I read an article where a hairdresser answered a question she got all the time: “Any tips for cutting my own hair?” Her response was a two-parter. Part one: Don’t. Don’t ever. Part two: You’ll probably try it anyway. Here are some tips for avoiding disaster as much as possible.
I’m in a similar position sometimes. Resourceful businesspeople need graphic design, but have a small budget. So they look into doing their own graphic design. After a bit of research they’ll find that programs made by Adobe are most commonly used by professionals and are so far the best available. They see the term “Adobe Creative Suite” a lot. Apparently there’s a bunch of different programs that designers use. That’s when they talk to me: “I want to design my own stuff — which Adobe program do I buy?”
My first answer: Don’t. For one thing, Adobe programs are pricey. These products are subscription-based, starting at $50 per month for the full suite. A reasonable fee if you only need it for a month, but one that adds up if you want to use the programs indefinitely. Also, professional graphic design programs are very difficult to learn if you’ve never worked with this kind of software before. Oddly enough, diving into Adobe with no prior experience can have the same results as cutting your own hair — only instead of cutting your hair, you’re pulling it out.
Before you invest in design software, seriously consider how much graphic design you intend to output. Make sure it’s worth the money and time spent both learning the program and doing the work. I would suggest that in the long run you’ll save money, time, and stress by hiring a freelancer. And you will likely be much happier with the work, too. Yes, I am totally biased. But I’ve also encountered many clients with the same cautionary tale.
Now for my follow-up answer: If you’re going to try it anyway…yes, I have some advice.
In most cases you can’t get away with picking one program. Adobe is crafty and designed each program with an area of specialization. Each program excels at one thing, and is rubbish enough at other things that you’re kinda forced to get the other programs. Anyone looking to do their own graphic design, professionals and laypeople alike, will need The Big Three: Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator.
Photoshop — Photoshop is mostly meant for editing or enhancing images, such as photos or scanned drawings. Some artists use this program for digital painting, making the art from scratch right in the program. Most people import graphics they made in another medium and add to them. Photoshop is not meant for laying out text. Neither can it properly prepare designs for printing. Please don’t use Photoshop to make business cards.
InDesign — The name does not give it away: InDesign is a layout program intended for any project that involves both text and images. Brochures, flyers, business cards, magazines, etc. Its features are for making large amounts of text look nice, helping text and pictures coexist, and preparing documents for print. It’s often used for print projects, but they don’t have to be; many online, interactive publications are made in InDesign.
Illustrator — This program is where you make the graphics that will be used as part of a composition in Photoshop or layout in InDesign. It’s where you make digital art from scratch. Illustrator is known for its ability to make “vector” graphics — a kind of graphic that can be blown up to any size and not become blurry, like a photo does. Logos are made in Illustrator, along with diagrams, clipart, and of course illustrations. It can handle text better than Photoshop, but is still bad for layout.
It is technically possible to do an entire project in one program. This is what my clients have tried in order to save money. It is incredibly painful, because you are missing crucial features that make it easier to complete the design. Adobe doesn’t intend for any program to be a one-stop shop. They want their money!
My advice is this: If you really want to try your hand at graphic design, subscribe to all three programs for best results. You can also find free, downloadable programs for graphic design — they’re not great, but might do the trick. Most importantly, think it through before you jump in! Consider if it might be better to hire a pro.