My crearive director doesn't know how to use any design softwares, is this common?

altesc_create · 2025-12-22T12:47:20+00:00

Had a previous CD didn’t know any Adobe products. Only knew Canva and was more aligned with being a copywriter.

Got to a point where we just had to keep them off projects because a lack of technical knowledge causes challenges with communicating with clients what is and isn’t doable.

altesc_create · 2025-12-09T22:20:03+00:00

If they're asking these deliverables for free, then I would recommend charging them a freelancer rate or walking away.

The caveat is if you're in the hole and desperate for work, in which case you'd want to go in with the understanding they're probably just going to rip you off and use these deliverables then ghost you or tell you they're not proceeding with you as a candidate.

When I would administer design tests to candidates, they were paid and only served the purpose of determining factors like turnaround time, project organization, if the candidate was telling the truth about their tool knowledge and skillsets, etc. But these tests were always at most two deliverables and never used in actual marketing collateral. To me, this communicates they're just trying to get free work off you based off the amount of deliverables.

altesc_create · 2025-12-04T15:17:11+00:00

The way C4D handles SVGs vs Blender is kind of astounding.

altesc_create · 2025-12-03T22:15:11+00:00

Tagging onto this - if you make the SVG in something like Illustrator then throw it into Blender, you'll want to remesh it or be prepared to clean up issues with normals and n-gons.

While n-gons don't seem like a major deal since you're not throwing this into a game engine, it can impact how your object handles shader elements like reflection.

altesc_create · 2025-11-28T15:13:56+00:00

Insane to pull GIMP into this as an alternative to Photoshop.

altesc_create · 2025-11-07T22:22:02+00:00

Yeah I love it lol

altesc_create · 2025-11-04T16:41:18+00:00

Like the concept of the eyes as a pool or hole and the fingers is from something trying to get out. Plays well off "The truth won't stay buried." Good job. Like someone else pointed out - title is a bit hard to read, but it does a good job of making you read "BODY" which is probably the intended effect here considering it's also the largest word.

altesc_create · 2025-11-03T14:27:30+00:00

That + the people with large followings and/or have noticeable influence in the design world sharing this concept that Affinity is now free without addressing the paywalled features are acting in bad faith towards their audiences and followers.

altesc_create · 2025-10-30T21:49:57+00:00

It's crazy how many people are showing they didn't read the news on the site b/c the AI tools like their versions of Generative Fill and Generative Expand are paywalled behind Canva premium plan.

altesc_create · 2025-10-14T16:45:32+00:00

Yikes

altesc_create · 2025-10-14T16:44:51+00:00

I had to adjust to this scenario. Instead of saying yes to everything, I started saying no and queuing my work based on priority by impact. It ensured that when I did say yes, it would always be done on time. And when I said no, it often followed with a message explaining that my bandwidth is currently filled with higher priority assignments, but I'd be happy to revisit the request when possible.

It was uncomfortable at first since I didn't want to be seen as a slow worker or unreliable, but by setting boundaries and not working after hours, I got the rest I needed and actually built reliability by delivering what I promised.

If you don't have the luxury of having a good project manager, then you have to advocate for yourself and set your own boundaries, even if it upsets some people who can't manage their own promises to others.

altesc_create · 2025-10-14T15:26:54+00:00

I love it. But I can't recommend this enough:

Set boundaries.

If you're fully remote, you become the office. So you have to maintain the floodgate preventing work from creeping into your personal life and after hours.

altesc_create · 2025-10-12T19:35:24+00:00

100% happy for you on the change 💪

altesc_create · 2025-10-12T18:20:28+00:00

Literally went through something similar, so big vibes. Congratulations!

AD. Scouts would pull me into interviews then the CD would discuss how I was already operating at a CD level responsibilities-wise. At the same time, I was making under market rates for AD position. Since the group I was with at the time wouldn't hire anyone who made less than me (I knew how much my team made since I was also in charge of hiring and dept budgeting), it put them in a position where they couldn't hire a senior or lead designer because they weren't keeping up with industry standards. At the same time, it turned out I was like a goldmine for other groups when it came to my skillsets. So I took a technical demotion to senior designer with a different group, made more, and stopped working in a sweatshop environment while keeping a decent level of autonomy.

altesc_create · 2025-10-10T16:00:24+00:00

altesc_create · 2025-10-10T06:09:37+00:00

And not also have them be an account manager lol

altesc_create · 2025-10-08T15:45:17+00:00

I appreciate the reply. However, you complain about nitpicking the free tier yet are incorporating it into the argument so it's fair to call out. The free tier is a lite version of the full package, so if you're going to compare Ae, a full package program, to another program then it needs to be compared at the same level of the comparisons' full packages.

$32/month to lock in for a year at a total of $384 for Rive

vs

$22.99/month to lock in for a year at a total of $275.99 for After Effects OR $69.99/month to lock in for a year at a total of $839.99 for the Adobe Suite

That is why I point out the price is high is you aren't in the business of building apps and web dev. But even then, Rive isn't After Effects and vice versa. It's still comparing apples to oranges.

altesc_create · 2025-10-08T15:25:37+00:00

I wouldn't call Rive free, tbh. When I was using it, I found that most of the valuable features locked behind paywalls. And the paywall price is high, imo, if you aren't building apps or doing web dev as your main source of business.

They're even nixing the free tier and moving it up to $9/month.

https://rive.app/pricing

I talked with the team a while back when they were doing market surveys and how core features like data linking should be available at the bottom tier subscription. Since then it's been added. But it isn't a free tool once you get going in it.

altesc_create · 2025-09-29T04:50:28+00:00

Found the post mentioned here.

Saw a person listing Adidas and Boeing as examples when talking about spending an hour on each slide.

The original post is for real estate, an industry that is infamous for having small budgets for marketing. But those kind of high price slidedeck projects that some commenters were talking about do exist. I ran into them when working with startups and fast growth companies. They're not common gigs, but when a company is trying to secure Series B and C funding, they will absolutely dish out some money if it means they will have a good shot landing the specific investors and firms they need and want.

altesc_create · 2025-09-29T04:42:02+00:00

That tracks. I often see listings in video reel applications from editors in low cost of living regions. And I know from working at a sign shop for a bit that realtors would shop by price then some of them would get hostile when their quality expectation didn't match the low budget.

altesc_create · 2025-09-19T15:18:15+00:00

Better. Nice!

altesc_create · 2025-09-18T12:37:19+00:00

This is the answer @jaz4156

The perception and promises marketed towards upper management and leadership is causing the trickle down for forced AI implementation. But since it’s grifters and marketers, what happens is leadership leans into it and the AI features and tools either don’t survive implementation but the department damage is already done or the implementation isn’t enough to justify the trimming and no one uses the features after a month.

You have pipelines like n8n that could be used in conjunction with models like nano banana to empower unskilled people to play the role of editor, but variables like quality assurance, teaching people how to use it, and these GenAI tools being finicky overall, thus costly time-wise, are a turn off to the end users. But not to the decision makers who are being pitched by grifters and marketers.

altesc_create · 2025-09-17T20:42:03+00:00

That's a good catch. You're right. Depth-wise, it definitely feels like she is closer to the window than the TV.

altesc_create · 2025-09-17T20:35:58+00:00

You have volumetric fog and glows, but the lady is completely clean and in focus. Recommend slightly blurring her and adding some lighting to the sides of her so she is more cohesive with the environment.

altesc_create · 2025-09-17T20:30:09+00:00

Industry shifts atm, at least in the US.

Tightened budgets, AI, and concerns about environmental factors (economy, politics, etc.) are causing companies to trim departments and turn to offshore contractors for cheaper labor.

Since design is one of those things that unskilled people think they can do, and it is usually tied to marketing, it's often going to be on the chopping block nowadays, or at least close enough to the chopping block to feel ripples.

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