Matt Swanner | Freelance Graphic & Web Design | Raleigh, NC

My professional journey started 12 years ago in a high school computer lab.

Photoshop's latest release was version 2, and I was hooked from day one to the feeling I get in front of a computer producing media, solving new problems, and teaching others.

After receiving formal training in Computer Animation at the
School of Communication Arts in Raleigh, NC and a brief time studying Media and Design at The Art Institute of Atlanta, I left school to dive head-first into the professional graphic design industry and to start a family with one of the most talented people I have ever known - my wife, Heather.

From running color copiers to managing the production of high-end, glossy magazines and producing advanced web media for an international venture capitalist group, I've seen a lot. I've learned a great deal, and I have been blessed with many opportunities to put my feet to the fire - coming out the other end of "deadline hell" with a stronger sense of what my work is and why I do it.

Above all else, I have learned that what makes a truly talented designer is not only the visual appeal of his or her final product, but the ability to produce even on the worst "off day," when creativity must be forced into action to meet the pressures of an impending deadline.

In my spare time I enjoy studying martial arts, skateboarding, live music, and backyard cook-outs with family and friends.