By Design: Pushing Creative Boundaries with Leo Yeung

Leo Yeung is a senior designer at true. He’s worked for numerous digital agencies spanning a 20-year career across Cardiff, Bristol and London. Leo has created digital campaigns, websites, online brands and apps for clients such as Xbox, Premier League, BBC, EE, HSBC and Transport for Wales. When not meticulously pushing pixels at his desk, he spends his free time cat-sitting and project managing a house renovation.

LBB> Tell us about your current role and design specialism(s)? 

Leo> I’m a senior designer at true and my specialism is UI design. What I love about my role is the ability to step into other creative areas. I might be developing a digital brand identity for South West Water one day, concepting advertising for St. Austell’s the next, and creating digital ads and billboards for our retail client, Cribbs, the day after. 

LBB> What drew you to design in the first place and how has your design career evolved?

Leo> I loved drawing as a child and although I focused on academic subjects at school, I always wanted to move into a more creative field. At the time, I wanted to be a more traditional graphic designer until the heady days of Flash meant a new world of digital design opened before me. 

LBB> What aspects of design do you get really nerdy about personally?

Leo> I personally love creating design systems and getting into the nitty gritty of designing each component. Away from digital, I get nerdy about making the most of physical spaces through clever design. There’s just something oddly satisfying about watching YouTube videos about tiny homes and Yatai street food stalls.

LBB> There are so many new design tools out - what tools do you like to use and why? (whether digital platforms or old fashioned pen and paper!)

Leo> After years of using the likes of Sketch, InDesign, InVision and Zeplin, Figma finally feels like it encompasses the best of everything that came before it.

LBB> Design Thinking - thoughts?

Leo> I think the process itself is extremely useful, ultimately it helps us to focus on providing relevant solutions to the problems we’re trying to solve. But, as with any process, there’s no reason to rigidly stick to how others have applied it – instead, we should modify and adapt it accordingly, so it works for us.

LBB> What are the most persistent misconceptions about your particular design specialism that you see across the advertising and marketing landscape?

Leo> I think there’s a continued misconception that design systems stifle creativity. They are there to streamline the development process and ultimately save time through consistent iteration and improvements. The limit of creativity through visual flair and motion design should never be inhibited by the creation of a design system.

LBB> Accessible design is an increasingly prominent topic - from your experience what are the most challenging facets of accessible design? And what does best practice in accessible design in your particular design specialism look like?

Leo> The biggest challenge involves making sure that both internal teams and clients understand the effort required to craft accessible design. Accessibility goes beyond just addressing colour, contrast and font sizes; it encompasses the entire user experience and development cycle. This requires input from everyone, with design and development teams taking the lead to guarantee that end-users can navigate websites seamlessly using assistive technologies, without encountering countless frustrations.

LBB> What design controversies or challenges do you find trickiest to navigate or do you find yourself thinking about most frequently?

Leo> Diversity in creative industries remains a work in progress. In my opinion, there’s still a way to go in terms of balancing out a broader workforce in terms of gender, ethnicity, and class. We don’t want a situation where it’s closed to certain demographics. The only way we can continue to push creative boundaries is to make the industry as open and accessible as possible.

LBB> What do you think about the ethics of design?

Leo> As creatives, we have ultimate responsibility in how we communicate to the masses. Our job is to inform not to mislead. It’s important that we think carefully about how we sell to consumers, in a way that feels transparent and authentic, and for reasons that are greater than satisfying KPIs. 

LBB> What are some of your favourite examples of creative design solutions that inspire you?

Leo> Ragged Edge and Koto have both been on fire recently. What I love about their work is the desire to create brand engagement through playfulness. Their bold choices in colour, typography and layouts inspire me to apply the same thinking no matter the client.

LBB> Which design projects throughout your career have been the most satisfying to work on and why?

Leo> For me, the most satisfying projects are the ones that you have a personal interest in. Working for the likes of the Premier League and Xbox have been immensely fun and rewarding, not just because they’re high-profile brands, but there's an added incentive to succeed when there's a genuine passion for the project.

LBB> What’s going on at the moment in design that’s getting you particularly excited?

Leo> 3D design. Apple has the potential to reshape UI design once more with the Vision Pro and tools like Spline are making 3D more accessible than ever. I believe there is certainly more innovation to come into this space.

LBB> Who are your design heroes and why?

Leo> I’ve always admired Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto. Regardless of what others were doing, he steadfastly stuck to his philosophy of creating fun experiences for all ages and in turn, made some of the most iconic games of all time. He always believed in his decisions and never compromised his ideas to please stakeholders.

LBB> Thinking of people at the beginning of their career, what advice would you give them for navigating this constantly changing field?

Leo> Be kind. In what can be a demanding industry, developing a helpful attitude pays off when you're just starting out. Whether it’s going the extra mile and working a little later to complete your tasks, offering to help your fellow designers, or simply asking how your colleagues are doing, it stands you in good stead and establishes a positive mindset for the rest of your career.