Semester 2 Final

Semester 2 Final

What did I do this semester?

Magazine Spread

For this project, I selected a local designer, interviewed her, and then designed a two page magazine spread over the interview using her design style. This project started towards the end of first semester when the interview was done. Designing did not start until second semester, so not including winter break it took about 5-6 weeks. Working with layout was somewhat new so that was challenging in this project. I did yearbook last year so I had some experience but having to create all original content was different from yearbook. This project really pushed me to pull out more of my own design elements and be creative while using the interview and photos provided to me. I learned so much about the design industry during the interview and a lot about spread design during the project, too. Some feedback I was given at the critique was to look and find what I actually contributed to the design and what was just photos and text provided to me. After realizing that, although I had picked out fonts and made a layout, there wasn't that much of my own work on the spread, I added several more design elements. I cutout a photo of Megan and made my own minimalist background box behind her. I also played with pull quotes and making them really unique. My overall opinion of this project is great. It was a really fun project to complete and it taught me a lot about being a designer. I think my finished project ended up looking great.

Snapchat Geofilters

This was an outside project that I did on my own time. For this project I created two of my own geofilters to submit to Playa del Carmen, Mexico in the hopes of being able to use them on spring break. This project took me about three weeks to completely finish as I was working on them during spare time in class and at home. A big challenge I faced was that I wanted all of the graphics to be original so I had to create my own vectors of tropical leaves. I wanted it to look watercolor so I tried painted my own and scanning them in at first but it didn't look quite right. Next, I tried finding a tutorial on making the shape and many of the shapes I tried didn't look very good so it took several attempts to finally get a few shaped that I was satisfied with. The final thing I did was find a water color texture and change it to green in photoshop. I saved out several different shades of green so that each leaf was different. I made a clipping mask on the leaf to give it a nice, shaded watercolor texture. This project helped me learn how to make my own graphics rather than just finding free vectors. It was really beneficial in teaching me many shape tools that can be used to make the graphics. Along the was I asked for the opinions of Courtney, friends, and family. I do not specifically remember any feedback or changes, but my final outcome was far different from my original idea. My first idea of what I wanted was a transparent box with leaves coming out of all of the edges and the "Playa del Carmen" in the middle. One of my filters looks somewhat like that but the other was a completely different idea I came up with along the way. My overall opinion is somewhat good. I love my finished filters, but the were not accepted by snapchat which was frustrating because when I went to Playa del Carmen, the other filters were not very good. It was a beneficial lesson though and it gave me a good project for my portfolio, to submit to e-Magine, and for endorsement hours.

Personal Branding

This project was to design a personal logo, business card, and stationary. This project took about half of third quarter. This project was extremely challenging because it required me to think about what I was my impression to be as a designer. I had to really get in touch with my design style and who I am to decide what I wanted my logo to be. Along the way I learned how to create an entire brand and how to represent myself. I decided my sort off design style and how I want people to see me as a designer. Some feedback I was given on my original business card was to choose just one color and move the pattern to the front. I changed both of those things and I really think it made the business card so much better. I also played with the type and changed that some on the back which helped with readability. My overall opinion on the process is a good one. This project was probably one of the most beneficial projects that I have completed in e-Comm. It gave me extremely important materials to be able to have my own business as a designer. 

Swim & Dive Tank

Lauren Pugh contacted me asking for me to design the swim and dive tanks. She sent me a design that she wanted and asked me to just recreate it. This project only took a few days of working because it was a quick deadline and I only need to recreate a design similar to her example. I didn't face many challenges besides that I had two scholarship applications due the same day that she wanted the shirts so it was a little stressful that week being crunched for time. I texted Lauren throughout the process sending her pictures and asking for feedback. The one change I remember making for her was making the box behind the text transparent instead of white. My overall opinion is good. It was a cute design and fun to do. I always love getting to see people wear my design so I loved that part. The whole process itself wasn't very original but I did was the client wanted.

Cover Art Design

This project was to design a cover for a friend's music mix. It took about a week and a half to complete this project. Some major challenges I faced was that the person I designed for provided me with low quality picture that didn't really go with the rest of what he wanted. I needed up making four different variations of the cover for him when he originally asked for one. I wasn't getting any sort of payment so it was frustrating to have to spend so much time on doing a favor for him and nothing really looking great int the end. I learned that some people may having a different taste in what they think of as good design and that some clients aren't right for me. My original font wasn't great so I changed that and my client wanted to see the image both upside down and right side up in the design. In the end I gave him what he wanted but I didn't like it so I designed an entirely new one just doing what I wanted to do and gave him that one as well. Overall I didn't like the process of the design but I like my last cover that I did and I think it's really different.

The Bike Shack Advertising 

This project was to create a fake company that provided some sort of service and make a logo, billboard, magazine ad, newspaper ad, web ads, brochure, and infographic for it. This project took all of fourth quarter. Some challenges I faced was Mrs. Burdolski being gone so I didn't get her feedback. Other than that there weren't too many challenges. I think that the infographic was the most challenging since it was new to me but with some searching and brainstorming I got a clear idea of the concept I wanted to create. Along the way, I learned how to do everything a lot more independently mostly just using peers for feedback. I also learned a lot about infographics and the process of building one. Some feedback I was given was to play with the spacing of my logo and darken the colors. On advertising I asked people near me along the way on their opinions of background images and text formatting. I changed the colors of my logo slightly and some of the spacing. I also opened up kerning on my brochure to make the body type more readable. On advertising, I changed my background along the way with the help of the options of my peers. Overall I loved this project. Branding projects are always my favorite and I got to finally do the style brand that I haver been wanting to do for a while. I am really proud of all of my finished work for this project.

Class Time

I have done a good job staying on task and working in class. In class I was spending time brainstorming, sketching, getting inspiration, designing, and perfecting. During times where I was finished I spent time doing mockups for bechance, side projects, and perfecting my work in any way possible. There were very few times where I felt that I was completely done before a deadline because any project can always be pushed to be better. Outside of class I spent time on side projects like the geofilters, swim and dive tank, and cover art. I did another very small side project, also. I made a simple prom tank top for a prom group. It only took a day or two of class and isn't on my bechance so I didn't include it in my projects, but that is just another example of how I spent all of my time productively. Outside of class I did sketches, found ideas, and worked on my projects. I have all of the software so I spend well over two hours a week outside of school on ym projects and outside projects. 

Strength

I think my strength include being reliable, creative, and consistent. All of my deadlines have been met for in class and out of class projects. If a client asks me for something by a certain day I will make sure that it is done by then. I think that I have come up with many of my own original ideas. Sometimes it takes some pushing with sketches but I am confident in saying that I have come up with many creative idea. I have always put my full effort into every project that I have completed. This makes me very consistent because even if I don't like a project I don't blow it off. I really value wanting to have a good looking portfolio so making sure that every project is done to the best of my ability is really important to me. 

Weakness

I think my main weakness this semester was attendance. I was really good with making sure to communicate attendance with Burdolski, but had troubles with communication because of having a substitute. After the first progress review this quarter and getting a low score for myself I tried to make it in more often. I still didn't get as high as a review as usual and wish I would've been able to communicate absences more.

Summary

What I loved most the semester was getting to wrap up everything I have completed in e-Comm and do Senior Show. The only thing I would change is trying to come to class more often when I didn't feel well and find a way to communicate when I wasn't going to make it in to class. I really wish that I hadn't gotten a B this semester because I have never gotten a B in this class before. My overall take away was learning how to be professional in the senior show and finishing my portfolio. E-Communications has taught me so much and without it I'm not sure what I would be doing in college. I'm so happy I joined and it lead me to what I want to do as my career.

Semester 1 FINAL

Semester Reflection

What did I do this semester?

Homecoming Infographic

This project was to design the poster, infographic, tickets, and breakfast invite for homecoming. Courtney and I were partners in this projects and I did the infographic. This project took a total of about three weeks. Some challenges I faced in this project was infographic design and communication with senior committee  I do not have much experience with infographics aside from yearbook, but most of those were predesigned for me. I had to look at a lot of inspiration and sketch many layout ideas before I came to the one I decided on. Senior committee came in to give a presentation on the theme of the dance but it was slightly confusing on the color schemes and exact theme. In this project, I learned infographic design, working with a partner for projects, and how to work through some confusing communication. Some feedback was that it was too feminine; Courtney and I were suspecting that they may think that it was too feminine but we wanted to give them the option of a more "girly" poster so that they had more variety. We also struggled to find a good secondary font and we changed that after critiques. In the end, I loved our completed project. I was really proud of my infographic because it was unique from the others. I also think that the process went really well because both Courtney and I are great communicators so we had no issues asking each other for feedback when needed but also letting each other do their own thing. 

Sticker Design

This project was just a little side project I did during some down time I had. It only took a few days of work in class and at home. My biggest struggle was finding a font for the type. I probably spent 2-3 hours looking at and trying out different fonts. Doing this project taught me that I could make so extra money making stickers and selling them on RedBubble. The most feedback I got was just me asking Courtney for her opinion on placement, fonts, and colors. After getting feedback, I went to look at more fonts/changed the font and I changed the placement of the daisies. Overall I like this project. It is fairly simple so it isn't a huge achievement but I still think it's cute.

Greeting Card

This project was to design a handwritten greeting card. It took about a month to complete. Some challenges I faced was that I am not good at calligraphy and I wasn't sure of what to do for the card. While sketching, I came up with many ideas for the saying on the front but I struggled finding one I actually liked. I ended up doing a lot more sketches than what was mandatory to find a card I actually liked. Once I decided on a saying I really struggled with handwriting it. With a lot of failed attempts at calligraphy I decided to copy a font but change it some to make it my own. I learned that I should definitely practice more on calligraphy because it is actually pretty difficult. Some feedback I was given was to clean up the written design more and to change colors. I changed the colors and redid the handwritten design before scanning it in. In the end, I was able to meet all of the deadlines even though I felt rushed because I had spent so much extra time sketching. I wish I had spent less time being picky on the quote and more time working on my handwritten type, but I am still happy with the end product.

Mission Bowl Branding

This project was to do all of the branding (logo, business card, stationary, etc.) for Mission Bowl. This project took about 7-8 weeks. I faced many challenges in this project. When first doing this project, I felt like I needed to rush to get her the logo but after coming up with a concept that I thought was good enough my advisor talked to me and told me to push for more concepts and I am so happy that I did. I also was going to do this project on top of a fake branding project but that was stressful and my advisor let me use this company for the branding project which I am very thankful for because it allowed me to pour all of my time into making this project perfect. This project definitely taught me the most out of all of the other projects. It was my first project working with a real client other than a friend or family member who needed a design done. It taught me all about communication with you client and giving them what they want. I also learned how to work with a company that may not be one that can have a "pretty" logo. At first I really struggled with ideas for a bowling logo because there were very few good examples online. With pushing a lot of sketches I landed on a few solid concepts. This project definitely taught me the importance of sketching. Feedback I was given included feedback on my original logo, feedback on color scheme ideas, and on the stationary. I redid the original logo I designed and wiped that idea out completely. I asked Courtney and Blaise for their opinions on color schemes and used those opinions to help decide on a color scheme. At critiques I got feedback on my stationary and I changed some of the designs to include black so that the stationary all went together. Overall, I loved doing this project and it helped me grow so much as a designer. I can't wait until my logo is used more their sign and all around their bowling alley so that I can see it in use.
  

Time Management

I feel that I have done really well staying on task in class this semester. I used my class time looking at ideas, fonts, choosing colors, and playing with other solutions. In times where I felt that I was finished I worked on additional mockups, making my Behance better, and bettering the project by making sure that there was nothing left to change. I worked a lot outside of class for all of my projects. For the infographic, I spent so much time coming up with layout ideas that I majority of the design was done at home. I did a lot of sketching outside of school for the greeting card and my final sketch with the marker outline was done at home, as well. About half of my time spent on the sticker was done at home, since it was an extra project. For Mission Bowl, I completed all of my sketches, mockups, and any refining at home, along with working on designing the logo concepts both at home and during class. Compared to last year, I have done so much better with time management and I feel like I have spent very little time being unproductive in class. 

Strengths 

My strengths include skills in communication, project management, time management, and collaboration. I use communication by being able to express my entire thought process behind a project and being about to communicate well with clients. Project management and time management both go together in the way that I can manage doing outside work along with class assignments fairly well and I know where to prioritize. Time management is also a skill because I have met all deadlines and even if I am stressed on time, I will work on a project at home so that I can meet the deadline. Collaboration is another strength of mine because I enjoy getting and giving feedback because it makes everybody's projects better. I feel comfortable giving constructive criticism and ask for feedback when I need it.

Weaknesses

Coming into the semester, project and time management were weaknesses. Last year, I did not do much outside work so I did not know about project management and while I met all deadlines, I definitely spent more time being unproductive than I have this year. To improve these weaknesses I spent more time working at home and I almost always stayed on task in class. Two skills that I still would like to improve are technical and communication skills. I would like to learn more about all that you can do with Adobe programs be doing more tutorials. I also am just a more quite person so while I can communicate well, I am typically not the one to take charge in critiques unless needed. These are both areas I aim to improve next semester. 

Summary

This semester, I loved doing client work in the Mission Bowl project. It was by far my favorite project. If I could change anything it would just be to do more outside work. I just find it difficult to find any. My overall lesson from this semester is project management as I have done more outside work than ever. Next semester I would like to be more of a leader in class since I am a senior. This semester went really well for me and I am proud of how I have grown as a creative. 

Semester 2 Final Reflection

Guarantees

Technology

This year I have learned so much about the technology that is used to creative graphic design. Through projects, I learned different tools in the software; every project taught me something new. In my first project, name typography, I learned how to manipulate type and convey an image strictly through fonts. In my final project, non-profit advertising, I learned how to use InDesign to set up body text and make large bodies of copy interesting to read and look at. I have learned so many other things about technology as well. Recently, I have learned how to make mockups. Mockups are so important for portfolios because they show how the project would look finished. There was also some difficulties with learning new software. InDesign was foreign to me until this year but by the end I felt comfortable using it to make print media. Overall, I think I have learned the most about software and technology this year than ever before. Having knowledge of all of the tools in the software will help me next year and in my future as a graphic designer.

Collaboration

While there were no partner projects this year, I learned how to collaborate while doing separate work. Throughout every project the class would have critiques in small groups. These critiques provided a time where collaboration was a must. Critiques got a large group together and introduced new ideas to make projects even better. These meeting taught me how to take other people's ideas and suggestion and combine them with your own vision to get out phenomenal work. For example, on the rebranding project there were several things that I changed because of my instructor's and other classmates' suggestions. I got 2nd place at e-Magine for that project and I know that I wouldn't have achieved that without the help of critiques. This year also taught me how to ask for help on my own without being in a set up critique. Often, people around me and I find ourselves asking each other for help in pairing fonts, choosing a color, and other details. I have learned so much from my classmates and the collaboration in our classroom has directly benefitted everybody's projects. Collaboration is definitely a skill that I will use onward in both graphic design and other situations.

Communication

Communication also played a huge roll this year. Every aspect of graphic design must communicate a message. I learned a lot about the communication of messages through design in my rebranding project. The color scheme, fonts, logo, everything had to communicate some message. It is so important that projects communicate something because it catches the audiences eye and makes them think about the project. The other aspect of communication is communicating with clients to fit there needs. While I did some work for friends, I only had one big client project. This project taught me the importance of meeting with clients and fully understanding their wants and needs. This client did a great job showing me examples and some of the decorations for the event I was designing an invitation to. However, she had a very quick deadline and was unclear as to when she needed them done so that caused some minor confusion. Everything ended up going well but this taught me the importance of having clarity in everything for a client. The prom poster design was another project where we had to fit the clients needs. The junior committee presented their ideas for the prom poster and we made some options for them to choose from. Meeting their vision was super important because they voted for the posters that went along with their theme the best. Communication within the design and communication with clients are both very important skills that I have learned this year.

Project Management 

Project management was an important skill to obtain this year. There were several deadline throughout each project that we had to meet to critique, print, or put on our portfolios. While I believe I met every big deadline, I still had some struggles that taught me how to do better in the future. On a few projects I had to work at home to complete them. Doing the projects outside of school is something I want to try more next year. When more time to pay attention to details is taken, the project could end up being 10x better. While some projects were done in a bit of a time crunch, I think that it's alright because attention to detail is what caused them to take longer. Balancing client work and class projects was a new form of project management that I experienced this year. While I was doing client work, I didn't have much time to spend on my class project for about a week. This caused me to have to design some of my brochure at home. The skill of completing projects to the best of my ability on time and balancing client work with class projects were both skills that I have obtained this year and will continue to use.

Leadership

Leadership was reflected this year through critiques. For the first part of the year I think that my leadership skills struggled. During critiques I generally laid low unless there was a direct suggestion I thought would be really helpful. The reason for this is because I did not feel confident in my knowledge of skills to make suggestions often. First semester I was still learning and with a classroom that had experienced seniors, I let them do most of the talking because I trusted their suggestions more than mine. However, by second semester I felt confident in giving my input in critiques because I had learned enough to know what to suggest. It's so important to give input because that advice could help fellow designers learn and make their projects better. 

Strengths and Weaknesses

I learned a lot about my self and my abilities this year - including my strengths and weaknesses. I think that branding is a great strength of mine. I really enjoy using my creativity to make a brand and a theme for that brand. I also think that overall I'm pretty creative in my projects and I am good at finding new ways to convey messages. Collaboration is also a strength of mine. I have always asked other for help and suggestions on small details like choosing between two different shades of green to more obvious things like picking between title fonts. While I have some strengths, I also have weaknesses. I struggled a lot with packaging my logo for my rebranding. I had the vision but I just couldn't get the logo packaged right. With the help of classmates I came to a solution. I think this year I have learned how to be creative in solving problems. Given the challenge of making that logo now, I think I could have found a solution easier. However, I still do need to work on leadership. Next year, I will be a senior and I will need to be a great leader to help junior learn just as much as I have learned this year. That is definitely a skillI want to improve next year. 

Changes

Given the opportunity, there are few things I would change. Everything that has happened this year has shaped me into the place that I am at right now. Every process was a learning experience and I'm happy that I needed help at times because it taught me so much. The only thing I would change is my outside of class work. I really want to become endorsed but I only had about 35 hours this year. The goal was 50 so I am slightly disappointed. This summer I want to try to find some projects to do so that I can possibly get to 50 hours before the school year begins. Next year I want to actively ask classmates if they need help with designs and ask my instructor if there are any projects if I feel that I am not getting enough hours. Other than that, I wouldn't change anything.

Future

Next year I'm going to use everything that I have learned this year. All of the technological skills will help me greatly when I can combine them all next year. I'll continue to communicate and manage my projects well. I also will be a better leader since I will be a senior. I am planning on being a graphic design and going into the marketing industry so everything that I am learning now will help me in college and eventually in my career. 

Conclusion

This year has been a great year full of learning and expressing skills. From my first project to now I have grown so much. I learned so many new tools and how to keep a great portfolio. I also got to do some real client work which is such an important experience. I can't wait to express all of my new skills and learn more next year. E-comm has been so beneficial to me not only as a designer but as a person because all of these skills can be applied very day. All of my experiences have made me better and I look forward to learning more next year. 

Final Reflection

Final Reflection

Projects

This semester, 2 projects were completed and one more was started but it is not yet finished.

Name Typography

This project was to take 12 different interests and express them through typography. We used our name and made it appear like that interest using fonts and manipulation to the fonts. This project took around 3 weeks to finish. First, we brainstormed interests, then we made 3 different sketches for each of the 12 works (36 total), next we created them in illustrator, then a rough critique was held, finally revisions were made and the projects were finished. At first I was challenged by having to show the word without the use of many symbols or color. The point of the project was to use typography so we were to keep symbols minimal and most rely on the type to express the word. This taught me how to show a mood or word through strictly typography. I also learned how to manipulate type in illustrator. 

In the critique I was given many small corrections such as moving something up or down or fixing a stroke. Main corrections were to use color for "jeans", use a black background and white font for "night", use the shape of a mountain for "mountain", and add dirt, plants, and texture to "nature". I made all of the small corrects and did all of the bigger corrections listed before. 

Overall I am happy with this project especially considering that it was my first project of the year. However, I think that there were some things I could have done better and some critiques I should have followed better. The things I'm unhappy about would have taken only about another hour to fix so I wish I had put just a little more work into the project. For example, on my "christmas light" name I should have made the lights trailing off the same weight as the font. 

Rebranding

In this project, we chose a brand with a bad logo and packaging design to rebrand. We made a new logo and packaging design for the different flavors (or scents etc.). About 8 weeks were spent on this project. I struggled with creating symbols for the logo and deciding on the "look" I wanted for my brand in the beginning. This problem was fixed by sketching additional symbols. I learned how to problem solve when you are lacking creativity. I did this by sketching more and looking as inspiration. 

My original logo concepts were pretty rough. Through critique, I was given ideas that I had never thought of. After fixing my logo concepts and deciding on on logo I picked out colors and got feedback by people around me on what colors looked best. By the time I was ready to begin the packaging design, I felt a lot more confident and had a general vision for the packaging. However, an issue I faced was that the bottles I chose had a curve so I had to find new bottles. This didn't create a huge setback and I found similar bottles that were 

easier to work with. After packaging critiques I was able to perfect my packaging and get it to a good point. I changed the color of my logo to only have white and green so that the brand popped out on the packaging. I also made a font change on my "info" bubble and rearranged the placement a bit. These changes made my project so much better.

I ended this project feeling extremely satisfied with the ending product and design. 

I think that this project in particular shows a major growth in my design skills. I came from very unsure of what I wanted the brand to look like and lacking creativity to a unique package with a set "look". Everything came together perfectly and looked packaged together. This project ended up being very good in my opinion and I am proud to show it.

Class Time

I spent most of my class time productively this semester. Sometimes I would get slightly off task or chat but most of the time I did a good job on doing my work. There were not many times that I thought that I was completely done because there was always something I could be making better. Any spare time I had was spent looking at inspiration to make projects better, fixing minor details, and occasionally working on yearbook but only when I was satisfied with my project. 
I spent time working outside of class when I felt that I needed more time. At home I only worked on behance and looking at ideas. If there was ever a big part of the project that I needed to work on, I would stay after school or get to school early to work.

Strengths and Weaknesses

I think that I am good and critiquing myself and perfecting my work. I'm always looking at better fonts and better possible ideas even when I settled on something earlier. I know that a design can almost always be better and there's always room for improvement. It's very difficult for me to settle on a project that I am not fully satisfied with. I also believe that I am fairly good at finishing projects on time and having my materials ready for critiques.

While I have good qualities, I have some areas that need improvement too. My behance could be far better than it is right now and I need to spend time at home fixing it. Along with that, I have not had sketches ready once or twice. I could definitely spend more time at home on this class fixing my portfolio, sketching, and doing outside work. 

Summary

Overall this semester has been great. It has shown me a much more realistic preview of what being a graphic designer is like. I've learned a lot more this semester than I've learned in all of my design classes. The rebranding project was so fun and I consider it to be my first serious project. Getting to see an actual product designed by me that could fit in on a grocery store shelf was really cool. If I could change anything I would just put slightly more effort into my work and do more outside projects. I learned so much about how to design along with what a designers daily life is like. I learned so many new design rules, method of making designs, and all about behance. I cannot wait to do more projects next semester. My goal is to put in as much effort as possible to produce the best projects. This class has prepared me so much and will continue to prepare me for my future in college and probably becoming a graphic designer. 

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