This is nothing more than a platform for me to share whatever I want. Most often the material here will be shots of my work, or others work. Of course I give credit to the artist for anything that isn't my creation. I do an informational post or a tutorial occasionally too.
24
JAN
2012
Just some stuff
I'm really busy. Leave me alone.
I like this one. Click it please.
More of what you just saw.
And something else, some UX stuff.
But seriously, leave me alone for another week or two, I'm really busy.
02
JAN
2012
Isaac : Year Two
Sure, I've been freelancing as my sole occupation since March 2010, but 2011, and only starting in May, was when I really came alive. I hate to seem like a braggart but, I turned 19 years old just two months ago, and for months before that, I've been working full time in the career I've always wanted, and using it to completely support my independent life? I feel bulletproof... This year I've seen such an incredible amount of rapid change in myself. My lifestyle is unrecognizable.
I'm not normally one for New Year's resolutions, but I do plan on getting more organized with my work in 2012. I'm running with a project management system called Solo now, and yes, it really is beautiful.
And here's just a piece I added to my portfolio, I did it just before my holiday break. Click the image to see it all.
So here I am, going into year two. I can do this.
05
DEC
2011
Recent work, nothing more
This will PROBABLY be the last update I write before the holidays and new year. I need to work hard before the little break I have planned for myself, doubt I'll make time for this. 2012, then.
This is just a splash page, the full site is in progress. Still though, I think it has nice elements to it. Created the main graphic from scratch.
An infographic for Find the Best Car Price. This one is all about the best times to purchase, and why. See it on their blog.
Basically. I'm designing IMDB, but for Bollywood. See the movie index page here.
21
NOV
2011
Age humbles, I feel wonderful
Just a quickie update, so some people can see my latest, and to prove I'm not dead, and very much still working. Oh yeah, I turned 19 on November 1. I gotta say, I felt more special when I was an 18 year-old wholly independent, full time professional graphic/web designer. Seemed more impressive. Oh well. I still love being alive.
One page design only, for a site that organizes tours of different campuses for curious potential students.
It would help to note that this website's slogan is "Trends in Motion."
28
OCT
2011
Click any of the images to visit the actual portfolio page for it. It is 10:30 AM as I write this, and well, I was supposed to be done and onto my projects by 10 AM, so I gotta hurry up and get this done. Hope you enjoy my latest!
FoodCircles is an exciting local startup, right in Grand Rapids, Michigan. While creating a new experience/tool for eating out locally, it also feeds underprivileged children, meal for meal.
This infographic is designed to be part of the presentation of a study on the health of Americans, titled "A Fragile Nation in Poor Health; Realities about why so many Americans fail to follow their doctor's orders."
Catherine's Health Center is a local nonprofit health clinic in Grand Rapids that provides for people who cannot afford health insurance. I did this one as part of Grand Rapids GiveCamp.
Speaking of GRGC... Here's a group shot of many (but not all) who worked. I'm in there but half my face is cut off by a cute nerdy-looking guy in front of me, oh well. Props to Adam Bird for taking the shot. Most were developers, I was one of the few designers. I found them to be skilled/experienced people to work with, and it was all team-based, so it was a good experience.
11
OCT
2011
Some material I'm working on
This is all works in progress, I'm still terribly busy, only really have time for a visual update.
This is the header for an infographic.
The 'About Us' subpage for Ruckus Ventures with staff profiles. I always use Ben Folds for placeholders like this.
This is a website for a local organization that focuses on provided food for disadvantaged children. There's custom illustrations by another artist I have yet to implement, there will be some very flashy content on this page.
16
SEPT
2011
I'm really really busy. Here's four new web designs I've just added to my portfolio. Just click an image to check it out, I don't have the energy to write any more. Talk to you later blog.
Breakfast with Matt. Primarily for scheduling meetings, displaying finance expertise too.
Web Video Supplier. A one page website to sell video creation services.
Lemon SEO. Website of SEO company, to sell SEO services.
Laravel. Download and documentation website for web development PHP framework.
02
SEPT
2011
Productive relocation period
I moved to downtown Grand Rapids this week, I'm in a high rise building, the location is great. I'll update with photos of my new home office when I get around to it. I've also been keeping intensely busy, as you'll see in a moment.
18
AUG
2011
A few 17 hour work days recently
I've been swamped all week, absolutely slammed. A lot of things going on, freelance projects too.
Something I added to my portfolio this week. A basic landing page. I'm doing their logo right now, but the one there is just a placeholder.
I'm working on designing and building the website for a PHP web development framework. What you see here is still early on in terms of design finalization, it'll get better.
I added another page of Eyes on the Town to my portfolio. It's the business index, for businesses to network, not users.
08
AUG
2011
Some major upgrades to my site
I've been meaning to get these done since June when I launched this site but never got around to them, I got SWAMPED. Now that I'm moving very soon I needed to buckle down and finish them up, then pick up some more projects!
Yep, added a logo to my header, needs more work though!
No one reads massive, boring walls of text. And that's what I had in this part of my homepage before I installed this nice, concise, graphical introduction.
I finished this site and put it in my portfolio. I built the whole thing and now it's running live on its own server.
28
JULY
2011
I Got three different projects to the point where I could put them up in my portfolio, that is all.
Click it to view the portfolio page, I'm too burnt out to write more about these. I kind of already did over there.
OK this one isn't in the portfolio yet, it's unfinished. I'm just showing it because it has progressed and it will join the others... Once it's done.
23
JULY
2011
Nothing more than a quickie update of what I'm working on right now. These are both very new designs and pretty much in the "first draft" stage. Still working on OrganicDog and FindtheBestCarPrice but that's more coding and finalization as of late.
Eyes on the Town, some social networking site/service based on texting. This is my very first draft and I'm sure it will change quite a bit, haven't even done any styling yet. Supposed to be simple and clean, and the user index will be a lot more white and a lot less orange.
All I had to go off here was the logo they provided, basing style/colors off that. It's still in the first stage, waiting on feedback to continue. The cartoon character is theirs, they just wanted it included.
17
JULY
2011
I've found a lot of useful things reading posts like this from others. Thought I'd pay it forward and share some of the more obscure stuff in my kit.
This is Wilma (Windows Layout Manager) and it's really made for multiple displays. Useful to me as I run three. It allows me to quickly switch between layouts for things like work/play/etc. I have different presets for all types of work, like coding a site vs. designing one.
OK I know this looks complicated and boring, but it's easy to do the basic stuff I do with it, don't be scared off.
The guy who wrote the software (Stefan Didak) clearly has more of a use for it than me, as you can see from this photo of his eFamous hom office.
06
JULY
2011
I walk a lot. And I really do mean a LOT. I'm doing 8 miles most days. I need to spend a significant amount of time outside every day, with sunlight, not sitting on a chair. If I don't do this I get frustrated and irritated to no end just being indoors. So I walk a lot, and it's helping me get in shape, winning all over.
I snap photos on my iPod when I see something that could be good looking. Some of these are pleasant looking with that awful camera, going DSLR on this terrain could be beautiful...
Around 7 AM I found this cool angle of the sun through a tree and had to get a shot, and what do you know, it's pretty.
28
JUNE
2011
Up to 8 miles a day. Yeah I'm pretty cool I guess. In any case, I'm still really busy and all I can do is share a little of piece of the myriad of tasks doing that.
The point of the website is the form the button leads to, making it clear why people should click that button and making it attractive to click is important. The custom illustration was from scratch by me. It's almost done, i'll be coding soon.
20
JUNE
2011
Just some more of what I'm working on, I'm too swamped to do anything other than this right now. I'm juggling three different web design projects while simultaneously dealing with some personal obligations and walking 6 miles a day. Yeah.
It's a web design for some pet supply product stuff. I made the logo (O with the dog jumping through) a while back and now I'm doing a web design. This isn't done of course.
14
JUNE
2011
I've been tweaking this site quite a bit, I'm not done yet though. I still have to make some new buttons, perfect the HTML/CSS code, do some light SEO, a 404 page, and get a logo up. Also, I decided I love Dribbble. Just started using it a couple days ago.
It's not finished, just a piece in progress. Required to have a red, white & blue theme. Still have more to do and things to change. Click the image for a view.
I have real work to do now.
07
JUNE
2011
I launched this site yesterday, just without the blog, which I've completed today. If you don't know, I used to be on another website called Thesis Design. This is a move as well as a change of form. I'm deleting the old blog from that site which goes all the way back to May 2010.
The portfolio page might be my favorite part. A simple rollover effect can go a long way in making a site feel dynamic.
Of course I will continue to post a few quick shots of what I've worked on recently, might as well start.
A client had his heart set on a colorful, toonish illustration depicting multiple employees servicing one boss. I came up with a little bit of a vector styled quickie.
I trust that the style of my blog has been established well with this. I plan on using it regularly.
Email
Phone
Skype
Gtalk
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Phone
Skype
Gtalk
MSN
isaac@isaacpvl.com
616.558.5203
isaacpvl
isaacpvl@gmail.com
isaac@isaacpvl.com
616.558.5203
isaacpvl
isaacpvl@gmail.com
isaac@isaacpvl.com
© 2011 Isaac Paavola, All Rights Reserved.