Question Beginner

[Rover15]

Where do I begin to learn to design car wraps? I have a large format printer. Is there tutorials?

 

[Greenlight signs]

youtube.

 

[JTBoh]

Work at a shop that designs them for a while, steal their knowledge, then set yourself up as a competitor.
THEN
Be surprised when their superior quality and experience trumps your bargain basement prices.

I'm joking, of course.... mostly.

 

[WhiskeyDreamer]

Learn design basics first. Get a book on design. Read it. Learn from looking at others. Don't think there's a YouTube tutorial out there that will show you everything.

Look at designs that you like and break them down to their core elements.

 

[kcollinsdesign]

Plenty of information on the internet. The best tip I have is to design your wraps to allow for flexibility when applying. A tight design that requires exact alignment will be troublesome. Also, if you need to apply the vinyl in sections, make sure there is plenty of overlap. If you take a large print and cut it into sections, you might end up with gaps and/or overlaps that do not line up. It is usually best to have a solid color background when you need to piece sections together, getting an image to line up can be difficult/impossible.

Another thing: If you are not starting with a vehicle template, make sure the photos you take are as flat as possible (use telephoto lens, NOT digital zoom, and back up to get entire side of vehicle). Wide angle lenses (like phone camera) will distort the image.

 

[ddarlak]

get a job at a place that does them and learn, anything else is dribble...

 

[unclebun]

https://graphics.averydennison.com/en/home/resources-and-learning/certification-classes.html
https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/graphics-signage-us/resources/installer-training-testing/
https://www.orafol.com/12640
https://rightlook.com/vehicle-graphics-hands-on-training/
http://geekwrapsu.com/training-programs/
https://wrapinstitute.com/
https://www.rolanddga.com/support/roland-academy/workshops/btw-basics-and-beyond

 

[equippaint]

Why do so many people want to jump right into wraps? IMO it's one of the trickier things to do and no amount of lessons will make up for hands on experience.

 

[rydods]

Buy cheap wrap material and wrap your own vehicle a couple of times (with the help of youtube and I'd highly recommend subscribing to the wrap institute). Cheap material is like a cheap guitar. If you learn how to play on a cheap guitar, you'll be amazed at how easy it is on a Martin or $3000 Taylor. Anyway...
Then go to as many of those courses that unclebun just sent links to, that you can afford. Become certified in as many of them as you can although it's not necessary, it's a great idea.
These, I believe, are the right steps to quickly becoming successful and becoming a valuable member of the wrap community. Good luck!

 

[rjssigns]

My two cents. All the advice so far mentioned nothing about having inherent ability to design.

I see people that want to be designers in the worst way. They take all the courses and still can't design. Desire is a small part of the equation if there is no talent to back it up.

 

[MikePro]

+1 youtube.
go down a rabbit hole of "how to design car wrap in photoshop"

find some cool vids that get the creative juices flowin', and then duplicate all the steps shown. then, duplicate the steps again but from memory, using your own logo/images.

this, however, assumes you have a solid background in AI/PS. if you do not, start with linda.com and work your way up through the tutorials. design becomes easier, when you're fluid with the tools available to you, & especially when you learn the shortkeys.

 

[Gino]

Not to mention.... all the people who THINK they ARE great designers and can't do diddly. Then, they come here or go to someone they know and are given sugar-coated advice and to keep trying, they'll eventually get it.

oops forgot to insert this part.....
My two cents. All the advice so far mentioned nothing about having inherent ability to design.​

I see people that want to be designers in the worst way. They take all the courses and still can't design. Desire is a small part of the equation if there is no talent to back it up.​

 

[Rover15]

+1 youtube.
go down a rabbit hole of "how to design car wrap in photoshop"

find some cool vids that get the creative juices flowin', and then duplicate all the steps shown. then, duplicate the steps again but from memory, using your own logo/images.

this, however, assumes you have a solid background in AI/PS. if you do not, start with linda.com and work your way up through the tutorials. design becomes easier, when you're fluid with the tools available to you, & especially when you learn the shortkeys.

Ho
Can I buy the backgrounds and templates for the wraps? How does one incorporate someone’s logo into the wrap?

 

[Gino]

Ho
Can I buy the backgrounds and templates for the wraps? How does one incorporate someone’s logo into the wrap?

Whooaaaa, Nellie, asking questions like this, you are not at all ready to explore designing wraps. Why don't you try to have someone supply you with some and become an installer of them first and learn some of the ins & outs of things to do and not do about the designing side of it ?? There is no magic pill, other then the School of Hard Knocks, which seems to be a thing of the past anymore.

 

[MikePro]

if you need a starting-point of tools/templates/etc., checkout theBadWrap
as far as "incorporating a logo" into a wrap.... you import/place it into a layer in photoshop. see linda.com tutorials if you can't get to that point.

 

[WhiskeyDreamer]

Buy cheap wrap material and wrap your own vehicle a couple of times (with the help of youtube and I'd highly recommend subscribing to the wrap institute). Cheap material is like a cheap guitar. If you learn how to play on a cheap guitar, you'll be amazed at how easy it is on a Martin or $3000 Taylor. Anyway...
Then go to as many of those courses that unclebun just sent links to, that you can afford. Become certified in as many of them as you can although it's not necessary, it's a great idea.
These, I believe, are the right steps to quickly becoming successful and becoming a valuable member of the wrap community. Good luck!

All that'll do is make you able to install wraps. The OP asked about designing.

 

[iPrintStuff]

Pretty vague question. It would help if you let us know how much knowledge you actually have so far - I.e you’ve been making signs for years and want to try your hand at wraps..

Or you’ve somehow acquired a wide format and want to make your wraps in MS paint.

Do you have experience in designing and/or anything that would aid you in wrapping vehicles?

 

[rydods]

All that'll do is make you able to install wraps. The OP asked about designing.

Oops. Sorry about that. I should have read thoroughly. Not sure why I jumped to that conclusion.

Ok...Wrap Design...I like pinterest for inspiration. I get a lot of cool design layout ideas for wraps, billboards and unique signs. Gets the creative juices flowing.