Final Reflection

Magazine 

For this project we interviewed a local designers and created a magazine spread that reflected their design style while incorporating our own elements. This project took about two months to complete from concepts and interview to the final project. A challenge I faced in this project was never having designed a print layout before, this made it difficult to figure out how to set up the information. From this struggle I learned how to design print layouts but I also learned hot to think creatively with type and graphics together without overwhelming the viewer. Some feedback I was given at our first critique fed into this because I was told that I did not have a good ratio of original design elements to designer’s elements in the spread. I then added much more of my own design to create a unique piece. Overall I was very happy with the outcome of this project, I spent many hours outside of class perfecting it an I believe it reflects some of my best work. 

Prom Posters  

In this project we were tasked with making tickets for our schools 1920s themed prom called a touch of jazz. This project took us about three weeks to compete. Some challenges we faced on this project were ambiguity on the side of the prom planning committee on what they were looking for, they had many different conflicting ideas that were presented to us. From this I learned that you need to design a project that you know the client would like even if its not what the specifically asked for. When were critiqued some feedback I was given was that my project was too cramped, so I turned my design into a landscape layout to fix the spacing problems. Overall I believe that my project could be improved if I continued to work on it. 

Retirement Dinner 

In this project I created invitations for the Olathe Retirement Dinner. It took me about a month to complete this project. Some challenges I faced were losing emails in my inbox and missing information. This taught me the importance of clear communication with the client, but it also taught me that college emails are obnoxious and take up too much space. For this project I was old too add some specific information from the client so I made sure it was present on the invitation. Overall this project was not the best because I was disorganized and focused on too many other activities during this time. 

GUMY Projects 

This project is actually a set of projects I designed for my church which in all took about a month and a half to complete. Some challenges I faced during this time were finding a balance between in class work, outside of class work, studding for other classes, and other school actives. For this I learned that you can complete many projects in class but they will need to be enhanced on your own time if you want them to reflect good design. I wasn’t given much feedback on this project because it was all client work and the client did not push for any different designs, however I was told to change the verbiage on a few of the posters. Overall these project could be pushed o be better but they are understandable for the time crunch I was in. 

KC Metro Logo 

In this project our class created a set of logos for the KC Metro College Expo which they voted on for their favorite. This project was about two weeks long. One challenge I faced was a lack of inspiration for a logo, college expos don’t commonly bring an image to mind that would create a good symbol. This pushed me to think of different ways to represent that. From this project I learned how to pair fonts together better and how to find fonts that fit with the project. Some feedback I was given on this project was that it did not bring to mind a college expo. Unfortunately, this was given after the project was turned in and I did not have the opportunity to change it. Overall I believe that given the proper time to look at other similar projects, concept, and sketch I would be able to create a better logo or to change the one I have now. 

 Andromeda Camping Branding 

This project is the second branding project we created this year an it took about two months to complete. Some challenges I faced during this time were being unsure how to design web adds as well as a poster for my company with graphics, because of this I defaulted to pictures. I was able to break away from this trend in the ticket, infographic, and brochure. From this I learned that you can create designs with pictures that demonstrate good branding but this should not be the only solution to a problem and you have to make sure that you use your own design elements with the photos. Some feedback I was given was that my brochure and infographic were too tightly spaced so I added additional white space between the elements. Overall I am happy with the logo and some of the branding materials, however I believe that I could go back and make the company feel more cohesive. 

Time Management

In class I manage my time to make sure all projects are turned in by their due date. When I believe I am done I will work on client work or collaborate with other to get feedback to help improve my projects. I then use this feedback to make sure that my projects are the best they can be. There are sometimes when I am done that I will talk with my peers to continue building the relationships that e-Com has provided a foundation for, a majority of the time this revolves around projects or other important school related topics. Outside of class I spend time working on client projects either during lunch or at home. 

Strengths and Weaknesses 

e-Com has helped me develop man skills through my time in the program. This year I believe I have strengthened my collaboration skills. I made connections with my peers that helped me to bet better feedback as well as discuss projects with others. I was also able to exercise this skill when I lead critiques for sophomore class and helped them to improve their projects as well as learn how to critique themselves. Another area where I feel like I am strong is my command of the technical skills required for graphic design. As a do more and more design my knowledge of the programs will always expand because there is so much to learn, however I feel that I know how to use them very well and can execute my vison for a project will little technical difficulty. A weakness I had this year was balancing my other extracurricular activities with e-Com work. I believe some of my projects suffered because of the amount of other projects I had to do for school and clubs as well as my stress from planning prom and studding for AP testing. 

Summary 

This semester my favorite project was the magazine spread, I enjoyed learning how to work with a print layout as well as getting to know a professional designer and I was proud of the final product. If I got to redo this semester I would make sure that all my projects were done to the best of my abilities and I would not let outside activates influence the amount of time I spent on e-Comm projects. The major thing I will take away from this semester is that your work doesn’t need to suffer even if you have a lot going on, as long as you continue to find time to work on it outside of class. Also if you don’t believe you have time to take on a client project don’t accept it. My goal for next semester is to expand my portfolio to have different types and styles of projects. This semester in e-Comm has helped me to improve my portfolio as well as my communication and technical skills. 

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