Stop Thinking With Your Mac

Well said Felix... well said.

Spot on as usual. My partners laugh at me for writing headlines (by hand!) on scrap paper with stick figure illustrations, but if the idea doesn't work like that, it doesn't work.

Right on. There's a lot of people out there that agree and even more that might not. Those that choose to argue probably don't know how to draw. With that I say "so what". Draw stick figures, make lines and circles and triangle and ovals. Bust out the velum and trace something.

Think first, compute later.

hear, hear!

anytime i've tried to or been directed to "get it done quicker" and gone straight to the computer, i've always regretted it, wasted more time than i had in the first place and had to go back to my sketchbooks anyway.

i once heard someone say a point and shoot digital camera is the only piece of tech that is beneficial to concepting.

Awesome as always Felix. Every time I meet an art director who has a set of markers handy, I want to be their friend.

Good rant.

Well said. This should be sent to clients world-wide and unfortunately to Account Service and the "Giant Heads" running agencies these days.

Excellent stuff, as always, Felix!!

hey there, can you hear me all the way back there in the 80s? while i appreciate your soap box stance on this holy topic, sometimes you need to do what the client wants. sometimes the client wants finished stuff in a day or two. and not everything needs to be at such a high level of concept. sometimes style does win over substance. its a fact we all have to deal with. it sucks, but its part of the game now.

Jules. If putting your ideas down on paper, and thinking before diving in, is being stuck in the 80s, then I'm happy to be right there with every good art director, copywriter and designer on the planet. That kind of mentality is what is helping us all become a devalued commodity. Sure, knock out some pointless, ill-conceived piece of crap in a day or two. Don't spend 1 or 2 hours of that time thinking, go straight to your mac and start designing, if that's what you call it. You will shit out the mediocre crap that your client wants and collect your paycheck. But for people who care, and who are "stuck in the 80s" with these archaic pens and marker pads, you represent the lowest form of pond scum in this industry. You're one of those "pile it high, sell it cheap" merchants who probably thinks website templates for $60, and sites like HP Logoworks, are a great idea. Everything, and i mean EVERYTHING, needs to be thought through first. There are no exceptions, only excuses. Looks like you're clinging to those lame excuses like superglue.

Thinking with your Mac also makes it hard to ignore the glut of feeds, emails, meeting requests and IMs that come your way. Shutting the whole thing down is a great way to say, "Not right now folks. I'm working."

I don't know. I guess I think that's fairly narrow minded. A mac or pc IS just a tool, you're right. Just like your Prismacolors are a tool. And your markers. Just because someone does shitty sketches at first doesn't make the ideas any better or the process any deeper. I've been on projects where the thinking was brilliant and the sketches were done on a computer. When the designs were chosen to go in a book about corporate identity, we were asked to go put some tracing paper over it and reverse engineer the thinking process...in sketches. That's how technophobic we are about the "process" sometimes.

I like to sketch on l'ordinateur because it's fast and I can get a lot of ideas out in a short period of time. Just like, when I'm writing, it faster to type than write with a pen. Maybe it's because I'm a crappy sketch artist and it's harder to get my ideas across. Whatever.

I agree about the thinking, though. You have to have a deep understanding of a problem in order to come up with a decent solution. I roll the problem around in my head, sometimes for weeks, before I sit down in front of the screen. I think about it when I'm showering, sleeping, working on other projects, masturbating (showering) or out drinking with friends. I talk to clients and other designers. Sometimes, I lower myself and talk to a copywriter (just kidding, Chris Maley rocks). Sometimes I speak into my iPhone recording machine or take pictures so that I can remember my brilliant ideas. I know, that's another one of your "thinking" crutches. Oh well. Everyone has their process.

Anyway, the bottom line is that the tool doesn't necessarily mold the process. It is possible to make technology work in your favor even in the initial stages. By the way, some of my favorite woodworkers love to fuck around on their equipment to experiment. Sometimes, when you leave the technology out of it, it actually hampers the process. Don't limit what you do just because it's not cool if you've already thrown out the colored pencil set that you bought for your packaging project in "visual communication" school. Do what you do, and always try to progress. Focus on the thinking, not the tools. That's it.

felix, im not sure why you feel like i have to "think" with a pen and paper but i can't on a mac. just because you work well with markers and pencils doesn't mean someone else has to. some of the best designers i know can't really draw that well but design amazing compositions. the ad world doesnt work the way it did 20 years ago and it wont work this way 20 years from now.

im not a "pile it high, sell it cheap" merchant by any means. you are the one who sounds very disgruntled because the world passed you by.

sorry you're so sad.

I don't recall ever saying you need to have skills in that arena. Just think. Write it out. Draw stick figures and boxes. I guarantee anyone who goes straight to a mac cannot get their ideas down as quickly or as fluidly as someone with a pen and paper. It's way easier to make connections across a paper page than using Photoshop or Illustrator with your text boxes and layers and all that other crap. I'd love to see what your thought process looks like, I bet it's good enough to frame. And by the way, you want to tell me I'm stuck in the 80s, be prepared to have me fire back at you. Fair enough? Good.

While I can definitely appreciate your opinion here felix, I can't help but side with jules, at least a little (and to totally agree with juke for that matter). It may be sad, but the industry is changing, and not for the better. Show me a client who can truly understand the creative process and appreciate a pencil sketch these days. In general, today's clients are easily wowed by polished imagery, shiny comps and want their messages dumbed-down to the point that a 2-year-old can't misunderstand it. If we don't deliver, we can kiss that account goodbye because someone else will, and while I stand up on my soapbox preaching the importance of "the big idea" the bank is repossessing my house.

Maybe you're lucky enough to work with big-budget clients with ample timelines and open minds (because as we all know, the time that it takes to make those sketches and play those games of wadded-up-paper basketball aren't free). But to label those of us who have had to evolve with the industry mediocre crap-producing fuckwads puts blame in the wrong place. If you want to bring design back to where it was 20 years ago with your marker sketches and year-long timeframes, you have to start by re-educated the client who pays for it, and the consumers who ultimately pay them. Good luck with that.

felix my process is far from framable. im not sure why you cant work roughs in illustrator. if i am doing a logo, i sketch in illustrator. you use a penil to draw a circle, i use a mouse. no one is better than the other. you cant preach to someone what their process should be or how it should look. i guarantee you i can get my ideas across faster on screen than on paper., does that make it wrong?

here you go champ, here is someone's process using illustrator. he may have started with a sketch, but the problem was worked out on screen. i guess he shouldn't have worked out the issue on the computer, it looks too nice.

http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/bronx_river_all_sket...

Hmmmm.... I am not sure how much I agree with all of this. After all they are both just tools. You could argue that pen and paper are slowing you down and a tape recording would be much better. The idea is without a doubt the most important part of the process, but the process can be different for different people. I like to block out rough shapes or a logo in illustrator first and then draw them out based off of what rough comp I like best. Or I will create style frames or comps for animation in after effects first and then do thumbnail sketches to figure out timing, animation, and other details. Sometimes on other comps I brainstorm a straight list, then shoot photos and draw on them with my tablet on the dreaded computer. After years of working, this is the best and most efficient approach for me. It might not work for you or anyone else, but that does not make it wrong, devalued, or ill-conceived. And of course it is important to be thinking about the idea throughout the entire process. Tool are tools... nothing more, nothing less

This is truly bizarre. Who doesn't have time to spend 30 minutes to 1 hour putting their thoughts down on paper? I do not have big-budget clients, far from it. And that is, again, an excuse. When did thinking something through become a fucking luxury? Pardon my French, but that's laziness and fear talking. A good creative can sell in any idea on the back of a napkin. And if clients have become used to polished comps, how did it happen? Here's how. You guys presented work that way and they didn't have to think too hard any more.
By the way, the example you showed was the final stages of a logo. It was done. He/she was using the computer to finesse ONE idea, but that idea was on paper long before it was on the screen, I guarantee it. It's just one evolution of an idea that was almost complete. I can work in Illustrator or Photoshop, but why bother at the early stages? I will take the Pepsi challenge with anyone that I can come up with 100 different thumbnails for logos way quicker than anyone using a mac. It takes seconds. But it's essential for the thinking process. And I am not alone. I was lucky enough to sit in on a few HOW conferences in Denver, and talked with many contributors after. That's where the inspiration for this came from...the big hitters, the big brains, all used pen and paper to get the ideas down. I bet you $10k Alex Bogusky doesn't use a Mac to come up with ideas. I know he doesn't actually. Still, he's so 80s too I guess, right?
But whatever, keep on skipping the thinking, go straight to your lovely mac and put your ideas down on paper with perfect circles and beautiful lines. You will get a serious wake-up call one day when someone who uses their brain steals an account from right under your nose.
And ED, you proved my point. You talk about initial sketches, or rough ideas. That's what I'm talking about. Keep it up man!

I agree with Felix. Coming from the experience recently of crashing my laptop off the couch and having logo's to produce... Not having a laptop to waste time on was a very beneficial thing. I came up with SO MANY more ideas than I would have had my computer been working that week. I probably would have drawn 3 logos and made them vector right away. And I wouldn't have even been to my best three logos. Perfecting them on paper got me so much farther than how I would have worked with computer.

I think having your own process is key, so however you want to do it is fine, but seriously - just TRY drawing some time and you will see how liberating it is to bring back the analog.

Not a wrong or right thing, more of an "are you giving it all you can" thing.

I don't understand how using any kind of technology is going to do the "thinking" part of the creative process.

Computers are not the origin of ideas.

felix man, you are missing the point entirely. no one is arguing that thinking and ideas are the most important part. the process is different for everyone. why do you care how people get to or show their ideas. jesus you are really coming off as a cranky whiny art snob here. relax a bit.

i dont care how alex bogusky comes up with his ideas. if he told you he didnt sketch but came up with them while wearing a rubber suit in the rain looking for unicorns and rainbows, does that mean we should all drop our mice and markers and do that? who cares. the idea is the point, not how you get there or how you present it.

and yes felix, i have single-handedly changed the advertising world by giving the people who pay me what they ask for sometimes. sorry bout that.

I'm with Felix on this. I just graduated from a design school and though my niche is interactive I must say all the best ideas (from me and my peers) come from people who sketch first. That's not to say that some great ideas can't come from "working things out" in comps. They can and do sometimes. The practical aspects of interactivity, color management sure do. I think the issue that comes up on the computer(I'm a PC, thank you very much) is that using vector drawing tools, fills, etc. in doing computer sketches leads us down the path to solutions that can rely on those tools. Sketching on the other hand forces us to do it all ourselves and much faster too. I guarantee you I can sketch an image of a house faster and with more detail than you can on the computer. I can suggest nuance to the "concept" faster too.

What was drilled into our heads at school (the largest in the country) was to take the time to do at least a few thumbnails first (or maybe 20), iterate on a few roughs, the do a computer rough or maybe a few if there are competing ideas. BTW - I can do thumbs and roughs in about 30 mins. I think the other true benefit of working this way is that you generate more options up front in the quick sketch phase and don't get locked into less tracks on the computer first. Success comes from giving the client the best options possible and I think the unfiltered brainstorming that comes on paper is invaluable for that. I'd never give it up.

Jules - to be honest, you kind of come across as a snotty punk. my 2c.

wow is it that you guys can't read or is it you don't comprehend the things you do read? i will say this for the last time. i am not arguing about the idea. so that's a moot point, we all agree on that. i am saying some people like pencils, some people like markers and some people like a mouse. that's it. no one can tell someone how to go about pleasing themselves or the client. no one can tell someone how to think. there is no right way to think or to create. to think otherwise is very shallow and speaks highly of your character.

jon up there put it very well and very simply.

So damn true. I preach this all the time. In fact, I posted a blog about how the Twitter Co-Founder Jack Dorsey gave a great keynote speech on the importance of "Drawing Your Ideas".
http://blog.fusionapps.com/2010/06/02/drawing-ideas-to-get-them-out-of-your-head/

When hiring designers, I'm really turned off when a designer lists all the programs they know but they don't provide a link to their portfolio. If you're hiring an artist, you don't care if they know how to use a brush, you want to see if they can paint. Same with a designer.

The point is clear and simple; the quickest, most efficient and most productive way for anyone to get an idea down is to throw it down quickly onto paper. That's it. When you have a great idea on the train or plane, do you jot it down or do you wait until you can pull out your mac laptop? When you need a few things from the store, do you write what you need on a post it or notepad and take that list, or do you open up an Illustrator doc and format it? This is about expediency. It's also about efficiency and quantity. You may think working directly in a mac is the best way to work, but if you really don't have any ideas until you're sat in front of a screen, that makes you a lame designer. You're working with blinders on. It's not old fashioned to jot an idea down on paper. It's also not old fashioned to wipe your ass with toilet paper or eat soup with a spoon.

Oh, and by the way, I give my clients what they need, not what they want. Most clients want something that is counter to the problem they actually need to solve. If your client wants a new logo, don't say yes. Ask why. If they need an ad, ask what they need it for. They may not need an ad at all, they may need to reformulate the product line. You're proving again that you're a designer in this for the money. Give them what they want, do it quick, move on. And I've been called way worse than shallow, but never the mediocre hack you're making yourself out to be.

my god felix. i dont think you have read anything i wrote. i am a designer for money you jackass, its my career. i cant feed my kids with pride.

this whole thing is a joke. i will be removing the egotist from my bookmarks, its a lame site anyway. To call me a mediocre hack without seeing my work is great, well done. you must be an excellent manager and judge of talent.

this is a fav of mine "They may not need an ad at all, they may need to reformulate the product line."

lol, i guess you've never worked with a budget before?

"You're proving again that you're a designer in this for the money. Give them what they want, do it quick, move on."

yes felix, thats exactly whats required. i pick and choose the right times to put forth the effort of full concept development. when a client needs another direct mailer that i do once a month, guess what, i go straight to computer! because i don't need to sketch again to feel like im doing more than i need. i knock it out and move on.

I have a lot of clients who do fashion photo shoots. Models and studios need to be combed over and chosen for those. We do layouts with stock shots to show the mood of what the photo shoot will be. Next time, ill just bring a sketch of a random stick figure girl to the client and we will see how that goes.

Oh no. Jules, don't go. I will lose sleep over this one. Why didn't you tell me you do direct mail jobs on autopilot in the first place? That would have made it all such a different story. And fashion? If I'd known you were putting together catalogs for JC Penney, I would have changed my tune. But most of all, you're a designer for money! You get paid. You do this to make a living. It's your career. Everyone else who reads this blog, and does good work, they do it for fun. They really make their money working as servers at Outback in the evenings. If I'd known you actually had to make a living, I'd have understood why you just go straight to your mac. That's what the people who make money in this biz do after all. My sincere apologies.

let's all write out our responses on pen & paper to weed out unnecessary drabble. (from my posty-note)

The thing with mocking up an idea on paper with a sharpie is that if the idea comes across in that medium it will most definitely come across when it's mocked up. That is probably obvious to all of us. However, I bet that 9 times out of 10, if you present the client a brilliant idea that's done in a sharpie and pit it against a crap idea that looks all glossy and pretty, they'll choose the one that looks pretty. Marker comps force you to evaluate the idea; not the design.

Wow, kids, I see you've been busy since yesterday and managed to land yourselves in a pretty heated argument. Rather than call each other names and bring the unicorns into this, let's focus on the real issue: Felix, your article details how design SHOULD happen. Jules' (and others') argument details how design IS happening all too often these days.

But basically, at the end of the day, you're both saying the same thing: the idea is what's important. The medium you use in order to get to that idea won't make or break it. It doesn't matter what kind of pan you bake a cake in if the recipe sucks. And last I checked, my Mac did not come equipped with a "Think for Me" key - it does what I tell it to do, not the other way around, the same way your Sharpies won't magically start to dance like enchanted Cinderella brooms and sketch you a great logo.

On a final note, I think to rail on Jules for admitting that his primary reason for designing is to make money is just plain low. In case nobody's noticed, the economy is still in the crapper and no one should be acting as if any job is below him. The client you do simple mailers for now could end up as Marketing Director for a kick-ass brand in a few years and give you and your Sharpies the opportunity of a lifetime if you help him get through the rough patches now. You need to understand your clients and pick your battles. Some are open to big ideas, some are just trying to keep their jobs, and no one wants to battle with a designer who's so high up on his soapbox that he can't see the client's needs from up there.

All of these egotist comment threads get off base and personal far too often. If the purpose is to help Denver suck less, and every comment thread proves otherwise, then what is the point?

There's some great inspiration on here for the most part, but it's sad how fast these conversations go downhill. As creative leaders, (and aspiring creative leaders,) we should all think twice, support one another, and work harder to elevate this creative community from a bigger perspective.

I guess creatives are inherently critics by nature, and if we didn't have our opinions, we could provide no value to our clients with a confident point of view. But the trick here, is to keep our minds open and be respectful of others' opinions and processes - because we all stand to grow and become better by doing so.

I think the egotist should focus more on the positive, and change their tagline to "Helping Denver Grow as a Creative Community". Otherwise, we're using the "dark side" as our springboard for thinking and sharing.

Just my two cents.

Beautiful analogy... I certainly wish the same for every creative individual. Even programmers who are looking for inspiration and running into blocks too often could take a cue from this. I am sure if we can only turn our gaze away from the machine and think over a problem, we can imagine, predict and form a much more creative solution than we usually do.
It definitely didn't take a Mac (or a PC) for Albert Einstein to form his theory. He invented it while working in a clerk's office, certainly not conducive for scientific theories.
All we really need is creative imagination and computer is just a tool for putting it together for others to see as we do. But first we must learn to imagine and to do that we must be independent of technology.
In conclusion, I agree with all you say. Couldn't have said it any better myself.

Our agency's first computer in 88 or 89 was a Mac IIci.. With a whopping 8 megs of ram... neat... heck, we had a fast computer back then. And the entire creative dept had just one.. That one.. we only got on to set type here and there.. and work in photoshop... for the most part, we still used type houses (Andresen in San Francisco) to set type.. and because we learned the old fashioned way, we gave much more thought to typefaces, size, position, leading, kerning, etc.

As the transition to computer type and design happened, we felt we had the background experience to understand kerning pairs better ... and hence, had better looking computer type... too many people today have shitty gaps between caps and lowercase letters.. use inch marks for quotes, etc. It's a crime.

From a conceptual standpoint, we used marker pads and markers.. each art director had a set of color markers and a range of cool and warm grays for shading. While not all art directors can draw, we did our best by tracing, etc. Of course, we have computers now to make comps.. but that's what computers should be used for now.. a time saver.. a tool... Nobody should jump on a computer to concept anything for any reason. Work the ieas out first on paper. You can make a dozen logos with a pencil in the time an average designer can make just one on the computer.. Then you can narrow down to the best... THEN COMP.. end of story. Nuff said.

Clients are amazed when I've told them it takes AT LEAST 10 good ideas to come up with ONE great one, but I find myself falling into some the habits you're arguing against.

Now I'm going to get back to work, Sharpies and notepad in hand.

Thanks for the inspiration.

may i suggest reading the shallows by nicholas carr?
this editorial is bang on.

Appreciate the post, and the views expressed. However I can't help but disagree. – Sorry!

Its just that using to Mac instead of the lo-fi method of the archetypal sketchbook, can just for some designers, be an alternatively beneficial preferred method of working.

You are entirely correct, our hi-tech equipment are tools of the trade, however formulating and experimenting with ideas from your thoughts, direct to the Mac, is no different from a painter, sketching out a painting first, directly onto the canvas that will form the finished painting.

I used to go through so many Sketchbooks at Art School, but I found that for me (personally), it only slowed down my creative process. But this is only my preference. Whichever way a creative finds most effective and comfortable for them, is entirely up to them. ;)

This is such a stupid article, and pointless conversation. The only reason I've come this far is because of the entertaining verbal showdown between Jules and Felix. And for the record, Felix, you're the one coming off as a stubborn, snotty punk. Get off you're high horse and stop acting like your ideas are the best. You post this crap and then get defensive when someone criticizes, even though Jules is only showing the other side of the argument. Peace.

1. It's my job to be a stubborn, snotty punk.
2. it's "your high horse." If you're (you are) going to throw crap my way, at least have a basic grasp of grammar.

Felix and Jules, I want to tell you about the Tingles.

When I help a total stranger, or a total stranger helps me, I get the Tingles.

The Tingles are the most amazing feeling. It's goosebumps, a chill up my spine, and tears in my eyes all at once.

I think you guys just missed out on an amazing opportunity to get some fucking Tingles. You both had tons of constructive things to share with each other that could have made the other person feel great and want to send that feeling back to you in positive dialogue.

Felix, you are a passionate defender of advertising. I really appreciate your rants. But if your goal is to rally members of our field to consider and practice your ideas, being a stubborn, snotty punk is counter-productive.

I am also a passionate defender of advertising and the Denver creative scene. And I want to see this blog filled with people helping each other, being open to new ideas, and completely unconcerned with showing off the power of their invective. I want to see a shit ton of Tingles up in this motherfucker. Let's invite people to consider ideas instead of demanding that they adopt them. Let's offer a differing opinion instead of cutting someone down when you disagree. Let's make Denver a place Creatives want to flock to because the community is so damn amazing.

Faithfully,
Fernando

Love your blog Fernando. I take your point completely, but one of my official duties here is to stir things up a bit. That side of Felix is not going anywhere I'm afraid.

Great reminder.

I don't understand why all the negative references to the 80's. There were pens, yes, but there was also the Thriller Jacket, Ankle Warmers, and Family Ties. All of which had to be marketed, and were marketed successfully.

Personally, I think it can depend on the project, and on the level of inspiration required to get in the zone and start really making something great.

Sometimes, the computer just burns me out. You need a change of scenery and you drop some ideas on whatever paper is lying about. Sometimes you gotta do wireframes and you have a great idea. Illustrator always draws a straighter line than me (every time! it's madness!), and it lets me get something down to think through.

It's all about creating the best space for you to evolve an idea...no matter where it happens.

Great article.

Love this, practice this.

Anyone else sick of this self serving anti tech rant being distributed with the most advanced communication tech the world has ever known trend? If you don't like to use tools a certain way, then don't! But don't assume there's something wrong with those of us who do. Jerk.

I think the audience most offended by this are the designers (with a few exceptions). Which is understandable because it seems that many designers haven't a clue when it comes to ad strategy. So the whole point about using a sketch pad and sharpie to compose a rough comp in order to evaluate the strength of the idea is probably wasted on them. Who cares about a solid idea so long as it looks good?

This article is pathetic. This is the classic example of the "Why, in MY day..." syndrome. An idea is an idea. No matter what is in front of you on your desk, the idea still comes from the same place. Just because it is extracted by a different tool doesn't make it tainted in anyway. Accept that times are changing.

Quick sketches aren't a bad idea, it seems.

http://breezycreativedesign.com/2010/05/04/citi-logo-by-paula-scher/

Macs, macs, macs. I'm sick of the 'designers use macs' paradigm. They're overpriced, underpowered, and sacrifice usability for pure aesthetics, not to mention the scores of well-designed PCs on the market. My PC laptop cost $700, gets 12 hours of battery life, has a slick brushed aluminum lid, a 500Gb HDD and a 3DMark06 score of 3500 (as compared to a MacBook's 1700.) It also weighs only 3.6lbs and is under an inch thick. Macs are just stupid status symbols that don't deserve to be status symbols.

It's just a computer. Jeez.
You don't have to use it.

hi... nice post... no argument here.. i just used it to hopefully school some newbies at another blog...

http://www.faqs.org/abstracts/Business/A-practitioner-asks-can-you-sketc...

btw-- i wrote this in 1993... wish i could send you the full article..but digital HAS no history as many will soon learn in another 17 years..when you cant send them to read this article:)

best
larryr
cube3

btw- ive now just read all the remarks... jules included etc. etc...

its been about 20 years since i was one of the first to even think about this stuff and put the ideas into the design industries outlets to think about.

its no surprise weve got alot of younger designers convinced they are the cog in a machine that sucks and has failed to feed them.;)

but they will defend it.. ego does that... but knowledge does more... and sometimes its not new... but hidden or refused.

this was my first time at this site... blog. whatever... its amazing that a post in a realm dealing with creativity and ideas and processes, should find such rigid and binary arguments.

but after 25 years we are what we eat... but you all knew that when you saw the 1984 mac commercial telling you the enemy of creativity was IBM.. right?..lol