Switching from diecut to printed wraps... Design help needed

[MikeD]

I've been in this biz, designing and laying vinyl, for 20+ years. Last year I started back to college to finish my graphic design degree. I have learned soooo much in the last 1.5 yrs! Stick with school and see where it takes you. In the meantime, you might want to consider outsourcing wrap designs until you're experienced enough to tackle it.

As stated above, I agree... So many times in this forum I see start-ups asking about getting new equipment and they are BLASTED> sub it out until you can afford to buy it yourself.<
Well, as I said, your schooling will help you develop your own style that will set you apart. Education is an invaluable asset to any business venture; creative or otherwise. AND, education is a continual journey...I never stop learning how to do what I do better. Until you get to the pinnacle of where you want to be artistically, and if you want to make money in the mean time "sub-out" the design side...buy the canned graphics.

edit: I meant to respond to Colorado's earlier post.
...See I am STILL learning!

 

[GoodPeopleFlags]

Signmaniac-
School is cool! I'm getting the chance to design stuff that I don't normally get to do, like package design, posters, book covers, brochures, and just artsy stuff in general. My design won the cover of last year's Calhoun "Muse" magazine. I found out the other day that my logo design submission for the new art bldg at another college came in 3rd place. I'm making connections in the local art scene. My creativity has expanded. I'm just finishing up a required digital photography class. I didn't know anything about photography, always wanted to and now I know a little bit. So cool!

Next semester, I'm taking Advanced Multimedia Production (don't know what that's about) and Advanced Digital Design (Adobe Flash class and I know nothing about it). Both of those are required. I get to learn new stuff! Yea! I hope to graduate Fall semester next year.

 

[cooltouch]

I'm not so sure i agree with this... Along with knowing how to design.. you need to understand basic principles. A lot of people are just really good with programs, and don't know how to actually design.. and they get by.. but nothing really stellar is designed out of a shop like this, and this could result in less return customers.

Some shops find a designer who can design wraps for a flat fee of about 2-300, and they just do the print and install. You might want to look into that before getting heavy into it yourself.

We have a outside designer we met by luck who is great and used to be in the industry. It took us a few months to find a reliable job to job designer who knows his stuff

 

[www.esigns.com]

I agree "school is cool" especially when you have the luxury of taking classes purely because you are interested in earning knowledge in a particular area versus taking classes you have no interest in to fulfill credit requirements to obtain a degree, it is a very rewarding experience imo.

Regarding the topic at hand...I suggest observing the wraps you see around you on a daily basis.

what works?
what is pleasing to view?
what catches your attention?
what is effective advertising?
what doesn't work?
what is not accomplishing the advertising goals/how could it be reworked/improved?

study and dissect other people's work who are producing quality work and learn from it.
build a library and keep building it...books, magazines, clipart, I even have folders created under my 'favorites' in my web browser for various categories and types and styles of projects of various artists, shops,etc., that I refer to for inspiration when I am stuck. Signmaniac above is a great source of inspiration, John Deaton, Dan Antonelli, etc.

I also find that sometimes it is a better use of client's money to outsource a design if it is a style that is not one of my strengths. Not a thing wrong with that, build relationships with a variety of artists that fulfill design needs that differ from your skillset.

 

[Bobby H]

IMHO while it is good to observe what other sign designers are doing, I strongly recommend broadening one's visual horizons well beyond just what is happening with signs.

When I was in art school I resisted the suggestions from instructors to visit art galleries and look at a lot of other "fine arts" related things. I was an illustration major. My thing was commercial art, not the fine arts thing. After awhile I got the real idea: the instructors were wanting us to see things in a different way and allow that to improve our creativity. Fine art is often very ridiculous. Nevertheless it is typically still on the cutting edge. If you want to be ahead of the trends you have to look at this stuff once in awhile.

I look at all sorts of things for inspiration. Yes, I will take note of a vehicle wrap design that works. I like great looking, effective signs. I love innovative architecture. I'm a bit of a road geek, so civil engineering projects like the new I-40 crosstown in Oklahoma City are fascinating. Retail package design should be a big deal to anyone designing signs since the two mediums are much more closely related than one might initially think. Walk the aisles in a grocery store and take note of what products really "project" out from the shelf versus the others which disappear in the static of all the other items. I'll sometimes spend an extra 10 minutes or so just walking around judging package design when I'm only there to pick up a few snacks.

 

[signswi]

IMHO while it is good to observe what other sign designers are doing, I strongly recommend broadening one's visual horizons well beyond just what is happening with signs.

When I was in art school I resisted the suggestions from instructors to visit art galleries and look at a lot of other "fine arts" related things. I was an illustration major. My thing was commercial art, not the fine arts thing. After awhile I got the real idea: the instructors were wanting us to see things in a different way and allow that to improve our creativity. Fine art is often very ridiculous. Nevertheless it is typically still on the cutting edge. If you want to be ahead of the trends you have to look at this stuff once in awhile.

I look at all sorts of things for inspiration. Yes, I will take note of a vehicle wrap design that works. I like great looking, effective signs. I love innovative architecture. I'm a bit of a road geek, so civil engineering projects like the new I-40 crosstown in Oklahoma City are fascinating. Retail package design should be a big deal to anyone designing signs since the two mediums are much more closely related than one might initially think. Walk the aisles in a grocery store and take note of what products really "project" out from the shelf versus the others which disappear in the static of all the other items. I'll sometimes spend an extra 10 minutes or so just walking around judging package design when I'm only there to pick up a few snacks.

Good post, training your eye is a huge part of becoming a designer and one many think they can skip. I ended up liking art history classes so much I got a bachelor's in it and is has influence on every project I undertake as a designer. Especially in signage, where historical reference and typographical understanding is so important.

 

[Dan Antonelli]

We might be of a minority, but 99% of our designs are vector based fully. Of the last 35 wrap designs only one had a photo. So all our designs come out of illustrator.

But before you can effectively wrap anything, you need an effective brand worthy of wrap. Most small businesses do not have a brand worthy of wrapping to begin with, which is why most wraps on the road today fail from a marketing standpoint. For every sample on our site (http://www.graphicd-signs.com/portfolio-vehicle-advertising#1) we first created their brand identity.

Read as much as you can on the subject, and become obsessed with learning as much as you can. Emulate styles of those you admire, and understand the fundamentals of basic layout and design. Don't worry about adding bells and whistles until the basic layout is sound.