How to become a freelance graphic designer without a degree – Learn the Fundamentals

Online Graphic Design Course – Learn the Fundamentals

How to become a freelance graphic designer without a degree? Graphic design is the art of mixing pictures, text and ideas to produce works that attract the attention of the spectator and transmit a certain message. Because graphic designers are always trying to figure out how to accomplish precisely that, they’ve developed a number of ideas and approaches to keep their work structured and successful.

The components of design are best understood as the foundation of any undertaking. Even the most complicated graphic design portfolio may be disassembled into basic components such as lines, curves and typefaces. Meanwhile, design principles—also known as “artistic principles”—are rules that help define and control how those components interact with one another, with their surroundings and with their audience. Although both the elements of design and the principles of design are essential ideas to understand, this article concentrates on the elements of design, which are the most fundamental aspects of any graphic design endeavour.
At Blue Sky Graphics we provide online one-to-one tutoring to our students in graphic design principles, graphic design software, web design, UX UI design and an industry-standard portfolio by the end of the course!

What exactly is the job of a graphic designer?

The fundamental responsibility of a graphic designer is to produce visual designs that express solutions and ideas that inspire, educate and fascinate customers. Graphic designers achieve this by combining art and technology to create end products that are appealing to their target audience.

While the goals of graphic designers may differ depending on the type of graphic design, they are generally concerned with making the organisation for which they are creating identifiable. They are there to assist in the creation of a brand identity, the promotion of a company’s brand, and the communication of messages via aesthetically appealing material.

Graphic design is becoming more significant in company and product marketing and sales. Having said that, graphic designers often collaborate with public relations and marketing experts to better understand how to deliver the messages that are required.

Graphic Design Fundamentals:

Line, form, colour, texture, type, space and image are the seven essential aspects of graphic design. Each has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Master these fundamentals, and you’ll be able to take your graphic design portfolio to the next level.

Line

Lines are always more than simply a series of points joined together. Lines may help organise information, define forms, indicate movement and express emotions depending on their form, weight, length and context.

Designers have a lot of alternatives when it comes to choosing the right lines for their projects. Lines can be
• horizontal, vertical or diagonal,
• straight, curved or freeform in shape.
• solid, broken or invisible
The invisible lines seen in print design grids serve as guidelines, giving projects greater structure and direction. Meanwhile, visible lines with weight and shape may be employed in a designer’s completed work to transmit a range of emotions and moods.

Consider the kinds of lines you encounter in your daily life and the signals they send to you. Heavier black lines, depending on their context, might express stability or highlight a danger. Scribbled lines might convey eagerness, bewilderment or disarray. Wavy lines may convey fragility, elegance, ambiguity or beauty, but zigzagged lines might convey energy or fury.

Because even basic lines can tell so much, designers must constantly consider how and when to employ them for maximum effect.

Shape

Shapes are best understood in graphic design as regions, forms, or figures bounded by a border or closed outline. Every graphic designer should be familiar with two sorts of shapes: geometric and organic (or “free-flowing”).

Geometric shapes may be two-dimensional or three-dimensional in nature. They are generally abstract and basic and are made up of a series of dots connected by straight or curved lines. Triangles, pyramids, squares, cubes, rectangles, pentagons, hexagons, octagons, decagons, circles, ellipses and spheres are examples of geometric forms.

Organic forms are significantly less consistent, proportionate, and defined. They might be either symmetrical or asymmetrical in nature. They might be natural forms like leaves, crystals, vines or abstract shapes like blobs and squiggles.

People often associate rounded edges and rings with happiness, community, love, friendship and harmony. Squares and rectangles may represent equilibrium, reliability and strength. In popular culture, triangles are also associated with science, religion, history, civilisation and power. You may portray stability, reliability and organisation by using a certain collection of forms. When you choose others, you convey turmoil, creativity and joy.

According to Gestalt psychology, a dominant design philosophy, audiences make meaning from designs by seeing them as a whole rather than as discrete elements. Choose unique, relevant forms, and you’ll be well on your way to providing visitors with a more visually appealing, attention-holding design.

Colour

Colour may be an effective technique for conveying a mood or eliciting an emotional reaction from your audience. Colour theory and the colour wheel are useful tools for graphic designers who wish to use a single colour or blend numerous colours in a harmonious—or purposefully discordant—way.

Some colours in graphic design are classified into distinct groups.

1. The primary colours (red, yellow, and blue) are the pure pigment colours from which all others are created. There is no method to obtain red, yellow or blue by combining other colours. However, when you combine them, you get a wide range of colours.
2. Secondary colours (violet, green and orange) are created by combining two basic colours: red and yellow combine to form orange; blue and red combine to form purple; and yellow and blue combine to form green.
3. Tertiary colours (red-orange, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-green, blue-violet and red-violet) are the six colours produced when a primary colour and a secondary colour are combined.
4. Colour harmonies are formed when two or more colours are selected based on their places on the colour wheel.
5. On the colour wheel, complementary colours are opposite one another. They are very contrasted and, depending on how they are employed, may represent vibrancy and vitality or be visually startling. The colours red and green are complimentary.
6. Colours that are adjacent on the colour wheel are used in analogous colour schemes. They are aesthetically appealing and may provide harmony and peace to a design. However, if applied poorly or without other contrasting aspects to enliven them, they might seem boring.
7. Colours that are equally distributed across the colour wheel are used in triad colour schemes. They are very colourful and need balance in order to be aesthetically appealing.
8. Split-complimentary colour schemes make use of a base colour as well as two colours that are close to its complementary colour. They create significant visual contrast without being abrupt, which is why they are so popular among designers.
9. Two complimentary colour sets are used in tetradic or rectangular colour schemes. Tetradic schemes, since they employ four hues, provide designers with a plethora of options and consequences.
10. Square colour schemes use four colours to form the colour wheel shape of a square. They also provide a variety of design outputs, but should always be applied in a balanced manner.
11. While you’re thinking about colour schemes, you should also evaluate which tint and shade are ideal for your project. Pastel hues might seem peaceful or unconfident, but bright colours can indicate joy and happiness—or in the wrong context, appear cheap. Darker colours imply seriousness and professionalism, but they may also come off as dismal or uninteresting if used incorrectly.
12. According to researchers, colour elicits distinct psychological reactions in humans based on their cultural setting. It’s critical to understand your audience’s colour associations and whether to use or avoid them based on the aims of your project.

Texture

The feel of a surface is defined by its texture, which might be hairy, smooth, rough, soft, sticky or shiny. Most graphic designers must visually portray texture by using illusions to simulate how their work would feel if visitors could touch it. Texture is a crucial aspect in making designs seem polished and professional.

There are several ways to include texture in your design work. If you are inspired by nature, you may wish to work with organic textures such as leaves, tree bark, stones, fur, flowers, grass and dirt.

Alternatively, you may generate an abstract pattern by consistently repeating two-dimensional pieces and then utilise that pattern to create textured backdrops. Consider experimenting with textured typefaces to add visual appeal.

If you like photography, you may learn how to include photos in your backdrop as a way to layer your work. Adjust the colour saturation and transparency levels of your picture to create textural contrast and observe how it changes the tone of your design.

Type

Whether you’re selecting a typeface or designing your own typography for a graphic design project, it’s critical that the type you employ is readable and suitable for the topic. Because type impacts the entire tone of a design, consider whether your letters should be printed or scripted and if they should have sharp or rounded angles.

Your lettering’s weight is also a crucial aspect of your design. Large or thick letters often emphasise the importance of the words they communicate. However, if you’re not cautious, they might seem heavy-handed or break the equilibrium of a design. Thin letters might be elegant or sophisticated, but they can also seem vulnerable. If you can’t decide on a single font or size, you may be able to include more than one in the final design of your logo. However, as a general guideline, don’t have more than three in any particular project.

Learn the Basics of Typeface Design.

This is a fantastic introductory course for novices or a wonderful refresher for more experienced designers.

Space

Spacing is an essential component of every designer’s arsenal. It may give a design more breathing space, boost its visual impact, balance out heavier visual components and highlight pictures or statements that readers should remember. A design that lacks space risks becoming too visually busy for your audience to grasp.

Spacing may be used to separate things or to connect them. Narrow space between graphic components suggests a strong association, while larger spacing reveals a weaker relationship. When you surround a visual feature with space, you emphasize its significance, but the space may also imply loneliness and isolation.

The area filled with visual components that a designer wants their audience to concentrate on is referred to as “positive space” everything else, including the backdrop, is referred to as “negative space”. Many designers make the mistake of concentrating only on creating positive space, but controlled negative space is just as important for creating a coherent, aesthetically appealing composition. If you pay attention to how negative space influences your design, you may be able to transform your project from amateur to professional.

Image

Whether graphic designers employ pictures or drawings, they depend on visuals to capture the attention of their audience and convey certain ideas. A picture functions on many levels at once: it gives context for a designer’s message, it adds vital drama or action, and it generates an overall atmosphere.

When adding photographs to your work, it is critical to choose images that express the proper message while also maximising visual appeal. You may select a picture with a lot of contrasting colours and textures to provide visitors with a visual feast and keep them fascinated. Alternatively, you may highlight a certain portion of a picture to show where they are focusing most of their attention.

Images are among the most powerful visual communication tools. If you utilise their power well, your work will transmit much more than you ever imagined possible.

Styles of graphic design

Graphic design has evolved into a very diverse field throughout time. The overarching notion is made up of several sectors and specialties. Some of the most prevalent forms of graphic design are as follows:

Corporate style

Corporate design is concerned with a company’s visual identity. Corporate design may be connected with any visual aspects that comprise a brand’s identity, such as a brand’s logo (created with logo design software). In brand marketing, this form of graphic design is utilized to express brand values using pictures, shapes and colour.

Developing marketing and advertising

Marketing and advertising are two of the most well-known genres of graphic design. When most people think of graphic design, they probably think of marketing and advertising. This frequently utilized form of graphic design may be seen in social media visuals, magazine advertisements, billboards, brochures, email marketing templates and content marketing.

Designing a publication

Publication design has usually referred to print media, but with our generation’s rapid digitization, it has moved over to digital publication. Publication designers must collaborate closely with editors and publishers to ensure that layouts, typography, and images are integrated tastefully, resulting in the best possible final result. Books, newspapers, newsletters, magazines and eBooks are all examples of publishing graphic designs.

The design of the environment

This style of graphic design is, in my view, often disregarded. The employment of visual components in the environment to link people to those locations is known as environmental graphic design. The goal of environmental design is to enhance people’s experiences in such areas, whether that means making the encounter more memorable or informing the observer. Environmental design may be seen in architecture, road signs, signage, event areas and wall murals.

Design of packaging

When you purchase a new product, it almost certainly contains some kind of packaging or visual element, such as a label, sticker, or wrapper, that is used to prepare the product for distribution or sale; these components are designed by package designers. To achieve effective product marketing, it is critical that these designers be informed of current market trends.

Designing motion

Motion graphic design is a subcategory of graphic design that is exactly what it sounds like: moving graphics. This may include animation, video games, applications, GIFs and website features, among other things. This is still a relatively new topic in graphic design, since technical improvements have enabled designers to experiment with new media.

Website creation

While web design isn’t always a subset of graphic design, graphic design is an important component of web design, so it’s worth discussing here. Why? Because web designers must examine and mix a wide range of design components—such as layout, pictures and typography—to produce a user-friendly, pleasing front-end site design, So, if you can’t figure out how to create a website on your own, it’s worth contacting a web designer. Web design is also strongly related to UX and UI design.
Years ago, when someone said “design” they were almost certainly referring to graphic design. But, in today’s digital world, which is replete with interactive displays and gadgets, that notion has shifted somewhat. It has introduced new types of design that may be perplexing to those outside the design field. That being stated, let’s discuss two forms of design that you’ve probably heard of but aren’t sure what they are: UX design and UI design.

User Experience Design

What precisely is user experience (UX)? UX design, also known as user experience design, is concerned with improving, you guessed it, the user experience. This design style focuses on the structure and logic of the design components with which people interact. UX designers seek to enhance a product’s usability, accessibility and the pleasant interaction of users with the product, with the objective of increasing customer happiness. This is accomplished by doing both pain point and usability studies after the product has been launched.

User Interface Design

The interactive parts of a design are referred to as UI Design, or User Interface Design. Because it focuses on predicting what users will need to do on the device and ensuring that the interface provides the pieces that make those actions feasible, this style of design requires a thorough grasp of user demands. Dropdown lists, toggles, breadcrumbs, alerts, progress bars and so on are examples of these components. Essentially, UI design broadens the definition of graphic design; designs with any interaction, even if they include static graphics, are UI.

Four Photoshop Advantages for Small Businesses

Brand Consistency

Without a design tool to depend on, small firms may struggle to build consistent branding. Adobe Photoshop can assist you in developing a brand that your audience can quickly and clearly recognise, making it simpler for them to select to purchase from you.

High-Quality Product Images

Creating high-quality product photos might be the difference between buyers buying your goods and visitors buying from your rivals. For internet buyers, product photographs are the closest thing to the actual thing. By utilizing Photoshop to enhance the photos, you may increase confidence in your brand and persuade website visitors to choose you over competing businesses.

Nothing beats seeing amazing marketing content for a business that screams social proof across social media, email marketing, PPC and other marketing channels. You don’t need to pay a freelancer to produce materials for your new campaigns using Photoshop. You may make them yourself by following one of the many Photoshop instructions for novices.

Website Development

If you own a small company, you may not have a web designer or developer on your staff. If you decide to collaborate with a web design business, you will need a way of creative communication to show them what you want. Photoshop is a terrific tool for this since you can obtain a website template PSD, tweak it for your needs, then give it to your firm to work with. At Blue Sky Graphics, you can learn web design and UX UI design as well after completing your online graphic design course.

Conclusion

From posters and billboards to brochures and packaging, you may use design components in any shape or layout that demands text, photos or ideas to represent something distinctive. Learn how to choose and apply each notion carefully, and you’ll be well on your way to developing graphic designs that are unique, communicative and aesthetically attractive. Join Blue Sky Graphics online graphic design course today and begin your journey as a successful graphic designer!