First, let’s synchronise our watches
This post is part of the Please Don’t Be a Dick series. You can read the first post here.
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Next: The idea factory
This post series is about graphic design, so it is important for you and us to share the same definition.
What is graphic design?
Search for the definition of graphic design online and you will be met by countless differing opinions and definitions. In fact, explanatory texts on the subject can be deduced to the many different opinions of individual critics and historians. It is important, therefore, that we clarify which opinion we will henceforth refer to as we continue.
Philip Meggs, a graphic designer and historian, proposes the following definition:
graphic design, the art and profession of selecting and arranging visual elements — such as typography, images, symbols, and colours — to convey a message to an audience. Sometimes graphic design is called “visual communications,” a term that emphasises its function of giving form — e.g., the design of a book, advertisement, logo, or website — to information. An important part of the designer’s task is to combine visual and verbal elements into an ordered and effective whole. Graphic design is therefore a collaborative discipline: writers produce words and photographers and illustrators create images that the designer incorporates into a complete visual communication.
So be it — the definition of graphic design.
What is a graphic designer?
A graphic designer is a person who uses his experiences, skills and whatever tools or materials needed to create an illustrative message. If done correctly, the end result should be the best possible solution for visually communicating a specific meaning.
The designer is an expert. No, that is not the beard-stroking air of a couple of self-important doodlers; it’s the plain truth, buttressed by years of education — both practical and theoretical. If you required a root canal procedure it is unlikely that you would pick up a drill, clamps and forceps and take to your mouth with unwavering confidence. The result, although admittedly inexpensive, would be disastrously messy and colossally painful. No, we can safely assume you would call your dentist.
For similar reasons, when you require a service related to design, you approach your graphic designer. You trust his expertise in this field and you are willing to pay money for it.
Moreover, you are not hiring a pair of hands to visualise your ideas, you are hiring a graphic designer to come up with ideas about how to solve your communication problem in the most suitable way(s) possible.
The many hats of graphic design
Graphic design is an umbrella term that covers a large range of disciplines. These vary from typography to illustration, art working to art direction, and web design to package design with countless other variants in between.
Most designers specialise in certain areas and understand others, while other designers claim to be “experts” in all disciplines. But we all know that wearing too many hats just makes you look like a fool.
The many homes of graphic design
Designers go off and work for large agencies, small studios or set up shop on their own. Each one has their own pros and cons.
Large Agencies
Large agencies tend to have a great amount of resources compared to smaller studios and freelancers. They may be better suited at dealing with very large jobs that will take up a lot of man-hours and need an entire team. With more staff working on a single project it means that they tend to be more reliable as the responsibility falls on the hands of many rather than a single worker. If one person leaves the company or is not available the whole thing doesn’t shut down.
However, all these resources and a larger workforce also mean greater fees to support the infrastructure. It also means that there are many levels of management and it’s very rare that the client will be in direct contact with the designer on hand, resulting in a line of communication where things can get lost or misunderstood.
Small Studios
Small studios are better suited to adapt to the whims of an ever changing client brief, as they are free from the many levels of management that are required in larger operations to approve changes. Specific projects tend to be given to a single person, or perhaps a small team of people. Often this means that the client is in direct contact with the designer doing the work.
However, if said designer becomes unavailable then this could clog up the pipeline and cause problems. If and when this happens there is usually someone else that can jump in to help with the project, but this is not always the case. The advantage of a small studio is that it’s designers tend to care the most about the work as they have the most at stake and are very close to the client.
Freelancers
Freelance designers are probably the most flexible. They work for themselves which tends to mean that their reputation is vital to them. The relationship with a freelancer generally depends on the personal qualities of this freelancer — his time management skills, his work routine, his reliability and even his personal life. They maintain a close relationship with a client, however should they become unavailable then the project becomes a standstill.
Previous: Preface and introduction
Next: The idea factory
This post is an extract from the “Please Don’t Be a Dick — A client’s handbook to working with a designer” book, which has been updated to reflect the newer opinions of the writers. The original version of the ebook can be freely* downloaded from here.
* In exchange for a post
