Hari Thapliyaal

Dr. Hari Thapliyal is a seasoned professional and prolific blogger with a multifaceted background that spans the realms of Data Science, Project Management, and Advait-Vedanta Philosophy. Holding a Doctorate in AI/NLP from SSBM (Geneva, Switzerland), Hari has earned Master’s degrees in Computers, Business Management, Data Science, and Economics, reflecting his dedication to continuous learning and a diverse skill set.

With over three decades of experience in management and leadership, Hari has proven expertise in training, consulting, and coaching within the technology sector. His extensive 16+ years in all phases of software product development are complemented by a decade-long focus on course design, training, coaching, and consulting in Project Management.

In the dynamic field of Data Science, Hari stands out with more than three years of hands-on experience in software development, training course development, training, and mentoring professionals. His areas of specialization include Data Science, AI, Computer Vision, NLP, complex machine learning algorithms, statistical modeling, pattern identification, and extraction of valuable insights.

Hari’s professional journey showcases his diverse experience in planning and executing multiple types of projects. He excels in driving stakeholders to identify and resolve business problems, consistently delivering excellent results. Beyond the professional sphere, Hari finds solace in long meditation, often seeking secluded places or immersing himself in the embrace of nature.

9 minute read

Exploring Designer Roles and Their Favorite Free Tools

Exploring Designer Roles and Their Favorite Free Tools

In the software business, design plays a huge role, and there are different kinds of designers, each with their own focus areas, responsibilities, and specialized tools.

What are Different Types of Designer Roles?

1. UI Designer (User Interface Designer)

Focus: Visual design of interfaces (buttons, icons, layout, colors, typography)

Common Tools:

  • Figma
  • Adobe XD
  • Sketch (macOS)
  • Framer
  • Zeplin (for handoff)

2. UX Designer (User Experience Designer)

Focus: User journeys, flows, wireframes, usability, research

Common Tools:

  • Figma / Adobe XD (wireframes, low-fi mockups)
  • Miro / Whimsical (user flows, diagrams)
  • Balsamiq (low-fi wireframes)
  • Maze / UsabilityHub (user testing)
  • Optimal Workshop (UX research)

3. Product Designer

Focus: Combines both UI and UX; involved in product strategy and business goals

Common Tools:

  • Figma
  • Notion (for product planning)
  • FigJam / Miro (collaboration)
  • Jira / Trello / Linear (task tracking)
  • User research + analytics tools (Hotjar, Mixpanel)

4. Visual / Graphic Designer

Focus: Branding, marketing assets, illustrations, social media visuals

Common Tools:

  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Canva
  • Affinity Designer
  • CorelDRAW

5. Motion Designer / Animator

Focus: Animations for UI, ads, videos, transitions, micro-interactions

Common Tools:

  • Adobe After Effects
  • Lottie / Haiku Animator
  • Principle
  • Rive
  • Blender (3D animation)

6. Interaction Designer / IxD

Focus: How users interact with UI elements – transitions, feedback, animations

Common Tools:

  • Principle
  • Figma Smart Animate
  • Framer
  • Rive
  • ProtoPie

7. Web Designer

Focus: Designing responsive websites, often HTML/CSS-savvy

Common Tools:

  • Webflow (visual design + code export)
  • Figma / Sketch
  • WordPress + Elementor
  • Adobe Dreamweaver (less common now)
  • Bootstrap Studio

8. Brand / Identity Designer

Focus: Logo design, brand guidelines, typography, color systems

Common Tools:

  • Adobe Illustrator
  • CorelDRAW
  • Affinity Designer
  • Figma (increasingly used for brand systems)
  • LogoMakr / Looka (for fast mockups)

9. 3D Designer / Modeler

Focus: 3D objects for games, apps, product demos, AR/VR

Common Tools:

  • Blender (free & powerful)
  • Autodesk Maya
  • Cinema 4D
  • ZBrush
  • Unity / Unreal Engine (for deployment)

10. Game UI/UX Designer

Focus: Designing UI and experience for games (HUDs, menus, interactions)

Common Tools:

  • Figma / Photoshop
  • Unity UI Toolkit
  • Unreal UMG (UI system)
  • Spine 2D (for game animations)
  • Tiled (for level design)

11. Design Systems Specialist

Focus: Creating reusable components and patterns across products

Common Tools:

  • Figma (with design systems / libraries)
  • Storybook (for frontend components)
  • Zeroheight (design system documentation)
  • Tokens Studio (for design tokens)

12. AR/VR/XR Designer

Focus: Designing for immersive experiences

Common Tools:

  • Adobe Aero
  • Unity + XR Toolkit
  • Gravity Sketch
  • Blender
  • Spark AR / Lens Studio (for Instagram/Snapchat filters)

13. Creative Technologist / Design Engineer

Focus: Bridges design and code—turns high-fidelity prototypes into real UI components.

Tools / Skills:

  • Figma + Code (React, CSS, JS)
  • Storybook
  • Framer (code-based prototyping)
  • VS Code
  • GitHub

14. Information Designer / Data Visualization Designer

Focus: Designing dashboards, infographics, and data-driven visuals.

Tools:

  • Tableau / Power BI (business dashboards)
  • D3.js (custom data visuals)
  • Flourish / RAWGraphs (no-code viz)
  • Illustrator (for infographics)
  • Google Charts / Datawrapper

15. Accessibility Designer

Focus: Ensures designs are usable by people with disabilities (color contrast, screen reader support, etc.)

Tools:

  • Stark (Figma plugin)
  • Axe DevTools
  • WAVE (Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool)
  • Color Oracle
  • Contrast Checker

16. Conversational UI Designer / Voice UX Designer

Focus: Designs chatbots, voice interfaces (like Alexa or Siri)

Tools:

  • Voiceflow
  • Botmock (retired, but notable)
  • Dialogflow (Google)
  • Amazon Alexa Developer Console
  • Figma (for flow diagrams)

17. Content Designer / UX Writer

Focus: Microcopy, button labels, error messages, onboarding text—words that shape user experience.

Tools:

  • Google Docs / Notion (collab writing)
  • Figma (embedded copy in UI)
  • Grammarly / Hemingway (clarity tools)
  • Ditto (UX writing plugin for Figma)

18. Industrial Designer (for software-hardware products)

Focus: Designs physical interfaces (IoT devices, wearables, hardware UI)

Tools:

  • SolidWorks / Rhino
  • Fusion 360
  • KeyShot (rendering)
  • SketchUp
  • Adobe Dimension

19. Generative / AI Designer

Focus: Uses AI to generate creative assets, iterate fast, or collaborate on ideation.

Tools:

  • Midjourney / DALL·E / Stable Diffusion
  • Runway ML
  • Leonardo AI
  • ChatGPT (for UX writing, concept gen)
  • Figma AI (new features rolling in)

20. Design Ops / Systems Manager

Focus: Improves workflow, collaboration, and scalability of design across teams.

Tools:

  • Zeroheight (design documentation)
  • Abstract (version control for Sketch)
  • Figma Libraries
  • Notion / Confluence
  • Jira / Asana (for task coordination)

What are various Design Tools?

1. UI/UX & Wireframing Tools (Free Versions)

Web-Based:

  • Figma – UI/UX design, wireframing, prototyping (free for individuals)
  • Penpot – Open-source alternative to Figma (web + self-hosted)
  • Uizard – Rapid wireframing and mockups with AI
  • Whimsical – Free for limited boards (flowcharts, wireframes)

Desktop:

  • Pencil Project – Open-source wireframing tool
  • Balsamiq Wireframes (Desktop) – Limited free trial (good for sketch-style wireframes)

2. Graphic Design & Illustration

Web-Based:

  • Canva – Free plan includes templates, drag-and-drop design
  • Photopea – Online Photoshop alternative (layer-based editor)
  • Vectr – Basic vector design in browser
  • Fotor – Photo editing and social graphics
  • Pixlr X / E – Online photo editor (basic & advanced modes)

Desktop:

  • Inkscape – Open-source vector editor (like Illustrator)
  • Krita – Powerful open-source painting and illustration app
  • Gravit Designer (Free Version) – Vector design (cross-platform)
  • GIMP – Open-source raster image editor (Photoshop alternative)
  • MediBang Paint – Comic and illustration tool

3. Motion Design / Animation

Web-Based:

  • Rive – Real-time motion graphics for apps (free with limits)
  • Animaker – DIY animation tool (free plan available)
  • LottieFiles – Preview and edit Lottie animations in browser

Desktop:

  • OpenToonz – Free 2D animation software
  • Blender – Open-source 3D modeling and animation suite
  • Synfig Studio – Open-source 2D animation tool

4. Mockup & Asset Generators

Web-Based:

  • MockupBro – Create product mockups
  • Shotsnapp – Browser-based mockup generator
  • Designify – Auto-remove backgrounds and enhance images
  • Remove.bg – Free background remover (limited free credits)

5. Icon, Illustration, and Asset Resources

Web-Based:

  • Heroicons / Tabler Icons – Free open-source icon sets
  • UnDraw – Free MIT-licensed illustrations
  • Humaaans / Open Peeps – Free illustration libraries
  • SVGRepo / Iconscout (Free section) – Thousands of SVGs and icons
  • Pexels / Unsplash – Free stock images for mockups/design

6. Design Systems & Collaboration

Web-Based:

  • Penpot – Team-friendly open-source design tool
  • Figma (Free for teams up to 3 editors) – Includes libraries, components
  • Zeroheight (Free tier) – Design system documentation
  • Miro (Free plan) – Whiteboarding and brainstorming

7. Typography & Font Tools

Web-Based:

  • Google Fonts – Free web fonts
  • Fontjoy / Fontpair – Font pairing tools
  • Calligraphr – Turn your handwriting into a font
  • DaFont / 1001 Fonts – Free downloadable fonts

What are Different Types of Transformation Styles?

When you take a photo of a person, there are many styles you can apply to it depending on the goal—whether it’s for artistic transformation, social media enhancement, professional editing, or fun. Here’s a breakdown of different styles you can apply:

1. Artistic Styles

  • Cartoon / Anime Style – Makes the photo look like a cartoon or anime character.
  • Sketch / Pencil Drawing – Converts the image into a hand-drawn pencil or charcoal sketch.
  • Oil Painting / Watercolor – Simulates traditional painting techniques.
  • Pop Art / Warhol Style – Bold colors and patterns, 1960s-inspired.
  • Cyberpunk / Futuristic – Neon lights, glowing edges, dystopian vibe.
  • Vintage / Retro – Faded colors, grain, and light leaks.

2. Portrait Enhancement

  • Beauty / Glamour Filter – Smooths skin, adjusts lighting and tones.
  • Makeup Simulation – Adds virtual makeup (lipstick, eyeshadow, etc.).
  • Hair Color / Style Change – Alters hair style or color digitally.
  • Bokeh Background – Blurs the background to highlight the subject.
  • Black & White / Monochrome – Dramatic grayscale or sepia tones.

3. Thematic / Character Transformation

  • Old Age / Baby Face / Gender Swap – FaceApp-style transformations.
  • Fantasy / Sci-Fi Characters – Turns people into elves, cyborgs, or wizards.
  • Zombie / Vampire / Halloween Themes – Fun horror-style edits.

4. AI-Powered Transformations

  • AI Avatars / Lensa Style – Auto-generated stylized avatars.
  • Face Morphing – Blends your face with another celebrity or character.
  • Cinematic Lighting / Mood – Applies dramatic lighting and film vibes.

5. Style Transfer (Neural Networks)

  • Van Gogh / Picasso / Monet Style – AI applies a painter’s style to your photo.
  • Dreamlike / Abstract Art – Trippy, surreal effects with AI.

6. Social Media Filters

  • Instagram / Snapchat Filters – Cute overlays, AR effects, face distortions.
  • Retro Cam / VHS Effect – Adds analog textures and timestamps.

7. Professional Styles

  • Corporate Headshot Style – Clean background, professional lighting.
  • Magazine Cover Look – Glamorous edits, text overlays.
  • Studio Lighting Simulation – Mimics ring lights or softbox effects.

8. Cinematic / Movie-Inspired Styles

  • Hollywood Grading – Teal and orange color tone.
  • Noir Style – High contrast black and white with dramatic lighting.
  • Film Emulation (Kodak, Fuji) – Mimics specific analog film stocks.

9. Cultural & Regional Styles

  • Bollywood / Indian Wedding Edit – Rich colors, glitter effects.
  • K-pop / Korean Soft Look – Bright skin, pastel colors, clean tones.
  • Traditional Painting Style – Like Mughal miniature, Japanese ukiyo-e, etc.

10. Conceptual / Abstract Styles

  • Double Exposure – Merges human silhouette with another scene (e.g., landscape).
  • Dispersion / Pixel Explosion – Parts of the body break into particles.
  • Glitch Art – Deliberate visual distortion for a cyber/retro feel.

11. Mood / Emotion-based Styles

  • Melancholic / Moody Tone – Dark tones, desaturated colors.
  • Dreamy / Soft Focus – Hazy, glowing light, like daydreams.
  • Energetic / Vibrant Color Splash – Bold saturation, high contrast.

12. Background Replacements & Environments

  • Virtual Locations – Place the subject on a beach, mountain, Mars, etc.
  • Fantasy World / Game-Inspired – Add dragons, castles, neon cities.
  • Minimalist / Solid Color Backgrounds – Clean, modern design aesthetic.

13. Motion or Live Styles

  • Cinemagraphs – Still photo with subtle motion (like hair blowing).
  • 3D Parallax Effect – Gives depth and movement to a still photo.
  • Photo to Video Avatars – Turn still images into animated speaking avatars.

14. Face-Only Transformations

  • Face Slimming / Eye Enhancement – Often used in beautification.
  • Celebrity Look-Alike Generator – See who you resemble.
  • Face Swap / Face Merge – Fun swaps with another person or character.

15. Typography and Graphics Overlay

  • Magazine Cover or Poster Layout – Add text and design.
  • Memes / Captioned Styles – For social media sharing.
  • Collage / Scrapbook Style – Multiple image cutouts layered with stickers and frames.

What are different free tools for different designer roles?

Designer Type Free Tools
UI/UX Designer Figma 🌐, Penpot 🌐🖥️, Uizard 🌐, Whimsical 🌐, Pencil Project 🖥️, Balsamiq (trial) 🖥️
Graphic Designer Canva 🌐, Photopea 🌐, Pixlr X/E 🌐, Fotor 🌐, Gravit Designer 🌐🖥️, GIMP 🖥️, Inkscape 🖥️
Vector Illustrator Inkscape 🖥️, Vectr 🌐🖥️, Gravit Designer 🌐🖥️, Boxy SVG 🌐, Affinity Designer (trial) 🖥️
Digital Painter / Artist Krita 🖥️, MediBang Paint 🖥️, GIMP 🖥️, Autodesk SketchBook 🖥️
Motion / Interaction Designer Rive 🌐, OpenToonz 🖥️, Synfig Studio 🖥️, Blender 🖥️, LottieFiles 🌐
3D Designer / Modeler Blender 🖥️, Tinkercad 🌐, SketchUp Free 🌐, FreeCAD 🖥️
Web Designer Figma 🌐, Webflow 🌐, Penpot 🌐🖥️, Bootstrap Studio (limited) 🖥️, WordPress + Elementor 🌐🖥️
Brand / Identity Designer Canva 🌐, Photopea 🌐, GIMP 🖥️, Inkscape 🖥️, LogoMakr 🌐, Looka 🌐
Game UI Designer Figma 🌐, Krita 🖥️, GIMP 🖥️, Blender 🖥️, Unity (UI Toolkit) 🖥️, Unreal Engine (UMG) 🖥️
Accessibility Designer Stark (Figma Plugin) 🌐, Contrast Checker 🌐, WAVE Tool 🌐, Axe DevTools 🌐, Color Oracle 🖥️
Conversational UI Designer Voiceflow 🌐, Botpress 🌐🖥️, Dialogflow 🌐, Amazon Lex 🌐
UX Researcher / Content Designer Notion 🌐🖥️, Google Docs 🌐🖥️, Grammarly 🌐🖥️, Hemingway 🌐, Figma 🌐, Ditto (Figma Plugin) 🌐, Maze 🌐, Optimal Workshop 🌐
Design System Specialist Figma Libraries 🌐, Penpot 🌐🖥️, Zeroheight 🌐, Tokens Studio (Figma Plugin) 🌐, Storybook 🌐🖥️
Creative Technologist VS Code 🖥️, Figma 🌐, Framer 🌐, CodeSandbox 🌐, GitHub 🌐🖥️, Storybook 🌐🖥️, CodePen 🌐
Data Viz / Info Designer RAWGraphs 🌐, Datawrapper 🌐, Flourish 🌐, Google Charts 🌐, Tableau Public 🖥️, D3.js 🌐🖥️, Illustrator (trial) 🖥️
AR/VR/XR Designer Adobe Aero 🖥️, Unity 🖥️, Blender 🖥️, Spark AR 🌐🖥️, Lens Studio 🖥️, Gravity Sketch (trial) 🖥️

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About the Author

Author avatar

Dr. Hari Thapliyal is a prolific blogger and seasoned professional with an extensive background in Data Science, Project Management, and Advait-Vedanta Philosophy. He holds a Doctorate in AI/NLP from SSBM, Geneva, along with Master’s degrees in Computers, Business Management, Data Science, and Economics. With over three decades of experience in management and leadership, Hari has extensive expertise in training, consulting, and coaching within the technology sector. His specializations include Data Science, AI, Computer Vision, NLP, and machine learning. Hari is also passionate about meditation and nature, often retreating to secluded places for reflection and peace.

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