providing graphic design, branding, photography and marketing expertise to denver and the world
Quote
of the Week:
down in the darkroom drywalling most of the day. It's too cold to do much else. I'm finding that the floor of my office, which sits over an uninsulated crawlspace, is pretty cold on the feet. My friend Dave Biondi just did the insulate-the-crawlspace routine...maybe I should have him come over and trick him into doing it for me, too :)
posted at 9:16 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.30.2002
Yet Another Internet Truism (YAIT):nothing is so aggervating as having to fill out two forms with the same information in order to do something.
posted at 2:59 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
It's very snowy in Denver today...temps in the 20s. Not to fear, though. They say it'll be sunny and in the 50s by Saturday! A big Congrats to Danica Posladek, a former intern of mine when I was at DU, who will be married in just three days!
posted at 2:39 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.24.2002
SNOW SNOW SNOW SNOW!!!!
Winter Park as of today. Are you ready for ski season? I sure am....
WP and Mary Jane open 11/13.
posted at 3:29 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Drywall is down in the darkroom, ready for hanging. Anyone want to help?
....anyone?
....anyone?
That's what I thought!
posted at 11:37 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.23.2002
I just heard on the news that the Vlassic and Claussen pickle companies are merging. What the hell is wrong with this country? With all of the competition gone, all we're going to get in the pickle department is flaccid gerkins.
posted at 8:00 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.22.2002
Just got back from a little grocery shopping.
While driving home, I saw yet another guy on the side of the road, with a sign. This one was held by a thin pasty-faced man in his thirties in a black suit and a red tie. Hair dyed jet black, and coiffed stylishly. He was holding a slim black briefcase in his left hand. In his right, a sign that read "WILL ART DIRECT FOR FOOD".....
yikes!
posted at 4:11 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
New quote today...this time from yours truly.
All it means is that photographers and designers (like almost all artists, I think) create their best work when they are so in tune with their environment and subject that they are more a conduit for meaning than anything else. They should try to remain without an ego, remain still, remain patient.
posted at 8:47 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.21.2002
I only hope I get to live as interesting a life as Manuel Alvarez Bravo, who died today at 100.
posted at 12:52 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.20.2002
Well, I now have a very pretty template for diagramming websites. The only thing I'm still trying to work out is a printable version. For very flat sites (that is, sites with a lot of subpages at the first or second layer), the diagram gets very, very horizontal. I'm no Edward Tufte, but these look pretty good. I can't show it to you, of course, because I'm using it for a client. But once I have a generic one mocked-up, I'll post it here for your amusement.
posted at 10:43 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.17.2002
David Sedaris is saying something at the Buell Theatre tonight in Denver....tickets are still available.
posted at 4:43 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
for those of you using macs, Microsoft has issued a new version of Internet Explorer 5 for both OS X and pre OS X systems. They resolve a security certificate safety issue. There is also a security update for Office 2001 and 98.
posted at 3:22 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
I'm divesting myself of a little technology today.Anyone interested in a Palm IIIx and its companion Palm Folding keyboard, check out my listings for them on eBay by clicking on the linked text above.
posted at 12:09 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.16.2002
my flourescent stickers came today...can't wait for you all to see them.
Spent last night helping Dave Biondi of Tewell Warren Printing label 1700 bottles of beer for their Oktoberfest psrty tomorrow evening. I also designed one of the six labels, all of which had printing-related themes. Mine was "Saddlestitch Stout", shown above. Of course, I wasn't the only one...some 10 other fun people came down too, drank beer, ate Bar-B-Que and generally had a good time at the Breckenridge Brewery on S. Kalamath. Thanks, Dave, for the fun evening!
posted at 5:24 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.15.2002
I feel so relaxed today I won't even flinch at the appearance of these kittens on my blog page....
well, now that I've recovered from my rant regarding work-for-hire, I've been getting down to the business of graphic design. Lots of interesting ideas spread across my desk for a number of clients. Logos, brochures, exhibition-size display panels (including one really cool item that rolls up into its base when not in use). Yes, I (shameless promotional alert alert) truly do it all here at notchcode.....
posted at 1:15 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.14.2002
Work for hire? Licensing? Useage? What the heck does all this mean?If you have questions like this, check out this site. It's from the Art Director's Club of Metropolitan Washington, and has a nice summation of what work-for-hire is.
I have yet to meet a designer that prefers to do work-for-hire over transferring right of useage to a client, and there are many good reasons for this, most notably because designers lose control over their image and reputation if the work is changed in the future.
To quote from the Graphic Artists' Guilds' "Pricing and Ethical Guidelines", 9th edition:
"By signing a work-for-hire contract, a freelance artist becomes an employee [of the contracting company] only for the purposes of the copyright law, but for no other purpose. In addition to losing authorship status and copyright, the artist receives no salary, unemployment, workers' compensation, or disability insurance; nor does he or she receive health insurance, sick pay, vacation, pension, or profit-sharing opportunities that a companymay provide its formal, salaried employees.
(I mean, come on, if you're going to treat the designer's output the same way you treat the output of your employees, at least give them the benefits....)
"When a freelance artist signs a work-for-hire contract, the artist has no further relationship to the work, cannot display it, copy it, or use it for other purposes such as displaying the work in the artist's portfolio. The client, now considered the legal author may change the art and use it again without limitation."
I will add here that in stripping the designer of any claim on authorship, it devalues the designer's role in the entire creative process, and further devalues the designer's role by allowing the design to slip from the control of the artist and into the hands of anyone the contractor wishes for future revisions, distortions, or changes.
So why is that a bad thing? It sounds like a boon if you're a client, certainly: you get the right to use the designer's hard work in whatever way you choose, however you choose. Many designers (myself included) usually grant that right in any case, to better serve the client's projected future needs. But take this extremely hypothetical, made-up example:
Say you, the designer, create something in print for a client. The client loves it. You love it. It wins awards. Everyone's happy. Then your client decides to create a website based on the printed material. Wonderful, you say! More exposure for the designer's work, and the client gets to re-use much of the design, maintaining consistency from medium to medium, strengthining their brand.
You, the designer, signed a work-for-hire agreement when you created the printed piece. Didn't seem like a problem at the time. But now the client has asked you to re-do some design elements found in the printed piece for use in the website. You balk at this; those elements they want you to re-do were the cornerstone of what made the piece work, both from an aesthetic and from a functional perspective! After much negotiation, the client takes the job elsewhere, to a designer hungry for work, who (after signing a work-for-hire agreement, of course) proceeds to gut your design according to the client's wishes, and create the website.
The site, while complete, is now similar to the printed piece only on a very superficial level. Even the new designer admits to you later that she's not really happy with the result, either, but "that's the way the client wanted it, and they already owned all the work, so it was either do it this way or leave the job to someone else."
Worse yet, the client has attributed the work, both yours and the new designer's, to themselves. The website, despite its problems, wins many awards. Neither you nor the new designer get any recognition. No new clients flock to your door. And you can't even take credit for your own work.
That's harsh! Would you want ME taking credit for all the hard work YOU put into something?
There is a long-standing concept of something called "moral rights", which assert that the creator of something has the right to claim parentage, to be accountable for it and to take credit for it, and that no one else may do so. Work-for-hire practices take away that fundamental right, and it degrades everyone involved: the designer, the client, and the thing itself.
posted at 12:52 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.11.2002
For the enlightment of designers everywhere: the AIGA has updated their standard terms. They have a shortened version, very readable, and very client-friendly. Go to their website for more info.
posted at 7:31 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
If you could be any font, what would it be?
This is a test I like to give all graphic designers...kind of like a aesthetic-psychological profile.
Today I feel like Matrix Medium: nice and solid, sturdy, a little edgy and angular around the edges, with just a hint of elegance when pressed into service for long paragraphs.
posted at 10:28 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
what is the worst way to wake up? I'm still deciding. Haivng an auto glass repairman arrive early to an appointment is one way, though.....alhtough it does mean you get your windshield fixed.
posted at 9:21 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.10.2002
The big open box in the background of the webcam is my new darkroom fan, courtest of Calumet Photographic. Moves some insane amount of air, like about 600 cubic feet per minute...about half the volume of air in my entire darkroom! No chance of nasty chemical exposure in there...fume-wise, anyway....
posted at 10:37 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Ok, so: some food notes that should be of particular interest to those living here in Denver and Boulder:
I spent the better part of this afternoon parked at The Cream Puffery on 15th in Boulder, S. of Arapahoe, "meeting with clients", although it was really more of an excuse to get in there for some good food and coffee. They make one of the best Cubano Sandwiches I've had in Colorado. Better even than those at the Treehouse Cafe, although it's a tight race.
We ate some of the best cannoli and eclairs tonight, too....from Vincenza's on 44th, W. of Wadsworth, in Wheat Ridge (our fair home city). Pizza bigger than the hubcaps off of an old Chevy, and tasty pasta dishes available for dinners.
posted at 10:27 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Well, having a wonderful day so far....stymied for music selection, though. Anyone have any good ideas?
posted at 9:30 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.09.2002
So, this post is being generated right from my desktop using iBlog, a nifty little (and by "little" i mean quick to load and easy to use) Mac program that you can find here.
You have to have a blogger account to use it, but it makes posting SO much easier!
posted at 10:16 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
ugh what a day....
at least it was beautiful.
Anyone who can tell me the general color of PMS 485 (without looking at a Pantone Color Guide) wins a pie! e-mail me if you know!
posted at 5:52 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.07.2002
Gosford Park, anyone?
posted at 8:25 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Yes, I'll go anywhere to make a good portrait...including right up to the edge of some very big holes in the ground.
This is a shot of me surveying exactly how close I should put my priceless equipment to the edge of a stope (mining lingo for "a very big hole in the ground that follows a vein of ore"). It's located up Cunningham Gulch, near Silverton...about 1,500 feet up from the floor of the valley. Thanks to Jim Herron for the photo!
posted at 5:16 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
TOday is a day full of meetings and client off-site visits. For those of you who need to get in touch with me, calling me on my cell is probably the best way. Do you know that in Europe, they call it a "handy"? I think that's a much better word for it, myself.
posted at 9:21 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.05.2002
What a great party at Julie, Kate and Merry's house last night! That was some of the best food, wine and mojitos I've had, well, since their last big party. A big thank you to all who posed for portraits!
posted at 7:30 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.03.2002
Lots of Moby in my day today. Has anyone heard his new-ish album, 18?
Hey: would you think less of my design work if I didn't wear all black every day? I'm branching out into muted reds, blues, and maybe even greens....If you'll lose all respect for my design abilities, please let me know. So I got a lens back from my pal Nick in Brooklyn yesterday, and he wrapped it in page 1 of the Linewaiters' Gazette, the "Official Newsletter of the Park Slope Food Coop". Why aren't there better coops here in Denver for food? I get produce once a week from the Denver Urban Gardens' Organic Farm, where we bought a share for the summer, but it's not the same as a full-blown food coop. If anyone knows of a good food coop in the Denver area, e-mail me.
posted at 12:02 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.02.2002
You know it's getting late in the year when:
they declare the season's first Winter Storm Watch in the mountains, and
your Ski Pass for 02-03 comes in the mail
all on the same day!
Really, it's getting damn cold! Nearly ready to throw some logs on the fire and call it good for the evening. And what the hell am I doing in here in the evening anyhow? Shouldn't I be watching the west wing or something? I really almost can't be bothered...I'm still excited I bought a white board for the office. Somebody help me!Although I will admit I've got the Manchester United game on Fox SportsWorld in the other room right now, and it is tempting me away from all the excitement of staring at my fingers while I type this in.
posted at 7:29 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
someone in Taiwan likes me!
posted at 4:40 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Tip of the day: Don't try driving that big SUV if you can't see above the steering wheel. If I can't see your head over the wheel, that's a warning sign.
posted at 4:00 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Favorite musician of the day: No Doubt about it.....
posted at 1:22 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
whoo-eee...all kinds of nastiness causing my Mac to crash this mornng...perhaps it doesn't like the cold weather we're having? Rain all night and into this morning, and I think it's about 45 degrees at the moment. Olive, the notchcode dog, says it's perfectly good weather to go out and play ball in, though!
posted at 12:23 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
10.01.2002
Really getting into mid-90's alt-pop stuff...breakin' out the old Weezer, Velocity Girl, Go Sailor, etc.....makes the 90s seem like such an innocent time.....
Hope everyone in town saw the Hallmark Collection of photography at the Denver Art Museum before it left our fair city two days ago...their collection isn't quite as good as say, the Amon Carter museum, but it was nice they stopped by for a visit, anyhow.
posted at 5:27 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
over 2500 hits so far today....
posted at 3:44 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
favorite website of the day I think will go to DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid, an interesting hybrid DJ and art/design geek, who had some interesting things to say about experience design at the AIGA seminar of the same name 2 Marches ago. He's whatever the hip word for "excellent" is, these days.
posted at 1:47 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
who's your favorite musician, eh? tell me!
posted at 1:20 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
over 1,000 hits so far today...what are you all looking at?
posted at 12:32 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
quote of the week: Clemenza in the Godfather, saying "leave the gun. Take the cannoli."
posted at 12:16 PM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Great day for making images! A bit windy outside, but it helped keep the hair off of people's faces....
A plug for my favorite camera repair guy, Ray Pong at Ray's Camera in Denver on Santa Fe and 12th in Denver. Ray does great work, and he's currently nursing my 2 35mm cameras back to health. No website for him, but he can be reached at 303-595-3213.
posted at 11:56 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
Shooting on-location portraits at an abandoned mine site near Superior this morning. Hard to believe, but one of the region's largest coal mines had its entrance about .25-mile away from what is now a Super Target, Costco, et al.
posted at 7:59 AM Leave your comments here: 0 comments
