LEARN SIGN DESIGN
by Matt Charboneau
COMMERCIAL SIGN DESIGNER CORE BASICS
10 one-hour classes
This is the training course that advances a talented graphic artist into a commercial sign designer in just 10 hours of training over a 5 week period. Students will learn and comprehend:
- Designing for distance
- The differences in readability vs visibility
- Spacing, flow, balance, layout and contrast in sign face design
- Fonts, kerning, serifs, san-serifs, bowls, ledges and centers
- Designing within material substrate sizes
- What you can't ever do, and can sometimes do
- Dimensional signs vs flat panels - why each are used
- Banners vs Panels and when to use each one
The student will learn the core basics of sign design.
This is not a color management class
This is not a "how to run a printer" class, it is on pure, old-school sign design as it's always been done since the days of Mike Stevens.
ELECTRIC SIGN DESIGN TRAINING COURSE
10 one-hour classes
This is the training course that advances a talented commercial sign designer into understanding the parts, pieces and processes involved in the electric sign design, estimating, fabrication and installation process.
Students will learn and comprehend:
- What is wrench room
- Why you can and can't add cabinets to pylon signs
- The parts, pieces and process of the electric sign industry
- Design vs Illustration and when to use them
- Pretty pictures still have to be built
- Designing within materials sizes and capabilities
- Engineering and your role as a designer
- Sign code research
- Footers, foundations and when to use a spread footer or caisson
- The care and feeding of your salesperson for awesome communication
- How to vet a design with your fabricator
- Knowing the ins and outs of EMC's
- LED's lumens vs kelvin - Who cares and why you need to
DRAFTING AND PROPER DIMENSIONING
4 one-hour classes
This is the training course that advances a talented commercial sign designer and or an electric sign designer and shows them the right way to finally dimension their drawings so that it all makes sense to the sign estimators, fabricators and installers.
Students will learn and comprehend:
- What is the proper way to dimension architecturally
- What is different when dimensioning mechanical parts and pieces
- What is a section view and how to draw one
- Line weights, fonts, font size and page layout
- Call outs, detailing and the dreaded "inside or outside" outline
- Arrows, dim lines, leaders, caps and number placement
- When to round up, and why it's necessary, and how to revert back
Students will be up to speed and ready to dimension their files properly. Note... CorelDRAW 2021/22 is currently the most user-friendly for dimensioning a drawing, both full size and in set scale increments that coincide with U.S. Architectural and Dimensional scaling rulers.
THE PRE-SALE SIGN SURVEY COURSE
1 hour class
This is the training course that every team member in the company can benefit from. Sloppy sign surveys account for nearly 95% of all problems, mistakes, errors and oversights that occur in the sign industry.
I have written the "Pre-Sale Sign Survey Guide" as a way to help salespeople, designers, estimators and owners have a better understanding of why the details obtained during the survey are so critical, and why knowing which information to gather is so important.
The class follows and expands upon the training provided in the guide. The electronic version is included for each student who completes the course.