design

“Freelancing can indeed offer immense creative and professional
satisfaction, but there are plenty of challenges too. From the stress of
juggling multiple projects and knowing you’re 100 per cent responsible
for them, to clearing your schedule for work that never materialises,
freelancing can be as distressing and infuriating as it can be brilliant.”
Anne Wollenberg, Computer Arts, Feb 2016
With the lack of options
in the area and without
having the funds for travel I
decided to freelance for my
placement. Last semester I
undertook a large job for a
client that included wedding
invitations, place names, a
seating plan and photography
on the day. The client now
required a wedding book.
This job as a whole was a
huge undertaking during my
degree and I had to manage
my time incredibly well to
fit it all in. Editing images for
days on end is repetitive and
monotonous but necessary.
Problems that can arise include
delays in receiving information
from clients and continual
changes to information
provided. There are also
instances where the client
has requested something
that goes against what you
consider to be good design
and you must put forward
your opinion. Sometimes they
will be happy to take advice,
sometimes not.
I learned from this job that I had
underestimated the length
of time the editing would take.
I also determined that I would
be better served getting more
familiar with Adobe Bridge for
work-flow efficiency. I was left
frustrated by not having a good
file naming procedure from the
outset as I had to spend a bit
of time locating raw files where
the name didn’t correspond to
the jpg chosen by the client. In
industry, where time is money,
this would be wasteful.
As this is the first time I had
printed a book, I wanted to
get a sample book to test the
quality, The client was delighted
with the results though I know
this will not always be the case.
Some clients are very specific
with their needs and exact
shades of colour. I had a great
deal of experience of this in my
previous employment, where
the employer would sometimes
have to take a hit in the name of
customer satisfaction. The book
design was time consuming but
the experience will allow me
to make a better estimate in
the future. Only experience will
enable me to judge how long a
job will take and how much to
charge a client.
The second job I undertook was
to design an album cover for
Aberdeen band Seas, Starry.
The album is primarily for digital
release. They wanted simple
block colours along the lines
of David Hockney’s paintings
“If there is
one thing that
design is about,
designers are
taught, it is
problemsolving.
At college
and then
in business,
designers
learn that
what they need
in order to
practice design
is the brief -
the problem.”
David Carson, 2nd Sight