For more than 25 years, my professional life has been about creating innovative marketing communications that work. My greatest inspiration grows from delving into the heart and mind of your organization and learning what success means to you. My first rule of design: listen. That’s where my best work begins.

When I first picked up a camera as a 10-year-old kid, I began to experience the power of visual communication. I learned that some things are simply said better with images.

Educated as an editorial and photojournalist, I discovered graphic design as I began my communications career. As I worked in marketing communications and studied design at the graduate level, my love for words and photographs grew to a passion for design with beautiful typography and compelling graphic imagery.

As the computer evolved and transformed the tools of design in the 1980s, my closet inner geek jumped for joy. With the expansion of the internet as a communication medium, it seemed like the design stars had aligned. Still, every day I am reminded that computers are just tools. Real communication — through words and images — lives first in ideas.

Today, visual communication seems more important than ever—in any medium. Website design, printed communications design, and strategy consulting comprise the core of my work. I keep my hands active in multiple media—photography, in particular, as it feeds both my design work and my soul. Over the years, I’ve been fortunate enough to receive some national recognition for my work, but in the end, my work—and Johnson Creative—is still about you.

I would be delighted to help with your next communication project. Please contact me to set up a free initial consultation or to inquire about how we might work together.

— Shelley Johnson