Ok so i have had Photoshop for a year now, and still dont know how to use it! I have a PC (unfortunatly) and i really want to start using this aweosme tool. but its a little overwhelming and i need some help. Like are there any tutorials that help people learn the specifics of the program. Not these big-elaborate projects? Thanks.
A successful future in the new media industry (and specifically, graphic design) depends on choosing the right school. As a graduate student in this field myself, I will be able to provide you with the absolute best advice one can get in regards to this topic.
1. Area of Focus
The first thing that you need to know about schools of this nature is that they are designed with everyone in mind, and that means people going into the program may have absolutely no experience. In my case, they asked for a portfolio of work as part of the admission process. So, if you are self-taught and eager to solidify your already existing knowledge, or a total beginner, this is a good choice for you. If, however, you have already completed a similar program, you may wish to take a new program merely to upgrade your skills (because the field of new media is always changing). If you can, it really, really, really helps if you take a freehand drawing course prior to learning how to draw using a computer.
2. Recognition
- Does the school participate in any graphical arts competitions?
- Have students accomplished anything of reknown in the industry?
3. Teachers
Trust me, this doesn’t go without saying. The quality of your education will be directly related to the instructors. I have never encountered an instructor that wasn’t immensely knowledgeable about the subject area. Of course, there is a big difference between knowing the subject area and being able to teach (that is, to convey that information, and manage students, answer questions, etc).
4. Job Placement
100% make sure that you get into a program that incorporates on-the-job experience. Or at least a practicum. This usually is 100 hours of real on-the-job experience and it is absolutely invaluable to your career.
5. Curriculum And Tools
You must assess whether the curriculum is relevant to you field of study. You may want to compare the curricula of different schools to see which offers the best form of education. As it so happens in my case, the administration did something they have never done before: changed the curriculum halfway through the program. The reasoning behind this was that the software we were scheduled to be instructed in would soon be discontinued on the Mac. It really pays off if you can see the facilities beforehand so you know what tools they are using. Don’t just oogle at the computers, snoop around and see the programs directory and make note of what programs are installed, and if they are the latest versions.
6. Student to Teacher Ratio
Graphic design is kind of an industry that more or less demands personal contributions on every project. For this reason, you can’t just be known as the photoshop guy, it is your responsibility to be well versed in a lot of different programs and techniques for creating stunning graphics and illustrations. And that means you will definately need one-on-one instruction, or at least the ability to stop the class in case you get lost. These programs are very fast-paced and if you don’t make sure you fully understand concepts in the first semester you will get hopelessly lost – fast.
7. Accreditation
Accreditation means the school has passed a certain standards of educational quality. If you can, ask for literally one minute of the head departments time and find out a listing of companies that students have been hired into.
8. Cost
A full education in graphic design can cost anywhere from 13,000 to 16,000 dollars for an intensive one-year program (120 credits). The goal here is to find a university, college, or technical institute that is recognized internationally for excellence. Let’s face it, Harvard University will look a lot better on your resume than Texas Community College. Three great recognized schools in are BCIT located in Vancouver Canada (Vancouver is the equivalent of Hollywood for graphic designers, web designers, and all new media experts), the Art Institute (with locations worldwide), and the Vancouver Film School (VFS) that has graphic design programs that are very specialized.
9. Scholarships
You might want to consider whether the design school you are looking at offers any scholarships. You also might want to know the terms to them too. Some schools offer scholarships based on academic performance. Some offer them based on art competitions they hold regularly. You should qualify for a national student loan either way, and repayment is extremely affordable.
For more great graphic design schools related articles and resources check out http://www.design-school-review.com
Ever wondered how some graphic designers always manage to produce beautiful looking designs for their brochures, website designs, logo designs? Talent…yes, it helps but there are a handful of more important things you can do that will have even complete beginners producing award winning design.
Forget everything you’ve ever been told about Graphic Design
There are some hard and fast things that graphic designers will insist are to be obeyed. Only use limited fonts on a design for example or never use green on a magazine or book cover as people will not buy it. Stuff and nonsense. You can pretty much do whatever you like but you must apply these STRICT GRAPHIC DESIGN RULES and you will soon be walking away with graphic design silverware.
Somewhere on the page you MUST put in a subliminal message
This can be done in a multitude of ways for example if you are producing a brochure selling wellington boots then start every paragraph spelling out ‘buy our wellington boots’ or better still ‘you have no choice but to buy our wellington boots now get out your cheque book and buy them – NOW!’ Another crafty method is to doctor images in photoshop so that on an innocent picture of a tree for example carved into the bark is a message along the lines of ‘U Luv Wellington boots’ You get the idea. just make sure it’s hidden away on a subliminal level and watch your sales go through the roof, quite literally
You MUST include a picture of a pretty girl smiling on your document or webpage
This works for 95% of products. Put simply would you rather read and look at pictures of industrial machinery or would you rather look at a pretty girl? It’s a no brainer right? Research has proven that mens brains are wired up to focus on girls smiles and of course their breasts and backsides. If you can somehow convince your client to put a naked girl on there somewhere you can pretty much laugh yourself down to the bank. However, never ever put a muscle bound hunk on any design thinking it will work conversely for womens products. Research has shown that womens brains are only wired to think of shopping for clothes and chocolate, so putting a bare chested chippendale on the cover is going to see your business go down the dumper. Unless your product is for homosexual merchandise in which case go ahead.
Shock and Awe – the guaranteed way to get your design work noticed and talked about
Perhaps the best example of this trick can be found widely used in the modern art world. Sharks in formaldahyde, unmade beds and plastic dolls melted together to sodomise each other. All these pieces of art have been much talked about and whether you find them to your taste or not are widely percieved as being breath takingly original. The same principal can and should be applied to your graphic design work or website design. Add a blood splattered severed willy in the centre of the page for example or how about using an excrement smear as a backdrop. Remember the important thing is to get people talking about your design work. Bad taste soon becomes acceptable once commonplace so be the first to do something outrageous and reap the rewards.
If you remember to apply at least one or two and ideally all 3 of these golden graphic design rules there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be a millionaire/billionaire within one or two months. Now get creative!
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I just got Adobe Photoshop CS3 to create planets, space, and other stellar scenes for my novel. I, however, am photoshop illiterate and new to the program. I’ve googled some tutorials but most of them require and already basic understanding of the program to use. Anyone know of some photoshop for dummies tutorials?
I want to download a photo software that could change a person’s face in to girl, boy, man, woman or an animal. It must be in such a way that none of the backgrounds are effected. So are there such softwares available.
I am looking for fun anf crazy software for digital photos. Software were you can at faces to bodies, make your own magazine covers and so on. Please help me with some ideas of photo software. Thanks
I am looking to learn some advance features in Photoshop, InDesign & Illustrator. by ADVANCE I mean really advance – there are a lot of bad tutorials available all over the web. But something that is really really good.
I am new to Adobe Photoshop CS and would welcome any advice on learning tips that I can use in designing artwork for the screen printing industry. I have used Macromedia Freehand in the past and not familiar with Photoshop at all. Any advice/help would be greatly appreciated!!!
Hi,
I’m pretty new to Photoshop. I have the Adobe Photoshop CS3 version and was wondering if anyone might know of any good tutorials for beginners?
Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
Ever wish you had more brushes available to you without searching all over the net? Wish you had more [or cooler] actions? Well, the good news is you actually have a LOT of brushes and actions in your Photoshop program that probably aren’t installed… and installing them is EASY!