I’ve a BFA in attire design, studied graphic design on the junior school degree. I labored as an attire designer for five years and have been a graphic design freelancer for three years and I nonetheless don’t really feel snug posting right here as a result of quite a lot of you might be so judgmental and so impolite.
Like do yall bear in mind what it was prefer to be a hobbyist? Or a primary yr design college pupil?
Appropriate me if I’m flawed however this discussion board is just not a graduate degree group critique. Not everyone seems to be a weathered designer. If in case you have expertise, you’ve got thick pores and skin however for many of us that was realized.
So the place do folks go to ask harmless and benign questions on design with out getting jumped?
Dude I feel the same way and I am a professional! I feel like we need a balance between honest critique and optimistic encouragement
I don’t often see feedback here that’s excessively rude or unkind. I do see comments that are pretty direct which is what you’re going to get from busy professionals. I have also seen a couple posts where someone posts very honestly with “I don’t know what I’m doing but can I get some feedback” and people are usually pretty understanding.
But people who aren’t used to receiving criticism often take any kind of critique as rude or judgemental.
How did you reach the assessment that it’s “pros” doing the mauling? I am sure some of them are, but the sub had a lot of people parading.
The great/awful thing about this sub is it doesn’t gate keep. The “pros” also get mauled. I have noticed senior creatives do not share work on this sub. I certainly would not share my portfolio here. Unfortunately social media doesn’t bring out the best in people. Some of us do try though.
I 100% agree with you, however, people will continue to be rude and self-righteous no matter their skill level. I admit that I do it too from time to time.
GD is quite a thankless job and it is in my opinion that people take their frustration out on other people to make-up for the lack of praise in their roles.
Reddit is not the place for innocent answers to questions, ideally, one has good mentors and support IRL within the GD community that can provide that for you.
On that note, if anybody wants to connect on LinkedIn for constructive criticism, feel free to PM me. I’m not the greatest designer ever, but I’m competent enough IMO to give thoughts on work and I definitely won’t make you feel bad, I know what that’s like through experience.
I can’t speak for the sub as a whole, but I champion constructive critique and a positive attitude. That doesn’t mean the feedback is always good, but that’s how you learn and grow. But I’m never going to just totally shit on anyone, especially starting out. We’re a community, let’s support each other. The fact is, this entire field has changed and evolved fundamentally over the last 20+ years, and the biggest discussion is about what you *want* to do as a designer versus what companies *desire* out of a design role.
I was a multimedia designer/photographer for 12 years out of school. I’m a frontend dev and UI/UX designer these days. I pivoted for job security and, quite frankly, income. But I still do a lot of what I did before (less so photography, that’s gone back to just being a hobby for now).
I agree people should be nicer in here as a general rule. But maybe there COULD be two subs, one for pros and one for hobbyists. (I don’t have time to moderate something like that, but feel free to take the idea and run with it). I’ve been a pro since 2006 but I’ve been using Adobe products since 1999 (yes, last century…)😂 and one thing I’ve ALWAYS noticed, is that the more competitive you are in this field, the less you’re willing to share. And I agree with that to a certain extent we all have tips and tricks we don’t share, we all have our secrets, and that’s ok when we’re nice about it. However, the mean and rude tear downs of people asking for advice, gives all of us pro’s a shiny black eye on our reputation.
That being said…in house designers are used and abused and tossed aside like yesterday’s jam, and many of us are saltier than the Dead Sea because of years and years of abuse by everyone who thinks they can do our job better than us despite having no training or skill and they have no problem telling us that day in and day out.
The salt and nastiness is a necessary defense mechanism in the design industry. Especially in-house designers who have no chance of getting any recognition no matter how talented they are.
So…you take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have, the facts of life. Sit, Ubu sit, good dog.
i needed help with a simple design and i was just creatively blocked and this guy proceeded to write paragraphs of like why would they even hire me if i can’t do that and any designer could overcome that challenge, etc. etc. like bruh i cant even begin to fathom why he felt that was relevant, just help me or don’t i don’t have time for this
Just need a “Canva” flare, tbh
Not what you’re asking for really but I sometimes find r/logodesign a bit kinder
I’m going to post mine in a few months, and I’d welcome any kind of criticism no matter how harsh, however it would be nice to get a little positive feedback (but not essential)
We need a sub that filters out all the crybabies who complain that “clients don’t appreciate my skills” or “this isn’t what I thought it would be”.
Honestly, I think people are a bit too sensitive here when it comes to critiques. The first thing I learned in undergrad was how to handle hard criticism. Every project for 4 years was critiqued by our instructors and peers in front of everybody. We had to defend our decisions on the spot. It was great for getting the real world experience. In your career you’re going to have to defend yourself unexpectedly on the spot routinely.
This is a sub dedicated to a particular career, not a hobby. Sorry if that comes across harshly, as I do recall being a hobbyist, too. But I wasn’t calling it graphic design at that time.
That sounds like a good idea. I’m not being sarcastic. If you have bandwidth and have 1-2 trusted folks you’d like to collaborate with, then y’all can start a new sub with specific rules & expectations for others who choose to join. This way, it’s a space in your control that you can set to how you envision (if that’s what you’d like).
Alternatively, reddit is gonna reddit. For me, I don’t take much on this platform personally. That’s easier said than done because it requires having a decent level of emotional awareness and intelligence, which some folks get through trial and error in life.
If creating a different sub is something you’re not interested in doing (and that’s totally fine), feel free to reach out to one of the mods with feedback and a proposed solution/ next steps.
Unfortunately, given how there’s a trend (not just on reddit) of bot accounts or sus ppl farming for negative engagement or data collection for AI, it can be hard to tell who’s genuinely curious and new vs a scammer of some sort. Although, I don’t see as much of these posts on my feed as I used to, so maybe there’s been a change somewhere??
I’m not sure if the wiki link is still active, but maybe it can be updated with like an FAQ or something based on the common questions that get asked in this sub.
I just don’t consider GD as a hobby. I come here because I assumed it was for knowledgeable discourse.
I’ve been blunt at times when giving feedback because there’s no benefit to sugar coating some of the posts on this sub; Where it’s obvious OP has taken no time or effort on the design, or tried self-criticism first.
Clients are brutal. But they’re not being mean, they’re just being direct.
And here I am thinking the problem with this sub is too many novices and amateurs.
r/DesignSchool
Can you give examples of people being rude here? They need to be reported for violating #6.
As a seasoned professional at big agencies, client-side, and now independent—I feel this board is filled with amateurs not interested learning the craft of design, its history, and the skill it takes to work with clients and find a solution. I don’t want to be the get off my lawn designer, but every other post I see here is someone asking:
Is graphic design is a good field to get into?
How do I find a remote job?
I see very few honest discussion about design itself, but more about their career prospects. More get off my lawn incoming; pre covid, pre internet, you had to actually GO to a major city to find these types of jobs. Even as an independent I know that I can’t fully work remote, I have to meet clients, present, take feedback and make them feel like I’m providing a service.
I’m happy to engage on this board in a non-judgemental way and would like to do more of it. But the amount of low quality, how do I get to point F and skip B-E posts are frustratingly dull.
Downvote me!
Do you have some examples? I hadn’t noticed it being that bad, but yes we should always be polite to newbies.
Sometimes blunt comments are appropriate too though. E.g.
1. There are fundamental issues with a design that can’t be solved with small tweaks.
2. People ask rude questions, like how to avoid paying a designer.
3. Some people are very lazy and want strangers to do their homework for them without even asking politely or putting effort in themselves.
Everyone has a different understanding of what polite critique is. Saying some text has poor legibility might sound mean to some but neutral to others. Also, people are spending their time to give input for free, so I think there’s a limited amount of extra sugarcoating you can expect.
There really isn’t enough user base for two separate subs. Personally I’ve always felt this sub doesn’t have enough pros already, and it’s with good reason. Most actual pros are not going to post their actual client work on a subreddit for a lot of reasons. So most of the actual threads get done by newer prospects.
And if you’re not a pro, I don’t know why you would want the opinions of other hobbyists. I can’t imagine something less helpful.
Idk the comments posted here aren’t unlike what a designer would receive in a real world work environment. A boss or client isn’t always going to sugarcoat something or say it in a constructive format. If you can’t handle a random Reddit user’s feedback, you won’t be able to handle negative feedback at an actual job
I find it’s helpful to remeber graphic design is an ART and art is all subjective. This sub is like anywhere else on the internet. I’m sure some of the people here who are quick to critisize others produce work that I would consider crappy and not good design. Having a title doesn’t mean you are better than everyone else or some design God. Same goes for not having a big fancy title, it doesn’t mean you suck or aren’t good either. Not everyone is going to like everything. Unfortunately the internet (Reddit especially) seems to have a much higher percentage of assholes.
Every time I post here (and on r/typography) I always get rude answers. Like, if you don’t want to help, why would you go on your way to make someones day worse?
I really love when people give constructive criticism, but calling a simple question “idiotic” and not answering anything isn’t criticism.
Literallyyyyyy some peoples heads are so FAR up their own asses they can’t even have fun anymore. Not every single thing someone designs has to be an engineered genius piece of work. Some shit will fuckin do. Let people live.
Sure, you can handle all the “What style is this?” questions.
i agree, i’m an hobbyist and sometimes you look kinda scary
That’s why majority of times I’ll just say to the person as advice to learn more about problem solving and trying to understand rhe best the problem and the user, just saying “your composition sucks boyo” may work for him to make a more beautiful art, but sticking to problem solving is the most important skill for a designer, then you can improve in your art, hell my professor for a course when i went to uni didn’t even create anything anymore, all his job in design was problem solving and strategy solution for big corporations
lol people here upvote and approve all kinds of trash, I seriously think harsh comments are sometimes lacking.. and we are also seeing even multi million companies ship out trash – that should both humble and encourage designers here.
develop some spine. you think you are not good, but lot of people here are not able to perform to their own standards, let alone the hive minds. It’s very hard to follow all the rules you know, it’s much easier to point the mistakes in others work.
I like criticism – I learn a rule, see if and where I broke it and why, and if the negative noise is overwhelming, I reassess my philosophy.
I understand what you are saying, but encouragement should be like those coins you find in the sofa – you earn your money with effort and drive, but an unexpected change sure feels nice.
I think this is a reddit problem, not specifically on this sub, but on almost every sub. The anonimity makes people wild, y’all.
If you can’t easily find the answer by Googling it’s perfectly acceptable to post here. But some of the questions asked are pretty basic stuff that any beginner designer should know.
Maybe a separate flair for “newbie here please be kind” or something
I’d just start a new sub and moderate the shit out of it. Make it crystal clear who it’s for, what feedback is expected, and just build it out slowly. I don’t think it’s something you can get going in conjunction to this sub.
I agree and disagree. I think politeness goes a long way. But I also think that there has a been an assumption that our industry is a glorified “hobby” by many. That what we do, can be done by people who were “good in art in Highschool”. With AI and fiverr, with the shrinking of the jobs, there is one way to protect this industry and that is to hold people to higher standards. Draw a clear line between professionals and hobbyist. Draw a clear line between artists and designers. IMO, this is a way to protect our wages, our livelihood.
There is a difference between being honestly blunt and being rude. For example, the word “wrong” is a very needed word of criticism in our work. Its not a subjective observance, that would be an art critique. We deal with the science of something being unwelcoming to the eye, that’s our job to find out why. Making your text in a 4 pt font on a letter size poster, is objectively wrong. Making your text illegible in sort of way, is wrong. Throughout my years of being on this sub, I rarely find people being actively rude. But I do find professionals to treat others like professionals, even when they are clearly not.
So yes, please, there absolutely should be a separate sub for people who don’t feel comfortable in this sub.
Not sure about others…but my first year at art school was brutal. Reddit can be tame in comparison.
Agreed but welcome to Reddit.
I agree about being polite to each other, but a lot of the criticism seems warranted in places where posts are clearly using manipulated AI and other kinds of fake imagery while being passed as “originals”. This is the open internet, and with so many seasoned creative professionals on this sub, they can spot a fake from a mile away. There have also been posts where the OPs outright deny using AI, get chewed out, and then finally admit to using AI. You’d have to sift through the comments of those posts to then see some of the mind-boggling revelations/outcomes of those threads.
Maybe I haven’t read every single thread on this sub, but the threads I’ve clicked on, and where people are being sincere and asking for help, I haven’t really seen issues. So rather than worrying about what someone else got chewed out about, do your thing, ask for help, and show honesty along with the work you’re presenting for critique.
At the end of the day, any “harsh” criticisms you find on this sub are really no different than on other subs where people ask for opinions (ie: web programming, logo, frontend, etc).