LIFE & WORK EXPERIENCES
Everything you could ever want to know...
THE PURSUIT OF
PERFECTION
I have discovered that every new artistic medium I explore presents insights into seemingly unrelated fields. Artist is not merely a job title. It describes who I am as a person and defines how I see the world.
DESIGN DIRECTOR
What started as a hobby nearly thirty years ago has grown into the most consistent, most stressful, and most enjoyable career I have ever known. Whether it be a client needing me to live out of San Francisco for nine months to work in-house, helping design a convention booth two days before a major Vegas convention, or even being told on a Wednesday that I need to rush order a work visa because I will be flying to China on Friday to help with product development and sourcing, I genuinely never know what to expect next. Because many of my experiences in graphic design have been a combination of divergent and unexpected challenges, I believe I am well equipped to handle any graphic need that might arise.
PHOTOGRAPHER / RETOUCHER
My current obsession is shooting high fashion and high-end product photography. While I still love the nature and lifestyle genres, my goal is to master studio lighting, staging, and effects so as to address every aspect of a shot to produce world class images.
CONCEPT DESIGN & COMPUTER ANIMATION
I was fortunate that Ringling approached their computer animation program to include every aspect of the animation pipeline because it has given me insight into the entire process that has served me well over the years. From concept, to story, character design, modeling, rigging, texturing, environments, animation, lighting, rendering, and editing, students were expected to learn it all. I have found this wide array of varied skills has helped at unexpected times and surprising ways to fulfill diverse challenges at seemingly unrelated jobs.
ARTISTRY
IN ALL THINGS
When not working but motivated to create, I enjoy moving forward any of the many home improvement projects on my list or exploring new forms of art.
When not working but just wanting to unwind, I enjoy immersing myself in story or strategy based games, pursuing archery, or exploring nature.
Leather craft and woodworking are two current passions, and I am eager to start building a wood slat canoe to bring with me on camping trips. On that note, when I do have a few days to get away and relax, one of my favorite places to disappear is the redwood forests a few hours from where I was raised.
EDUCATION
RINGLING COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN
BFA - COMPUTER ANIMATION
Concentration - Game Art & Design
Ringling’s BFA program was an exceptionally challenging curriculum designed to produce animators who knew the entire animation pipeline, culminating in a 2-3 minute solo animation thesis project. Beyond the outlined curriculum, I chose independent studies in Greek History and Game Art & Design.
While I was at Ringling, I was the only person out of 30+ students who started the game design minor to take that new path to the last class and also discovered that Ringling limits number of independent studies a student can take in their time at the school when they told me I had utilized all of mine by junior year.
WORK EXPERIENCE
A FEW OF THE MANY BRANDS FROM THE LAST 28 YEARS
With the proliferation of businesses searching online for graphic, web, social media, and brand design help, I have been fortunate to be able assist companies anywhere in the world through freelancing sites like Upwork. I can advance tasks with a client like Silver Brush Limited in New York in the morning, enjoy a walk with my dog in the mountains of southern Oregon for lunch, and be on time for my afternoon brand design meeting in San Francisco.
While I love the collaborative atmosphere of in-house positions, I have built a top-of-the-line design studio home office that rivals or surpasses any graphics department I have worked with to date, and you just can’t beat that commute.
DESIGN DIRECTOR
Upwork (Freelance)
June 2018 – Present
Through Upwork I have been able to connect with freelance client projects all over the world. I hold the coveted “top rated plus” freelancer status with a 100% success score which means that I am among the top 3% of freelancers on the site.
I have had the opportunity to rebrand multiple product lines and create countless packages in my time using Upwork.
DESIGN DIRECTOR
JMW Sales (Blue Marble)
February 2016 – June 2018
As Design Director and head of the graphics, photography, and IT departments for JMW, my responsibilities included:
· Hiring, training, and overseeing the graphic design team
· Product, packaging, and Display design
· International coordination with overseas manufacturers, printers, and subcontractors
· Product photography and retouching
· Purchasing for the above departments
Please see below for kind words and praise from the owner and employees of JMW.
FREELANCE DESIGNER
Greater Los Angeles Area
2011 – December 2015
After resigning from Blackstone Audio as an audiobook cover designer, I moved to LA and spent a few years enjoying the area while working various freelance jobs.
Social Media Design – I either helped with or was put in charge of handling the graphics for a number of Warner Bros. Pictures and Lionsgate Film’s social media campaigns through Digital Media Management. While I was hired for a week’s work, they ended up keeping me on for over a month and continually assigned more tasks.
Videography – Los Angeles presented many opportunities for advancing my video editing and videography skills. Visualarium and Zbrush Workshops were a couple
NOTABLE CLIENTS, BRANDS, & IPs
A FEW OF THE MANY BRANDS FROM THE LAST 28 YEARS
SOFTWARE PACKAGES
MY TOOLS OF THE TRADE
Design Software
I have been working with Adobe Photoshop since 1995 and teaching it professionally since 1997. I am very comfortable in most programs in the Adobe Creative Suite and can handle pretty much any graphic need that may arise.
Videography Software
Although I spent much of my time freelancing as a Video Editor in LA in 2012, it has been a few years since I have had need to use those particular skills. I am confident that it would take very little time to bring these numbers back up if needed.
3D, Animation & Rendering
As previously mentioned, I earned my degree in Computer Animation from the Ringling College of Art & Design in Sarasota, Florida. Since Ringling stressed the importance of knowing every aspect of the animation pipeline, I am fortunate to have experienced every stage of the process.
Miscellaneous
I am most comfortable in the Windows ecosystem, but am also experienced with Mac OS and Linux. Beyond that, I have a great working knowledge of most general programs.
REFERENCES & RECOMMENDATIONS
KIND WORDS FROM FORMER WORKPLACES
UPWORK CLIENT: ELITE GAS
BRAND, PACKAGE, & WEBSITE DESIGN
I love writing good reviews, and even bad ones when necessary. I have a strong rule that I have never broken until today. I don’t ever write reviews for my hidden gems, in fear that they will be discovered by the masses. Daniel is by far the best-hidden gem I’ve come across so far. On a professional level, he exceeds our expectations in every way. Great design sensibilities, strong work ethic, incredibly creative, and insightful. He has quickly become an integral part of our team. On a personal level, he’s very helpful, kind, and easy to get along with. From someone who has paid him $20k+ (Update note: $300k+) to date and plans to continue working with him indefinitely, I “put my money where my mouth is” and highly recommend Daniel for any project you might consider him for!
UPWORK VERIFICATION LINK Check under Work History / Completed Jobs
< Illustration for The Harvard Lampoon back cover, described as the Lampoon staff’s “most liked ad ever.”
IN HOUSE CONTRACT: JMW SALES (NOW BLUE MARBLE)
BRAND, PACKAGE, ADVERTISING, PRODUCT, & BOOKLET DESIGN
Simply put, Dan Smith is the single most talented graphic designer I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. The breadth of his skill set is truly remarkable. In the 15 years I’ve been making consumer products, I have never met anyone whose skills rival Dan’s. His abilities are extremely rare to find in any one person, and he was a huge difference maker at JMW. If you are looking for a highly capable person to lead your team and to deliver a huge amount of output at the highest level, I strongly recommend that you consider Dan Smith for your position.
During his time at JMW as our Design Director, Dan successfully built our graphics department from the ground up. He wore multiple hats at JMW, and not only managed our graphics team, but also addressed our IT needs, and built out our photography studio. While he was managing our team and helping our overall organization and infrastructure grow, he was also incredibly productive and was responsible for outputting hundreds of products. From packaging, to 3D renders, to marketing, Dan can do it all.
Some of his biggest accomplishments at JMW include architecting and executing a complete rebrand of our entire National Geographic line of consumer products. Dan either managed or personally executed the re-brand of nearly 100 products which each required packaging overhauls, new guide booklets, instructions, and marketing graphics. His re-brand won our company many large clients and helped us secure placements with major retailers across the globe.
Dan’s tremendous work ethic and dedication was apparent in everything he did. Dan was regularly the last one out of the door at night, and his attention to detail was excellent in all the projects he handled at JMW. His unique skill set would be a tremendous benefit to any organization.
Jordan Willing
Founder – JMW Sales / Blue Marble
LINKEDIN VERIFICATION LINK Must be logged in to see all references.
LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION Digital PDF of Physical Letter
I worked with Dan at JMW Sales where he led the Graphic Design department. His ability to generate world class packaging was common during his time there. His tireless work ethic was critical to the success of our small company becoming much larger. Not only were his graphics and packaging top notch, but his product ideas and countless other skills make him a great addition to any team. I hope to work with him again in the future.
JOSH GEDLICK
Former Coworker
Dan carries with him a very strong passion for art & design, and a critical eye for detail. Under extremely rigorous and tight deadlines he was a vital part in launching the National Geographic brand for JMW Sales. He helped in my development of “hyper-real” photoshop techniques, and has a keen knowledge of lighting, textures and composition.
AUSTIN POLAND
Former Graphics Employee
Have a project and want to see how I can potentially help? Reach out today!
My specialty is raising the perceived value of a package, product, line, or brand by reviewing a client’s current customer-facing materials and redesigning them to better suit their desired target demographic.
My contact page has an email form to contact me directly regarding current availability and to book a consultation to see if we would be a good fit!