OC Design Guy

Logo Disasters

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Wed, 21 May 2008 17:56:00 +0000

Have you ever had an awesome idea in your head that just looked awesome. That perfect logo, poster, painting, etc. that just would fit what you are looking for. However, when you sit down, that same beautiful idea gets lost in translation and looks something more like that ideas ugly step-sister. Well the above photos are a few examples of what happens when you a) don't test/think out your logo b) drink heavily when designing or c) want to attract every creep and pedophile out there.

Feel free to send in some of the logos you have found that look a tad funky.

Shout out to Albert who likes to drive to Vegas just for the fun of it.

Paul Rand doesn't want to be a cow

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Thu, 15 May 2008 23:07:00 +0000

Over at the SwissMiss blog, they are displaying a nice article focusing on a book about Paul Rand, designer god. It is a worthwhile read that allows us a glimpse into the thoughts of such a influential designer. Some thoughts, such as his opinions on what is important about being a designer:

It is important to use your hands, this is what distinguishes you from a cow or a computer operator.

Click through to view the entire blog.

Words to swear by....

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Wed, 14 May 2008 23:30:00 +0000

The Photo Business Forum has just posted a blog that I think any designer/photographer really should read. It's the whole triangle concept in regards to a clients desires for his project. The triangle consists of 3 points (DUH): good, cheap, fast. A client will ideally want all 3 of them, but it is almost impossible for us as service providers to give all of our client all 3 aspects while trying to stay sane and make a living. So thus, it is more reasonable to give 2 aspects. This pretty much goes against my theory where the only aspects i offer are handisnacks and caprisuns.

click though for the full story!

Designer Spotlight: Nine Three Studio

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Wed, 14 May 2008 00:08:00 +0000

Luke Hodsdon and NineThreeStudio.com recently put up their blog style portfolio site and I must say it looks pretty bitchin. Great articles that are relevant to what is new, innovative, or inspirational in the industry. Also their portfolio is very sharp as well.

Great site and work that is definetly worth a subscription. GO NOW. NOW!!!!

You know what they say about Big Heads...

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Tue, 13 May 2008 21:54:00 +0000

The folks over at Big Head Design, LLC have finally gotten settled on their site and it's about time! A witty blog about design combined with their portfolio and information shows of the versatility of today's blog sites. Aside from blogger, Wordpress blogs are awesome ways to get set up, allowing complete control (although some knowledge of CSS and PHP scripting is handy).

Design of the Day

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Wed, 07 May 2008 16:25:00 +0000

After all these years of trying to solve this damn cube with 4 colors on it, getting frusturated, breaking it, and crying myself to sleep with feelings of inadequices, I realize now that I could have been making large pixelated pieces of art.

Just like the one above, featured over on smashing magazine. A great use of rubix cubes to make one very pop art image.

Oh rubix cubes, you are my bitch lover!

Pixels Gone Wild!

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Wed, 07 May 2008 16:18:00 +0000

The peeps at smashingmagazine.com have this SWEET feature on pixelart in it's various forms. Pixel art has been a fave of mine for many moons, mostly because of it's simplicity taking us back to the days of 8-bit nintendo games.

Above is one done by lovepixel.com. click through to check out their site!

Clever Posters are clever, geeky

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Tue, 06 May 2008 18:44:00 +0000

These posters over on SwissMiss.com are action-packed full of quirkyness. However, if you don't have a basic understanding of the short commands for a mac (shame on you if you don't) then you may not be able to fully enjoy these posters.

So don't get mad if you somehow are offended by misreading "command-A" as a cuss word.

click through for more info.

Tiny Type is hard to read, ingenious

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Tue, 06 May 2008 18:34:00 +0000

Sometimes you see a design that just makes you want to hit yourself for not thinking of it. The peeps over at notcot.com have one of those moments displayed on their blog today.

The above photo is of an invite from the tiny radar design group and sticking with the theme (and an ultra-minimalist style) the invite consists of 1 insanely small paragraph on white paper. The kicker is the awesome magnifying glass that is included with the invite, which is branded with the company logotype.

Now when I get flyers, or invites from my numerous friends (read: 4) i usually just throw them away, which I guess is why I've stopped receiving any at all anymore. But if I were to receive this whale of an invite, I would definitely stop to enjoy it's awesomeness and would definitely remember the group who made it.

Click through for details.

Rokysopp has a silly name, cool video

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Mon, 05 May 2008 22:30:00 +0000

Kudos to Danny again for finding another video of some group who i've never heard of. The group Rockysopp put this video together for their song "remind me" and it sure does "remind me" of the Sims video game. BA DUM CHA! man i'm funny.... watch the vid for all it's quirky, indie moments.

Justice's "Dance" makes me want to.

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Mon, 05 May 2008 19:47:00 +0000

It's always great finding something totally random (or in this case being given) and it turns out to be freakin awesome.

If you've never heard of them (and i never had), the indie/electric group "Justice" has made a couple of songs that are accompanied by some wickedly awesome videos.

Simple in concept, the use of type and imagery to reinforce the lyrics is pretty damn good. Except up until the point where i had a seizure. Totally worth it though. Does anybody smell rubber? oh shit....

Click on the vids above to watch em. Just turn your sound down.

Shout to Danny who's choice of music is beyond comprehension.

Picture pages, picture pages.....

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Mon, 05 May 2008 19:23:00 +0000

That's right boys and girls it's time to make some picture pages. This great resource of a website allows the simple creation of books by compiling your own text and photos into a great, professional looking book.

Plus, the price or $13 bux (softcover,before s&h) for one 7x7 book is a fantastic deal. For all you designers out there, this is a great idea for whipping together a sharp looking mini-portfolio to carry around with you, and for the bloggers out there you can even turn your blogs into an annual "year-in-review" book containing your blogs entries and photos!

Clichttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifk through for to see their awesome site or just jump straight to their interactive sample books!

Shout out to Luke at I'mnotyourbuddyguy blog for the tip!

Design Spotlight: Sorapot

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:46:00 +0000

In today's modern design, less has become more. Slimmed down lines, minimal copy, that sleek "corporate" look. Those are all fine and good when it comes to design, but did you ever think that something as simple as a teapot could be slimmed down? Well the good people at Sorapot sure did and now i want to buy stock in them. A teapot in it's simplest form. Perfect for a drink consisting of nature in it's simplest form.

Click through for the full scope and to buy me one!

Thanks to notcot.com for the great link!

Idle hands....

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:22:00 +0000

If you've ever wondered what happens to graphic designers do when they are bored/too lazy to work, please refer to the photos above.

Please note the faces on the bodies are not the actual faces.

Thanks to Brandon, who always wants a mustache ride for the photos.

Design Spotlight: Sick ass Screensaver

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:14:00 +0000

Gone are the days of swirly lines bouncing around your screen to keep whatever images are on there from burning permanently into the screen. No more scrolling lines of text that may or may not say how cool i am. The above screensaver is what to old screensavers were as my biceps are to the old arnold schwarzenegger's were: bigger and better in every aspect.

The ability to capture the high-speed images of numbers being physically dropped into water showing the tiniest of dropletts splashing around and the detail of the water below the surface not to mention all of that being shown in motion is amazing. Just like my biceps...

Click through to view this in all it's glory.

Designer Spotlight: House Industries

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Fri, 02 May 2008 18:47:00 +0000

I can't think of a better designer to spotlight than that of House Industries. These guys are anywhere and everywhere, from custom-made fonts (shout out to HOUSE-A-RAMA KINGPIN!) to logo designs for the entire city of FREAKIN' VEGAS! they have their fingers constantly on the pulse of the design world.

Click through for the full story and make sure to purchase a book of theirs. The gained inspiration is well worth the $39.99.

The Ulitmate Graphic Design Resume Guide

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 18:45:00 +0000

Continuing in our series of freelancing/post-grad work as a graphic designer in the big bad world is this extremely awesome, in-depth article on the do's and don't of a graphic design resume.

While most resumes in corporate jobs require the content to stand out (i.e. the achievements, GPA, work history, references, etc), a graphic designers resume is much more scrutinized. Not only are we judged on all of the above, but the paper we use, the typography we choose, the layout and how it works. Our resume is not only about who we are or have been with past companies, but it is the first piece of our work that employers can judge us on what we can bring to the table.

Youthedesigner.com, a blog with a shit-ton of great resources as well as articles, has the full run down on this information, and let me tell you if i had known all this when i graduated and got on the job hunt, I would be doing more important things with my life other than devoting myself to the trainings of Ninja Warrior.....those asian bastards are awesome!

Click through for the full run down.

Go Live, Goes Dead

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:40:00 +0000

Now I don't use GoLive and that's mainly because instead of choosing to learn it, I chose to spend my college days playing RPG's and FPS's. But I know many people do and that's why this post is going to make them sad.

Apparently the design software behemoth Adobe, just hasn't really seen a big interest in GoLive with Dreamweaver & Flash being the go to Web Design programs. GoLive users shouldn't fret though, migration tuts will be released and an upgrade path will also be available for 200 bux.

Click here for the full story.

Design a calendar; become a millionaire (true story)

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:19:00 +0000

Smashingmagazine.com has been whipping out some very cool desktop calendars for the low-low price of $FREE.99 (you see what i did there?) anyway, they are calling for submissions of people's designs, which if chosen, will be featured in their magazine.

I'd submit some of mine, but apparently the stick-figure era hasn't quite hit the art world. I know, I'm so Avant Garde it hurts.

Click through for the full details.

Hyper Real Vector images are awesome, make me want to cry

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:03:00 +0000

Holy hell, the above photos were done with only vector imagery. I'd love to claim these as my own, but considering my medium of choice is crayons and construction paper, I just wouldn't feel right.

Click through to have your mind blown.

Thanks to Luke, who wants your face......off, for the link.

Freelancing can make you rich, insane

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:03:00 +0000

As a designer, many (if not all) of us have aspirations to start a firm, be our own bosses, work from home, etc. There are obviously some exceptions to the rule. I myself prefer to sculpt works of art out of granite, which coincidentally enough is what my biceps are made of. My chest is more of a limestone.

But seriously folks, there are tons of questions in regards to starting, and maintaining, a successful freelance business. Questions such as registering a name (DBA), type of company (Sole proprietorship, LLC, S-Corp, etc), how much to charge, how to get clients and many, many more that will inevitably come up once you get going. The first and most important step however, is the planning process.

Before you do a single project for a client, you must know what you will offer, what your liabilites are, who you are going to target, and more. According to
There are 4 basic pillars with which can be built a solid foundation in addition to the preliminary research that for your target market.

1) Devise a persuasive business offer so new clients remember you and recommend you.

2) Have a selection of work in your portfolio that clearly demonstrates your business offer.

3) Have a well-structured website that reinforces your business offer.

4) Have a stash of business cards that remind prospects of your business offer after you have met them.

But the best foundation you can build upon would be my rock-solid pecs. No joke.

Click through for the rest of the article.

Great Insipirational Typography!

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:03:00 +0000

Sometimes you just need a good source of inspiration. A muse if you will. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean look at something and plagiarize the shit out of it while changing at least 10% and claiming it as your own. I just mean something to shake the cob-webs off. Most of us have these things. Something that is so damn good, that you just have to design something in your attempt to one-up it. The beauty of art is, nothing can be one-up'd. Each new creation is it's own entity that shares styles and characteristics.

Click through to enjoy the delicious Typography in store for you.

Video of the Month #1: OMFG TYPOGRAPHY!

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:41:00 +0000

This is quite possibly one of the most amazing videos using ONLY FREAKING LETTERS! THE GUY HAS MADE AN ENTIRE CITY MADE OF WORDS! the most amazing part is if you stop to read the words, they actually describe the person the words make up.

Enough of my babbling, just watch the video and see how many people you can make out.

Dunny. Munny. Labbits. WTF?

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 01:52:00 +0000

If you have been living in a whole for the last few years, or have simply not visited a mall or Urban Outfitters, MetroPark, (insert trendy store here) than you probably have never come across a dunny, munny, labbit, or any of the NUMEROUS other wildly popular vinyl design toys straight from the land of the rising sun.

These bad boys come in all shapes and sizes, many are designed by actual designers (tokidoki, kid robot, frank kozik, ima monster) that sound more like street artist tags than names. But don't let the name fool you, these "toys" pack some serious design punch. There are even blank canvas figures that allow you to unleash your own creativity.

OC Design Guy: Smarter than a 5th grader

noreply@blogger.com (That Blogger Guy) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 00:25:00 +0000

Me + Blog(love of design) - Common Sense = OC Design Guy.

Good Design. Bad Design. Photoshop. Illustrator. Tips and Tricks. Designer Profiles. Gadgets and Program Reviews. A blog about design in all it's forms because. With over 300,000 Graphic designers in the US alone, not including the architects, interior designers, environmental designers, the art lovers, there is a whole world of creativity waiting to be tapped. Unlimited sources of blogs, portfolio sites, websites, forums, and more are out there.