In this blog, we will talk about graphic designers. We will find out what they do, what their duties are, and also talk about the demand, prospects of the profession.
What kind of profession is a graphic designer
A graphic designer is a profession that is associated with the creation of visual content: images for outdoor advertising, social networks, websites, logos, presentations and brand books for companies, etc. In simple words, this is a specialist who makes design for various purposes – in business it helps with visuals to attract the attention of potential customers. You can contact Best Graphic Designing Agency in London
Let’s list what a graphic designer does in general:
- Generates ideas depending on the goal.
- He studies the interests of the target audience, develops a concept together with marketers .
- Composes a composition from scratch: style, shape, color, light, font, texture, etc.
- Works in modern graphic editors, programs for creating animation.
- Does retouching and processing of photos .
- Prepares a design layout for printing.
From the history
We can say that graphic elements appeared even before our era – in the form of rock paintings that were made by primitive people. But the history of the profession begins only in the twenties of the 19th century – it was during this period that the term “graphic design” was introduced, and design is separated from fine art.
In parallel, advertising is developing, which is becoming an important attribute of the business. To attract customers, they begin to use the visual: logos, packaging, posters, posters, etc.
A breakthrough in the industry occurs in 1990, when Adobe Systems presents the first graphics editor – Photoshop . With its appearance, new techniques appear: icons, layout, infographics, etc.
By now , design has gone completely digital. Every year there are more and more programs that can be used not only by professionals, but also by ordinary Internet users – designers, online services for retouching, etc.
Directions in graphic design
There are many directions in the design industry, we will list main ones:
- Identity – development of corporate style, logo, brand book, business cards, letterheads, presentations, templates, etc.
- Publishing and printing – layout of magazines, catalogs, booklets, price lists, posters, posters, leaflets, stickers and other printed or promotional products.
- Web design – development of the interface, dynamic slides, navigation menus, buttons, application forms and other website elements. UX / UI design , the creation of convenient user interfaces, also belongs to the same direction
- Content for social networks – preparation of banners, covers for accounts, images for posts and stories, intros for videos, photo retouching, etc.
- Packaging – creating layouts for packages, gift boxes, wrappers, labels and other packaging materials and their subsequent preparation for printing.
- Interior, landscape, architectural design .
- Illustrations for children’s books or animation .
What a specialist should know
A modern designer must have certain knowledge and skills, including he must know:
- fundamentals of graphic design – composition, modular grids, gestalt principles, etc.;
- coloring, color correction;
- typography ;
- work with raster and vector images;
- identity development;
- basic principles of marketing, especially in the web design or advertising industry.
The main programs that will be required for work in design:
- Software from Adobe – Photoshop for processing and retouching, Illustrator for vector graphics, InDesign for printing, After Effects for animation.
- Figma for web design and interface development.
- 3ds Max for 3D graphics.
Place of work
The designer has a choice – he can go to the staff or work for himself. Where can you find a job as a graphic designer?
- In a design studio – the most common option for starting a career. In a multidisciplinary studio that cooperates with corporate customers, you can choose your direction: brand design, creation of printed materials, illustrations, etc.
- In a digital agency , a designer usually works in tandem with a programmer, creating layouts for websites, web services and mobile applications.
- In a company that requires a full-time employee – while the field of activity can be any, but most often it is related to printing, advertising, online marketing and the media.
- On freelance – at the start, you can start with small orders on exchanges, and over time form a circle of several regular large clients.
Career prospects
We list the main career prospects:
- Start as an intern in a large design studio or digital agency and in a few years grow to the position of department head or creative director.
- Start your own design business. If you have a successful experience as a freelancer, then you can assemble a remote team of several specialists and take on large projects.
- Move into a related industry, such as UX/UI or motion design .
