Barkstall Bear: My goal was to capture an expression that conveyed confidence and at the same time not come across threatening.
Hansen Barber Shop: With this logo I looked to achieve a modern style and yet hint at the hand painted lettering of barber shop windows from the past.
Picture Perfect Technologies: logo and rebranding commisioned for a high end video/audio company
Bare Fruit: For this logo I choose a style I felt reflected the brand identity which focused heavily on natural unprocessed ingredients.
Tiki Idle: This was a logo created for a Mid West area Scooter club
I have a true passion for User Interface design and although I have no coding skills I jump at every opportunity to design icons, and interfaces.
AppleWatch Father's Day Award: I find the AppleWatch fitness awards beautifully designed and was inspired to mimic their design language and attempt my own version. Time will tell if they create an award for Father's Day and if I can predict the future.
A side by side comparison to official Apple awards.
Interface icons: A large group of icons created for RC radio features.
Thunder Tiger icons: A set of icons created for a helicopter packaging proposal.
Revell model icons: A series of icons created to symbolize various features found in plastic model kits.
DroneView app: This was a mobile app to view and capture video from an RC quad. The app was a ground up design which I provided all U.I. concepts, and vector assets.
ORA interface: Interface concepts for a tablet based transmitter with a complex set of user options.
Below are a handful of package designs and concepts I have developed for clients.
Hansen Barbershop: This client requested a site design that fit his no nonsense attitude.
HeliMax web design: The challenge with designing this site was the need to create a format that would allow new products to easily be added and integrate seamlessly. I provided the front-end design direction as well as assisting in the U.I. features.
Hansen Barber Shop: This client requested an ad and message that would speak to his male demographic and reflect his strong personality.
Picture Perfect Technologies: This business has a strong company culture of family values and I wanted to create an ad that spoke to these views.
Tactic TTX300:
Goal: Create a new design language for the "Pistol-style" Tactic radio line. Design an entry level radio that has a higher perceived value than the competition.
Constraints: This radio had a $14 manufacturing cost which made development particularly challenging. The vendor we used for this product was one we had never worked with before which also presented itself with challenges.
Final Thoughts: Having such tight manufacturing margins required considerable sacrifices in materials, finishes, and features. That being said, I feel when compared to the competition at this price point, I succeed in designing a competitive product.
Tactic TTX850:
Goal: Assist in designing a mid range two stick radio to match the design language previously established.
Constraints: This was a project, that due to priority issues, I was brought into assist in finishing off some design elements.
Final Thoughts: I believe I succeeded in enhancing the final look of the radio without it appearing that two different designers had a hand in its design direction.
Tactic TTX610:
Goal: Create an entry level two stick radio that has a higher perceived value than the competition and fit into the established design language of the product line.
Constraints: This radio had a low manufacturing cost which meant I needed to be creative in my boundaries and limitations.
Final Thoughts: At the completion of this project I feel most of the sacrifices necessary to hitting the tight manufacturing margins did not diminish the products overall success.
My contributions to the design of these boats encompassed everything above the waterline. This included 3D body design, sculpting notes, detailed orthographic views, decals, and graphics.
These are a handful of the RC Quads and Planes I have designed. My duties included body design, logos, decals, and graphic trim schemes.
I take great pride in having created what I believe are the most photo-realistic decals in the entire RC market. My goal was to always push the limits of what the printing process can register. I contribute this dedication to the numerous smooth and fast approvals from licensed car brands.
Camaro ZL1: I create all my decals and trims solely in vector form to insure the highest clarity and color accuracy.
Nissan GT-R: This file was approved by Nissan on the first attempt. This product had solid sales numbers and good reviews.
Lamborghini Revolution: This kit was developed with Lamborghini for the Spanish RC market. Lamborghini was very impressed with the end result and complemented me on my accuracy.
Vehicle Trim schemes: I start all my trims by hand sketching the outline shapes over orthographic views of the vehicle. Next, I use Adobe Illustator to create color vector artwork of the side and top views for management approval. Once I receive approval I construct the final flat artwork file to send to the vendor to screen print on lexan sheets.
Although not a skill I am often asked to utilize, I have sculpted some products by hand. Below is a mixture of licensed and proprietary samples.
Vegas Hotels Board Game: This game was a labor of love that took 2 full years to hand build. I grew up playing board games with my brother and we always talked about this game, dreaming of what would be impossible from a licensing perspective to exist. When I finally reached a point in my life to have the skills and equipment to make our dream a reality I poured myself into it. Nearly every portion of the game is one of a kind....technically two of a kind since I built another to surprise my brother on his birthday.
This game is based off a Milton Bradley game simply called Hotels from the mid 80's. Although a wonderful game it has some game balancing problems and lacks some fun gameplay elements found in games like Monopoly that I felt could make for a more well rounded experience.
The goals for my game were as follows:
1- Create a visually engaging style along with unique 3D game pieces.
2- A quickly recognizable gameplay that was easy to pick up but not repetitive.
3- A well balanced gameplay with elements that allowed for personal modification.
I started by analyzing imbalanced and problem areas from the Milton Bradley game. I then researched current and past Las Vegas Hotels for examples that would have the most dynamic visuals but still fit the design language that was consistent with board games. I was not interested in Vegas hotel accuracy as much as the spirit of what made the hotels unique.
Once a list of hotels was decided I modeled all the parts in Rhino and printed samples off a 3D printer.
After hours of sanding and preparation I built molds and cast the final parts.
The game board was completely rebuilt in vector and redesigned to fit my needs like the addition of High Roller spaces.
I added the "High Roller" cards as a way to introduce some "Community Chest" like play found in Monopoly. I provided blank cards and encouraged creating personal challenges and wagers. An example I gave was to wager doing the dishes for a week or watch a "chick-flik".
In order to create the Hotel deeds needed to play I had to recreate some of the hotel logos as well as create some of my own interpretation's to match the design style I was going for. The exact values of these deeds were left blank initially so I could do play testing to insure the balance of elements were acceptable.
Along with the buildings themselves each hotel needed its own facility to accompany it. Some hotels like the Bellagio's "dancing fountains" had features in the real life hotels I was able to incorporate. Others needed to be fabricated.
One of the most enjoyable stages was creating the art that wrapped the buildings themselves. I attempted to squeeze as much detail as possible into each hotel. The buildings were then airbrushed and the finishing touches added.
Since I also needed to create my own instruction manual I took the opportunity to add a personal message to my brother.
The final stage was to fabricate the box. By this time all the individual elements were created so all the insert panels could be shot. All except for one. I left a panel blank on my brothers version (later updated) because I wanted an action photo showing my brother and I playing the game for the first time. I felt this personal touch necessary but an opportunity to document the occasion to future relatives.
My brother was truly touched and shocked when I presented it to him on his birthday. He plays it often with his friends and family and considers it a family heirloom…I can think of no greater complement.
