MLB gets tough with Little Leaguers (Nice job)

It’s springtime and for many parents, that means it’s time to get your kids away from the video games and out doing some throwin’, catchin’, hittin’ and runnin’. Most little leagues are either gearing up for, or have already started another season of baseball. One of my sons is playing his third season and he has moved up to the Minor C division, which means there are some changes he needs to adapt to. Namely, the kids are now pitching (no more pitching machine) and the field has a grass infield so ground balls act differently than if they were bouncing across only dirt. And there was one other change that took a lot of people by surprise…

The NFL Punts, Gains Bland Super Bowl Logo (And the Best Logos of Past Games)

With the all-time high popularity of pro football, helped in part by the colorful cast of characters both on the field and on the various NFL shows, the league has decided that the best way to capture the excitement and unpredictable nature of the game is to… drum roll please… punctuate the championship game by standardizing the Super Bowl logo as a bland, lifeless identity.

I suppose the logo, in and of itself, is nice enough. But, after yesterday’s game and some of the thrilling finishes of the last few years, it hardly seems like a logo worthy of a day that has become an unofficial holiday to some.

Since I am a designer who has an affinity for logos and identity design, I may be more sensitive to this than most. In fact, many may let out a collective yawn and wonder why I’m getting my knickers in a twist about it.

The NEA Asks for Spec Work

Well… um… OK.

This was brought to my attention by a tweet from Jeff Fisher at Logo Motives. You can read the original RFP here. 23 pages of legal-speak that could probably be condensed to 5 pages if it wasn’t written by the government. Thanks for the heads-up, Jeff. I found it particularly irritating that the design they are seeking embodies three different ideas, one of them being that artists (or designers) are a real part of our economy. Yeah, but not enough a part of the economy that the NEA will pay them for their work.

Anyway, this stuck in my craw enough to write an email to the NEA (National Endowment for the Arts not the National Education Association) telling

Quotes of the Day, Jan 26, 2010

To add some emphasis to the previous post, from Clients From Hell:

“Oh, actually we already paid a company to design it in Photoshop. We just need you to click a few buttons and put it on the web. We figure it should only take a couple of hours, so we can pay you $10 an hour.”

“I need 365 all-new, original ‘Far-Side’-esque cartoons for a daily calendar. I can pay $200.”

“This estimate can’t be right! I saw this guy draw the whole Mona Lisa on Youtube in like five minutes. There’s no way you should have to charge me this much to do a ten page website!”

“I’m not paying you anything extra to do the website because it is simply a matter of pushing the right buttons. I know how to push buttons.”

How Not to Ask for Help

I look at Craisglist periodically. I look not only in the hopes of finding a rare gem of a client, but also for the entertainment value of some of the listings.

I’ve previously posted about a job found on Craigslist earlier. I found two more that could use some comment.

Looking for someone who designs flyers
Lowest bid gets the gig

• Location: Santa Ana
• it’s NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
• Compensation: no pay

So basically, this guy is looking anyone who will do this job for nothing. No portfolio review. No experience needed. No demonstrated competence at all. While it may be true that this guy needs a simple flyer that he’s going to copy and litter people’s windshields with, why is he

Friday Roundup

It’s Friday so I’ll wind down the week by linking to some things you may find useful.

Chris Spooner has a list of 20 different Photoshop actions to add different photo/processing effects to your images.

Brian McDaniel has some insight on working at home over at Freelancefolder.com.

Logo Design Love shows how difficult it can be to create a unique logo.

If you are among those looking for work, Tim’s Strategy may help you in the evolving world of job hunting.