[daftpig]

Hallo.

I'm picking up graphic stuff on my own. So in view that I don't exactly have a mentor to consult, I asked my pre-college design teacher what stuff she recommended.

Amongst other things, she asked me to get a good Colour Index.

Any recommendations? (Of course, it would be great if the book included all different relationships between colours on the colour wheel.)

Many thanks.

[Burn]

All you'll ever need

http://pantone.com/products/products...ShowProducts=1

Be sure to click back to the mainpage to view the rest of the site.

For colourwheel stuff - go pick up some books and learn some colour theory - using wheels are ok for the quick and dirty, but restricting if relied no too much. Tints, tones and shades - tints, tones and shades. It really is that simple.

[Burn]

And also -

Buy every copy of How, CA, STEP Inside Design (formerly Step by Step) and Computer Arts.

Anything else? Anyone?

[daftpig]

Originally posted by Burn:
All you'll ever need

http://pantone.com/products/products...ShowProducts=1

Be sure to click back to the mainpage to view the rest of the site.

For colourwheel stuff - go pick up some books and learn some colour theory - using wheels are ok for the quick and dirty, but restricting if relied no too much. Tints, tones and shades - tints, tones and shades. It really is that simple.

Hmm.. thanks but maybe I didn't make myself clear enough. Urm.. I was referring to those books which contain the colour combis for dummy beginners like me. Those with the web and CMYK codes since it's not quite possible for me to request for Pantones when I'm doing self-instruction anyway.

Erm... any regarding those? Thankie.

[Burn]

Then again, an argument can be made for you NEVER (or maybe rarely) buying any of those magazines.

If you are comfortable with and have developed your own unique style.. go ahead.. but sometimes it's best to stear clear of industry rags to help keep the mind fresh.

Watch for the 'Annuals' at least.. keeping abreast of what's going on is still important.

[daftpig]

Originally posted by Burn:
Then again, an argument can be made for you NEVER (or maybe rarely) buying any of those magazines.

If you are comfortable with and have developed your own unique style.. go ahead.. but sometimes it's best to stear clear of industry rags to help keep the mind fresh.

Watch for the 'Annuals' at least.. keeping abreast of what's going on is still important.

Yah. I realised that when I don't know much, I always end up copying, which is tiring at the end of the day.

So I've been trying to get books to learn and read up on the fundamental "rules". Like for Type, invested some monies in Emil Ruder's Typographie. I found out that Typo is one big area. And that's only one out of the three that I'm basing my foundations on. (The other two being grids and colour.)

[daftpig]

Originally posted by Burn:
And also -

Buy every copy of How, CA, STEP Inside Design (formerly Step by Step) and Computer Arts.

I'll try to. Big problem being everything ends up costing a lot. Esp when you convert from USD to SGD plus shipping.

[daftpig]

I just hope the people here pardon me a bit. I'm in uni doing a BA in a non-design discipline (Political Science, to be exact). There are often very strong parental objections for the youths here who want to enter creative fields.

[godzookie2k]

See, the color matching thing is something you would learn in school and/or via experience. There are no "rules" per se, for what colors match best with what colors, its situational really. (well there *are* rules, but this spot doesn't have enough room to elaborate, surely a skill I wouldn't trust in the hands of a book personally.) Typography wise, pick up Robert Bringhurst's (sp?) "Elements of Typographical Style" and Josef Muller-Brockmann's "Grid Systems", and probably a good color theory book. Richard Hollis's "Graphic Design: A Consise History" and the series "Looking Closer" by Michael Bierut, will serve you well too. Picking up a Pantone swatch book and looking at colors that *you* think look well together will be a start, judge what others think look good together and run with it. A good color theory class will serve you VERY WELL. Take classes in general, only so much you can learn without the experience.

[godzookie2k]

CA is good, HOW is ok, the rest are recreational reading, the CA annuals are required though.

[art_director]

hit used book stores and ebay for all the graphic design and advertising related books you can -- they're much cheaper that way. then go ahead, copy from them until you understand the rules and why they work.

imo you cannot break the rules until you understand them. the better your knowledge of what's been done the better prepared you'll be to take things to the next level, understand trends (design, grid, style, color, etc.).

also, find a designer or two that you really admire and dive into ther work. follow the progression of their career from start to finish and observe how they evolved in terms of design style, color, etc.

one other bit of advice, get the names of design firms and ad agencies out of award annuals then hit their websites. you'll get to see the work before it hits the books and you'll save some cash that way. also, you'll often see that the company often puts up rationale for what they've done with a project. a lot can be learned from the wisdom, experience and ramblings of others.

finally, try to attend the aiga meetings in your area. exposure to the design community will help you learn faster and make contacts for the future. if you're lucky you'll even find a benevolent soul who will give you their old design / ad annuals, stock photo books / cds and a healthy dose of advice on your work.

of course you can always post here. there are many people on this forum (godzookie, mindfad, etc.) that give good, sound advice. and heck, it's free.

almost forgot, type, type, type. learn it. know it. live it. type is the cornerstone of communication and you can't have enough good type reference books. in fact, you can't have enough good design books.

best o' luck.

[daftpig]

First of all, many thanks to Burn, godzookie2k and art_director for their replies and suggestions.

For a start, I did go out and get those Type books. Cost me bombs but well-worth the fascination I got from them. An ex-teacher told me to have a look at Octavo but that's out of print.

My colour theory knowledge goes up to complementaries only and there aren't solid books on that in Singapore.

There also aren't AIGA meets or any big design events nor any Type or Design journals available here.

I intend to pursue a Postgrad Dip perhaps at West Herts College, UK because I'm primarily interested in print (only, actually).

Many thanks again. Will get back here when I seek advice. (I doubt I have anything to offer you people, unless you come over to S'pore for a holiday.)


Kwok Heng

[himself]

One color book that I'd recommend to any designer who needs more insight on color is Josef Albers “Interaction of Color.” It takes a different approach, explaining color by their interactions and color perception than by using the standard color wheels (this book assumes the reader already has some insight into color already)... the color wheel stuff is important, and while there are a few decent design oriented books that cover those basics, I've found that art books do a better job of really covering it.

That being said, the best way to learn about color is to work with it. Try painting... oil, acrylic, water color, pen & ink drawing, whatever. Work with the basic artists' color palette (red, yellow, and blue plus white), then the “printers palette” (cyan, aka light blue, magenta, yellow, and black). I wouldn't worry about the RGB stuff just yet because 1) it's easier to do and learn on a computer, 2) learning the other color wheel's first makes RBG a little easier to grasp and 3) you're primarily intersted in print anyway. Once you do get to RGB, if you're still need a printed reference, books on stage lighting often cover RGB really well. Hope this helps.

Happy New Year everyone!

[godzookie2k]

some of these are from last year, and some are web related, but design is design, and going to even web design events will give you *some* inspiration and a foot into the community:

http://202.172.39.87/overview.html
http://www.reedexpo.com.sg/idf.htm
http://photoshop.meetup.com/?localeI...mp;setLocale=1
session 4:
http://www.asia.apple.com/th/seminars/track_video.html