Junior Semester 1 Reflection

What did I do this semester?

Name Typography

Behance

What was the project?

This project was our first project. We had to come up with a bunch of different adjectives and things about us, and then incorporate that into our name using typography.

How long did it take?

I didn't count how long it took, but I think it was about a month. We started with brainstorming our adjectives and sketching. Then we moved on to doing whatever hand-typography we wanted and finding the fonts we wanted to use for ideas that weren't hand-type. When we finished putting them into illustrator we had to set them up for Behance and then print them and mount them on a matte board. There were also a few critiques along the way.

What were some challenges that I faced?

I had a lot of issues with my video game idea. I tried to use a Wii remote and nunchuck for the L and the N. The wire that connects the remote to the nunchuck was going to make the shape of the N, but it ended up being too thin, so I had to find something that would match the weight of the other letters. I ended up using another Nintendo Switch controller for the N, and keeping the original Wii Remote for the L.

What did I learn along the way?

Along the way I learned how to incorporate feeling into type. We never did much typography in sophomore year, so I didn't have much experience. You can't just throw some graphics in there, otherwise if you remove the graphics then the type may not match the emotion you're looking for. Finding the correct font and manipulating it to match the emotion is what you need to do, though graphics can be added later for something extra.

What was some feedback I was given?

People really liked my doodle idea and my indecisive idea. I was told that the doodle one looked a lot like what you would find in the margins of someone's notes, just random ideas added on to a small sketch. My indecisive one felt like I was having trouble choosing a font or a weight, which is exactly what I was looking for.

What did I change?

I changed a lot between sketching and Illustrator. Some of my ideas looked alright in my sketches, such as the video game idea with the wire being the N, but once I put it in illustrator some of the weights changed and ended up not matching with one another. My cat idea originally had a tail and faces on the E's and the N. It ended up looking weird and repetitive, so I scrapped it and put paw-prints on the E's and nothing on the N.

My overall opinion on the design process and final outcome.

I really enjoyed this project. It kind of helped me think about who I am and what I like. So often people will ask questions about me and they know just as much as I do. Coming up with ideas that were about me made this project kind of personal to me, and I'm really proud of how it turned out.

Holiday Card

Behance

What was the project?

This project was meant to introduce us to hand-typography through the making of a holiday card. I love Christmas and the Christmas Song, so I ended up choosing a lyric from that song.

How long did it take?

This project took about a month. I spent a lot of time choosing a holiday and sifting through quotes and song lyrics to find what I wanted my card to be about. After that we had to do a lot of tracing and inking to make our typography perfect. Eventually we scanned our typography in and made them look nice in Illustrator. Then we designed our cards an put them up on Behance.

What were some challenges that I faced?

My biggest challenge was trying to make my hand-typography look perfect without the use of Photoshop or Illustrator. I had to ink, scan, and trace over and over again until I could get it as perfect as possible before I fixed it up a little bit in Photoshop. After that it was on to Illustrator.

What did I learn along the way?

I learned to have a lot of patience with myself. I would often try to ink something too fast and have to start all over since we had to work with pen.

What was some feedback I was given?

My peers really liked the way I made the card look like a fireplace, with the little campfire at the bottom and the mantle with the stockings on the top. I was also told that the contrast between the type and the background would help it be chosen over other cards if I were to sell it at a place like Hallmark.

What did I change?

I originally had another little campfire on the back since I thought it looked empty, but I thought it was repetitive so I ended up keeping the back empty. I may design something else for the back in the future, since it still looks empty to me.

My overall opinion on the design process and final outcome.

It's not my favorite project, but I feel that learning how to do hand-typography was really important. Creating typography by hand just gives the final outcome a much more personal feel, and it's well worth the wait.

Personal Logo

Behance

What was the project?

This was a personal project since I didn't really like my logo from sophomore year. I asked people around me what they thought of when they see me. I asked them to think of a color, an emotion, and animal, and a plant. I ended up getting the pink, anger, owls, and a peony. After that I tried to incorporate all that into a logo.

How long did it take?

I worked on this over the whole semester, since it was a side project and didn't have as much priority as the projects from my teacher did.

What were some challenges that I faced?

I had trouble coming up with something that represents me. At first I tried designing my logo based on what I thought of myself, but it ended up just being something I thought was cute and wasn't really associated with me. It wasn't until I went through several different ideas that I ended up asking others what they thought of me.

What did I learn along the way?

I didn't really learn as many graphic design things as I did personal things. I feel like I learned a lot about myself. I didn't really think of myself as an angry person before this project, but I guess I seem angry to others.

What was some feedback I was given?

Since this wasn't a class project we didn't have critiques as a class. I was told by another user on Behance that my logo felt clean and classy, and that my proportions and spacing were well done.

What did I change?

I had so many vastly different ideas for my logo. One of my original ideas was a bunny holding up a sign with my name on it, another was a regal gryphon made out of circles. So much was changed throughout this project, and I had to restart several times.

My overall opinion on the design process and final outcome.

I am very happy with my new logo. Designing it was a lot of fun, and I liked learning others' honest opinions about me.

Company Branding

Behance

What was the project?

This was a large project that consisted of making a fake company and creating a branding package for it.

How long did it take?

This project took about a month and a half. We had to come up with 30 different sketches that matched our company. Then we had to choose six sketches we liked the most and clean them up in illustrator. After that we chose our one favorite logo and created a color palette that fit our company. After our logo was finished we had to design the branding package which consisted of business cards, envelopes, letterheads, a uniform, a merchandise item, a store inside and outside, and an app for smartphones. Our process for the logo and final outcomes all had to be put on Behance. The printed branding package and logo had to be printed out and mounted on a matte board.

What were some challenges that I faced?

My sketches weren't that great. I had issues with them because I felt like I had no connection to the company and since I knew so little about it I had trouble coming up with fitting logos. I had one idea in my mind that I knew I liked, so I had trouble coming up with ideas that were different. Once I came up with some different sketches I was able to move on with the rest of the project just fine.

What did I learn along the way?

I learned a lot about what a client may expect from us. The amount of sketches I originally had was unacceptable and would make it difficult for a client to know what I was designing for them. A client would want a lot of options, and I learned that I would need to provide that. I also learned the importance of organizing files for print so that I get all the right stuff back. Luckily I managed to get all the right files in and formatted correctly, but others had to re-print some things because the messed up the format or never got them back from the print shop.

What was some feedback I was given?

My peers thought my colors matched well with what my company was selling. I used neutral and comforting colors considering my company was selling pillows.

What did I change?

A lot of the type on my logo was changed. I originally had some hand typography, but I found a font that suited the logo better than my work did, so I used that instead. I didn't have a lot of time to go through the process of inking, tracing, and scanning with this project, so I scrapped the hand-type idea.

My overall opinion on the design process and final outcome.

The design process for this project was long and stressful, but seeing all the pieces of this come together to form a company is really satisfying. I feel like I did a good job of matching my logo to my company's product and the time period it came from.

How did I use my time in class?

How have I used my time?

At the beginning of the year I was very distracted. I had to be told several times to stay on task or to work on something graphic design related. Eventually I realized that my grade was dropping and that I needed to get my act together and work properly. I still get distracted every once in a while, but I know to get back on task.

How did I stay productive when I finished early?

At first whenever I finished early I would kinda act like I was working on outside work but I would mostly be on my phone with something open in Illustrator to make me seem busy. I didn't have a lot of inspiration to work on other things. Eventually I had more ideas for personal projects and I would work on those rather than sit on my phone.

What did I do outside of class to enhance my graphic design work?

I really like to doodle and sketch. I feel like this helped my graphic design work since it helped come up with different ideas for some projects. I'm also in a drawing class at school which I think helped add stuff to my portfolio.

What are my areas of strength as a graphic designer?

I feel like I work with color really well. I know what colors go together and what emotions they convey. This helped a lot with making the All Comfort logo, since I needed comforting colors rather than something bright and in-your-face.

How do I maximize my strengths?

I do a lot of work with different color palettes. I try not to work with similar colors over and over again, otherwise I wouldn't be as good with color as I am now.

What do I need to improve on?

I think I need to improve on my typography. We never really did much work with typography in sophomore year, and I have a hard time deciding how to use different fonts.

What can I do to improve?

I want to try and do something with typography for e-Magine. I might try to find some quotes that I like and make a print or a card with those quotes.

Summary

What did I love most about this semester?

I really loved the freedom we had this semester. In sophomore year I was still new to graphic design and I still needed to be taught how to do certain things. I still need to be taught now, but I know more things and can do stuff on my own better.

What would I do differently?

I really want to go back in time and tell myself to work harder in this class. I also wish I didn't have a job this semester, since that also stressed me out a lot.

Biggest thing I learned?

I learned a lot about using my time correctly. Over time I learned that I need to use my time properly and work on graphic design work to improve my portfolio.

Goal for next semester?

My biggest goal for next semester is to do more out of class work. I want to contact my cousin who owns a flower shop, since he's looking for someone to make a logo for him.

Final Thoughts?

This semester kind of opened my eyes to what graphic design would be like as a career. I need to work more seriously, otherwise clients may not want me to work for them or I may not make it in the work force.