Comments on: A really, really SPECtacular series of links…

By: Matrix

Matrix — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:01:08 +0000

I agree with you.

By: The Week in Freelance: August 3rd | The Freelance Rant

The Week in Freelance: August 3rd | The Freelance Rant — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 15:13:24 +0000

[...] The Logo Factor fills us in on the continued debate between the good and evils of spec work and crowdsourcing. [...]

By: Steve Douglas

Steve Douglas — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 12:51:26 +0000

@ Brian – thanks for taking the time to comment. No problem in the mention – with your article title, I couldn’t resist. I also think you make some very valid points (as you have in your comment) that designers should take a few minutes to read. Your observations about “Work for Hire” clauses on spec design sites is particularly noteworthy and something that’s being overlooked in the discussion.

By: Brian Jung

Brian Jung — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 05:27:25 +0000

Thanks for the trackback, and let me tell you the mental image of blowing donkey balls just about made me lose my lunch. I’ve seen a pair of donkey’s balls before, and let me tell you it’s nothing like a jawbreaker.

I don’t buy the whole “fostering creative up-start talent” thing. It’s a bunch of slop. When i was a creative up-start there were no blogs, social media, etc. (and i’m not that old even). My point is that today it’s more easier than ever to get involved and self educate yourself on all the creative that’s out there, and is being done. There are numerous online creative communities, websites, blogs, forums, and chat rooms that are run for and by creatives for the sole purpose of exchanging and educating on creative. There’s NO money involved. Why? Because it’s not about making money, it’s about learning and if you’re a creative up-start you should know and leverage that. If you want to do spec work to bolster your portfolio with fake brand case studies, than fine – go for it. But do it for yourself, by yourself. CrowdSpring is full of shit if they think they’re filling that role for the good of the creative community.

By: Steve Douglas

Steve Douglas — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:12:23 +0000

@ Darrel – Thanks for dropping by. As mentioned in the article, I’ve never been concerned with BrandStack or its precursor IncSpring. I did find it interesting that some participating designers are being vocal in their criticisms, but whether those criticisms are valid is anyone’s guess.

@ Nathan – Agreed. Many people who are advocating spec and design contests think that designers should just “get over it”. Not sure how much “getting over it” is actually going on. Not too much, if the link you supplied is any indication. I did find the comment section of that post interesting. Thanks for that BTW.

@ Carson – Thanks for sharing your thoughts on spec (we’ll list your blog post next time).

@ Ian – You’re quite welcome. I found the various debates and opinions interesting, especially the SpecWatch interview and Problogger blog design contest dust-up. One thing’s for sure – while some are quick to opine that “spec work is here to stay” (I tend to agree), it’s safe to say that the debate about it is too.

By: Steve Douglas

Steve Douglas — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:31:12 +0000

@ Rebecca - thanks for the info and the link. We covered the Is Spec Evil debate from a distance but weren't actually present at SXSW so your insight is appreciated. On a related noted, we transcribed the entire debate and put the transcript on our website for anyone that's interested.

By: Rebecca Caroe

Rebecca Caroe — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:02:15 +0000

And for a bit more background and a hugely public argument that happened at South by Southwest conference in Austin Texas earlier this year, I liveblogged a panel session “Is spec work evil?” with Jeff Howe – Wired magazine chairing this list of luminaries
Mike Samson Crowdspring.com
David Carson David Carson Design
Lydia Mann AIGA
Jeffrey Kalmikoff Threadless
Jeremiah Owyang Forrester
here’s the post and a host of comments
http://creativeagencysecrets.c.....work-evil/
Rebecca Caroe

By: Ian Houghton

Ian Houghton — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:50:27 +0000

Nice summary of the situation. I’ve been following @specwatch and coming across articles here and there (like the Problogger debacle) but some of this is new to me. Thanks!

By: Carson Shold

Carson Shold — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:45:52 +0000

Love it. Although I’m a little hurt my recent blog about this didn’t get honorable mentions

If you guys are looking for one more designer’s thoughts on the subject of spec work and logo design competitions, check out one of my recent posts – http://thehappinessmachine.com.....ic-design/

Thanks,

Carson

By: Nathan Sarlow

Nathan Sarlow — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:43:52 +0000

There was also this doozy over some work a new church needed
http://www.zakwhite.com/2009/0.....serve-god/

Got quite heated, but I think the issue was more with non-designer people not understanding the problem of spec-work more than anything. I thought [most of] the arguments from the anti-spec camp were measured and well noted, but seems the public just don’t want to hear it.

Most notably, I found it interesting that the natural reaction from many PRO-specers was that professionals should just move along and not bother entering rather than just suck it up and submit.