Posts by Ken
Print Design for the Web
I subscribe to a number of magazines that have great content and a really solid design. Wired, ReadyMade, Paste, and Bon Appetite are the four magazines at the top of my list these days. I enjoy them for their use of typography, or their interesting use of photography as an anchor for their articles. Within the bounds of still images, the possibilities in print are virtually limitless.
But wait a minute! The web has not been left in the dust. Lately I've been feeling pretty good about the direction the web is taking in regards to design and the things that can be accomplished online. More and more, sites are embracing grids, large photography, interesting layouts, and custom typography. Here are four of my favorite websites when it comes to design and why I think they're so strong.
idsgn
idsgn is a blog about graphic design, branding, typography and sometimes video. This site uses large images and a tight grid to present topics ranging from Handmade Fonts to Michael Jackson to the latest Ritz packaging. I'm really digging the color scheme and typography (nice blockquotes!) and will definitely keep reading.
Space Collective
Click through the mesmerizing intro on this site and you'll find a wealth of posts, projects, and pictures all having to do with the "state of the species, their planet and the universe, living the lives of science fiction today." Sounds pretty cool, huh? The site pushes the futuristic theme with a clean layout, a combination of contrasting and complimentary colors, and some great sans-serif typography.
A Brief Message
Although it's been a while since it was last updated, I've always enjoyed the short form articles featured here. 200 words or less is quite a limitation and I can't help but wonder if that helps make these articles look like they came straight out of a magazine. The use of a single illustration with content wrapped around it creates a strong presentation with more visual punch than a simple blog post.
Jason Santa Maria
If you aren't familiar with his ever-changing website, take a minute or ten and look through all the different layouts used by Jason Santa Maria. I'm particularly fond of "What the World Needs," a comic-book themed post covering Jason's dreams of becoming an illustrator before he moved on to design (my life mirrors this pretty closely). This, people, is what the web is about. Each page is expertly laid out and every typographic detail has been considered.
If every page on the web was as expertly designed as the pages of these sites, I could die a happy man. That said, it's not like all print design is perfect. We can't all be Milton Glaser.
Telecommuting
About three years ago, my wife, Jen and I decided that we needed to be closer to our families before having kids. I had been working at the Aten office in Williamsburg for three years, and Justin was open to a change. So, we packed up and moved back to Rochester, NY (where we met in college) and I’ve been telecommuting ever since. Working from home is both terrific and terrible.
What Works
Luckily, 99% of everything I create is for the web. That alone makes telecommuting work well. I can quickly post design comps online, get feedback, and roll that feedback into a new version, all in a few hours.
We work for clients on a national scale. So we already have a solid platform developed for long-distance communication.
With IM, Skype, Phones and SMS, it’s cake to get in touch with people.
We use three main tools to share information; Basecamp for project management, Google Docs for sharing document files, and Gmail for e-mailing. Most of the time, they all work great together, with Basecamp sending you e-mail notifications and Google Docs inviting you to edit documents other people start. This trifecta of online software lets us share Requirements Documents, take collaborative notes during meetings, and generally record any communication we could possibly make. As a testament to how important a good process can be, I think our process has improved since I’ve been in the office, to the point where it just doesn’t matter where I am.
I do my best work when I’m in “The Zone,” that magical place where ideas come easily and I type about 10 times my normal speed. Working in a quiet space is essential to keeping focused, and having a home office allows me to have as much quiet as I want. It’s much harder for people to distract me than when I worked in the office. Sometimes I come up with an idea over breakfast and being this close to my office allows me to implement them while they’re still fresh on my mind.
And finally, one of the greatest perks of working from home is that when I make a pot of coffee, I get it all to myself.
The Challenges
One of the biggest things you miss out on when telecommuting is face-to-face interaction. When I worked in the office, it was great hanging out with everyone outside of work. It stinks to miss out on snow-boarding with the team. That said, when I’m in Denver and we do hang out, it’s usually a lot of fun.
With IM, Skype, Phones and SMS, it’s cake to get in touch with people. Sometimes people forget I’m in a different time zone, but that’s okay.
The software we use is great for storing information, but sometimes it feels like the information is spread a bit thin, or it’s hard to find what you’re looking for. And not being in the office means I can’t just stick my head up and ask someone else.
The downside of working by myself is that sometimes it’s too quiet. Sometimes I’ll go for a couple days without seeing anyone other than my wife. That can be a bit strange. So, I try to hang out with friends for game nights and I’m looking into design-related networking opportunities in Rochester. Any ideas?
And then there are the random things you have to deal with when working from home. Just yesterday I had a guy deliver eggs while I was on the phone. And the week before that, I had to deal with an electrical problem in my office (A UPS is a must, even when using a laptop).
The Future
I’m really enjoying working from home. Despite its challenges, it’s been really great to live in Rochester and work for Aten in Denver. And if you have any questions about how well it works, just take a look at our work.
Jen is about 25 weeks pregnant, so things at home are going to change quite a bit in the next couple months. It’s exciting knowing I’ll be close after the baby is born, though who knows if it’ll ever be quiet again?
Getting Inspired
As a designer, it’s important to stay abreast of the latest work in the field. For me, that used to mean going to website galleries and reading articles on the latest CSS techniques. When CSS and XHTML were new and different, it was easy to get caught up in what people were doing with the technology. Now that it’s been a while since we all stopped using tables for layout, it takes a lot more to impress and inspire me with a website design. So, I’ve branched out. Now when I’m looking for inspiration, I have a few sources that never let me down.
Websites
FFFFOUND
Probably the most up-to-date design image resource on the web, FFFFOUND is an ever-changing, user-submitted gallery of the latest work available online. With thousands of images already added to the collection, I’m never at a loss for inspiration when viewing their RSS feed.Apartment Therapy
My wife and I just bought a new house and it’s been great to see what other people are doing with their spaces. Whether it’s the color of the furniture, the artwork on the wall, or the great architecture, I’m often inspired by photos from this site.Drawn!
This blog is the place to go to keep up with everything illustrated. My roots are in illustration and I can’t help but admire the talent showcased here. Sometimes illustrators make for really incredible typographers and there’s a lot of that here too.Magazines
WIRED
I’ve been subscribed to Wired for almost a year now and it has me thoroughly impressed. The articles are usually interesting but the design is stellar. It’s a great mixture of white space, slab-serifs, info-graphics, and awesome colors. If you don’t read it, you should at least admire it for its design.ReadyMade
This magazine is solid. I like this magazine so much I even bought the book! On top of having great ideas for cheap, cool home-made stuff, the magazine is chock full of great font treatments and elegant illustrations.Bon Appetit
Okay, I admit it. I read my wife’s cooking magazines. It’s just for the layout! I promise! I particularly like the photography and color combinations used in this one.Well, that about does it for now. I’m sure next month I’ll have a whole new list of things I’m digging. If you’re feeling stuck and need some inspiration, step away from the web design galleries and check out some of sites and magazines I’ve listed here.
Not My Baby
I am all about process. I love process. I feel secure knowing that when I finish one step, there's another step right there waiting for me. Having a solid process is liberating, allowing you to focus more on what you're doing, and less on what you should be doing. All that said, there are parts that can be difficult and frustrating if approached from the wrong angle. Giving and receiving criticism can be one of the hardest and most vital parts of making an effective design.
Let it all out
Giving feedback can be really hard. Sometimes, the design looks good and the only feedback you have is minor. But often this is not the case. Sometimes you have so much criticism that it feels like you're punching the designer repeatedly in the gut. You can almost see the tears well up in their eyes. Negative criticism is not bad, it's part of the process. How you give criticism can be the difference between a constructive meeting that benefits the design and an all-out battle where the designer goes on defense and nothing is gained. Here are a couple guidelines that may help:
- Make your case
If your suggestions make sense and have logical benefits to the design, this is the easiest way to help. - Pull your punches
Make sure you say everything you're thinking -- this is vital for the critique to work -- but watch out for insulting language. They don't call it "constructive" criticism for nothing. - Don't make it personal
There's a big difference between personal opinion and relevant feedback. No one cares if you don't like pink, never liked pink, and in fact choked on bubble gum as a child and are traumatized by the color pink. What matters is that the color of the secondary callout is too bright and is stealing the focus from the main callout on the home page which adversely affects the way a user navigates... you get the point.
Take it all in
Design can be a very personal thing. I often get attached to a design and think, "Wow, what a perfect little thing you are. You're so pretty and functional and you're going to do great in the world!" Then I get some criticism, and my perfect little thing isn't so perfect anymore. I get defensive and frustrated and I have to remind myself that this is work, and if there's something wrong with my work, I need to hear it.
- Acceptance is the first step
For a design process to get the best results, you must open your work up to criticism. It's important to get opinions from everyone -- project managers, content specialists, programmers, spouses, friends -- not just designers. Then actually listen to what everyone has to say. Don't get defensive, they aren't trying to insult you. Remember, you asked for it. - A glutton for punishment
It can be hard enough asking for criticism once. Going back for a second helping almost seems foolish. Do it anyway. Get feedback whenever you reach a good stopping point, make changes, and repeat until there's nothing else to critique. - It's not your baby
...it's your clients' baby, er, website/brochure/what-have-you. You can be as proud of your design as you want but if it doesn't work for your client, you've failed. Ultimately, it all comes down to what your client thinks and the effect it has on their business.
I can't stress enough how important criticism is to an effective design process. Incorporating it into key points along the way can really help a design. Whenever you think you've completed a milestone, open your work up for criticism and see if everyone else agrees. If not, listen to what they have to say and use their feedback to finish your work. Remember, process is key, and criticism is a key part of the process.
- Make your case