The Accelerated Graphic Designer

A Proven Shortcut for Learning Graphic Design

Once and For All

Rubén Ramírez, Ph.D.

THE ACCELERATED GRAPHIC DESIGNER
A Proven Shortcut for Learning Graphic Design Once and For All

Copyright © 2023. Rubén Ramírez. All rights reserved. No portion of this

book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the
publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

All images in this book are used for educational purposes only. All images are
copyright to their respective owners and are protected under copyright laws.
 Table of Contents

PART 1

Learning Graphic Design on Your Own 1

CHAPTER 1 2

It’s Possible to Learn Graphic Design on Your Own (If You Know How) 2

CHAPTER 2 14

My Promise: A Shortcut to Learning Graphic Design 14

PART 2

De ning Graphic Design for the 21st Century 21

CHAPTER 3 22

What is Graphic Design Today? 22

CHAPTER 4 27

What Skills Do You Need to Become a Graphic Designer? 27

PART 3

The 80/20 of Graphic Design Theory 36

CHAPTER 5 37

Learning to See As a Designer 37

CHAPTER 6 40
 Elements of Design: Building Blocks of Perception 40

Putting It All Together: Learning to See 74

CHAPTER 7 78

Essential Principles of Graphic Design 78

CHAPTER 8 83

The Seven Main Design Principles 83

PART 4

What You Need to Understand About Software 135

CHAPTER 9 136

The Role of Software in Graphic Design 136

CHAPTER 10 152

Which Software to Use at the Beginning 152

Conclusion 162

Beginning Your Accelerated Journey Into Graphic Design 163

 PART 1

Learning Graphic Design on Your Own

1
 CHAPTER 1

It’s Possible to Learn

Graphic Design on Your
Own (If You Know How)
If you’re reading this, you want to become a graphic designer on your own.
Well, in many ways, becoming a graphic designer today has never been easier or
cheaper. Technically, anyone with access to a computer and internet connection
could potentially learn graphic design.

And yet, despite these conditions, learning graphic design has also
become harder. Let me explain:

Even if we have all the information and training we need to learn a skill
such as graphic design, we also face the incredible barriers to learning imposed
by the sheer scope of information available on the internet.

Today, in order to learn a skill, we must rst navigate the vast amounts of
con icting information out there, the endless amount of “gurus” trying to sell
us the next big thing, and the distractions of social media. In sum, even if the
information you need “exists,” you lack a clear path to learning the skills and

2
knowledge necessary to start becoming the designer, or writer, or blogger, or
developer you must become.

Even with all the free information out there, it would take a tremendous
amount of discipline, structure, time, and commitment to create a plan from
scratch that would allow you to learn graphic design e ectively.

I recently asked readers of my blog, selfmadedesigner.com, the biggest

obstacles they face in learning graphic design. These came up:

● Lack of motivation and commitment

● Software is too di cult

● Selecting and organizing learning resources

● Not getting proper feedback

● Progress is slow and time-consuming (time)

Are any of these obstacles familiar to you? They are to me because I know what
learning a new skill from scratch feels like.

About 15 years ago, I started learning graphic design and web

development on my own. You see, I got my Ph.D. in Communication in 2007,
right at the beginning of the nancial crisis. After having applied to more than
3
30 positions in academia, I came to the harsh realization that job descriptions
were increasingly requiring digital skills along with academic expertise, which
was a rare requirement at the time.

I already had my “specialization,” but job descriptions were increasingly

asking for applied skills in design, programming, and all sorts of production
software. I had excellent credentials, yet it became incredibly di cult to nd a
job at a university. The reality was that I had no practical skills in digital media.

I nally landed a post-doc position at Georgia Tech, which required all

fellows to create a personal homepage. Instead of paying someone to do this for
me (like some of my colleagues), I decided to build the website myself.

So I taught myself how to create a basic homepage using HTML and

CSS. I was hooked, so I continued learning web development and graphic
design on my own.

As a new professor forced to update my academic background to nd a

job, I became obsessed with graphic design and web development.

Moreover:

Having completed a Ph.D. equipped me with the unique ability to

understand how to learn. This crucial understanding led me to learn graphic

4
design relatively quickly and with great e ciency. I discovered that graphic
design could be learned on your own, if you know how.

Today, I’m proud of many accomplishments:

● For almost a decade, I have been teaching graphic design at the college
level

● I co-designed a platform that won a prestigious entrepreneurship award

● I founded selfmadedesigner.com

● I develop websites for fun and pro t

● I provide value designing for myself and the communities I’m involved
with

As you can see, graphic design has had a powerful impact on my career
and life, not only because it has broadened my horizons in terms of valuable
skills that are always in demand, but also because it has provided me with a
creative outlet that is refreshing and rewarding. There’s always something new
to be learned, and you can always take yourself to the next level.

After successfully teaching hundreds of students with NO prior

experience in design, I’ve come to understand the knowledge and skills that

5
matter the most to becoming an effective designer. These fundamental skills are
precisely what I want to teach you in this book.

Believe me, you can become an e ective self-taught designer too.

Becoming A Graphic Designer Is a Journey

When I rst started learning web development and design, I started with
a specific purpose and direction. I knew what I wanted to create, I just needed
the knowledge and skills to help me get there. Later, I found out that this was
crucial to my success.

So I took on the speci c project of building a website as an excuse for

learning. This is very important. It means that, in order to endure the journey
of learning graphic design, we need to nd a motivating factor to help us along
the way.

A project is a powerful motivator because we can organize our learning

around it.

For me, in the beginning, it was a website. Later, I became obsessed with
designing t-shirt graphics. Then, I started developing websites for people I

6
knew. As time went by, I became a graphic designer and web developer in the
process.

One project led me to the next, and the more projects I completed the
more knowledge and skills I acquired.

Why do I tell you all this? Because, as I say to my students, there is only
one way of being something, and that is by becoming it.

Think about it for a moment.

A degree in creative writing or journalism will not make you a writer or a

journalist. Only by “writing” consistently can you become the writer you want
to become.

The same is true for any other discipline, such as painting or

programming. Only by constantly doing over and over the tasks associated with
a skill or discipline can you become the painter or programmer or journalist
you want to become.

The same is so very true for graphic design.

7
Why Do You Want To Learn Graphic Design?

For me, one of the most critical aspects of learning graphic design on my
own was this: A sense of purpose.

From the beginning, I clearly knew why I was learning graphic design. In
my case, I knew that if I didn’t learn digital skills quickly, I would be “left
behind” in my chosen career path.

In other words:

My career depended on learning new skills.

And it was true: Graphic design and development skills have opened up
many doors for me and have put a premium on my credentials.

So, I ask you: Why do you want to learn graphic design?

Maybe:

1. You need to create graphics for your new venture or business

2. You want to become a better communicator

3. You want to learn a new set of skills

4. You want to learn complex software

8
 5. You want a career change

6. You need an additional stream of income

7. You want a creative, ful lling outlet for yourself

The reasons can be endless, but the objective has to be clearly de ned.
You must have a sense of purpose. You must be able to visualize what you want
to accomplish. And you must stick to that vision. If your objective is
compelling enough for you, it will guide you and fuel your learning.

No matter what your reasons are, the skills and knowledge associated
with graphic design will give you professional and career value, whether you
end up “working” as a designer.

One compelling reason to learn design concepts and skills is that we live
in an increasingly visual culture. This means that we value images over words as
a vehicle of communication.

Think about it: We are surrounded by visual interfaces and screens, and
content is predominantly organized around images. Images are a very powerful
and complex form of communication. I believe that, in today’s world, it’s the
people who have basic uency in these forms of communication who are most
likely to succeed in their respective careers.

9
 Having design skills will add value to anything you currently do.

Can You Become a Graphic Designer?

As I said before, it would seem that anyone can become anything they
want in the digital age. However, not everyone will be able to learn the skills to
become a self-taught graphic designer.

In fact, you must be having thoughts like “I am not a talented person,” “I

can’t draw,” or “I’m not good with computers.”

This is what you need to realize: Pure talent, drawing skills, and
computer savvy don’t matter, for the most part.

What I have learned from my own journey, my students, and some

successful designers I know is that the real capability to learn the necessary skills
to become a graphic designer comes from persistence, discipline, passion, and
the courage to put yourself out there. And this is true for any undertaking.

Do you need talent to be great at design? Sure. It really helps. The most
successful designers I know and who inspire me every day are super talented.

However, absolute talent is not required.

10
 For example, George Bokhua is one of the best contemporary logo
designers I know. He has worked with companies such as Disney and Wired,
just published a book on logo design, and has almost 300 thousand followers on
Instagram. He posted this a while ago on social media:

He is an amazing designer, and yet he sucked at rst. And this is what you
need to internalize: We all suck in the beginning. We just have to keep
practicing.

If you want to become a designer in the professional sense of the word,

chances are that you already are talented, or are in the process of polishing your
talent in the raw. You know you have what it takes, even if you (still) don’t have
the con dence or the advanced skills to let it shine through.

Furthermore, maybe you don’t have to be a graphic designer.

That is, you don’t need the identity of a designer for understanding and
applying the fundamental concepts of graphic design and visual
11
communication. Perhaps you want to learn graphic design skills for enhancing
your business, helping out a friend with her startup, or making your blog more
appealing.

This is my point:

You don’t have to win an award or be featured in the most important

publication or teach a course in order to call yourself a graphic designer. You
only have to be effective.

Think about this again:

You only have to be e ective at design. This goal is completely achievable.

I’ve seen this over and over in my teaching career: People can go from having no
idea to becoming effective.

It takes some theory, experience (that is, action), and persistence. It takes
time, but not necessarily years. Some of my best students (with no previous
graphic design experience) have accomplished excellent results in only one
semester. Some have even gotten their rst jobs as graphic designers after one
course.

12
 But they all had some common traits: They applied themselves, they
studied graphic design principles, they practiced computer skills: They applied
the method.

In the end, there really is no mystery. You can learn these skills, and you
can learn them well, in a way that can guarantee lifelong learning and practice
of design.

And this is what this book is all about: Starting you on a learning path to
become an e ective self-taught graphic designer. My aim is to demystify and
simplify what I believe is the only way to learn graphic design effectively, which
is by creating a solid conceptual foundation of design.

13
 CHAPTER 2

My Promise: A Shortcut
to Learning Graphic
Design

If you have read graphic design books, you’ll know that most introductory
books o er vast amounts of information, often written in a complicated way.
Many books also include aspects of graphic design that, although interesting,
might not directly contribute to your immediate learning.

This book is not your typical introduction to graphic design, because my

approach is not to give you an academic overview of graphic design, including
its history or philosophy.

My aim is not to provide complicated explanations that might be more

appropriate to academic debates or college talk.

14
 My approach is very simple: To explain in the clearest way possible the
very fundamental aspects of graphic design theory that you need to understand
right away in order to get started as a graphic designer as quickly as possible.

In other words:

My objective is to provide an e ective shortcut not only to get you

started as a graphic designer but also to provide you with a foundation for
learning graphic design on your own from here onwards.

After teaching an introduction to graphic design in college for almost a

decade, I have come to realize the most crucial aspects of graphic design that
can give students the fastest results. And, believe me, I’ve seen excellent results
with my methods throughout the years.

My Unique Approach

Throughout the years, I’ve stripped down my method to include the

aspects that are most critical to the task of graphic design. Before, for example, I
included graphic design history and styles in my course and discussions about
the di erences between analog and digital technologies.

15
 But I quickly realized that these became obstacles in students' eagerness
to get started in graphic design quickly.

Thus, after experimentation and testing, I have been able to provide a

simple, repeatable framework that will not only get you started in graphic
design but also provide you with a system that you can use to accelerate your
learning of graphic design as you continue your journey.

I’m a big fan of the 80/20 principle, which states that about 20 percent
of actions or inputs produce 80 percent of desired results.

And this, precisely, is the logic of my approach:

To provide you with the least amount of knowledge and skills you need
to learn an actionable foundation of graphic design to quickly get you started as
an e ective designer in the least amount of time possible.

My Approach is Simple

Simplicity is key to getting things done quicker and more e ciently. My

approach, in fact, aims to decrease complexity.

Here’s my approach in the simplest terms:

16
 ● Understand the fundamental aspects of design theory, only focusing on
elements of design and the six fundamental principles of design

● Understand the task of graphic design in the 21st century

● Understand the role of software and the best options for starting out

Having said this, if there’s only one single action you can take to learn
graphic design e ectively, it is this:

Understand and apply the principles of graphic design.

This is what’s lacking in most of the free instruction and tutorials you
nd on YouTube or the web. You can nd a tutorial on executing a logo, for
example, but without the conceptual framework of what makes a logo work.
You will nd a tutorial on how to create a business card, but no explanation of
how layout and hierarchy are used to produce visually e ective communication.

This is what most self-taught students of graphic design struggle with.

However, this understanding of design principles is what separates truly

e ective designers from ine ective ones. This is what separates professionals
from amateur designers. And not understanding these principles from the very
beginning of your journey is the greatest obstacle and source of frustration for
self-taught graphic designers.
17
 If you’ve made it thus far, congratulations, you are well on your way to
learning the fundamental knowledge that is at the base of any form of graphic
design. If you spend some time and e ort in truly understanding and applying
these principles, your learning of graphic design will become so much easier,
more focused, and more e ective. In the following chapters, I will explain in
simple terms how you should see the task of graphic design today and will lay
out, with visual examples, the most important principles of design.

PART 01: Key Points

● Having a de ned objective and purpose are key for learning graphic

design.

● Design skills will add value to your personal and professional pro le,

no matter what you do currently.

● Because graphic design skills can be learned, pure talent or drawing

skills are not required for becoming a graphic designer.

● Your main objective is to become an e ective graphic designer,

18
 which is a completely achievable goal.

TAKE ACTION

Why Do You Want To Learn Graphic Design?

1. Take some time to think about why you want to learn graphic design

Make a list of all the reasons why you want to learn graphic design. Be as
speci c as you can. For example, instead of saying “To have a creative
outlet” say “To nally express the creative side which has been repressed
for X reason”. List as many reasons as you can come up with.

Next, edit the list to only include those items that suggest why you need
to learn graphic design. There is a di erence between wanting and
needing to do something. Needing entails a sense of urgency. Is there a
single item on the list that is the most important or pressing?

Write it down, in the form of a sentence: I need to learn graphic design

because I have to __________________.

19
 Put this in a notebook, your phone, or wherever you can quickly look at
this sentence. As you progress in your journey, look at this statement
from time to time to be reminded to persevere.

2. Make a list of projects you would like to accomplish

Write down graphic design projects you would like to accomplish, even if
you don’t know how you would do them yet. Projects can include
creating graphics for your social media page, creating an ad for your
band, or even creating your rst logo. Be sure to include things that truly
interest you.

Keep this list handy during your process. When you feel without
direction or motivation, remember all the projects that you need to
accomplish.

20