I have always been a big fan of great animation, and I love to show people this video by Adam Philips, who used to work for Disney. This is the music video for Ween's song Transdermal Celebration, which won an international contest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU91POX33aE
Thursday 29 November 2012
What I've learned
So far this semester, I have learned several things in term of design, and some things were not from the class itself, but from working with others.
-When working with a partner on a project, establish ground rules, and meetings in which you are going to discuss the project, or else it will never get done.
-File management is very important, and failing to follow the rules of formatting a file can lead to some nasty circumstance
-I freaking love catalogues.
-Letting ideas evolve from the original concept is a part of pre production work. Sticking with the first idea you get is somewhat fatal, and could kill your whole project if the idea is not innovative and sound.
-When working with a partner on a project, establish ground rules, and meetings in which you are going to discuss the project, or else it will never get done.
-File management is very important, and failing to follow the rules of formatting a file can lead to some nasty circumstance
-I freaking love catalogues.
-Letting ideas evolve from the original concept is a part of pre production work. Sticking with the first idea you get is somewhat fatal, and could kill your whole project if the idea is not innovative and sound.
Overkill
We often discuss the issues of packaging in class, but rarely do I actually pay attention to it outside of class, unless I really like it. We also talk about how sometimes, the graphic aspect of it can be too much, and therefore not sell product. I believe I have found one such example. The brand is Ice cream hair products, you can find them at any Shoppers Drug Mart here in Canada. I didn't even know what it was, except it was in the haircare aisle, so it was some indication. The difference between the types are measured in ph levels. I don't know about you, but I have no idea how that affects my hair, or even how to determine your "hair ph level." The colouring creams were all red, regardless of what colour they were. Were it not for the colour samplings underneath, it could have been anything! The aesthetic was interesting enough, but it looked like they focused more on how it looked than what the product actually was.
I also assume it's not very successful because I couldn't find a single picture to put in this blog entry.
I also assume it's not very successful because I couldn't find a single picture to put in this blog entry.
New Idea?
I was on the bus the other day, and I noticed a business card on the ground. It was designed nicely, but I had absolutely no desire to go to their site or check out their work. Why? I feel lke there is a step missing in between where people are informed of a person's works, and actually following through with checking them out. I went to FanExpo a few years back, and acquired a significant amount of business cards from the artst's alley section, which was one of my favourite places to go. But to this day I have never checked out any artist I did not already know, despite being excited at the time. I'm not sure how to solve the problem exactly, but maybe we should have a different way of showing our work that is more to-the-point perhaps?
Wednesday 28 November 2012
Change/Design the World!
Graphic designers have been proven to solve many problems in the world today. Since we are a new breed of artists, we must constantly provide new ideas, pushing boundaries, and therefore bleeding our ideas into other sections of the world. Take for example, in the U.S, 2004, the highway road signs were changed from the traditional Gotham Highway typeface to Clearview. This may sound ridiculous, but this small change enabled over 16 percent of people to have better legibility of the signs at night. It also cut down accidents due to reaction times being boosted. Then we have environmental issues, such as overconsumption and lack of recycling. The new "Clever Little Bag" is a new packaging move from the shoe brand PUMA, in which using recycled polypropylene, and having no box at all, the company saves alot of money, as well as saving the environment. Tons of waste will not be generated with this method, and will save on gas used to transport the smaller "boxes", being able to transport more in one go than was possible beforehand. Innovative changes such as these can make a huge difference in the world!
Check it out!
http://www.puma.com/cleverlittlebag
Check it out!
http://www.puma.com/cleverlittlebag
The Peculiar Case of Dumb Ideas
Have you ever started a project, thought about the concept for about 2 minutes, and then followed your first idea through to the end? Me neither. With every single project I get, my chain of thought evolves, because my original ideas are usually tacky and downright bad. And though I usually like my ideas when I'm finished, it seems the evolutionary road to that end product takes way too long. I just wish there was a way to speed up the process, rather than wasting all this time trying to determine a direction. Perhaps that comes later though: I once had an art teacher who told us that if you don't have a good concept, the end result won't matter. It's all in the ideas.
Interwebs
If you're looking for a couple sites to post your work on, I have a few ready here. These sites are made for people that aren't necessarily proffessionals, but can still post work and have it critiqued, or even bought if one chooses. Each has a specific advantage, and they are worth a gander.
www.deviantart.com
Deviantart-despite the heavy my little pony and pokeball art- has some amazing proffessional illustrators, photographers, inkists, etc. that post their work for all to see. Artists from all over the world can view these "deviations" and sometimes share their techniques and secrets.
www.redbubble.com
Redbubble is a great site to go to if you are looking for some super crazy creaive designs. These designs can be made into any multitude of media, but the styles can be a little off the beaten path, which is refreshing! Often takes pop culture references, crossed over with others to make an awesome combination. Where else can you get a shirt that says: Vote Rogers and Stark 2012, AVENGE AMERICA.
www.deviantart.com
Deviantart-despite the heavy my little pony and pokeball art- has some amazing proffessional illustrators, photographers, inkists, etc. that post their work for all to see. Artists from all over the world can view these "deviations" and sometimes share their techniques and secrets.
www.redbubble.com
Redbubble is a great site to go to if you are looking for some super crazy creaive designs. These designs can be made into any multitude of media, but the styles can be a little off the beaten path, which is refreshing! Often takes pop culture references, crossed over with others to make an awesome combination. Where else can you get a shirt that says: Vote Rogers and Stark 2012, AVENGE AMERICA.
Copycat
I've noticed lately, around the internet and in my daily life, that there have been bouts of plagiarism. My friend's father is a freelance photographer, and puts his photos on many social websites. He recently posted on Facebook about how his photo had been stolen from one of these websites, and someone had deemed it their own. In the past two years I've realized there is nothing I hate more than a thief. Someone who has no personal ambition to become better at something instead decides to steal someone else's work for praise.
Realistically, if you see a photo, or design of some sort that you appreciate, why not reference them? Email them, ask them questions if youre the social type. Personally, I like to use people that are better at something than me to fuel my competitive urges, but I digress. Plagiarism is never alright, regardless of the excuse. I have heard so many different reasonings behind this, and those people who report plagiarism always seem to be treated like they committed some sort of crime. I never understood this. "It doesn't affect you!"
Come again?
Consider this scenario for a moment. You and someone you know apply for a job at a local design firm, fresh out of school. You slaved over your portfolio, making sure you did everything right, those long nights and multitude of mistakes paid off. Next to you is the person who copied all sorts of people's work, appearing to have a wide variety of style, and gets hired instead. This may sound farfetched, but consider the fact that the majority of networking is done via social websites. Someone gets piad for your photo hat took 8 hours to put together, or that poser that you spent weeks planning. Not so isolated anymore, is it? The internet is a large place, there is no way to catch every art thief, but don't go about telling people to mind their own business, when someone has already stolen it from them.
Realistically, if you see a photo, or design of some sort that you appreciate, why not reference them? Email them, ask them questions if youre the social type. Personally, I like to use people that are better at something than me to fuel my competitive urges, but I digress. Plagiarism is never alright, regardless of the excuse. I have heard so many different reasonings behind this, and those people who report plagiarism always seem to be treated like they committed some sort of crime. I never understood this. "It doesn't affect you!"
Come again?
Consider this scenario for a moment. You and someone you know apply for a job at a local design firm, fresh out of school. You slaved over your portfolio, making sure you did everything right, those long nights and multitude of mistakes paid off. Next to you is the person who copied all sorts of people's work, appearing to have a wide variety of style, and gets hired instead. This may sound farfetched, but consider the fact that the majority of networking is done via social websites. Someone gets piad for your photo hat took 8 hours to put together, or that poser that you spent weeks planning. Not so isolated anymore, is it? The internet is a large place, there is no way to catch every art thief, but don't go about telling people to mind their own business, when someone has already stolen it from them.
Client Tell
Every so often, my teacher decides to tell us horror stories involving pushy, ignorant, or downright stupid clients. One of the things that one hears from more senior designers is that clients seem to have this innate need to tell the designer how to make things work, or expect the impossible. Let me ask you this. Why? Clearly you have the ability to make your own websites, books, signs, or brochures. Clearly you know the difference between CMYK and RGB, or which spot colours to use from a branding reference. Or how to use the multitude of programs interchangably. Maybe you know how type should be used, about hierarchy and composition. Oh you don't? Then don't act like you do.
Clients should have more of a relationship with their deisgners. I understand the stress of making something that is printable and efficient for your business causes alot of stress, but designers know what they're doing (for the most part). Sometimes you get the oddball who calls himself a designer and completely screws you over, but real designers can be trusted. Trust.
Clients should have more of a relationship with their deisgners. I understand the stress of making something that is printable and efficient for your business causes alot of stress, but designers know what they're doing (for the most part). Sometimes you get the oddball who calls himself a designer and completely screws you over, but real designers can be trusted. Trust.
Snapshot
I just want to take this opportunity to say that I am glad that we learn so many different aspects of design in school. One of the subjects I'm more appreciative of is photography. We don't have to be amazing at it, but sometimes we get great shots that we're very proud of. It also make sit easier for us to establish what we want in photos from photographers we hire in the future.
It makes sure that I don't use these kinds of photos (or take them).
This photo may be endearing, and in focus, but I would never use this for print of any kind. It may not be completely obvious to everyone, and that's fine. This is why I'm glad we learn photography, so we can aspire and push ourselves to take pictures like this.
This photo is much more workable. Represents the innocence of the children in a candid moment, with beautiful focus and contrast between the girls and the background make it an overall beautiful photo.
It makes sure that I don't use these kinds of photos (or take them).
This photo is much more workable. Represents the innocence of the children in a candid moment, with beautiful focus and contrast between the girls and the background make it an overall beautiful photo.
Images from google
Friday 16 November 2012
Infographic
Seeing as I'm a stumbleupon junkie, I thought I would share some of the things I've found, and as I was stumbling one day, I found a series of infographics, which I realized where very effective for relaying information in a designed fashion. Realistically speaking, that is what designers do right? We relay a certain message while making it look nice.
This particular infographic is about colour psychology, which-as a designer- I have to know in order to properly relay a message. If you were to give me a lecture about colour psychology, chances are my drool would be on my chair before you turn the projector on. Communicating ideas in a more interesting way makes me more inclined to invest in it (I'm a terrible student, I know).
Image from google
Design Block
We all have times where we feel as if we can't do something for an unknown reason, and most artists and writers know this phenomenon well. It is when we are devoid of all creative thought, and cannot muster up a single good idea. We all know it as a block.
Being new to the world that is design as a student, it makes it a little difficult at times to feel as if you are doing something creative, while still fulfilling client needs (in my case, assignment requirements from my teachers). However, one of my professors gave us a few tips on how to stay creative, and generate good ideas more naturally.
1. Be happy
It is difficult to come up with an idea when you are stewing over your last argument with your boyfriend, or emotionally upset for whatever reason, it's going to be difficult to generate ideas because your mind is preoccupied. If you are frustrated, leave something be and come back to it later. It may feel strange at first (especially if you have a ton of work to do), but in the end it is worth it.
2. Remember your brain needs a break too
When ideas are demanded of you constantly, your brain may begin to get tired, and as such, also needs a break. Remember to rest so that you are always at your best.
Being new to the world that is design as a student, it makes it a little difficult at times to feel as if you are doing something creative, while still fulfilling client needs (in my case, assignment requirements from my teachers). However, one of my professors gave us a few tips on how to stay creative, and generate good ideas more naturally.
1. Be happy
It is difficult to come up with an idea when you are stewing over your last argument with your boyfriend, or emotionally upset for whatever reason, it's going to be difficult to generate ideas because your mind is preoccupied. If you are frustrated, leave something be and come back to it later. It may feel strange at first (especially if you have a ton of work to do), but in the end it is worth it.
2. Remember your brain needs a break too
When ideas are demanded of you constantly, your brain may begin to get tired, and as such, also needs a break. Remember to rest so that you are always at your best.
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