Questions tagged [workflow]
Questions about optimising workflow for professional graphic designers. Workflow describes the process that a task undergoes, from initiation to completion. Ask anything related to the workflow of a graphic design project.
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Is it frowned upon as a designer if you don't use "top" software?
This question crosses my mind from time to time as I am a Windows user and have often thought about going down the cheaper route by using a Linux based OS such as Ubuntu and getting free software that ...
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How to quickly and easily create a grid with Adobe Photoshop?
Suppose I need to draw a grid in Photoshop, each square being the same size, and a certain amount of pixels tall and wide, and the grid lines having a certain pixel width. Like this:
Currently I do ...
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Methods for improving color choice and combinations?
I often struggle choosing proper color combinations. I'm self-ware enough to realize that I'm most comfortable with, and often settle on, colors which could be seen as more corporate or retro - blues, ...
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Version Control for Designers / Alternative to Version Cue
I've just been searching around the net for version control that has some support for graphic/Photoshop files. We're currently using BitBucket which is free and unlimited when it comes to file size ...
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I am a client and my work is being delegated without informing me
I am a client who posted on Linkedin a request if somebody would be interested in designing a thesis cover for me. I had a few responses and decided to go with a person who offered me the following (...
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4
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Is there an advantage to doing a full image mock-up versus diving straight into writing the HTML/CSS?
In the past, many companies and web designers had a workflow that was two or three parts, minimum -- design, markup, backend. These are generalizing and the lines may blur a bit... but I'm sure you ...
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Learning to draw: start in the pen and paper realm or the digital space?
My question is should I start with paper to learn to draw or learn to digitally draw with Photoshop or Illustrator or any image manipulation application.
I am thinking of using a book or some other ...
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Is it possible to use a fully open source workflow for print design?
Is it possible to use only open-source tools in order to produce professional level artwork? Has anyone actually done it? If not, where are the current gaps?
Assume I'm producing a small multi-page ...
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Is it normal practice to screen share with a client?
I have a client who has asked if it's possible to screen share so that he can watch/dictate changes in real time.
The issue is, I've already made several requested revisions per his direction. ...
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How do I shear a selection in Inkscape?
I know I can scale by pulling on the handles with the Select and transform tool. Or similarly, rotate them by first clicking to toggle the handles.
But how do I shear an image?
Clicking again ...
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How do I speed up my design work?
I've been a designer for 6 months, having previously had a 1st class honours degree in Graphic Communication. My issue is that I am a Very good designer, but I work too slow. It's beginning to drive a ...
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Client wants me to teach them InDesign
My client wants me to teach them how to do basic editing in InDesign.
This is after, against my better judgement, I had agreed to give them the source files of the documents I created in favor of ...
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Best workflow for icon design: Start big, or start small?
When designing icons that need to be delivered at several sizes, do you start at the smaller size, then scale up to the bigger sizes? Or do you start big and scale down?
There's several advantages to ...
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How to guide an employee to improve his graphic design ablilties?
I am CTO at a small-medium software development company with a few ages history. I carry RRHH selection, teaching, and internal promotion. Until yesterday we just had developers and design was driven ...
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Web-based workflow solutions for graphic designers (hosted and self-run)?
There are some common tasks in almost every graphic designer's workflow that are made immensely easy by the Internet, but are often clumsy to handle through traditional channels like E-Mail.
...
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Best way to send layouts with editable text to writers/editors who don't have design software
Here's a common design workflow problem, probably most relevant to in-house designers, but also to agencies who have a lot of non-design writing or research staff, or freelancers who work with in-...
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How do big design companies share art files
Many projects with many files all uploaded by humans on one server will get messy, by definition. Even if they have a structure, when 1000 of people work on projects there will be made mistakes.
How ...
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Version Control for Design files
Can someone describe their workflow they use to handle multiple versions of a file ?
For example,
if more than one person worked on it
or you explored an idea with the design then realized you have ...
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What is the best way to make arrows in circular shape?
I need to make (actually re-creating) a diagram for a repeating process consisting of 5 steps.
Here's how it might look with two arrows:
I need to do basically the same thing with 5 arrows, ...
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How can I write requirements for a graphic designer?
A friend of mine is in need of some graphic design work. I'm trying to explain to him that his make-me-something-like-X-but-different-approach is not a very good way to communicate his needs. We tried ...
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Endnotes in InDesign: Closest thing to a pain-free, flexible workflow?
It's an age-old complaint: up to and including CS6, InDesign supports footnotes, but not endnotes. Documents, books, reports etc aren't going to stop needing endnotes because Adobe don't support them. ...
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How to avoid the tragic fate in the Oatmeal cartoon "How a web design goes straight to hell"?
This is a famous web comic about a common experience in web design:
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/design_hell
It's based on the author's personal experiences and describes a typical / caricature ...
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Should you offer multiple logo design options to the client or just one final design?
When designing a logo for a client, do you offer multiple options, so 3 different logos for example? Or do you offer just 1? How do you price for these?
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The role of the designer in content – should he have one and how big should it be?
I'm a designer, not a marketer, and not a writer (at least not professionally). A lot of the work I do involves working with material in a field that can be above my head. Because of that, I'm content ...
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Illustrator: Quick way of removing redundant anchor points after unifying shapes?
Except for manually removing redundant anchor points that gets added when unifying two or more objects, is there a quicker operation to wipe in-between anchor points?
EDIT: To complement Lollero's ...
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1
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How to fit a vertical headshot into a horizontal frame
I am frequently asked to make vertical headshots fit into a horizontal size, to display on my company's website. I'm often given low-quality images with sharp cuts to the person's shoulders or ...
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5
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Is there a way to make my files editable for a client without InDesign?
A client needs me to design a brochure for her. The problem is that she wants to edit and change the text and maybe also change some of the pictures herself.
However, she doesn't have any of the ...
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I currently work as a UX/UI designer and my boss (a back-end developer) doesn't trust my decisions and acts as if he needs a Production Artist
I find myself in need of some career advice. I work in a small, purposefully-secluded web development department inside a larger company. Everyone else on the team is a front-end or back-end developer ...
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How far (and how often) in the process do you let a client see a work in progress?
Before you start typing on your keyboard, I know it's good practice to let a client know what you're doing by showing them WIP (Work In Progress) pictures of the artwork you're doing.
But sometimes ...
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How can I best provide feedback to my designer
What's kosher when providing feedback to your designer? Are there best practices? If he's making a mockup of an iPhone dashboard should I tell him that I'd prefer the icons be monochromatic, or that ...
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How to set different color to guides(Ai,Ps,Id,Fw)?
I've been working on this file with a lot of guides(in Illustrator) and at some Point I was wondering is there a way to give different color to guides ? Like the gutter guides to be black, the main ...
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What is the general process for planning and developing a new website?
I work at an agency mostly focused in software development however sometimes a microsite is accessory to one of our solutions and we need to build it.
I'm trying to define the process for creating ...
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Recommended practice to improve illustrating skills?
The last few years my interest in illustrations and animation has grown a lot. I work as a visual designer at the moment, focussing on interfaces mostly.
I'd like to start improving my illustrating ...
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How can a popular free site with minimal budget obtain quality UI/UX design support?
I'm the dev of a web-based music player called TheParade.
I listen to music on youtube often, and wanted a better experience, so I created the app, which I've been incrementally coding up over the ...
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Scrap-work Methods
Should one start their scrap-work / mockups in an ordinary notebook or scrap-paper to be thrown away ?
What is the recommended practice?
Keep older drawings ?
Throw them away ?
Is it better to ...
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where to get web-design critiques and suggestions?
Where do you get you design critics for your project, particularly on web design? A friend had suggested to me a website where people critique and give suggestion on your website. But I forgot the ...
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Is it possible to link shapes to a master shape, so that modifications to the master like repositioning, affect all linked shapes?
I'm using Illustrator CC, and I'd like to link some sub-shapes to a master such that modifying the master also moves the sub-shapes.
Context: Octopus tentacles. I've got shapes for each tentacle ...
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What is your backup strategy?
It is time I took backing up my work more seriously.
Currently I only have a backup external hard drive which is connected to my system all the time. One problem I have is that the light on this drive ...
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What are the downsides of UXPin compared to the top 4 players (Sketch, Figma, XD, Studio)?
Short question:
The last 2 days, I tested various UI / UX / Prototype Tools like Figma, XD, InVision Studion and said UXPin.
I'm currently working with Sketch + Craft. What I realised is, that Sketch, ...
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What are strategies for implementing drawing tablet into workflow?
I recently got my first tablet and am interested in tips and resources for using it. Some for example say to hide mouse and force yourself to use the Tablet instead.
For those that have taken that ...
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Is there a graphic design specification system?
Is there a commonly used design specification system to present a graphic design to a customer before we start the implementation? My challenge is specifically on mailings (PDF A4, HTML sent per mail),...
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How to start constructing a logo?
When designing something like the logo below, what is the right approach to start?
I face problems with angles. I can't determine the angle from the picture and incorporate that into my design.
How ...
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What are some efficient design strategies when working with a constant flow of clients?
Hi I am working as the main graphic designer / printer in a sign shop. We have a constant flow of work which is non stop. The pressure fluctuates but is pretty constant.
I would like to hear if ...
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InDesign: how to have editors collaborate on the content
We're working on a magazine in Adobe InDesign. Is there a way to include the text content dynamically, so that a person who doesn't have InDesign can edit the text and the edits will automatically be ...
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How can I localize an InDesign file?
I'm looking for some method for automating the localization process for an InDesign document.
Basically, I want to be able to take the contents of the file, translate it into a few other languages (...
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4
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How to tell my boss his webdesign attempts are bad/hopeless?
I'm a web dev. My boss is an outdated physical media designer. We're working together on a relatively huge food delivery web system.
He just keep coming with these poor and ugly layout ideas. Clearly ...
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How to describe/talk like a designer?
I am a front end web developer. I tend to mostly deal with code but do, from time to time, have the opportunity to create graphics. I notice the designers I work with are able to talk in great detail ...
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How can I ensure consistency in web design?
I had a lot of trouble formulating this question, hopefully the title is representative to the question asked.
Currently I'm assisting / managing an intern with his first big 'web design' project. ...
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How to troubleshoot a design that doesn't "feel" right?
I'm a new designer (sort of) and I'm wondering how you guys fix a design that just doesn't feel quite right. When you've been working on a design for a while, you can get the feeling that one of many ...
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Adobe Fireworks - the best replacement?
Okay yes back in 2011 and 2014 similar questions were asked.
But now that it is on the cusp of 2020, my question is who HAS FOUND a replacement to Fireworks that they LOVE and would highly recommend?
...
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