Posted by Addy Fulmer on Fri, May 04, 2012
Graphic design inspiration for Cinco de Mayo, how fun! Check out this collection of ideas to add a little spice to your next digital print project or logo design.
Cinco de Mayo is this Saturday. In the spirit of this holiday we've found some great graphic design inspiration to help you get ready to celebrate.
These spicy logo designs use peppers in some interesting ways. Check out abduzeedo to see the full collection.
These tequila bottles use typography and illustration to represent their brands. Today many labels and packaging projects can be printed digitally on HP Indigo presses. Find more examples of great package design at thedieline.com.
Here you'll find some gorgeous photography of Tijuana, Mexico. Visit abduzeedo.com for more images.
These label designs are creative and fun. With the HP Indigo press it is possible to create label designs on transparent substrates with the use of white ink printing. Some of these designs would look even better printed with white ink on transparent stock.
These typefaces have shapes and symbols inspired by Cinco dy Mayo. Browse through this collection of Cinco de Mayo typefaces.
We hope you enjoyed our Cinco de Mayo graphic design inspiration. How will you be celebrating this weekend?
Posted by Carrie Grove on Tue, Apr 24, 2012
Last week I thought I would have a bit of fun and create a YouTube video entitled "On Press Today at TPI Solutions Ink". It was totally spur of the moment and I used my Blackberry, of all things, to record it. (Yes, I know, I'm so behind the times, I don't have an iPhone yet!)
At any rate, our 5500 HP Indigo press was pumping out a fantastic 280 page perfect bound book for freelance graphic designer and illustrator Chris Piascik entitled "1000 Days of Drawing". This is a quick snap shot of the Indigo press run. Nothing like printing lots of colorful ink on paper to help print thrive! Take a look:
HP Indigo Press at TPI Solutions Ink
Okay . . . so don't judge me on my videography . . . but pretty cool, right? ; )
Posted by Addy Fulmer on Thu, Apr 12, 2012
Because TPI Solutions Ink is located in Waltham, MA providing print services and solutions to the greater Boston area and beyond, we could not miss this opportunity to write about graphic design and The Boston Marathon over the years. Enjoy!
The 116th Boston Marathon will take place this Monday, April 16th. To celebrate, we're taking a look back at the graphic design and advertising in print that has been used to market the event. Below are various groups of posters and advertisements from years past.
Past Posters
1981 Poster
1997 Poster
2003 Poster
This first set of printed posters above demonstrates a classic illustrated style. The use of many different colors and strong perpective make for interesting compositions. These designs have a nostalgic feel that represent the history of the Boston Marathon.
Recent Posters
2008 Posters
2009 Poster
2010 Poster
The second set of posters above are from more recent years. The bold colors, graphics and clear typography give the designs a very modern feel. These designs are much more streamlined than those from past years, and represent the simple and effective style used in a lot of advertising today.
Adidas Campaign
Adidas has been the offical footwear sponsor of the Boston Marathon for years. This campaign demonstrated what running meant to different individuals involved in the marathon. The simple color scheme paired with bold type and photographs sends a strong message and makes for a very successful series.
New Balance Campaign
Last year New Balance created a campaign intended to take advantage of marathon time, without ever actually mentioning the word marathon. Instead, they used strong photography and suggestive phrases to get their point across. These advertisments promote the New Balance brand while empowering runners at the same time.
We hope you enjoyed our analysis of graphic design and advertising in the Boston Marathon. What's your favorite Boston Marathon print campaign? Will you be running or cheering someone on this year?
Posted by Jim Spurrell on Fri, Mar 30, 2012
Well, how times do change!
When I started in business, over 45 years ago, if a client asked for white ink on a black or dark stock we would have had to get the piece silk screened, foil stamped or say no to the project. There was really no way to print it offset. At that time it would have taken several weeks to get the final project back from the silk screen printer or foil stamping shop. And, using those methods of print, forget printing fine type or hairline rules they just did not print well and almost always the client would be disappointed with the results.
But, today times have changed! With our HP Indigo 5500 digital press we say, "white? how white do you want it?" Yes, we can print white ink today on very dark stock and even on clear and foil substrates. We can even print a full color image on a dark material using the white ink as a base. The HP Indigo press is just so versatile that we can print on almost anything. I am continually amazed at the quality of work that we are able to produce on this machine and I enjoy offering these great options to our clients.
For more information on printing with white ink please give us a call.
Posted by Carrie Grove on Tue, Mar 27, 2012
I thought that this would be the perfect day to publish this collection of links that our graphic designer Addy Fulmer pulled together for your springtime graphic design inspiration. The temps here in the northeast have dipped down to winter levels today, not for long though I hope because it is spring. Check out these reminders:
A collection of beautiful springtime photography on smashingmagazine.com.
Check out these logo designs incorporating flowers, plants and trees on abduzeedo.com. Great graphic design inspiration for the spring.
At designshard.com we found this collection of "floral" typography. There are many different examples of type embellished with flowers and other forms of plant life.
Graphic designers will definitely be able to bring spring into their designs with these super cool vector sets found on pixel77.com.
I think my favorite has got to be the spring branches.
What's your favorite set?
What is the inspiration for your designs this spring? Please share!
Posted by Addy Fulmer on Fri, Mar 16, 2012
If you are a Graphic Designer or a Print Buyer of any sort I am sure that you have been asked by your print service provider to supply a high resolution print ready PDF at some point in your career. You may have also been told that your PDF really wasn't "print ready". With any luck your printer let you know about the problems with your file or, as we often do at TPI Solutions Ink, fixed those problems before they printed your job. Some of you may have been charged additional fees to correct the PDF or InDesign file or, even worse, received the completed job with mistakes. Well, don't fret because our TPI Solutions Ink graphic design team, Addy Fulmer and Diana Spurrell, have put together this blog post of helpful tips. Check it out . . . Carrie Grove
How to Create a Print Ready PDF
Bleeds
Don't forget them! A bleed should be used when an object in your document is meant to go to the edge of the printed page. A standard bleed is .125”. Using a bleed gives some extra room to ensure that your piece is cut down to size correctly. Each Adobe program handles bleeds a little bit differently. Below are examples of how to work with bleeds in InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop.
InDesign - Bleeds
When creating a new document in InDesign, click the “More Options” button in the new file dialog box to display your bleed settings. Enter 0p9 or .125”.
When your document opens you will see a red box surrounding your page area, this is the bleed. Make sure that the object you want to bleed extends all the way to this red box, not just to the edge of the page. Below are examples of correct and incorrect uses of bleed.
Correct use of bleed
Incorrect use of bleed
Illustrator - Bleeds
Illustrator does not show any kind of bleed guides within your document. To make something bleed, simply drag it to the outside of the page area. You will specify your bleed settings later when you export the document as a PDF.
Photoshop - Bleeds
There are no bleed settings available in Photoshop when you make a new document. However, it is possible to create a bleed yourself by adding the bleed size to the document size. When creating a new document, add .25” to the width and height to ensure there will be an extra .125” on all sides.
CMYK color
It is important that your document is created using CMYK in order to produce the most accurate color possible, especially when working with images and bright colored objects. Most images use RGB color, which can make them appear slightly brighter than they will actually print. Using Photoshop is the easiest way to change your images from RGB to CMYK very quickly. Open the file and click Image > Mode > CMYK color. This will convert the color values and make the image printer friendly.
Image Resolution
It is important to always use high-resolution images when creating a printed piece. The higher the resolution, the sharper your image will look. Ideal image resolution is 300dpi. To see what the resolution of an image is, or to change it, open it in Photoshop. Click Image > Image Size and a dialogue box will appear that tells you how big the image is. Note that if you change the resolution, the size of the image itself will also change.
Creating a PDF
Creating a PDF is the easiest way to ensure that your document will get sent to the printer with all its pieces correctly in place. There are certain rules you should follow when exporting a PDF from an Adobe program which are highlighted below.
InDesign
To create a PDF from InDesign, go to File > Export. Name your file accordingly and select your file destination. Be sure to change the format to Adobe PDF, then press Save. A dialogue box will appear.
Change the following options:
• Select Adobe PDF Preset: Press Quality
• If your document has a bleed, click on Marks and Bleeds and check off Use Document Bleed Settings.
• Click Export
Illustrator
To create a PDF from Illustrator, go to Go to File > Save As. Name your file accordingly and select your file destination. Be sure to change the format to Adobe PDF, then press Save.
A dialogue box will appear.
Change the following options:
• Select Adobe PDF Preset: Press Quality
• If your document has a bleed, click on Marks and Bleeds and enter a value of .125” on top, bottom, left and right.
• Click Save PDF
Photoshop
Before you create a PDF from Photoshop, make sure your color mode is CMYK, your resolution is 300ppi and your layers are flattened.
Once this is done go to File > Save As. Name your file accordingly and select your file destination. Be sure to change the format to Photoshop PDF, then press Save.
A dialogue box will appear.
Change the following options:
• Select Adobe PDF Preset: Press Quality
• Click Save PDF
Have you found these tips helpful?
If so, please share!
Posted by Addy Fulmer on Mon, Mar 12, 2012
Graphic design inspiration for St. Patrick's Day, the perfect way to kick off spring! Below you will find a collection of links to get you in that green spirit. What's your favorite?
http://blog.nextdayflyers.com/25-stunning-st-patricks-day-photos/
http://hitone.wordpress.com/
Here are some more fun ideas to put to use in your March printing projects and designs. I especially love the Irish inspired fonts.
http://www.vectorious.net/blog/download-free-saint-patricks-day-vector-illustrations/
http://www.antarasdiary.com/tutorial-photoshop-tutorials-for-st-patricks-day/
http://www.dafont.com/theme.php?cat=403&page=1
Posted by Carrie Grove on Wed, Feb 08, 2012
Need a little graphic design inspiration? With Valentine's Day less than a week away we thought it would be fun to put together a group of links to get your creative juices flowing.
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The heart, of course, is the symbol we all associate with Valentine's Day but it is also a shape that is used in a number of logo designs. At abduzeedo.com we found this cool collection of logos that have the heart incorporated in them.
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If you are looking for a fun or whimsical font to use for your Valentine's Day message this is the place to find it: www.dafont.com
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At www.incrediblesnaps.com we came across this collection of
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How about having a bit of fun with those photos?
At www.youthedesigner.com we found this collection of
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I hope you have found a bit of heart shaped
inspiration to carry you through.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Posted by Addy Fulmer on Thu, Feb 02, 2012
Why use style sheets in InDesign, you may ask . . .
Well, InDesign style sheets are helpful, time saving tools that make formatting text in your documents very simple. They allow you to define specific attributes once and then apply those attributes again and again to different areas of text with a single click. This is especially helpful when you have multiple page documents with a lot of text.
Okay then, how do I use them . . .?
Here's how. . .check out my InDesign Tips on how to use style sheets:
Paragraph Styles
Paragraph styles apply formatting to entire paragraphs of text. To create a paragraph style, open the paragraph styles window and select new paragraph style from the pull out menu located in the top right corner.
A window will appear that allows you to customize your paragraph style. The list on the left side of the window shows everything you have control over, including basic character formats, hyphenation, and indents and spacing.
Simply click on any of these options and define the attributes to your liking. It is recommended that you name your paragraph style sheet something specific that relates to what it will be used for in your document, such as body copy or captions. When you have finished defining the style, click ok and you will see the style added to the list in the paragraph styles window.
To apply the style you created, simply select the text box you would like it applied to and click on the style. If you have multiple paragraphs within a text box and you would only like the style to be applied to one of them, click anywhere inside that paragraph and then select the style, this should leave the other paragraphs in the text box unchanged.
If you need to change a paragraph style after it’s been created, be sure that no text boxes are selected, and double click on the style in the paragraph styles window. Make your changes and click ok. You will then see this change applied to every paragraph this style is linked to.
Character Styles
Character styles apply formatting to single words or phrases within a paragraph. They are created much in the same way that paragraph styles are, only using the character styles window. Open the character styles window and select new character style from the pull out menu located in the top right corner.
You will notice the window that appears gives you fewer options on the left than the paragraph styles window does. Because character styles are only meant to apply to single words or phrases, you don’t have control over things like hyphenation or indents and spacing.
It is recommended that you name your character style sheet something specific that relates to what it will be used for in your document, such as quotes or names. When you have finished defining the style, click ok and you will see the style added to the list in the character styles window.
To apply the style you created, simply highlight the text you would like it applied to and click on the style.
If you need to change a character style after it’s been created, be sure that no text boxes are selected, and double click on the style in the character styles window. Make your changes and click ok. You will then see this change applied to every word or phrase this style is linked to.
I hope that you have found these tips helpful and will give style sheets a try on your next large project. You never know, InDesign style sheets may save you some time and some hassle.
Do you have any InDesign tips that you would like to share? Please do! Are you using style sheets? Why or why not?
Download a copy of this how to guide:
Posted by Carrie Grove on Fri, Jan 27, 2012
Earlier this week I received an email from Chris Gorman, President and Creative Director of Chris Gorman Associates, Inc. Chris had read my post Evolution of Logo Designs in the NFL on LinkedIn, enjoyed it and kindly shared an article that he had written about branding in the NFL. It's a great article and Chris has given me permission to share it with you.
Chris Gorman, Chris Gorman Associates Inc.
Effective Branding in the National Football League
The most effective branding device in football is not a logo - it's the St. Louis Rams helmet with the curved horns on either side - turning the wearers into human battering rams, an entirely appropriate image for an aggressive football team. This is not a branding device apart from the players - it's an extension of their physical presence. Rams is a great name for a football team. That's what the line does - it rams into their opponents and opens up holes for charging backs. The horned helmet is a perfect visual metaphor, unifying name, image and player. A word that is derived from the sound it describes (such as zoom, bang, or beep) is called an onomatopoeia. The Rams' helmet has visual onomatopoeia. It's an elegant and impactful solution.
It's good branding when a team's name is evocative of the sport in which the team participates. There was an National Football League team in the 1920's called the Providence Steamrollers - an appropriate name for a football team, but in the 1940's when Providence joined the National Basketball Association the team selected that name, turning a fitting metaphor into an awkward fit. Basketball teams, hopefully, don't steamroll. The Chicago Bulls is another name more appropriate to football than basketball.
The range of logos and branding devices in the National Football League is fascinating. They range from the ultra-designed Cincinnati Bengals to the more basic old line teams like the Chicago Bears, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, San Francisco 49ers, and others. The newer teams like the Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks and the Jacksonville Jaguars have the most sophisticated logos and colors.
The New England Patriots are a candidate for the most-improved overall brand in the league. Their old uniforms were predominantly red, with touches of blue. This is strange when you consider that the real 18th century New England patriots were farmers and militia and their enemies were the ones who wore red. The continental army wore blue and buff. The original Patriots logo was a very literal illustration of a chunky patriot with a tri-cornered hat preparing to center a football. It had a comic book sensibility, and begged questions like "Why is that dude playing football in a tri-cornered hat, at center no less? Their new uniforms are dark blue and silver with red highlights. The new logo appears to depict a patriot with a hat that becomes a flowing star and stripes banner. The problem is that the gray face below the hat is forced into a triangular shape with an elongated head. They should lose the face and just go with the star and stripes banner. One assumes that the attempt was to simulate the blur that occurs as the helmet races past. It's not worth distorting the face to achieve this effect.
This leads to the problem of too-literal logos. Those logos with very illustrative personifications of the team name, such as the Minnesota Vikings and the Oakland Raiders look dated and trite. The Raiders' logo shows a football player sporting an eye patch (talk about blind-side!) and wearing a 1960's era helmet that fits his head like a glove. This needs to be updated or changed. Somehow though, the team has tapped into Oakland's motorcycle outlaw persona and has spawned a fanatic fan base, many of whom can be seen in their black and silver Halloween costumes and face paint in the stands at every game.
By far the most ludicrous logo is the fish with the helmet for the Miami Dolphins. The leaping dolphin is OK, but whoever put the tiny helmet on his head (if you can call that portion of his anatomy a head) went too far. This drawing would be dumb even for a Saturday morning kiddie cartoon, but as the symbol for a professional football team it's just embarrassing. Leave the dolphin, lose the helmet. The Dolphins, on the other hand, have a bright and very Floridian color scheme of aqua, bright orange, and white. They are probably the most distinctive team in the league, or at least they were before the circus came to town in the personages of the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals have a very strong visual presence and integrate the tiger imagery successfully from the feline-striped helmets to the black and orange uniforms. They are a bit over the top, but certainly a strong presence in which the brand resonates.
The Baltimore Ravens may be the only football team named for a poem. Their black, purple and gold uniforms stand out and the typeface used for the numerals is a cut above the ordinary. The logo is a raven's head, a little bit too cartoonish, but not that bad. It displays the requisite angry/determined expression. The name was chosen by a poll of the readers of The Baltimore Sun. Other names considered were Colts (where have we heard that name before?), Bulldogs, Marauders, and Americans.
Overall, the newer teams have more professionally designed brand identities than the tradition-bound older teams. A strong, positive brand can play a significant part in establishing a fan base - especially among younger people. The challenge for newer teams is to forge an identity that resonates with a city or region's history and that differentiates them from their competitors in a positive way.
In sports, as more and more teams are established, this becomes difficult. There are numerous lions, panthers, cougars, jaguars, bears, colts, eagles, falcons and rams. The Bengals, Ravens, Chargers, and Dolphins are fresher and more unusual. As sports become more international, new challenges will abound. Will we eventually have the Roman Gladiators and the London Hooligans? Only time will tell.