Graphic Design | Webdesigner Depot

20 Jan
It’s here… Say hello to ZeroBundle!
Freebies, Graphic Design, Resources
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We’ve just released ZeroBundle.com It’s a brand new website, brought to you by WDD and MightyDeals.com, where we offer fantastic freebies for designers for a limited time only.
The bundle includes hundreds of professional and exclusive resources such as PSDs, vectors, brushes, icons, textures, UI elements and a bunch more. The files are provided by professional designers and are available for both personal and commercial uses.
Why the name ZeroBundle you may wonder…. well, it’s because it’s 100% free, with ‘zero’ cost to you.
ZeroBundle is available for a limited time only and it will then be gone, so don’t delay to get your hands quickly on this mega bundle of awesome resources!! Check out all the previews at ZeroBundle.com! Enjoy! Read more
10 Nov
9 great resources for keeping your skills fresh
Design, Development, Graphic Design
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Whether you are self-taught, fresh out of school, or a design veteran, continuing education has invaluable long-term effects on your ability to stay competitive and business savvy.
The immediate benefits are also abundant. Emerging techniques you learn today can be applied to a client project tomorrow for added value, or to set your work apart from the mainstream.
There was never a point at which successful designers have learned enough. The secret to being cutting edge is to stay sharp. Aside from your local library or book store, and in lieu of returning to college full-time, the internet offers you an infinite number of outlets and resources for learning.
With so many blogs, e-books and forums offering knowledge on hundreds of design-related topics, determining quality and choosing sources can quickly become overwhelming and time consuming. Below are 9 of the best resources I have uncovered and used to keep my own skills fresh, chosen for their high content quality, element of interest, value and relevancy. Read more
21 Oct
2011 Graphic Designer Survey (enter for a chance to win a Macbook Pro)
Graphic Design, Surveys, Web Designers
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In partnership with Uprinting, today we’re posting a 3 minute short survey to collect data about graphic designers and an awesome chance to win a brand new 13″ Apple Macbook Pro! (includes free shipping).

The survey will be used to learn more about the design community and create several posts and infographics about it.
The results will keep designers up-to-date with the latest graphic design practices, trends and technology by collecting relevant data from who else but actual designers like you!
See this page for all terms and conditions, FAQs and more information. You can fill out the survey after the jump. Thanks! Read more
20 Oct
A round-up of great vlogs and podcasts for designers
Graphic Design, Resources, Web Design
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Being a designer is not your average job: your work is constantly evolving, giving you new tools to either become more productive or to simply create better work. For that, we all do our best to read books, brush up our skills following some tutorials, subscribe to blogs or attend design conferences. However, we often overlook one medium: the podcast.
If you are a seasoned multitasker, you can listen to podcasts while working. Otherwise, the other big advantage of podcasts is that you can take it anywhere and listen to it whenever you want, while riding the bus to work or doing the dishes.
To find the perfect podcast is hard, but there are many good shows out there, especially for designers. Good podcasts usually have the following: a great host that chooses good topics and quality guests, good sound quality and jingles, show notes and links.
The following shows usually combine all those properties, check them out! Read more
8 Sep
A design standards evangelist
Design, Graphic Design, Photoshop
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The web has never been more accessible to creators than it is today. Every day, more user-friendly tools, apps and technologies pop up seemingly out of nowhere.
In such a rapidly changing landscape, what is at stake for web users might well be the quality of what is produced.
Quality assurance often comes down to standards, and for better or worse, design lacks a regulating body.
Some countries (Canada, Norway, United Kingdom, and others) do have rigorous qualifications to belong to professional design groups, but none are required to practice. So how do standards gain traction if they aren’t made mandatory? Read more
23 Aug
5 ways to spruce up a logo (with examples)
Branding, Graphic Design, Logos
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Logos are often considered the image of a product or service and is thought of as the center of all branding endeavors. If you are trying to be a legitimate company, you’ve probably had someone (or yourself) create a logo.
We don’t always get logo design right. And sometimes it’s just time for a newer, trendier logo. We may see it a couple months or years later and decide that it’s time to redesign or update what we have.
Redesigning a logo can be just as hard as creating a new one. Some questions you may ask yourself are: How much do you want to change it? What elements should be kept? And will the redesign still be recognizable as your brand?
Once you go through your list of questions and figure out what’s necessary, here are five ideas you can use to spruce up your logo design. Read more
15 Aug
Designed QR codes: the next level
Design, Graphic Design, Marketing
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Say what you will about QR (Quick Response) codes: they are just a fad, they will be forgotten once augmented reality takes hold or they’re just an extra step in inputting a URL but they are here and people are enjoying using them, so make the most of them!
QR codes, if you haven’t heard of them or clicked the link above to see the whole explanation, are scanned via a reader application (usually on your smart phone) that will take you to a video or web page.
They have been used in Japan for over a decade (invented by a Toyota subsidiary, Densu Wave), and now the rest of the world is catching up.
Why not just have the URL and let people hand key it in on their cell phones? WHAT? And make people actually expend energy? Charlatan!
Seriously, you can’t fight technology so make the best of it.
Read more
13 Jul
25 examples of symmetry in web design
Graphic Design, Inspiration, Web Design
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Symmetry is an age-old device of the visual artist. The word refers to two halves that perfectly mirror each other. In design, symmetry is closely tied to balance. A perfectly symmetrical design achieves balance and a sense of stability.
There is also asymmetrical design, where the two halves are balanced but do not mirror each other perfectly. The majority of websites have an asymmetrical layout.
Most often we find the logo in the top left, balanced by some navigational elements on the right. In the body, the side columns are usually balanced by either the main content or other columns.
While perfect symmetry is certainly not new to the web, it is gaining momentum. Expanding screen sizes and the proliferation of platforms and viewing options are making it a more attractive option. By mirroring the halves of a design, you not only get a greater sense of balance, but also improve the flow from top to bottom.
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18 Feb
7 Elements of a Great Movie Poster Design
Graphic Design, How to, Posters
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Big movies are a huge business, as the recent success of films such as Avatar and The Dark Knight suggests.
Billion-dollar revenue figures aren’t all that uncommon today in cinema, placing many major movies alongside companies such as Facebook when it comes to revenue.
With so much riding on a film’s success, marketing one is a massive opportunity for creative designers.
We’ve looked at some of the most effective film marketing materials out there – the promo posters that have been used on modern releases and older movies – and established some key elements that have contributed to their success.
These aren’t just commercial successes either – everything from smaller cult movies to huge blockbusters benefits from these 7 simple movie poster design elements. Read more
10 Dec
14 Essential Utilities for Managing Your Freelance Design Business
Business, Freelancing, Graphic Design
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While millions of people share the dream of working from home, very few understand its difficulties.
From online distractions to technical malfunctions, online entrepreneurs and freelancers face thousands of potential setbacks, each one threatening a decline in income or a pause in cash flow. We’re all familiar with this problem.
Yet the problem doesn’t affect every designer and developer. With so many tools available, anyone can optimize their work routine and increase productivity.
Becoming productive is about changing not only your behavior, but also your office environment, work style and software.
By using the right collection of software, online applications and utilities, changing your routine and managing your business can be fairly simple.
The following 14 applications are geared toward the design industry but would be effective in almost any online field. Read more
2 Dec
He Said, She Said – Web Design by Gender
Design, Graphic Design, Web Design
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Have you ever looked at a website and felt that you could tell whether it was likely designed by a man or a woman?
Studies have shown that men and women tend to have very different approaches in the way that they use design elements such as colors, shapes, objects and fonts – sometimes even having complete opposite views.
In today’s post we’re showcasing an infographic, designed exclusively for WDD, which depicts some of the different approaches men and women tend to take with their designs.
The graphic shows the different tendencies for each gender covering areas such as typeface colors, the use of straight lines and favorite colors.
This graphic is by no means a rule or generalization for web design by either gender, but it does give us a very rough insight as to how each gender views design and it may even help to influence design decisions when creating a website that targets a specific demographic.
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1 Jul
Using Landmarks Makes Page Layout Easy
Design, Graphic Design, How to
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A design may have impact. It may have style. But having these isn’t enough.
To work well, a design has to have elements that play off each other’s strengths. Fortunately, every piece of content has inherent guidelines.
Layout, or the arrangement of content on a web page, is critical to a design’s success. Among other things, layout prioritizes content to lead people from one element to the next.
If done right, people will be so interested in the content that they won’t notice anything else.
Read on for more details and tips for creating layouts that work in your designs. Read more
19 May
7 Personality Types of Designers Today
Creativity, Graphic Design, Web Designers
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Design is a universal language. It transcends all cultural and national boundaries. It is diverse and ever-changing. Despite the fact that designs can be universally appreciated, the artists behind them are all unique and talented individuals.
What kind of designer are you? What is your philosophy? How do you contribute to the design community? Designers from different walks of life might have similar answers to these questions, and yet we are all different.
Some designers take it upon themselves to educate those who have not yet developed an appreciation for Web design and art. Some designers aim to improve the overall quality of design on the Internet.
And of course, some designers strive primarily to make a good living from their talents so that they can live a comfortable life. Read more
6 Nov
Pure Design Awesomeness by Niark
Design, Graphic Design, Illustrator
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Today we’re featuring the awesome talent of Niark, a wondrous 34 year old French freelance graphic designer and witty illustrator living in Paris.
Niark takes his inspiration from street art, music and graphics.
He works in a broad scope of areas such as advertising agencies, music labels, art toys, streetwear and more.
His style features bright colors and abstract illustrations and finds balance in seemingly chaotic environments.
If you want to learn more about Niark, take a look at his portfolio. In this post, you’ll find a collection of his best works that you can use for inspiration. Read more
27 Oct
To School or Not to School
Design, Graphic Design
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Education undeniably changes us. Learning new things completely alters our perception of life and the world around us.
But formal academic training is a touchy subject for some people. Going to school to learn a discipline is still not an option for everyone.
As someone who has worked in the graphic design field for quite some time without an advanced degree, I understand that self-education is not to be underestimated.
But just how far can this type of training get you in life before you reach an impasse?
This is one of the big questions in the world of graphic design: is design school worth the time, money and effort? Does it pay off? Read more
12 Oct
Super Freaky Movie Posters of the 70′s
Design, Graphic Design, Posters
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From Attack of the Killer Tomatoes to Zardoz, the 1970′s were not only home to some of the craziest titles in film, but some of the most interesting movie posters.
The 70′s were also home to some of the more psychedelic and funky designs for movie posters that more recent directors, most notably Quentin Tarantino, have drawn on as inspiration for their own movie poster designs.
In the days before the internet, a movie poster was much more important in the marketing mix for a movie than it is today. It was the historical equivalent to the movie trailer, and as such graphic artists had to pack a lot of message into one image.
Let’s go back in time with a collection of over 70 movie posters from the 70′s that are funky fresh. Enjoy… (to improve page loading, we split the collection into two pages). Read more