🌤 Spring Updates: Welcome to my attempt at writing a Newsletter.
Updates From the Desk of Adam J Bragg.
Hello and thanks for opening another newsletter, I hope it finds you doing well.
If you've received this email it means that we know each other either through working together, talking about working together or we might even be friends! If you are scratching your head trying to figure out who I am — Hi I'm Adam, a graphic designer and web developer from Canberra, Australia, and for a few years Vancouver, Canada.
If you're still thinking, why am I reading this? Feel free to unsubscribe, I won't take it personally.
Life... The Best Game in Town
A lot of you might not have heard from me in a while so to catch everyone up, here are some key life events:
- 2014: My partner and I left Canberra and moved to Vancouver (hello Vancouver clients!)
- ~ Insert lots of work, life, and travel ~
- 2017: Peanut joined the family
- ~ Insert lots of work, life, and travel ~
- 2019: I moved back to Canberra (hello Canberra clients!)
- 2020: My partner and I welcomed a new family member
- ~ Insert pandemic / panic buying / general downer of a year ~
Now that life updates are out of the way we can get to what this newsletter is all about — work and work-related topics.
What it's All About
2020 feels like a good year to do a reset of some of my work practices and make a concerted effort to put myself out there more. Over the years I've had numerous friends and clients say "I don't really know what you do" or "I didn't know you did ...{insert design or development task here}". It's true, I'm not great at talking about what I do so I've decided to I'm going to (try) and do a better job of letting everyone know what I'm up to. This newsletter is will serve as a way for me to share project updates, thoughts on working as a freelancer, interesting tidbits, and a place for me to learn how to become a better writer.
Realistically I'll probably send these out every few months (that might be a bit ambitious) so don't worry about your inbox overflowing. I mean, I started this newsletter in June so that should give you an indication of how quickly I'll get them out.
What I Do
After over ten years of freelancing, I'd say I'm a generalist, with a preference for web development. My day to day is mostly coding and managing websites, though I still design, mainly websites and user experience and interface design for other developers. That's not to say I don't do print design too. As cliched as it sounds, I just try and solve problems for my clients using the skillset I have developed over the years.
Sometimes that might be designing a poster, other times developing a fully functioning web application or even as simple as helping with WordPress plugins. Every day is different and no task is too big or small and it's the way I like it, though if you ask me what my preference is, it would be development over design. The rules and structure of code feel right for my brain, often the nebulous nature of design can feel daunting to me, but that's a subject for another time.
Now, let's move on to some projects.
Projects!
Over the last little while, I've been fortunate to launch some new projects.
Good Grounding is a quick and easy website (and app) that allows children to develop healthy coping strategies for strong emotions using grounding techniques. It's a personal project created by my partner, Iona Stenhouse, with all design and development handled by yours truly.
If you know someone that might find the site useful please pass it around. If you think you can help in any way please get in touch, we are always looking for ways to expand the project.
CBR Fair is a wedding, event, travel & lifestyle fair that takes place at Thoroughbred Park in Canberra. I worked as the developer on the project and it features amazing branding and design by my good friend Tobi Skerra. I'm proud of what Tobi and accomplished with this project so have a click around and let me know what you think.
Liquid Instruments is a Canberra company that I started working with through a US-based agency while I was living in Vancouver (small world). They create a test and measurement platform for scientists. Working with their creative director (who is a deadset legend) I helped design them a new website. It launched a little while ago and is always evolving, but the bones of my work still exist.
Agency are a Canberra band and some of my best mates. I designed the cover for their new EP. Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie Zine interviewed the band and I jumped in to discuss the cover. Check out the interview here and download the release from Bandcamp. For fans of Australian accents and Dischord records.
Listening, Reading, Watching
Tom Strong vol 2 by Alan Moore, The Answer to the Riddle is Me by David Stuart Maclean, The Borrowed by Chan Ho-Kei, Ulthar - "Providence", Internal Rot - "Mental Hygiene", Gulch - "Impenetrable Cerebral Fortress", Faceless Burial - "Speciation", Jessy Lanza - "All the Time", Slowdive - all albums, Jason Molina - "Eight Gates", Primitive Blast - "Animalistic", the Vancouver Canucks in the Stanley Cup Finals(!), Moneyball (movie) and Ramy Season 2.
Catch you December (or maybe January, we'll see).
Cheers!