So You Want To Be A Graphic Designer? 2024 🤘🏻

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Curious about how to become a graphic designer in 2024? Watch this video for tips and insights on breaking into the field of graphic design!
Want to become a graphic designer in 2024? In this video, I share my journey from having no formal education to building a successful design career. Learn essential design principles, discover key books to read, and understand the importance of following a design brief. I also discuss creating a portfolio, mastering typography, and staying inspired. Whether you’re a beginner or looking to refine your skills, this guide has something for you. Subscribe for more tips on graphic design!
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🔗 Links
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If you would like me to design your logo and company branding, please check out my website for more information! www.willpaterson.design
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction
00:03 Personal Background
00:21 Becoming a Graphic Designer
00:39 Design School
01:01 Design Principles
01:29 Visual Communication vs. Art
01:52 Recommended Books
03:03 Design Briefs
03:50 Back Engineering
04:30 Design Process
07:15 Building a Portfolio
09:51 Continuous Learning
11:00 Inspiration
12:03 Typography
13:02 Case Studies
13:21 Skill Mastery
14:52 Conclusion

[@willpatersondesign]

Hope you enjoyed the video! Let me know if you have any questions :)

[@pepreno]

What if you cannot get any client? Or if you get a local client (after decades) and you simply cannot ask him for payment coz he is a relative, and the project simply does not fit in your porfolio?

[@gwenart_]

Hello Will, thank you for the tutorials as always! I'm planning to start a Logo Design Freelance journey soon, and I was wondering if when it comes to creating logo design portfolio on website, do you recommend if I make my own custom website for portfolio, or website with templates to start of? Or either is fine?

[@KT-ld5eg]

Great video. Could you make an in depth video about pricing as a beginner ? I've done 2 projects for friends for free and want/need to make some money now 🤣

[@toddbrous_untwist]

@willpatersondesign First off, I love your videos! I think you’re absolutely brilliant! This is gonna sound horrible. Unfortunately, I think it’s a bad idea to become a Graphic Designer in 2024. Generative AI is going to eventually make most creative jobs obsolete. “The marginal cost of cognition and creativity is dropping to $0” -Karim Lakhani, HBS. This means that we’re going to see massive disruption in design. There are almost no new skills that AI will find hard to replicate. I’m curious if you can be more specific about what skills you see as being AI Proof? (Full disclosure: I teach “AI for Creatives: Strategies for Success” at The School of Visual Arts.)

[@EmeraldEagle_]

Right now I feel stuck. I know what I want to do and how to go about doing it, but I don't have the money for a laptop to do it on. I've been trying to get a loan or lease, but no one to accept me because I'm young, just moved to a new state, just got a new job, and just got a new apartment. My credit is good but that's the only thing I've got going for me. I only need about 3k and I'll be able to get the equipment I need. Any helpful advice would be appreciated

[@Eddie-qf9mv]

I studied graphic design, had a internship, but decided to quit that and find my pasion on film makeup, fashion, photography, and video games. I'm currently doing a bachelor

[@ac1646]

At around 3:46: 'graphic design was done, one day, before software was a thing (believe it or not).' YES. And I'm from that generation of graphic designers! You've described the fundamental building blocks perfectly; you develop the mindset and then use the software as the 'tools'. It was such a joy, when the software was developed and we could mock-up and print out designs rather than have to laboriously mark-up type written copy for typesetting to 'set' and 'run-out' on their very expensive Lino-type machines. But having said that, as a consequence of designers taking ownership of this process, a whole industry died (typesetting).

[@willpatersondesign]

Yeah it's unfortunate. Technology will eventually replace all the jobs we do now in some form or another. I personally would love to live in the days where I could be a typesetter

[@Shane_Dunne]

Thank you man. I study graphic design and web design in college and most of it you dont learn in college. They give you information and resources and tools and you have to go off and put it into practice yourself so thank you.

[@ShortRedCat]

I'm currently in school for graphic design and I'm two years into my bachelor's but I'm worried about this whole Adobe thing. My entire school uses Adobe but I'm thinking of moving to affinity

[@aimeeaztec4601]

Love your content Will - super clear and articulate advice. Always seem to switch on and better understand listening to u. Tres bien!

[@willpatersondesign]

I appreciate that!

[@eduardcojocaru6568]

I’m an instructional designer which is a little different but I have been dabbling with the idea with getting into graphic design. Great video to get an introduction into it!

[@elenamiller1418]

Love your videos! Thank you :)

[@Lefty_Tiger]

I really love to work with typography, its just have infinity idea you can work with.

[@jmg9509]

For me, i'm a midjourney head. But i find what has happened is the complete OPPOSITE. Midjourney has made me want to learn MORE about art and graphic design...and so now i'm going to take this opportunity to learn more about them, read books and so on. Not for any job or anything, but just because i find it fanscinating, awe-inspiring and relaxing. To be able to create something that grabs peoples attention to the point where they say "wow"...uhh. Amazing.

[@DonWef]

Will, you are the GOAT!

[@EmeraldEagle_]

Needed this 😭

[@dantecxx]

Thank you Will, you are the best 🙌

[@willpatersondesign]

My pleasure!

[@jksong4141]

this is gold information! I'm a freelance graphic designer based in Korea. Still struggling, but trying to build up a good portfolio. Your videos help so much.

[@willpatersondesign]

Great to hear!

[@setareh.eghbal]

Really helpful ♥️ thank u

[@rikard.h]

It's interesting the way you see the purpose of your portfolio (show your process/state of mind). I have my portfolio on squarespace and can track what every visitor looks at. They don't stay on any page more than 6 seconds max lol. So my focus now is just to show things the look professional and pretty, with minimal text. No one seems to read anything anyway...

[@willpatersondesign]

I hear you. Have you tried telling more of a story with your portfolio? If you show the behind the scenes with photographs of your sketches and glimpses into how you solved a problem, that may get them reading and taking more of an interest! :)

[@rikard.h]

@@willpatersondesign Thanks! I have in some ways. More with pictures than text tbf. I think people might also view portfolios differently if they're hiring you as a freelancer (does your process fit the project we have for you?) or as an employee to handle their/their clients' work (do you have professional experience?). Maybe, idk. I think storytelling might be more beneficial for freelancers anyway (which I'm not).

[@dr.saadawy]

thanks for the amazing video! could you please share the "case studies" link please?

[@GeolyteGM]

Graphic design can be aetistic but at its core its all about "Visual Communication", your presentation of information.

[@willpatersondesign]

I do believe Graphic Design can be aesthetic, however, never form over function. :)

[@thewebstylist]

Any recommends sir for Brand Kit creators?

[@hammads9045]

Square Space is great to create portfolios, but what's the opinion on other platforms like Behance or Cargo? Are these platforms viewed negatively in the industry?

[@hunterbergman6453]

There’s a much greater technical component not emphasized that many aspiring or even “experienced” designers do not realize. Depending on what the final design will be used for, for example printing or packaging design, the designer should understand the different print methods and what the print requirements are. Many times production artists or prepress operators will receive a file and have to reject it or bill the client more for unexpected changes because the design isn’t built properly for printing

[@willpatersondesign]

I should've added this! Thanks for commenting :)

[@can8835]

I want tooo

[@faseer99]

Only become a graphic designer if you have a deep passion for graphic design and have creative ideas all the time, otherwise you'll end up as a copycat.

[@Loaf_ve]

Creative ideas for what exactly?

[@EmeraldEagle_]

Book list: Form and communication Raster systems / grid systems Making and breaking the grid The honest guild to logo design More is more The visual history of type

[@IsaiahGilbertoIsah]

Can you design using a phone and is designing same as drawing?

[@painter662]

Tips from 40+ years in the field. Rule one, learn design not programs. Hardware and software as you learned it has a life expectancy of about 5 years. Two figure out how to succeed independently firms solve evolving programming changes by firing people lots and lots of people. Three after 40 years you feel positively archaic. Four no area of visual arts is a safe haven. In 40 years I have been replaced by adobe 3 times, Maya once, Digital Photography, now Ai. Five in the end the thing that will keep you flowing is a look and a feel all your own that people like. Machines fallow the rules better than you will ever be able to. But machines copy blend and regurgitate. They do not actually create. Areas for fresh creations are limitless. Stake out a corner and make it yours. If people like it they don’t care how it’s made they want one just like it.

[@faizshaikh4771]

❤❤❤

[@SAIF02715]

Sir i wanna Meet you in future ❤

[@dylansearcy3966]

You can teach an artist to be an artist

[@nittani.]

Already am hah!

[@pepreno]

What if you cannot get any client? Or if you get a local client (after decades) and you simply cannot ask him for payment coz he is a relative, and the project simply does not fit in your porfolio?

[@ac1646]

You get a contract in place before you start the work (relative or not). Your portfolio should demonstrate a wide range of work. If you have designed something that neatly fits the brief it should be in your portfolio.

[@darksidevenom6]

So are you a big AAron Draplin Fan?

[@user-oz2yz9de4d]

Does this work for complete beginners?

[@Kyd1444]

Ofcourse!

[@dylansearcy3966]

Graphic design can still be considered a fine art

[@willpatersondesign]

It can! But I prefer to call that Graphic Art :)

[@nicholasbazarow4135]

Don’t do it kids ! Money is so bad these days . Make way more money being a plumber .

[@willpatersondesign]

Well that's not true. Get good, specialise and find and agency.

[@willpatersondesign]

It's not all about the money either.

[@nicholasbazarow4135]

@@willpatersondesign I have 20 yrs under my belt buddy. I’m an ace designer . Folio would give you a very good run. The industry is dieing. . That’s why you are you tubing. For sure plumbers make better money. 4 yrs in and they make well over 100k per year. That’s facts

[@ac1646]

@@nicholasbazarow4135 I'm with Will on this as I loved doing what I did whilst working as a designer. Now I'm doing more art and love that. Having said that, I am so grateful for modern plumbing so thank you for your service. 😊😊

[@myphantompain]

@@nicholasbazarow4135 If the industry is dying, how come graphic designer is on the list of the most needed jobs in the immigrations lists of UK/Germany, for example? I'm a game designer and that's where it's impossible to get hired to a point I'm blowing dust off of my graphic design degree to change professions.

[@MillywiggZ]

Alright. I’m throwing the gauntlet down. I want to see a graphic design tutorial without *any* use of *any and all* Adobe products. None whatsoever as if they don’t exist, not even Acrobat. No vague, “you can use any app”, without name-dropping anything. Lets see a Blender graphic design tutorial, or a Procreate one, no Adobe. Because if you’re new a £112 commitment to Photoshop for a year or £40 for a month is going to sound like a bad investment if you quit or only have a few hours during the day to teach yourself when those are the cheapest Adobe options.

[@willpatersondesign]

Blender is for 3D - Procreate is mainly for art. You don't have to use Adobe - Affinity have an amazing sale going on right now - you get everything!

[@TheCooksTV]

I wonder how AI interfaces will effect this industry

[@xanderabhi1]

I'm 32 year old .... Is it too late to learn graphic design and make it my profession?

[@stuartrogers9031]

Of course you can.

[@andrewarmstrong5266]

I started when I was 34, never to old and you bring a history of experiences and adverts you have grown up with too in mind, go for it

[@andrewarmstrong5266]

Right having watched this just now and seeing the comments here, there is something you forgot to address @willpatersondesign and that’s how are those sea monkeys doing? lol

[@sabarayees]

Is 30 yrs to old to start a career in graphic design 🤔

[@dallasaurliu]

oh wow! you didn't go to design school??

[@r.d.b.941]

Aren't like 50+ percent of you going to be out of jobs in like 6 to 12 years due to text to image automated software.

[@ibrahimshamione]

You can’t teach an artist how to be an artist; it’s a talent you have, it’s in you. You develop your talent because you love design. The whole video is wrong; it’s like someone using auto-tune and calling himself a singer. You’re encouraging people to become designers even if they’re not designers.

[@willpatersondesign]

Being a designer is nothing like being an artist. It's a skill you can learn.

[@ac1646]

"You develop your talent because you love design." Yes. That's what Will is saying. You learn skills and progress. You can teach an artist to develop skills too.

[@ibrahimshamione]

@@willpatersondesign NO you can't be more wrong

[@ibrahimshamione]

@ac1646 design is an art form

[@yeettheskeetboi8089]

Anyone can be an artist, not just a "privileged few". Everyone has creativity, it's just expressed in different ways. If someone wants to become a graphic designer, they can, they don't have to have a long history of art in order to do so.

[@CalaTec]

Step 1: make random rubbish on a pirated copy of Adobe Photoshop. Step 2: let Adobe train AI on your trashy drawings. Congrats, you are a designer.

[@faridgazidesign]

thanks