Graphic Design - How to get into it?

meanpeoplesuck

I'm doing a Media portfolio course at the moment, and so far (only a couple of weeks in) I'm taking a liking to Graphic Design and Photography.

I've heard people say though that to get into a Graphic Design course you really need to have a good grounding in art. I never did art in school so I can't paint and I can't draw any better than anybody. IADT list as some of their portfolio requirements "drawing", "painting, collage etc".

Have any of you made a portfolio to get into a Graphic Design (Visual Communications)? What did you include? Is it really necessary to come from an art background to get into this field?

Thanks

Sonnenblumen

meanpeoplesuck wrote:

I'm doing a Media portfolio course at the moment, and so far (only a couple of weeks in) I'm taking a liking to Graphic Design and Photography.

I've heard people say though that to get into a Graphic Design course you really need to have a good grounding in art. I never did art in school so I can't paint and I can't draw any better than anybody. IADT list as some of their portfolio requirements "drawing", "painting, collage etc".

Have any of you made a portfolio to get into a Graphic Design (Visual Communications)? What did you include? Is it really necessary to come from an art background to get into this field?

Thanks

Graphic design is probably better interpreted across a wider front : visual communications. So you need to show an aptitude, a creative ability to articulate your creative skills. The purpose of the portfolio is to demonstrate your visual awareness across a range of media. With little or no training or skills in art, drawing and painting, does suggest a limitation unusual amongst prospects. That said you have an interest so the challenge for you is how to demonstrate or pardon the pun illustrate this in other ways. For example do you have an interest in photography (also a very important aspect to VC) and yes can be used to compensate for fewer.no paintings/drawings.

Within graphic design you will be expected (no matter how modest) to demonstrate your interest in GD, the developmental aspects in recent years and ideally the more examples you provide, the better the assessors can make a more accurate opinion of your suitability.

Remember there is a difference between being good at design (which is high in creativity) and good at drawing/illustration (which is more a technical skill) and this is reflected within the industry's hierarchial structure.


Good Luck

meanpeoplesuck

Hey Sonnenblumen thanks for the reply,

I was worried that my lack of drawing/painting abilities would pretty much rule me out of any chance of getting in, so it's good to hear that photography could help compensate in that area. We have a few projects to do in photography, and get taken to the Botonical Gardens and things like that, also I quite enjoy it so hopefully that'll sway the portfolio examiners in my favour despite the already mentioned poor arty skills.

Do you mean that I should show my interest in Graphic Design in the interview, or in the portfolio itself?

Also, should audio or video be included in the portfolio, on a disc maybe? Or would they only really be included if it was for a course which specificially worked on those aspects of media, like film studies?

Thanks again

Sonnenblumen

meanpeoplesuck wrote:

Hey Sonnenblumen thanks for the reply,

I was worried that my lack of drawing/painting abilities would pretty much rule me out of any chance of getting in, so it's good to hear that photography could help compensate in that area. We have a few projects to do in photography, and get taken to the Botonical Gardens and things like that, also I quite enjoy it so hopefully that'll sway the portfolio examiners in my favour despite the already mentioned poor arty skills.

Do you mean that I should show my interest in Graphic Design in the interview, or in the portfolio itself?

Also, should audio or video be included in the portfolio, on a disc maybe? Or would they only really be included if it was for a course which specificially worked on those aspects of media, like film studies?Thanks again

Take every opportunity to demonstrate your visual awareness, use photography creatively, whether it be still life, crack in the sky or close up of plants from Botanical Gardens. Don't be afraid to experiment. Also do some graphic mock-ups of everyday items eg CD covers/book jackets, milk cartons whatever, show your alternatives and be prepared to explain clearly your thinking for changing graphics etc etc

Composition is very important irrespective of media, drawing, painting, graphics, photography etc. Also show old and new so as to demonstrate (a) not only skill developments (techniques) but more importantly how your creative processes are developing/maturing.


A diverse Portfolio IMO is a great asset, so absolutely put everything in there, they may not look at it all, but some might be interested in your DVD whereas other assessors might take an interest in your photography.

Quality counts not quantity so set a standard. The Portfolio will have a major bearing on your interview so put the effort in.


Good Luck

DadaKopf

Don't forget that there's also 'motion graphics' - which means graphic design that moves.

Check out www.shilodesign.com

It's really weird, there are loads of times I've thought about studying graphic design properly. For me it's a hobby that is beginning to take up more and more of my time. I'm working in the development aid sector, and apart from real work - researching, report writing etc. - I produce & design a magazine and many other resources for various orgs.

Personal design isn't for me.

I haven't much drawing under my belt, right now, (lots of photography though), but I wonder whether this would go a long-enough way towards a portfolio should I ever want to do VisCom?

netanyahu

i did a portfolio with the intention of doing fine art. the portfolio was full of collage paintings, random notebooks full of random thoughts and colour studies etc, and also included a graphic design notebook. in the graphics notebook i made a few spreadsheets for magazine layouts, and this seemed to go down well. play around with some fonts and text placements on pieces you create. ie i did some paintings, scanned them, added text and pretty much turned them into posters. if you are vis com at heart you will be vis com by hand , and they will recognise it. they are fair...........sorry if im no help at all, any questions just msg me!