Graphic Design 17-18 Semester Two Reflection

1) What I Did This Semester

Black Panther Poster

This project was essentially a fan made vector poster for the movie Black Panther when it was on its way to theaters. It took around 2-3 weeks to complete, as this was more of an outside project. I often asked myself whether I was happy or not with the direction it was going, and often questioned whether I should have gone with a more traditional vector of the Black Panther instead of a simple head vector, and while I can say that I have the ability to do that now, it would have been much more challenging then. I also had troubles with the layout, all of which were solved. Someone also recommended putting something in the background, and I liked the idea of a subtle Panther print, so that's the reason for that. In the end I'm pretty proud of this project. I think it's more of a stepping stone and learning experience for me rather than a perfect piece of art, because that it certainly isn't. I think I could do much better now but I appreciate it for teaching me more about formatting, vectoring, and balance.

Check it out Here: Black Panther Poster

Orchestra Poster

While I'm not actually in any orchestra classes, I was still approached to do a poster for their upcoming concert at the time. It took me about a week to complete. I ran into a similar problem that I faced with the Black Panther Poster, in that the layout was hard to get down perfectly. Also very similar to the Black Panther project, I wasn't sure if my initial violin skull vector was the right direction to go in. I got some recommendations about the layout and text size which greatly improved the final product. I'm pretty happy with this one. It taught me that the text doesn't have to be all that big, especially when dealing with a large poster

Check it out Here: Orchestra Poster

2018 Prom Poster

Prom at my school was on it's way and it needed promotional posters, so the class was tasked with creating these posters. The prom theme was the 20's with a lot of "Gatsby" influence. In order to pull that off I used a lot of gold, but opposing the traditional Art Deco style, I chose white instead of black as a secondary color. I thought this added a bit of originality and uniqueness that differentiated it from the other poster. It took me about 2 weeks to complete. There surprisingly weren't many challenges with this one. As a reoccurring problem in my work, layout seemed to be the problem yet again as the body text needed to be smaller. After shifting the sizes, I think it looked really good.I'm really proud of this one, and it taught me that gradients actually can look good if put in the right places.

Check it out Here: 2018 Prom Poster

Company Branding II

Although I'd call it a second company branding project, it's not necessarily a company that you had to choose. I, for instance, chose to make a fictional roller coaster, The Supernova, at a fictional theme park, Solar Theme Park. I focused on the roller coaster itself, but the theme park is present in the branding. So we actually had a number of different things to do with this one, starting with the logo and ranging from web ads to infographics to products. There was a lot going into this one, and because of that it took essentially the entire forth quarter of the school year. The main challenges of this project were rooted less in the design aspect, but rather in the mock up design. I often had to save out projects multiple times because they might have looked good in Photoshop, but when saved out, they had tiny problems that I couldn't help but fix. I learned that consistency is actually pretty difficult, but I think I managed and made it look pretty consistent. in the end. As far as feedback goes, the only thing I really got was some small save out and printing errors. I'm really happy with how all of this turned out. I think it's one of the most impressive things on my portfolio. 

Check out the Logo Design Here: Company Logo II

Check out the Branding Here: Company Branding II

2) Use of Time in Class

Time Management

I would say that I used the majority of class time working on the projects presented. I wouldn't get off track in the social sense, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't occasionally taking a break to work on personal projects. Even with these personal projects, I'd say 98% of my class time has been spent on graphic design related projects.

Staying Productive

If I were to get done with a project early, it's safe to say I'd be working on something graphic design related, whether its experimenting in Photoshop or improving my skills in Illustrator. I would also often go over my project and just search for things that could be improved.

Outside Work

Although I've had trouble finding client work this year, I've almost always got some sort of personal project to work on to better myself and my portfolio. While many have been abandoned or lost, I still plan to use what's left of some past projects to reflect on my improvement. 

3) Strengths

Maximizing Strengths

I think my strength lies in the fact that I love what I do in this class. It's fun to come up with ideas and problem solve challenges. Even if they don't work out correctly, it's something to show as a former flaw in my portfolio. No project is a loss. I also strictly adhere to deadlines and will do anything in my power to get something done on time if at all possible. I think just being in an environment where I can work on my projects peacefully is where I'm at my best. I don't really need the same level of focus that I need for something like math or English. I can listen to music or watch a movie or whatever while working on graphic design related projects.

4) Weaknesses

Improving Weaknesses

This sis more of a personal project thing, but if I think too much about a project and have too much ambition for it, I often run out of steam midway through it. I need to set my goals lower to start with before I get to the big stuff. Again, this is more of a personal project flaw rather than a school project flaw. If a school project is due I'm getting it done no matter what.

5) Summary

What I Loved About This Semester

This semester was pretty fun for me. For one, I got a good balance between my personal projects and my school projects. It's also good. that the school projects were based around things I really enjoy doing, like posters and branding. My favorite project, much to my surprise, was the prom poster. I think it ended up looking the best. 

What I Would Change

I think I would have spent more time reviving the magazine spread, which I hope to finish this summer so I can put it into my portfolio. I just think it's hard when you loose ll of your progress on a project and essentially have to start from square one. I'd imagine that's something I'd have to get used to if I want to work in this industry, so I'll try to find time to work on it.

What I Learned

I learned that you can improve substantially over a short amount of time. I think that I'm a far better designer than I was in January of this year. It's honestly shocking how much you can change through learning new things and building up experience in 5 months. I can't wait to see what changes I can make to my skills next year.

Goal for Next Year

My goal for next year is essentially to just improve upon everything that I have trouble with now. I also want to be able to find some more outside client work to improve my portfolio and experience. I think that next year will pose many challenges and will help me grow as a designer. 

Final Thoughts

I can't wait to see how I'll improve next year as a designer. I think the challenges will shape me into an even better designer than I am now. I feel like different person after only one year of this class. It's pretty crazy.