KevinKeeganPro.com Blog

So the ninth issue for Wrecked Magazine and the sixth issue for me, is complete. This one was on a time crunch as usual, with a week and a half to the due date, I just scraped by. We needed it out within a week of the Long Beach Formula D opening event.

In the last two issues, I’ve incorporated shots from my D90 into the layouts. They help with story telling and assist with text organization and flow. With this issue, I was able to use two. One was for the Formula D preview; the section contains relatively tight lipped info regarding cars being built for the 2009 Formula D season.

And the other was for 2009 Formula D Predictions. My fiance and copy editor for Wrecked Magazine, Ashley, brainstormed a bit for this one. Other ideas that came up were a poker theme or dice, a crystal ball and even a justice scale. But in the end I opted for the fortune cookie. It was cheaper to do and with the cookies and use of a spare rim and falken tire I had in my garage, it came together rather well considering the time frame I was working with. And it never hurts to utilize an advertisers product in a spread.

I’ve definitely noticed a shift in my design direction with the last issue or two. I’m leaning towards using the photography in its relatively untouched state rather than creating graphics that in the end, take away from the photo. This is probably due towards my increasing interest in photography in my personal work. I still feel there is an appropriate time to use graphics. For instance, the Tanner Foust spread from Issue 6, where I wanted to put the “focus” on him, as a driver. I always try and apply an appropriate theme that a series of spreads requires, whether it be a graphical focal point to draw the viewer to the subject of the article or a simple fortune cookie to represent “predictions.”

So recently I have picked up some freelance work from various sources and I’m in need of some pricing. This has always been a tough subject for me and have always ended up just blurting out a price for the most part, just so I didn’t lose the client/job. Well no more, I’m finally taking some time to investigate and do some research into the subject.

One other issue that is more unique to my situation is that I do more than just one type of work. I’m not referring to say, logo design and brochure design…more along the lines of graphic design, videography, 2D animation and video editing. So can I ask the typical question, “Should I charge hourly or by project”? (Here’s a great article refering to just that…) The answer is yes and no. I’m going to have determine by which means each service is to be priced.

Here is what I’ve found so far -
http://justcreativedesign.com/2009/02/26/how-much-to-charge-for-design-work/

My friend Sean ask me to do a little header design for our local On The Border restaurant that he manages. It’s going to be used for a poster, below this will be a schedule of sorts for the kitchen crew.

I came across this on Geekologie.com. This thing is sweet. It is the ultimate combination of mixed media I have ever seen. Art and machine combined.

[Original Pics]

Often times I turn to books, magazines, or anything else I happen to come across for ideas. Joey, from Wrecked Magazine, pointed out and poked fun a little bit at my taking of random pics with my blackberry’s camera. The truth of the matter is, you never know what or where inspiration may come from. It doesn’t have to come from one particular image or scene that you come across but… that one image or scene could just help add that missing element in a project you’ve been working on.

But other than pictures I take, one of the main sources I have been using lately to get creatively inspired is this series of books. I have two so far, 1000 Type Treatments and 1000 Graphical Elements, both put together by Wilson Harvey and published by Rockport Publishing. They offer such a diverse range of real world works that you’ll never have a creative dry spell again. Check them out.