Have you ever been entranced by an art timelapse on Adobe Illustrator? Well, besides high subscription costs, you’re looking at an expensive graphics card and hours of late-night tutorials. This might be a daring challenge for some, but not every successful designer needs to go all-in right away.
Let’s erase some misconceptions.
Relying on an extensive toolkit is not a prerequisite for quality graphic design – you don’t need a background in the arts to produce brand-valued artwork. You can take advantage of more lightweight, easy-access tools that get you designing and publishing quickly and easily, provided you have the inspiration for something unique.
We’ve put the time to research multiple types of graphic design tools and the features you should know before choosing a particular one. Let’s look at some of the aspects where t-shirt design software provide essential utility:
- Vector graphics
The first vital distinction lies in using vector or raster graphics software when working with fabric printing. The standard practice is to start with vector graphics for smoothed lines and the ability to resize your artwork without degrading its quality. Once you have a high-resolution design, you can then rasterize the piece into a workable image file.
Raster graphics, or, in other words – pixel-base designs – are better for digital artwork and paper prints. If you want to prioratize designing t-shirts, most print providers expect a vector-based image for consistent quality.
Adobe Illustrator comes to mind – the industry staple for vector graphics – but it’s the very high-end option and takes a large piece of your budget before you get a chance to practice it. Willing to give it a go anyway? We admire the commitment but expect months of technical practice before you can realize your vision.
- Print methods
Good t-shirt design tools have to be able to provide compatible settings for different print methods. Printing techniques, similarly to graphics design, are multifaceted and unique, with strengths and weaknesses at play for any specific method.
Techniques such as Digital printing have made mapping out computer images to garments increadibly efficient, and the future of fabric printing is expected to become more and more optimized for large batches and high quality.
If you want to go in-depth and compare what different types of printing involve, and how to base your designs around them, check out these informative articles:
- Direct-to-garment printing
- DTG vs Screen printing
- All-over print (AOP)
- Sublimation printing
- Color modes
Working with optimal color modes is another crucial factor when starting your design and knowing what works best for your intended print prover and fabric type.
Take a look at the difference between RGB and CMYK color modes before putting ink to fabric. Your design software should have an option to compare, convert and create compatible image files for each mode. If not, an online image formatting tool can get the job done as well.