Celeste
As a graphic designer, how important is the thumbnail process?
As a senior in high school taking #graphic-design, at times making thumbnail sketches seems monotonous and time consuming. In the "real world", I assume it is emphasized.
4 answers
Eric Vincent
Eric’s Answer
I couldn't agree more with Andy.
The biggest mistake I see designers make is working out concepts on the computer, it's time consuming and inefficient.
Making sketch after sketch to develop a concept is far more effective in time management as well as creative process. Our company logo and wordmark took at least a hundred hand sketches over burgers and days before we started to settle into something we liked. And this is the process we go through for everything.
When I worked on comic book projects, posters, magazine layouts, I sketch. My whole team sketches.. nothing is done on the computer until after the down and dirty rough sketches are done and we start developing a solid idea.
Now, it's just sketching, as the name implies 'thumbnails' are just down and dirty, fast and quick. SO DON'T START DRAWING until you really form a solid concept to work from. Then from there you're still going to develop a bit more until you've come up with an idea that you can begin to truly develop on the computer.
Check out the video I've listed, see the process in action. https://youtu.be/zOPA0NaeTBk
Andy Wang
Andy’s Answer
Glad to see you thinking about the entire process. While I cannot speak directly to graphic design, I can tell you that thumbnails help those you work with get a better sense of what you're doing artistically. When working with a team and/or clients, it is important to communicate your ideas clearly or risk massive revisions.
Think about it this: You wouldn't want to spend all of your time and energy into creating a finished piece only to find out at the end that the client envisioned something completely different. If you create a fairly accurate thumbnail or set of thumbnails, you can work with your client to get a clear idea of the finished product before you waste time on creating something that they don't want.
Also, try not to think of the thumbnail process as tedious or boring, think about it as a way to experiment with a lot of different options quickly. It may be great to have a solid idea right away but that won't always be the case. Use the thumbnails to explore different artistic and creative paths before settling down on one.
I hope that this helps.
Glenn Geisendorfer
Glenn’s Answer
Also, as you advance in your career and lead other designers, you may be responsible for so many projects (fun!) that you can no longer jump on the computer (more fun!); frequently all you'll have to communicate direction quickly and effectively are thumbnails. The CMO of Nike, when a young design director, legendarily directed the entire NikePark Buildout (for the 1998 Paris World Cup) using nothing but sketches on post-its!
Cuong Nguyen
Cuong’s Answer
As Andy and Eric said, having thumbnails is your development creatively and it is how people and yourself see how you process concepts and mock-ups. Everyone that I know draws their concepts first, if it's on paper or through an program such as Corel Painter or Autodesk Sketch. It's quicker to formulate concepts and see which could potentially builds to a final design.
Like Andy said, if you just work towards on the computer to one piece. Sometimes the client doesn't like it and want something different. Having a set of thumbnails can gauge what the clients wants and for you to narrow it down.