Book fayre - progress crit

Amber asked us to consider the format, stock, if interactive and text and or image.

My group was Luis, Kirsty, Ben, Ben and Joe.

At this stage I had illustrated the red objects, scanned  and printed onto brown paper.  The group liked the brown paper stock and aslo thought the red paper inside worked well. I had also experimented with cutting the paper out.  They also thought the A4 sacle works well. 

I was still unsure about the brown paper so discussed with Amber.  She recommended perhaps trying some different stock as ink jet printers do not always stick to brown paper.

End of module self-evaluation

BA (Hons.) GRAPHIC DESIGN		LEVEL	04
Module Code	OUGD102
Module Title	DESIGN PROCESS

END OF MODULE SELF-EVALUATION

NAME

Lisa Whitaker

BLOG. ADDRESS

l-whitaker1013.blogspot.com/

1.  What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?
A practical skill is learning how to create the Moving image in Quick Player and Final Cut.  The final piece of Barney Bubbles could have been slicker however I think the rough edges lend it a certain charm, which is in keeping with the subject matter.  The workshop with Mike was actually the most useful and easily understood to date in terms of the instructions he gave us about actions and batch processing in Photoshop.  I have been able to use this skill several times since, saving precious time. Thinking how to categorise data and then how to communicate this imaginatively.  The Bubbles poster is both aesthetically pleasing and informative. How to upload video to Vimeo, burn DVD and upload to my Blog.  This is a really practical skill, which I have been able to apply effectively.
2. What approaches to/methods of research have you developed and how have they informed your design development process?
Looking beyond the Internet to research as primary research can inform better outcomes.  By doing online polls I have made an attempt at primary research however given more time I could have registered with more sites.  Also I could have done some live polls in Record shops, which would have given me local data. I also used online forums to ask find out more links with album covers which proved fruitful and provided new lines of enquiry. The problem with research being able to stop.  I eventually had to set myself some rules as the whole album cover/graphic design research mushroomed (in the most interesting of ways!). Both categorising data on spreadsheet and mapping the research visually are useful techniques.  By mapping all the links I realised the data was becoming too complex.
3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?
I am naturally analytical because of my accounting background and the first day back after Christmas I had a head start as I had already used a spreadsheet to list and categorise the 100 albums. This same approach helped me develop the Bubble poster. I enjoyed the what if group brief as although the whole team contributed to the project I felt my organisation and Power point skills led to an engaging presentation.  Another strength is tenacity; I keep going until the right ‘idea’ clicks.  This was particularly important with the Album research as I did not chose to go with the first idea but kept developing the research.
4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these more fully?
The finish of my Final outcomes is not perfect in terms of centring images for final print for example (James told me).  Also as I did not know how to use In-design I mocked up my templates in Photoshop, this made making the sleeves harder.  I need to ask for some help from the Technical team next time. I have found it difficult to keep up with blogging and other tasks as the Collection 100 as been so absorbing.  I need to set aside time (as I did in the first module) to keep up with other tasks as I have found it difficult to catch up.
5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?
1.    Blog each day, after a task and before starting the research so I keep on top of all the work. 2.    Not cutting corners with software by finding the best technique so the finished result is more effective (and I know how to do next time) 3.    Start research at the library rather than on Google.  I could have saved a lot of time if I had found the Paul Gorman book sooner. 4.    Use more live primary research techniques to make the research and outcome more informed and innovative. 5.    When criting and evaluating work try to put some context to it i.e. form, typeface, colour, audience.  The final crit for collection 100 was really difficult both giving feedback but also the feedback received back did not seem well thought through.
6.How would you grade yourself on the following areas: (please indicate using an ‘x’)  5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor
	1	2	3	4	5
Attendance					X
Punctuality					X
Motivation				X
Commitment				X
Quantity of work produced			X
Quality of work produced			X
Contribution to the group				X
The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.

Book works - Brief and rewritten brief

We rewrote the brief to fit with our specific design ideas.  At this stage I was still thinking about doing a Barney Bubbles inspired book.

Progess crit - Book fair

Matt, Will, Kirsty and Frankie were in my group.

We had a group progress crit on Tuesday 8th Feb which was useful as everyone else has found it hard to focus on this brief given we are so near a module deadline and have just had a final crit for the last brief! I was relieved to see that everyone in my group had moved away from the photographs we originally took and it was interesting to hear other people's ideas.  I discussed the Barney bubbles pattern ideas which were well received.

On reflection I realised that I was overlooking my drawing skills and although I planned to screen print this to get a hand made quality it would still look 'digital'. So I went back to the drawing board so to speak.

Final crit - Collection 100

Written below is exactly what was written on the feedback sheet:


- What is Barney Bubbles?
- The text on the video is not clear
- What is is for?
- Who is your product aimed at? Designers? Music Lovers?


Most of the above is answered by either reading my blog, watching the DVD or referring to the poster in the  packaging.  However to ensure I have addressed these issues please refer below:


1.  The question is not what but who is Barney Bubbles.  I had a chat with Beth about this comment and she said she had actually explained what her product was.  I thought this was a good idea so on the band I put a description of what was inside and that Barney Bubbles was 'the unsung hero of Graphic Design from the 70's and 80's.


2. I have already changed the text to make it more readable and am going to survey ten people to check their opinion. ( The DVD was running on loop in the crit and makes more sense if viewed from the start as this sets the context...) See Design Practise log for details of discussion with Mike Flowers


3. The product is aimed at Graphic designers/record collectors/music lovers as a way of spreading the word about Barney Bubbles.  This was one reason for packaging the product in a single case and also including a poster.  It was important the packaging had the feel that double album's are packaged with good quality stock and lots of images and information to look at. i.e. with add on products.  

Collection 100 - Progress Crit feedback

Issues raised:
- Re-visit the brief - context , target audience, produce, package
- Bring the Barney Bubbles work out in 2D
- Make sure you know who your audience is
- What is the purpose - educational, collector, informative
- Maybe speed the opening sequence up


Actions to be taken


Bring his work out in the 2D packaging
- Confirm works with audience
- Work out purpose




For actions taken see Design practice blog