I've been thinking about this lately. This has yet to happen to me in terms of freelance, but in my current job I am unable to show any of my work to the public. I generally upload some of my work to my website, which you can find on the top, right side where the information goes called My Personal Website. No, I have 0 shame for that plug. This is a bit frustrating for me, especially since I have some pieces I'd love to show others in terms of design. I also have been working on two websites, one that consists of over 60,000 products and another that has over 100,000 products. It's a little hard to explain to clients that I work on this but can't show them.
Now this hasn't happened to me yet, but I take the advice of someone who is far more accomplished in this business in terms of what to do in that regard when it comes to freelance work that you can't show to the public. If this were to happen, it's been suggested to charge anywhere between 2 to 3 times the final amount that you would originally charge them. Some of you might have spit your drink onto your computer and are trying to quickly wipe it off thinking I'm crazy. Think about it. The work you do becomes your portfolio. This shows your accomplishments, and allows you to get better work from clients, more work from clients and gives credibility to your quality of work.
Thursday, 11 June 2015
Tuesday, 9 June 2015
Working at an Office or at Home?
Big question. Most of the time, it isn't your choice. But in the creative business, there's some leeway in this regard. I have three years of experience working since I've graduated, and I have worked at two different jobs. One was at home for over a year, and another is currently working at an office for nearly two years. Both had had their good and bad.. also mind you, this is my preference. So unless you have the exact same type of personality, do not take my view on it as the word of law. That I'm arrogant enough to think anyone would is also pretty incredible in a sad way.
I personally enjoy working from home a bit more than at an office. I can start work at 7:00AM or 9:30AM, convenience is a huge bonus. Certain important and human necessities, emergencies even.. such as a Champions League game where Bayern plays are events I don't have to miss unless I have a meeting. I also have one hell of an office (for me anyways) made for freelance, so this works out well. Get the work done and all is well. However there are good aspects for working at an office. Talking to people instead of being a creepy, social hermit who only speaks via skype or cellphones is supposed to be healthy for your social skills. Also if you are a designer working with other designers and people in advertisement, you can bounce ideas off one another producing some potentially fantastic work. I recently decided to make this blog post because a friend of mine suggested that there might be something opening for his company, but it is working from home. Maybe another day I will get into a more extensive explanation, but for now I gotta go eat.
I personally enjoy working from home a bit more than at an office. I can start work at 7:00AM or 9:30AM, convenience is a huge bonus. Certain important and human necessities, emergencies even.. such as a Champions League game where Bayern plays are events I don't have to miss unless I have a meeting. I also have one hell of an office (for me anyways) made for freelance, so this works out well. Get the work done and all is well. However there are good aspects for working at an office. Talking to people instead of being a creepy, social hermit who only speaks via skype or cellphones is supposed to be healthy for your social skills. Also if you are a designer working with other designers and people in advertisement, you can bounce ideas off one another producing some potentially fantastic work. I recently decided to make this blog post because a friend of mine suggested that there might be something opening for his company, but it is working from home. Maybe another day I will get into a more extensive explanation, but for now I gotta go eat.
Monday, 8 June 2015
Game of Thrones Depiction of History & People's Reactions
Game of Thrones is one the biggest shows on TV, and it might be argued that it is HBO's most successful tv show of all time. It's already broken a few records and one episode got ratings to a level that even the Sopranos never did. It's one of my favorite TV shows, and it is the non-complete book adaptation from George R.R. Martin's 'A Song of Ice & Fire'. I like to call him GRRIM since that is the tone of his entire story.
People die in Game of Thrones. A lot. People die so much that there's people out there that say that it is for shock value. While I do think there are very few and rare cases that people die because something had to happen, stating that as a general statement is utter bullshit. Maybe you should go watch some more comic book movie or comic where the hero always wins, and dead characters get brought back to life as if the 7 dragon balls are there to be used at will. They either find a reason, or there is universe #31241512 that all those people live. And that's fine if you prefer that kind of story that has no real sense of danger, but don't bs me with nonsense that people die for pure shock value. Have you read a history book? Maybe that's your problem. Get to reading and educate yourself, quench the thirst of knowledge and learn that people died a lot. Just as brutally as GoT sans the magic segments. Now, I will jump into spoiler territory below so if you are not caught up to Episode 9 of Season 5, it's time for you to book it out of here and catch up.
So there isn't a nice way to say it but on episode 9, but Stannis the Mannis did it. He burned his daughter alive to win the war and become the King of the seven Kingdoms. They even kept it long enough to hear her screams until she died. It was pretty damn horrific. I was literally wincing throughout that segment, as I felt uncomfortable throughout the entire event. Several people then posted that they are tired of seeing deaths for the sake of it which is wrong. I hoped he wouldn't do it, but it made complete sense that he did. Stannis' introduction is burning his brother in law. He later kills his actual brother and states later that he never loved the other one. I was just hoping he wouldn't do it.
These people that complain about violence, sex, deaths of good characters to me just don't want to face reality. Many things like this happened in slightly different manners. I hear there was no magic in the past, but I want to see the proof. But really, people were pieces of shit. It's nice to see a writer write a book with very gray (and realistic characters) and become incredibly famous due to it. The people that state that only bad guys win are completely delusional, forgetting that there is a very balanced way of good and bad winning like in the real world. Or the pseudo-intellectual snobs that make me roll my eyes that state GoT is so predictable because the bad guys always win. Their attitude atop their high horse, you have to wonder when they slip and fall on top of the pool of bullshit. Man those people aggravate me.
I agree in season 5 the foreshadowing for most storylines is obvious and I can see people's point but overall? I'd wager less than 1% are anywhere near on point of calling the plot points. Bad things happen all the time, and I would bet the people that don't want to see these events that want to stop watching are the same people that live in a bubble and don't want to know about the thousands of atrocities that happen in the world even in today's time. Must be wonderful to live in a blissful ignorance bubble, even though I am also an offender on many occasions.
I'm thinking that I should really stop swearing and cussing, adding so much color to my vocabulary on here. However, since I don't think anyone actually reads it, I'm going to continue doing it.
Ohh and Stannis...
People die in Game of Thrones. A lot. People die so much that there's people out there that say that it is for shock value. While I do think there are very few and rare cases that people die because something had to happen, stating that as a general statement is utter bullshit. Maybe you should go watch some more comic book movie or comic where the hero always wins, and dead characters get brought back to life as if the 7 dragon balls are there to be used at will. They either find a reason, or there is universe #31241512 that all those people live. And that's fine if you prefer that kind of story that has no real sense of danger, but don't bs me with nonsense that people die for pure shock value. Have you read a history book? Maybe that's your problem. Get to reading and educate yourself, quench the thirst of knowledge and learn that people died a lot. Just as brutally as GoT sans the magic segments. Now, I will jump into spoiler territory below so if you are not caught up to Episode 9 of Season 5, it's time for you to book it out of here and catch up.
So there isn't a nice way to say it but on episode 9, but Stannis the Mannis did it. He burned his daughter alive to win the war and become the King of the seven Kingdoms. They even kept it long enough to hear her screams until she died. It was pretty damn horrific. I was literally wincing throughout that segment, as I felt uncomfortable throughout the entire event. Several people then posted that they are tired of seeing deaths for the sake of it which is wrong. I hoped he wouldn't do it, but it made complete sense that he did. Stannis' introduction is burning his brother in law. He later kills his actual brother and states later that he never loved the other one. I was just hoping he wouldn't do it.
These people that complain about violence, sex, deaths of good characters to me just don't want to face reality. Many things like this happened in slightly different manners. I hear there was no magic in the past, but I want to see the proof. But really, people were pieces of shit. It's nice to see a writer write a book with very gray (and realistic characters) and become incredibly famous due to it. The people that state that only bad guys win are completely delusional, forgetting that there is a very balanced way of good and bad winning like in the real world. Or the pseudo-intellectual snobs that make me roll my eyes that state GoT is so predictable because the bad guys always win. Their attitude atop their high horse, you have to wonder when they slip and fall on top of the pool of bullshit. Man those people aggravate me.
I agree in season 5 the foreshadowing for most storylines is obvious and I can see people's point but overall? I'd wager less than 1% are anywhere near on point of calling the plot points. Bad things happen all the time, and I would bet the people that don't want to see these events that want to stop watching are the same people that live in a bubble and don't want to know about the thousands of atrocities that happen in the world even in today's time. Must be wonderful to live in a blissful ignorance bubble, even though I am also an offender on many occasions.
I'm thinking that I should really stop swearing and cussing, adding so much color to my vocabulary on here. However, since I don't think anyone actually reads it, I'm going to continue doing it.
Ohh and Stannis...
Wednesday, 3 June 2015
40/Hour a Week not What You Want?
So you have found your 40 hours a week job. You're happy, you got a job and a safety net. 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 5, 10 years. Some time later, you realize that 40 hours might not be for you. Now this is likely due to one of two reasons (if not a bit of both). You should trust my judgment because I've been working for over 3 years since I graduated. That practically makes me an expert on anything related to jobs and I've seen enough movies/TV shows that is the equivalent of a PhD in Psychology. Now that we've established my credentials, lets get to the two reasons.
One of the reasons is that you don't want to do a 40 hour job. You want to work on your own time, you work better at night. You might enjoy working for 14 hours one day, and then spend the next day with your kids. You work 25 hours in two days and are able to leave for a 4 day weekend somewhere special. Having a more flexible schedule and working when you're really in tune works out for you. The other reason is that it's not what you really want to do. You chose it as it was a good option when you initially started working or/and due to the safety of the 40 hour a week. However, after some time you realize this job is not really for you.
Unfortunately, I am starting to feel that way with my current 40 hour a week job due to the latter option. I originally signed up to work on a relatively split 50-50 design and front-end development. As time moves on however, there is less and less design. I love writing, designing and digital illustration, and I enjoy doing front-end development. However for me to love my job, it has to have a sizeable portion on one of those three areas. I know to many people a job is a job, but I do believe that you should love your job and a Monday shouldn't be something you bemoan when it eventually comes every week. That's why I chose to go on a creative route, to do what I love. One recommendation to people struggling for either of these options is that you do what you want on your spare time, something creatively that you yourself enjoy. It unleashes pent up creativity, and it will help when you're doing your 40 hour a week as well.
One of the reasons is that you don't want to do a 40 hour job. You want to work on your own time, you work better at night. You might enjoy working for 14 hours one day, and then spend the next day with your kids. You work 25 hours in two days and are able to leave for a 4 day weekend somewhere special. Having a more flexible schedule and working when you're really in tune works out for you. The other reason is that it's not what you really want to do. You chose it as it was a good option when you initially started working or/and due to the safety of the 40 hour a week. However, after some time you realize this job is not really for you.
Unfortunately, I am starting to feel that way with my current 40 hour a week job due to the latter option. I originally signed up to work on a relatively split 50-50 design and front-end development. As time moves on however, there is less and less design. I love writing, designing and digital illustration, and I enjoy doing front-end development. However for me to love my job, it has to have a sizeable portion on one of those three areas. I know to many people a job is a job, but I do believe that you should love your job and a Monday shouldn't be something you bemoan when it eventually comes every week. That's why I chose to go on a creative route, to do what I love. One recommendation to people struggling for either of these options is that you do what you want on your spare time, something creatively that you yourself enjoy. It unleashes pent up creativity, and it will help when you're doing your 40 hour a week as well.
Tuesday, 2 June 2015
Professionalism
Ohh boy. So the life of a designer, web designer, illustrator and anyone in the creative field, it's very likely you have done some freelance work. You work for the client, you do the work and in exchange they give you money. Simple concept. I've done this since I was studying in school and have continued to do it after graduating for three years until now. I generally do most of this work in Canada and very little has been international. It's worked out well, and I make some extra cash when needed. The last year and a half in particular, I have done almost no freelance work for anyone, since I've been working on a massively experimental project. I've been writing this for some time, and I had no time to work outside of the generic 8-5 timeline that I do to pay the bills. However, for the first time, I was the client and paid someone else for the work.
Ohh boy. So I contacted a company about a job I needed for this project I've been working on. Initially, things went well and the first steps of the project went mostly to plan. Afterwards, it was like an inevitable crashing train that had no wheels nor a break. Nothing would be on time, and it took weeks for work that should have taken one or two days. I remember at some point, I got roughs for part of the job that I know did not take a full day's worth after a month and their response was a casual "ok so what do you think?" Not sorry for being incredibly late, and this looking like something I would do as quick as possible once someone asked for an update. I had to call the whole thing off after a constant barrage of failures from this company, and it's definitely been my worst experience in any type of deal whether I am a client or vice-versa. At least, I got my money back which is about the only positive. The downsize is that I lost the most important thing, time. About half a year's worth.
I ended this relationship on a cold but professional note. The mediator of the company did not want for this news to get out there in regards to his company's incompetence, and I am not doing it either. What's happened has happened and I do believe they just weren't professional enough to take care of it. For me to be vindictive when they weren't malicious would be a shitty thing to be. So, we left it off to a "shit happens, let's move our separate ways" road. Anyways to any youngins' out there (that would be 3-5 years younger than me...), be professional. Have your work on time. if you can't, fucking let the client know ahead of time so they aren't wondering what is happening. Your client should always be in the loop with what is happening to their project. A major mistake is also to take too many jobs at once and not have the time to properly do them, which is what I believe was happening to the previous company. Now, I have found another company and they seem a lot better for now, so hoping this continues until this project is done and I can see if anything happens with it. Once again, be fucking professional.
Ohh boy. So I contacted a company about a job I needed for this project I've been working on. Initially, things went well and the first steps of the project went mostly to plan. Afterwards, it was like an inevitable crashing train that had no wheels nor a break. Nothing would be on time, and it took weeks for work that should have taken one or two days. I remember at some point, I got roughs for part of the job that I know did not take a full day's worth after a month and their response was a casual "ok so what do you think?" Not sorry for being incredibly late, and this looking like something I would do as quick as possible once someone asked for an update. I had to call the whole thing off after a constant barrage of failures from this company, and it's definitely been my worst experience in any type of deal whether I am a client or vice-versa. At least, I got my money back which is about the only positive. The downsize is that I lost the most important thing, time. About half a year's worth.
I ended this relationship on a cold but professional note. The mediator of the company did not want for this news to get out there in regards to his company's incompetence, and I am not doing it either. What's happened has happened and I do believe they just weren't professional enough to take care of it. For me to be vindictive when they weren't malicious would be a shitty thing to be. So, we left it off to a "shit happens, let's move our separate ways" road. Anyways to any youngins' out there (that would be 3-5 years younger than me...), be professional. Have your work on time. if you can't, fucking let the client know ahead of time so they aren't wondering what is happening. Your client should always be in the loop with what is happening to their project. A major mistake is also to take too many jobs at once and not have the time to properly do them, which is what I believe was happening to the previous company. Now, I have found another company and they seem a lot better for now, so hoping this continues until this project is done and I can see if anything happens with it. Once again, be fucking professional.
Monday, 1 June 2015
Speed Painting 36: Batman Arkham Knight
So something-something related to Batman is coming out, and yes it is another excuse for me to once again to do a Batman-related youtube speed painting. The final game of the Batman trilogy from Rocksteady Studios will release on June, and that is my next topic.
This illustration is heavily inspired by the wonderful Witcher 3: Wild Hunt concept designs of their artists. Well done to them. I used the Batman logo as the background while illustrating the two major villains of the game, Scarecrow and the Arkham Knight. I also used one the Dark Knight songs from Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard, and the second song from the Arkham City game. This way, I pay tribute to both the best comic book superhero movie and one of the developer's own games.
I hope you guys (whichever person accidentally stumbles here) enjoy this one, because I believe this to be my best one in exactly three years of (creating) speed paintings. Can't believe it's been three whole years so far!
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