Money and art

[jon404]

What's your take on the best-paid graphic art jobs?

A few years ago, at the height of the boom, I learned to my delight that the companies that prepare stock-market IPOs pay a lot for artwork (investment bankers, financial printers). Also law firms on big-money corporate lawsuits. And, here in southern California, there's a current mini-boom for graphic artists to convert older movies like 'Bambi' into 3D [ Bambi Goes Ballistic? ] ...and continuing good graphics work in the military-industrial complex, e.g. Predator mission simulations. Take that, Bin Laden!

As a rule, jobs with a really tight, absolutely fixed deadline pay much better than others. And the customer has no time to make stupid changes or to play designer. You can charge more for an ad with an upcoming publication date than you can for a brochure with a flexible deadline. And some industries are just plain richer than others. Aerospace, cellular, pharmaceuticals vs. production art for your local newspaper...

Anyway, what have you run into? What pays the most money for the least work?

As a starting place, found this on the web today -- top five graphics jobs, they say:

"1. Graphic Designer for the Executive Branch of the United States Government: That’s right, the President of the United States has a team of graphic designers. These people receive the highest salaries out of any graphic designers in the country, not to mention the fact that you get to do graphic design for the President himself, making this job number one on the list of the top graphic design jobs and career pathways.

2. Animator: Companies like Pixar have really set the bar high when it comes to animated movies, and getting a chance to work with professionals who have been in the industry years is a great way to do what you love.

3. Video Game Artist: Getting to work on modern video games will allow graphic designers to really show their skills, and a huge array of different designers is needed for any given game. There are animators, modelers, concept artists, interface artists, FMV animators, and on and on. Working on games is a popular and lucrative business.

4. Web Design: There is always a huge demand for web design artists, and being at the forefront of electronic media is definitely a cool job.

5. Corporate Graphic Design: Designing things like corporate logos, the looks of different products, and even company stationary is a well-paid and fun position."

... and I'd add graphics for eLearning ... corporate training ... to the list. E-learning production always runs over budget and past deadline and they will throw money at the project trying to keep it on track.

[Albacore]

Gosh the difference between the UK and the states is enormous.
Web design for dynamic sites has seen a huge drop in price because of the increase in the use of open sourced CMS programmes where all sites just about look the same. The only increase web work here is in the programming area in PHP and the like, or if you want to call it web development.
Yes I agree with tour statement on video games but the companies are looking for degree's in the subjects not your average graphic designer.
With the global market companies are now looking every where for artists so local jobs are fewer.
I use to work for a Scottish national paper with a 2,000,000 circulation everyday with 12 in my office, when I left it was down to 4 and now there are only 2. The adverts now are done in India and most of the rest is sub'ed out.
Sorry to sound so negative but it is what I have witnessed over the past 6 years.

[handrawn]

Hi Jon

I have moved your thread to graphics chat as it is a general topic and not xara designer specific

[jon404]

Albacore -- always remember that you are unique and that your talent is unique. It's about you, nobody else. And even though an employer will want to pay as little as possible, in the end it's always about the skills you have that they need right now -- and so the more in-person sales pitches you can make, the better. Don't sell over the internet; some guy in Pakistan or India will always work for less. Sell in person, sell the advantages of working with you locally right now instead of with some well-meaning but incompetent idiot half a world away.

And think about this: communication is always about text and images. Words and pictures. Now, you've got the art side down pat, but what about the words? Can you write? An ad? A brochure? A user manual? Website text? Suddenly, if you can write a bit, you are really adding a lot of value to the deal. You can go after jobs that involve writing as well as artwork. And, if you move to really develop your writing skills, you'll find your income rocketing upwards. Here in the US, there are lots of excellent low-cost junior colleges that teach English composition. Take a course or two! The mildly uncomfortable experience of sitting in a classroom being forced to write something is a great accelerator to develop your talent. Discomfort = rapid learning, unless it's about XML, which is like being hit in the head by a 2x4 (US wood beam). Remember that it's about you ... your skills -- the employer doesn't care whether you went to Harvard or Oxford or an unknown junior college ... it's only about if you have the skills and can get the job done right now.

Forget the newspaper. As we say here, they're toast. Go to ad agencies that specialize in print ads. When they tell you to get lost, ask why. Dig deep -- nobody ever really cares what school you went to... either they don't have any money to hire someone new, or there's something about your portfolio that isn't connecting, or you are spending too much time talking about yourself and too little getting them talking about what they need, what their problems are.

And sell using the old MG car slogan -- 'Quality, fast' -- one of the best ad slogans I've ever heard and it sure works for graphic artists!

[gwpriester]

It has little to do with what your job description or even who your employer is and has more to do with your talent, your education and your previous experience.

[jon404]

Thinking further about Albacore's situation... where the recession has disintegrated a lot of good jobs and it doesn't look like they are coming back. Plus, the ease of use of programs like Xara Web Designer will increase the number of people calling themselves multimedia designers, just like the advent of auto-exposure small cameras made everyone an expert photographer. And, now ten years after we basically invented the 'standards' of web design, the university weenies are actually teaching this stuff and some large employers do indeed look for degrees for a field that didn't even exist a few years ago.

But. However! There's always a bright spot ... and, for artists, it's both 'follow the money' (look for rich industries, like pharmaceuticals and military contractors) and also -- maybe more importantly -- get involved with brand new cutting-edge industries. What's going on in molecular medicine? Nanobots? You 20-somethings out there are a lot more tuned in about this than I am, that's for sure. Who's making the graphics for all these cell phone apps? Guy I know via Starbucks, he's writing apps in C+ for the Apple phone, and he's no artist! These folks need help, bigtime!!! So. Find out what's new. Wherever you live, there's a university with some bright people doing something new. And they need your help creating the graphics and presentations to teach others about their new thing and also to sell it, to raise money via a financial roadshow, maybe an IPO. Graphics! And text (learn to write).

One last thing. If all else fails, but you really like to draw, move to Hollywood and become a storyboard artist. You'll make a lot per hour, but only about $50-60K per year since you won't be working non-stop all year. But talk about a fun job! And this is one area where computers are too slow -- sorry, Xara -- because you have to sketch on the spot, on the set, fast, lots of changes, to help the director visualize different shots with different lenses. The really big payoff? When you show your Paramount lot pass to your friends, and they all, like, go OMG,OMG, OMG.

[handrawn]

.... instead of with some well-meaning but incompetent idiot half a world away....

please do not tell all the people I work for in the US that I am an idiot!

[gray]

I don't want to be a wet blanket but I don't think you'll get rich in the art side of things either traditional or digital. There just isn't a big market for art now unless there is a celebrity name attached to it. There's a lot of talent out there and little of it catches a glimpse. Great as a hobby but difficult to make a living at.

[Magnatude]

Just do what you like to do and be the best you can, learn what you can from others and take what you learn and apply it to your own artwork (what ever it is).

My approach was this way, and people notice. I work in the Role-playing Game industry as well as create Scifi artwork which has even been presented in NASA articles.
But, I never did approach "Graphics" as being a job, it was a hobby for a long time... its just weird that I now get paid to do what I like to do and not what someone "forces" me to do.
I still keep to my main career which keeps me strong, active, and healthy (Tile-Setter/Custom Mosaics) therefore I can enjoy a relaxing time in front of the computer when times are slow, and put that enjoyment into my creations.

I guess my point is, you don't have to shlog-it-out doing something for someone else... you can do stuff you really like and enjoy, and if you can emit that joy through your work, people will also enjoy it and want to own it.

I can see how dead-line stress can add up, especially when you might count on graphics to be your main flow of cash.

[gray]

I think you hit the nail on the head there, Magnatude.