Are you thinking about a graphic design career? Although the graphic design career is occasionally considered to be a single discipline, there are many different specializations within the discipline. While some graphic designers are experienced professionals and can handle several project kinds, others focus on more specialized areas of graphic design. Read on to learn about the most desirable career choices for graphic designers in 2022, whether you’re a novice who wants to learn how to become one or an experienced professional looking to change careers.
What is graphic design?
The production of visual compositions for problem-solving and concept communication using text, imagery, color, and shape is known as graphic design. There are various forms of graphic design careers, each with a specific area of competence because there is no single best approach to accomplish that. Each sort of graphic design demands a particular set of abilities and design processes, even though they frequently overlap.
Many designers focus on a single type, while others concentrate on a group of related or comparable kinds. Designers must, however, be flexible and lifelong learners to alter or add expertise during their careers because the industry is always evolving. Graphic designers design pictures and layouts for the following purposes in their graphic design career:
- Identity of the company’s brand (logos, typography, and color palettes)
- App and website user interfaces
- Books, magazines, newspapers, and other forms of media
- Packaging for a product
- Commercials and advertisements
- Store, transportation, stadium, and event space signage
- Computer games
What does a graphic designer do?
A graphic designer uses a variety of technological tools to produce usable, relevant, and practical graphics in a graphic design career. General designer duties in graphic design jobs could include creating visual assets to support a marketing campaign, creating a graphic overlay for social media postings, formalizing the layout for a print ad, and editing pictures for digital signs, though the work mostly relies on the needs of a client or business.
10 types of graphic design careers
Understanding the 10 categories of graphic design careers will help you locate the correct talents for the task, whether you’re an aspiring designer or looking for design services for your company.
1. Photo editor
Photo editors use computer software to enhance the quality of their images. Photos are edited, color-corrected, and combined so they are suitable for publication on various communication platforms, including social media and periodicals. A photo editor in a graphic design career may do a minor adjustment or make significant changes to a photograph, depending on the objectives of the project. However, they have a responsibility to give the most accurate representation of a thing or a person.
2. Website designer
Website layout and visuals are made by website designers. They frequently collaborate with various customers in their graphic design careers to understand their distinct brand language and offer them advice on how to put their vision onto a website while working in agencies or as independent contractors. To add user-friendly tools to their designs and improve the user experience, website designers may also possess coding expertise.
3. Advertising designer
Most people envision designs made for marketing and advertising when they think about a graphic design career. To influence the purchasing decisions of their target audience, businesses rely on effective marketing campaigns. Good marketing appeals to people’s desires, needs, awareness, and satisfaction with a given good, service, or brand. To produce materials for advertising plans, advertising designers collaborate with business owners, directors, managers, or other marketing specialists. They might function independently or as a member of an internal or creative team as a person with a graphic design career.
Examples of Advertising Graphic Design
- Postcards and flyers
- Magazine and newspaper ads
- Posters, banners, and billboards
- Infographics
- Brochures (print and digital)
- Vehicle wraps
- Email marketing templates
- PowerPoint presentations
- Menu
- Social media ads, banners, and graphics
People with graphic design careers especially advertising designers must be great communicators, problem solvers, and time managers. They must be proficient in graphic design, layout, and presentation programs, as well as knowledgeable with print and web production. Entry-level roles in this field are excellent opportunities for new designers to learn methods and gain valuable skills and experience.
4. Publication designer
Publications are lengthy works that reach an audience through widespread dissemination. Historically, they have been a print medium. A traditional design style is publication design—consider catalogs, books, newspapers, and magazines. But digital publication has significantly increased recently in form of a graphic design career. Publishing-specific graphic designers collaborate with editors and publishers to produce layouts with carefully chosen typography and supplemental artwork, such as photography, graphics, and illustrations. Publication designers may operate as independent contractors, employees of creative agencies, or in-house staff members of publishing firms.
Publication Examples
- books
- newspapers
- newsletters
- magazines
- catalogs
- annual reports
Publication designers in a graphic design career must have great organizational, communication, and layout skills. They must be skilled in graphic design as well as color management, printing, and digital publication.
5. Packaging designer
To maintain and prepare products for storage, distribution, and sale, the majority need some type of packaging. But packaging design may also speak to customers directly, which makes it a very effective marketing tool. Every box, bottle, bag, can, container, or canister is an opportunity to share the brand’s narrative. Mockups, print-ready files, and concepts are all created by packaging designers for products. This calls for in-depth familiarity with print technologies as well as expertise in manufacturing and industrial design for a person with a graphic design career.
It is usual for designers to find themselves producing additional assets for a product, such as photography, illustrations, and visual identity because packaging design crosses so many disciplines. People with graphic design careers in packaging designers may be generalists or experts in a particular industry (such as food or children’s toys) or type of packaging (such as labels or beverage cans). In addition to having a solid functional understanding of print and industrial design, their work demands top-notch conceptual and problem-solving abilities. To fulfill the demands of customers, marketers, and manufacturers, they must be adaptable and knowledgeable about current trends.
6. User interface (UI) designer
The way a user interacts with a tool or application is called the user interface (UI). Interface design (UI design) is the process of creating interfaces that are simple to use and offer a pleasant user experience. The screen, keyboard, and mouse are all components of a user interface (UI), but in the context of a graphic design career, the UI concentrates on the visual experience of the user and the design of on-screen graphic elements including buttons, menus, micro-interactions, and more. A UI designer must strike a balance between technical functionality and visual appeal in their graphic design career.
User interface examples
- web page design
- theme design (WordPress, Shopify, etc.)
- game interface design
- app design
In addition to having strong graphic design abilities in a graphic design career, UI/UX concepts, responsive design, and web development knowledge, UI designers must be team players. They require familiarity with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, in addition to graphic programs.
7. User experience (UX) designer
UX designers in their graphic design careers strive to make users’ experiences with products, processes, and services delightful, smooth, and intuitive. They consider how the product will feel and be used by customers. They make sure the process is smooth from beginning to end. User testing can help UX designers fix any kinks or confusion that arise during the design process. This line of work requires a lot of original thought, creative intuition, and an innate appreciation for elegant design. This design discipline is frequently used in online design, as businesses are putting more emphasis on making sure their website designs are user-friendly and aesthetically pleasing.
8. Art director
Art directors in their graphic design careers are in control of the visual style and content of publications, newspapers, product packaging, and film and television productions. They create the design and direct the development of each contributing item by other artists. They collaborate closely with their employers or clients to create an aesthetic vision that meets objectives, the available budget, and the desired impact. This job path can be both exciting and inspiring at times. Big brands, high-profile work, lots of energy, and, as it turned out, a fantastic networking frenzy that resulted in partnerships that I now rely on for my agency firm.
9. Apparel designer
Apparel designers create unique images for apparel. They frequently cooperate with fashion designers to gain a better knowledge of their clients to create designs that appeal to their sense of style. Aside from screen printing shirts, apparel designers also work on projects involving embroidery design and other distinctive design components.
10. Motion graphics designer
In a nutshell, motion graphics are static images that move. The effects employed in online media, television, and film can include animation, audio, typography, images, and video. The popularity of the medium has soared recently as a result of advancements in technology and the rise of video content.
A relatively recent specialty for designers is “motion graphics designer.” Technology advancements have lowered production time and expenses for the art form, which was once exclusive to TV and film, making it more accessible and affordable. The emergence of motion graphics as one of the newest design genres on all digital platforms has opened up a variety of new markets and career prospects.
Examples of Motion Graphic Design
- title sequences and end credits
- animated logos
- advertisements
- trailers
- presentations
- promotional videos
- instructional videos
- websites
- apps
- video games
- banners
- GIFs
Storyboards are created in the beginning by motion graphics designers, who then use animation, video, and traditional illustrations and art to bring their concepts to life. A solid working understanding of marketing, coding and 3D modeling can be advantageous depending on the sector.
Conclusion
Since graphic design is a constantly expanding industry, there is a growing need for knowledgeable and talented designers. You should bear in mind that those who do have a focused specialty may frequently command higher pricing and are often more in demand for the work that they perform, regardless of whether you decide to become a jack of all trades or specialize in a certain type of graphic design. Whatever design career you decide to pursue, keep in mind that you should create a strong design portfolio that showcases the kinds of work you want to get hired for.