Why design?

Working in design gives me the chance to be imaginative in many different ways by allowing me to keep things fresh. The best antidote to stagnation is learning something new and, in the world of design, you can always get inspired by undertaking a new application or finding a new tutorial to master.

One of my favorite things about working in design technology is the often shared, creative learning process. Learning something new and then applying it successfully, feels pretty incredible and the same joyous feeling happens when I get to share something I’ve learned with someone else.

Over the last decade of working in this field, I have acquired many different tools and methods that have given me the ability to stay relevant and successful in my work. But, there is always room to be better and there will never be a moment where I’d say, “I’ve learned it all, I’m done!” I think that’s the key ingredient to progress and contentment in both your career and your life.

Let’s work together!

I offer a wide range of creative services but in summary, I can create a logo or build a complete visual branding package for you. The most common requests I get are the setting up of WordPress pages, logos & business sets, Social Media setup, merchandise, as well as many other print materials.

You can get an idea of my workflow by checking out the steps below.

  • STEP 1: CONSULTATION

    The first consultation is free! You will get adequate time to decide if I am the right designer for you.

  • STEP 2: EMPLOY

    Contract me hourly, hire me for a single project, or employ me for keeps and give me a forever home. 😀

  • STEP 3: PROJECT OUTLINE

    Let’s talk about your goals and start building a “To Do” list that we can apply to your individual timeline. Complete with meet-ups, phone chats, video chats, walkthroughs, and screen sharing guidance. It’s truly up to you how you wish to communicate but I’ll be there for whatever you need.

  • STEP 4: IMPLEMENTATION

    I’ll start implementing our plan and send you drafts through out the process and make changes as necessary. Keep in mind that receiving feedback from you is critical in creating the best end result, so don’t hold back on the criticism.

  • STEP 5: REALIZATION

    Project complete! After all is said and done I will send you all of the artwork and build files and I will also keep a copy in my client files if ever needed.

Why not stalk my online presence?

I mean… it is public information

Skills

Adobe Illustrator 95%
Adobe Photoshop 95%
Adobe InDesign 85%
Adobe Dreamweaver 80%
Illustration 85%
Adobe Premiere 75%
Adobe Lightroom 95%
Adobe Audition 85%
Adobe Animate 95%
Print Materials 95%
Adobe After Effects 75%
Photography

Digital Photography

I really love taking photos and have been shooting for much longer than I’ve been a designer. It started out when I joined the photography journalism course at my high school. I ended up really falling in love with it and could often be found in the darkroom. These days I’m usually designing but when I do set aside time to take photos they tend to be scenic landscapes, culinary, or product photos.
Design

Application Arsenal

Currently, Adobe Illustrator is my most frequently used application which I use for a variety of projects. My second most frequented application is, you guessed it, Photoshop! This application is where I regularly edit and manipulate images. I often use Dreamweaver as well, usually for creating e-blasts and basic web pages. Character Animator, Felix, and Experience Design are on my list for the next Adobe programs I want to immerse myself in. As far as non-Adobe tools, I frequently use Google Drive (and everything that comes with it… docs, sheets, forms, etc.), Atom, Cyberduck, Zeplin, Slack, Trello, Asana, GitHub, Apple Pencil + iPad Pro, a lot of coffee, and a variety of other means to get the job done.
Multimedia

Animations, E-blasts, Gifs, Oh My!

My first introduction to code was once upon a time on a social network called Myspace. That’s right, I was putting little sparkly unicorns on my Myspace page while The White Stripes played on my music player that looked like a b-side cassette tape. Needless to say, I thought I was super cool. 😀 After years of playing with little bits of code and a couple of basic code classes, I was hired on at a job where I made Flash ads. Far back in the darkest corners of the building were a bunch of twentysomething’s churning out Flash ads for your viewing disdain. To my merriment though, I was promoted to an advanced Pointroll team where I was able to start making interactive advertisements that were much more fascinating. These ads were high quality, interactive ads that were much more fun to make. All of these events lead me to have a new found appreciation for the power of code and the entrancing world of animation.

Thank you

I appreciate the time you spent checking out my page! Please do not hesitate to contact me at grettasgraphics@gmail.com if you ever need some help.