Illustration work for Chambu

Hi please share and like Chambu, its a cool new app for organising your warranty and invoices. And I have done  illustration work for it, so share the love ppl:)

Chambu - http://www.facebook.com/ContactChambu

Dribble Invite giveaway!!

Hi all I have one dribble invite left and I would like give it away to one talented designer.

this is how you can get the invite:

One Dribble invite

I have the honor of drafting one talented designer.
To get one of the invitations follow these simple steps:

1. Visit the link to my Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/tshiris/posts/370832859692017

2. In the comments section add a link to your portfolio and a short introduction to yourself and why you want to be on dribbble.

( feel free to like my page or follow me on twitter,dribbble or like this shot ;) )

I will announce the winner soon.
Thank you :)

Check out my tumblr page ;)

http://tishiris.tumblr.com

Share and like my Facebook page for more updates and new fun stuff related to graphic design :)

Tina Sharma

Work in progress

Working on a new digital painting.

New Blog Coming Soon:)

How to face your failures and what not to do with the rejected projects

When I started working as a freelancer I had little experience of all the failures and rejections l would face later on in my career. My inexperience and initial phase of self doubt were the biggest obstacles faced by me. This was eventually curbed as I started working on smal design projects and started getting more bigger projects eventually but that happened after I made my share of mistakes and got to learn from them.
It was not an easy journey but learning is always fun.

So how did I utilize my experience and chanalized it in making my work more efficient. The key is not to give up and when your at your lowest thats when you have to pick yourself up and start all over again until you succeed.

First draft is the initial look of the project I present the client with and from here the discussion becomes more important because this will help you in underatsnding the direction of your work.

During the initial few projects I had kept an open mind towards the criticism and feedback I would get after the first draft. Through this process I learned the importance of asking questions.  If you ask the right questions to your clients you will be able to give more knowlegde about the result they are looking for.

Never worry about the criticism which you will get from others. Try to focus on your work and bring out the best in you.

Even if a project fails to reach a definate conclusion. Use it as a learning experience. There is absolutely nothing which will go to waste. That same project might not be liked by one person but to someone else it can be the most interesting thing they might have seen.

Be creative. Take chances because you never know how things turn out.

Executing Ideas

Sometimes when you know you have a lot of ideas in your head and you want to just put them to test,it doesn't always goes as expected.Execution of the thought may or may not always be an easy task.Many times it is good to have a planned idea and follow it to have a smashing result.In my case I started with the idea of writing this blog because I love to write and the knowledge I have for graphic design can be the best possible thing I can write about.But I was not planning properly,I wrote few articles in the beginning and then came work deadlines and suddenly there was a dearth of ideas to write on the blog.

I do not have fancy tutorials to share or a lot of followers on this blog but doing this makes me happy and I can share my thoughts with the people from any industry they are from.

So the plan now is to make this blog a weekly activity and I will write about things which are interesting enough to be mentioned here.It can be anything from design to philosophy or travel.

So hope I keep up with my planning and execute the idea of blogging on a regular basis.

Dribble invite update:

Thanks for sending your portfolios.The designer drafted is Alyssa.You can see her work on the following link. alyssamoulton.com/

Graphic Design: Dribble Invite giveaway..Hi all I have one Dribble i...

Graphic Design: Dribble Invite giveawayHi all I have one Dribble i...: Dribble Invite giveaway Hi all I have one Dribble invite and I have the honor to draft one new designer.So in the comments section belo...

Dribble Invite giveaway

Hi all I have one Dribble invite and I have the honor to draft one new designer.So in the comments section below write a short introduction about yourself and why you want to be on dribbble along with a link to your portfolio

I will mail the winner and announce the name on twitter.

All the best :)
UPDATE:
Thank you all those who have sent me their portfolios and are still sending them.You all have such great talent.
I will be announcing the drafted designer by end of this week.

Ooh Logo 

Did some tweaking and color change on the logo for Retro Rewind Cafe.For the colors I chose shades of brown and gave it a little subtle texture for a distressed look.

I love making logos and there is always something interesting about every logo.It has to firstly represent the company in first glance.A good logo is like the face of the organization and the best part about creating them is the process involved and the end result.Brain storming,sketching out ideas and finally the first draft.The time involved during this process is very precious and its important to keep in mind every detail which you have discussed with your client.

Color preference,Fonts or symbols all of them should be in place to have the right balance or it will look out of place.Some time minimalism has the best impact.Easy to view and understand.But every client has it own requirement and no two projects are same.

Retro Rewind Cafe

Working on a new logo for retro rewind.Wanted to do something related to old style grunge effect.Made a fictional

cafe named retro rewind and as a first draft came out with this result.

From Zero to hero:How to be a good designer

I am still wondering what are the terms which define a successful designer. In my experience if your work is good then whatever the kind of work comes your way,the outcome will always come out to be good.Everyone has their own way of working and these are just my thoughts and things I have learnt from my freelancing experience.
There are certain traits which will always come in handy in your work whether you're a designer or in any other profession.Always have love and passion for the work you're doing because nothing can replace that from reflecting in you and the outcome of your work.Also there are some experiences and lessons I would love to share.

1. You will be Critiqued:

People will talk about your work and sometimes it good and sometimes its bad.Not every client will love your first draft or the final outcome irrespective of the fact that you kept awake all night completing it.If one person does not like your work may be other will,its always about difference of opinion and choices.I use to be sad after a certain client feedback or criticism from someone over my work thinking ' how the hell would they know,I have put so much effort'.But as I kept on working I realized that only take constructive criticism and develop a thick skin otherwise self doubt will cloud you.Also its just an opinion from others and that gives you a fresh perspective towards your work and as a result the outcome of your work will only improve.

2.Be true to your work:

Learn to be honest to your work do not use short cuts and whatever the situation be always be fair to your work.Ask your self if you have put your best in the project ? If you can push yourself even more to think over an idea.

3.Ethics:

Always have strong work ethics.Be disciplined and if you are not able to get a lot of freelance work then try joining design communities and learning new skills.Use your knowledge at the best.

Keep a schedule for your self and work out everything in a organized manner.Your work should always reflect originality and think it from the clients perspective,you will choose someone whose work is fresh and new rather than old and copied.

4.Enjoy your work:

The best way to keep yourself fresh with new ideas is to enjoy it and interact with people.The world is full of new ideas and you're free to get hold of them.Communicate your ideas through your work.Tell stories in forms of illustrations.Think how you could have made a certain poster in your way or designed a website according to your colors. Possibilities are endless and ideas are infinite.

These were my ideas and what I have learnt from my experience.Hope it helps and If you like my article or have more ideas you would like to share then feel free to comment.And tell me what have you learnt from your experience?

10 good Graphic Design tools

Everyday I start my work without even noticing how much I am dependent on certain tools I use.Once I started writing this blog I just realized that i am not only thankful for the presence of coffee in my life I need software and resources to keep my work flowing smoothly.When I start working on projects I use a lot of online resources and software to help me complete my work.So I am going to list some resources or tools I consider very helpful.

1.Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop: 

Adobe software's help you in creating everything from vector to editing raster images. I use Illustrator most of the times. If you want to make logos then use illustrator for better quality.Photoshop also a favorite and the new version has some cool add on to it.

2.Sketch books:

Always carry a pocket size sketch book with you and scribble notes or make little sketches. Thumb nailing also helps when you are trying to brain storm an idea.

3.Font Resources:

I keep on using fonts for my projects and every project requires different font. Dafont.com is an awesome website to help you get the right font. Whatthefont helps you finding font in a particular image or a logo.

4. Workflowy:

I have recently come across this website which helps you segregate your brainstorming thoughts. Initially I did not realize how helpful it is but now I use it often while brainstorming.Its easy and free :) so do try Workflowy.

5.Lorem Ipsum Generator:

I use this online Lorem Ipsum Generator for dummy text in brochures,newsletters etc.

6.Color Resources:

Colors are very important element in design.There are some very good websites which offer color swathes.Adobe Kuler,COLOURlovers and Designseed.com are my personal favorite.

7.Design Blogs and communities:

I often follow a lot of blogs and participate in communities like Dribble and Devianart. This helps in getting to know whats new and what things i can learn from good designers all over the world. Abduzeedo is a very useful blog with design inspiration and tutorials.

8.Vector resources:

My work often requires using vectors of different kind and sometimes when I need reference or I feel I can use a better vector resource available I go to fordesigner.com or vecteezy.com for my vector downloads.

9.Printing services:

There are some useful online printing services like vistaprint.com which have saved me a lot of time and delivered everything on time and has good quality.

10. Online team Handling sofwares:

I use teambox.com and skype often to manage my work. This helps me to share the progress of the work and free flow of work with clients.

So this is my list of useful resources if there are some good tools I have not mentioned,Please feel free to comment and add them.Hope it was useful:)

I am biased towards COLOR

Color is the single most eye catchy and influential factor in designing.It creates both physiological and psychological effect .When I start working on a project a great deal of my work revolves around the kind of service or product my client is presenting which eventually will be depicted in the colors, I will chose.
Colors are everywhere, it evokes reactions or feelings of association and each individual has a different way of reacting towards it, may be because of personal preference, lifestyle or due to cultural backgrounds.

Color theory is a very interesting subject and its a science in itself.It can influence our thought or ability to chose and is triggered by the effect we feel once we see a certain color.There are Primary (red, yellow and blue)., Secondary (green, orange and purple) and Tertiary Colors (created by mixing primary and secondary colors.) and on the color circle can further be divided into warm and cool colors and as we go further the color wheel we learn color harmonies. Why is it important to have all this information? we all know colors.It was a basic part of our curriculum in school.The color wheel is a tool that helps us talk about the physical phenomena of light and how we perceive it and how we ultimately implement it in designs and the combinations. Color harmonies teach us how to use the best combinations.

As a designer I have to use shapes, typo and colors but I am always attracted to colors the most. While browsing websites or reading magazines or brochures I have always felt that my attention is more towards the color usage.Over the years I have bookmarked several websites or kept print ads even books or C.D covers which have caught my attention.It has always been helpful for me to go back and check what color I can use while designing or making an illustration.

Now if we talk about effect of individual colors or how we start associating with it.There are three types of association universal, cultural and individual. This has over the years given them following common meaning

Red: Passion, Love, Anger  | Orange: Energy, Happiness, Vitality

Yellow: Happiness, Hope, Deceit  | Green: New Beginnings, Abundance, Nature

Blue: Calm, Responsible, Sadness | Purple: Creativity, Royalty, Wealth

Black: Mystery, Elegance, Evil  | Gray: Moody, Conservative, Formality

White: Purity, Cleanliness, Virtue | Brown: Nature, Wholesomeness, Dependability

Tan or Beige: Conservative, Piety, Dull | Cream or Ivory: Calm, Elegant, Purity

Some interesting facts about colors :

The color yellow can cause nausea, so it is avoided in airplanes.

Black boxes seemed heavier to workmen than green boxes filled with the same material.

Red can make you hungry, while the opposite color, green, suppresses it.

The color red can also increase your muscle reaction, make you want to gamble more, and raise your blood pressure. Blue has the opposite effect.

Blue street lighting resulted in lower crime rates in Glasgow in 2000.

Blue conveys trust and reliability.

Green is believed to increase concentration.

So I am biased towards colors because I have so much to talk about them and there is so much more to see.Nature have provided us plethora of colors and you can use colors in anything and make interesting fun stuff.

Happy New Year Everyone.Hope it will be an awesome 2013:)

Graphic Design: Was freelancing a good decision? Well I use to th...

Graphic Design: Was freelancing a good decision?
Well I use to th...: Was freelancing a good decision?  Well I use to think working on my own would be an easy task but after a year of freelancing as a gra...

Was freelancing a good decision? 

Well I use to think working on my own would be an easy task but after a year of freelancing as a graphic design I believe its not easy to go on your own but its not impossible also. After a years struggle I am finally getting the hang of it.Every day was based on trial and error.Biggest obstacle of all was to find clients who would love to work with you and understand how much effort goes in to designing and later on came the other part where Client handling,Presentation and asking for payment comes.

None of these stages were easy.First client I met was through Facebook, as excited as i was I started my logo designing for this jewelry store.But I did not fix any charges nor were my efforts taken into consideration and it was a big mistake on my part.Why I did such a blunder now I ask my self, it was probably because it was my first assignment and I thought no one else will give me work.I was wrong I got more work after this and I learnt that self doubt was not the right thing to do.

After that incident I never doubted my ability and never let any client start their work without defining my role as a designer for their logo or cooperate identity.

I make sure that I use all the lessons learnt over the past year in my profession.Which are:

1. Never lose hope on your work no matter what the client decides.

2. Always keep on learning new things.

3. It doesn't matter if have not learnt designing or any form of art,If you love what you do, you will eventually learn everything.

4.Love coffee:)

5. Keep certain rules while dealing with clients over payments.

6. Never be afraid of anyone's criticism what I have seen over the years is that it improves my work a lot.

7. But also don't take every criticism seriously, some people don't even know what they are criticizing .Only listen to the people who matter.

 8. Write.Express.smile

9.Travel

10.There will be times when you will not have work for days and months  and that's the best time for you to learn and use your skills for something better which was waiting for you all the time.

11.Never be jealous.always admire the work and strife to achieve that excellence.

 In the end I feel Freelancing was a good decision.I have learnt so much and I know I have alot to learn even more:)

Blogs I Like

Blogs I Like

http://www.estheraarts.nl/en/home

Hi,Welcome to my design blog:)

Logo Design for lion capital