Question for everyone

[NicolaSchofield]

@Oana I've been a subscriber for a similar time (though haven't made much use of it for the last 12 months) and my experience has been exactly this. I mostly randomly pick a course based on the graphic and then have to watch a bit and look through the contents to see how long it is and if I want to actually do all the course. It's very hit and miss.

The new curriculum seems like a good step in the right direction but I already did several of those courses before curriculum launched so haven't really followed it.

[emily.atwood.art]

@neschof i totally agree as well! even something simple like a table of contents would be great. or if there were subject categories under 'All Courses' or 'My Dashboard'. a course could be included in multiple categories if applicable.
for example, if someone wants to learn about digital illustration this would help them quickly find all the related courses and complete them in a less random order.

i'm in my first month of SVS (after the free trial) and i created a list of courses i'm interested in doing soonish so i don't have to randomly pick courses when i'm ready to move forward.

[Miriam]

The thing I felt could have been most helpful when I joined was some type of direction on what to start with & what order to follow the classes, so it was great when you listened to our feedback & added the Curriculum! I just saw on this post that you added a "Start Here" as well.

I haven't checked them out or followed it yet, but it's good to have it available, especially for those who are new. (I have chronic illness, so my use & participation here is erratic, and I have taken classes on somewhat related topics that gave me somewhat of a headstart over absolute beginners, such as: Photography, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, & Graphic Design).

One thing that I think would be very helpful (if you don't have it) is a class on the basic principles of graphic design. I've seen some of these principles taught within classes, but I haven't seen a class that just goes over basic design principles.

It also might be nice if this class (or a separate class) talked about selecting mediums. It could give brief examples / introduction to various traditional media, and a sample of the various digital options (and let them know they can find free tutorials for these online). (I remember Jake mentioning in a YouTube video about how you can use various types of pens, including regular ballpoint pens.) Most people have heard of Adobe Photoshop, and you can mention that most of the classes here use Photoshop & Procreate, but maybe you could mention that there are a spectrum of options, such as free programs like GIMP, subscription options like Adobe, and one time purchase programs like Procreate and Affinity.

You could also explain the difference between raster based graphics and vector based graphics, & some pros and cons of each. Pros and cons of working traditionally vs. digitally would be another good topic.

This class could also talk about converting traditional art to a digital copy (I remember Lee talking about taking digital photographs of paintings to create a high quality digital copy), and how Jake sometimes works in a combination of traditional and digital. (I've seen videos where he starts with paper & colored pencil to sketch, then scans and works on it digitally, and sometimes inks &/or colors by hand.)

I think this could help beginners know what options there are, and feel comfortable using whatever is available to them.