Month: May 2023

Again, I am two weeks late submitting this blog assignment. My apologies, I will be on time going forward. Our guest speakers, Spencer Glenn and Todd Duboraw, are SCCA alum currently working at Brooks Running.

For last week’s blog assignment, we were asked to research jobs based on the discussion that occurred during the presentation by our guest speakers. Firstly, we need to research the difference between freelance, part-time, contract/agency and full-time work in the design industry.

For freelance work, there are some pros that are appealing. There is a lot more flexibility for freelance designers, and they can achieve better work-life balance. There can also be more variety in the projects they take on, and can work in several fields at once. As for cons, there are no benefits (health insurance, retirement plan) unless you set those up yourself, lack of job security, and you have to constantly track invoices, taxes, and keep up with your clients.

For part-time work, there is also more flexibility when compared to full-time work, as you won’t be tied down to a 40 hour work week. The cons can include less income, fewer benefits, as some jobs require full-time hours to be eligible, and companies may cut down on part-time roles when layoffs come around.

For contract work, some may see a benefit to not being tied down to a specific employer. When your contract runs out, you can be placed with another workplace. If you find a place that you enjoy while doing contract work, there can be possibilities for your role converting to a full-time position. This can be a way to get your foot in the door. The cons can be that you are more expendable to a company, and conversions to full-time roles are a bit hard to come by. I noticed that where I work currently (I work as a security guard (contract) at a big tech company), that contract roles aren’t given the same benefits as their full-time counterparts. They are even excluded from company gatherings and perks, which can be quite demoralizing. Depending on the role, some contractors do the same work as their full-time counterparts, but miss out on these perks. (I do understand that there are legal reasons for distinguishing full-time employees from contract employees, in regards to office perks.)

Lastly, full-time roles offer benefits of more job security, benefits, and more opportunities to grow your career in a company. The cons can include less flexibility, as you are tied down to a full-time schedule. You will also be doing more specific work, which means there will likely be less variety and room to explore.

Since my last name falls into the H-P range, I was tasked with finding three job postings for Contract/Agency work.

Graphic Designer (12-Month Fixed Term Contract)
at The Pokémon Company International
Bellevue, WA
https://boards.greenhouse.io/pokemoncareers/jobs/5555296003?rx_source=Linkedin&rx_paid=1&source=LinkedIn

UX Designer 2/ UI Motion Designer – Onsite (Contract) at TekSystems, Redmond, WA
https://careers.teksystems.com/us/en/job/JP-003733075/UX-Designer-2-UI-Motion-Designer-Onsite?utm_source=Recruitics&utm_medium=equest&s_id=4106&icid=indeed_recruitics&rx_campaign=indeed22&rx_ch=jobp4p&rx_group=146936&rx_job=JP-003733075&rx_r=none&rx_source=Indeed&rx_ts=20230509T000052Z&rx_vp=cpc&rx_medium=cpc&rx_p=7JH8PXV9QY&rx_viewer=b6de21a4ee1811edb45a6362e479f31fdee13e1ee25448908069912a6d89fba4

Mid-Level UX Designer at UpTop – Contract, Remote (U.S.)
https://uptopcorp.com/careers/ux-designer/

My apologies, as I am responding to this blog assignment three weeks late.

Three weeks ago, we were joined by photographer (and SCCA alum) Cameron Karsten, who spoke about his journey and showed us the projects he takes on for companies like Garmin and Camelbak. He also walked us through a project he commissioned: a rebranding of his personal brand and website. He worked with a local design firm, and gave us insight into the types of stuff we will be delivering to our clients when we enter the field, which was incredibly interesting.

Cameron also talked about how he finds inspiration for his work, and how looking at patterns, textures, shapes, etc has helped him define his style.

For the blog post, we were tasked to shoot five images that fit into one of these categories. I decided to choose patterns.

Three weeks ago, we were joined by photographer and SCCA alum, Cameron Karsten. He shared his journey with us and showcased various projects he has undertaken for clients such as Garmin and Camelbak. Cameron also took us through a commissioned project where he worked closely with a local design firm to rebrand his personal brand and website. This provided valuable insights into the kinds of deliverables we will be producing for our clients when we enter the field.

In addition, Cameron discussed how he finds inspiration for his work, explaining that observing patterns, textures, shapes, and other elements has helped him in defining his own style.

For our blog post assignment, we were challenged to capture five images that fall into these categories. I haven’t been outside much lately, so the range is a bit limited.

(WordPress wasn’t uploading my photos, so I have attached a Dropbox link. Captions are below, in order of photos from left to right.)

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nhvw6625ft1al26/AABS857l584LPY8QARJdBweta?dl=0

Photo 1 – Pattern on a “macawiis”, a commonly worn clothing item in Somalia (my home country). Very comfortable and casual.

Photo 2 – Live moss wall at my workplace.

Photo 3 – Grooved texture on my mouse, gives a nice tactile feel.

Photo 4 – Pattern on rolled up rugs in my house. I believe they are Persian inspired.

Photo 5 – Speaker grill on my headphones.