Rant
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- gramme0
Of course deadlines are important, but if I was in power at our client's office, I would delay the launch date by at least another week. My point was that people sacrifice EVERYTHING on the altar of deadlines, even when the rush is their own fault. And that is simply bad business.
- maximillion_0
im amazed at the amount of "winging it" that goes on in digital. there are so many ppl in the industry who waste so much time pretending that they know whats going on and dont, and they are the last to be seen when push comes to shove.
- gramme0
spooky – in all seriousness – I'm bookmarking you for the next time we need an illustrator who gives a rat's ass about excellence.
There is something seriously effed up about a corporate culture that honors deadlines before quality – even if it costs unreasonable amounts of money. I seriously think this helter-skelter pace has contributed in no small part to our current economic pickle.
- gramme0
Spooky – what do you do for a living now, if you've hung up your typographer's tackle?
- gramme0
*goes and has a very large, expensive scotch.
- Spookytim0
Gramme, I would say that in my experience no, it didn't happen like this in the (relatively recent) past. The world of work is wound so tightly now that 'It will have to do" is the new benchmark for perfection.
My first job was in 1985. No Macs, all hand-made paste up artwork on boards with overlays. Typesetters set the type, finished artists prepared the boards that went to repro for tint laying and film setting, then to the plate makers, then to the printers, and always for wet proofs on things like brochures, never chromalins. Nothing could ever get through that wasn't 99.9% perfect. Of course, it took much much longer and the possibilities were more limited, but I for one would rather have that time and those restrictions again rather than having clients feeling everything is possible with digital work and no time is required to do it, and whatever comes out will have to do because there's ten other jobs needing to be pushed through the system just as frantically.
I soemtime wish I didn't know how it used to be but my dad was a printer too of the letterpress variety, so I knew print from day one really. Soon as I got told for the first time that I had to email a 5mb pdf directly to the printer and he would just run plates and print so my pdf had better be right or it would all be my fault, I decided me and design were finished.
- creative-0
I have gone absolutely nuts for a lot less. The problem is the tight deadlines that are imposed on jobs such as this... if you had another 3 weeks, all would be fine. It's a real shame but there's nothing more you can do but go and have a scotch.
- gramme0
Seriously, I wonder why my boss is not more pissed. I consider myself a fairly level guy, and I almost completely lost it in front of the entire studio when I saw the books.
- gramme0
On a general note...do people just not pursue excellence anymore? Do you guys experience this in dealing with various vendors/artists – be they printers or photographers? I'm not old enough to know, but is it really true that in the paste-up days this kind of thing just didn't happen? I mean...we only hire the best printers in the U.S. Does "best" mean anything anymore???
I just talked to my dad about this. He's much older and wiser than I. He used to work for a rinky-dink offset shop in Texas. He was livid on my behalf, and stunned that my boss did not squarely demand for the whole campaign to be recycled and reprinted at the printers' cost. He said they never would have let something like this occur, even at their po-dunk little offset shop – and if it did happen, they would eat the cost – call the insurance company, if they had to – rather than foist something so shoddily constructed on the world.
- gramme0
Thanks for listening and for the encouraging words. You are all grand chaps and chapettes in my battered ol' book :)
- spendogg0
I did a retail style guide for a national brand and the printer fucked up the tabs, and there was no time to redo it. I feel like it ruined a great piece and many, many hours of work. the culprit was the AE and one of my juniors - they only had to check the die-lines - damn fuckups.
- gramme0
Don't sweat it spoox – metagramme is my dusty ol' portfolio, nothing more. I actually work at another studio elsewhere. Studio@metagramme goes right to my g-mail.
- Randd0
THAT BLOWS
- Glimpses do ye seem to see of that mortally intolerable truth; that all deep, earnest thinking is but the intrepid effort of the soul to keep the open independence of her sea; while the wildest winds of heaven and earth conspire to cast her on the treacherous, slavish shore?capsize
- yeah I know, esp. since nice campaigns are such solid portfolio pieces..gramme
- heaven and earth conspire to cast her on the treacherous, slavish shore?capsize
- gramme- a couple of days the shock will fade. the quote was for randdcapsize
- Spookytim0
OH SHIT!
Gramme, I just wrote you an email. I just wrote it and sent it... and then I saw the email address is to 'Studio@metagramme' not directly to you so someone else might get it... I'm really sorry!!!!!!!!
- gramme0
My boss thinks it's still good enough to communicate the message and win awards...but we can only show the book and pretend there was no campaign.
- Randd0
out studio connects to our living space. the last time this happened I went into the living space, went upstairs and went to bed
- grunttt0
suX with a capital X!
- Spookytim0
Randd, when you close the office, do you remain on the inside, or do you position yourself outside beforehand?