Mark Newey is a long-term client of Sharp Creative, who’s worked with us over a number of career changes. Mark trained and worked originally in marketing before building a portfolio of his own businesses.

Realising it was dealing with people that he enjoyed most, Mark retrained some 10 years ago as an NLP coach & hypnotist and set up Winning Minds.

With the business well established, Mark then added “Work Revolution” to his portfolio, which marries his NLP skills with his business experiences, to help other companies to manage their human resources more effectively, especially in situations of change management.

Not content with stopping there, Mark’s wish to create a better society has led him to propose his latest venture, the Authentic tribe.

To find out more about Mark and his businesses, go to: http://www.winningminds.co.uk, http://www.workrevolution.co.uk

“David has been doing my design work for about 15 years and I have never once been disappointed. He always sticks to the brief, but will come back with different approaches, at least 2 of which would work well. Extremely flexible, David always listens and whilst coming up with his own ideas and often stretching the boundaries, will ultimately always provide something that delights. He is an extremely talented designer and I can’t recommend him enough.”

Mark Newey, Mind Revolution

Our initial meeting is free, so call for more information. Sharp Creative 01223 902231.

One client who doesn’t want to launch her business with a bang!”

We have enjoyed helping Mairead develop her logo and marketing material as she prepares to launch her new business as the “Lady driving instructor” and we wish her luck in her endeavours. Waiting to see her car light up the Streets of Cambridge.

Dr Sisneros came to us when she decided to set up her own pharmaceutical consultancy. She had already chosen the name Riodove Services Limited and had a mental picture of her logo. We quickly agreed that the concept was emotive, original and memorable. Working around the two syllables, Rio (Spanish for River) & Dove we quickly developed an identity which we believe is striking, personal and with which she is proud.

Riodove Services Limited independent consultancy in pharmaceuticals, specialising in the administration of development, patenting and preparation for market. Dr Sisneros’s experience stems from a scientific research background prior to 8 years’ experience in pharmaceuticals. Services include preparation of non-clinical, clinical and safety regulatory documentation. Processing for post licensing commitments and legal obligations of the Marketing Authorisation Holder via the registered authorised procedures, e.g. renewals, variations, responses to Competent Authority questions, Periodic Safety Update Reports etc., is undertaken with speed and accuracy. Assistance can also be given with proof-reading small or large documents particularly of a technical nature.For more information about Riodove please contact Dr Sisneros, sisneros@btinternet.com.

 ”Sharp Creative were able to retain my creation whilst developing it into a professional identity” Dr Sisneros

Recently I was prompted by a question in a chat room where someone was asking advice about designing logos using Photoshop. Photoshop is a versatile enough package for photo-editing, but the end results are primarily ‘bitmapped’, i.e. made up of a predetermined number of pixels. To create the illusion of curves, the software uses a clever mixture of colours to fool the eye.  None of this matters with small, reduced pixel images, making the programme great for the creation of web banners and such like.  But when the image needs to be enlarged, or requires higher definition, the image is likely to become fuzzy and sometimes unexpected stray colours creep in (known in the trade as noise).

The alternative is Vector Drawing, where an area of colour or gradient is described by the coordinates of a bounding shape. The most common form of vector usage is the fonts on your computer. The advantage with a vector drawing is that it can be enlarged infinitely without losing any detail. All company logos should ideally be designed as vector drawings. No doubt raster copies will be required, particularly for web and Microsoft applications, but even the most web-based company may one day wish for a large version of their logo, possibly for an exhibition stand, a van graphic, or other large scale promotional print material.

Just one more reason why it’s good business sense to consult a Graphic Designer early in your business’s life to ensure your branding and business image start out on a firm, professional footing.  Contact us NOW for advice: 01223 902231.

Graphic design is a discipline of dubious definition. The birth of graphic design being attributed to the advent of commercial printing at the turn of the century.

It is commonly believed that the term was first invented by Professor Richard Guyatt, whilst employed as part of a team to reform the at the Royal College of Art, just after the second World War. ”No one was quite sure what it meant,” he said, “but it had a purposeful ring”.

Dictionary.com defines graphic design as “the art or profession of visual communication that combines images, words, and ideas to convey information to an audience.”

But the power and importance of enhancing simple text for dramatic effect has been around since the dawn of the written word (and arguably precedes it). One only has to look at the earliest Chinese texts and Egyptian hieroglyphics to see that man has struggled to make his words a thing of beauty to attract the readers eye.

From the monks calligraphic bibles through to modern typography, man has struggled to make the written word as easily digestible as possible.
Moreover other forms of graphic design have long been in formation, through the design of shop fronts and hoardings and with the advent of printing, through posters and leaflets.

But arguably, like many inventions, it was wars that developed the disciplines. Much as we may wish to distance ourselves, the power of Kitchener’s “Your Country Needs You Poster” really defined the power of graphic design and the art of visual communication. Just as the first World War’s “What did you do in the War Dad” poster is attributed to girding the resolve for plenty of cannon fodder.

Propaganda may be an uncomfortable word, but it is never-the-less the birth place of PR. Which brings us round to the grey area of graphics. The world of work is a fast changing beast, when Prof Guyatt, coined the term, graphic designers were a specialist form of artist/artisan, surrounded by a a raft of creatives; typographers, type setters, photographers, illustrators, sign writers, copy writers, advertising executives, etchers & plate makers. Commercial communication was a vast industry on factory proportions before the advent of the humble mac and the birth of desktop publishing.

Since then the industry has been under a form of constant erosion, the development of instant printers and a raft of ready made templates in a variety of computer programmes, have removed the mystique and technical requirements that had been the pillars of this industry. Much of this has been for the good, often highlighting the difference between good and mediocre design.

It is not just that designers have had to adapt but so to have the design companies. Whilst there are s few who can still make a living from publishing books and magazines, most have had to augment their tools to include marketing skills and encroach into what was the preserve of advertising and film companies, as well as embrace the new media opportunities, looking good is no longer good enough we designers need to have brains as well!