Logo Design for healthcare writer Diane Bracuk

Diane Bracuk is a healthcare writer who can transform complicated healthcare and/or pharmaceutical information into easily digestible, consumer-friendly prose; no easy task to be sure.

This is her ‘unique selling proposition’ and was my starting point for her logo design and tagline development which resulted in this stylized ‘funnel’ into which molecule-like info is dumped leading to a simple yet compelling tagline.

To come… her self-promotion campaign. Stay tuned.

Why people like you hire me.

When the need to outsource creative and/or production work is unavoidable and reliability is paramount, agencies and direct clients alike have called upon me to come through for them.
Here are just a few of the reasons why…

2011-2012
“Ged is someone you can count on 100% to get a job done and do it superlatively. A while ago, I dumped a giant job on him requiring a ton of Photoshop work and he worked nights and weekends to get it done on time. In the end, he completed it days ahead of schedule. My client couldn’t have been happier with the end result, and was amazed that it had all been done so quickly. Bottom line: Ged goes above and beyond the call of duty—and will always make you look good.”
– Libby Lucas, Libby Lucas Creative

2010
“We have been working with Ged for the past 2.5 years and highly recommend his work. Ged has created a number of web, print and interactive designs for many of the projects I have produced and all have been a success. Talented, easy to work with and will always go the extra mile.”
– Mark Ashdown, Bang Albino Communications Inc.

“Ged is a thoughtful and resourceful creative ally. He doesn’t wave his arms and jump about; he listens quietly and carefully and – at the right moment – he provides a pithy suggestion that’s right on target. He understands visual stopping power. He understands strategic thinking. In short, Ged understands.”
– Andrew Crighton, iPrimate Strategic Creativity

Discover your reason for hiring me. Call 647-328-2872 or email gedstankus@gmail.com today. Or tomorrow. No pressure.

How I made this using 90% Photoshop CS5 and 10% grey matter.

I send out an e-newsletter of sorts about twice a month to just, you know, remind folks I’m still here and available for work. That is to say, make something for them; whether it’s for print or web or just to help out when they’re overloaded.

That said, this was the content for my most recent e-newsletter which was a lot of fun to do. So I thought I’d share a little about how I did it.

First, the idea…

Then, source the images…

Eliminate existing content on the license plate using content-aware fill and the stamp and healing brush tools…
Close-cut, accentuate the highlight across top and adjust the colour…
I created the type in Illustrator so that I could tweak the font a little and then placed it in Photoshop, rasterized it and then used it to make selections for the following steps…
Using the type to select an area on the plate I applied a bevel & emboss effect…
Then I colourized my rasterized type and applied a bevel & emboss to it as well…
And for the finishing touch on the license plate, I added a bit of ‘dirt/rust’ to the embossed type to help bring it all together.
I then adjusted the colour in the main trailer park image to liven up the yellows and brought in the license plate with a drop shadow added to lift it off the page.

And finally, I added the text and saved it out for web for insertion into the e-newsletter.

This just gives you an idea of the steps involved and is not intended to be a tutorial in how to actually do it. My apologies to anyone who may have been expecting otherwise.

What madness is this?

I came across this the other day and was absolutely taken aback by it.

Apparently this company, REM-Ads, is hoping to start selling ad space in people’s heads while they sleep! Is this the watershed point for privacy laws?

We all know that it’s very difficult to escape marketing and advertising efforts these days but I do believe that these people have gone a step beyond in the sanity department. Do they really think they’ll be able to get away with this kind of intrusion into our very minds?

If there ever was a time to put the brakes on technology or, at the very least, to step back and say, “Even though we can, maybe we shouldn’t.” this is it.

This is unbelievable.

But then again, that’s what people thought about the internet.

Where’s the ‘human’ in Human Resources?

ILLUSTRATION: Lorraine Brevig

 

I’m sure everyone has experienced the process and frustration of applying for a job online. Because now there’s virtually no other way to apply.

Registering.
Filling out all of the required fields.
Uploading resumes and cover letters or worse, needing to convert them into text so that you can copy and paste them into the required boxes.
Halfway through, coming across a ‘Mandatory Field’ that doesn’t apply to you and the only way to get past it, is to lie.
But you’re honest so you quit the application instead.
And even if you do manage to fill in all the boxes, you hope that there won’t be a glitch when you click ‘submit’ and you have to do it all over again.

Then, when you’ve successfully completed your online application you’re left wondering whether it was in fact, successful. Because you seldom hear back. Sure, some of these sites have an automated response mechanism.
“Thank you for applying, blah, blah, blah…”
but they also include
“…only those being considered will be contacted.”
And with that, you immediately put the whole experience behind you and move on to something more rewarding. Like talking to the dog.

So why has the ‘human’ disappeared in Human Resources?

Efficiency?

Dr. Leonard McCoy might say, “We’re humans Spock. We feel.”

Hello 2012.

Hearing vs listening.

I think the difference is so plain, so simple to comprehend but apparently too much for most. Especially those in positions of power who, with a nonchalant nod can send hundreds and even thousands to their deaths under the pretext of war or just straight-up oppression.

What can a poor boy do? Not much else but hope or revolt.

I’m hoping 2012 will be the year of hearing. And you?

It’s coming & you can’t stop it.

Not sure why but for me, this holiday season is marching closer & closer at near light speed. And it’s a little scary. Haven’t even begun to think about shopping.
I don’t want to stop it. I love the Christmas season too much.
Just want to slow it’s inevitability. Just a titch. Any tips?

It can be cold outside

This was a self-promotion mailer I did a few years ago which comprised of a poster & scarf inside of a mailing tube which was made to look like a giant cigarette.

Even though I could only afford to send out a dozen of them,  it still received great feedback from those ‘LUCKY’ few.

In fact, I could use a breath of fresh air myself right about now.

Thinking through the box

Thinking outside the box. It’s a term we’ve all heard to be sure.
But what’s ‘the box’ anyway?

Is it a convoluted brief we get from a client? Or the collection of works their competition is doing?
Or is it the history of what’s been done in the category for the last 5, 10 or 50 years? Or today or 60 seconds ago for that matter?
Is it execution or technology, images or words that we’ve seen, used, experienced or read before?

I would say ‘the box ‘ is all of the above and more, including one’s own personal experience and knowledge. And the more you can cram into the box, the more likely you are to be in a position to think outside of it.

Why I love, hate, love this business.

I consider myself a ‘creative’ person. And this business of advertising/communications allows me to use and apply my creativity on someone else’s dime. Very cool.
However, creativity can be very subjective and not always seen for what it is meant to be.  Which means sometimes people just don’t get you. Which means sometimes you’re asked to practice your creativity elsewhere. Not fun.
And this causes instability & uncertainty. Which causes stress & angst.
But this can be good for a creative person. Because it tends to kick your ass, sending shock waves out your eyes until you start seeing things in a new light.
Which is good because that can drive one’s creativity forward.
And renew the love.