VarukaBlue.com is a site that has been long in the making. So let’s start at the beginning.
My first experience with making web pages started in high school, and I was hooked. I entered military service shortly thereafter and through that met some amazing people that have furthered my love and knowledge of the online world. One of those people is the man behind itsajamesfest.com. His unique way of looking at what can be done has really given my own knowledge more depth. And while we tried for awhile to get something off the ground together, military life is not too often accommodating of that. So while we have moved thousands of miles from each other, his knowledge is still something that I try and tap from time to time, and if you have time, check out his page as well.
Since then, I have begun to blaze my own trail in the artistic world, both through school and actual on the job training. While I have received my certification for web design through AiO, [The Art Institute Online, a Division of The Art Institute of Pittsburgh] I have also decided to go one step further and have since enrolled in the Bachelorette program for Graphic Design. I am about halfway done, but nothing will ever compare to the experiences I have received through the military and military affiliated companies.
After completing my contract with the military, I bounced around at a few jobs, not really feeling complete with my work. I decided that I really needed to do something more artistic and started seeking out jobs in those fields. In the area where I was, the work force is very small, and even more limited as to what they needed, although I did eventually find a job that really pulled everything together for me.
MCCS [Marine Corps Community Services], is a company that serves the Marine families aboard the bases, and does things such as host concerts and other events the family may be interested in attending, at no or low cost to them. This company is working to provide for the families that sacrifice so much of their lives for our countries. It really put into perspective what I could do to help the community and do what I loved at the same time. I became the web designer, and an additional graphic designer. My job was everything I wanted, and then some.
After overhauling the entire site, and then an additional site that we became responsible for, including graphic design and at times tech work, as is with all military families, it was time to move. Just shy of one year with the company I was again thrown into chaos trying to move an entire family across the United States to the East Coast. But through this company, and the encouragement of the great staff that I worked with, I have now become a Marketing Tech for the base I will be located at on the East Coast. As amazing as it is, it is also a little daunting. I will no longer be doing just graphic and web design, but interacting with clients, market research, sponsorship and video/photo. I feel that this experience will only make me better accustomed to any job requirements in the future.
So now that we are brought up and current, let me tell you about myself. I have a history in traditional arts, with pencil being my favorite medium, and portrait being my favorite subjects. From there I moved to the video world where I went to school for video documentation and editing, and have experience working on an AVID editing machine as well other various software. Editing film is my favorite out of the whole process though. From there, I came to learn more about the Adobe suite and stretched my legs on the Illustrator and Photoshop parts. Vector artwork was and still is something that I love to do. Lately, I have purchased a high end camera, and have tried my hand out at amateur photography, which is something I once loved, and have found a passion for again. Like I said, I consider myself well rounded.
While this site is for all purposes a portfolio, I would like everyone to know that I am more than happy to try and work something out for freelance work, and if I can't accommodate you, I'm sure someone that I have networked in with the past can. I'm not here to price gouge and try to beat out the competition. I have my own style and flavor, and believe that it speaks for itself. Like I say, "If you like it, great! If not, don't look at it." So please feel free to contact me. If I can't help, I can point you in a better direction! Thank you.