Thursday 22 November 2012

End Of Module Evaluation

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BA (Hons.) GRAPHIC DESIGN
LEVEL
04
 Module Code 
OUGD403               


 Module Title
DESIGN SKILLS






END OF MODULE SELF-EVALUATION

NAME




1.  What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?

The main thing I have learnt within this module is the form of the typeface and how some of the alphabet shapes can be developed to make another letter. Here I have used this within the typeface, which I created for Jordan, which I used largely with the pattern in the stems of the form of the typeface. In this module I have learnt how to use illustrator with more of an in depth knowledge and new things you can do with illustrator. Which I have passed on these skills within the illustrator brief. 
I have also learnt how o manage my time effectively as at first I felt like I had a lot of work to process but towards the end I had a plan of when to blog when to have my work done, which has given me a better approach to the module.



2. What approaches to/methods of design production have you developed and how have they informed your design development process?

My approach to the design skills module has been informative to my final result due to my research is a big part od my development as all my ideas come when researching more into the briefing set.
My time management skills have developed through the start of this brief due to the allowance I have to double check all my work and not rushing around on interim critique day.
The visual thinking brief made me think of different medias as I had the word glow and nothing I did was relative to glow until I experimented with chalk etc….
The use of doing a large scale of ideas before starting your brief final has been very informative as you can develop while on paper which saves time than doing it while on screen in most cases,



3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?

My strengths that I have realised whilst doing this brief is that I am quite organised as I do tasks on time and I intend to keep this up throughout my time here as I will use my diary to its full use, as I think it has been a great time management tool for myself. Therefore due to my organisation and time management I have met deadlines and had all my work at every critique.








4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future?

I believe that I am just settling for a final design rather than spending time to finalise it as we have such a short period of time, so I need to allow my self for time to develop after critique over the weekend rather than setting myself other tasks to do. Also, although I have good time management skills I need to allow myself to blog my days events on the night and also within the blog taking better pictures by scanning and get in to the routine of putting where the images are from at the bottom of the picture.




5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?

Next time I would do lots of ideas but if I find a good idea that I want to stick on mid way through, I shouldn’t go on and do further ideas and waste time when I wont like them. Therefore I will have more time to develop my final idea when created digitally.
The second thing I would do differently is keeping all my things together and not throwing rubbish versions away, as not it has come to hand in and I have misplaced all my work although most of it is blogged.
Thirdly I need to keep my blogging up to date therefore can put research picture straight onto my blog and link them below, also blog a critique or a session is more fresh in your mind if you do it the same day rather than 1 or 2 days later.
The Fourth thing is that I will not be mad or upset at silly mistakes as you will learn from them next time and remember more prominent by doing things wrong. For example not throw away my rubbish versions of printing or the bad ideas and little sheets that I have just scribbled on but could have had some relation to my work.
Finally I need to up my standard of work I don’t feel like I am producing the best I can be when I look at others I either need to be more confident about my work or develop my idea until I am happy with the level of the quality of my final piece.

6.How would you grade yourself on the following areas:
(please indicate using an ‘x’) 

5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor

1
2
3
4
5
Attendance




Punctuality




Motivation




Commitment




Quantity of work produced




Quality of work produced




Contribution to the group




The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.


Friday 16 November 2012

Evaluation & Critique on Mail Shot



Evaluation of Mail Shot


I believe that overall the final design successfully matched the brief. I have followed on from my posters to keep the same style flowing and consistency. Although, if i had longer i would have changed the stock as it wasn't very good for the block colour. I have now realised that the best stock for printing block colour is antique white.



Critique on Mail Shot Briefing


We got into groups in 6 and then paired up within the group with another person. So we could discuss the mail shot together and then crit it as it would then be more informative feedback & more constructive from 2 people rather than one. Here is my feedback from the two pairs that critiqued my mail shot.





The feedback from this critique was anonymous which i prefer as you get more satisfactory feedback and they tell you the truth of the piece you are critiquing. The feedback which i think i will take on board is that there is a lot of information within the leaflets and maybe should use some imagery to portray this message through as well. Also i was worried about the box of the envelope getting damaged in the post as it doesn't fill the whole depth and therefore may squash. This is something i realised afterwards and have put it in the post to be delivered to college to test this theory. Although they mentioned my type not matching my message although i think it is as i wanted to get the prisoners hand writing into account when thinking about the typeface used.

Overall i think this is good feedback and will try and act upon my critiques to make the mail shot better & have more of a impact on my audience and practicality within the theory of sending through post.

Monday 12 November 2012

What is Graphic Design For? - Part 1



What is Graphic Design For?


Information & Way Finding
Publishing & Editorial Design
Branding & Identity
Product & Packaging
Retail & Promotion






Graphic Design has multiple purposes it is a high end budget.





5 websites that are going to help me define Information & Way Finding:  

http://signbox.co.uk  
http://wayfindinguk.wordpress.com/  
http://www.holmes-wood.com/#/index.php?p=f&t=tag4  
http://www.perceptualedge.com/blog/?p=353  
http://www.ap.buffalo.edu/idea/udny/section4-1c.htm  

5 websites that are going to help me define Product & Packaging:

http://www.boredpanda.com/creative-packaging-designs/
http://www.thedieline.com/
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/06/02/beautiful-and-expressive-packaging-design/
http://www.designjuices.co.uk/2012/05/packaging-roundup/
http://designm.ag/inspiration/product-design-inspiration/

5 websites that are going to help me define Branding & Identity:

http://www.fluidcreativity.co.uk/graphic-design-services/brand-identity-design/
http://justcreative.com/2010/04/06/branding-identity-logo-design-explained/
http://identitydesigned.com/
http://artlines.co.uk/identity
http://www.davidairey.com/designing-brand-identity/


5 websites that are going to help me define Editorial & Publishing:

http://wegrowcherries.com/catalog/editorial-design-11-12/#all
http://favim.com/image/30895/
http://cargocollective.com/jethroleynes/Paul-Rand-Editorial
http://fuel-design.com/
http://wegrowcherries.com/catalog/publishing-11-12/#all

5 websites that are going to help me define Retail & Promotion: 

http://www.theattic-room.co.uk/projects/retail.html
http://www.theattic-room.co.uk/projects/promotions.html
http://inspiredesignblog.co.uk/ 
http://www.visualstorytelling.co.uk/portfolio/retail-design
http://www.creative-inspiration.co.uk/?cat=418




 
Information & Way Finding

Way Finding: is not only design but it is essential for the space. As well as it having to be easy to understand and simple to follow. There are many different types of way finding in how they can adapt to different surroundings. It could be describe as a navigation of physical space with a strong focus on behaviour.

Information Graphics: Its a visual interpretation of the information given to present. This is alot more interesting and therefore i would personally take it in easier than a whole block of text. sets of data will be displayed in a unique way that can be seen, rather than read. This visualisation should not be left up to interpretation, it should instead be designed in a way that provides a universal conclusion for all viewers. This is usually quite simple to understand and look very crisp as a design.



http://www.behance.net/gallery/QV-Carpark/3251957
Impact
This is in a carpark of Ikea this is very impactful on the customers that are parking in the carpark. It immediately grabs your attention and the function is very well portrayed due to only been able to read the words if your at the position you need to be in. The media & scale are very well used also as its big so you can see and also the use of basic colour paints.




http://designspiration.net/image/3737116609949/
Innovative
This is the very innovative due to its use of the material of the way rather than the material itself! Also the positioning of the 3 is placed on the corner so you can see it from both angles. It is very effective due to the bright colours and the content fits the purpose fully.



http://www.behance.net/gallery/Zorlu-Center-environmental-graphics/3190319
Contemporary Wayfinding
This is contemporary due to the modernist placing and 3D stand which you can walk round and investigate. The function is well portrayed due to its large acrylic letters which are freestanding and therefore you can read from both sides and therefore could probably see from far away rather than on a small board.



http://www.behance.net/gallery/R-G-Wedding-Invitation/5933629
Infographics
This is very clean & crisp information graphics i like the use of black & white seperate the information. The audience will be the guests of the wedding which is a very innovative way to invite people as it is not a typical wedding invitation. 



http://designspiration.net/image/1446262391484/
Audience
The media used in this is very appropriate for its audience. The content of this image is statistics of tattoos around the world. The audience that will be interested in this information is people with tattoos and therefore are more likely to take notice due to they will have an interest in tattoos.



http://www.signbox.co.uk/exterior/exterior
Wayfinding
The wayfinding around the croxleygreen park. This is very clearly a map possibly quite clear from far away. The effectiveness is not very innovative and interesting although the building may be more simular to this design so therefore will be fitting to its surroundings.




Simple
This is a very low budget signage for wayfinding although it is fitting for its surroundings people when shopping don't want to see something fancy they just want to get it over and done with so something simple is very well designed for a supermarket.



Budget
This is very low budget the circular signs which are largely used as the sign all over the world. The small arcylics are low budget but fitting for the basic room. The function is not too clear as it has no arrows does it mean those rooms are through the arch way or on that side of the way. Arrows would make it clearer or hanging from the top of the door way.




Content
The content is very well layout within the information graphic as it make it very easy to read and more understandable through pictures and colours. The media is a poster which will be A3 size so therefore would be something you would only keep if you was interested in.





Materials
This is a railway side at the station in which they have used different materials also the blind can tell danger too. Also matching up with the bumpy pavement which shows that your very close to the side. The sign on the floor says STEP ASIDE these are laid all the way down the railway line. Although i don't know if they function is very purposeful due to they are a very bright colour although not may people look at the floor when waiting for a train.











Product & Packaging

Calendar, Promotional are huge market these are easy to reproduce and replicate as they are all the same design. There is also a big industry within stationary & gift wrapping as they produce; Cards, Wrapping Paper, Stationary, Wallpaper, Exterior of Containing Products.

Packaging: Normally is the main reason to buy things. For example, Hotel Chocolat, This is very well gift boxed and well presented therefore you want to buy it as it attracts your attention especially as a gift.

Product Design: tends to be very unique and futuristic. Seems to be more of a postmodernism view upon things as the form is more important than the function. As everything looks nice but not necessarily fit for purpose for example the sofa show on the last link on the website.


http://www.behance.net/gallery/Grandma-Judiths-Brand-Packaging/5998179
Materials
The material used is very reflecting the concept of the jam as it is homemade and the packaging is very basic and home ready materials although is very effective and fitting for its purpose. The label for the jam is different colours matching the taste of the jam.



http://www.behance.net/gallery/Vodka-SAMURAI/245844
Packaging
The packaging for this alcohol is flowing throughout the bottle and the box. The break in the box is also through the bottle. The use of this is the break up of words and how you say it. The budget for this packaging is at the high end due to the opening of the box and the hard back cardboard and figurative glass bottle.



http://designspiration.net/image/890215372240/
Budget
The budget for this packaging is very low due to the 2 colour print. Although is get across the message very clearly and uses image & words to express what the item is.



http://www.behance.net/gallery/COLORLESS/342938
Concept
This is the whole packaging is focusing on the concept of recycling and the no colour therefore shows no use for selling and comes down to the basics although the embossing will have cost more than printing on to the can.


http://designspiration.net/image/974888014882/
Function
This heineken cube has its advantaged in use as its easily stackable and easier to carry & better to travel with. This is the whole concept around the use of the cube. These was cheaper to distribute than the bottle as it is holds less liquid.




Budget
This is the high end scale of budget due to not only is it printing onto the packaging the material feels like the skin of the fruit itself. The effectiveness is very clever and i think i would want to make people want to buy them due to the unusualness of the packaging.






Seasonal
This is packaging for coffee, they have changed the packaging for the seasonal christmas holidays where they wanted to wish there customers a merry christmas and to treat them to a warm nice drink with others. The typical phrase from songs been used to highlight the fact of christmas and the cliparts of christmas scenes.



Traditional
This is the traditional packaging of the beer that they wanted to achieve this look as they wanted to keep its vintage-ness. The one colour print is very low budget and the use of brown paper. The logo used throughout the branding is a good way to hold them all together.






Innovative
This packaging design of CD case is very innovative although it only has one use although it can be slipped back in. The clear CD holder is very basic simular to the case as the design is mainly in the opening.




 



Ingenious
This box of teabags is very ingenious as it has a hanging rail and therefore the teabags have space to breathe and then when making the cup of tea they can hang on the side and therefore you know where the tea bag is.


Branding & Identity

Branding: Is the logo of a company that has to compliment its purpose etc... Its to make an image and to promote that image through campaigns & visuals. It allows the designer to work in many aspects of the industry as it can involve from creating logos to creating the slogans for the company etc... It needs to represent the goals of the organisation therefore been able to work in different materials & medias.

Identity: This is the most important thing as it tells the public who you are & what you do. And sometimes has associations to make it relate for example Nike and there tagline. And the font of the writing for example Coca Cola & the colour associations such as Pepsi blue & red.


This is joined together as is in a very close relationship as they both have to work in harmony for it to work as a whole.

http://designspiration.net/image/1282063924839/
Genre
The logo is very direct to the concept of the brand. The use of joining the first & second word through creating an outline of a pencil. As this is a shop that only sells stationary. The colour palette is very basic and clean. Not sure if the use of boxes are to the correct purpose of this high budget stationary shop. 



http://www.behance.net/gallery/Mareiner-Holz-corporate-identity-design/1716735

Branding
This is branding for a wood company, the simple branding does not portray wood work company straight away but get the point & message across. The logo is taken throughtout the branding which shows continuation & then the company begins to get recognision through logo.




http://www.behance.net/gallery/Poppin-Identity/5243173
Concept
The concept of the brand poppin. which is a office stationary brand is that they want to bring happy back to the office. This is done through the logo and the round edge type face is very smooth and has no harsh edges with the colour of orange been bright & happy. The use of cutting of the g is to bring the cool edge back to the office too.


http://www.behance.net/gallery/12-Inches-Branding-Packaging/229811
Audience
The name came from the bottle of 12 inches. The use of the wrap around is to keep the cost low. The tape will also be used to fasten up the boxes. The wrap round is aiming to target a younger target audience as they like different & cool things. The cocktail mix has different tastes and therefore is colour coded with the liquid.



http://designspiration.net/image/170183241090/
Innovative
The logo for eat innovations is very cleaver with the connotions with eatting images to create the letters for the logo. The use of no crossbar on the A connotes innovation with the food they create too. The colour palette connotes organic and healthy foods.








Audience
This is the design on the audience the colour scheme and theme is very aimed towards the users of sweet 'n' low which is a low calorie sugar. Therefore will pull in more customers which like this type of design and therefore will boost the profit. The function is too show what else you can make from sweet 'n' low so therefore will make & try more things and therefore use that type of sugar more.




Audience
This is aimed towards children and therefore so does the packaging and the use of animals on the appropriate packaging. The use of the see through hole at the top is so the children can see what they are eating as that is very important when children try something new. The tall pops are very easily to handle and easy peel.






Sector
The sector of this branding is food & eating out. This is very well displayed for the restaurant with the big glass window you can see the chefs cooking therefore need to know what type of food it is as thats the most important factor. The use of the chinese type font and also the chinese symbols help people to take that into consideration and therefore quick and instantly see this.





Website
This a website for a centre which helps with lifestyles. The use of bright colours and clear blocking for chapters make the wayfinding around the website very easy.





Branding Self
This is a business card for self branding. This is a a double sided business card which is very different only due to the fact of the portrait layout. The use of the name to show the front and the name backwards to show the back is very clever idea. The use of putting chinese lettering on layout shows his ethinicity which therefore lets you know that he specialises also in chinese language.






Publishing & Editorial

Publishing: Short bodycopy but significant. Ongoing development of a body if image. Static information, book design. The main point to help you develop language & design is what the book is for & who the audience is. It is very design driven and visual publication is important.  


Editorial: Magazine design, body of written information by reporters brought together with an image to create a published page. Never just image or type alone, always in a relationship its fast pace therefore same templates used week on week.

General Publications are usually below the line which means business to business therefore mainly are; Annual Reports, Catologues, Brochures & Instructional. Therefore the method of production that are taken into account is the stock, binding & print.


http://designspiration.net/image/369965875728/
Media
I like how the media of the book is been created from the same genre of the book. The whole illustration on the font has been created through potatoe printing and therefore shows you what you could learn inside the book. I like the use of the colour scheme as its very oldie worldie as this is where this process came from.




http://designspiration.net/image/369965875728/


Simplicity 
This is in the simplist form from using traditional techniques again. This is a very low budget front cover. The effectiveness is not very effective to the target audience due to children look for bright colours and simple shapes not generally with black outlines. 




http://designspiration.net/image/369966361877/

Budget
This is a very low budget front cover due to the two colour print. The layout is very flowing to the eye and the title stands out very well. I like the use of the layout as it makes you want to open the page as your eyes flow across the page. 




http://designspiration.net/image/401049776296/
Layout
This has a very strict grid layout which is good and structured. The colour scheme is very effective and helps you focus on the most important parts. The audience seems to be more of a educated view and suggests content simular layout to a newspaper which i think is mainly drawn from the title font.

http://www.behance.net/gallery/Folio/5222757
Editorial
This is a very modern newspaper with the size been smaller and handy to carry around. This is again very structure by using a grid and the use of overlapping which would therefore suggest a take on the modern newspaper.





http://wegrowcherries.com/portfolio/sahna-iqbal-social-mail-postage-stamps/

Post stamps
These stamps have a very fresh and clean look, with a very basic style.The use of no black lines is very nice and the typeface connotes handmade due to no crisp lines and unclean lines followed. Colours are very bright and they work very well in there own concepts.



http://favim.com/image/30895/

Function
With this been an annual report, the front cover is very informative about the information inside the report. I like the idea of the main information been seen before opening the front cover. The typefaces are very well places and certain words stand out due to the hierarchy in type and it doesn't seem too much.





http://cargocollective.com/jethroleynes/Paul-Rand-Editorial

Layout
This is a very stricking layout and the use of not much information on the double page spread allows you to take in the aesthetics first before reading. I like the use of different colour pages which makes you read the left hand page first. Although i really like the diagonal pictures in block i am not sure about the position due to that been the only thing positioned on a diagonal and seems rather disjointed.



http://fuel-design.com/

Content
This is very hard to read and therefore harsh to the eye. The harsh black background shows me a dark story maybe with fear and hidden surprises in it. The broken type with words through it makes it hard and confusing how to read the title.



http://wegrowcherries.com/catalog/publishing-11-12/#all

Content
I like the use of the texture of hair for the background and the typeface on the front. This obviously tells me that there is some connotation to hairy character etc... I like the use of the font as it is a typical fairy tale font, but with the twist of masking a texture into it. The simplistic layout is very clever and fits its purpose.










Retail & Promotion

There is alot of design elements involved in retail and how it appeal to its audience. There has been design in each aspect within a shops branding & identity. The bag that they put it is in to show off that they have bought something from that shop so another person knows that the shop in somewhere in the area. Furthermore, the promotional leaflets or window clings have been design even down to the tag that shows the price also the card to put the receipt in and there is many more...

This is how the shop gets it brand loyalty and also most of there custom comes from other customers carrying there bag and the look of the shop from the window and the sign outside draws the attention of the customer which should attract a certain type of audience and make them want to go in and shop there.


http://pinterest.com/pin/152066924889531417/
Interative
This is a very interesting promotional item in retail and fits very well with its purpose as its a slush bar. The little balls connote bubbles of the drink and therefore make you receive promotions of the bar and then the best one which makes you want to pick up the ball is the free ipad 2. If you receive promotions then you are more likely to try and also it interactive and thats what people like.





http://designspiration.net/image/2452678147906/
Window Display
This is a window sticker which grabs peoples attention through the bright colours and the use of bringing the stock they sell onto the window which lets people know what they sell and also with the attribution to the vogue magazine been used on the window with invite vogue readers in.






http://designspiration.net/image/2712052692988/
Budget
You can tell that this shop is a very expensive shop due to its bags the need in not largely presenting there name and the hard material used so therefore you can reuse again & again. The pattern used is very sophisticated and the colours are very earthly.





http://www.behance.net/gallery/The-Story-of-Now/4174985
Retail Branding
This is a brand mainly focused on travel i can tell this mainly because of the use of the compass and the collected materials look. This is very directed to an audience that travels around or as a hobby

http://www.behance.net/gallery/Glassons-Flagship-Retail-Store/2310744
Audience
The audience is very aimed towards women which i believe is a womens fitting room. The large amount of space and seating suggests luxury to me. The function is still very appropriate through as they are still very much changing rooms and lots to choose from.

Sector
This is very clean and fresh look which is very appropriate for the products that sanctuary sell. The creams and lotions are displayed to there full potentials and the effectiveness is very apparent that it would grab peoples attention who are looking for that product as they are very well laid out. 






http://www.theattic-room.co.uk/projects/promotions.html


Budget
The use of roses show a high budget and also could connote similarity of fragrance. The display is mainly for the cream of flowerbomb the perfume. The block is personally for the the flowerbomb and therefore make its more luxury.






http://inspiredesignblog.co.uk/

Audience
This is the Thorntons shop which sells only chocolate and therefore mainly is bought for presents. This therefore can bring fortune through wrapping as well. The packages look very luxury and pretty parcels that you would be proud to give to someone. The pretty pink, chocolate & gold colours connote the girly, luxury of the packages.



http://www.visualstorytelling.co.uk/portfolio/retail-design

Branding
These are labels for the shop Dorothy Perkins these are used to hold the price & barcode on the item of clothing. The function is only for them functions only, and therefor this is simple and gets to the point easily. This is a low budget tag due to the 3 colour prints.




http://www.creative-inspiration.co.uk/?cat=418
Audience
This is very appropriate to its target audience as its very cool & edgy which is going to be the target audience which they are targeting. The packaging of each shirt in a clear packaging which makes it clean and crisp therefore the green label hanging out could possibly be the label with the price on as the shirt is inside so wouldn't be able to get to the price. Although i think this design could be at the low end of the scale of budget due to the one colour print and the sleeves would be cheap.