Think of each project like a case study.”īut don’t underestimate the pull of an internet base, which has your best work, contact information and a short bio. “Put up at least three images for a project and give some descriptive background text for each project. “Use all your available keywords, ones that a client might search for when looking for a specific artist or specialism,” say Rod. Websites like these can appear large and crowded, but there’s no need to be scared if you use them correctly.
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The most unexpected contacts can be the most useful, if you just tell them what you’re doing and who you are. If in doubt, use all - and any other platforms that you think you’ll be able to build connections on. Twitter tends to best for news, Instagram best for sharing (and lusting over visuals) and Behance to show off to potential clients. You are centring your career around visual communication, so why wouldn’t you be interested in social media and the teeming, simultaneously ugly and beautiful web surrounding it? The internet is unavoidable and you should definitely be using it - or have a very good explanation otherwise. And make sure it’s good to look at too (you are an illustrator, after all). So, you need a great portfolio that shows the full extent of your skill, techniques and ideas. It might make you cringe, shudder and want to curl into a tight ball to avoid all of humanity, but if you don’t sell your talents and personality, you sell yourself short.Įven if you’re the greatest illustrator in the world, no one can appreciate your work if they can’t see it. That is all very noble, but just as important is the murky art of self-promotion. And remember that mistakes and failure are not time wasted, but time well spent.
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To improve and keep improving those key skills, seek criticism, learning opportunities and advice from those more experienced. Your style will change over time and fashions, but techniques, craft and ideas are a foundation if you’re a multi-talented illustrator who knows anything about buildings at all, you'll understand foundations cannot be skipped. “Above all doing great work is best advert,” says Rod Hunt. Read more of our graduate series: How to find and get your first graduate job How to become a freelance illustrator: Selling your work (and yourself) So, to help steer yourself through the choppy, exciting waters of the illustration world, here are some tips from people who’ve survived the struggle and enjoyed the successes of freelance illustration.
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As much as you’d like to lose yourself in your marvellous creations all hours of the day - taking a break to perhaps occasionally eat - you’ll realistically have to spent time selling yourself, concocting spreadsheets and negotiating too.īut with that added pressure comes the freedom to take your career in whatever direction suits you. Illustrators Ana Jaks, David Doran, Emma Block, Rod Hunt, Sarah Tanat-Jones and The Association of Illustrators’ (AOI) Derek Brazell explain how to start after graduating, build your portfolio and contact sheets, and what to do when you actually land that first client.īeing self-employed is not easy, loaded as it is with extra responsibility.
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If drawing for a living whilst being your own boss wouldn’t look out of your place in the dreamier, happier end of your sketchbook, then read on for practical, less dream-laden steps on how to become a freelance illustrator.