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What is a Graphic Designer?
What is a graphic designer? A graphic designer creates images, logos, and artwork for companies. A graphic designer has many tasks. People often hire graphic designers to create logos and images for new businesses. A graphic designer spends time creating logos that capture the attention of potential customers. Also, graphic designers handle the details of a logo’s appearance. The colors, lettering, and size of a logo all contribute to its success. A talented graphic designer can come up with an image that is representative of a company’s goals. An experienced graphic designer can create an enduring logo and image for a company. Graphic designers work for all sorts of businesses. Banks, restaurants, amusement parks, retail stores, and hotels are just a few examples of businesses that utilize the skills of graphic designers. The specific job title of a graphic designer depends upon his or her seniority and experience. Some examples of job titles are senior graphic designer, junior graphic designer, and creative director. There are also some freelance graphic designers.
Degrees and Training
Educational preparation for a career as a graphic designer includes a Bachelor’s degree in graphic design. As a person gains more experience as a graphic designer, he or she will begin to build a portfolio. A portfolio is a collection of professional work. A potential employer looking through a talented graphic designer’s portfolio sees company logos, magazine advertisements, and other successful pieces of work that the person has done. In order to come up with successful advertisements and logos, a graphic designer must be imaginative. Also, he or she must have talent for creating memorable images. A skillful graphic designer can create images and logos that are instantly recognizable.
Salary
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), in May of 2010 the median annual salary of a graphic designer was $43,500. Not surprisingly, California and New York are two states with high levels of employment for graphic designers. There are many movie and television studios in California that use the skills of talented graphic designers. Alternatively, in New York there are many magazine and book publishers that employ graphic designers. An experienced graphic designer with a portfolio full of successful work is likely to be paid more than a designer who is just beginning in the field. In order to build a portfolio, a graphic designer must be willing to take any design work that comes along.
Future Prospects
The BLS reports that the career field of graphic design is growing at an average rate. It stands to reason that there will be more need for the skills of graphic designers due to the increase in websites and online advertisements. A person who wants to succeed as a graphic designer should become familiar with various types of software used in the profession. Graphic designers are using computer software in their work more each year. An imaginative person with knowledge of the latest graphic design software is the answer to the question: ‘What is a graphic designer?’.