Graphics play an impactful and prominent role in building a brand. It has been and continues to be a great medium to convey messages and ideas in the form of images. “A picture is worth a thousand words” is one such famous quote that captures the essence and power of graphic design in today’s highly competitive and digitized world of marketing.
As a graphic designer, you have to meet the high expectations of clients world over to deliver creative and unique designs on a regular basis. To achieve a state of mind where you are full of new ideas and thoughts to create an impressive design, it is imperative that you practice certain exercises to keep the creative juices flowing. As a brand manager or owner, it is equally crucial to offer proper briefs when you hire a graphics design expert for your brand.
Graphic design in India is evolving and adapting to new trends and software that are present in the market. Graphic design outsourcing companies here have some of the most experienced and skilled professionals, who can cater to international companies with cost-effective and quality work. There are numerous benefits to outsourcing graphic design work to India, such as finding cost-effective resources, saving overhead costs, having access to a large talent pool, having the ability to scale up and down and saving time.
However, it is inevitable for even the best and most experienced designers to feel stuck and experience some kind of creative block while regularly creating graphic illustrations and designs. To overcome these challenges, it is advisable to practice some kind of exercise that stimulates creativity and breaks down the blocks that hinder good ideas and thoughts from coming to the surface.
We have curated a list of nine effective exercises to enhance creativity among graphic designers:
20 minutes free drawing: Free hand drawing can certainly help you set a creative tone before starting any project. This practice helps you let loose for 20 minutes to create whatever you wish to. It helps designers shake off that initial hesitation before starting something new and may also help them come up with unique ideas in the process.
Learn more about the project: It induces creativity when you start learning about the subject you are working on. Researching, listening to podcasts on related topics and reading can all help you gain a strong grip over the project and this will reflect in your design.
Reinvent: Take up a classic logo or design and try to recreate it by adding your own touch to it. While you are in the process of recreating something, you may find that the ideas that come to you can also be implemented in your own project.
Work in threes: Designers can practice this method to avoid being stuck with a blank screen or sheet of paper for a long time. You can simply create three different concepts for the same design and they can serve as a rough framework. Once you have the three concepts, you can pick one from each to create three more designs by adding one new component to each. This will give you a range of frameworks to choose from and make your work a lot more creative and original.
Create your own logo design. Logo design requires a designer to communicate the brand identity in a non-attention-seeking yet impactful manner. There are so many details to keep in mind such as the font, color combinations, the message behind the logo etc. So as an exercise, designers can practice creating a logo for themselves based on their personality, skills and background. You challenge yourself to generate unique iterations of the same initial design.
Translate one medium into another. This is a great exercise to practice and test the dimensions of your own creativity. You can pick any music and translate the audio into a visual form of painting. This will kickstart a flow of thoughts and ideas into your mind and help you understand how uniquely you can perceive a particular sound as a visual.
Go out and observe. Yes, simply stepping out of your workspace and visiting a nearby café, park or market can sometimes help you feel inspired. You will be allowing yourself to take in a lot of visuals, which might help you create a chain of thoughts, leading to a new idea for your design.
Create a better environment. Having the same work environment around you hampers creativity and inspiration. It can make a lot of difference to your productivity levels and mood if you make the conscious effort to change your work environment from time to time. If you cannot change your workplace, it is helpful to change the settings of your office by adding new décor, art, color and lights. Always remember to have a clutter-free, organized space around you when you work.
Allow yourself some break time. Taking a break and giving your brain some real rest is underrated. It has been observed that simply allowing yourself to move away from your project or assignment and taking some rest can help you accelerate the creative process and find motivation.
While these are some of the common methods used by designers, every creative professional has his or her own way of breaking out of the stagnant space they often find themselves in. When you hire a graphic designer in India, you will find that they come with plenty of experience and training to provide consistent and quality results.
