What did you do this semester?
Name Typography:
Holiday Greeting Cards:
The second project we did was creating a holiday greeting card from scratch, and like the previous project this was also type based. This assignment was to come up with a phrase and then handwrite the phrase and place it into the card. We began by using pencil to create a basic design and then we would go over it in pen and finally place it into the computer. This project took around three weeks to complete. I faced many more challenges in this project than I did in the previous one. In this project I had the problem of being a perfectionist, I wanted my type to look perfect which was really hard because it was hand drawn. Once I got over my perfectionism I was able to continue with the project and finish it on time. Along the way I learned that I have the ability use hand written type and I learned the process for creating it. Along the way I also gained feedback on the visibility of my card, I was told that from far away it wasn't clearly visible and I had to fix it before turning it in. I changed the weight of the type which allowed it to be more visible. The feedback I was given gave me the opportunity to make my project better. Overall I wished I was able to finish my hand written type faster but I am still happy with how it turned out.
Scholar's Bowl Shirts:
This was my second client work project. I was given the ability to design the Olathe Northwest's Scholar's Bowl team shirts. They came to me with a design hastily drawn out on paper and I was able to turn it into multiple concepts to present back to them. This project took only about two weeks outside of class to complete. Some of the challenges that I faced was learning how to deal with a hard client, the person I was working with wasn't very informative and it was hard to keep in touch with her. Along the way I learned that I should treat the client as if they are always right even if I don't agree. Along the way I was given helpful tips on how to work with hard clients and when the client had feedback for me I changed it for her. Overall this was not my favorite project at all because of the difficulty in communication, but I am happy with the way my designs ended up.
The Aviary Posters:
I got the opportunity to be added onto the editorial staff of The Aviary which is Olathe Northwest's Student Literary Magazine. I was the graphic design editor and was given the assignment of creating a poster to promote the submission of work into the Lit Mag. I was given a list of essential information and I was given creative freedom and was able to present them with multiple concepts. This project took around two weeks outside of class since it was a client project. Some challenges I faced was making sure the poster wasn't all type and it had some eye catching elements. Along the way I learned how to communicate with clients better which made the overall process easier. While presenting the posters the group of editors found a few errors and changes that they would like me to make and I made them and sent them the final copy and everyone was pleased with the way it turned out. Overall I am pleased with how it looks and I think it was a cool opportunity to have my work put up around the building for everyone to see.Raven 50 Poster:
This set of client work was handed to Amelia and I on short notice so it was very sudden. This assignment was to create a poster to show the essential information about the school's new lunch system. It had to include a schedule, a scalable QR code which led to sign up sheets, and also the teacher's schedules. This project took around two weeks to complete due to the fact that the poster was needed around the school. Some challenges that we faced was the overall design had to be simplistic but also be eye catching and easy to read. We created multiple concepts that didn't work so we had to go back to square one a few times. Even thought the project was hard I learned many valuable lessons including how to work with a partner on the project. I gained the ability to fully communicate both of our ideas and then combine them to create the a good poster. We were critiqued multiple times along the design process of the poster. With every comment we were given we took it into consideration and were able to fix the problem which led to creating a better poster. Some critiques included the need for a small logo on the poster and also creating better hierarchy within the poster. With all the feedback the poster slowly began to look better and look more unified. Even though this project demanded lots of creativity on spacing and hierarchy it was very fun to make and it is also very rewarding to see hanging around the school and the stickers that we also created on student's planners.
Company Branding:
This project was our next in class project and it was learning how to brand a company. We started by getting four items which had to be turned into a company we created. The items that I received were an elephant, amethyst, the number 7, and the letters z and y. I was able to combine those items into a safari company named the Gems of Africa based in Zimbabwe Africa. We spent the longest amount of time on this project over the semester because we spent around a month on it from start to finish. We spent time sketching ideas, and then creating the logo, creating business cards and letterheads for the company, and finally creating mockups for it. Some challenges that I faced was overcoming the lack of creativeness, as the project progressed it was hard to come up with original and creative ideas that benefited the overall look and feel of the company. Once I overcame that I was able to continue creating a brand from scratch. Along the way I learned how to brand a company from scratch and I also learned how to create a look that represents the brand but also looks unified across all the different aspects. Some feedback I received throughout the critiques that took place was that I needed to change the type on my logos because they didn't feel unified. Once I changed those the logo looked better as a whole and made the brand better as a whole. Overall this was my favorite project of the semester because I enjoyed turning four objects into a brand and seeing the whole thing come together when I got the project mounted. I am really pleased with how my company turned out and how the different aspects look when they are put together.
Academy National Banners:
I was approached by two competitive horse back riders who were attending Academy Nationals. They asked if I had the ability to make them banners to represent them and promote their barn. This project took about one week because of the short window they gave me to get them done. I was given pictures that they wanted included and a small idea of some of the ideas they had and they gave me the freedom after that. Some of the challenges that I faced during this project was the unfamiliarity of Photoshop. I knew the basics going in but I had to constantly google tutorials to create different parts of the posters. Another problem I faced was the bad quality of the pictures, they began to look pixelated when I sized them up. Along the way I learned many new features and the abilities of photoshop. I am now more experienced using Photoshop and have more skills due to the project. Some feedback I was given were smaller things like they wanted a type font or they wanted things moved around which was very simple to change and fix. This project was harder than other set of client work I have been given because of the level of experience hat I have on Photoshop, but once I learned more of the basics I was able to fully create a banner that looked nice. In the end everyone was happy with how they looked including me.
Natalie M Fashion Show Posters:
This client work project was to create a poster that promoted the fashion show. Junior committee came to me and asked for a visually appealing poster that conveyed the important dates and information. This project took around two weeks outside of class for me to complete. Some challenges that I faced along the way was working with a client who didn't know how to print out my poster. The poster was printed in both the wrong size and the fonts were messed up in the printing process. Once the file got sent to print again and came back I found that the poster was printed again wrong and it became pixelated. Due to the lack of time we were unable to print it out again so we hung it as is. Along the way I furthered my experience of working with difficult clients. Overall I was really pleased with how it turned out and I am happy that my poster is hung around the school but I was a little frustrated with the bad quality of the printed poster.
Christ Community High School Retreat Shirts:
This project was one of my favorite client work projects. I was approached by my youth pastor with the opportunity to design the high school retreat shirts that would be passed out to the students. I was very excited to design this shirt because usually the camp concepts are designed by either college students or seniors and this was the first time a junior got to design them. This project took around a month because of all the effort I pout into the projects and I spent lots of time communicating with the client in order to design the best shirts I could. Some challenges that I faced along the way were making enough concepts that were various themes even when I had no ideas for that topic. I included multiple mountain concepts and also a fire concept. Along the way I learned what the best file type for print is. I also learned how to design simplistic and pleasing shirt design. I received feedback on the type that I picked because it wasn't his favorite but it was a simple fix that was sorted out quickly. Overall I was really happy with how the designs turned out and I am excited to see what the other students think.
Time Management:
Throughout the semester I feel like I used my time really well and was able to complete everything in a timely manner. I was able to balance both in class projects and client work due to using my power 50 and after school time productively. When I finished on an in class assignment I would work on my client work until I finished those projects. I usually wouldn't have time to finish both my outside work and my in class work so I wouldn't be able to sit around doing nothing. To advance my skills as a graphic designer I continued to seek outside work so I could learn more and have more client experience and add to my portfolio.
Strengths & Weaknesses:
Throughout this semester I got to learn more about myself as a designer and find both my strengths and weaknesses. Some of my strengths include putting in all my effort to make a project as good as it can get. Another strength is time management. I was able to balance both in class and out of class projects and was able to get them done in a timely manner. Some of my weaknesses included perfectionism. I wanted all my projects to be perfect so I spent a lot of extra time on them.
Reflection:
Overall I really enjoyed this semester and the projects we did. My favorite project was the company branding project and also the Winter retreat shirts. I also enjoyed updating my behance and seeing all my projects come together. I wouldn't change anything about the semester. Throughout the semester the biggest thing I learned was learning about type and how to pick the best type possible. A goal that I have for next semester is that I want to enter into eMagine and maybe place.