#I am the only person on this design team with a copy of adobe indesign and I am Suffering

[goddamnshinyrock]

I’m going to dream of bleeds and crop marks and margins and fucking kerning tonight

[sztypography]

Interviews

DVC Major: Bridget Hassely

1. What would you have liked to know about the DVC program before coming here?

I would have liked to have known how important process books are. For some reason, it wasn't made clear to me we had to keep our process books for portfolio review. I deconstructed my first two books to reuse the folder. After I found out that we needed them, I had to piece back together what I saved and reprint my files.

2. What would you like to know about the professional design world?

I would like to know just how many pathways there are to take with this degree. There are so many options and hearing people talk about their experience with the pathway they chose is very interesting to me.

3. What is the hardest concept in design to understand?

The hardest concept in design for me is using the grid to the best of its ability. I tend to stick with my trusty columnar grid, but I would like to venture out more and get used to using all the different types that might be better for specific projects.

4. Which Adobe program would you like to learn more about? Why?

I want to learn more about Photoshop. We learned the basics in Art 118, but Photoshop has so many more tools that would probably be beneficial to me that I want to learn and understand how to use them.

5. What is the most helpful design tool in your opinion (such as a type ruler)?

The most helpful design tool, in my opinion, is a sketchbook. Documenting your inspiration, thought process, ideations, and reflections is critical. IT gets it out of your head and onto a physical space where you can come back to and expand off of.

6. What keyboard shortcuts do you always forget?

A keyboard shortcut I somehow always forget is the arrow key (selection tool), which is V. Also, why are the shortcuts different between the Adobe programs?!?!

7. What stores would you have liked to know about Freshman year?

I would have liked to have known about the architecture store and the arts and crafts studio.

8. What are some fun design elements you look for in a handbook?

Some fun design elements I look for in a handbook are interactive bits, jokes, imagery, useful tips, and space to answer questions.

9. What driving factor would make you carry around a DVC handbook?

A driving factor that would make me carry around a DVC handbook would be its usefulness. Having information that I could frequently look back to or something that I have to fill out over time would make it more useful for me.

10. What was the hardest part about taking introduction to DVC courses?

The hardest part about taking introduction to DVC courses for me was adjusting to the time commitment that design is. Design is not mechanical and can take many attempts, variations, and refinements. Procrastination is hard to avoid, but giving yourself enough time to work through the design process will make your work so much better.

DVC Graduate: Kayleigh Kvool

1. What are important aspects to include in a graphic designer resume? Is it true that design employers pay more attention to the look of the resume than the content?

All of your skills. All of your experiences, work experience, and other related experiences done through school. I have an exhibit section where I put my DVC2 and DVC3 showcase. If you look at a job description, make sure you have the skills on the resume that they want. Yes, but not totally. It should be very clean. Lots of simplification. You want it to be simple. A lot of resumes go through scanners, and you want it to be legible.

2. Do you have trouble looking for a graphic design job?

I wouldn’t say it is hard. It’s competitive. Put yourself out there and take chances. 

3. Do you think the UWM DVC program prepared you well?

Yes. The improvements I have seen in the program has only made it more preparatory for designers. I love the Dream Lab. Professional Practices with Amy was the most  preparatory thing ever. I took that class my last semester before graduating.

4. What was your favorite DVC class? Why?

DVC 3 was my favorite. I really thought it was valuable to work in a group. The manifesto was fun. It was the most work, but the work you make in that class you are the most proud of.

5. Which teacher helped you the most in gaining design knowledge?

Robert Grame. He gave me a lot of one-on-one feedback. He kept my ideas focused and doable. I do think it is important to have a mix of people.

6. What places would you recommend for internships?

Union Marketing was basically it. I also got six credits doing it.

7. Do you do freelance work often?

I am open to it. I am still trying to figure out what is an appropriate amount to charge. Everyone tells me to not undersell myself. If I would do freelance for a company, I would charge $40 an hour. The minimum is $20 an hour. If I was still a student, I would charge $15 or $20. Now that I am graduated, I would charge $40 or $45. 

 8. What is your favorite part about being a graphic designer?

I think that my favorite part is that I get to be creative and make my impact by representing communities. People have a negative outlook on advertising. It is nice to try and make a positive contribution.

9. If you could choose what job you could have right now, what would it be?

It would definitely be with Z2 Marketing as a Design Director. It only requires two years of experience. I am very qualified for it. An art direction position right out of college would be very stellar. 

Design Professional or Entrepreneur: Mary Adamczak

1. What is an average day in the office like?

It’s different every day! Each day I have my list of projects to tackle. My time is dictated by the client’s deadline. The hottest project gets my attention first. I also will get interrupted to review other projects that are in the works to discuss with our creative director and other designers. I do have to say my colleague brings his dog to work most mornings which is fun. The dog runs around the office to greet everyone. She also will bounce balloons, like she’s some star volleyball player. The rest of the day she doesn’t make a peep in her kennel, until she leaves for the day. Then we get greeted one more time before going home.

2. Which method do you use most when working with your clients, email or in person conversations?

I would say it’s mostly email. I typically do not present a lot of creative here, but I do attend meetings and will be involved in the discussions of the projects with clients.

3. How long does the average project take?

Hmm, that’s a hard one. I’ve spent hours on jobs and under an hour on jobs. One rough logo exploration could take a couple days - but exploring variations is what takes more time. A 12-page brochure could take 3 -4 days or so for the design only  (with copy supplied) A small website (design only), not programming could take 3-4 days (with copy supplied) And this is without interruptions!

4. How would you describe your role as a graphic designer?

I’m a creative / a designer, sometimes a creative director, a project coordinator, print coordinator and sometimes a project manager. So, I wear many hats.

5. Which clients do you work with the most?

We mostly have corporate and tourism clients at the moment. Some projects are ongoing but, some are on a project by project basis. We also have done some specialty hard cover book projects for specialty events and sports teams which is challenging but rewarding in the end!

6. What is the biggest project you ever had?

A corporation that made an acquisition and they needed to send out a bunch of collateral out in 13 different languages. This included a Corporate Folder which housed a letter from the CEO, A Code to Ethics brochure and a corporate brochure. This was a lot of coordination! We had to work with the printer to have it all shipped out to the different countries. Also, working on specialty hard cover books. These are big projects that can take up to a year to concept, design, get approved and printed. 

7. What made you want to go into graphic design?

I’m a creative person and wanted to do get paid for something I love to do.

8. Where did you study? How did your education prepare you for your current career?

I received my Bachelor’s Degree from MIAD (Milwaukee Institute of Art + Design). I had 2 really good graphic design teachers who saw my work ethic and worked with me to show me what really good, high level design should look like. 

9. What is the biggest lesson you have learned as a graphic designer?

I’m not sure there’s a lesson I’ve learned. I do know that design is subjective but, it takes a good eye and an openness to exploration to see good design. Never assume your design is good, just because your hands are creating it. Always step back and see how you can make it better and more successful. And be open to constructive criticism from your peers - it will make you a better designer. 

 10. Where do you get your inspiration from?

Other good design. I really enjoy looking at Commarts.com (Communication Arts Magazine).

 11. How many sketchbooks do you have, completed and currently in use?

I go through a lot of notebooks, not just for sketching, but for making my daily lists, jotting down thoughts, ideas and sketching out home related things that I want to figure out. I’ve sketched out how I want our outdoor Christmas lights to look, our kitchen configuration, and some of our garden beds. You can use creativity in so many ways!

 12. What is your favorite Adobe program? Why?

Hmm. I think I like InDesign the most because I use it the majority of the time. But, Illustrator is a close second, as I love designing logos in this program. 

 13. What was something unexpected you learned when starting out?

How quickly projects are needed -  tight deadlines. 

14. What types of projects do you enjoy working on the most?

The ones that have extra time! And the ones that have more creative opportunities. Projects that are more open-ended, not defined. That gives me more creative freedom.

15. What is your favorite part about being a graphic designer?

Being creative and being able to design. I love taking a blank page and designing something that is creative, unique and relevant.

[jorjathomas]

Flyer and InDesign work

This week was slower than the rest, since falling behind on the InDesign tutorial I felt a little lost with what to do. Nether the less, I began to work on my final mood board Tuesday afternoon which I chose to base my flyer on aswell. Below is the progress I made on the centre page with the left of CAD tutorials and basic Typography skills.

After learning how to place the board to the page and adjusting it so it fit the page, I realised certain images would be cut off which I didn't like. I asked my tutor in the tutorial if I could do anything too change this in which he suggested changing certain images. Although I didn't want to do this because I wanted to show as much content as I could, I realised I could use these particular images on the other flyer pages. This resulted in me moving the model in the left to the front page and switching the the area it was place in to a picture of fabric which I thought related to this trend. My tutor also mentioned about the amount of work I had into the bleed area of the boarder and I should maybe consider not having as much in the margin. This is the red line and I learnt that its purpose is to get rid of any printing errors. For example if I kept my mood board within the margins and none of it running over into the bleed feature there would most likely be a white strip around the flyer which I personally don't want. I only put a small amount of the image into the bleed to make sure this didn't happen. 

Once I accomplished laying out the board how I wanted, I then moved onto practicing some InDesign skills which I had to catch up on with the help of the demos on teams. I liked the look that typing on a path had to my edits which is why I used this tool quite a lot. I wanted a lot of curved text so it can help my colour palette design to tie in with other elements of my board. The first image I used was the Pen tool to trace around the model so I could place desired text there. At first I struggled getting the curve of the tool which I had seen on the tutorials so I asked my tutor how to use that technique. I realised you had to hold down on the Pen tool when using it in order to get a smooth curve option. I used this technique around areas such as his neck, shoulders and head. I loved using this tool and will use this throughout this project especially if I am focusing on an 70s influence in my chosen trend. In the second image I started to play around with specific words which I thought related to the trend however the more I looked at it I realised I didn't really like the ongoing use of the same word around the model. This resulted in me changing the text later on which you can see below. I reduced the amount on repetitive words and added some references instead which I thought could help a reader if they were wanting to follow this trend. I like this area of the page as if it was printed out and sold as a flyer the text would help business look into the designers I've used and maybe get inspiration for the brand.  I also like how this section is distributed onto both pages which helps both pages merge together. Another technique I found helpful was the colour switching feature where I was able to change the colour text selection into colours which were more suitable for the board. Below you can see I chose to stick the the gradient colour idea which I did in the ribbon across the page and used greens and purples to make the text around the model stand out more.

Since I enjoyed the writing on a path tool, I wanted to continue this technique on a different area of the middle flyer page. I wanted to develop this skill so I decided to create a swirl with the pen tool. This time, I didn't need to hold down the Pen tool and I just clicked more often which you can see from the first image and the amount of white dots are on the design. I didn't want to overthink too much about how neat the swirl design is as I've learnt from past pieces of work I can easily fall into a ditch of being to precise and growing a disliking for my CAD work. I think I analysed it too hard I would end up not liking it so it was important I experimented with this board and keep the layout the same if I liked it. I thought it would look better if I moved the swirl to the right side of the page and layer it on top of other images for it to stand out better. It is common that a reader reads from the left first and I had yet to put in some text that explains the trends concept which would fit better in the left side of the page. This change resulted in the text having to be different colours as it was layer on top of other images. I actually liked this feature as I feel it helps a person to be drawn to read the text if it was two contrasting colours. Later on I changed the two colours which I felt was better than the black as I had used this colour on the left page. If I was to create this again I think I would try and make the text bigger the larger the spiral got in order to get the flowing effect I wanted like I did with the ribbon. At this stage of InDesign I don't know how to achieve this however I have no harm in asking how to do this if I wanted to include this feature in my look book.

Previously, I had talked about wanting some sentences explaining the trends concept on the left side of the page which is what I have achieved in the images above. It the beginning of this section the text was just copy and pasted from the WGSN’s website which you may notice in some previous screen shots. However when showing my current work to my tutor, he suggested to convert the text into two columns. I really liked this idea and feel as though it could make the text look more inviting to read rather than it being one paragraph. He also suggested turning of the Hyphenate tool which separated certain worlds as it isn't really common to show this in a flyer. This also helps the text to flow better which could help the reader. At first I couldn't find the Column tool so I had to ask my tutor again in which he suggested getting rid of tools which aren't used as much in InDesign which enabled the Column tool to appear on my software. I think I will use this feature again as its very useful and easier to use rather than creating two separate text boxes. After adding this feature I realised the text ran over the model which I don't want to happen. This created a little problem which I had to render. I tried multiple techniques such as creating a separate textbox for the text that went over model and shaping it around him instead however this didn't work the way I planned. I ended up focussing on this too much and just growing to the idea of the text being on top of the model however if this happened in my look book and I still didn't like it, I would try and find a better solution that the ones I have already attempted with the help of my tutors. To move the focus off the over lapping text, I decided to focus on making certain areas of the text standout in order for the text too look more inviting to read. I decided to use the a font which I got off the Adobe’s website and will use in my front page to differentiate the titles to the text. I also decided to add the lime green colour which is present throughout the board as a text outline of this font in order for this section to be more noticeable to a reader.