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The Mass Media

The Mass Media

The Mass Media

Why students should get involved in Photoshop

UMass+Boston+student+Dom+Ferreira+works+on+the+Mass+Media+logo+in+Adobe+Photoshop.
UMass Boston student Dom Ferreira works on the Mass Media logo in Adobe Photoshop.

Many people tend to overlook it, but one of the most important aspects of business, in reference to market appeal and the ability to persuade customers to buy into a product, is through the effective use of graphic design. Of course, Photoshop is extremely vital to graphic design, which also ties into the fact that, if one were to want to start a business, learning Photoshop is a huge plus when it comes to getting the public eye to gravitate towards your creations and company. Though, learning Photoshop is not just something that could benefit one for the sake of obtaining a competitive job or creating a company logo, using Photoshop could be fun, leisurely and an avenue to explore creativity.
There are different websites that provide Photoshop for free, which could help jumpstart one’s creativity or career. Granted, learning can be difficult and can create roadblocks, but like most passions one can dabble in, these struggles get easier over time, and learning more techniques and implementing them into new works can ignite an inferno of imagination and endless possibilities of creation. Not to mention, using Photoshop can be viewed more as a hobby than that of tedious work, especially when one gets over the hump of learning, as even the most basic abilities are able to open a range of satisfactory art that’s capable of being shown to the world.
When on social media, all apps, whether it be Twitter, Reddit, Instagram or even Snapchat for that matter, Photoshop is like a plague: It is seen everywhere, and in the case of social media, it is seen in both the form of humor and creative prowess. Take Instagram and Twitter for example, both apps are flooded with memes and other humorous photos and videos that revolve around utilizing Photoshop to create something to laugh at and attract the public eye. Reddit is seen as an app filled with humorous posts guided by Photoshop too, and all three apps also have pages, or accounts, dedicated to things people love, like sports. People use Photoshop to create sports graphics, as both professional accounts and fan pages use these types of posts frequently by providing graphics photoshopped into an image from the game that would either provide a final score, description of the game or both.
As for Snapchat, different filters can be associated with Photoshop, and the best part of these filters are the fact that some of them are created by users and not just people who work for the app, further proving the point that Photoshop is seen in the world on an everyday basis with people who do it for fun rather than work. People express their creativity with Photoshop with side hustles too, with t-shirt designing being at the forefront of these explorations. The best part of designing t-shirts is the fact that, with Photoshop, anybody can create any sort of design they have in mind and put it on a t-shirt; and for students, this could be a great way to spark creativity and make passive income in the process.
On top of this, the greatest benefit is that websites that allow people to create t-shirts of their own also allow them to do so free of charge, or technically. Sites like Teespring and Bonfire allow people to create t-shirts and price them at an amount above the price of a plain shirt without charging extra for colors or shipping, meaning people can always make a profit selling their work. If anything, students should take advantage of exploring their most creative ideas and bring them to life through the use of graphic design and Photoshop, because not only can you create a following through the use of social media, but you can make great profits selling the ideas your mind produced by putting them on a shirt for others to purchase. This would be beneficial in not only providing a source of income through college, but also in exploring their wildest creations and ideas in the process.

About the Contributor
Nick Collins, Sports Editor