Editor’s letter
Do you work all night, and work all day, to pay the bills you have to pay? Does it feel like there’s never a single penny left for you? That’s too bad.
As Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Anni-Frid told us, money must be pretty funny in a rich man’s world. And while you won’t find too many designers with pockets stuffed with wads of £50 notes, blowing their surplus on magnums of champagne, if the above situation is true and your hours are disproportionate to your income, the chances are you’re not charging enough for your time.
With all this in mind, welcome to another CA money special, in which we tackle the eternally thorny topic from several angles, including increasing your salary, negotiating your freelance rates and budgeting your studio projects more effectively, as well as posing some more philosophical questions such as how to balance passion with profit, and whether you should reduce your rates for charitable causes.
Our striking cover is by our very own Jo Gulliver, who took her inspiration from the hectic LED boards at the world’s stock exchanges (which have certainly seen their share of fluctuation over the last year) to create a typeface from a matrix of dots, which have then been embossed by our finishing partners Celloglas.
Next issue, we explore the potential in the year’s hottest trend, virtual reality, to determine how designers and branding agencies can take advantage of the nascent technology to create fully immersive campaigns. And for the print aficionados amongst you, there’s an advice-packed video special to help you get the most from the medium. And yes, I really did just quote Abba. NICK CARSON Editor nick.carson@futurenet.com