tips

This article contains the responses I have given to a few of the questionnaires I have been sent by design students over the years.
They vary wildly in tone and nature, but here goes:

Interview 1

Questions to the Desktop operator or layout artist

1. What kind of publications do you produce?

I do not currently work for a publishing house, but I worked for a publishing house from 2001-2002 and again from 2007-2008.
We produced business to business magazines, mostly in the agricultural field. Some targeted at farmer’s wives, some targeted at farmers.

2. How do you plan a publication?

Generally, the editorial department would do the majority of that work. But after a look and feel and example has been approved, that is the template. The Editorial department has to know how many pages the book can be in total based in the math of the printing and binding procedure and also know how many advertisements the magazine needs to sell in order to justify the article pages, as well as plan how many pages each section will have for that edition. Even paid magazines need to cover the majority of expenses through advertising. Many of these magazines were free and subscription-based and ONLY made a profit from advertising.

3. Is there a set time schedule for projects?

Yes, generally these are VERY strict since the printers need time to imposition and prep the projects and everything needs to be correct and professional and signed off before then.

4. Explain the printing process that you use?

Generally, the printers handle the impositioning (might be inpositioning. Many terms are only used verbally) and preparation. From the layout side we need to make sure that everything is correct, only uses CMYK colours or possibly spot colours IF required, although it is rare, and make sure that all images are in the correct format and correct DPI (Dots per inch). On large publications, a proof version f the book will be printed for final sign off and micro changes or final advertisements may be added, but the odds of mistakes slipping in with changes like these are larger.

5. What type of software programmes do you use on a daily basis?

Adobe Indesign, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. Adobe Bridge is also useful sometimes.

6. What does a typical day of a DTP operator/layout artist look like?

Designing new concepts or advertisements (often in less time than a student would expect) and sitting with a pile of stapled papers from editorial, putting text and images into your template file and editing text in minute details that designers who never worked on magazines are often not aware of. Or on the worst days, sitting with a stack of corrections from the editorial department that you change, print out again and staple to the original for approval, often for 2 or 3 days straight before publication.

7. Which parts of your job do you like and which parts do you hate?

Completing a project, feeling pride and releasing it into the world with you concepts, layout and designs is the positive aspect of the job. Sitting with an in and out box doing corrections and layouts is often less rewarding than that and is a monotonous part of the job… Also, taking orders from editorial based on politics in the industry is not always fun, since the real world will interfere with your art and creativity.

8. Do you have any advice for someone who would like to become a DTP operator/layout artist?

Pay attention to detail. Winning awards for magazines is not about being fancy or flashy, it is about being consistent and paying attention to detail. With a great team and consistent work with no mistakes, you will do well. A good layout-artist/desktop-publisher can pick up any newspaper and spot between 1 and 10 typography and layout mistakes on every page. Granted, newspapers are printed with very short turnaround time and mistakes will happen when deadlines are tight.

Interview 2

1. Your Daily schedule

My schedule is a bit unusual. I am an early riser which helps with discipline. Some days I start with a physical workout to get my mind working. Then I drive to a contract client or jump on whichever job I need to work on. I tend to work late, but I make sure to take frequent breaks and not exhaust myself or boost my stress levels.

2. what makes you “tick” for instance what inspires you the most to design?

I enjoy doing the extra bits of detail that many large firms ignore. Things like the favicon and small touches. Like most designers, I get new favourite ideas that I over-use and then I move on. The best part is completing a project and seeing it all coming together. That is if the client did not turn it into an ugly bastardised child… That happens when they take the reins too often or have contrasting ideas.

3.what does it mean to you to be a Graphic Designer?

It means being enveloped in an environment of good aesthetics. One often loses track of how well one advances in terms of visual taste. Only when confronting amateur designers does the difference become rather obvious.

4. what do you want to accomplish in this position?

I am also not a textbook example in this regard. I love completing projects and being on the creative side of things. But essentially I just love getting up and being able to have a cup of coffee and relax. I start when I want to and stop when I want to. I have no boss except myself.

5. where do you see yourself in five years time?

The game is changing very quickly due to technology so I am constantly changing my approach. Honestly, I would hope to get more passive/residual income streams going and stop selling my design time. Selling one’s time is one of the worst ways to generate money in the long run. 🙂

Interview 3

1) DO YOU FEEL YOUR CAREER IS ONE OF THE THINGS YOU ENJOY?

Absolutely, but any job is a job. Even if your job was relaxing at a holiday resort you would have days you did not enjoy.

2) IF NOT THIS SPECIFIC CAREER WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU BE DOING?

Teaching music, Full-time Photographer

3) HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE FIELD YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN?

It has its ups and downs. Clients can be ignorant but the work is enjoyable.

4) DO YOU FEEL YOUR QUALIFICATIONS EQUIPPED YOU TO ENTER THE WORKING
WORLD?

I think we learn the skills we really need while working in the field. The learning is just a foundation and a what-not-to-do guide.

5) WHAT DO YOU DO ON AN AVERAGE WORK WEEK?

Create websites, answer emails, send out quotes, go teach for a few hours and attend a quick photoshoot.

6) DO YOU FEEL THAT SOME AREAS IN YOUR JOB WHICH YOU DID NOT EXPECT TO BE
DOING WHEN YOU WERE STUDYING?

Absolutely. I think a designer constantly has to expand his skillset so we always discover new things to do.

7) WHAT SURPRISED YOU THE MOST ONCE YOU ENTERED THE INDUSTRY?

The sheer lunacy and ignorance of some clients. If you don’t believe me, go read Clientsfromhell.net and realize that I have had many such experiences. On the other hand, I was surprised by clients who tried to take advantage of me financially and clients who were pure fraud artists who conned people using work I created.

8) WHAT/WHICH PART OF YOUR JOB DO YOU MOSTLY ENJOY?

I enjoy finishing a job and delighting in that final moment IF the client also likes it.

9) WHICH PART OF YOUR JOB IS YOUR LEAST FAVOURITE?

Doing hundreds of revisions, sometimes outside of the project scope and without adequate payment. Crazy clients can be a big problem.

10) DO YOU HAVE ANY OR FURTHER ADVICE OR TIP THAT WHICH YOU WOULD LIKE TO
SHARE WITH ME?

Always do your research about what you want to get into or need to do. Make sure your terms are clear and always get a deposit upfront. Sometimes you cannot get a deposit but know that those jobs might be a gamble.

Interview 4

1. How would you describe graphic design?

A crazy blend of art and a consumer society/capitalism

2. What attributes do you think one must have to be an effective graphic designer?

One must have an eye for composition, creativity, discipline within creativity, some people skills and most importantly must be able to handle criticism of your work!

3. What is your daily routine at work?

If you are a designer in an office the routine is to sit down and start designing/taking orders and having your brain metaphorically run out your ear half-way through the day…
At a home studio, the routine is to have coffee while starting the log of my hours for whatever job I’m busy with and jumping into that job. At home, I will often take breaks to read comics and watch series when I feel I need to recover.

4. How long are the working hours and is the pay satisfying?

Office work can be drab and generally include at least 8 hour working days.

Working from home can mean anything from 2 to 6 working hours per day plus unpaid time to reply to emails and such. The pay is similar when freelancing but you get the same money for much less time spent.

5. Which is most beneficial to being an employee, freelancing or being a sole owner of your own business?

Be an employee first, then be a freelancer… and once you get fed up with the clients and the pace, start your own company and delegate.

6. What inspires you to wake up and tackle the demands of your job?

Firstly I need to make sure I keep my bank-account fuller than the previous month since savings are required as a freelancer. Secondly, I’m a creative soul. Creation is what makes a designer tick. Sitting on the couch for a day generally makes me depressed.

I need to create something. On my off days, I am often playing music for the same reasons.

7. How would you describe the design market/environment?

It can be creatively fulfilling or a nightmare. Pick your clients wisely and have clear contracts to control clients who get out of control.

8. For a junior designer, can natural talent, passion and skill get the job done just as well as experience?

In my opinion, I am always a junior. Some of the best designers I know still think that they don’t know what they are doing. Secondly, there is NO substitute for experience.

Skill is built through experience

Interview 5

1. What is your background as a Designer/ Artist/ Crafter?

I Started doing art as a child and graduated from an art high school. An apprenticeship in layout sort of fell into my lap during my gap year.

2. What was your influence that made you decide to get into your
field of work and why?

I found that I had already developed an eye for detail and visual things. It seemed like a logical choice. It wasn’t until years later that I figured out how to make money out of it for real. It also pays more than being a musician (something in which I have a degree)

3. What inspires you as a Designer/ Artist/ Crafter? – Being
society, nature, politics – what is your biggest inspiration?

Human emotion is always my inspiration. I love human expression. In work, I find that mostly money inspires me though. You want happy clients with functional products.

Design is art but it is functional and not abstract or art for art’s sake.

4. Explain how you have grown as a Designer/Artist/ Crafter and
which has been your best work so far?

This is a tricky question. Sometimes I might take pride in something silly like a prototype interface for a money printing machine I designed. It might not be very artistic but it can be interesting and fun to work with. Mostly completing a project feels like an achievement. I find it is important to stay in touch with what other people are doing because one has to appropriate new ideas in order to stay current. Therefore we steal, yet nothing we steal can ever look like the original so it is a unique act of creation in itself.

5. What is your biggest setback that you face when creating your works?

Clients who have no budget but also give me incorrect instructions because they do not know what they want.

Spending 5 hours when you charged for 2 is not fun. Clients tend to give input and sometimes it is horrible and wrong but it is their money so they may do what they like with it.

6. What are the main aims of your work and what would you like to achieve with your works?

I want my clients to be happy and connect with their target market. My aim is to deliver high-quality work or rather to the best of my ability and not to let any client feel that I have let them down. Personality clashes are inevitable in this field though.

7. How do you see your work changing over time with the growing world?

I find that my work just changes because it would be a waste of time to create similar works my whole life. We also grow as our experience and skill grow. I never feel like I am a great designer or artist. I just keep working and working and feel thankful that I am still reasonably successful.

8. What materials do you use to create your works?

I work in the digital realm mostly. Sometimes it is good to work on paper first to get a hands-on creative feel though.

9. Where do you see yourself and your works in 5 years?

I would like to be more i a management position in 5 years in order to do less hands-on work and delegate more. Whether that is possible for my personality is another question.

10. Who do you think your main target audience is?

I generally work with medium-sized businesses that need a professional product but who do not want to pay double the price at an agency and cant risk using inexperienced students or risky designers.

11. Describe your development techniques and the process of manufacturing

Wow, this is an extensive question. It depends on the area and product. You can look at my workflow page on my website. Generally, you get deposit and brief. start work. get client feedback.

make changes. make more changes, make changes the client wants that is destroying your artistic work in the worst ways and then you tell the client that they can’t make more changes without more budget and then they thankfully stop. 🙂

12. What is your experience in the field you work in? 

Everyone thinks they know how to design. Just as in music. Sometimes I wish I was a brain Surgeon. No clients would tell me what to do then or argue. 🙂