There are a lot of helpful resources out there for graphic designers and in this post I'll be sharing some I have found especially helpful. In my journey as a designer, I have made use of many of those online resources. Some I liked and some I didn't like much, which may just be the same for you; you may not necessarily find the ones I've listed helpful but that is okay. You should try and test many to find your right fit. I strongly recommend that! Without further ado and in no particular order, here are a few online resources I have found helpful.
1. DaFont
We were introduced to this great website for fonts back in college by our graphic design lecturers. In design I'm always looking for new fonts to try out and I get the majority of them there. You get a great font selection that are all free for personal use but be careful though, not all of them are free for commercial use. If you're looking for fonts you could use commercially, you can filter accordingly. My favourite thing about the site is that it is very user friendly.
2. The Noun Project
Who doesn't like icons? Okay, there may be other designers who don't but as for me, I love them! And the simpler the better. The Noun Project is an iconography site for any designers looking for icon inspiration or for high quality stock options and guess what? You can also upload your own icons for sale. Too cool.
3. Fonts in Use
Some designers can identify a font just by looking at it but for those times that you are perplexed as to what font that is (it's okay, it understandably difficult to memorise an entire font library!) on that billboard, you can take a photo and upload it on Fonts in Use and the site will identify the typeface for you. As a designer, you may want to make use of a specific typeface you have seen somewhere and either didn't know or forget the name of it. Fonts in use will come to your rescue. Not only that but it is great for research as well!
4. Behance
I love Behance. Not only is it a great portfolio site but you can find inspiration, other designers in your industry or admired industry (hello possible designer friends) and just appreciate the awesome designs on display. If you'd love to, you can upload your own portfolio which would give you the opportunity to be noticed by industry professionals. Fun fact: I was once offered a job on Behance!
5. RIT Design Archives
I have just recently found out about this site and I just had to include it on the list! The site is used as a design archive for the Rochester Institute of Technology. You can browse the archives to view a selection of amazing work from designers and typographers for a more comprehensive look at 20th century American graphic design. Thank me later.
These are just a few of the many resources available online for graphic designers and I may not be aware of other pretty amazing ones so if there are any I missed (and possible might not know of) please would you be so kind as to share with me which you find pretty helpful? Or if you already use any of the list, feel free to share your thoughts!