<![CDATA[NATALIE EVANS - Professional Practice]]>Sat, 05 Jun 2021 16:50:48 +0100Weebly<![CDATA[An Audience with No.4]]>Wed, 14 Apr 2021 20:18:17 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/an-audience-with-no4In this session we talked to Aimee, who works in children's book publishing and Sarah, who works for The Guardian.
Where the book is going to be sold determines the design of the book cover. Commercial books end up in supermarkets, posher styles are for WHSmiths and Waterstones, however there are often books that have to go into both therefore the design has to fit into both categories. 
commercial - bold, eye catching, to the point designs
posher style - textures, embedded text, stylistic, teal they love a good teal!
The marketing team often have a large say in the style of the cover as this is the main selling point, everyone judges a book by its cover.

How illustrators are found
Emails from illustrators, through agencies, previous work, Instagram, find it easy to look at, easier than a website and more up to date with their current style. 

style of the artist depends on the brief in question, usually they will have a style already in mind and an illustrator to go with so its important that your work is on the radar. however they do not have a digital/non-digital preference, as long as you can work to the time frame yore good.]]><![CDATA[An audience with No. 3]]>Wed, 14 Apr 2021 19:58:02 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/an-audience-with-no-3Notes from the 'An audience with No.3' where we asked University of Cumbria Alumni Hazel and Rachel questions around what its like to be in the working sector and for tips for us as graduates to help us get noticed.

Email, its one of the best tools you can have. you can get commissions just through sending out emails to the right people containing images and links of new work you are creating. However, having the right email is key, always know who you're talking to and address them appropriately. 

to keep fresh, Rachel was going on to the new app and creating editorial illustrations in response to the articles coming out in real time, keeping her brain stimulated and creative juices flowing. 
]]><![CDATA[Contact Details Collections]]>Wed, 14 Apr 2021 19:53:38 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/contact-details-collectionsWhen looking for artist and designers contact inofrmation, the majority of them do not list their emails or contact info on their website and instead have a contact us style section therefore i would need to do more digging to find a contact email or address for them. Below are the ones i have managed to find,
Craig Black - hello@craigblackdesign.com
​Marylou Faure - ask@maryloufaure.com
]]><![CDATA[Digital Communication and Networking]]>Sun, 04 Apr 2021 23:00:00 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/research-for-cv-and-email-writingHere are a list of do's and don'ts for writing CVs

Do

  • Customise your content. Make sure everything in the resume is tailored for the job that you are applying for.
  • Spotlight your skills. List said skills and how you have used them either professionally or in day to day life
  • Proofread. This is essential!
  • Design. This is the first version of you they are going to see, make it interesting and memorable.
  • Prioritise readability. No funky fonts.
  • Show off your brand.

Don't

  • Try not to use cliches
  • Take care with colour. Make sure any colour added enhances the CV and doesn't distract.
  • One page is enough. 
  • No long personal statements. describe who and what you do in a few sentences.

CV design

Picture

Writing a good email

Always start off with 'Dear' followed by Sir/Madam unless their name is known. 
Establish the purpose of the email, this is a professional email, no pleasantries needed. 
Once the main body has been typed using correct spellings and grammar, proof read the email before signing 'Kind regards' followed by your name or signature already saved in the system. Follow this guide and your emails will be perfect. 
]]><![CDATA[Social Media]]>Sun, 28 Mar 2021 23:00:00 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/social-media

Pros

- Able to interact with other artists
- Gets more people looking at your work
​- Good for networking, building relationships with people both professionally and personally
- Free advertising
- Discussion forums are good for primary research if designing something for a specific demographic
- Good for website traffic

Cons

- Negative comments can affect mental health and confidence in ones work
​- Lacks an emotional connection
- Can be conveyed as unprofessional 
- Have to be careful with how it is used as certain phrases or words can come across disrespectful/derogatory 
After researching the different uses of social media, I believe that the pros outweigh the cons. there is so much to be gained from the use of social media professionally that it would be a complete waste not to make use of it. As long as the content is consistent and professional, it can reach audiences far and wide, its effectively free advertising.
]]><![CDATA[Portfolio Improvement]]>Fri, 26 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/portfolio-improvement​craigblackdesign.com/
​Above is a website that I would like to take inspiration from to better my own, i will do so by completing the following to do list.
To Do in order to improve my Portfolio
1. Create an intriguing home page
2. Organise my work brief by brief
3. Write descriptions of each brief to go with each section 
4. make the portfolio flow aesthetically, either through chronological order or colour associations
]]><![CDATA[Action Plan]]>Mon, 19 Oct 2020 17:00:44 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/action-planPlans of action based on the previous two tasks, looking at what I need to do in the future in order to make myself a good, established graphic designer.
Some of the plans are a bit ambitious, but a girl can dream!
]]><![CDATA[Skills Audit]]>Mon, 19 Oct 2020 16:31:44 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/skills-audit
Picture
Links that can help me to improve on these skills:
Adobe
​Resolutions
​RGB/CMYK
Typography terminology
Obviously the rest of the things that i need to work on are simply to begin practicing in my own time which i hope to begin doing soon.
]]><![CDATA[Where to Work]]>Mon, 19 Oct 2020 13:45:36 GMThttp://natalie.grillust.uk/professional-practice/where-to-work
When researching my interests I came across this article (​https://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/article/8848/1/graphic-design-for-fashion) titled Graphic Design and Fashion which is interviewing Jay Hess, a graphic designer that designs labels for clothing brands. He has released a book titled Graphic Design for Fashion which I would like to read in the near future.  
Books interest me a lot. going into publishing would be an absolute dream, being able to bring the authors words to life would feel like such an accomplishment. I haven't had an awful lot of practice but have found some bits of articles and videos that give helpful hints and tricks to designing intriguing book covers.
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