I do graphic design as a side business, and also design and paint custom painted diecast pieces. I am lucky enough to be backlogged about three months right now.

My client base is decidedly quite conservative, as my biggest customers are all involved with the airshow business in one way or another.

I also will have a line of very funnyand fairly smart-assed pro-gun shirt designs coming out soon.

SG

+1

musical and visual...

25 years in the graphic design business. Most of my work is business to business. Corporate ID and promtional materials.

At heart I'm a cartoonist but it's a tough way to make a living. I also used to do wild phantom view tech illustrations of engines, helio's and aircraft.

The "BIG" problem I see in this field is that any rube with Photoshop and Illustrator is an instant design guru. It makes my job harder cleaning up those messes. Plus the client gets burned and it takes more time and money turning things around.

The cartoon below explains it all and probably strikes a cord with many.


oops...my bad

Quoted: 25 years in the graphic design business. Most of my work is business to business. Corporate ID and promtional materials. At heart I'm a cartoonist but it's a tough way to make a living. I also used to do wild phantom view tech illustrations of engines, helio's and aircraft. The "BIG" problem I see in this field is that any rube with Photoshop and Illustrator is an instant design guru. It makes my job harder cleaning up those messes. Plus the client gets burned and it takes more time and money turning things around. The cartoon below explains it all and probably strikes a cord with many.

What cartoon?  I must have missed something?  Link?

Quoted: 25 years in the graphic design business. Most of my work is business to business. Corporate ID and promtional materials. At heart I'm a cartoonist but it's a tough way to make a living. I also used to do wild phantom view tech illustrations of engines, helio's and aircraft. The "BIG" problem I see in this field is that any rube with Photoshop and Illustrator is an instant design guru. It makes my job harder cleaning up those messes. Plus the client gets burned and it takes more time and money turning things around. The cartoon below explains it all and probably strikes a cord with many. oops...my bad www.efadgroup.com/dilbert.jpg

I can't tell you how closely that resembles a job I did a while ago...

I had to do some work for an oilfield company that was owned and operated by engineers.  They wanted me to move things ONE PIXEL left/right/up/down/whatever.   I'd never been given art direction that went to three significant digits before.  I swear they were examining the layouts with calipers and slide rules.  It was probably the more boring work I ever did.  

Dang. That's a hoot.  Where were all you folks when I was in art school and hanging with the bohems afterwards?
Well, I definitely need to figure out how to get some of my work online and post it here.  Yall have put me to shame by posting such fine work.  Thanks.  I am just glad to find out that I am not the only armed artist out there.  
BFA here from the Pacific NW College of Art.  One year spent at the Atlanta College of Art at the High Museum.
I do figurative work. Right now a series of working class goobers from South Alabama (or LA if you prefer) in the late 40's early 50's in acrylic and oil on board.
I do pen and ink, water color, colored pencil, woodcut, lino cut and when I can  manage to come up with a press and stones lithography.
I am also a serious cartoonist having cut my cartooning teeth on the underground cartoonists of the late '60's early 70's.  It was an extreme struggle in art school but I refused to show my thesis unless I could include "fine cartooning".  Heck, at the time it was a struggle to do figurative work.  Most of the instructors were steeped in the abstract expressionist movement and turned their nose up at literal art.
"Oh, how narrative, how illustrative" delivered in the most arrogant and snide tone imaginable.  Took awhile to find out which instructors were actually classically trained or did realistic/semi realistic work from which to scarf information.  Most of the painting instructors were content with letting the students "experiment".  I wanted to learn about glazing, sgraffito, alla prima, chiarosuro etc etc etc.
Fat chance.
I was lucky enough to be given a nice "F**K ART, LET' DANCE"
T shirts by one of my fine hipbilly pards from Alabamer to wear to the studio.  Somehow made me feel better.  
Well, as soon as I have the chance I'll ask my teenage daughter how to get some of my work on the computer and posted.
Thanks for all the posts.  Great work. All extremely interesting posts.  I am about to pass out now but once I rise I'll read em again and try to respond.
later gators.....

I am a "retired" graphic artist. Just do my art for fun now.

Got tired of making $8 an hour doing design work, only to hand it off to a service bureau where a button pusher made $25 an hour. So, I became the button pusher at a printing company and now I make good money.

Oddly, doing art now is more pleasurable than when I depended on it for my livelihood. Who knew?

I swear to god, I have to get into doing school portraits for a living.

Do you know, the local ones charge five dollars extra... FIVE DOLLARS... for sticking a gel filter on the backlight flash? My god, I could be RICH.