Articles - Page 114

UX Design / 18 Aug 2020

Is Your Design Inclusive? (And How to Make It More Inclusive)

Is your design for everyone? We talk a lot about creating with an audience in mind, but it’s important to understand that audience can identify in several ways.

Now more than ever before, it is important to create designs and visuals that are inclusive of that entire audience segment. An inclusive aesthetic will make users feel like they are part of the design and that a company, organization, or product is for them.

Inclusivity is more than just accessibility. It’s a combination of function and visual design that creates something that people identify with and want to be a part of.

It’s time to check yourself and your designs, put aside your biases and take a hard look at projects to ensure they are as all-encompassing as they can be. Let’s get started.

Photoshop Actions / 13 Aug 2020

How to Use & Install Photoshop Actions

If you aren’t taking advantage of Photoshop actions for editing and image effects, you’re missing out on one of Photoshop’s best features. Here, we’ll take you through how to use Photoshop Actions, and the best steps to install and apply them in seconds.

Photoshop actions can save you time when it comes to repeated tasks, and condense entire paths of editing into a single click. (While it might sound too good to be true, Photoshop actions are a very real thing.) We’ve previously hand-picked the best Photoshop actions out there, and today we’re explaining how to use them!

Business / 11 Aug 2020

Should You Design Your Brand Based on Digital Marketing Needs?

What comes first: branding or strategy? It’s an age-old question for designers and marketers and today extends to digital marketing as well. Should your brand design be based on digital marketing needs?

In today’s marketplace, the answer is overwhelmingly yes. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a brand that isn’t leveraging some type of digital marketing, including social media, to communicate with audiences.

Here’s why.

PowerPoint Templates / 10 Aug 2020

How to Design a Presentation for Screen Viewing

Given how the world is changing, you are probably presenting more commonly on screens in virtual conference or webinar settings. That can impact the design of presentations, and you’ll need to think about what to change to make it work well.

There are multiple considerations when designing PowerPoint, Keynote or Google Slides templates for screen viewing versus when you are presenting live.

Here, we’ll walk through key considerations to help you make the most of designing presentations for screen viewing.

Reviews / 7 Aug 2020

Art Text 4: Design 3D Text Effects Without Photoshop

Art Text 4 allows you to create realistic 3D typography graphics without using Photoshop or Illustrator. In this post, we take a closer look at this cool new app.

One of the biggest and rising trends in the design world is typography graphics. Instead of using regular fonts, this trend uses unique graphics as a replacement for text titles.

Usually, we only see typography graphics in Hollywood movie posters, but the trend is slowly making its way over to brand and marketing designs as well. Now they can be seen on everything from flyer designs to greeting cards and more.

Creating such typography graphics is a time-consuming process and requires great design knowledge. However, we came across a software that allows you to create amazing-looking typography graphics with just a few clicks called Art Text 4.

Reviews / 6 Aug 2020

Get More Done With a Remote Team and Taskade

Almost every team is adjusting to remote work and better workflows. Taskade can provide that boost for your team, whether you work across the hall or halfway around the world.

The tool looks like a simple to-do app, so it’s easy to use. But the reality is that Taskade is powered by a tree-structured database that will help you manage workflows into action items. It’s made for collaboration and comes with all the robust features you need to manage day to day activity.

Here’s a look at Taskade and how you can make it work for your design team.

Software / 23 Jul 2020

Best Project Management Software for Creatives 2025

It’s sometimes said that creativity is ‘born out of chaos.’ These words conjure up romantic images of wild-hearted creatives, working all hours, breaking all the rules and, from a fog of confusion, conjuring unique work that changes the world.

But while that all have a certain appeal, personally I’ve never really felt it’s all that healthy – or that true.

Actually, I’ve always found the opposite to be the case.

The very best creative work, in my opinion, relies on structure and consistency, much more than wildness and insanity. It’s based on order and organization – rather than chaos and disorder.

If you’re looking to get more structured, more organized in your work, you’re not alone. Luckily, there’s a huge array of project management software tools designed to give you exactly what you need.

But that’s a blessing and a curse: with so many options available, which one do you choose? Which one’s right for you? In this article, we’ve created a rundown of the very BEST project management tools for creatives in 2021.

Let’s get to it!

Premiere Pro Templates / 21 Jul 2020

Final Cut vs. Adobe Premiere Pro (Which to Choose? Pros & Cons)

Almost everyone is shooting video these days. From social media clips to full feature moving images for websites and more. But you have to do more than just take video, to get the right finish requires a solid video editing tool.

Two of the best options available are Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro. These solid video editors are packed with features and can help you polish video clips for a more professional feel.

But which one is right for your projects? Here, we’re taking a look at each tool and key pros and cons to help you choose the video tool that’s best for your daily workflows (and budget).

Trends / 14 Jul 2020

Design Trend: Strong Hero Images With Subtle Text

This website design trend is all about contrast… or the lack thereof. More designs are popping up that have large and stunning hero image areas, but text elements are much more subtle. This is a shift from oversized hero area text that has been big (literally) for some time.

These designs make you look because of this difference. It establishes a sense of contrast with other websites, while maybe not creating so much contrast in the design itself.

Let’s take a look at websites with strong hero images and subtle text to help you generate inspiration for your next project.

Reviews / 13 Jul 2020

Get Real-Time Market Data With Marketstack

Do you need to get the same stock market data on your website as some of the major players, such as Uber, Amazon, and Credit Suisse. That must be super complicated, right? Turns out that it’s easy with the right tool, such as marketstack.

marketstack is a real-time, intraday, and historical stock market data API. It delivers market data to your website and users to create better online experiences.

Here’s a look at the tool, key features, and how it works.

Instagram Templates / 8 Jul 2020

11 Tips to Boost Your Design Profile on Social Media (Without Looking Sleazy)

Most designers have no problem creating great visuals to share on social media. (That’s almost a no-brainer!) But how can you boost your profile on social media channels without looking sleazy?

There’s a fine line between fun, engaging content, and pushy or overwhelming. There’s a lot of value in showcasing your work online, and you want to do it the right way.

Here, we’re going to look at how to make the most of your design profile on social media. These tips work for personal and business accounts, and they help you walk the path of using social media in a genuine and helpful way.

Mockup Templates / 7 Jul 2020

20+ Poster Mockup Templates (Free & Premium)

Whether you’re designing a poster to advertise a product, business or event, or as an aesthetic decor item, there’s no point in making a poster that doesn’t look great when it’s hanging in place, right? That’s why you need a poster mockup, to put your poster in real life settings and scenarios and ensure that it looks just as amazing when it’s hanging on a wall or in a frame, as it does in your design software.

This list of free and premium poster mockup templates includes the best purpose built mockup options for all kinds of poster designs, from huge billboard style displays to small, decorative pieces that look great on the living room wall.

Whatever your need, there’s a mockup template here that’s just waiting for your poster design!