Spicy Web Designer Interview with Chris Mickschl

Chris Mickschl is a Web Designer / Developer living in Chicago, Illinois in the United States. He’s been designing websites for a about 6 years after he got out of college and eventually found himself in a small web design agency in Chicago. Some of Chris’ clients have including everyone from small business to large fortune 500 projects. “Topher Mick” is his online space for showcasing his skills from design work to coding.

1. How did you get started in web design?

Like so many in the industry, I didn’t set out to become a web designer. After two years of long labs, too much studying and inhaling far too many chemicals majoring in biology and chemistry, I thought back to a visual communications class I took in high school and thought, would I rather be “drawing pictures” or pipetting chemicals into graduated cylinders and test tubes.

So I entered into the visual communications world and ended up taking a beginner web design course, the only one offered at my college. The professor didn’t have any web experience and was teaching us to export psd mockups as html (cringe), but what did I know at that point?

My senior year of college I was able to get an internship at an agency in Chicago within their New Media Dept. Once I was exposed to the work being produced, I had a goal and direction to strive for. I think Flash is what really got me excited about web design. The semester I spent as an intern allowed me to realize what I did and did not want from a job.

2. When did you start designing websites?

The first site I designed was in 2003, just out of college and eager to teach myself flash. This probably sounds familiar, but I designed a site for myself. The site was a bit impractical, essentially an exploration into pushing the bounds and creative expression with ActionScript and all types of user triggered animations. I was scouring the Internet for inspiration and resources, constantly pushing my knowledge. Television advertising was also a source for animation concepts and inspiration.

I eventually found myself at a small web agency in Chicago designing and building “hybrid” sites. While I was hired because of my flash skills, it was at this job where I really got back to the basics of web design and began focusing on clean, hand-coded HTML and CSS. When I started there I didn’t know anything about CSS, but the php developer pointed me towards some online resources to learn (thanks Rod!). This experience was the impetus to get me to where I am today.

3. What are the biggest challenges that you face in web design currently?

The web is constantly evolving and I think being able to adapt my skill sets and learn new design techniques and technologies is, and always will be a challenge.

More specific to design, client approval is always a struggle. The degree varies vastly from one to another – some appreciate and have confidence in the designer’s expertise, while others challenge it. Being able to defend/explain design decisions to a client is an essential part of the job.

Lastly, as IE 6 continues to be used, cross browser coding is always a challenge. Please, please, upgrade your browsers!

4. Do you code on any of your web design projects? And if so, do you consider yourself a “Front-End Coder”? Why or Why Not?

I hand-code all the front-end development work for both my fulltime and freelance work. I’ve actually done freelance work for an agency in Chicago where I was only doing the front-end development work. The agency had print designers doing digital comps, so they were outsourcing the development. I think as a web designer, one should be knowledgeable of how the site will be built and how to implement given technologies. I think this capability can separate one candidate from another when selling yourself for a web design position.

5. Where did you go to school and has it helped you become a better web designer?

I went to a small private school in the northern suburbs of Chicago, called Lake Forest College. I didn’t receive any formal training other than introductory course previously mentioned. I will say, which is extremely common with most people I know in the industry, I am self-taught. I’m a goal driven person and am always excited to educate myself in the field. I’m passionate about web design, so it was easy learn on my own then, as well as continuing that same growth today.

6. Since you first started how has the web design industry changed? Has it changed for the better? If so, how? If not, please explain?

I think there has been a shift from over-designed, poorly constructed web sites to a more stripped down, clean, minimalist approach in professional web design. With the push for accessible, standard driven web sites, flash, which was the initial reason I was interested in getting into web design, I find myself using less and less.

In addition, the use of audio and video has become increasingly common over the past couple years as more Internet users are on high-speed connections. This has led, and is leading to many new opportunities for effective communication online.

7. What are your favorite tools to use when designing a website? Why are they your favorite tools?

I use InDesign for information architecture and wire-framing and PhotoShop for the visual design. Bringing the design concepts to life, I hand-code Strict XHTML with the layout and presentation done exclusively in CSS using Coda.