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Introduction Icon For designer


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A Picture Tells a Thousand Words

With roots stretching as far back as the 1970s, the humble icon has come a long way. Evolving from black and white representations of office items into beautifully rendered illustrations of objects, symbols, characters and the same office items from the very beginning, icons have become a visual language that is understood the world over.


Where a picture will tell a thousand words, a computer icon informs, educates and reassures its audience. Because icons are used for such specific purposes, creating a successful icon design is more of a science than an art.

 I came to icon design almost by accident. My first year out from University, I was hired to work in-house for a software company who needed an icons and UI illustrator. With two degrees in Multimedia and Communication Design and a portfolio of digital illustration, I stood out as a good candidate for the job.

I had never given icon design much thought beyond the occasional replacement set, but knowing that this was a rare opportunity, I decided to jump in the deep end (with both feet!). I took the offer and a week later I was up to my eyeballs in specifications, requests and a back catalogue of previous designs. I was spending most of my time in review meetings with the development team, product management and even marketing. I quickly learned that when asked, everyone has an opinion, right or wrong.

So here I was, stuck in the middle of the technical requirements of the development team and the aesthetic guides from marketing. To top it off, I was spending hours rendering images and all I had to show at the end of the day was a handful of pixels! It was really frustrating to move from print design and illustration to screen.As time progressed, I settled into the role of “icon lady” and started to see the craft and beauty in small images.

 I also developed a system of project management that greatly improved my workflow (less meetings = more productivity).

During the course of Icon designer book, I will share my experiences in the field of icon design, look at rendering styles and ways to achieve them, and the many uses for icons today. This book won’t teach you how to emulate others. It won’t focus heavily on one OS over another; nor will it turn you into a master overnight. Instead it will help you create designs that will stand up to the test of time and help you better understand the constraints (and the joys) of pixel perfect rendering.

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