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UX design is so popular right now, the field is flooded with both new talent and seasoned designers shifting their focus to get a job. With more competition every day, it’s becoming difficult to secure a design role in user experience. At the same time, companies are still learning how to hire UX designers and what it means for their business. Given these challenges, it’s more important than ever to have a great design portfolio that sets you up for success. But that’s only the beginning – you need to position yourself and your work in a way that stands out from the crowd. Whether you’re new to the field or an experienced UX designer, here's my advice for creating a winning portfolio that will help you secure that coveted UX design job. 01. Show, don’t tell The word 'empathy' is thrown around so much in the design industry, especially within UX design conversations, it’s beginning to feel trite. In my experiences as co-founder of portfolio system Semplice, I have seen so many portfolios that lead with “empathetic designer crafting meaningful experiences”, it’s hard to remember who is who. At this point, you will be noticed for thoughtful, original writing that shows you understand UX beyond the buzzwords. Make it clear you are empathetic through your portfolio case studies, rather than spelling it out. Instead of saying you craft meaningful experiences, explain how a specific project impacted a client in a positive way. Rather than saying you care about inclusive design, show us how you approached your UX work with inclusivity and accessibility in mind. Disclaimer: Empathy is indeed relevant to design, or really any job, so feel free to mention these terms in your portfolio – especially because companies have been trained through the industry to look for these buzzwords. Just don’t lean on them. 02. Don’t deny your past Considering how many people are tacking 'UX' onto their capabilities list, you can make an impression by simply proving you have real-world experience. If you specialise in UX design and have served in that role on a project, you are already one step ahead of many other designers. Curate your portfolio to show your best UX design projects so companies and recruiters know you’re not just another designer taking advantage of a trend. Considering how many people are tacking 'UX' onto their capabilities list, you can make an impression by proving you have real-world experience However, your other design experience is still relevant here. If you have worked as an interactive designer, product designer or something similar in the past, feel free to include a couple of those projects to show your depth of experience. But aim for every project to make your case stronger, pointing back to why you’re the best UX designer for the job. To be clear, most designers are not wrong to add UX design to their offerings. For a long time, user experience was part of any interactive design job. Given the fact that UX design as a field is not only relatively new, but encompasses a wide variety of skills (strategy, design, content, and so on), it’s fair to say many 'traditional' designers can meet the job description. That’s why showing genuine passion and a specialised focused in user experience will help you stand out. 03. Be a great communicator Strong communication skills may be the most important requirement for a UX design job. You not only have to make abstract concepts tangible for your team and your client, you also touch many points of a project. In this role, you collaborate with developers, strategists, designers, copywriters, project managers and more. In some cases, the UX designer even writes UX copy. Any good design director or recruiter interviewing you will look for this skill. Show you’re a strong communicator from the beginning of your relationship with a company. Write concise, professional emails when you reach out. Speak clearly and with intention on the phone and in an interview. Create compelling case studies that tell the story of your work without rambling and wasting your reader’s time. And most importantly, proofread everything. Ask a friend to read your writing and point out typos or areas of improvement. As designers, we tend to focus on the visuals. But especially for UX designers, the content is just as important, if not more so. 04. Deepen your understanding of design It’s easy to say, but it’s the surest way to land the job you want: Strive to be the best at what you do. With a saturated field comes a range of talent. That naturally leads to undercutting, which lowers the overall quality of the work being produced in that field. If you want to rise above all this mess, you have to be great at what you do. Knowing UX fundamentals is a given. Thanks to the accessibility of digital fields like ours, we can attend a three-month UX design course and become certified UX designers. That means many UX designers today (with plenty of exceptions) have a shallow understanding of design as a whole. So what makes you stand out? A deeper, sharper grasp of our field. Beyond growing in UX design and all that comes with it (strategy, research, etc.), seek a deeper understanding of graphic design. Learn what defines good typography (CB's roundup of typography tutorials can help with this). Learn the function of layout and composition. Immerse yourself in media and culture that refines your taste (beauty is function, no matter who says otherwise). Aim to get better at copywriting, too. Combined with some common sense, research and curiosity, you'll be in high demand. Read more: The wrong way to build a portfolio The ultimate guide to user experience A designer's guide to the golden ratio View the full article

Welcome to our pick of the best Walmart iPad sales and deals in 2019. The iPad in all its various guises is a brilliant tool for creatives, and Walmart often has some great deals on Apple's versatile lineup of tablets. There are plenty of reasons why designers and creatives should consider buying an iPad. First of all, they are brilliantly-built bits of kit, and models such as the iPad mini are small enough to easily carry around with you. The iPad Air, meanwhile, is thin and light, again, making it a great device for carrying with you if you do a lot of travelling. If you fancy something larger – and more powerful – then the iPad Pro is the one to get, combining large screens and fast components, making it ideal for digital artists, especially when paired with the Apple Pencil stylus. Make sure to bookmark our best Apple Black Friday deals post for all the latest offers on these products. Meanwhile, the standard iPad is a great all-round tool. No matter what type of iPad you go for, you'll have access to the App Store, which houses thousands of brilliant apps, including some from the biggest names in art and design. Check out our best iPad apps for designers guide for a taste of what an iPad can do for designers and digital creatives. But why buy an iPad from Walmart? For a start, Walmart is one of the biggest retailers in the world. This means it has a huge selection of iPads on offer, so you can be pretty certain that you'll find the iPad you're after at Walmart. Because of its size, it also means its very competitive when it comes to price, and we've often seen Walmart iPad sales and deals which offer the lowest prices for iPads anywhere on the internet! To save you having to browse through Walmart's huge website to find its iPad deals, we've put together this guide that gathers the very best Walmart iPad sales and deals so you'll never miss out on a bargain. iPad As we mentioned earlier, there are several different varieties of iPads these days, but if you want the best all-rounder, than the standard iPad is the best. It's portable, powerful and well-priced. What's not to love? Since Apple launched the original iPad way back in 2010, Apple has continually refined its tablet, whilst not straying too far from its original design. This makes the iPad a brilliant tablet PC for designers and creatives. In 2019, Apple released a new iPad with a 10.2-inch screen, a step up from the 9.7-inch screen of the iPad 2018. Apart from the bigger screen and slightly more RAM, the 2018 and 2019 models are pretty similar. So, if you don't want the larger screen, getting last year's model is the way to go, and Walmart has some brilliant deals on the older version, making it even better value. iPad Pro The iPad Pro is the bigger, more powerful version of the standard iPad. As the name suggests, this is an iPad that's aimed at professionals, and its increased screen size and powerful components makes it a brilliant tablet for creative designers and artists. We're still waiting to see if there will be a new version of the iPad Pro for 2019, but last year's models are still excellent devices, so if you're after a big-screen iPad, you should be able to buy the 2018 models safe in the knowledge that they won't become obsolete any time soon. The 2018 model of the iPad Pro comes in two sizes, an 11-inch version and a 12.9-inch version. If you want the biggest and fastest iPads in the world, these are the ones to get. However, it's also worth noting that these are also the most expensive iPads. Still, we've managed to find some great deals in Walmart. iPad Air The iPad Air is back for 2019. After Apple neglected this version of the iPad for a while, it surprised us all with a brand new version for 2019. The iPad Air sits between the iPad and iPad Pro in Apple's lineup. That means it's more powerful than the standard iPad, but it's not as fast as the iPad Pro. When it comes to price, it's also nestled between those two iPads. The iPad Air gets a 10.5-inch Retina display and upgraded internals, and it's the thinnest and lightest iPad (apart from the iPad Pro), and in our view this is the perfect iPad for people who want a bit more power than the standard iPad, but don't want to splash out on the iPad Pro. iPad mini The iPad mini is, as the name suggests, the smallest iPad on sale. The 2019 edition comes with a 7.9-inch screen, making it the easiest iPad to carry around with you. You can slot it into a bag without any issues, and it's excellent for one-handed use as well. It weighs just 300g as well, so if you're after an iPad for travelling with, the iPad mini is the one to get. However, its small size doesn't mean you're missing out much in the ways of features and functionality. It still supports the Apple Pencil stylus, so it's great as a portable doodle pad, and of course it runs all the apps that larger iPads can run as well. It also features some of the hardware found in Apple's iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max smartphones, including the A12 Bionic chipset, which means it offers excellent performance on par with the larger iPads. However, while it is the smallest iPad, it's not the cheapest (that's the standard iPad). But you don't have to spend more to get a smaller tablet, as the brilliant iPad mini Walmart deals below demonstrate. View the full article

Apple could be set to release a super high-end iPad Pro and MacBook Pro with brand new mini-LED screen technology, according to reports. If the rumours are true, the new devices could be a great option for those looking for top-quality display at larger sizes, for use over long periods. The devices are likely to be released towards the end of 2020 or the first half of 2021. If that's too long to wait, take a look at our predictions for this year's iPad Black Friday offers, Black Friday MacBook deals, or our general guide to nailing the Apple Black Friday 2019 sale. Back to those rumoured devices though. Notes from trusted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, shared on MacRumours, reveal that the cutting-edge displays will use mini LED rather than the current OLED technology. They will incorporate up to 10,000 tiny LEDs – for comparison, the Pro Display XDR monitor in the upcoming Mac Pro uses just 576 LEDs (and that's one of the best monitors around). Why Apple's rumoured iPhone SE 2 feels like as BIG disappointment What are the practical implications of that? Essentially, it will enable manufacturers to offer a top-quality display in a thinner, lighter screen. Kuo's research notes explain: "We believe that mini LED, compared to OLED, will be a more suitable solution to offer wide-color gamut (WCG) / high-contrast / high dynamic range (HDR) / local dimming features because of its longer life and no burn-in issues for Apple's medium- and large-size products targeting at productivity positions." Kuo's notes state that the iPad Pros will sport 10 or 12-inch displays, and could be with us late next year. The MacBook Pros will feature 15 or 17-inch displays, and are likely to be released slightly later, in the first half of 2021. Competition-wise, it's also good news for Apple. Currently, it relies on Samsung for its OLED displays. The mini LED screen are likely to be sourced from a number of component suppliers, and produced by LG Display. Read more: 10.2" iPad lands in stores – and we can't believe how cheap it is Surface Pro 7 vs iPad Pro: which should you buy? Apple's butterfly keyboards could soon be replaced View the full article

Aaron Blaise has a good story for you if you've ever wondered what it was like working at Disney during the 1990s. He’d just finished Aladdin (1992) – the movie before was Beauty and the Beast (1991). Disney was on one of the great streaks in cinema history. It began with The Little Mermaid (1989), ended with Tarzan (1999), and included many of the biggest animated films of all time. Blaise was promoted to supervising animator on The Lion King (1994). He was in charge of his own character, Simba’s best friend, the young Nala. The anatomy had to be perfect. This lion cub needed to move the way that lion cubs really move. So Blaise went to a kind of workshop, a kind of figure-drawing class, the kind of thing that could only happen at Disney during the 1990s. (If you're in need of some inspiration for creating great characters, check out our how to draw tutorials and article on character design.) Different times These were different times. No internet, no video conferencing, no emailing images back and forth. Blaise worked at the Disney studio in Florida, but the California studio was also working on the movie. That’s a whole country, a whole timezone apart. Blaise photocopied his designs, numbered them and sent them by courier to Los Angeles. It was the same with tapes of animation. Meetings with directors took place on the phone the following day when the stuff arrived. By then, Blaise was on to something else. If things needed amending, he had to switch back to the previous design or animated clip. So a full week’s work might have equalled only a few seconds of finished movie; one or two shots. A film like The Lion King was 90 minutes long and contained 4,000 shots. Before he could begin, Blaise needed to know the script inside-out. He needed to make sure that his designs matched up with the art director’s vision. And he needed Nala to be believable: a character, not a caricature. That, he says, was what Disney did well: it made believable characters by “pulling from reality.” So how did Aaron go about creating a believable lion? At Disney, during the 1990s, it was done like this: “We would draw them from life,” Blaise says. “They would bring the lions right into the studio for us. They’d walk them back and forth across the stage, and we would analyse their movements and anatomy, and everything else, and get it down on paper.” Wild Child Aaron’s development work for The King of the Elves, a Disney project based on a Philip K Dick story. (Elven Explorer) Blaise grew up in Florida. His family lived in little trailer north of the Everglades, near a place called Corkscrew Swamp. He was “a wild child” who never wore shoes or a shirt and was often covered with ticks. Florida was his own private paradise. He always drew and painted, but he couldn’t see anyway of making a living from it. Then, aged 17, Blaise’s home burned down. Things got “a little rough.” He was ready to give up art and get a job in forestry. But Blaise’s stepdad persuaded him not to waste his ability. Blaise graduated with a certificate in illustration from the Ringling College of Art in 1989. His first professional job, aged 20, was an internship at Disney. There was just one problem: he couldn’t animate. He knew drawing, he was good at that. But he couldn’t get his head around movement. He had this dream job, but he almost quit. Then mentor Glen Keane told him: ‘Keep trying. It’s going to happen. It’s going to happen.’ And then three weeks later, it happened, it clicked, and seemingly out of nowhere Blaise understood arcs and timing, and slowins and all this other technical stuff. “I could see it happening in my head just because I was living it, breathing it, dreaming about it.” “Here’s a gluttonous grizzly bear hunting for salmon and unwilling to share his catch.” (The Glutton) He went full-time at 21 and worked his way up to director, earning an Oscar nomination for Brother Bear (2003). Then Disney’s great streak came to an end. It closed the studio in Florida which employed 365 people. Everybody was laid off except Blaise and nine others, who were then moved to California. “Things change,” Blaise says. “The market changed, the finances for things changed. It was very hard to see my friends and people that I had grown up with, spent the past 20 years with, to see them all of a suddenly without a job and scattered to the four winds. And so that was my first big blow." Blaise, his wife Karen and their kids all moved to California. They started over and pretty soon Blaise was making movies again. Then Karen was diagnosed with breast cancer. Disney helped Blaise set up shop at home. Some co-workers joined him and he was able to work and look after Karen. “But, ultimately,” Blaise says, “two and a half years into it, on 11 March 2007, she passed away in my arms, and that was a devastating blow for me. I mention this a lot in my talks: how you need to be driven to do your work. And, after I lost Karen, I lost my drive. She was my soulmate. She was the love of my life and I was completely lost and heartbroken and my kids were a mess as well. And so trying to go back to work with that mental baggage and heartache and pain, and trying to make a movie and direct those people, for me, it was almost impossible. It was impossible.” Losing my identity “I’m always trying to give characters some kind of expression or attitude that we can relate to as a viewer.” (Teatime) Blaise stuck it out for a couple of years. But his desire was gone. Studio bosses removed him from the movie he was working on and said he was done as a director. They wanted him to stay with Disney in another role. Blaise quit. “It was the most difficult and scary decision I’ve ever made in my life because I didn’t know anything other than Disney. My whole identity was my family and Disney, and Disney was falling apart, and my family was falling apart. So I was losing my identity.” What did he do next? First, he went home and he panicked. Blaise had a big mortgage but no longer had the director’s big salary to pay for it. Next day, he went into work and cleaned out his desk. There was a job offer waiting for him – in Florida. “It was unbelievable, the timing of it all.” The company was Digital Domain, a visual effects and digital production company. Director James Cameron was one of the founders. Still, this wasn’t Disney. There would be no lions brought in for figure-drawing classes. Blaise was three years into a movie when the company went bankrupt. He was jobless again. The artist considered going back to Disney. Then he got thinking about the way Glen Keane used to push young artists. He wanted to do something similar. Blaise and business partner Nick Burch came up with CreatureArtTeacher, offering lessons and tutorials based on Blaise’s long and illustrious career. “I decided that I really didn’t want to place my career – my future – in the hands of any executives anymore. I wanted to be the director of my own life.” Blaise uses charcoal to create large-format pieces Blaise works digitally and in most traditional mediums. From Alaska to Africa, he’s photographing wildlife for reference. It’s important to see subjects in person. Working traditionally, he starts with thumbnail sketches to figure out composition. He draws the image on to the canvas, tones the canvas, then works through the rendering. But digital’s different. Sometimes he sits down to draw without knowing where it’s going to go. This brings another dimension to his work. Working digitally helps him find compositions he would never have found working traditionally. Memento from Disney “A lion and tiger cosying up to one another. I designed a lion cub for The Lion King and a tiger for Aladdin.” (Best Friends) His studio is at home: a small room that’s divided into into two spaces. One side is for digital work, comprising a desk, Mac Pro, Cintiq 32-inch and a couple of monitors. He uses Photoshop and TVPaint Animation. These day, all animations are done digitally. But he keeps his old desk from Disney – the very desk he used working on all those great movies. He uses it for painting with watercolours now. Blaise’s traditional setup continues with an easel for working with oil, acrylics and charcoal. There’s a large bookcase that’s full of books, and lights and cameras used for shooting video lessons. Twice a week, he does a livestream show with his son Nick. Routine is important. These days, he’s at his desk at 10am. He could be painting, drawing digitally, making a video or working on lessons his teaching courses. But he sticks at it until he’s “mentally spent.” Could be a couple of hours, could be 10 hours. The thing is to be working consistently every weekday. Being his own boss takes a lot more discipline than the structured nine to five at Disney. “Before I start I feel the mood of a piece. I try to get that mood into the character or the animal that I’m creating.” (The Birthday Present) So does he ever regret leaving? Would he do anything differently? People often describe Blaise's art as Disney-esque. He doesn’t mind. He started at the studio when he was 20 and left when he was 42. Disney was a big part of his life. But his time there went hand in hand with the biggest part of his life. Blaise often wonders what might have been had Karen been diagnosed earlier: “If Karen had lived, then what would my life be? I can’t compare it.” Professionally, maybe he’d still be at Disney. Perhaps he’d be directing his fourth movie now. Who knows? But what he does know is that working for himself is ultimately more rewarding than working for a studio. “This digital piece is personal character work, looking at the Indian rhino, which is a vulnerable species.” (Indian Rhino) So the short answer is no. He doesn’t regret leaving Disney. “It was probably the best decision I’ve ever made in my life. But, you know, it’s funny, I don’t know that there’s anything I could do differently. I look at where I am right now, and, creatively, I’m happier than I’ve ever been because I’m able to draw, paint, animate, whatever I want to do to my heart’s content. But it all came about because of the death of my soulmate. “It’s a little sappy, but there’s truth in this. I was thinking about my wife Karen and what she would think about me going on to do whatever I was going to do. I really felt strongly – I still do – about doing something that she would be proud of, that she would want to do, that would drive her, because she was always this very giving, loving individual. And so that was also a big part of our decision-making process in creating CreatureArtTeacher.” This article was originally published in ImagineFX, the world's best-selling magazine for digital artists. Subscribe to ImagineFX. Read more: How to move from animation to illustration Animated music videos: 28 awesome examples 10 ways to create better character animations View the full article

It's hard to go too long without a new helping of iPhone gossip. With the dust settling after the iPhone 11 launch it's finally time for some fresh whispers about an upcoming launch in early 2020; something to bear in mind if you're thinking about grabbing a new iPhone when the Apple Black Friday deals roll around. Apple Insider is reporting that according to analyst Ming Chi Kuo, the next iPhone to come out of Apple is going to be the much-rumoured iPhone SE 2 – a smaller, less ludicrously powerful model at an affordable price. And honestly, we're feeling pretty disappointed. The 21 best iPhone apps for designers It's hard to fault the projected specs. Kuo believes that the iPhone SE 2 is going to pack the same A13 Bionic chip that you'll find in the iPhone 11, with 3GB RAM and a choice of 64GB or 128GB of storage. The iPhone SE 2 is expected to feature similar tech to the iPhone 11 Like the iPhone 11 it's said to feature Haptic Touch rather than 3D Touch – a distinction that'll probably be lost on many users, we reckon. And the iPhone SE 2 is expected to come in three colour options: Space Grey, Silver and Red. The detail that's going to catch most people's attention, though, is the projected price: $399, which we assume would be for the 64GB model. That seems like a pretty sweet deal to us. Who knows, maybe it will make it in to our list of the best camera phones soon. However, it's also reported that the iPhone SE 2 is likely to be the same size as the iPhone 8, and that's where the disappointment kicks in for us. Because what got us excited about the possibility of an iPhone SE 2 was the idea that Apple might produce a lovely small iPhone to stand out from all its dirty great phone slabs. Remember when phones didn't have to be enormous? The original iPhone SE was a fantastic size; roughly the same form factor as the iPhone 5, which for our money was the best-looking iPhone ever. It was the perfect size for anyone to comfortably use single-handed, and it was absolutely guaranteed to fit into even the daintiest pocket without falling out 30 seconds later. That's not something you can say about the iPhone 8 that the SE 2 is supposed to be modelled on. We speak from experience. We get that big phones are the thing these days, and we suspect that part of the size deal is so that manufacturers can fit in all the fancy tech that consumers apparently demand, as well as enough battery to run it all. But we'd be a lot more excited about an iPhone SE 2 that compromised on power and features enough to fit into a much smaller case. Of course, that might be just us. We can't help but feel that Apple's missing a serious trick here, though; doesn't anyone else fancy a smaller phone? Can't wait for the new iPhone SE to arrive? Here are the best iPhone models, at the very best prices. Related articles: 13 creative free iPhone apps for designers 4 things we love about the new iPhone 11 Is iPhone XS the best camera phone for designers? View the full article

Digital creatives usually have two main choices when they consider buying an all-in-one PC to work on. If they’re Mac fans, than the iMac (or iMac Pro) is the obvious choice, while Windows users (who have a few more options) mainly go for the Microsoft Surface Studio 2. Those two options have a lot in common, both featuring high in our list of the best computers for graphic design. They are powerful and stylish all-in-one PCs (which means the computer is built into the screen) – but they are also very expensive. The Lenovo Yoga A940 is pitched as an alternative to both, and while it does a few things the same as its main rivals, there are some important differences as well. The biggest differentiator of the Lenovo Yoga A940 is price. In the UK, the Lenovo Yoga A940 starts at £1,999. It comes with an Intel Core i5-8400 CPU, 16GB of RAM, 1TB hard drive and 256GB SSD and AMD RX 560 GPU with 4GB of GDDR5 memory. That’s a fair bit cheaper than the Surface Studio 2, which starts at £3,549, and the iMac Pro, which begins at £4,899. However, Apple’s latest 27-inch iMac just beats it in the value stakes at £1,749. The relatively low price of the Lenovo Yoga A940 compared to its competitors should definitely make it a compelling option if you’re after an all-in-one PC for your studio, but are on a tight budget. Of course, the Lenovo Yoga A940 isn’t exactly cheap, but it offers some pretty good value for money – on paper at least. But undercutting the competition by so much should surely mean compromises have been made. Does that impact how good the Lenovo Yoga A940 is as a workstation for digital creatives? Let’s find out. Lenovo Yoga A940: Power and performance One of the reasons why the iMac Pro and Surface Studio 2 are so expensive, is that Apple and Microsoft, respectively, have put some of the latest and most powerful hardware in their devices. Meanwhile, Lenovo has kept costs down by using older, slightly less powerful components in the Yoga A940. For the model we reviewed, the A940 came with an eight-generation Core i7-8700 six-core processor, 16GB of DDR4 RAM and an AMD Radeon RX 560X graphics card with 4GB of GDDR5 memory. That’s not a terrible selection of components, but compared to the Surface Studio 2 and iMac Pro, they just can’t compete. But that’s not to say they make the Yoga A940 a poor performer. For a lot of tasks, the Yoga A940 does a fine job of keeping up. But there are definite compromises that have been made that keep it from being a real powerhouse of a workstation. For a lot of tasks, the Yoga A940 does a fine job of keeping up. But there are definite compromises that have been made that keep it from being a real powerhouse of a workstation Take the processor. The Intel Core i7-8700 was launched at the end of 2017. In terms of CPUs, that makes it pretty long in the tooth. There have been a number of processor launches since then that bring more power and less power consumption – two key features for an all-in-one PC, as their compact designs mean you want a powerful PC, but one that doesn’t produce too much heat. Despite its age, the processor isn’t that bad, with six cores and a base frequency of 3.2GHz and a turbo frequency of 4.60GHz. Those extra cores are useful for multitasking – running multiple apps and performing more than one task at the same time – which is certainly handy for digital creatives – such as video editors who want to edit and preview footage, while also working on other parts of the project. In certain markets you can also configure the Lenovo Yoga A940 to come with a more recent CPU, like the Intel Core i7-9700 eight-core processor. While this ups the overall price of the PC, in our view it is worth doing as it leads to even smoother performance. However, this option isn’t available in all markets, so you may have to check what specifications are available before you buy. While the processor is old, but still decent, the GPU of the Lenovo Yoga A940 is more concerning for digital creatives that do a lot of graphic work. That’s because it comes with the AMD Radeon RX 560X with a rather paltry 4GB of GDDR5 memory. This is a mid-range graphics card that’s aimed at consumers, rather than professionals. If you’re looking for an all-in-one workstation for doing intense graphical tasks, such as 3D rendering or high resolution video editing, then the Radeon RX 560X just won’t cut it. Meanwhile, the iMac comes with one of the best graphics cards, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48, which is AMD’s professional series GPU, and a much better performer. Lenovo Yoga A940: Display What’s perhaps most disappointing is that while the GPU isn’t great, the Lenovo Yoga A940 comes with an absolutely fantastic 27-inch 4K screen. It features 100% Adobe RGB support and Dolby Vision – with the former especially important for creatives that need accurate colours, such as photographers. Why is this disappointing? Because, while the screen is so good, it feels like a missed opportunity to not back it up with a powerful graphics card. When working at 4K resolutions, the AMD Radeon RX 560X will struggle due to its limited memory. However, for less graphically demanding workloads, the GPU will be fine. But we do wish Lenovo had splashed out a little bit more on a better graphics card. Above the display is a 1080p webcam, which can be used to log on to Windows 10 with a glance, while also offering excellent video quality if you make video conference calls using Skype or Google Hangouts. Lenovo has also included Dolby Atmos speakers in the display, and while these don’t match external speakers, they are some of the best we’ve heard in an all-in-one. While music producers and soundtrack editors may still prefer to plug in external speakers, for many people, the built-in speakers of the Lenovo Yoga A940 do a fantastic job. Lenovo’s Content Creation Dial is a lovely touch Another neat touch is that on either side of the screen is a USB port (covered by a magnetic cover). You can plug in Lenovo’s Content Creation Dial, which is included in the set. You can use this dial for various things, such as scrolling through pages, zooming in and out, opening programs and changing the audio volume. It supports a number of creative apps, such as Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, and you can set it up to work with other apps as well. Best of all, it can be plugged into either the left or right-hand side of the screen, making it comfortable to use no matter if you’re left or right-handed. Perhaps the best aspect of the display from a digital creative’s point of view, is that it is a touchscreen, and a digital stylus is included. The screen can be angled and tilted up to 25 degrees, and its dual-hinge design makes it easy to position the screen so that it can be used as a digital canvas. Artists will be particularly impressed with this aspect – and it makes it a much more useful tool than the iMac, for example, which does not come with a touchscreen. By positioning the screen as low as it can go, you can comfortably draw on it. As the Lenovo Yoga A940 runs Windows 10, you have access to a huge selection of drawing tools, such as Adobe Illustrator, as well as built-in inking tools. Plus, with the vibrant 4K 27-inch screen, you’ve got plenty of workspace to draw on. Digital art looks particularly impressive on the Lenovo Yoga A940’s excellent display, and the touchscreen is fast and responsive, despite the underpowered GPU, and the included stylus is of decent quality. It’s battery-powered, with a button that can be used to switch drawing tools when used, and with a good level of sensitivity. The touchscreen also has a decent palm rejection feature, so even if you accidently rest your wrist or palm on the screen as you draw, it shouldn’t cause issues. Pair the stylus with the Content Creation Dial, and you’ve got a seriously useful – and enjoyable – all-in-one PC for digital artists. Lenovo Yoga A940: Key features While the adjustable touchscreen is undoubtedly the main feature of the Yoga A940 for creatives, Lenovo has done a fine job of kitting the PC out with some other nice little touches. For example, a button on the right-hand side of the display turns on a series of LED lights beneath the screen. This, Lenovo says, is to allow you to work comfortably in low light conditions – such as at night. It’s a nice feature, and while we’d still prefer to have a desk lamp when we’re working late, it shows the level of thought that has gone into this device. The Lenovo Yoga A940 also features a built-in wireless charging mat. This is actually one of our favourite features of the PC, as it allows you to easily charge a compatible smartphone or device by simply placing them on the mat. We popped a Galaxy Note 9 on the mat, and it started charging quickly. It’s a really useful feature – as long as you have the gadgets that can take advantage of it. There is also an indent next to the mat where you can store the stylus. This is helpful for preventing it getting lost, but it doesn’t charge the stylus, as it only uses a removable AAA battery. The Lenovo Yoga A940 also features a built-in wireless charging mat The keyboard and mouse are also wireless, though they can’t be charged by the wireless charging mat either. It’s a shame, as that would have been a useful feature. Instead, the mouse uses replaceable AAA batteries, while the keyboard charges via USB cable. As for the peripherals themselves, they do the job fine, but neither the mouse nor keyboard feel particularly brilliant. We’d be tempted to swap them out for alternatives instead – such as any of the entries in our best mouse or best keyboard guides. As for ports, the Yoga A940 offers a very good selection, with a USB-C Thunderbolt, USB 3.1, 3-in-1 card reader (great news for photographers) and audio jack. There’s also a LAN port, HDMI and four USB 3.0 ports on the rear. It’s always good to see a large selection of ports on devices geared towards creatives and productivity, as it lets you easily plug in the tools you need without having to pay extra for dongles and converters. Apple take note. Lenovo Yoga A940: Should you buy it? So, should you buy this device? The answer to that is quite simple, really. Lenovo has made an excellent all-in-one PC that comes with some great features for digital creatives. If you’ve been after a stylish all-in-one for your creative work, but have baulked at the high price of the iMac Pro or Surface Studio, then this is a fantastic alternative that provides some genuinely innovative and useful touches, while costing less than its competitors. Digital artists will be especially taken with the adjustable 4K 27-inch touchscreen – it really is lovely to draw on. However, this isn’t for everyone. If you want an absolute power house of a workstation with cutting edge components that can handle seriously intensive workloads – especially when it comes to graphic rendering – then you’re going to be disappointed with the Lenovo Yoga A940’s specifications. Sadly, it feels in some respects that Lenovo has made too many compromises when it comes to the hardware – especially in the GPU area. The hardware performs well for day-to-day tasks, but if you want something more powerful, then paying a bit more for an all-in-one with more recent components will pay off in the long run. View the full article

When you're working on a new logo design and you need a little something to fire your creative processes, it’s natural to head to a modern-day gallery to grab a bit of logo design inspiration But the principles of good design are timeless. And if you only focus on the very latest work, you’re missing out on decades-worth of beautiful, functional and brilliant logo design from the industry’s most famous designers. In this post, we look back at five logos created by some of the 20th century’s greatest creatives, and consider what lessons they contain for designers working today. 6 of the most iconic drinks logos 01. Chupa Chups logo by Salvador Dalí How many brands can boast a Dalí logo? When you're producing a range of confectionery and you're not happy with its branding, it can be helpful to have one of the world's top artists as a friend. And while Salvador Dalí isn't largely known for his graphic design skills, he was quickly able to help Enric Bernat, the founder of Chupa Chups, with some lightning-fast work. The story behind the Chupa Chups daisy logo is the stuff of fairy tales. Bernat and Dalí were sitting in a pavement café, and Bernat asked his friend to lend a hand with his logo design; Dalí got straight to work, scribbling on an old newspaper that was lying around the café, and came up with his design inside an hour. The logo used today is largely the same as Dalí's design; the only change to it has been to abandon the serif lettering used for the first half of the name, and to set it in the same script style as the second half. It's a good-looking logotype; simple, colourful and guaranteed to appeal to its target market, but the really clever bit was Dalí's insistence on how it should be displayed. Knowing that if it was displayed on the side of a lollipop, the logo would get distorted, Dalí decreed that it should instead be put on the top where it would remain intact. It was a branding masterstroke that helped elevate Chupa Chups from a small Spanish brand into a global success story. Lesson learned: An understanding of how a logo is going to be used is an essential piece of information to take into your design process. Dalí's insight into the placement of the Chupa Chups logo arguably helped build the brand's prominence; modern designers need to be aware that a logo is likely to be used across any number of touchpoints and at all kinds of sizes, and design accordingly. 02. Nike logo by Carolyn Davidson The original Swoosh cost $35 Carolyn Davidson was a graphic design student at Portland State University when Nike founder Phil Knight chanced upon her, working on a drawing assignment in a hallway. He needed some design work doing for an upcoming presentation, and offered her a couple of dollars an hour to create some charts and graphs. Later, Knight needed a logo for his shoe boxes; again he called on Davidson, asking for a design that suggested movement. She came back with a number of designs, including the now-iconic Nike Swoosh, but Knight wasn't taken with any of them. With a print deadline approaching his shoe boxes, Knight had a make a call, and despite not loving it he opted for the Swoosh. Davidson submitted an invoice for just $35 and continued to design for Nike until it was too big for her to handle on her own, at which point Nike appointed a full-service agency. Davidson was later rewarded handsomely for her design, when Knight surprised her with a gold Swoosh ring with an embedded diamond, plus an envelope containing Nike shares. And while her design may not have have fired Knight's enthusiasm at first, its simplicity and energy have proved to have significant, long-lasting appeal, signifying the Nike brand in the most beautifully minimal way. Lesson learned: It's easy to overthink things and get bogged down in indecision over a selection of potential designs. But sometimes all it takes is a deadline to focus the mind and make a choice. 03. Windows 8 logo by Paula Scher Paula Scher’s logo for Windows 8 returned the brand identity to its core values Born in Washington DC in 1948, graphic designer Paula Scher began her career in the 1970s creating album covers for both Atlantic and CBS Records. In 1991, she became the first-ever female principal at Pentagram, and has created identities and other memorable design work for clients including Citi Bank, Coca-Cola, the Metropolitan Opera, the Museum of Modern Art and the New York Philharmonic. In 2012, Scher was working with Microsoft to design a logo for its Windows 8 operating system. Early in the development process, she asked a simple question: “Your name is Windows. Why are you a flag?” As you can see in the examples below, the company had been using a flag symbol for many different Windows logos over the years. Earlier logos had strayed too far from the original Windows metaphor Previous logos for the operating system (including the one shown top left) had featured a window. However, over the years this had evolved into a waving flag, presumably in response to corporate requests for more 'energy' and 'dynamism'. In the process, the design had lost all connection with the original meaning behind the name ‘Windows’, which represented a metaphor for seeing into screens and systems, and a new view on technology. Scher’s design for Windows 8, then, brought the logo back to basics, re-inventing the somewhat gaudy four-colour symbol as a sleek, modern geometric shape. Using the classic principle of perspective (lines receding into space to suggest dimensionality), the new design offered a neutral container that still conveyed a sense of movement, while looking more modern and returning to the original concept for the brand. Lesson learned: Dynamism and energy aren’t 'add-ons', but stem from an underlying strong and clear concept for a logo. Once you have that, everything else will follow. 04. Brooklyn Brewery logo by Milton Glaser A name change lay at the heart of the success of Brooklyn Brewery Born in New York in 1929, Milton Glaser is one of the world's most celebrated graphic designers. The co-founder of Push Pin Studios (1954) and New York Magazine (1968), he established his own studio, Milton Glaser, Inc. in 1974. Over the years he personally designed and illustrated more than 300 posters, including the famous 1966 poster for Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits LP, and is probably best known as the creator of the I Love New York logo. In 1986, Steve Hindy and Tom Potter came to him looking for an identity for their new brand, Brooklyn Eagle Beer, named in tribute to the famous newspaper once edited by Walt Whitman. Glaser responded: “Why sell a bird when you’ve got the whole borough?” It was a good question, and as a result of the conversation that followed, the pair settled on the simpler word ‘Brooklyn’ as the name and identity for the beer. Brooklyn Brewery went on to be a huge success, and Glaser did pretty well out of it too. At the time, Hindy and Potter couldn’t afford to pay him, so they gave him a stake in the firm instead. It’s now worth millions. Lesson learned: The key to successful logo design lies in truly understanding the company and brand. And in practice that means asking questions of clients, including awkward ones. 05. IBM logo by Paul Rand Talk about longevity: Paul Rand’s 1972 logo for IBM is still in force today Brooklyn-born graphic designer (1914-1996) Paul Rand was one of the first American commercial artists to embrace and practice the Swiss Style of graphic design. And he soon became world-famous for his corporate logos, creating designs for the likes of IBM, UPS, Enron, Morningstar, Inc., Westinghouse, ABC, and Steve Jobs’ NeXT Computers. 7 classic logos that should never have been changed In today’s world, where tech companies routinely redesign their identities year on year, the fact that Rand’s 1972 logo for IBM is still in use stands testament to the brilliance of its design. Using horizontal stripes to replace the solid letters of the previous logo (to suggest "speed and dynamism"), it’s become one of the most recognised logotypes in the world, and is widely imitated by others. But while the design may look simple, it was by no means quick to create. Having changed the font of the previous 1956 design (replacing Beton Bold with City Medium, lengthening the serifs and tweaking the shape of the ‘B’), Rand spent more than a decade experimenting with variations in the logo, before introducing the iconic stripes. Rand also put a lot of time and effort into creating a detailed pamphlet and poster, showing the various sizes of the eight-bar logo and providing careful instructions on how to use them. That he continued to keep a close oversight of IBM’s branding for decades meant that his original designs were never abused, and have continued to be applied cleanly and consistently to this day. Lesson learned: Good logo design doesn’t happen overnight. Patience is required to create not just a successful design, but also a robust and durable system for ensuring its careful and consistent application. 06. AT&T Bell System logo by Saul Bass Saul Bass’ 1969 logo for AT&T was an early example of a simple, scalable logo Born in The Bronx, New York, Saul Bass (1920-1996) was a graphic designer and film-maker whose influence continues to be felt in both spheres today. Best known for his credit sequences for movies such as Psycho, North by Northwest and Man with the Golden Gun, he also created iconic logos for companies such as Continental Airlines, Warner Communications and Geffen Records. An analysis of his designs in 2011 by Christian Annyas showed them to have extraordinary longevity, with an average lifespan of 34 years. In 1969, Bass designed the logo for the AT&T Corporation, which then held a monopoly on phone service in the United States and Canada through a network of companies called the Bell System. He simplified the previous 1964 design and – at a time when most logos were intricate and detailed – created a fuss-free emblem that was instantly recognisable. The previous design, the fifth Bell logo, 1964-1969 The rollout of the new logo was to be the largest corporate identity program in the history of the US, involving the redesign of 135,000 Bell System fleet vehicles, 22,000 buildings, 1,250,000 phone booths and 170,000,000 telephone directories. So the company had to be sure it was doing the right thing. To convince the firm, Bell made a half-hour film pitching the design – which you can watch in full today on YouTube. In the film, Bass explains his vision for a broad identity that would feature on everything from letterheads and print ads to the cufflinks that executives wore. Making a logo that works at both small and large sizes is a principle often emphasised in today’s multi-device world, and it’s testament to the vision of Bass that he applied it just as vigorously in the pre-digital age. The adaptability and scalability of his 1969 logo is one of the main reasons for its longevity, and it would probably have lasted a lot longer had Bell Systems not been broken up in 1983. Once that had happened, Bass was invited back to create the famous AT&T globe logo, which remained in place until 2005. Lesson learned: A logo that’s simple is also scalable, so it can be adapted to a huge variety of uses, even those that haven’t even been thought of at the time of its design. And that’s going to ensure its longevity like nothing else. 07. American Airlines by Massimo Vignelli Massimo Vignelli's American Airlines logo takes a simple idea and executes it superbly Born in Italy, Massimo Vignelli (1931-2014) moved from Milan to New York in the 1960s and became one of the most influential designers of the 20th century. Focusing on simplicity through basic geometric forms, he designed Bloomingdale’s signature brown paper bags, the Ford Motor Company logo, the 1972 New York City subway map and branding for the likes of Xerox, IBM, Gillette and Ford. In 1967, Vignelli was introduced to American Airways by industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss, who was consulting for the then-fledgling airline. He was soon recruited to design the logo and branding for the company, and his approach was guided by two principles: legibility and nationality. To ensure the former, he used Helvetica. For the latter, he cast the logo's two letters in red and blue. “It looked great,” he told Bloomberg in 2013. “The typeface was great. We proceeded by logic, not emotion. Not trends and fashions." This no-nonsense, straightforward approach resulted in a true design classic, although Vignelli was keen to stress the eagle emblem was forced upon him (he refused to design it himself, so Dreyfuss’ office did the honours). Despite this, his design has become one of the most popular and by far longest-lived logos in the history of airlines. Lessons learned: Keep it simple, stupid. Steering free of gimmicks and keeping your design as straightforward as possible are key ingredients in creating a longstanding, successful logo. Related articles: 38 beautiful band logo designs to be inspired by Nike brings back old Swoosh logos Design a killer logo in Illustrator View the full article

These days, everyone loves a dark mode. Why dazzle yourself when you're getting in a bit of late-night browsing under the covers, when you could give your eyes - and your phone's battery - a rest with a soothing, low-light display? The latest mobile operating systems now support dark modes, enabling you to turn down the lights on both iOS and Android apps, and Instagram has just joined the dark forces. Its latest release enables you to go fully dark, but if you've already installed it, you might be having trouble figuring out how to turn it on. And to be perfectly honest, we had exactly the same problem. Not to worry, though, because after a bit of hapless faffing around in Instagram, we worked it out. It turns out you can't turn dark mode on from within the Instagram app; you need to go into your phone's settings to sort it out, because why on earth would they make things easy for us? How to repost on Instagram: A complete guide Whether you're foxed by dark mode settings, or simply didn't even know about dark mode and like the sound of it, here's what you need to do to turn it on – not just for Instagram, but for any app that supports dark mode. Dark Mode on iOS Dark Mode has just been included in iOS 13 Make sure you're updated to the latest version of iOS 13. Download the latest Instagram update. Go into Settings > Display & Brightness. There you can turn Dark Mode on, or set it to switch on and off automatically; either to match current daylight hours, or to your own custom schedule. Start up Instagram and enjoy the darkness! Dark theme for Android Android's dark theme is easy to activate You'll need to be running Android 10 and – of course – have the latest version of Instagram installed. Go into Settings > Display and tap Advanced Select Dark from the Device theme menu Start up Instagram and glory in the gloom! And when you're done, don't forget to follow Creative Bloq for some regular design inspiration! Related articles: 9 agencies to follow on Instagram How to change the font in your Instagram bio 10 must-know Instagram tips for creatives View the full article

NYC photography store Adorama has ditched its clunky, spiky old logo design in favour of a radical new look – but it's not entirely successful. The new wordmark makes overdue steps towards modernisation, but is coming under fire for everything from its stubby ascenders to its oddly speckled 'O'. Let's take a look at what the brand got right, and where it went wrong... The old logo took its cues from an outdated shutter-style 'O' US readers might know Adorama from its bricks-and-mortar NYC store, but the photography brand is more widely known for its online shop (its competitive prices mean it often appears in our best camera buying guides). The old logo (above) was all focused around the distinctive 'O', which was styled like a camera shutter, the angles of which were reflected in the rest of the letters. Not only was the jagged lettering looking rather dated from an aesthetic point of view, but the focus on the camera shutter also gave of a decidedly analogue vibe and failed to reflect the company's shift into digital products and services. So a redesign was certainly overdue. The new look has not gone down well We'll also applaud Adorama's confidence in maintaining some personality in its new look. We've seen far too many bland, identikit logo redesigns of late. However, other than that we're not too impressed by the new look. The spots on the new 'O' suggest pixels, but jar with the rest of the letterform Like the old logo, the 'O' is the focus here. The shutter design has been replaced by a dotty pattern, perhaps to suggest pixels. It makes sense for a company with a focus on digital image-making. However, the execution is sloppy. The dots don't relate to the shape of the letterform, instead being placed in a grid format that's jarring in context. There's also a solid border around the perimeter of the counter, but none on the outer edge of the 'O', which again looks messy and illogical. Finally, Adorama has committed the cardinal sin of not creating a logo that scales well: at small sizes, the dots don't read well at all, looking more like a low-res design than an active style choice. Elsewhere, the mix of rounded and non-rounded corners, and stubby ascenders create a design that lacks harmony. Commenters have suggested it looks more like a children's clothing or craft store than a cutting-edge photography business. What do you think of the new look? Let us know on Twitter or Facebook. Read more: Facebook sued over copycat Calibra logo Are these reimagined logos better than the real deal? The surprising story behind the Joker logo View the full article

There’s a special art to illustrating food. Because you’re not just trying to please the eye and grab people’s attention: you’re ideally trying to engage their senses and make their tastebuds tingle. "Food is such an emotive subject," says Caz Hildebrand, Creative Partner at Here Design, who has worked on multiple food books for Nigella Lawson, Yotam Ottelenghi, Oliver Rowe, and her own books including The Geometry of Pasta and An Anarchy of Chillies. "Pretty much everyone has a response to images depicting food, but not everyone will feel the same way." To get a clear message across, the most important thing about your illustrations is, she says: "Do they look good enough to eat? Are they appealing or repelling? So many images, both photographs and illustrations, make food look very unattractive and may well be unsuccessful if they are off-putting, rather than seductive." Of course, your intention might actually be to turn people off. "If for example, you want to convert the audience to veganism, then there might be a case for making certain ingredients look especially ugly. But in general, if the intention is to create a positive response in your audience, then consider whether you'd want to eat whatever you've drawn. If not, it’s likely that no one else will, either." Read on, as we offer some expert tips on how do so... 01. Use abstraction Judith Mayer makes good use of abstraction in this depiction of a banana split Chicago-based illustrator Judith Mayer follows a golden rule when it comes to drawing food. “Simplify the details to hint at texture and pattern,” she says. “Don’t always try to draw every speckle, nook, fiber, bump, seed, or candy sprinkle.” Obviously there’s a balance to strike between including too much detail and too little, and that balance will vary from illustrator to illustrator. “I think a lot depends on your style,” says Mayer. “I prefer the less-is-more approach, so my illustrations have more abstraction. I add only enough details to feel right, no more. Check your work as you go is a good rule. If you prefer a more detailed look, you would add more details. Neither is right or wrong.” 02. Minimalise detail for motion Minimalising details was crucial to making this motion graphic by Al Boardman work When it comes to turning your illustration into motion graphics, simplifying and minimalising often becomes even more important. Al Boardman, an illustrator and motion designer based in Winchester, UK, faced this challenge when creating this animation for a client. “I produced a whole set of the food elements,” he recalls, “only to find out that there was too much detail in them which not only wasn't coming across once they were animated, but made it difficult to see what they were upon animating. "So I had to really try and make them as minimal as possible in order for them to work when moving. I think it’s an issue that’s even more marked with motion than with static images” 03. Limit your colour palette Judith Mayer stuck to a limited colour palette for this illustration of mint ice cream When it comes to the colours you use, Mayer again recommends keeping things simple for food illustration. “Choose a smaller colour palette - sometimes just three colours - that includes a highlight, main colour and shadow to apply to the shape of the subject to describe its volume,” she advises. “This forces you to look at how light describes the form and less at surface details." Sometimes, of course, the client will ask you to limit your colour palette even more, and that can be a big challenge, says Andrew Gibbs, the award-winning graphic designer and illustrator also known as SODAVEKT. "I work in a flat vector style, usually in one colour, and I’m often commissioned to create icons," says Gibbs. "When I have had commissions involving food in the past - like the Wagamama menu I illustrated a few years ago - I’ve found it can be challenging illustrating food in one-colour. So how does he manage it? "I always concentrate on shape, form and detail first, before adding colour," says Gibbs. "This is a general rule I apply across all my work. It helps me to consider what kind of visual details are unique to that object or food that I’m trying to represent." 04. Unnatural colours CAN work This illustration by Judith Mayer shows how unnatural colours can work in a food illustration It might seem the obvious choice to match the colours in your illustration accurately to those of the real-life foods. But perhaps surprisingly, Mayer believes that unnatural colours can often work well if used thoughtfully, such as in the example above. “Natural colour versus unexpected colour is purely a decision for the artist based on their style,” she believes. “As long as the highlights and shadows are applied logically, lemons can be blue and still read as lemons... but shape and texture are even more important when you take this liberty.” 05. Harness emotion and storytelling "This one is a good example of something that couldn’t be captured with a photo," says Salli Swindell, "because it doesn’t quite exist in real life." Salli Swindell is a food illustrator based in Ohio who’s also the producer of theydrawandcook.com, an online collection of food artists, and the author of several books including They Draw & Cook. ”My top advice for illustrating food is to try and create an illustration that can’t be captured by taking a photo,” she says. “An illustrator has the ability to add more emotion, storytelling and exaggeration to food illustration.” She offers some examples. “Make the food appear like it’s being prepared right before your eyes by showing chopped veggies flying across the page and into the skillet. Capture the essence of watermelon by merely painting a swash of pink and green with a few black drops. An egg yolk can be made extra glossy with exaggerated highlights. Scale and perspective can be playfully altered in an illustration.” In short, don’t just focus on recreating the food accurately. Think about what story you want your scene to tell, and what emotion you wish to convey. On a similar note, UK illustrator Carly Allen-Fletcher feels it’s useful to add in some context to her food illustration: where it's from, the culture, or the scene that it’s part of. “I find it interesting to learn about different places, and the dishes that come from different cultures,” she explains. “So depending on the brief, I like to add that into my illustrations, to add a bit of local flavour, if you’ll pardon the pun, as in these examples.” 06. Draw from (recent) memory When drawing food, Salli Swindell looks at it for a few minutes, then puts it away Most illustrators agree that you should draw food from life... but that needn’t necessarily mean sitting and staring at it the whole time. “My personal technique for rendering food is to look at the real food - or a photo of it - for a few minutes then put it away and draw it how I remember it in my mind,” says Sally Swindell. “That way I’m not tempted to over illustrate it and my personal style shines through a bit more.” That’s not the only way to approach a food illustration of course. “I truly love every single style of food illustration from graphic to stylized to animated to gestural to realistic,” she adds, “as long as a photo can’t capture the same vibe (or better),” she adds. “So if you are attempting to try a hyper realistic illustration of food you need to make it even MORE realistic than the real thing.” You can read more food illustration tips from Swindell in this article. 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What is visual development? Well, it’s designing anything that can help to visualise a story. In this workshop I’ll be focusing on pre-visual development, which is about painting scenery. In the pre-visual development phase, artists paint a lot of scenes that can help visualise the world of the story. I’ll cover what the different art techniques you need to focus on when you’re working on your painting. I consider this as one of the most enjoyable roles in vis-dev work, and I recommend that everyone tries their hand at doing it. When you paint, the most important thing to consider is the concept of values (take a look at CB's guide to colour theory for more on this). My mentor at Pixar once told me that, "A painting will still look good - even with bad colours - as long as its value is perfect." In this workshop I’ll pass on my advice on values, composition and colours that will help to improve your art. Let’s go through the steps to help you visualise your imaginary worlds… 01. Gather references You never know when a reference will come in handy One of my hobbies is travelling, and I’ll take photographs when I see a landscape that inspires me to paint when I get back home. Even if you’re not keen on travelling or photography, you still need a good source of real-world reference to help you paint imaginative art. Try looking around online for reference that will help take your painting project to the next stage of development. 02. Produce thumbnail sketches Keep it small to make the frame fit I begin drawing thumbnails on grey rectangles that match a cinema screen’s proportions (2.39:1). I prefer working at theatrical film ratio because it helps me check that my ideas will look interesting on the big screen. I have a tendency to work small, so I can see the whole composition within the frame. I identify and then correct any composition issues at this stage. 03. Enhance the basic composition Divide your composition into three Composition helps to lead the viewer’s eyes to where you want them to be. The basic composition tool is the Rule of Thirds, which divides your painting into sections. It’s recommended that you place your focal point on the division lines, which you overlay on your frame. 04. Place diamonds and zig-zags Establish direction and variety with these shapes You can place a diamond frame around your focal point by creating lines of direction. Each shape exists to help the viewer to follow it. Zig-zags help you to organise your shapes and create visual variety. They also encourage the viewer’s eyes to move in certain directions. 05. Perfect value studies The lightest or darkest point should be the focus This is the most important part of the painting process. The values have to look correct before the addition of light or colour. Viewers should be able to read your focal points even at a distance. Make sure you work small so you can check them. Your focal point should be the lightest or the darkest in your values study, or both. 06. Group values sensibly Value ranges guide the viewer's eye Even if there is light or shadow, value always works within a similar value range. Neither light nor shadow should break the value range that you choose to work with, unless there’s a good reason. For example, shapes within that value range can also help to lead the viewer’s eyes. 07. Create contrast through the use of opposites Contrasting values are eye catching You can contrast value by using the lightest and darkest colours in the scene. They will capture the viewer’s attention right away. Our eyes tend to focus on either the most saturated colour in the painting, or grey that’s surrounded by strong colours. Opposites attract the eye, and the same principle applies to shapes, too. 08. Building up the structure of the scene Create a sense of depth by overlapping shapes I always divide my values into three sections: fore-, middle- and background. Each structure divides into more values within the range of the group. You can generate more depth by creating an overlap of shapes. I recommend designing your shapes within a larger structure. 09. Creating a sense of space Group your values with the Brightness/ Contrast tool My image will help you see how I create a sense of space between each ground structure. Overlapping light and dark values will help to create depth. You can adjust your value range in Image>Adjustment>Brightness/ Contrast. This approach will help you group your values. 10. Local colour considerations Take care to use harmonious colours You can use any colour you like, but it’s crucial to focus on your value structure. Furthermore, try to use a colour or hue that’s next to each other on the colour wheel. It will help to create harmony in the scene. Don’t be afraid to play around with colours. You can always use a Hue/Saturation layer to change them. 11. Refine colours and add lighting Special adjustments can control the light and colour I add more blue and purple to my local colours. You can change your colours by using the Hue/Saturation tool or Color Balance adjustment layers. Next, I use a Hard Light adjustment layer to light the scene: this will mix colours of light and the local colour of your choice. 12. Start painting into the environment Working with colour is identical to building up a value structure First, I use the Mixer brush to generate variations of colours. I add the local colours of an object and then design shapes that enable you to direct the viewer’s eyes. Note that to achieve this, your shapes must stay within a similar value zone. Working with colour is identical to building up a value structure, and you can spend time playing with individual colours within that particular range of colours, to see what works best. 13. Identify compositional flaws There's still time to make huge adjustments I make a huge change at this point. The ghost girl’s value is too close to the column on the back. My solution is to remove the column and make a zig-zag shape instead (refer back to my advice from step four). Remember that light over dark shapes generates depth and makes an object easier to read. Here, the sky and the forest are framing elements that work together to enhance my focal point. 14. Read it once, then read it again Your image should reveal more than you see at first glance The first thing that catches your eyes in this painting is the ghost girl, and the second is the grave-side objects next to the column in the foreground. The girl’s bright red shoes help to make the connection with the tombstone. And so this scene is about a little girl who passed away in this pond. She’s looking at the pond, but she can’t see her reflection. And that’s my story in a single painting! This article was originally published in ImagineFX, the world's best-selling magazine for digital artists. Subscribe to ImagineFX. Related articles: The best digital art software right now The best Photoshop plugins The top alternatives to Photoshop View the full article

Without naming Huawei, the EU warns on state-backed 5G suppliers. View the full article

A new dropper and payload show that Fin7 isn't going anywhere despite a crackdown on the infamous group by law enforcement in 2018. View the full article

There's not long to go now until Google's New York hardware event on October 15. And while the search giant is expected to reveal a raft of devices, it's the tech giant's new Chromebook, the Pixelbook Go, that's attracting attention right now, thanks to a extensive selection of photos that have been leaked ahead of the product's launch. The device is already being referred to as 'Google's MacBook', but the photos reveal one unusual design feature that is a far cry from Apple's sleek aesthetic. (If you're in the market for a new laptop, take a look at our predictions for the best Black Friday MacBook deals.) The inside of the Google Pixelbook Go looks rather similar to its Apple competitor (and with it being rumoured that Apple is ditching its tricksy butterfly keyboards, perhaps the two are set to become even more alike). However, flip the machine over and you'll find a ribbed surface on the underside. This is included to ensure the Pixelbook Go doesn't slip around, and it's definitely a... unique look for a laptop. In the leaked snaps, it's pink – which we sincerely hope is just to match the colour of the rest of the laptop. 9to5Google, the news hub that leaked the images thanks to early, exclusive hands-on access, compares it to "the roof of a dog's mouth". Just what you want from a laptop. It might be genius, or it might be horrible, we're not sure yet. If you're not convinced, take a look at our guide to the best MacBook Pro alternatives for some other options. Could the Pixelbook Go come with a unique ribbed finish? So, weird ribbed base aside, how might this compare to the best laptops for graphic design? The Pixelbook Go boasts a 13.3-inch 16:9 screen in either 1080p or 4K resolution, and two USB-C ports. It also has options for an Intel Core m3, i5 and i7 processors. In terms of power, it comes with up to 16GB of RAM and 2566GB of storage. A 2-megapixel front-facing camera, headphone jack and Titan C security chip are also supplied as standard. Check out those speakers Of course, considering that this is just a prototype, things could change. Although we hope the two front-firing speakers, which run parallel to the length of the keyboard, stay in the final release as they sound superior to those in the 2016 MacBook. Take a look at all of 9to5Google's exclusive images by heading over to its gallery. Here you'll also find a video review which gives you a good look at what to expect from the Pixelbook Go. No price has been revealed yet, but we expect this will be confirmed at the upcoming hardware event. Want to pick up an existing Google Pixelbook? You're in luck! We've rounded up the best deals available right now: Related articles: The best Google products for home, work and play The best laptop stands in 2019 The most powerful laptops in 2019 View the full article

Traditionally, if you wanted to become a professional graphic designer, you needed a university degree on your CV. However, attending university is a huge investment – in terms of both time and money. Thankfully, in recent years new options have opened up, which mean those with passion and creative flair can snag a graphic design job without needing to attend university. For example, there are plenty of online resources for self-teaching, as well as ways to immerse yourself in the design industry and start learning from the pros. If you want to formalise your knowledge with a qualification, it's well worth looking into a short course such as those offered by Shillington. In this article we'll explore some of these alternative routes in more detail. Increasingly, employers are recognising that a university qualification isn't the be-all-and-end-all when it comes to hiring the talent with the most potential. Read on for three ways to arm yourself with the skills and knowledge you need to launch your design career, without spending tens of thousands of pounds (and three or more years of your life) on a university course. 01. Skill up with online tutorials There's an absolute gold mine of information available online nowadays if you know where to look. For practical skills, such as how to use industry software, online tutorials are the place to start. There's plenty of great quality content available for free, too – Creative Bloq has roundups of the best Photoshop tutorials and Illustrator tutorials to get you pointed in the right direction. Many of these guides come with a screencast to follow along, and help you make sense of things. If you find you've hit a wall using free content, consider exploring an online course. Providers such as Pluralsight, Udemy, Skillshare and LinkedIn Learning all offer structured online design courses. Some content will be free, some is paid. It's a good middle-ground between totally unstructured learning and a formal course, and is especially good for plugging specific gaps in knowledge. 02. Build up your portfolio Before you secure your first job, you're going to need a build up your design portfolio so your potential employer can get a taste of your skills. It seems like a vicious cycle – until you have clients, you won't have anything to put in your portfolio, but without a portfolio you won't secure any clients, right? Wrong. There are some things you can do to start creating a book that will show off your skills. First, treat your portfolio like your first branding project, and start building a strong commercial identity as a designer. Your personal brand will include everything from brand colours, to fonts, tone of voice and a logo. As with any branding project, your chosen scheme will flow through everything you create, from your portfolio to any self-promo collateral and cover letters you send out. Second, consider doing some small projects for friends or good causes. While we don't condone working for free in most cases, while you're still learning this can be a win-win – just make sure you're not being taken advantage of. For more tips, take a look at Creative Bloq's guide to building a portfolio from scratch, or if you've already got started, take a look at Shillington's expert tips to improve your graphic design portfolio. 03. Enrol in a design short-course Self-learning is all well and good, but the down-sides here are that this approach requires a heavy dose of self-discipline, and you're not going to end up with any kind of qualification at the end of it. For a qualification that employers will recognise, try a short course such as those offered by Shillington, a graphic design school with campuses in New York, London, Manchester, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Rather than the three or four years you need to complete a traditional university degree, Shillington's courses involve just three months of intensive study – or nine months if you have other commitments and want to go part-time. The courses are suitable for individuals with no prior design experience who want to kick-start their career, but are also very popular with those who had already studied at university, or dipped their toes in the design industry. Shillington offers a mix of different learning styles What would you be signing up for? Well, the courses are fast paced and high-energy, with the potential to totally transform your career. Experienced teachers cover everything you need to enter the industry, including design theory and technical skills, as well as that all-important design portfolio with which to impress potential employers. One benefit over other self-teaching approaches is that the learning styles are varied – there's a mix of punchy lectures, demonstrations, discussions and group workshops, to help you learn and put your skills into practice. Read more about the Shillington course here. 04. Get involved in the industry It's never too soon to start immersing yourself in the design industry. This is a great way to get a feel for the design world, soak up knowledge and make valuable connections. To start with, you want to be reading design blogs and magazines for inspiration and insights into the latest big projects. There's also plenty you can learn from the case studies on agencies' websites. Even better, start attending design events. Many cities have their own meetups for designers, and there's a rich calendar of design festivals to choose from. While these can be a little pricey, you can be sure you'll be getting a healthy dose of inspiration, networking opportunities, and practical advice all rolled into one. Finally, those a little further along in their learning should consider joining a design organisation (see Creative Bloq's guide here), many of which offer resources, events and networking opportunities to junior creatives. View the full article

A campaign first observed last year has ramped up its attack methods and appears to be linked to activity targeting President Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign. View the full article

We all have that long list of things we’d like to improve on or achieve, but sometimes life gets in the way. As creatives, it's never too late to continue learning and get started on your personal and professional objectives. And now you can brush up on the design skills you’ve wanted to refine with The Ultimate Adobe CC Training Bundle, now 98% off. With over 40 hours of content and more than 600 tutorials, this Adobe CC Training Bundle is the perfect way to get more out of the programs you already use (or are interested in using). Take a look at the best Adobe Creative Cloud deals right now The 12-course training bundle is geared toward various levels of experience, so no matter where your degree of expertise lies, you're likely to get something out of it. Master your skills in Photoshop, Indesign, Illustrator, After Effects, Animate, and so much more. There's even a course dedicated to the ins and outs of the art of web design through Adobe XD, taking you through the building blocks behind creating a responsive, user-friendly website. With tutorials to help you build your design portfolio, this popular bundle is available 24/7, allowing you to come back and visit when you need to reference a specific tool or need a spark of inspiration for your latest project. Explore the tool panels in each program and get exposed to real-life exercises that test your understanding of the content. Great for work and play, this is a gem for both the budding and seasoned creative. While lifetime access usually sells for $2,400, The Ultimate Adobe CC Training Bundle is currently price-dropped (for a limited time only) to $39 - that's a savings of 98% off. It's a great way to elevate the design artistry you already possess or start up a new career in the digital arts. Related articles: A game-changing update is coming to Adobe XD 13 best Adobe Illustrator plugins 2019 Adobe Fresco is available to download on iPad! View the full article

The predictions of renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo are often bang on the money, and if his latest report is to be believed, the tech company's troublesome butterfly keyboard will be replaced by a traditional scissor-switch mechanism in future MacBook releases. This will be a welcome update for Mac users who are currently infuriated by the laptop's butterfly keyboard setup. It's a flaw that holds back Apple's machines, even though they consistently make our list of the best laptops for graphic design. For those unfamiliar with the difference, the mechanism for the butterfly keyboard is thinner than the traditional scissor mechanism found on other devices (and looks more like a pair of butterfly wings than an overlapping pair of scissor blades). But while it moves less, a butterfly keyboard is prone to jamming. It's also louder, which isn't something you want if you're working in a quiet studio. After a non-Apple alternative? We've got you covered with our guide to the best keyboards for designers currently available right now. And if you don't mind about the keyboard and want an Apple product on the cheap, keep an eye on the upcoming Apple Black Friday deals. The best cheap Apple laptop deals in 2019 The decision to alter the keyboards would be Apple's latest admission that the butterfly mechanism just doesn't cut it. According to MacRumors, Apple has previously said: "We are aware that a small number of users are having issues with their third-generation butterfly keyboard and for that we are sorry. The vast majority of Mac notebook customers are having a positive experience with the new keyboard." News of the change also comes courtesy of MacRumors, where Kuo says that among other updates including a time-of-flight camera, future Macs "will also swap over to a scissor mechanism rather than a butterfly mechanism". The 16-inch MacBook Pro is expected to lead the way by adopting the scissor keyboard first. If you've got your fingers crossed that this will come to pass, you'll have to wait until the refreshed Apple MacBooks arrive in the second quarter of 2020. What's more, the rest of Apple's laptop lineup is due to follow suit throughout the year. Related articles: The best computer for graphic design in 2019 Apple's new MacBook Pro will come with a big screen and an even bigger price Samsung announces its answer to the MacBook Pro View the full article

Do You Know Who You Are? Well – do you? If not, there's only one place you should be heading, and that is Harry Styles' new website. Type your name in, and you'll get a personalised message from the 1D teenybopper heartthrob turned flamboyant soloist (or perhaps his marketing team). The message is rounded off with TPWK ('Treat people with kindness' – one of Styles' trademark phrases), Love H (Harry). You can see some of the Creative Bloq team's messages below. We think they're very accurate, although one of our freelancers got 'You're a bit needy, but it's OK', which he was less pleased with. He declined to screengrab. Visit the site yourself for your own personalised message, and find out a deep truth about yourself that you never knew. The site is entitled DYKWYA (Do You Know Who You Are? – HS sure loves an acronym), and speculation is raging amongst fans that it's a sign a new album is about to drop. It forms part of a wider campaign that began with some cryptic billboard advertising – a number of signs bearing the message 'Do You Know Who You Are? TPWK' began popping up. There was also this thought-provoking Tweet. So while we're partly writing this because it's Friday and it's a bit of fun, the campaign is actually pretty smart. The absence of overt branding, coupled with a drip-feed of cryptic information is a great promotional strategy that makes the most of the truly fanatical nature of Styles' fans. (Rosie would like to point out that she does not know enough about Harry Styles to say whether or not she's a fan. But that's probably because she's just so intellectual.) Read more: VW 'fixes' iconic Beatles album cover Life comes at you fast with these hilarious Spotify ads The surprising story behind the Joker logo View the full article

When it comes to UK design studios, there are many 'best of' lists, but there's only one that the industry really cares about. Every year, Computer Arts magazine publishes its UK studio rankings, selected by a panel of industry professionals on the basis of who’s doing the greatest work each year. Hitting the streets today, issue 298 of Computer Arts features profiles of all 30 winners of the 2019 rankings, and it's a must-read for anyone involved in the creative industries. With a special wraparound cover created by Superunion, this special issue focuses on the 30 best UK studios leading the way in 2019, reveals some of the projects that have earned them this honour, and digs into what makes them tick. Buy your copy of Computer Arts issue 298 And that's by no means all! Issue 298 of Computer Arts also contains a feature on what it takes to produce great packaging design for consumables, offering plenty of insight from the industry's leading practitioners. You'll also find a fascinating, in-depth interview with one of New York's finest graphic artists, Erik Jones, who chats about his recent exhibitions, his approach to his mixed- media work, and how he overcame his fear of heights to create his first mural on the side of a building. Save up to 70% on a subscription now! Elsewhere in the mag, you'll meet the creatives at Saffron who are, unusually, based around project, not location. Plus Design Bridge discuss its striking identity for the Financial Alliance for Women, and we learn how Found worked with whisky brand Ballantine’s to help launch three single malts. In our comment and analysis section, Steele & Stovell’s Bekki Stovell urges us to get soulful with our brand work, and we discuss &Walsh’s versatile new identity; whether long-term client relationships need a best-before date; and what's the best music to listen to when you're designing. All this, plus all the usual news features, reports, insights and visual inspiration from the creative industries adds up to a killer issue of Computer Arts, that you simply can't miss. Have a glance at what's inside below, and then grab your copy today. You can take a deep dive into each of the 30 studios in the 2019 UK Studio Rankings: Discover the secrets of packaging design: See the latest and greatest new work from around the globe: Meet New York artist Erik Jones: And learn about Saffron, which is structured in a somewhat unusual way We profile Saffron, which is structured in a somewhat unusual way Buy Computer Arts issue 298 or subscribe to Computer Arts magazine. Read more: Computer Arts studio rankings 2018 4 things you should NEVER do in a design studio A designer's guide to font licensing View the full article

After Apple launched two new iPad models in early 2019 – a new 10.5-inch iPad Air model and a fifth-generation iPad mini, both supporting Apple’s Pencil stylus. Add in the latest 10.2-inch iPad and there’s now a busy lineup of Apple tablets to choose from, at a range of sizes and price points. And don't forget, if you want to pick up a cheap Apple tablet, check out our guide to the best iPad Pro deals. For some illustrators, the iPad mini may be one of the more interesting additions to the family. It’s super portable – just 300g and 7.9 inches across. It’s small enough to fit into almost anything and take anywhere with you. Now that you can use Apple’s Pencil with it, this means you can combine a powerful digital tablet with a highly sensitive stylus. Check out your other drawing tablet options with our guide to the best drawing tablets. The best Apple Pencil deals of 2019 Combined with the brilliant range of drawing apps that are available for iOS – Procreate, ArtRage and SketchBook to name but three – and the iPad mini is clearly a unique creative product. The downside of this portability is, of course, a smaller screen area. Drawing on a larger tablet is a completely different experience, and perhaps better for more complicated work. And it’s worth highlighting that the new iPad mini only supports the first-generation Pencil, which is just as precise as the newer stylus, but lacks its magnetic wireless charging and double-tap action. (Note that the newest version of Apple’s stylus still only works with the latest iPad Pro.) When the new Photoshop launches for iOS, the iPad could become far more useful than merely a means of sketching on the go There’s zero compromise on performance, though. This latest version is the first iPad mini update in four years, upgrading its ageing Apple A8 processor with the powerful A12 Bionic CPU and coming with 3GB of RAM and either 64 or 256GB of on-board storage. Rest assured, the device will be more than capable of running even the most advanced illustration tools, and its high level of performance will no doubt be welcome when Adobe launches its reworked Photoshop for iOS later this year, which will bring the whole experience of drawing much closer to the desktop experience. That includes full support for layering and a cloud-based file system that will enable you to put the tablet down and then pick up wherever you left off on your PC or Mac. With its boost in processing power the iPad mini is more than capable of handling video-editing duties There have been a few other subtle changes, too. Although the iPad mini’s external design and bezel sizes remain unchanged since the very first model in 2012, and the screen has the same 2,048x1,536 and 326 PPI resolution as last time, it’s now fully laminated. This is better for working in sunlight, supporting Apple’s True Tone image-adjustment and P3 wide colour. Although the more powerful iPad Pro remains our first choice for illustration, it’s expensive. The iPad mini is significantly cheaper and a more portable device, but we realise that screen size is about personal preference, and what you think you’ll be using a tablet for. You could also consider the new 10.2-inch iPad. Certainly, for sketching duties while out and about, Apple’s latest mini is more than up to the task in hand. This article was originally published in ImagineFX, the world's best-selling magazine for digital artists. Subscribe to ImagineFX. Read more: The best iPad apps for designers View the full article

It's that time again! After canvassing creative directors, studio founders and design course leaders from all across the UK, Computer Arts magazine is delighted to reveal the results of the sixth-annual UK Studio Rankings. You'll need to buy the latest issue (298, on sale today) of the magazine to get the full details of each studio and the work that led them to win. But here on Creative Bloq, we can reveal the positions each studio gained on 2019's list (compare it to the 2018 UK Studio Rankings here). The peer-judged UK Studio Rankings aren't about size, longevity or the number of other awards you've won; it's purely about the work you've done in the last 12 months. Being selected by your peers in this way is clearly, then, a huge honour, so read on to learn the studios that made this year's list... Buy your copy of Computer Arts issue 298 today 30. Sawdust Client work for Another Planet Entertainment Founded: 2006 Number of staff: 2 A new entry on our list, one of the biggest work highlights for Sawdust in 2019 was collaborating with Apple to pay homage to the Apollo 11 mission on its 50th anniversary. 29. Kellenberger-White Identity work for Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art. Founded: 2009 Number of staff: 5 Another new entry to the UK Studio Rankings, recent projects for Kellenberger-White include identities for Goldsmiths CCA and Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art; exhibition design for the V&A; and books for gallery Hauser & Wirth. 28. Rose Design Campaign work for Bletchley Park Founded: 1999 Number of staff: 6 full-time, 2 part-time Recently profiled in Computer Arts, Rose Design is a new entry on our list this year, just as it celebrates 20 years in business. "“We still get a buzz from solving problems for clients through creativity,” says owner Simon Elliott. 27. Droga5 Identity campaign for London's Coal Drops Yard Founded: 2016 Number of staff: 7 A further new entry to the UK Studio Rankings is Droga5, who this year launched a visual identity and campaign for Coal Drops Yard, as well as creating work for The Tide in Greenwich Peninsula. =25. OMSE Campaign work for Printworks Autumn/Winter 2019 Founded: 2016 Number of staff: 6 Joint 25th place this year goes to new entry OMSE; another highlight in the year it received a Campaign Awards Best-In-Show, for its Agenda 2020 Augmented Reality project. =25. Graphic Thought Facility Blink by Anna Fox Founded: 1990 Number of staff: 14 Sharing 25th place this year is Graphic Thought Facility, which this year had two projects at Milan Design, and also played a big role in the launch of London hotel The Standard. 24. dn&co Branding work created for The Royal Docks, London Founded: 2006 Number of staff: 25 2019 has seen new entry dn&co. working on projects of greater scale and visibility, including The Royal Docks identity and The V&A wayfinding project. 23. Turner Duckworth Turner Duckworth's visual identity work for creative organisation D&AD Founded: 1992 Number of staff: 110 Turner Duckworth is also a new entry on the UK Studio Rankings list for 2019, a year that saw the studio rebrand McDonald’s global visual identity. 22. Magpie Branding for Senser Spirits Founded: 2008 Number of staff: 11 Magpie has been doing some fine work in the hospitality sector this year, including the identity for Ryan Chetiyawardana's new Amsterdam bar, Super Lyan. 21. Studio Moross Poster for Parklife 2019 Founded: 2012 Number of staff: 10 Working on the world Tour for the reformed Spice Girls was a big highlight of 2019 for Kate Moross, director of new entry Studio Moross. 20. Here Design Identity for Get Up, Stand Up Now Founded: 2005 Number of staff: 37 Here Design has been busy throughout 2019 with projects including branding for The Fife Arms Hotel and the Get Up, Stand Up Now exhibition at Somerset House, 19. FIELD Motion work for distillery Alisa Bay Founded: 2009 Number of staff: 10 full time + freelancers in London, 2 full time + freelancers in Berlin Another new entry, FIELD is now celebrating its 10th anniversary, and its 2019 highlight was crafting the identity for IBM’s Think Conference. 18. Made Thought Campaign work for Editions de Parfums Founded: 2000 Number of staff: 40 Headline projects for Made Thought in 2019 have included work for Adidas StellaSport, Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle and Fred Perry. 17. APFEL (A Practice for Everyday Life) Exhibition work for Eva Rothschild Founded: 2003 Number of staff: 6 APFEL has been commissioned to design two pavilion identities for the Venice Biennale this year, working with Leonor Antunes and Eva Rothschild. 16. Supple Studio Branding and packaging for Ubiety Founded: 2013 Number of staff: 6 Favourite projects by Supple Studio in 2019 have included a branded packaging range for Dorothy House Hospice Care, a brand and wayfinding system for the Minster Mill hotel, and its first project for the National Trust. 15. Office of Craig Oldham A spread from They Live for Rough Trade Books Founded: 2007 Number of staff: 2-4 In 2019, Office of Craig Oldham projects have including pilot initiatives for British Cycling with Ellen Ling, and working for the V&A with Hannah Warrick. 14. GBH identity for SailGP Founded: 1999 Number of staff: 20 New in at number 14, GBH (aka Gregory Bonner Hale) engaged new hotel and restaurant work throughout 2019, for clients including Mob Hotel in Paris, Stay KooooK in Bern, and Amor in Milan. 13. North Manchester International Festival 2019 branding Founded: 1995 Number of staff: 15 In 2019, North has won both new business in Australia, Thailand and South Korea, and plaudits for its work for Norway’s Munch Museum. 12. DixonBaxi Branding for Fox Sports Founded: 2001 Number of staff: 30 DixonBaxi has been doing a lot of digital-heavy brand work in 2019, for clients including Amazon, AT&T, BBC, IMAX and AC Milan. 11. Pentagram London Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition Founded: 1972 Number of staff: Medium Big projects for the UK office of Pentagram in 2019 have included work for John Lewis Partnership, London Fashion Week and Opera Ballet of Flandres in Belgium. 10. Accept & Proceed Accept & Proceed worked on Nike House of Innovation Founded: 2007 Number of staff: 24 A new entry into the top 10 this year, Accept & Proceed has won the admiration of its peers from across the design industry thanks to recent high-profile work for Nike and NASA. "Peer recognition is a wonderful thing," says executive creative director David Johnston. "We are very proud of our work over the past 13 years, and so very grateful to be seen for all we are delivering." 09. Universal Everything What is Universal Everything? is the studio’s own archiving project in book form Founded: 2004 Number of staff: 2 + 10 regular freelancers For an out-of-London studio to make the top 10 is a rare feat. But Sheffield-based Universal Everything has managed it in 2019, a year that included the release of its first monograph, published by Unit Editions and designed by fellow Top 10 agency Spin. "Being outside of London means we consider every collaborator, client and fan as a global connection," says founder Matt Pyke. "This has given us a global outlook from the start." 08. Taxi Studio Bottle design for Carlsberg Founded: 2002 Number of staff: 47 Following its global rebrand of Carlsberg, and being crowned Creative Pool Independent Agency of the Year, Bristol-based Taxi Studio has also managed to crack the London monopoly over the top 10. "The role of our design thinking, combined with our deep knowledge of brand, has never been more powerful," says co-founder Spencer Buck. 07. Spin Poster for Under The Silver Lake Founded: 1992 Number of staff: 6 With a dramatic rise of 17 places in this year’s UK Studio Rankings, it's been a great year for Spin, in which highlights have included working for MUBI, Neri Oxman, Wallpaper* and Apple. For 2020, there are a lot of things they can't talk about, but "the next 12 months is going to be massive for us," says founder Tony Brook. "Onwards and upwards." 06. Paul Belford Studio Paul Belford Studio’s design work for Hair Solutions Founded: 2013 Number of staff: 6 (3 are part-time) Paul Belford Studio is our highest new entry this year, leaping in at number 6. Why? "I’d like to think it’s the quality of our work," says its eponymous founder. "We tend not to enter creative awards. We make an exception for D&AD, but usually just a token two or three projects to keep the cost down." Despite this, it seems that 2019 is the year the studio's peers sat up and took notice. 05. Commission Studio Design work for FENTY Founded: 2013 Number of staff: 8 Another huge climber in this year’s UK Studio Rankings, Commission has shot up 14 places into the top five. Recent highlights for the studio have included launching Rihanna’s fashion brand FENTY. "We feel proud that people see and like our work," says co-founder Christopher Moorby. "Hopefully, it means a wider audience is starting to see it too." 04. Studio Sutherl& Branding for St Albans Museum + Gallery Founded: 2014 Number of staff: 2 Having topped the UK Studio Rankings for two consecutive years, Studio Sutherl& has stayed firmly in the top five this year. It's currently working on a new Human Atlas project in Detroit with Marcus Lyon, as well as a music venue in London, a stately home in Yorkshire and a new environmental charity, to name but a few projects. "We put joy into every project that comes our way, and that joy comes out the other end somehow," says founder Jim Sutherland. 03. NB Studio NB Studio’s design work for ANNA Founded: 1998 Number of staff: 15 NB Studio has shot up the UK Studio Rankings dramatically in 2019, rising 25 places to take the third-place spot. It's a great achievement in the year of its 21st birthday, when it's also invested in new premises in Southwark. "We can’t thank our friends in the design world enough for their support," says co-founder Alan Dye. "Hopefully, this represents a vote for simplicity, empathy and impact through design." 02. JKR JKR’s branding work created for Athrú Founded: 1990 Number of staff: 140 (UK) JKR wins the exalted second place in the UK Studio Rankings, in a year that's seen the agency broaden its horizons, working in the sustainability space for Miller Harris, creating branding for Irish distillery Athrú, and designing Budweiser’s new offices. "We believe a great idea can come from anywhere, and always look for opportunities to share briefs amongst the wider studio," says executive creative director Sean Thomas. "That’s led to some of the most exciting work for us over the past 12 months." 01. Superunion Superunion’s work for BBC Two Founded: 2018 Number of staff: 181 (UK) Ever since five WPP Group agencies joined forces in early 2018, the resulting company, Superunion, has gone from strength to strength. Winning Best of Show at the Brand Impact Awards for the second year running with its BBC Two rebrand – which also scooped a D&AD Yellow Pencil earlier this year – topping the UK Studio Rankings in 2019 is the icing on the cake for the global branding powerhouse. "This is really special for us all for two reasons," says chief creative officer Greg Quinton. "First, because we just didn’t expect anything like this so soon as a ‘new’ agency. It’s been less than two years since we launched and to be honest it’s the first year where our work reflects Superunion. "Second, it’s amazing to think what we’re doing appears to be clicking and that our peers appear to like the new work. It’s been a roller coaster in the pitch black, so any recognition is a ray of light in the tunnel! Thanks peers!" For the full lowdown on this year's UK Studio Rankings, don't miss the latest issue of Computer Arts, the world's best-selling design magazine. Buy issue 298 or subscribe to Computer Arts. Read more: 5 sure-fire signs you're a designer Rockstar designers share the objects that made them 5 winning personality traits all studios are looking for View the full article

A hacker is selling the email addresses of 250,000 users of a Dutch sex-work forum -- data that researchers say could be used for blackmail. View the full article

Who doesn't want to make a saving on the latest iPad? Apple released its new entry-level device only a month ago, but you can already grab a discount on it when you buy from Amazon. There's a small $29 saving to be had on the 128GB version, and while it's not quite as impressive as the best Black Friday iPad deals, every little helps when it comes to buying an Apple device. That's right, when you order from Amazon, you can purchase the 10.2-inch display, 128GB iPad 2019 for $399.99, down from the normal price of $429. And that's not all, the 11-inch iPad Pro is also available at a discount price, with Amazon knocking it down from $799 to $674. That's a much bigger saving of $125 on a device that's perfect for digital artists looking to pick up an Apple tablet on the cheap. The best iPad Pro deals in 2019 The 10.2-inch 2019 iPad is touted as an entry-level Apple device, and it's perfectly optimised to deliver a superior viewing experience for films, TV shows and online videos. It's even packed with Apple's A10 Fusion processor, so you know that it will load social media feeds, emails and writing documents smoothly. What's more, it's even compatible with the Apple Pencil. You will need to by one separately, but we've got you covered with the best Apple Pencil deals of 2019. The 2019 iPad comes with Apple's new iPadOS, which includes a dark mode, mouse support and a swipeable keyboard. It also has a battery life that lasts for up to 10 hours. If you're after something a little more powerful, the 11-inch iPad Pro could be just what you're after. With Apple's A12X Bionic processor, it packs more of a punch, and allows graphic designers to bring their ideas to life. Just like the iPad 2019, it offers up to 10 hours of battery life. This device also comes with a Liquid Retina display with ProMotion, True Tone and wide colour. A 12MP back camera and 7MP TrueDepth front camera tops off this impressive tablet. Still not quite what you're after? Check out these other iPad deals. Related articles: 18 iPad Pro apps designed for Apple Pencil iPad Air (2019) review The best iPad deals on all models View the full article