Dan inspired design

[ThinkRight]

am I the only one that doesnt see anything?

quit trying to copy Dan or Joe or Deaton or any of those. If it aint your style stop trying to make it. We all have our own styles and even thous we try and break out of them they will come back thru.

Design takes time, do not rush it. One day when you least expect it you will come up with something incredible and then build on that

No no no
It is a marketing concept...
Less is more....
He just got carried away with the less aspect.

:ROFLMAO:

 

[Wraps ink]

wish I could see it

 

[jkdbjj]

Maybe put it on one of those design contest sites.

I love you too my darling...

I guess I can never recover from that one.... and... I knew it would be brought up.
Thing is, I look at other members websites on here, and look at their wrap designs and without naming names, there is some nasty stuff that is present, and they post it to their website.
However, when I post something that seems at least a good start, and it gets kind of ripped, it is frustrating.

Either I see something totally different, or people have different standards for what goes out of their shop, and what others are doing. Dunno.

For those that are interested, here is the pic again. However, if you can only say it sucks without any suggestions, don't bother. Flame said the yellow was out of place feeling and the logo sucked. I have to use the existing logo. Everything else is adjustable.

Colorado said too many floating text, so I need to work on that.

As for the peppers in the middle, the customer wants something that is focused on showing catering, yet I refuse to put a photo on the side of his van, so I need to come up with ideas for conveying cater/banqueting.

 

[Gino]

Okay, yes… the text is all over the place. It looks as if it’s floating around. That can be fixed with some simple tweaks.

I’m not a fan of a solid color breaking up or running through the middle of another solid color and by the way, both being primary colors, makes it even harder on the eye.

I don’t get the use of so many peppers, when the customer is basically selling rotisserie chicken. Not to mention the peppers are completely, overwhelmingly the center of attraction.

I believe you think you got the feeling of a Dan’s composition because you didn’t use any cheap effects, thus keeping it clean. However, Dan’s stuff and his staff have a flow, uniformity and most of all….. colors which all work well together.

Also, the ‘&’ sign is completely lost to average viewers.

You need to find a flow and keep the eye moving without getting hiccups all along the way. Once your eye flows around without getting beat up by a huge pepper or word out of place, you’ll see things coming together.

I believe your main problem is emphasis on the wrong things. Perhaps the customer has given you instructions on what to make pop, but it’s your job as a design and sign professional to at least talk him out of it or make it more eye appealing. Remember one thing, there is a main focal point on any canvas and a truck is no different. It’s the area behind the driver’s and passenger’s door. That is primarily where you want the most important message going which is usually the name or something indicating the name…. not a blank with something above it, on both sides of it and below it. There’s your flow problem.

Good Luck……………..​

 

[SignManiac]

Yep composition as in good a painting is very important in a layout. You want to lead the viewers eye throughout your design and direct them to what is most important and down the line to least important. It's a challenge but fun once you figure it out.

I just went through this with a customer who had an awful logo but he listened to every word I said. I explained carefully to him everything I was telling him and then he understood. No other shop ever bothered to educate him. He pretty much gave me total control to design for him and when he saw what I could do, he was blown away.

You walk a fine line between giving some control but taking control at the same time. Don't expect everything you do to be a home run, even when you think you've done a fantastic job. We can all be hard on ourselves and that's a good thing in the long run.

 

[the graphics co]

Aside from the colors, the hierarchy is all out of whack "catering and more" has too much emphasis, while there is not enough on the logo, and the words across the top seem to just be thrown up there because you feel like there is no where else to put them.

In all honesty if i had to guess at first glance, i would have said the name of the company was catering and more, and the peppers are part of the logo. The actual logo nearly disappears in the design the way it is laid out currently.

Gino is right about needing the design to flow. Your eye needs to travel from one point to the next effortlessly, or, no one will take the time to read or retain what they are seeing.

Just my thoughts, take them as you will.

-Cameron

 

[Pat Whatley]

Thing is, I look at other members websites on here, and look at their wrap designs and without naming names, there is some nasty stuff that is present, and they post it to their website.

The vast majority of "designers" can't and nothing has ever made that as evident as the wrap industry. Always consider the source of the critique BEFORE you consider the critique.

That said, instead of ripping down your design you could have left it up and kept working on it and posting the changes. Some dang amazing work has come out of this place because people worked on their layouts publicly.

 

[fmg]

The use of gradients as opposed to solid color transitions would be a much better choice.

 

[Joe Diaz]

If I could give you some advice not having to do with the design: you need to stop being so concerned about how good or bad other people's work is when they give you advice, and start considering the parts of their advice that makes sense and apply it to you're own work, regardless of their skill level. Simply knowing their skill level doesn't help you improve as a designer.

I can almost guarantee you that Dan looks back at some of his designs earlier in his career, designs that during that time he thought were pretty darn good, designs that many of us would still think are good, and can now point out all the things he sees wrong with them that he didn't see back then. I would also imagine that since dan is working with other talented designers they critique each other in house, you have to imagine that rather than letting this discourage him, he uses it to his advantage.

I find it also helps to not to look at critiques as bashing or some personal attack regardless of the tone of how it's written. Don't let this stuff discourage you and don't worry so much about other people. If you enjoy what you are doing, and if you respect the trade, then keep at it and soak in as much as you can.

 

[signage]

If I could give you some advice not having to do with the design: you need to stop being so concerned about how good or bad other people's work is when they give you advice, and start considering the parts of their advice that makes sense and apply it to you're own work, regardless of their skill level. Simply knowing their skill level doesn't help you improve as a designer.

I can almost guarantee you that Dan looks back at some of his designs earlier in his career, designs that during that time he thought were pretty darn good, designs that many of us would still think are good, and can now point out all the things he sees wrong with them that he didn't see back then. I would also imagine that since dan is working with other talented designers they critique each other in house, you have to imagine that rather than letting this discourage him, he uses it to his advantage.



I find it also helps to not to look at critiques as bashing or some personal attack regardless of the tone of how it's written. Don't let this stuff discourage you and don't worry so much about other people. If you enjoy what you are doing, and if you respect the trade, then keep at it and soak in as much as you can.

 

[Dan Antonelli]

If I could give you some advice not having to do with the design: you need to stop being so concerned about how good or bad other people's work is when they give you advice, and start considering the parts of their advice that makes sense and apply it to you're own work, regardless of their skill level. Simply knowing their skill level doesn't help you improve as a designer.

I can almost guarantee you that Dan looks back at some of his designs earlier in his career, designs that during that time he thought were pretty darn good, designs that many of us would still think are good, and can now point out all the things he sees wrong with them that he didn't see back then. I would also imagine that since dan is working with other talented designers they critique each other in house, you have to imagine that rather than letting this discourage him, he uses it to his advantage.

I find it also helps to not to look at critiques as bashing or some personal attack regardless of the tone of how it's written. Don't let this stuff discourage you and don't worry so much about other people. If you enjoy what you are doing, and if you respect the trade, then keep at it and soak in as much as you can.

Joe is totally right about earlier work. It's worse for me because a lot of them are published in books, and while the concepts of what is being shown are great, in some instances the execution looks downright juvenile on some of them. But still, they adhered to strong fundamentals, which is why they are still great resources (and why I can't wait to finish my next book which has soooooooo much better work).

We have 12 people in the agency. A logo comp is at least vetted by 8 people usually, and the heavy lifting is done by myself, and Jeff, with another art director and another designer also lending input. Just today, three of us worked on 3 comps for the same company where we're doing branding and vehicles. I thought I had an amazing execution, then John added something, Jeff deleted something, and I changed something. And so on. By the end of the day, the comps were spot on.

Fundamentals are critical. The layout here needs work because, as others have stated, your hierarchy is out of whack a bit. Great design works because they take complex messages and reduce them to their simplest form. That's what takes tons of practice and work. Keep in mind, I've been lettering trucks since I was 14 or 15 years old. That was when I did my first set of hand painted truck doors. Then I worked at a sign shop from a master. Then college. So I've been studying this for almost 30 years.

Joe has been exposed and studied the craft for a very long time. Growing up in such a talented family, he has the benefit of exposure at a very young age. And he's honed his craft, and although I don't ever remember seeing anything Joe's done that wasn't top notch, I'm sure he might see his older work and think how it can be improved.

The way to get better is to continue to study theory and execution. But if you find yourself in over your head, you should hire a designer. You'll learn a lot and the client will get a better product. Win -win.

Nearly every job we execute is an attempt to somehow be slightly better than last, or at least employing new technology, or techniques. I can say one thing - the fastest way to go down the tubes as a business and a designer is to be complacent and think you're at the top of your game. For me, I think we've barely scratched the surface. We hold our own, but that's never enough.

Keep at it.

Let me send this before I lose power----

 

[jkdbjj]

OK, so guys, I obviously have the bug of wanting to get better. It has nothing to do with saving money. I truly believe (cough cough Jillbeans) paying for talent is the right thing to do. One of my best friends is an award winning designer, and if things go well, maybe he will be joining the company. Even if he joins, I will continue to pick his brain, Dan's brain, and anyone else's that will offer help.

In turn I do my best to give what I have to others, without expecting in return.

Thanks for the words of encouragement. I will play with this design. Using this advice and more information from the client, I will post again, and hopefully it will be a step forward and not backwards.

We have also decided as a company, to allocate money to hire Dan's company for proper branding of our own company. I have talked with Dan on occasion about this, and we are almost in a situation where we can afford to do it. Hope everyone will enjoy seeing the metamorphosis that his team will do for us. We are excited about it.

Do any of you designers lay in bed at night wrestling with design concepts, when you should be sleeping? Friggin ridiculous I tell ya.