The Creative Process

A series of steps repeated every time you design something.

Why do we follow the creative process?

1. Improves consistency

2. Ability to plan and time your work

3. Raise the quality of your work

4. Communicate more effectively and in a more professional manner

The 5 Steps

1. Research: The more you know, the easier the project will be. 

2. Brainstorm/Inspiration: Striving to be unique and innovative while still following the current trends. Coming up with adjectives or phrases to best describe your project.

What kind of message am I trying to communicate?

Who is my audience? 

What am I trying to tell them?

What kind of color/style with work for this audience? 

3. Sketch: Thumbnails, sketch to get your thoughts out and to work through ideas. 

4. Execute: Implement your ideas. Combine type and imagery, into a well developed composition. Utilize design principles and visual organization guidelines to help. Try techniques, explore possible options, and analyze the outcome. If you get stuck, walk away and clear your head. If the peace doesn't look how you imagined, and it isn;t working. Try another idea forcing an idea won't result in a good design.

5. Critique and Revise: Take a step back and look at your design with an objective eye. Make sure the design effectively conveys the message to the intended audience. If it doesn't, go back and tweak the composition until it does! Asking others for their opinion will help with this process.

Photo Composition

Snapshot A quick shot, spontaneous, taken to record a moment.
Photograph An image taken with care and thought.


Rule of Thirds
(Imaginary lines drawn dividing the frame of your camera into thirds, both horizontally and vertically)
•Place the important subject. or important elements of your composition where these lines intersect.
•Place the horizon line at the top or bottom horizontal divider.
•Fill up the entire frame with the subject for a close up image.


Leading Lines
•Use the lines created within the foreground or background of the composition tho lead the viewer's eye through the photo.
•Lines can draw attention to one or more intended subjects or a single focal point.


Point of View
•Change the way your subject is perceived by changing the camera position.

Simplicity
•Keep your background simple and clear of clutter.
•The mood and effectiveness of a photo can be altered by what is in the background.
•A chaotic composition will cause the viewer to look away.

Semester Reflection

Over this semester I have been able to use illustrator and photoshop better than I previously was able to. The class has probably taught me more than I would have ever been able to learn about graphic design without it. I enjoy the class and being able to get better from the assignments that we do, each going over a different part of graphic design, would have been boring is we kept on going over the same stuff for each assignment. I don't really feel like there needs to be anything changed I think the class is great the way it is, and I'm not the most knowledgeable about all the parts of graphic design so whatever we do is fine.

Review Week #17

Have you learned something? (Who Shot the Serif article)
From the article I have learned that serif is actually the ends of letters. Which can be compared to giving a letter legs.Also that there are two main types of Serfis: Adnate and Abrupt. Adnate is more organic, an example is that the serifs join the stems. Abrupt is more rigid and square, cutting off at the edges. Sanserif was made before serif, making a question about how did sanserif originate if it was before serif.

Review week #16

How many points are in an inch? How many points are in a pica?
There are 72 points in an inch and 12 points in a pica.
Of the seven classifications, which classification(s) would best work as body type? Why?
Sans Serif, have a monotone apparence and uniform in weight.
Identify the lowercase characters that have ascenders?
They have parts of the letter that extend above the base line.
Identify the lowercase characters that have descenders?
They have parts of the letter that extend below the waist line.Classify the following typefaces and briefly explain why you believe it should be classified that way:









Old Style, theres thin strokes.







Formal Script, it looks like its written by a quill.







Decorative, it has a stylish design.







Sans serif, the edges are rounded.







Modern font, the type has thin and thick strokes.







Black Letter, has think strokes and wedge-shaped letters.









Casual script, bold text.

Podcast #4 Typography

Define typography?
The art of expressing ideas through the selection of appropriate typefaces.
Where did the word "typography" originate from?
From the late 18th and 19th centuries as a break from traditional typography.
What does typography involve?
A sharp contrast between thick and think strokes and have thin,flat serifs.
What is a typeface?
Its creating and modifying type using a variety of illustration techniques.
What is another term for typeface?
Fonts
What is a character?
Individual symbols that make up a typeface.
What is type style?
Modifications to a typeface that create design variety while maintaining the visual style of a typeface.
What does type style "create" within a design?
bold,italic,condensed,roman,heavy.
What is the waist line and what does it indicate?
A imaginary line at the middle of the characters.
What is a base line and what does it indicate?
A imaginary line at the bottom of characters.
What is an ascender?
The part of a character that extends above the waist line.
What is a descender?
The part of a character that extends below the base line.
Describe a serif?
A small line used to finish off a main stroke of a letter, usually at the top and bottom of a character.
How can the size of the typeface be identified?
The top and bottom of a character.
What is a point?
The vertical measurement used to identify the size of a typeface.
How many points are in an inch?
72
What is a pica and how many are in an inch?
The point size measured in a unit.
How many points are in a pica?
12
What is body type and where can it be found?
Type sizes that range from 4 pt to 12 pt type. These are found where there is a lot of text.
What is the key to selecting appropriate typefaces to be used as body type?
That it is a different font,bold,and different size.
What is display type and how is it used?
Type sizes above 12 pt. Typically these are used to draw attention to a message.
What is reverse type and when would it be used?
Consistes of white type on a solid black or darker color background. This helps the reader if the text is to small.
What is a typeface classification?
A basic system for classifying typefaces was devised in the 19th century to identify printers own work.
When was Blackletter invented and how was it used?
Mid 1400s, it is used for official documents like diplomas or certificates.
Describer the characteristics of a Blackletter typeface?
It resembles calligraphy of the time and are highly ornamental with elaborate thick to thin strokes.
When was Old Style invented and what was is based on?
Mid 1400s, it was based on ancient Roman inscriptions.
Describe the characteristics of an Old Style typeface?
It has wedge-shaped, angled serifs and a low contrast of their think/thin strokes.
When were formal scripts developed?
It was developed in the 17th and 18th century.
When were casual scripts developed?
They were developed in the 20th century.
Describe the characteristics of a Script typeface?
They have varied strokes reminiscent of handwriting.
When was Modern typefaces developed and why?
It was developed in the late 18th and 19th centuries, and was to break from traditional typography.
Describe the characteristics of a Modern typeface?
It has a sharp contrast between think and thin strokes and have thin,flat serifs.
How early can Sans Serif typefaces be found? What happened?
They can be found in the 5th century, the Italian Renaissance make it obsolete.
When did they become popular?
They became popular in the 1920s.
What does "sans serif" mean?
It means without serifs.
Describe the characteristics of a Sans Serif typeface?
The strokes are uniform in weight and have a monotone appearance.
When was Slab Serif developed and why?
It was developed in the 19th century, it was for advertising purposes.
Describe the characteristics of a Slab Serif typeface?
It has uniform line weight and thicker, square serifs.
Describe Decorative typefaces?
These typefaces have the most distinctive design style.
Why were they developed?
Were developed for the specific purpose, or theme, in mind.
What are they best used for?
Their best used for larger point sizes, or display type.

Review Week #14

1. The Art Institution
Pittsburgh, PA
Media Art & Animation and Graphic Design


2. Westwood
Atlanta, Georgia
Graphic Design, Multimedia, Animation, Web Design


3. Full Sail
Online
Graphic Design and Animation


4. University of Phoenix
Alpharetta, Ga
Information technology and Visual Communication


5. Rasmussen
Online
Digital Design, Animation and Multimedia Technologies

What is a portfolio?
A display of your work in maybe a binder or a folder.

What is the importance of a portfolio?
It shows people your work quickly and easily.