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TheAngusBurger

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 30, 2008
93
0
Just curious about how you lot got into graphic design?

I personally got a demo of Paint Shop Pro...7? free with a PC magazine.:eek:

Anyways, it was worth it, I followed loads of tutorials until I knew what everything did, then I joined a few forums, making signature tags etc.

Anyways, just curious.

-Teh Burgeh
 

mbrellisford

macrumors member
May 29, 2007
79
0
Canada
Photoshop 7 and Flash 5 was what first programs that got me interested. I was always interested in Newgrounds and wanted to submit some of my own material. That was the spark that started it all.
 

SwiftLives

macrumors 65816
Dec 7, 2001
1,356
341
Charleston, SC
In 9th grade (circa 1991), I was recruited to work on the yearbook staff...for no other reason that I was allegedly good at computers.

I believe the computer we used was a Quadra...and Pagemaker 4.

And this was back in my Mac-bashing, DOS-loving days. In fact, one of my reasons for hating the Mac was actually it's lack of a command prompt...But I digress.

Anyway, I stuck with it. Ended up working as a designer on the newspaper staff in college. Ended up majoring in Art (since they didn't offer a graphic design course at the time). Been in design ever since.

So I just sort of fell into it.

(The irony is that in my current job, I'm having to use WinXP.)
 

LeviG

macrumors 65816
Nov 6, 2006
1,277
3
Norfolk, UK
when I was about 4 I started drawing scifi (even then I loved sci fi) type vehicles etc, design followed through GCSE's (designed a car for mini project for a city and guilds, got a distinction on it - ended up looking like a merc released a few years later :rolleyes:, hell I'm always ahead by a couple of years with my product designs too :D)
Did A-Levels and a BTEC with a focus towards designing things. Applied for transport design, ended up being recommended for product design as it was a better option for me.
Learn to use CAD packages such as solidworks and 3ds max.
Qualified, asked to do cad etc for client so focus more on cad rendering etc now as a freelancer :)

A program never made me interested in design, I was into it before I even touched a pc
 

Nicolecat

macrumors 6502a
Apr 2, 2008
968
7
My dad is in the printing business.
His company used to print barbie comics back in the day...and they still print Marvel, and other things.

I always thought what he did was really cool.
I would use coloring books as reference and try to recreate the image...then send it through the fax machine like it was my "state of the art" printer. :p
(I loved the satin finish on the paper)

Now I have a degree in Graphic Design...and absolutely love what I do.

:D:D:D
 

Abraxsis

macrumors 6502
Sep 23, 2003
425
11
Kentucky
Quite funny you should use the topic you did OP, because I actually did just that. Some may know that I recieved a Master, as well as 2 Bachelor degrees in the Human/Social Science (Psy and Soc). I was planning on being a shrink but decided I needed a break from school before beginning my PhD program. So I took a year off, but I needed cash so I began to look for a job. Nothing in my field locally, so I went to the net ... monster to be precise. I was coming back from the kitchen when I stumbled and hit the keyboard with my hand, the key hit were T,Y,V,U,and M ... it returned several things, but near the top was Toy Vault Inc ... and it was in my hometown! Turns out it was a toy company, that while is big in the specialty market, was all of unheard of locally. I wasn't even aware it was there. I sent a resume, the person doing the hiring turned out to be a child hood friend, and I was hired. 6 Months later I found I had a knack for package and product design. 2.5 years after that I sit here in my office, the art director and primary designer of the company. And now I cant imagine myself doing anything else.

Some might call it fate, karma, destiny, or whatever that I literally "fell into my dream job" but all in all I call it two things ... clumsy and lucky. Although it does disgust me sometimes that I had to go through all that school to find out that it didn't make me happy.
 

Z.Beeblebrox

macrumors regular
Nov 27, 2007
107
0
NJ / NYC
I entered a regional art competition when I was 5 and won. Parents threw every art supply in the world at me. Spent summers in art classes at museums. High school had a commercial at class where I learned to design on Macs. Was laying out the school newspapers, literary magazines, awards show programs, invitations, etc. Started getting commission work at age 15 and started my freelance business when I was 17. Went to college and then straight into a design job from there. Been here ever since.
 

Saliwa

macrumors member
Apr 7, 2008
65
0
Mostly doing webdesign. No flash for the time being, I find it is overused. I liked to draw since I am young.
 

pcypert

macrumors 6502
Jul 19, 2006
396
0
Bangkok
People just kept asking me to do it. Am a photographer by trade and clients wanted me to do the brochures I was taking pictures for. Finally went back and studied and pursued it more.

Paul
 

snickelfritz

macrumors 65816
Oct 24, 2003
1,109
0
Tucson AZ
Went to school, then started my own business.
My typographer (this was in 1997) advised me to buy a Mac with Photoshop, PageMaker and Freehand.
I bought the computer and software and taught myself how to use it.
 

Daringescape

macrumors regular
May 7, 2003
152
0
CA
Started with a t shirt design for a friend. Got a copy of photoshop 5.5, and did a few other things. I like design enough that I went to school and for it and now I run a small studio.

I design stuff for a LIVING!! its a trip sometimes.
 

IgnatiusTheKing

macrumors 68040
Nov 17, 2007
3,657
2
Texas
Took a lot of art classes growing up, then took a bunch more at film school (studio art, art history and still photography classes were part of the side curriculum).

Got a demo of Photoshop 5 after I graduated in 1998 when I bought Adobe Premiere as part of my first video editing setup (a beige G3 tower with two monitors). A friend of mine worked at a T-shirt shop at the time, so I got a few pointers (and full copies of PS 5.5 and AI 8) from him, and I was off and running.

I've taught myself all the software in the intervening years (picked up ID for the first time in '05 and now use it on a daily basis), and slowly but surely have gotten better and better, to where a couple of years ago I finally considered myself a designer instead of a dabbler.

I now work as a designer full time (and do some freelance on the side). I mostly do print work, but I've taught myself DW over the past few months (after first dabbling with it 3-4 years ago) and am on the verge of completely re-launching my company's website. I'm now teaching myself Flash, as well.

I love going to work for the first time since I quit working on movies in '02.
 

CMD is me

macrumors 6502
Dec 7, 2006
401
0
Went to architecture school and was bored with writing reports. Design is much cooler... wish schools would tell students to not expect a job right away though ; )
 

Joel Beason

macrumors member
Jan 21, 2007
83
0
Uconn
took a graphic arts class my senior year in high school, and really enjoyed it, now I go to school for it :) I'm going to be a junior next year and can't wait to keep learning
 
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