Brands. Recognizable even upsidedown and backwards.

The name of your company is or should be a unique tie-in to the heritage, identity or other meaning of your business. It is the very first identifying mark of your company. In other words, our name establishes not only a brand identity but a corporate vision as well.

Why Brands are Important

A brand is a set of attributes that—in the minds of customers—distinguish one company’s offerings from those of its competitors. A brand identity is the visual and verbal expression of that set of attributes. A cohesive, distinctive and relevant brand identity is an enormous asset in the marketplace. The very name provides added value and—in many cases—can command a price premium. It is necessary to establish a direct and unbreakable linkage between the attributes of the brand and the way they are expressed. A strong brand is one with immediately recognizable characteristics that set it apart from the crowd. When current or potential customers see or hear that brand name, they form a positive mental picture, based on its well-established attributes.

Why Consistency is Important

The consistent display of your brand enables your company to benefit from the success of itself. You will also realize savings, in terms of both time and costs, in the development of communication materials, products and services, not to mention the increase in professionalism your business with take.

Growth Demands Discipline

As your company expands, your communications needs to become more complex. We will be introducing yourselves to many new audiences, and first impressions are very important. The consistent use of your brand identity will enable us to establish your company as a forward looking, professional provider of products and services. That is why each and every communication describing those offerings must bear the unmistakable mark of your brand identity.

Building Your Company’s Brand

It is important to understand that your guidelines provide for considerable flexibility. You shouldn’t want all your communications to look exactly alike. That would destroy their effectiveness. Instead, the main goal is to present a consistent “look and feel” that is unique to your company. This will enable you to continue to build your masterbrand, which will, in turn, enhance public recognition of every part of your company.

Product photography for a local company. Shot in several pieces and put together in post.

In this post I will introduce you to my method for shooting and editing small product photography. The task I am going over was presented to me by a local company whom I met online. They had great ideas and a list of expectations from the get-go and this was the basis for my challenge: create imagery for their small yoga products to be used on their website and possibly in print. I had a lot of fun tackling this job and I encourage everyone to try it at least once in their lifetime.

Read the rest of this entry »

We all could use a few pointers to improve our photography, and this post is going to do just that. I have compiled a few of my favorite tips that I have learned along the way in my photography career. Take note and maybe you can use them at your next gig!

Read the rest of this entry »

My two cents

Well then. It’s great you are interested in this field! There is lots for a graphic designer to do out there and it ranges quite widely. Basically, I’ve found there are just a few basic forms of graphic design and the consist of either working exclusively in-house for a company/institution, for an advertising agency, or for a print shop. You can also work for yourself, but that is a little difficult and you are always working. I specialize in print design and make a lot of different things ranging from Annual Reports and magazines to big displays and complex brochures. We also do branding and even web work.

As far as education goes, I wish I had more of an artistic background with a degree in art. But, I have almost 7 years of experience now, so that trades off as comparable. It is a major asset to know how to solve problems in different ways.

There are lots of great things about this, though! If you do a good job, you can get a result you can be very proud of! This is my favorite part. I love doing a good job and seeing a great end-result that is both stimulating and impressive. It’s also great when you win awards for your work.

It’s funny. When bad weather comes rolling in everyone seems to put their gear away saying “Oh it’s going to ruin my gear…nothing good can come of this!”. But this is when some of the best photos are made!  There is better, softer lighting and if you are ready at sunset or sunrise, you can get some pretty dramatic shadows. Take a peek at the photo below, this was taken in the evening during the onset of a light shower just outside of Calgary.

Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200) Aperture: f/7.1 Focal Length: 35 mm Focal Length: 35.6 mm ISO Speed: 400 Exposure Bias: -1 EV

Great colors, fantastic mood and tone and it makes for a wonderfully warm setting. It really helps to capture how beautiful it was that night…not entirely, but it helps.

So remember…don’t put your gear away when you see dark clouds coming. Take it all out and fire it up! This is the best time for the most interesting pictures!