Stefano's Blog: 2012

Janet Allinger is a Graphic Designer, Illustrator & Photographer from Santa Cruz.

Here there is her website: http://www.janetallinger.com/

She said that she is really busy at the moment but she passed me some ( a huge amount of!) past Q&A, And she is fine with answering other questions.

Below some examples of her works:

Photography

Illustration

Design

Q&A:

1. Where did you study for your degree? Currently, how many years have you been an illustrator/animator? I'm mostly self taught. I did and still do when I can, take classes when available. I've been drawing since I was able to pick up a crayon so I guess... an illustrator for quite a long time. 40+ years!

2. As an illustrator/animator you make mistakes. Have you learned from most of those mistakes? What would you say was your worst mistake? (If you remember). My biggest mistake... rushing a project. It's better to contact a client and request additional time than hurry to get anything on paper.

3. What advice would you give an aspiring illustrator/animator? If you could go back, would you have done anything differently? I don't think I would do anything differently. You learn from mistakes as well as taking on projects... sometimes ones that are a bit more than you can handle.

4. How do you keep your work fresh? Do you need to consciously adapt your style or does it progress naturally? I keep up with current events, design mags and websites for the lastest and greatest on styles and trends as much as I can.

5. What or who inspired you to travel this path to be an illustrator/animator? What is your favorite style of illustration/animation? The love of drawing/creating keeps me on the path. Like I said, I've been drawing since I was very young. It's just a part of me. Style wise, I love all different styles. Lately I'm drawn to street art like Banksy.

6. Was there a time you ever thought of quitting? If so, what was that reason? Yeah sometimes. But just like any profession or hobby... you get burnt out on it. I just take a break and do something else for a few days and then I'm back!

7. What is your favorite style of illustration/animation? Banksy street art style, of course anything colorful, edgy with high contrast.

8. Where do you hope your work will lead you? Any other plans or dreams you would like to follow in the future? Where will it lead me? I'm pretty happy with my current path. Of course it would be nice to get huge exposure from a project. I'd love to be published in HOW, CA or Print magazine. Of course I need to submit.

I've always drawn, painted or sketched and in high school, had the opportunity to take a commercial arts class, which piqued my interest in graphic design.

After high school, I went to college for 2 semesters before being hired as a technical illustrator at a small automotive company and after a few years, got the opportunity to learn how to design using a computer with Illustrator and Photoshop software, which at the time were pretty basic compared to today.

So... I'm a mostly self taught but did have 3 years of "on the job experience" when I first started out, with a small design firm (after moving from Michigan to California) soaking up everything they taught me.

Today, I work for myself from my home office. Occasionally I hire designers to help me with large projects.

My biggest influences in design? I don't have any particular names but I'm always impressed with the work on the site www.thedieline.com and in Communication Arts and HOW magazines.

And of course, I gravitated towards any work that's humorous.

1. How did you decide you wanted to become a designer/illustrator?

I started in the design business after being hired at a small design firm as the illustrator. I learned alot working there about graphic design and studied on my own and eventually started my own business after accumulating some clients.

2. What is your background?

After a few yrs in college, I quit, do to the world of automotive drafting where I was making good money at a young age. I worked for over 10 years as a technical illustrator and processor (working on manuals) and was taught how to use at that time, the brand new program Adobe Illustrator. I created illustrations on the computer and it changed my whole view on drawing. How easy it was to draw, make an error and correct. No more pens, pencils and eraser that left behind blemished paper. I eventually bought my own Apple and took on small jobs here and there working occasional evenings on real estate "for sale ' flyers, brochures and other design projects. My husband and I moved to CA about 12 yrs ago and I was hired by a small design firm as their illustrator. Over the 3 yrs working with them I learned all about the graphic design business and got to work on quite a few design projects along with illustrating.

3. I've read that you were self-trained. How did you teach yourself good design skills?

Books, online forums and design sites, great design magazines and bouncing my ideas off of other designer friends for advise.

4. What skills do you consider most valuable in a good designer/illustrator?

The ability to listen to your client and always give 100% to each project.

5. What do you do to recharge your creative batteries? Actually getting away from my computer for a few hours or even a day or two. Going for a long bike ride or some sort of exercise helps me.

6. Which do you prefer, illustration or design?

Illustration would be my favorite even I do enjoy designing. I usually have more freedom with an illustration.

7. How would you explain your style of illustration/design?

Humorous, pop artish and sometimes slightly irreverent.

8. What is your process when working on a new project? I get as much information from a client by asking questions on what they like, dislike, about their business and feelings they want the design or illustration to convey. I then sketch out comps to show them, once approved I redraw the comps in Illustrator, get another approval and then finalize with color.

Keeping the client involved as much as possible I feel prevents any surprises and never ending adjustments to an image.

9. What is the most valuable quality a designer or illustrator can have? Like I mentioned before being able to listen and keeping current with trends and programs/techniques.

10. What is the most challenging project you've ever worked on? What is your most enjoyable? Challenging would be complete identity for a client (Laptop lunches and Blue Lotus) that includes packaging and branding.

Enjoyable would be all the beer labels I created for a local brewer since they always let me do whatever I want.

11. I've read that you often design on the computer, then after turn those designs into paintings and other art pieces.

Since designers are often taught to design by hand before going to the computer, what are your opinions?

I do draw on paper now and then and usually go to another room and sketch or while I watch TV.

Mostly I work on a Cintiq http://www.wacom-asia.com/cintiq/cintiq21/index.html which is like drawing on paper since you draw directly on the screen. It saves me time so I don't need to scan any pencil/paper drawings.

12. What inspires you? Being around friends, art and design magazine or any of my 100 reference books.

13. What is your favorite part of your job? Your least favorite? Favorite is finishing up an illustration by tweaking colors and adjusting lines. Least is writing the proposal or estimate.

14. How do you feel about women's place in the design industry?

15. What designers do you like / what inspires you? I'm terrible with names but I do like certain styles like you see with skateboard art, grafitti artist Banksy, Hatch Show Print (letterpress printing) for their rustic look, Chwast of Push Pin Graphics and then there are a few local designer I have great respect for.

16. What mediums do you prefer to use in your work? For fine art, I like painting with acrylics since they give me that clean graphic look I usually go for and also because they dry fast and don't smell up my studio.

17. Much of your work is based around depictions of women. Why? Well perhaps since I am woman and know the topic well, HA! People like the fact that I create humorous yet positive images of women and I do get alot of requests to create female characters.

18. How important do you think technology is to the industry today? It has definitely sped up the whole design process. Making corrections with art created on a computer is not a problem, sending files via the internet to a client or a printer saves so much time and the internet has made is easier to get work from anywhere in the world.

19.What advice would you give to young designers/illustrators today? Develop your own signature style so people can recognize your work without seeing your name attached. Take projects that are "over your head" (with in reason) to challenge you and teach. I've always believed on the job training is best and you can always find help and advise by contacting other designers, printing businesses, online forums, etc. Most important of all is know that the client is always right. Never burn bridges even if they are wrong. A client who has a good experience with you will always refer you to someone else. 80% of my business is referrals.

20. What is in the future for you? This economy has slowed my business down so I'm coming up with some create "gorilla marketing" and will take advantage of the slow down to go back and do some fine art paintings or a new line of comic minis.

> 1. Is art a hobby or a passion for you? Passion for sure. I grew up drawing, painting or playing with clay and when I was not doing school work, or when older working, I was doing something art related.

2. Which do you prefer doing designing or doing illustrations? I enjoy both equally but there are times when I prefer doing the other, especially after a challenging project.
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> 3. Do you think that a career in graphic design is one that a person must love or would doing it just for the money be satisfying? I feel you should love what you do. Put 110% into it and you will get so much more out then just doing a job for the money.

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> 4. What is the greatest difference between graphic design and illustrations? The best way to describe the two is what I found online and explained better than I could: "Graphic design is a creative process that combines art and technology to communicate ideas. A illustration may be intended to clarify complicated concepts or objects that are difficult to describe textually, or the illustration may be intended for entertainment, as in greeting cards, or cover art or interior art for books and magazines, or for advertisement, as on posters."

> 5. If you could give me one piece of advice to be successful as a Graphic designer what would it be? Build a portfolio with your "signature" style, learn as much as you can about the field, collect great reference books, keep up with current trends and styles and most of all...when working with clients, be a good listener and open to their ideas (no matter how strange they could be) and remember, the client is always right... even when they are not.

#1 Do you feel quitting college to work full time has helped you or hurt you in any way in your career? Perhaps staying in college, I would of then found a job in the design/art field sooner and not spent the time in the Auto world. But, I think working in the automotive industry helped me develop "on the job" skills and good work ethics earlier than most.

#2 You state in your brief history that you learned computer design after the designer quit and you begged for the position. Did you feel it was easy to learn it on your own, or do you think it would have been easier by taking a class or two? I think since I was so enthusiastic about getting the opportunity, I had no problem absorbing all the instructions from books and some classes. I do think taking classes ( I did take some and do go to seminars when I can) would of helped save me time with some of the struggles I have had but then, sometime learning by your mistakes is the best way.

#3 On your portfolio page you state that most of the Illustrations were drawn using Illustrator, which one tool in Illustrator can you not live without and why?

the pen tool for it's precise curves and ease to follow over a sketched image but my most favorite tool is my Cintiq. Drawing directly onto a screen instead of using a mouse, has sped up my production time 200%.

#4 Of all your achievements and awards which one is the most special to you? Getting published in the latest CS4 instruction manual by author Sue Jenkins. Nice to be recognized as a top pro designer from my piers.

#5 Besides the awards mentioned above what do you feel is your biggest accomplishment, a goal that you set for yourself and achieved? Being self employed and busy! So, owning my own business and having it be successful is a great accomplishment for me.

#6 Who were/are your influences and why? The 2 women I worked for years ago at the small design firm. They taught me how to run a business and that it's not impossible to start your own. Another person is a friend of mine Judi Oyama who is very talented when it comes to marketing as well as design.

#7 You seem to have a wide array of illustrations that range from a Vampire Woman to 2 best friends walking their cute puppies as they shop, which type of subject do you prefer more, the cute, cuddly type, the scary type, or the eccentric type? I love it all. Having a variety of styles, themes, etc keeps my job interesting and challenging. If I did have to pick one thing, it's creating something humorous.

#8 Was it hard to go out on your own and start your own business in the design world? It was when I rented a studio outside my home. I had to get work to pay for the rent! First few months were bleak but some of my older clients I retained before moving out, helped me limp along till I got more projects. It took about 2 years before I was making a decent income.

#9 Do you have a preference as to what you like to illustrate? (i.e. Logo, newsletter, illustrations) Like I said above, I love it all. I usually juggle 4-8 projects so if one day I don't feel like creating say, a character, I can work on one of the others that I have some ideas or inspiration for.

1.Where did you receive your Fine Arts Degree? I didn't. I never finish college so I learned everything from on the job to self teaching via books, some classes and videos.

2.How did you come to develop your style of illustration? I guess from the love of cartooning. I have always created silly characters and with today technology with computers, software, etc, I can create the graphic look I want.

3.How would you describe your style of illustration? Cartoonish with a touch of realism.

4.What’s your usual approach when you begin a new project? sketching out ideas and then getting inspiration from my small library of design, art and culture books.

5.Which is your favorite medium to work with and why? Well I love working on the computer. I have a Cintiq that allows me to directly draw on the monitor screen. It has made life so much easier. I also (when I have time) love to paint using acrylics. I love the vibrancy of the paint and you can't beat... no smell like oils!

6.Who/what influenced you when you were starting out? I worked for a small design firm years ago. The two owners were a great inspiration to me in wanting to go off and build my own business. They taught me so much and helped me develop my skills and confidence.

7.Where do you draw your inspiration from now and is there an artist that has really inspired you? I'm inspired by current events, pop culture and the local crazies in my town, my friends, family and my two unique cats. My mind is always going, creating designs that sometimes end up on paper. The artist that inspired me is Roy Litchenstein for his pop are comic style.

8.What are some of the likes and dislikes of your profession? Likes: my flexible schedule, working with a variety of great clients and interesting projects, getting to be creative and paid for it and most of all, doing what I love... designing and illustration. Dislikes: at times, I'm swamped but don't have the time to outsource some work so I end up working alot. Once in awhile, I get a difficult client that either sucks the life out of the project or me.

So how did you decide to be in the field of graphic design? I just fell into it. I've alway's been creative and loved doing anything artistic. My first job in graphic design was after moving to California. A friend of a friend had a small design business and needed some help. They hired me for minor projects, mostly illustrative work but discovered I had some natural design talent. So I learned everything about the business from them before setting off on my own.

Did you originally want to work in another field? When I was a child, I wanted to work for Disney creating cartoons or something art related. I did take a commercial art class in high school and became interested in graphic design but really didn't think I'd pursue a career in the field. Then after high school I worked for quite a few years as a technical illustrator in the automotive world. Not very exciting but the pay was good.

What kind of education do you have? I went to a community college for a year after graduating from high school but hired on as a tech illustrator for an automotive drafting company. Later, I took a few art/design classes but really my education is work experience over the years, self teaching via books, seminars and online tutorials.

What were some challenges you faced once you got out of school and entered the professional world? No challenges. I didn't pursue my design career right away since I was young and didn't know what I really wanted to do. I just wanted to make money so the automotive industry was easy to fall into since it's a huge part of Detroit.

What choices did you make about your career that made the most impact? Both good and bad Just going for it, saying yes to any and all projects, from simple to going over my head. I learned so much from "doing" and made some mistakes which were valuable lessons. Getting as much experience as you can is the best think to do.

Where do you get your inspiration? people, surroundings, design books, magazines, design websites. The web is such a great source for inspiration.

How did you develop your unique style of design? I guess having a bit of a twisted sense of humor helps. I love color, humor and irreverence.

How has the business changed since you first started? Designers do more final prep work for print. Used to be, just send over the files and the printer co. would take care of final set up. Now it seems they want everything ready so they have less work on their end.

Can you describe your creative process? It seems everybody has a different method and I think people would be curious about a professionals method I like to gather up images that are inspiring and related to the project. 2. start sketching up ideas and depending on the job, like if it's an illustration, I'll show the client the rough composition for approval before hard lining the work. I like to keep the client involved as much as possible so not to waste precious time.

What are your favorite types of projects? I love to create characters, logos and love to work up wine labels.

Whats a common problem that seems to come up when working with clients? Well some clients are easy to work with and others, more challenging. The most common problem is getting enough information out of them to do you job. Some clients really don't know what they want so you have to ask every possible question to get what you need.

Out of all the jobs you have had throughout your career, which one are you the most proud of? Gosh, I've done so many projects over the years. I guess I'm proud of all of them .