Additional Resources

During my presentation I referenced a number of resources that you can use to learn more about graphic design trends. To make your life easier, I've collected them all here.
​The Actual Slide Deck
​Here's the slide deck I used for this presentation. The PPT file also includes my full speakers notes:
​

Creating Your Own Images

Tips
  • Are you absolutely, completely convinced you can't draw at all? Go watch this video.
  • Drawing In Powerpoint (Part 1): Here's a very basic tutorial video on using PowerPoint to create a simple graphic.
  • Drawing In Powerpoint (Part 2): Once you get comfortable with the basics, try this just slightly more complex tutorial on using PowerPoint to draw a folder.
  • Drawing In Powerpoint (Part 3): Finally, here's a more advanced tutorial on how to use PowerPoint to draw a TV graphic.
  • Creating/Editing Graphics in PowerPoint: Here's a great article on how PowerPoint can be easier (and as effective) as Photoshop for some situations - PowerPoint Is Better Than Photoshop.

​Apps & Tools
  • Assembly: This app allows you to put together graphics using premade shapes, so even if you couldn't draw a stick figure to save your life, you can still make amazing images with this.
  • Paper by 53: Wow, do I love this drawing app! If you want something a bit more tutorial-like, check out the very helpful Mastering Paper blog. Android users should check out the app Paperless as an alternative to this and then next app.
  • Tayasui Sketches: The user interface for this app is just charming!
  • Styluses! My two recommendations are the Pencil by 53 and the Jot Pro. If you have an iPad Pro, also check out the Apple Pencil.

Taking Your Own Photos

Tips
  • The Fix: How To Take Incredible photos With Your Phone - This video gives you a lot of tips on how to use your smartphone camera more effectively. Plus, it also has a cool DIY project on creating a tripod mount for your phone!
  • 10 Sure-Fire Tips for Creating Your Own Stock Photos: No surprise, the awesome people at Articulate have an article on taking your own photos too!
  • Want more information on using the Rule of Thirds to help you take more interesting-looking photos? Check out this article.
  • While this video on lighting gives you a few professional camera tips you might not need, but it's also a great walk through on general (and cheap!) lighting tips. Plus, it's a great example of three point lighting.
  • If you want a more detailed look at three point lighting, here's a helpful video. It's showing professional lighting equipment, but you can still emulate this technique with the stuff you have at home.

Apps & Tools
  • Composition Cam: An amazing guide for helping you master visually engaging photo and video layouts.
  • Instagram (iOS and Android): It's not just for pictures of brunch! It's also surprisingly effective at easy to use photo correction. 
  • Camera+: This app both assists you with taking awesome photos and is a powerhouse of fast edits afterwards. Unfortunately it isn't available for Android, but the next app is a great alternative.
  • Snapseed (iOS and Android): Good for taking photos, amazing for editing them!
  • Color Change.r: Ever wanted to highlight a specific item in a photo? This app allows you to quickly isolate sections of an image to stay in color and turn everything else black & white. Android users can try Color Touch Effects instead.
  • ComicBook!: This app takes your photos and, using filters and pre-created effects, turns them in to comic panels. Another similar iOS app that's also enjoyable is Comic Life (which also comes in a more robust Mac/Windows version as well). The pickings seem to be a bit slimmer on Android, but Comic Strip It! Pro may be an acceptable substitute.
  • Retype, Wordswag, and PicLab: Fantastic for adding text and effects to photos. There are new versions of apps like this coming out all the time too.
  • Layout (iOS and Android): Want to put together a photo collage? This free app makes it incredibly easy.

Filming Your Own Videos

Apps & Tools
  • Adobe Spark Video: Probably the easiest and fastest tool I know of for creating animated videos. I ADORE this app.​
  • Quik (iOS and Android): If you've ever needed to put together a bunch of photos and/or videos into a single slide show style video, this app makes it super easy.
  • iMovie: The default video app on iOS is quite sturdy. If you're looking for basic editing on the go, it's a great fit. Android users may want to check out WeVideo as an alternative.

Making Your Own Fonts

Apps & Tools
  • Start with the app itself: iFontMaker.
  • Want to play with the font I made? In case you missed the link up top, here it is again. It's released under a public domain license, so you can use it completely for free.
  • Another option for creating your own fonts is a web-based service called Calligraphr. All you do is print out their font template and fill it out by hand, upload a photo of your completed template to their website, and they'll create a font based on it.

Extras

  • For times when you just need a design asset right away but don't have much (if anything) to spend on it, be sure to check out the Pinterest board of cheap/free design assets I've been curating over the last few years.