It’s a huge joke and it’s not remotely funny. I would also assume most of the one million photographers claim to provide graphic design as well as photographic services. I’m not convinced collaboration is the best advice the nature of trying to stand out requires separating yourself from the crowd. The actual reality is far more worrying as it highlights the fact a small percentage of professional photographers are competing with a far larger percentage of amateurs. Good advice? Maybe considering the simple maths ratio of two clients for every photographer isn’t a recipe for a successful business. The article features a local photographer’s pearls of wisdom in which he suggests photographers should work together rather than compete. One would hope the figure includes everyone with a smart phone. The article doesn’t explain where this statistic came from and if it is true, why is no one concerned by the fact Botswana has one million photographers? That’s almost half the entire population. Studying serves a purpose, but because college projects are typically theoretical every aspiring graphic designer, even graduates, need relevant work experience before they become a fully-fledged graphic designer. A contentious issue within design circles is whether education/qualifications are relevant for those wanting to pursue a career in graphic design. Practitioners do have to exhibit a certain degree of proficiency, but that can be extremely subjective. The creative industry is one of those industries that doesn’t necessarily require practitioners to have recognised qualifications, particularly graphic design.
Would you trust the skills of a self-taught doctor or a self-taught dentist? The term “self-taught” is another way of saying “amateur” and it doesn’t inspire confidence. If they were looking to engage a graphic designer they would want to hire an experienced professional. Why? Most people outside of the creative industry don’t know the difference between good and bad design. One thing that stands out for me is the fact many self-taught designers are so proud of the fact they taught themselves, they use it as a badge of honour. I don’t have a problem with self-taught graphic designers per se my concern is the industry is being degraded because of it. Don’t get me wrong there are some talented designers, but they are in the minority and the majority tend to be individuals who are self-taught. When you observe the quality of design, you can see there is a deficiency across the board. Then there are photographers, photocopy shops, printers, interior designers and everyone else who supposedly provides graphic design services. Working as part of a creative team is inspiring and fun, and for the self-employed designer, there is a wide online community of designers sharing work, feedback, and advice.I’ve been operating in Botswana for a few years now and the design industry is saturated with large, medium and small agencies and a high number of freelancers. Creative studios value individuality with relaxed dress codes, flexible working patterns and quirky workspaces. If the idea of working nine to five in a corporate office environment leaves you cold, studio life may be more up your street. Modern design studios are vibrant and exciting places to work. At the very least, it is a helpful supplemental resource.Īt last, we are certain that these courses will help you build your skills in Graphic Designing. It’s an incredibly comprehensive list of information that could be the primary basis for how you learn graphic design.
Each section provides a list of helpful resources including design books, educational blogs, job boards for finding design jobs, and websites where you can promote your work. The article is broken down into helpful subtopics such as design principles, history of design, and how to put together a design portfolio. He also has experience building a number of high traffic blogs. It’s written by Sean Hodge, who’s currently the Business Editor for the Tuts+ educational network. This article outlines all the resources you need to create a self-taught graphic design course to replace traditional education.