font is the FASTEST typeface the mind will recognize. That is because this style is our earliest experience with the written language. All other typfaces are derived from this one. (including the script and other decorative fonts)
So on posters and billboards, designed to be quickly read and comprehended in passing, the main headlines tend to be sans serif. "SALE!" "Clearance" "Buy Now!" The desinger intends these words to stand out, attract attention and be remembered. There ARE other tricks and methods, such as using boldface and italics, but the sans serif letter is the most basic.
Section and chapter headings serve a similar purpose. They are meant to help the reader, either, begin to set his mind to what is to come, or to help the reader navigate to the part of the document in which he may have a certain interest.
Serifed letters CAN work in these cases, but the particular typface must still be chosen well. Serifs in headline blocks of text CAN distract the reader.
That last pargraph brings to mind the more decorative typfaces. As long as the text can be read, and does not distract from the message, these fonts do have a place. For example, they might help express a mood, memory or other subliminal message. A company name in fancy, cursive font can work very well for a nail salon, romantic getaway or similar business. Old Western letters can evoke a period of American history for a rodeo, horse rental stable or old Western film revival. Other typefaces evoke other periods or cultures, like Old English, American Colonial, Victorian, even Middle Eastern and Asian. In the appropriate place, these can serve the designer very well, as long as they serve the PRIMARY purpose of legibility.
There are a LOT of fonts, out there that almost NEVER work except to make the meaning more difficult to extract. Sometimes, this is done on purpose. I'm thinking, specifically of some of the posters of the psychedelic, hippie period of the late sixties and early seventies. In many of these layouts, the designers INTENDED for the reader to pause and consciously extract the meaning, one letter at a time. It is that extra effort that the reader put into interpreting the poster that made some of those designs so interesting from a historical standpoint. But this kind of effort is almost never put out by most readers. So, if the designer wants a clear message imparted and REMEMBERED, then the best font is an EASY one that works in it's proper place and time.
Like the placement, color and arrangement of all the other elements in a layout, the designer has to make a careful choice of the right font to use.
luv,
vince
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Why So Many Softwares?
Common question comes up in Yahoo Answers. It can take many forms, from, "Which graphics software should I get?" to "Do I REALLY need both Photoshop AND Illustrator?" to, "What's the difference between ...?"
It essentially boils down to this: For digital graphics designer, all these different software applications are analogous to a carpenter's tool box. A good carpenter will have several different kinds and sizes of saws, different screwdrivers, different size hammers and so on. The different applications available are designed to do different functions. Many will have some functions and features in common with each other, but EACH will do some things particularly well.
For the sake of this blog, I'll mostly write about the three most popular Adobe apps; Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. All of them can handle text to one degree or another. All of them allow graphics to be placed in a document along with text. All of them are able to create various kinds of shapes and graphic images All of them allow some pre-print operations to be done such as color separations and others. A designer can make a page layout in all of these products. But taken separately, EACH of them performs certain distinct functions better than the others.
For pixel based graphics, only Photoshop has the multitude of image manipulation features that the others don't. It excells in color adjustment, photo "editing" and many of the kinds of operations that used to take many hot, sweaty hours in a darkroom to do. And like most of the best apps out there, Photoshop offers many different ways to do similar tasks, so that the well trained designer can choose which method will get the best results for the job. One CAN create a large poster or billboard design in Photoshop, but the file size becomes HUGE and unwieldy and not as practical as in other apps.
Illustrator, on the other hand, is unchallenged as the best vector based, scalable illustration program on the market. Again, in the hands of a skilled user, this app can create, from scratch, anything from the simplest logo work to photorealistic images of all kinds. And vector based graphics can be scaled down to the smallest graphics apps, like business cards and telephone directories, up to the largest billboards and building side ads that can be imagined. And this resizing can be done without having to design or re create the original image, and be done without losing any detail or introducing any boxy "pixelization" of the lines. A graphics designer CAN do decent page layouts in Illustrator, but for large, text heavy projects like a book of a couple of hundred pages, it becomes extremely labor intensive when you condider that other apps can do this much easier and faster.
InDesign is created with an entirely different purpose. It is designed to make page layouts as easy and automated as it can get. It is a true WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) application. The artist can place text and graphics anywhere on the page he or she sees fit. These elements can be moved, edited, deleted and finalized as needed. Text and graphics can be imported (placed) from and into all kinds of formats and, many of thes operations can be automated with the use of Master Pages, style sheets and other features. Once a page is set up, hundreds of pages of text can be placed and the software automatically adds and creates new pages to take it all in. These, and many other features make it the application of choice for many professional page layout designers. An artist CAN create many simple and colorful graphics such as some logos and such, but these capabilities are very limited compared to what other apps can do.
So, add to these "big three," my designer's tool box contains a LOT of different, specialty apps that make my job a lot easier and faster. Any full time freelance designer can tell you that, in this business, time really DOES equal money. Just off the top of my head I can list programs like Microsoft Word, Dreamweaver, Flash, Acrobat Pro, Streamline, Dimensions, Excel, QuickBooks, and many more. Other designers have their own choices. As with a carpenter, technician or other trained user, the choice of tools is a very personal thing.
An analogy I like to use is that one CAN drive a nail with the flat side of a box wrench, but a hammer does a much better job.
luv,
vince
It essentially boils down to this: For digital graphics designer, all these different software applications are analogous to a carpenter's tool box. A good carpenter will have several different kinds and sizes of saws, different screwdrivers, different size hammers and so on. The different applications available are designed to do different functions. Many will have some functions and features in common with each other, but EACH will do some things particularly well.
For the sake of this blog, I'll mostly write about the three most popular Adobe apps; Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. All of them can handle text to one degree or another. All of them allow graphics to be placed in a document along with text. All of them are able to create various kinds of shapes and graphic images All of them allow some pre-print operations to be done such as color separations and others. A designer can make a page layout in all of these products. But taken separately, EACH of them performs certain distinct functions better than the others.
For pixel based graphics, only Photoshop has the multitude of image manipulation features that the others don't. It excells in color adjustment, photo "editing" and many of the kinds of operations that used to take many hot, sweaty hours in a darkroom to do. And like most of the best apps out there, Photoshop offers many different ways to do similar tasks, so that the well trained designer can choose which method will get the best results for the job. One CAN create a large poster or billboard design in Photoshop, but the file size becomes HUGE and unwieldy and not as practical as in other apps.
Illustrator, on the other hand, is unchallenged as the best vector based, scalable illustration program on the market. Again, in the hands of a skilled user, this app can create, from scratch, anything from the simplest logo work to photorealistic images of all kinds. And vector based graphics can be scaled down to the smallest graphics apps, like business cards and telephone directories, up to the largest billboards and building side ads that can be imagined. And this resizing can be done without having to design or re create the original image, and be done without losing any detail or introducing any boxy "pixelization" of the lines. A graphics designer CAN do decent page layouts in Illustrator, but for large, text heavy projects like a book of a couple of hundred pages, it becomes extremely labor intensive when you condider that other apps can do this much easier and faster.
InDesign is created with an entirely different purpose. It is designed to make page layouts as easy and automated as it can get. It is a true WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) application. The artist can place text and graphics anywhere on the page he or she sees fit. These elements can be moved, edited, deleted and finalized as needed. Text and graphics can be imported (placed) from and into all kinds of formats and, many of thes operations can be automated with the use of Master Pages, style sheets and other features. Once a page is set up, hundreds of pages of text can be placed and the software automatically adds and creates new pages to take it all in. These, and many other features make it the application of choice for many professional page layout designers. An artist CAN create many simple and colorful graphics such as some logos and such, but these capabilities are very limited compared to what other apps can do.
So, add to these "big three," my designer's tool box contains a LOT of different, specialty apps that make my job a lot easier and faster. Any full time freelance designer can tell you that, in this business, time really DOES equal money. Just off the top of my head I can list programs like Microsoft Word, Dreamweaver, Flash, Acrobat Pro, Streamline, Dimensions, Excel, QuickBooks, and many more. Other designers have their own choices. As with a carpenter, technician or other trained user, the choice of tools is a very personal thing.
An analogy I like to use is that one CAN drive a nail with the flat side of a box wrench, but a hammer does a much better job.
luv,
vince
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
"How do I do this?" Yahoo Answers
Before I get into specific, step-by-step help for certain subjects, I feel the need to address the quality of how some questions get asked on Yahoo Answers.
For example "How do I make a black and white picture with just one area in color?" This question comes up several times a day, almost seven days a week. Besides the fact that since it is asked dozens of times a week and is already answered dozens of times a week, the other thing that bothers me about it and the many other subjects people ask about is that the asker does not give us any clue about what tools or supplies he or she has available.
Are they looking at a copy of People Magazine and want to know how to make that Jonas Brothers photo into black and white but leave Engelbert Jonas (or whatever his name is) in full, natural color? Or are they looking at a print they just got back from the pharmacy, of a flower they shot while at the lake, and wish it was all black and white except the flower petals? Or did they download a photo from a site and want that picture of the girl dancing to be all dark like and want just the dress to be in color?
So, to BEGIN to answer that question, we, and the rest of the Yahoo Answers community, need to know what kind of image you have and in what form or format. And, how do you want it to end up? Of course, we MIGHT assume that you are expecting to do this on the computer, but how do we know for sure? I mean, the most basic answer could be, to make two copies of the print, one in black and white and one in color, then cut out the color portion you want, carefully, with a pair of scissors, or, better yet, an Exacto knife, then glue or paste that color part on top of the black and white image. But, of course, on a computer it IS a different operation.
First, you open up your Notebook word processor. Or, if you are more advanced, Microsoft Word, or Works and then .... Oh, wait! You can't DO this in a word processor! Okay, then open up your Excel. No, that won't work either. Well, you'll just have to open up your seven hundred dollar version of Adobe Photoshop CS4. What's that? You don't HAVE Adobe Photoshop CS4?
How can we help you if we don't know WHAT software app you have? And that's my point. You don't need CS4. It can be done is CS3, or CS2 or older versions of Photoshop. Or the relatively inexpensive Photoshop Elements. It doesn't have to be Photoshop at all. It could be done in Paint, Painter, Corel, Gimp or any of a dozen or more applications. But, the exact method, the "How do I do it?" part works different in each of these. So, we can't answer the question unless we know what you've got, or, even, how much you are willing to PAY for the app you need. (because we can also suggest products you can get that, not only fit your budget, but will do what you need without spending several hundred dollars for features you may never use)
And this applies to all kinds of questions like, "How do I put myself next to this picture of Miley Cyrus?" or, "How do I remove this person from the picture?" or, "How do I change the color of my eyes?" (I'm always SO tempted to say "Fill one of your grandma's insulin needles with food coloring and then inject it into..." but then I catch myself from falling into THAT legal quagmire) or, even, "How do I get rid of Red Eye in a photograph?"
"How to" depends on "What have you got?"
I mean, if you need us to come help you, you should, at least, try to take a step or two in our direction; reach a hand out, or something. ("I'm over here, next to the smelly swamp, not over there by the sweet smelling lilac bush!") Still, I guess, this kind of question is better than, "How do I use my computer to make my pictures more professional looking?" or, "How do I use Photoshop?" Might as well ask, on Yahoo Answers, "Tell me, step-by-step, how to take off, navigate and land a 747. I'm only a beginer in my driver training class."
Whether questions or answers, even I can't do it in fifty words or less.
luv,
vince
For example "How do I make a black and white picture with just one area in color?" This question comes up several times a day, almost seven days a week. Besides the fact that since it is asked dozens of times a week and is already answered dozens of times a week, the other thing that bothers me about it and the many other subjects people ask about is that the asker does not give us any clue about what tools or supplies he or she has available.
Are they looking at a copy of People Magazine and want to know how to make that Jonas Brothers photo into black and white but leave Engelbert Jonas (or whatever his name is) in full, natural color? Or are they looking at a print they just got back from the pharmacy, of a flower they shot while at the lake, and wish it was all black and white except the flower petals? Or did they download a photo from a site and want that picture of the girl dancing to be all dark like and want just the dress to be in color?
So, to BEGIN to answer that question, we, and the rest of the Yahoo Answers community, need to know what kind of image you have and in what form or format. And, how do you want it to end up? Of course, we MIGHT assume that you are expecting to do this on the computer, but how do we know for sure? I mean, the most basic answer could be, to make two copies of the print, one in black and white and one in color, then cut out the color portion you want, carefully, with a pair of scissors, or, better yet, an Exacto knife, then glue or paste that color part on top of the black and white image. But, of course, on a computer it IS a different operation.
First, you open up your Notebook word processor. Or, if you are more advanced, Microsoft Word, or Works and then .... Oh, wait! You can't DO this in a word processor! Okay, then open up your Excel. No, that won't work either. Well, you'll just have to open up your seven hundred dollar version of Adobe Photoshop CS4. What's that? You don't HAVE Adobe Photoshop CS4?
How can we help you if we don't know WHAT software app you have? And that's my point. You don't need CS4. It can be done is CS3, or CS2 or older versions of Photoshop. Or the relatively inexpensive Photoshop Elements. It doesn't have to be Photoshop at all. It could be done in Paint, Painter, Corel, Gimp or any of a dozen or more applications. But, the exact method, the "How do I do it?" part works different in each of these. So, we can't answer the question unless we know what you've got, or, even, how much you are willing to PAY for the app you need. (because we can also suggest products you can get that, not only fit your budget, but will do what you need without spending several hundred dollars for features you may never use)
And this applies to all kinds of questions like, "How do I put myself next to this picture of Miley Cyrus?" or, "How do I remove this person from the picture?" or, "How do I change the color of my eyes?" (I'm always SO tempted to say "Fill one of your grandma's insulin needles with food coloring and then inject it into..." but then I catch myself from falling into THAT legal quagmire) or, even, "How do I get rid of Red Eye in a photograph?"
"How to" depends on "What have you got?"
I mean, if you need us to come help you, you should, at least, try to take a step or two in our direction; reach a hand out, or something. ("I'm over here, next to the smelly swamp, not over there by the sweet smelling lilac bush!") Still, I guess, this kind of question is better than, "How do I use my computer to make my pictures more professional looking?" or, "How do I use Photoshop?" Might as well ask, on Yahoo Answers, "Tell me, step-by-step, how to take off, navigate and land a 747. I'm only a beginer in my driver training class."
Whether questions or answers, even I can't do it in fifty words or less.
luv,
vince
Monday, September 7, 2009
Freelanceing. Starting your own business.
In simplest terms, one should never start their own business unless they know something about how to RUN a business. Just because someone can draw pretty pictures, it does not follow that they know anything about making a living doing this.
For one thing, most who try doing freelance graphic design don't realize that the primary function, the most important thing they do, the activity in which they must spend the MOST time doing is ... SALES. Seriously, one can't just put up a notice, somplace, stating that one is available to make pretty pictures, and expect people to show up with cash in their hands and throwing it at the artist, asking for the work to be done. A freelancer has to go out and FIND the clients, or, most often, CREATE a clientele by showing them that they have a NEED for design work that they don't even know about.
I mean, I suppose, at first glance that one could read the postings on Yahoo Answers and see countless requests for drawing to be done, and a fairly long list of artists asking if someone wants a drawing made for them. One would think that these would be easy, natural match-ups. But, on closer inspection and a bit of reasonable deduction, one could figure out that most requests for artwork don't come with any mention of payment or other renumeration. And the other half of the equation is made up of amateurs that are desparate for attention because they have been told, (or led to believe) that they have talent and should be doing it for a living. Sadly, these DON'T make good matchups because the result of someone wanting free artwork and someone else willing to DO that work for free, ends up only proving the one gets what they paid for.
See, that's the problem with free, amateur work. Now matter what the field, it tends to come out looking "amateurish."
But, even considering that serious artist who has worked hard at developing his craft; the one who did serious studying and practiced his technique, learned composition, color theory and has mastered the tools of the trade. What makes him think he knows anything about running a professional design studio? For example, the common Yahoo Answers 'plaint, "How do I get my artwork 'Out There?" The answer is not that hard. What's hard is putting it to practice. You get it "Out There" by PUTTING it out there. You advertise. You research your market and target your effort where it may yeild the best results. You find who the art directors are at the various publishing houses, agencies and studios. You learn their names and what kind of art they "buy" and what kind of artists they work with. You find the right "fit" and then you work at letting them know that YOU are that "right fit."
You do direct mail campaigns and then repeat that effort two, three, four times a year. The flyer you sent out last year is long in the compost heap. You need to send out hundreds of glossy post cards. You need to update your distributed mini portfolio and swap out the images from your online portfolio.
You need to make cold calls by phone and door-to-door by pounding the pavement. And so on until the effort begins to pay off. And if it doesn't, then you need to reconsider your marketing strategy. And if that doesn't work and you run dry of ideas, perhaps you need to reconsider whether or not you SHOULD try to run a business for yourself.
And, after the marketing efforts, one needs to know what to do about taxes. An entrpreneur in the creative end of the business is not exempt from state and fedral taxes. What about sales tax? Does it apply in your state? Consider other issues: Zoning laws, labor laws, copyright laws, accounting and other bookeeping tasks, contract writing, collections and dunning, invoices, work orders, etc. A graphic designer can't expect customers to necessarily find their own print service bureaus, or even know what KIND of print services they might need. Clients tend to come to a designer with a project in mind and want the designer to come up with a finished product, whether it is a newspaper or magazine ad, concert poster, billboard, tee shirt or baseball hat. If one wants to run a business, one had better be prepared to know what needs to happen BEFORE it goes to print, (color separation, traps, chokes, bleeds, typesetting, creep, etc) and then where the project needs to go to get it done.
I'm sitting, here, trying to come up with the mountains of trivia and arcana of running a graphic design business and I'm sure I missed several important bits of knowlege that one should have on hand BEFORE starting to run a business. It's a lot. And, I've had more than one failed attempt to start in doing this full time and trying to make a living at it.
So my advice to all those amateurs out there who want to make money from whatever level of talent they've got. Go ahead, make your pretty pictures. Do some work for your friends, "for free." Take on whatever jobs you can find by undercutting the prices of the professionals. But to REALLY make a living at it, one has to have an extensive skill set that doesn't traditioanally come as part of a high school or community college art class. And then, go out and compete in the real, cut throat world of professional graphic design.
Work hard.
luv,
vince.
For one thing, most who try doing freelance graphic design don't realize that the primary function, the most important thing they do, the activity in which they must spend the MOST time doing is ... SALES. Seriously, one can't just put up a notice, somplace, stating that one is available to make pretty pictures, and expect people to show up with cash in their hands and throwing it at the artist, asking for the work to be done. A freelancer has to go out and FIND the clients, or, most often, CREATE a clientele by showing them that they have a NEED for design work that they don't even know about.
I mean, I suppose, at first glance that one could read the postings on Yahoo Answers and see countless requests for drawing to be done, and a fairly long list of artists asking if someone wants a drawing made for them. One would think that these would be easy, natural match-ups. But, on closer inspection and a bit of reasonable deduction, one could figure out that most requests for artwork don't come with any mention of payment or other renumeration. And the other half of the equation is made up of amateurs that are desparate for attention because they have been told, (or led to believe) that they have talent and should be doing it for a living. Sadly, these DON'T make good matchups because the result of someone wanting free artwork and someone else willing to DO that work for free, ends up only proving the one gets what they paid for.
See, that's the problem with free, amateur work. Now matter what the field, it tends to come out looking "amateurish."
But, even considering that serious artist who has worked hard at developing his craft; the one who did serious studying and practiced his technique, learned composition, color theory and has mastered the tools of the trade. What makes him think he knows anything about running a professional design studio? For example, the common Yahoo Answers 'plaint, "How do I get my artwork 'Out There?" The answer is not that hard. What's hard is putting it to practice. You get it "Out There" by PUTTING it out there. You advertise. You research your market and target your effort where it may yeild the best results. You find who the art directors are at the various publishing houses, agencies and studios. You learn their names and what kind of art they "buy" and what kind of artists they work with. You find the right "fit" and then you work at letting them know that YOU are that "right fit."
You do direct mail campaigns and then repeat that effort two, three, four times a year. The flyer you sent out last year is long in the compost heap. You need to send out hundreds of glossy post cards. You need to update your distributed mini portfolio and swap out the images from your online portfolio.
You need to make cold calls by phone and door-to-door by pounding the pavement. And so on until the effort begins to pay off. And if it doesn't, then you need to reconsider your marketing strategy. And if that doesn't work and you run dry of ideas, perhaps you need to reconsider whether or not you SHOULD try to run a business for yourself.
And, after the marketing efforts, one needs to know what to do about taxes. An entrpreneur in the creative end of the business is not exempt from state and fedral taxes. What about sales tax? Does it apply in your state? Consider other issues: Zoning laws, labor laws, copyright laws, accounting and other bookeeping tasks, contract writing, collections and dunning, invoices, work orders, etc. A graphic designer can't expect customers to necessarily find their own print service bureaus, or even know what KIND of print services they might need. Clients tend to come to a designer with a project in mind and want the designer to come up with a finished product, whether it is a newspaper or magazine ad, concert poster, billboard, tee shirt or baseball hat. If one wants to run a business, one had better be prepared to know what needs to happen BEFORE it goes to print, (color separation, traps, chokes, bleeds, typesetting, creep, etc) and then where the project needs to go to get it done.
I'm sitting, here, trying to come up with the mountains of trivia and arcana of running a graphic design business and I'm sure I missed several important bits of knowlege that one should have on hand BEFORE starting to run a business. It's a lot. And, I've had more than one failed attempt to start in doing this full time and trying to make a living at it.
So my advice to all those amateurs out there who want to make money from whatever level of talent they've got. Go ahead, make your pretty pictures. Do some work for your friends, "for free." Take on whatever jobs you can find by undercutting the prices of the professionals. But to REALLY make a living at it, one has to have an extensive skill set that doesn't traditioanally come as part of a high school or community college art class. And then, go out and compete in the real, cut throat world of professional graphic design.
Work hard.
luv,
vince.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Work for Free
A sore spot, for me, on Yahoo Answers, is when someone requests artwork to be done "for free." Sure, there are some good occasions for a professional to do work for no charge. Doing "pro bono" projects is a good way for a newcomer to get some work seen by the public. Even fully established pros will do some work for worthy charities or similar organizations. It's good for the sould and besides, it can be a terrific tax deduction.
But it really hits a sore spot on me when someone does not recognize the value of what I do for a living and does not consider my work to be worth anything. For example, a question may pop up on Yahoo Answers where someone is opening up a restaurant, repair shop, hair salon, photo studio or some other kind of business establishment and then ask for a logo, ad, or some other kind of design work to help him "get started." And, this person wants it done "for free."
What these people don't realize is that we, pros, get good money for this type of work. We spend years in school and hundreds, even thousands of hours practicing our craft. That's what it takes to become professionals. The skills that come from this have real, monetary value. But, for some reason, these, so called, business owners think that if they have kids who can scribble crayons on paper, that trained artists can produce real artwork and designs without much more effort. I have to respond to that restauranteur by asking if the local butcher gives him meat, "for free," just to get him started. I wonder if the phone company lets the first couple of month's billing cycles go by, because, after all, how much effort does Ma Bell REALLY put into connecting each phone call coming in or going out? Is the photographer going into business to GIVE his services away? How long would the hair stylist remain in business by giving away free perms? What makes these people think that MY services are of any less value than theirs?
I am well aware that there is a chance that they will find somebody, SOME sucker, willing to draw up their logo, layout their menu, even draw up an ad for them and not charge. But I do take the time to warn the asker that the old cliche' of "You get what you pay for." really does apply, here. Amateur work tends to look, well, amateurish. There is a reason pros tend to charge so much. The results are WORTH IT.
About thirty years ago, NBC changed the look of their old peacock logo. It cost them four million dollars. Last year, Pepsi changed the look of their "globe" logo. I read that it cost them nine million dollars, PLUS, another sixteen million to implement the changes world-wide. Do you think these major, multi-national corporations were willing to pay this kind of money only because the designers could get away with charging this much? Or don't you suppose that these companies actually think they were getting value for the services they received?
To those who don't think what I do has value: People! I work hard at what I do. And I'm darn good at it. I deserve to get paid for it. The only way I WOULDN'T deserve it is if I didn't do it so well.
But that's not how I work.
My little fingers are all out of breath from this rant. I must let them cool off around a cold can of suds.
Cheers,
luv,
vince.
But it really hits a sore spot on me when someone does not recognize the value of what I do for a living and does not consider my work to be worth anything. For example, a question may pop up on Yahoo Answers where someone is opening up a restaurant, repair shop, hair salon, photo studio or some other kind of business establishment and then ask for a logo, ad, or some other kind of design work to help him "get started." And, this person wants it done "for free."
What these people don't realize is that we, pros, get good money for this type of work. We spend years in school and hundreds, even thousands of hours practicing our craft. That's what it takes to become professionals. The skills that come from this have real, monetary value. But, for some reason, these, so called, business owners think that if they have kids who can scribble crayons on paper, that trained artists can produce real artwork and designs without much more effort. I have to respond to that restauranteur by asking if the local butcher gives him meat, "for free," just to get him started. I wonder if the phone company lets the first couple of month's billing cycles go by, because, after all, how much effort does Ma Bell REALLY put into connecting each phone call coming in or going out? Is the photographer going into business to GIVE his services away? How long would the hair stylist remain in business by giving away free perms? What makes these people think that MY services are of any less value than theirs?
I am well aware that there is a chance that they will find somebody, SOME sucker, willing to draw up their logo, layout their menu, even draw up an ad for them and not charge. But I do take the time to warn the asker that the old cliche' of "You get what you pay for." really does apply, here. Amateur work tends to look, well, amateurish. There is a reason pros tend to charge so much. The results are WORTH IT.
About thirty years ago, NBC changed the look of their old peacock logo. It cost them four million dollars. Last year, Pepsi changed the look of their "globe" logo. I read that it cost them nine million dollars, PLUS, another sixteen million to implement the changes world-wide. Do you think these major, multi-national corporations were willing to pay this kind of money only because the designers could get away with charging this much? Or don't you suppose that these companies actually think they were getting value for the services they received?
To those who don't think what I do has value: People! I work hard at what I do. And I'm darn good at it. I deserve to get paid for it. The only way I WOULDN'T deserve it is if I didn't do it so well.
But that's not how I work.
My little fingers are all out of breath from this rant. I must let them cool off around a cold can of suds.
Cheers,
luv,
vince.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Introduction
I've decided that it is time.
For a couple of years, now, I have been participating in the Yahoo Answers forum. My intention has always been to help by sharing what I know about the graphic design industry. I think my efforts have met a measure of success.
But, holy cow, it's a heluva lotta work! And it's especially frustrating to see the same kinds of questions pop up every day and often several times a day. I've given up trying to answer entire categories of questions, not because these people don't need or deserve help, but, because I feel that if these folks won't take the time and effort to look up answers that are easily available in the Yahoo Answers archives, (which pop up even as they type up the question) then I won't alway take the time to answer that question. (AGAIN!) Those are my sentiments and admit to some of the same feelings that other express in various rude and crude comments in lieu of actually responding to the query.
So, here, I intend to post a kind of "Visual Arts FAQ." Perhaps I can make better use of my efforts by directing queries to this post where I will have tried to answer some of the most common questions that I see on Yahoo Answers. I will not claim any knowlege I don't have. I entend only to share my education, experience and expertise.
So, besides the occasional ramblings that reflect what my mind tends to do anyway, I hope to cover subects like these and other related issues:
That's enough for now. Mustn't tire onself out on the first day.
luv,
vince
For a couple of years, now, I have been participating in the Yahoo Answers forum. My intention has always been to help by sharing what I know about the graphic design industry. I think my efforts have met a measure of success.
But, holy cow, it's a heluva lotta work! And it's especially frustrating to see the same kinds of questions pop up every day and often several times a day. I've given up trying to answer entire categories of questions, not because these people don't need or deserve help, but, because I feel that if these folks won't take the time and effort to look up answers that are easily available in the Yahoo Answers archives, (which pop up even as they type up the question) then I won't alway take the time to answer that question. (AGAIN!) Those are my sentiments and admit to some of the same feelings that other express in various rude and crude comments in lieu of actually responding to the query.
So, here, I intend to post a kind of "Visual Arts FAQ." Perhaps I can make better use of my efforts by directing queries to this post where I will have tried to answer some of the most common questions that I see on Yahoo Answers. I will not claim any knowlege I don't have. I entend only to share my education, experience and expertise.
So, besides the occasional ramblings that reflect what my mind tends to do anyway, I hope to cover subects like these and other related issues:
- Graphic Design
- Digital Graphic Design
- Traditional Art Media
- Drawing & Painting
- Cartooning
- Fantasy Art
- Print Industry
- Art Education
- Photography (as it relates more to talented amateurs rather than full time pros)
- How I hate Thomas Kinkaide's artwork while I admire his Marketing success
- And why I distinguish between genuine typographical errors, and the sad st8 uv txtng styles used 2day.
That's enough for now. Mustn't tire onself out on the first day.
luv,
vince
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
