Want to Learn Graphic Design on Your Own? Here are Three Tips

In a highly competitive industry, many novice graphic designers may feel compelled to get themselves into debt to pay for an expensive education. It is true that graduating from an esteemed university can give beginners a leg up, but it is not essential to starting a brilliant career. There are so many stories of young, talented, and dedicated graphic designers who have made it without going to school. Below are three tips that will prove useful for any aspiring graphic designers.

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Learn the basics: The biggest mistake novices can make is jumping the gun. Just because someone is naturally talented does not mean that they can instantly earn thousands of dollars. Similar to pursuing a university degree, novices should start from scratch. This entails learning how to draw, researching on graphic design history, and most importantly understanding that their first artworks will not be good. Graphic designers should always know how to criticize their own work -- in a healthy manner, of course. Only the artist themselves can know exactly how much effort was placed in the work, along with its intended message. Learning how to self-criticize is a great skill to learn when studying the art on your own.

Master the software: As much as many people will say they prefer the olden days of hand manipulation, the truth is, you cannot escape photoediting software. The technology becomes especially important when starting out on your own. Remember that you are competing against those who have received hundreds of hours of training for this, so it is crucial to know and master the basic photoediting software.

Finding your specialty: New graphic designers are often asked to experiment with different branches of the art to determine their real passion and talent. Finding your specialty is crucial to building a great career. It not only reduces the amount of competition but helps the novice feel happier about their work.

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The most important consideration when starting a graphic design career on your own is to take the first step. It is understandably scary, but nothing will be gained if no risk is ever taken.
Freelance photographer and graphic designer Ram Chary Everi loves sharing tips about his work on Twitter.

Choosing The Right Camera Settings for Product Photography

In product photography, there are various considerations in the production of high-quality images. There are lighting, white sweeps, bounce cards, and many more. However, those who wish to be successful product photographers should first understand the basics, which include the right camera settings.

 

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They can opt for automatic camera settings, but making manual adjustments can result in better, or more stylistic photos.

There are three settings to take into consideration, namely aperture, ISO sensitivity, and shutter speed. And here are recommendations on how they should be adjusted:

Aperture

Aperture functions similarly as the pupil of an eye.  It determines how much light passes through the camera’s lens and the depth of field of the image.  Aperture is measured in F-stops (F1 to F22), and the lower the number, the shallower the depth of the field (which can increase the focus on intricate details) and the lower the amount of light.  To capture the product in full focus, a higher F-stop should be set.  But when there is an attempt to highlight details, the F-stop should be decreased.

ISO sensitivity

ISO measures the sensitivity of the camera sensor to light.  A higher ISO value, while increases the captured light, also results in grainy or “noisy” images.  Thus, the ISO should be set to the lowest possible.

Shutter speed

This is also known as the exposure time because it determines the amount of time the camera’s sensor is exposed to light.  The faster the shutter speed, the less light is taken in, but the object is more frozen and less blurred.  Because product photography features a still object, the ideal shutter speed is of a low value.

 

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Learn more about photography by visiting this Ram Chary Everi website.