Adobe Photoshop CC – Essentials Training Course

This one on udemy is pretty good - covers all the basic and essential tools at a decent pace with engaging projects / examples. He has a more advanced one as well

https://www.udemy.com/course/adobe-photoshop-cc-essentials-training-course/

As someone who has recently changed careers from IT system administration to webdesign, animation and web-development, I think I can offer my 2 cents.

First off, having skills in traditional art is a huge plus, so this should give you a pretty big advantage over other graphic designers, a lot of whom lack these "offline skills" and struggle more with the creation of decent works in terms of time and rely too heavily on the tools. A lot of emphasis is on knowing the tools but this is something basically anyone with half a brain can learn. There are very good tutorials on udemy.com for like 10 dollars a piece. Its a steal. You will learn the tools in no time. I wouldn't focus too much on following tutorials that create a particular kind of art because in a sense, the tools are so expansive, that there are multiple solutions to the same problem. Focus on learning the tools, the shortcuts, and you yourself will find (with a little help from google) solutions to most of the problems you face on the canvas.

Some tutorials that I've found doing a quick search on udemy:

https://www.udemy.com/course/illustrator-cc-masterclass/

https://www.udemy.com/course/adobe-photoshop-cc-essentials-training-course/

But there are a lot more, and the top rated are very good, I always listen to a few demo's to see if the tutor suits my learning style (and to see if he doesn't have an annoying voice).

I see that your school uses adobe, which is basically industry standard, but just know, that there are alternatives like Affinity designer, affinity photo etc, which are VERY good, if not better. For digital painting, clip studio paint is a very good solution. I've tried almost every tool there is and the trick is, to use the right tool for the right job.

A very good affinity designer tutorial:
https://www.udemy.com/course/affinity-designer-the-complete-guide-to-affinity-designer/learn/lecture/15340532#overview

On the subject of career advise, is it a wise move to go into graphic design? These type of questions will get you every kind of answer, based of of someone's own experience. The thing is, graphic design is HUGE, there are so many different types of jobs in graphic design alone that it's impossible to say if it's good to pursue a career in a specific graphic design area. I myself mostly make website layouts and illustrations to visualize the words that are on the website. In my experience my clients love this approach. I also do some basic html, css, js, php to be able to make whatever I want for a customer. But again, there are so many ways to start earning money in graphic design that it's futile to even think about the job prospects. You could work freelance as an illustrator, a UI/UX designer, animator (2d, 3d, Cell), logo designer, logo animator, storyboard artist, concept artist, background artist, 3d sculptor, do design for print, magazines, newspaper, work at an agency etc. etc. The real important question I think you should ask yourself is, what do I love doing the most? I think that will be the area where you will ultimately be the most successful in. (for me it's animation, which is something I'm working towards every day (o whot a dream)).

On the topic of portfolio material: again, create what you would love to create eventually. I wouldn't occupy myself with fake client work because you can simply have no idea what kind of client's you will end up working for. Maybe do some (almost) free work for friends and acquaintances, so you'll get experience in working with clients (which for me, really is the hardest part). Just create stuff from your imagination, I think the solutions you come up with for your creative "problems" best show your capabilities. And as a huge plus, you do what you want to do. Which I cannot stress enough. Just follow your gut and be careful not to end up like a dime in a dozen designer that does whatever the current trend dictates. Trends have the tendency to become popular for a specific solution, but tend to get applied to everything, regardless of whether that trend is the right solution to the problem you are facing.

Graphic design (as well as IT system administration) is basically the business of solving problems (which is why, a blank canvas is always so daunting, it contains no problems (which is a problem that needs solving :P))

Feeling overwhelmed is perfectly normal when you venture in something new, but I think the trick is, don't look too far ahead, just look at the first steps you need to take, and concern yourself with them. There lies a danger in overthinking problems that you might or might not encounter in the future, and to be honest, as a graphic designer, you don't have time to think about the future, your work needs your undivided attention at all times!

I hope this somehow helps you venture into a wonderful career. Have faith and work hard and all will be good. Don't listen to naysayers and just go for it. I couldn't be more happy I made the change.

Source: I work in graphic (web) design for over 5 years now and making a decent living of of it.

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p.s. really making a lot of money is most of the times a matter of networking skills, if you work in a big city, meet the right people and live the life (also in the social area) you could very well end up at design company that has some very big names as clients. To be honest, the stuff that gets made there isn't actually all that impressive. Which is why I say, it's more a matter of being at the right place and the right time. Other then that, if you are good and work hard, people will come to you. (I've never even done 1 minute of marketing or self promoting and client's keep coming, and I'd say I'm decent at what I do.)

Best of luck!