A Graphic Designers toolbox

27 April 2010 | 3

I had an email this week from a design student asking what tools I used, so here is a quick rundown.

Apple Mac Pro
24″ Apple Cinema Display
Wacom Tablet (Mainly used for photo retouching, and mocking up product concepts)
Full Creative Suite of Applications (I try to update every 2 releases, but using the latest version of in design seems problematic for many printers)
Sketch Book
Sharp Pencils
Pantone Colour Guides (A must!)
Good selection of design books
Good selection of fellow designers

A computer is obviously an absolute necessity for a graphic designer but it doesn’t have to be expensive. If your just starting out on your own, the most important purchase will probably be software. As a minimum, you need something to handle vectors, something to handle photos and something to handle page layout. Illustrator, Photoshop & InDesign are the natural choices, although there are a several good open-source software’s available, and some great designers are using them on a regular basis.

What you run your software on isn’t as important as what your running – Photoshop is exactly the same on a Mac as it is on a PC and if you can save a few pennies by using a PC then this will free up funds that can be used elsewhere. Personally I find working on a Mac a lot less stressful and I much prefer the way they render type; but it’s not a deal-breaker – especially for a startup.

A swatch-book is an important addition, and will ensure that your fully aware of colours your using in any logo design work!

Finally, a good circle of fellow designers can be the most valuable tool at your disposal. Having people available to review your work before sending it off to clients is very handy, especially if your just starting out and unsure of your work.

3 Comments | Permalink

Tweets that mention A Graphic Designers toolbox « J.Pink | Graphic Designer -- Topsy.com says:

April 27, 2010 at 7:02 pm

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Computer Graphic, Roberto Blake. Roberto Blake said: RT @bonigala: A Graphic Designers toolbox « J.Pink | Graphic Designer http://bit.ly/bh4BkI [...]