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SND34 Best of Digital Design, by the numbers

By Annie Gonzalez

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meet the judges: joey marburger, mobile design director, the washington post

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: I once high fived Ben Bradlee. Other than that, building apps is fun.

Best design advice you ever received: Simplify. Simplify. Simplify.

Where do you get your best ideas? After a scotch or two.

If you were a font, which would you be? Archer.

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I was in the Peru Amateur Circus in Peru, Ind.

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meet the judges: ying wu, assistant professor, university of missouri, school of journalism

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: I am teaching multimedia design. When I was a designer, I was very proud of my news design portfolio; now I am a teacher, and I am very proud of every improvement that students show me.

Best design advice you ever received: Make things simple.

Where do you get your best ideas? Speak to somebody about your idea [when it] is unorganized, then your idea will be much clearer.

If you were a font, which would you be? Light Jenson.

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? My miraculous and wonderful life experience is going from being a small town girl in China to being a designer in America.

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meet the judges: meg martin, associate editor, public insight network, american public media

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: I get to work with a pretty fantastic crew every day: Lots of hidden talents, lots of fantastic storytellers, lots of pulsating brainwaves. It's an incredibly creative, generous group — and a really wonderful space to work in.

Best design advice you ever received: Hard-and-fast rules don't matter much if they stand in the way of good sense and common understanding. Always think with the person on the other end [of the design] in mind — and to write and create with empathy and thoughtfulness.

Where do you get your best ideas? My best ideas often come during a long drive with the windows down and a notebook open. (Now, though, I live in Minnesota — and it's winter — so those long drives with the windows down have morphed into long hikes with the puppy on snow trails.)

If you were a font, which would you be? Frutiger. Definitely 10 pt.

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I inherited a rascally beagle named after a French-Canadian hockey player three years ago. Life since then: Shenanigans.

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meet the judges: andrei scheinkman, data editor, the huffington post

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: Working in a newsroom full of smart and passionate people.

Where do you get your best ideas? Conversations with colleagues.

If you were a font, which would you be? 12 pt Monaco.

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I'm hiring. If you're interested in combining design, journalism and computer programming, find me on Twitter or email me at andrei@huffingtonpost.com

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Part 11 of our "Sum it up" series where we ask judges to describe a part of the competition with an object, adjective, emotion and color.

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Part 10 of our "Sum it up" series where we ask judges to describe a part of the competition with an object, adjective, emotion and color.

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We're wrapping up Day 2 of #SND34 with blogging, judging and LOTS of food. Video by Emily Theis, Junior at Ball State University 

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Part 9 of our "Sum it up" series where we ask judges to describe a part of the competition with an object, adjective, emotion and color.

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Part 8 of our "Sum it up" series where we ask judges to describe a part of the competition with an object, adjective, emotion and color.

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meet the judges: ryan sparrow, instructor of journalism, ball state university

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: As the wise Whitney Houston once said - "I believe the children are our future. Teach them well and blah blah blah blah."

Best design advice you ever received: I always fall back on the famous Coco Chanel quote "When accessorizing always take off the last thing you put on." It's kind of the same with design - don't over accessorize.

Where do you get your best ideas? I love exploring the world with my iPad, but nothing beats picking up a camera and going out to shoot.

If you were a font, which would you be? Rockwell

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I don't own 14 long boxes of comic books. Really. I don't. It's not true.

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Part 7 of our "Sum it up" series where we ask judges to describe a part of the competition with an object, adjective, emotion and color.

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meet the judges: julia thompson / senior news director: digital, des moines register

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: Getting to do something different each day with a great group of people.

Best design advice you ever received: Keep it simple.

Where do you get your best ideas? Lying in bed in the morning when I'm not completely awake and anything seems possible.

If you were a font, which would you be? Century Gothic

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I play roller derby, so don't be fooled by my small stature.

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meet the judges: kyle ellis / designer, cnn digital

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: Every day, I have the opportunity to shape the future of news.

Best design advice you ever received: "Don't be afraid to make it big or bold."

Where do you get your best ideas? I get my best ideas when I'm listening to music, but it doesn't necessarily matter where I am.

If you were a font, which would you be? Muncie

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I'm a shameless Taylor Swift fan.

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meet the judges: megan mcnames, instructor of journalism, ball state university

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: I work with some of most talented and innovative journalists, designers and educators in the nation. Working with them is the best part of my job and strengthens my own work tremendously.

Best design advice you ever received: Study the process and let it guide you.

Where do you get your best ideas? Usually immediately after complaining about something and then saying to myself "Why can't I just _____."

If you were a font, which would you be? Papic Sans: Lovechild of Comic Sans and Papyrus. I would be a super villain, obviously.

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I somehow feel guilty for inventing a typeface for the previous answer instead of choosing from the many beautiful typefaces that already exist and were not created for evil.

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meet the judges: kaitlin yarnall / deputy creative director, national geographic

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: Working with great content and scary smart people.

Best design advice you ever received: Use restraint.

Where do you get your best ideas? in moments of insomnia.

If you were a font, which would you be? Caslon Italic

What’s one thing you definitely want us to know about you? Fueled by coffee, cheese and red wine.

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meet the judges: stephen beard / senior interactive artist, the indianapolis star

each judge was asked to create a self-portrait in 5 minutes or less in the medium of his or her choice

Best part about your job: The best part of my job is the variety. No two days are the same, so no two approaches to telling a story are the same. The digital toolbox is ever-expanding.

Best design advice you ever received: Keep it simple, stupid.

Where do you get your best ideas? My best ideas come to me while running long distances or reading product assembly instructions.

If you were a font, which would you be? Cooper

What's one thing you definitely want us to know about you? I love the direction storytelling is headed. Also, I'm housebroken.