VOICES
Opinion
PROFILENick Wood, graphic developer at London design
studio ShopTalk, discusses learning and using
developer skills as a designer
Designers looking to move into
developer territory need to adapt
their mindset and approach. Design is
very subjective – aside from a few core
principles, there’s almost no wrong way to
do things. But when it comes to coding,
there is absolutely no margin for error –
attention to detail is essential when
something as small as a single semicolon
can throw everything off.
Merging the two disciplines, however, has
some significant advantages and I believe
that it has made me a stronger designer.
Creatives moving into development bring a
different way of thinking to the table. As
designers, our approach to problem-solving
is arguably more fluid and imaginative than
a traditional coder’s might be.
One of the greatest advantages of being a
desig ner w ith de veloper sk i l ls is that you canbe involved in every step of the creative
process, f rom concept ion through to rol l-out.
The combination opens up more opportunities
and enables greater control, as you can
accompany your original idea through the
whole process and fully realise your initial
vision. Typically, when a designer hands over
a project at development stage they lose
ultimate control and the results might not be
exactly as they had envisioned.
When the roles are entirely separate, you
can have desig ners com ing up w ith good ideas
and developers saying whether or not they’re
possible. But if you have both weapons in your
arsenal, you know what’s possible, how
boundaries can be pushed and new territories
explored. You know how to overcome potential
problems and make something work.
Collaborating with other developers becomes
more effective too, as you’re all conversantin the same languages. Interpreting
something from a designer’s mind and
making it work is a tough job if you don’t fully
understand each other’s disciplines!
As design increasingly moves off paper and
onto screen, we’re going to see the designer-
developer divide crossed more and more. And
while design purists might not like this, I
bel ie ve that it w i l l actual ly improve things on
both sides in the long run.
Most design courses don’t cover code but
when I studied graphic design at Central Saint
Mar t ins, students were encouraged to e x plore
development and seek out new ways to
introduce it into art projects. Beyond that, I
would say I’m self-taught – having spent
many hours immersing myself and watching
YouTube tutorials. It can be harder to pick up
these skills in the workplace as day-to-day
tasks and obligations take precedence but it’s
all available online.
T here’s no shor tcut to the process, you just
have to commit and learn all that you can.
You also need to appreciate that it w i l l be some
time before you’ll be able to utilise any new
skills in a professional context.
I would say I’m naturally drawn to the
technical aspects of design, so burning the
midnight oil to learn the skills needed to
merge development, coding and art came
naturally to some degree. I love design but
don’t want to be restricted to graphics.
A lot of developers don’t have design
knowledge and a lot of designers don’t have
development knowledge, but this middle
g round is a g row ing, e xcit ing area in the world
of design agencies. We’re bridging the gap
and coming up with inspirational creative. If
you’re interested in how things move, human
interaction and interactivity, this is definitely
the way to go.
Having both skill sets will become
increasingly att ract ive to desig n agencies and
thei r cl ients. T he g uys I work w ith at ShopTal k
have always encouraged me. They are
constantly looking to push it and realise some
of the more outlandish ideas that we have. It
excites prospective clients too, when they see
what’s possible and where it could take them.
We often find they opt for some of our more
out-there ideas as a result.Wood is graphic developer at London design
studio ShopTalk, which helps clients with brand
identity, digital media and communication.
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