What I do...
I like to use the "A to Z" approach whenever possible, meaning; I'll design a concept and after approval, take that concept to a final design phase, then, where necessary, onward to development and rollout (or to a commercial printer). Many graphic designers specialize in "design-only" work which translates into the customer searching for another studio to implement the development phase...and that can be frustrating.
I dabble in all aspects of digital graphic design using Adobe's Design Premium Creative Suite (CS)...Illustrator and Fireworks for my vector graphics, Photoshop for all digital photographs, Dreamweaver for websites, InDesign for pre-press layouts and Flash for the occasional "whiz-bang" element. I actually have the most formalized training with Flash, however, the further you go in Flash, the more it involves "coding", and coding can be boring to a designer. For example, here is an assignment I completed for my advanced Flash course...looks dirt simple doesn't it, a ball going in circles! Here is the code in the background...miss one element and nothing works.
I'm also quite proficient with Microsoft Office applications, having developed numerous PowerPoint, Word and Excel templates. I've created a few databases with Access, but don't ask me to get too technical, those one-to-one and one-to-many relationships can drive you crazy.
I used to be a "doodler" when I was younger, now that we do virtually everything on a computer, that's where I spend my free time. These are a few samples of graphics that I create, just for the heck of it:
- a line-drawing of my old 2006 Screamin' Eagle Ultra Classic
- a Photoshop "carving" using a Harley-Davidson logo
The Process...
The process I find works best for all concerned is a four-phased approach:
- Assessment and proposal : this is where I will look at your project and provide my feedback, in terms of timelines and costing
- Planning and design: This is all me, understanding the complexity of your project and putting thoughts onto the screen. Typically I provide a few sample designs which we fine-tune prior to the development phase.
- Development : Once a final design is agreed upon, I take it to the development stage, whether that's into Dreamweaver for HTML and CSS work, or prepping for a commercial printer.
- Completion : This may involve the launching of a website, sending artwork to a commercial printer or delivering an end-product to the customer