I love what you can achieve both artistically and graphically in Photoshop. Although a lot of people in the industry consider “shopping” to be completely evil, I don’t think that is entirely the case. Granted, I have another blog which showcases and discusses nothing but the bad that can come from it, but the truth of the matter is – I use Photoshop on a daily basis. I love Photoshop.

The image above is a prime example of how I use the program – it is actually a composite of 4 images. We needed a compelling image of the stadium filled with fans that showed our new HD video boards. Unfortunately, at that time the boards had just been installed so no such photo existed yet. I found a series of several photos taken at sunset by one of our photographers during the previous season, and stitched them together to get a fuller shot of the entire bowl. I then used a photo of our new HD video boards in the end zone and added that in. Here are all the photos that went into creating the above image…

Above: Window clings displayed inside the entrance at The Hall of Patriot Place presented by Raytheon which showcase imagery from the Patriots three Super Bowl wins.

In addition to creating large scale decorative items such as the Patriots Championship banners or mall directory kiosks, I have also been responsible for other large scale graphics in and around the stadium. Although these projects are usually simpler by design standards, they are more challenging in terms of finding the right imagery and getting it in the right resolution – not only do I want the imagery to be interesting, but I want it to look good even close up.

The first time I saw the above video I laughed at it because it is so absurd, yet at the same time rings so true. It illustrates something that all designers will (unfortunately) face at some point: the bastardization of a good design. Sometimes simple is better…when it is, be sure to fight for it.

I had the absolute pleasure of designing the front and back covers of 1990: The Making of Pearl Jam [A TwoFeetThick Mini-Book] by Jessica Letkemann (pictured above). The aim was for the cover to relate to that era of Pearl Jam’s pre-history, so Jessica and I tossed around a few design concepts before settling on the idea of the iconic Seattle telephone pole circa late 80s-early 90s.

Above: Tools of the trade – fliers, staple gun and… coffee! I used coffee grounds and cold coffee in a sprayer to artificially age the paper so the fliers looked weathered.

I decided against using Photoshop for this project. It was not my aim to hunt for a perfect photo and make it into what was needed. I wanted to go old school because it would give me a better result AND be much more fun. I dug out my copies of Loser and Screaming Life and got to researching. I re-created fliers of what would be considered pre-Pearl Jam “parent” bands (as well as fliers for the book cover info) and printed them out. Below you can click to enlarge the fliers I re-created (the Citizen Dick one was not used in the shoot)…

We were able to find existing artwork and/or logos for all the bands except “Indian Style”, so for that one I just winged it. The rest of the band fliers I either re-purposed artwork or advertisements (Soundgarden, Temple of the Dog) or re-created from photos of original fliers (Bad Radio, Mother Love Bone, Citizen Dick). After all were created and printed it was just a matter of stapling, ripping, re-stapling, spraying and photographing.

It was fun to work on a project that combined computer work with good old fashioned grunt work. Thanks to Jessica (as well as JR and Kathy) for thinking of me when it comes to projects such as this one!

Inspiration can be found everywhere you look. I believe the less “List of Top 10 Most Inspiring Design Websites” you visit and the more you just get out of the house and walk around, the better off you’ll be creatively (as well as physically). I make a semi-annual trek to the Brimfield Flea Market and can spend an entire day poking around the various vendors looking at old signs, posters, antiques and vintage items. Every time I do something like this I feel as if I am recharging my creative batteries.

I encourage all designers to get out from behind the computer and just look around once in a while. Visiting a place like Brimfield is a great study in color palettes, textures and typography. Here are some pictures I have taken over the years at Brimfield…

I’ve always been fascinated with political logos, and like to predict who will win elections based on the look of their logos alone. (This strategy has been alarmingly successful – next Presidential election I’m hitting up Vegas.) A recent example to illustrate my point would be the 2008 Presidential slug fest between John McCain and Barack Obama. I don’t ever remember an election where one candidate’s marketing scheme was so out-of-touch and out-of-date while the other candidate was so well branded and so, well, branded.

A new book has been released chronicling the marketing strategy behind Barack Obama’s historic Presidential campaign called Designing Obama – A Chronicle of Art & Design from the 2008 Presidential Campaign. In it, designer Scott Thomas breaks down the design process of the famous “O” logo, talks about the selection of the now iconic Gotham font, and dissects the process of designing the complex Obama campaign website. The book also includes a chapter dedicated to the artists behind many of the grass roots artwork that became prevalent throughout the campaign.

No matter which way you lean politically, this is a must read for web and print designers – not only is it a great branding study, but it makes for a handy reference guide to keep in your collection. Even if you are a starving design student with no money to spare to buy the book or the iPad app, there is a free pdf version available for download or you can read the entire book right in your web browser.

Or you can do like I did – download the free version, realize how awesome it is, and then pony up the cash for the book.

I tweeted about this Flickr set of vintage 1970s logos yesterday. I can’t tell you how much I wish I had come across this set when I was doing preliminary designs for this site! Looking at vintage design sparks so many ideas in my mind – it is like my creative juices flow best in a time frame far, far away. My favorite logo is the one used at the very beginning “thumbody”. What’s your favorite?

Screenshot of the ESPN Boston site featuring some of the wrapper ads I created for the Massachusetts State Lottery.

I lend a hand to ESPN Boston from time to time when they are pressed to quickly turn around web ad graphics. Usually there is existing creative which the vendors provide – my job is to make sure their branding guidelines are adhered to while at the same time making it work for the ESPN Boston website.

My favorite license plate design is from the Northwest Territories (Canada). By shunning graphics entirely and instead concentrating on shape - it is simple, yet represents the area nicely.

When most people think of  “design” they think of magazines and websites or the interior of their home – they rarely think about utilitarian objects such as license plates. I have had to design for license plates before, and although none of my designs were chosen for the final production it was still quite a learning experience. There are many restrictions to take into consideration (which vary by state) when designing a license plate. I guess you could say it is an exercise of thinking inside the box.

Ken Carbone wrote a great post called Rebranding the License Plate: 4 Designers Clean Up Graphic Road Kill which I found a particularly interesting read. Fellow design nerds might also be interested in checking out the license plate index.

What’s your favorite plate and why?

DVD box set packaging design.

There are many miscellaneous projects throughout the season that I work on. These include packaging, schedules, calendars, posters, advertisements, stadium signage, promotional materials – the list goes on and on. These vary from year to year and always give me something different to focus on besides the larger, regular projects.