Wrap-Up| Young

First off- this semester went so fast, I cannot believe that the year is over already! But anyway, I really loved this class- it was such a breath of fresh air to actually do something creative in my major (advertising). I loved that the class was all about design and color, and that it was project-based. It was really nice not to have written tests, and because of it I know I learned more, the class was all about actually doing the work and gaining experience. Coming from a person who is usually horrible with technology and learning software, I can safely say that I learned SO much from working in the labs. My times spent in the lab were sometimes wrong, but the finished products are definitely rewarding and nice to have. The class was fun but also really informative and serious, it was a perfect mix and created a really comfortable learning environment.

Thanks for a great semester, and everyone have an amazing summer!- bye Paul! :)

Annie Liebovitz: Extra Credit| Young

Like most of the people there, I was a fan of Annie Liebovitz prior to attending her speech, so I was very excited that she was able to come. I was a little bit surprised actually that she didn't show her most famous photographs such as the john lennon & yoko ono rolling stones cover or her pregnant demi moore vanity fair cover, but they were mentioned briefly. Throughout her lecture it seemed that the emphasis of her display was on nature, landscapes, and still lifes. Her niece is a senior at syracuse and some of her other family members were in the audience as well, so it was a cool atmosphere and she shared a lot of personal family pictures and stories as well. Personally, I enjoyed her story regarding time when she photographed the queen of england and how she was only allowed a very short amount of time with her, but with her personality and a little talking she was able to stay with her for a longer amount of time. All in all, I feel really lucky to have been able to hear a photographer of her ability and experience speak, her work is amazing, and she's a really interesting person as well.

Annie Leibovits extra credit | Lang

I googled the name Annie Leibovitz countless times before I went to see her. I looked up her most famous photographs and learned about who she is. I didn't want to have high expectations for this lecture as in that she was going to show all her famous photographs such as the John Lennon and Yoko Ono Rolling Stone cover or the pregnant Demi Moore. I went to this lecture with an open mind because she was so famous, I felt that she could talk about anything and I would be captivated and it was true. The lecture started with her showing a lot of landscape photography. She talked about how she got into taking photos and then later into photo journalism. There were times when her speech got personal, and I really enjoyed that. She didn't try to pretend to be super strong and that she had to hold up an act. I felt that Annie Leibovitz was very honest and open about her life, her thoughts and the future. What i took away from this lecture was that adaptability is the key. Technology is constantly changing and it is very important to keep up with it. She stressed that our generation is the future and that we need to be able to adapt to the new technology. I really admired her, listening to her speak was really inspiring. I also learned that being a photography is so personal. She is able to express her feelings and thoughts however she wants through her pictures and I think that's amazing.

Wrap-up MERCER

When I learned I had to take this course, I was initially very upset. I don't consider myself a visual or creative person, generally speaking, and I was truly worried about the time commitment that everyone complains about so much! I was completely and pleasantly surprised by this course.

Never before have I considered font and type face important. Never did I think of the Rule of Thirds. I didn't know that you could make a visual without using a photograph! Honestly this course has taught me a lot, even to a frustrating point- I can't look at anything without picking apart all its design elements!

My favorite project was the poster one because I was able to think of a cool idea on my own and really run with it. I usually got frustrated during projects because I would have great ideas, but the execution would prove to be way harder than I thought. With this project, my final poster looked exactly as I wanted it to! My least favorite was, to my surprise, the resume. This project had me feeling least creative and I really didn't do a good job on it. I preferred the more difficult and time-consuming ones because I was able to conceptualize cooler ideas.

I'm really happy to have taken this course and I would love to take another graphics course! Thanks Paul for being great!

Wrap-Up | Lang

I didn't really know what to expect coming into this class. I knew we would have to design projects and use the Adobe programs. I was some what familiar with some of the programs because i used them in high school, but once the projects starting rolling, it was a lot. I had expected this class to be very time consuming and difficult. It was definitely time consuming, but instead of difficult, I would say that it was challenging but it a good way. This class really made me think a lot about design and how things look visually. It made me looking at everything differently. I would just stop and look at random posters or fliers on the wall and think about the design. Overall, I really enjoyed this class a lot! Now looking back on it, I learned so much, not just using the software but also about designing. I really enjoyed working on each project even though sometimes it drove me crazy. I spent a lot of time in the labs and it seriously started to feel like I was living in the labs. I didn't have a problem with that though. Each project took me a long time, sometimes i felt that some people were breezing by with their projects and I was just working on it really slowly. I spent a lot of detail and time on each project, sometimes it was because I didn't know what i was doing, other times it was because i wanted to get it right. my favorite project would probably be the magazine one. I honestly has so much fun with that project and really enjoyed working on every bit of it. The only thing i found most difficult was finding all the pictures I needed. I'm really glad that I took this class. There is so much that I took away just from taking this class and I know that because of this class, I will not look at everything more visually.

Marte | Wrap-Up

Ok, so before starting the actual class I heard a lot of rumors about Graphics, especially the section with Sherri Taylor. I heard the class was going to be a pain because she was so strict. I was kind of freaked out, however, throughout the course I learned that those rumors, in my opinion didn’t live up to the real experience. I don’t want to sugarcoat this wrap-up blog but I actually ENJOYED and really liked the class, even after spending couple of hours at the lab without knowing what to do.

I learned so much about the Adobe programs. I have never even opened InDesign before the class started and now I know so much about it. Every time I showed my friends my projects they were so amazed, and always said they wanted to learn how to create what I was able to create. I always said I wasn’t creative, but I think I found some creativity within me ☺ Truly, I never thought I was going to enjoy this class, and I did. I’m so proud of myself and of all my projects, even though none of them were perfect. Sherri Taylor, Stephen, and of course you, Paul, helped each one of us in our one semester journey. I’m going to miss the class.

Annie Leibovitz | Extra Credit | Wong

    Although being in a crowded room and sitting on the floor wasn't my idea of a fun Thursday night, being able to listen to Annie Leibovitz, one of the most celebrated photographers in the world, gave a simple message today to the packed audience at Hendricks Chapel was definitely pretty cool. That message was that the future depends on our youth and our ability to learn from the past in order to be innovative.

    But Friday’s lecture was also a much more personal affair than expected. Hendricks Chapel got to see a different side of the famous photographer that evening. Leibovitz didn’t show any of her famous photos, such as the John Lennon and Yoko Ono Rolling Stones cover photo, or the other famous pregnant Demi Moore cover photo. Instead, every picture that she shared in her slideshow, which ranged from landscapes to personal pictures, had a personal narrative behind it, and also a quick heartfelt lesson that the audience would benefit learning from. They all involved her family, friends, or her life somehow, and they were all important in her journey to get to where she is today.
    Leibovitz started the evening with an anecdote about a family trip to Niagara Falls, in which she had planned to stay in a hotel overlooking the falls. She had to settle for a motel instead, because her credit card had been declined, due to her recent financial troubles. The anecdote was accompanied by a photograph of one of her children sleeping on the motel bed, one of what the view outside the motel window was like, and finally one what the falls looked like. Instead of the gorgeous view that the hotel would’ve given them, the view from the motel window consisted of a lot of fog and mist – no glorious view of the falls. However, once the family was on the boat touring Niagara Falls, Leibovitz’s children were amazed and awed by the beauty of the falls, causing her to take that final photograph that she shared. According to her, this experience showed that the darkest times could also be the most interesting times – a simple and heartfelt message that everybody should learn.
    She continued by talking about her love of using natural light, and shooting outdoors. Every single landscape and portrait that she shared with the audience had a story behind it – for her portrait of Queen Elizabeth, she talked about how the British wouldn’t let her shoot the Queen in “formal wear” outdoors. She then joked about how the Queen was never seen without any sort of “formal wear.” There were photos of a magnificent glass house, in which she shared her story about how she got the opportunity to shoot it, and how she treated the man who lived there (very rudely).
    When showing the pictures she took at Petra, Jordan for Conde Nast Travel, Leibovitz shared stories about her relationship and friendship with the late photographer, Susan Sontag, and how “death gives photographs a whole new meaning.” She also shared other photographs that she shot for Conde Nast Travel, and then shared the story as to why she left the magazine – for their beach issue, she shot dismal black and white photographs instead of stunningly beautiful and colorful beach photos.
    She also said that she didn’t have a favorite picture or shot – it was the body of her work that was the most important, another lesson that everybody should really learn. Yet, if she had to choose a favorite photo, it would be a portrait she took of her mother, because in the photograph, it seemed as if her mother was staring into Leibovitz’s soul, and not into the camera. Overall, the lecture was a very personal and intimate one – and it ended on a personal note. After showing a few personal photos of her family, Leibovitz ended with a photograph of her niece, a graduating senior from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Leibovitz then wished the best of luck to her niece and the rest of the class of 2010, saying that the future depended on them. So yeah, hanging out on the floor of Hendricks Chapel wasn't the greatest way to spend a Thursday night, but being able to say that I saw a famous photographer and brag about it to my friends back home who are huge fans definitely made the event worth going to.

Llewellyn | Wrap Up Post

I cannot say enough good things about GRA 217. I was so excited to enroll in this class, because I've always been interested in design. I remember the first day of class when we got the syllabus, I was so impressed by how visually appealing it was. The lectures were so interesting and always kept my attention. The class was definitely made so much better by Prof. Taylor, because she has a clear love for graphic design and it is a huge part of her life.

The most difficult thing that I found in this class was learning software. There were so many cool ideas that I just could not figure out how to execute. I already knew how to use InDesign before the class, but I was completely lost when it came to Photoshop. All of the projects really taught us different aspects of design, and they were fun too! The first project forced me to finally write a resume. I never knew resumes could be so creative! Even though I had a lot of frustration with the magazine project at first, I was really happy with the way it turned out in the end. My least favorite project was definitely the web design project because 1) Photoshop is extremely confusing to me and 2) I never really paid that much attention to web design so I had no idea where to start. The most important thing that I learned in this class was by far the importance of conceptualizing. It is clear from graphic designers that have come to speak at Newhouse and Prof. Taylor's own experience that design is a lifestyle. Always keeping an eye out for design and thinking of new ideas is a process that designers go through everyday. From this class, I learned the importance of sketching beforehand and thinking about how your visuals communicate with your audience.

I was originally a magazine major because I really wanted to be an art director, but after this class I realized that graphics is really the path I want to take in life. Although I will most likely be transferring to Colgate next year as an art major, I definitely want to study design in grad school. This class has turned graphic design into a passion that will remain with me for life. Now, I actually find myself looking at other designer's work and hoping that someday I will learn what it takes to produce professional work like theirs.

Wrap Up | Wong

GRA 217 was probably one of my hardest classes this semester. It was a lot of fun, and I definitely met a lot of really great people, but the class made me wish that I had more of a creative eye. I loved learning to become more proficient with the Adobe Creative Suite (before this class I was only in love with InDesign and I disliked Photoshop, now I absolutely adore Illustrator) and just learning the basics of how to layout different things. Although it was a huge time commitment, and I still definitely never learned my lesson of starting these projects last minute, the class definitely helped me see advertising and just pictures/graphics in a different light. At the moment, I can't really imagine what I'll end up using graphics for as a PR major (besides laying out backgrounders and making media kits pretty), but I'm glad that I learned how to design different things. So even though this class was a tough one, I'm glad that it's a requirement because using the Creative Suite is definitely a skill that everybody needs to have.

Wrap up post S.Montesdeoca

So I have to agree with a post that i just read that basically said that this class was going to be a trip from hell via the words of peer reviews. Although I did have a few all nighters, and forgot a few blog post this class was pretty enjoyable. I loved that I learned how to use the adobe suite, especially Photoshop. It took a little while to get use to it, but it's a new found love. One thing that I think lectures should spend a little more time on is using the programs themselves. I think if we had more time to explore the programs in class then there would have been more room for our imaginations to run wild.
PS Jeapor-Day Muy Fun!!

Final Post | Pruitt

This semester in graphics has been a lot of fun. The title Final Post makes me very sad. I am going to miss the stress about the projects and Paul's always witty emails. I learned a lot from the class and I really think that I am taking away a lot from the class. I learned that there is more to design than just knowing things, you also have to learn to think creatively which is not as easy as it sounds. Graphics was a great time commitment, but I greatly enjoyed myself while I was doing these projects, so I can't really complain. This was honestly my favorite class of the semester. I learned that I love InDesign and I love the pen tool. Without graphics, I would have gone through life without knowing two of the greatest loves of my life. I enjoyed almost every aspect of the class. The stress, I could have done without, but I will still probably miss that too. Next semester will not be the same without this class.

Final Post | Robinson

What have I learned from this class? The value of a quality critique. Sometimes I get too wrapped up in my ideas. I'll look at a project halfway through- have no idea where I went wrong or what to do next. A fresh eye can be a huge help. Peer edits were one of my favorite parts of class because I could showcase my work, receive feedback and learn from others. A great man once said, "If we don't live together, we're going to die alone." I think that statement holds true for this field.

Overall, I just loved taking such an out-of-the-box class. This was hardly "textbook." I really enjoyed the opportunity to use my mind and creativity instead of reading from a book and analyzing its concepts. In this class, we all contributed completely original ideas to the Graphics Universe.

The Graphics Universe is an infinite one. (30 Rock reference in 3...2...1) Astronaut Mike Dexter and I traversed this galaxy together. We particularly enjoyed Susan's SPAM logo, Claire's Twiggy magazine, girl-whose-name-I-forget's "Shhhh. The concert is starting," poster and Evan's doggie website. Kristen and Stevie were sort of the rulers of the galaxy, but they were humble emperors.

I'm about to turn this spaceship around. The thing that drove me nuts about this class was how proactive you had to be. You had to manage your time effectively. Design is such a multi-step process. You can't wait until the last minute. Every detail counts.

So it was time-consuming and required a lot of practice, but the results were always worthwhile...

That's what she said.

Week 15: Wrap-Up | Paterson

I'm not going to lie, GRA 217 was intimidating based on the reviews of my peers. I expected the worst. Projects due every week. Many all nighters in the computer labs. Boring and difficult projects and no room for improvement. I have to say...boy was I wrong! This was one of my favorite classes that I have taken at SU so far. Not only were the classes full of information that I never would have known before (like where I can find Helvetica and which typefaces are too visual for their own good), but I can honestly say that my eye for graphic design has improved significantly. I have this class (and of course Prof Taylor and Paul) to thank for that.

I loved all of the projects that we did throughout the semester. I think they definitely provide an introduction to the basics of design while allowing for personal input and diversity. My favorite project was definitely the magazine design (I had so much fun with that that I forgot it was for a class) and I completely appreciate every spread because I now know how much work and attention to detail goes into each page. The interface design gave me some problems, so now I know not to completely judge a web page based on its appearance, it probably took a while to create. The logo really made me think and I love when design projects do this. Designing my identity at this point in life is just as hard as it sounds!

As a TRF major I feel much more comfortable with my ability to judge designs and choose which typefaces I want in my film projects, what type of graphics should appear where, and how much to graphically depict type. I think anyone going into communications is better off with this skill because a simple resume that has a graphic twang will prosper over a boring bulleted list of experiences.

I absolutely loved this class and I'm quite upset that I can't take any more graphics courses while I am at SU (they won't fit into my schedule).

Don't change a thing!

Week 14: Wrap Up | Shaer

Graphics 217 was by far one of the most interesting classes I have taken at Syracuse. After having taken this course ,I now have a much deeper respect for professional designers. Design is everywhere and I have honestly always taken most of it for granted. After reflecting on some of my previous posts, I was reminded of what a process designing has been throughout the semester. With all of the projects conceptualization was crucial.

I have learned so many things in this class and in lab.  I will never forget the beginning of the semester when professor Taylor said that this class would change the way we see the world; it was so true. I am now aware of design layouts, color, visual hierarchy, and so much more. I have also noticed that Professor Taylor and Paul’s type oriented mindset has rubbed off on me. During the first few classes I remember wondering how someone could be so well rehearsed and passionate about typography. I am now so font conscious that I tend to analyze the text around me. There is a whole world to typefaces and their personalities and postures that I never knew existed. It is fascinating how layout, design techniques and font can influence the way we see and understand things. I have to admit that I am still overwhelmed by suitcase and the endless typefaces.

This class has also confirmed my intrigue by the Adobe Creative Suite. I have always wanted to learn how to use this deign software, but was rather intimidated in the beginning of the semester because I had never really used it before. My fear instantly vanished when I went to lab. I found lab to be tremendously helpful. With practice it was much easier to grasp the elementary concepts than I had anticipated. Learning how to use the technology was such an asset and a valuable thing I will take away from this class. I can now say that I have a fundamental background in Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator. Being able to use these programs makes me a better-rounded candidate for a career or internship in the future, and will come in handy with future projects. After having completed this course I feel I can now effectively communicate with designers and speak this new language with some level of confidence.

My favorite thing about this course was the assortment of projects, especially magazine design. I loved the challenge of meeting all of the requirements/ details and having so much freedom to explore my creative side and implementing the concepts and design programs we have learned. The variety of projects allowed us to become familiar with the different programs individually and hone in on particular skills.  I feel that there was a perfect balance of guidelines and regulations and room for self-expression and personal interests.

Lastly, I also appreciated and benefited from all of the feedback from the projects. Peer reviews and project evaluations allowed me to receive a critical eye and another perspective on my work that I had never considered or notice errors that I skimmed over. I have learned so much from the professor Taylor, the TAs and my classmates! It was such a positive learning experience and really enjoyed having Professor Taylor, Paul, and Steven as mentors. 

Final Post | McGlinchey

I have always wanted to take a graphics course since beginning my time at Syracuse. Now that I am a graduating senior, I was finally able to squeeze it into my schedule. I am so glad I was able to take this course. It truly changed the way I look at the world of design and gave me a new appreciation for it. I only wish I had more time to invest into the class. But because I took this class as an elective I had to prioritize classes which were crucial to my major/ graduation. I do feel that had I taken this course earlier in my college career I would have been able to dedicate much more time. Even so, I am so glad I took this course, and just in time before I get out of here!

The event I chose for my Web Design is one that I am familiar with because my father has participated in it for many years. His company play a game of softball against another company, everyone is asked for donations. Each team chooses a charity. The winner of the game donates 60% of the donations to their charity while the loser donates the remaining 40% to their chosen charity.

The event takes place in central park which is why i have green as a dominating color. I traced the silhouette of a tree in central park for a graphic that I have in the upper left corner of each page.

Type for Thought | Mao

Oh Graphics 217, where do I begin? It started with pure curiosity. Switching a from major such as pre-med to graphic design was a step I never imagined. Rather staying up memorizing dense lines of texts and diagrams of the sympathetic nervous system, I now design their very ligatures. Fellow pre-med majors I am soon to blame for all of your chronic headache pains. Yes, one wrong choice of typeface will make you scream gaga for a bottle of Advil. But have no fear, if its one thing I've learned from this course is when and where to use certain fonts. Though if its Papyrus, it might be never. Thinking back, it feels like yesterday when I acquainted myself with the 2000+ Adobe fonts. Type challenge anyone? I will really miss those.

Going back and reading some of my earlier posts, I realize what a process designing has been! Every project has required a lot of critical thinking from conceptualization to finish design. While at times I may have felt a little discouraged with this process, I can say with confidence how rewarding it is to look at a finished piece of work that you are proud of. I can also tell how much sketching, configuring, and brainstorming is put behind something that is very strongly designed. For example, logos! I bet Paul Rand came up with dozens of sketches before finalizing the ABC logo. Something that simple takes a lot of planning-- if not more since we live in such a visually stimulating society. The key is to be clever, as Professor Taylor would say. :) By far my favorite project has been magazine design. While there were a lot of nit-picky details to watch out for, I enjoyed the challenges of handling everyone of them. Whether left, right, or center-justified, text and the layout of text is just so fun to work with.

If anything, I have learned how to design according to deadlines. While this is something I am still working on, I have come to realize how important it is to meet proper deadlines. I can not even begin to count how many occasions I would have been S.O.L. if those lab printers decided to fail on me last minute. In the working world there will be no excuse for printer malfunctions especially last minute ones, only lack of preparation. With anything no matter pre-med or design, we must budget our time accordingly. Just as doctors sometimes only have seconds to save lives, as designers we too work under strenuous time constraints. I can be the best graphic designer in the world, but what difference does that make if I can't meet my client's deadline? With that said, I have definitely learned a whirl of lessons within these past couple months. Even after many all-nighters, I have thoroughly enjoyed this class and all of the projects (as well as mini-life lessons) that followed.

Davis | Final Post

It's hard to believe that this semester has officially come to close (except for finals). Of all the classes I've taken at SU thus far, this has certainly been one of my favorites. Yes, I came into with a good deal of knowledge regarding the Creative Suite (great team name...just saying), but I took out so much more. Graphic design is not just about knowing how to use the programs...it's about being a good designer. And that is something that can be learned.

I enjoyed every aspect of this class. The lectures were interesting and engaging. I really can't find anything to complain about; it was really fun. Yes, this class was a huge time commitment. But I was doing what I love so it wasn't a problem.

I'll miss GRA 217 :(

Davis | Website

I chose to design a website for Paws for a Cause, a fundraising event that raises money for the Jersey Animal Coalition. The event is basically a picnic, where people come together with their pets to share stories and generally converse. The event’s website, therefore, has to be welcoming and fun.

I chose DIN as the primary typeface. DIN is a modern and easily readable sans serif that is flexible considering it comes in a variety of weights. It also serves as a nice complement to the font in the Paws for a Cause logo.

To emphasize playfulness, I used a variety of blues and a shade of purple. The blues are as follows: R: 161 G: 195 B: 218 and R: 0 G: 113 B: 187. The purple is as follows: R: 76 G: 65 B: 131.

I also took hierarchy into consideration when designing the site. The navigation is at the top, and in lowercase text, which contrasts with the rest of the primary text, which is uppercase. A large picture remains in the same place on each page, continually reminding visitors that this fundraiser is about the animals. A donate button is well within reach (on the right), making it easy for visitors to donate. A news and events sidebar keeps the most important and timely information always within view. Social networking links are also provided.

Final Post | Tocci

I've been dreading this class since I got accepted to Newhouse over a year ago. I have never been good at design, and I automatically hate things I'm not good at. Since I am not really a visual thinker, I concentrated on words all throughout high school and always let other people handle the design. But I knew I wouldn't be able to get away with that in this class, and I was not happy about it.

Although I am still not good at design, I learned way more than I ever expected to. When Prof. Taylor said that this class would change the way we see the world at the beginning of the semester, I remember trying not to roll my eyes. But, she proved me wrong (something I rarely admit!). I notice color, I notice visual hierarchy, I notice all the subtle design elements I never knew existed before the beginning of the semester without even meaning to. I felt like my own projects never measured up to my classmates', but one of my favorite parts of the class was seeing their work. Everyone had such different, unique ideas and designs, and it was awesome to think that some of them will be designing out in the real world one day.

I also gained HUGE respect for graphic designers and learned so much about the design processes and what it takes to make even the simplest design work. Now, I feel like I can communicate with designers and speak their language. I'm a magazine major, and I understand that without strong design my words will never be read. I feel like I can collaborate effectively with designers now, whereas prior to taking this class my only design suggestion would have been to throw pretty colors on a page. Although I have never been destined for an artistic career (and I have the kindergarten finger paintings to prove it), this class has increased my visual awareness a thousandfold and given me the confidence to understand and speak the foreign language of graphic design.

Wrap Up

What have learned from this class?

The main thing that I learned from this class is how to use the main programs in Adobe Creative Suite 4. I now have a fundamental background in using InDesign, PhotoShop, and Illustrator; something I had no knowledge of before this class. With my major being Newspaper Journalism, being able to use these programs will come in handy for designing the layout of a newspaper or how I want my article to appear in a Newspaper. In addition I can use these programs for future projects and other things like that.

what did you or didn't you enjoy?

I really enjoyed the lab sections of this class, although sometimes they were very boring they were very helpful and informative. In all honesty I found the class itself kind of pointless because I didn't learn much from the lecture portions. My favorite project was both the magazine layout and the logo design. I also like creating a wordmark for the resume. The resume is something I will be able to use for a while.

what didn't you expect?

I didn't really expect the projects to be as frustrating as some of them were. Making things look like what I wanted them to on the computer was so difficult and frustrating.

Berk | Final Blog Post (cue dramatic theme music)

What have I learned? I learned how to use the computer programs, I learned how to think graphically and perhaps most importantly, I learned how the hell to spell gestalt. Honestly, I learned a lot. I really have an appreciation for all the work that goes in to graphics, especially in my field of magazine journalism. I will not abuse the poor graphics designer that will one day work under me at Sports Illustrated. Fine, maybe I will abuse them but I'll be nice about it.

What did I enjoy about the class? When a project really seemed to come together and work. T'was a good feeling. What didn't I enjoy? Working on the projects prior to that point, when everything felt like I threw it together and couldn't measure up the quality of my classmates. This class took up so much of my time but I got through it.

One thing that I know I will take away is the ability to use the Adobe programs to both impress employers as well as my technologically deficient family. Thanks to Paul and Prof Taylor, I definitely can use this class.

Remember, let us die young or let us live forever. Have a good summer everyone.

Semester Wrap-Up:Wettje

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

We have all learned that our biggest fear is not the pen tool, but rather the endless possibilities that it presents to us.

I enjoyed the fact that we are all comfortable enough with each other in such a big class for me to quote Coach Carter on the final blog posting.

I didn't expect to go so in depth on some of the projects but I came out of them with a better understanding of everything from the tools used to the graphics principles involved.

I'm taking away from this class a love of photoshop as a serious hobby. I love everything about it. I also leave this class reminded of the great Mark Twain, who said that a man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.

Wettje: Website

I chose to use the Spring Dog Fest, an event by me to raise money for an animal shelter that I used to volunteer at. The event is held to raise money for the shelter and honor those who have helped make a difference in the lives of the animals at the shelter. The event is hosted by Dognique, a local shop for pet supplies.

I used three typefaces for this project. The navigation links were done in Candara. I liked its simplicity yet boldness as a sans serif. On my homepage, I used Castellar for the headers and Century for the body text. I loved the elegance of Castellar and the readability of Century in limited usage. On the remaining pages, I used Veranda for the body text because it is very versatile and readable.

I used green and sky blue as the colors because these are the colors of the shelter. The green is done in R=47, G=99, B=64 and the blue was done in R=32, G=230, B=223. To add something unique to the design, I had a beagle behind the selected page to highlight which page was being used. Rather than using something generic like a colored box, I wanted to add something special and have it be like the dog was following you from page to page.

Neufang | Final Thoughts

This, honestly, was one of the most interesting, fun and frustrating classes I have ever taken. I now know that being a designer isn't in my blood (I never even gave it thought, so I'm not taken by surprise here. Still, it's good to know). I have discovered that I do have a deep admiration for people that design; designers of typefaces to websites, concert posters to magazines, product packaging to store fronts. It is everywhere and I have always taken it for granted; no longer!

Designers make our world go 'round... well, at least it goes 'round smoothly without people stopping to wonder, "what the f-bomb am I supposed to do with this?" At least most people. I suppose designers are always stopping to analyze whether another designer got their point across. Or to steal business cards or posters.

I suppose learning the technology was the most valuable thing I will take away from this class. A good software package can help even the lamest of designers (like myself) pull off something that will allow them to communicate somewhat effectively. With some more practice I may even stop being so critical of my design skills. I have to say, it is amusing to see how I can manipulate a piece of information, and oddly fulfilling when I conquer the machine.

Being handicapped with the technology helped me learn that less is more. With almost every project I came up with these amazing ideas (at least they looked amazing in my imagination), and then I would have a mini-break down whilst trying to execute it. After wiping the slate clean, I would come up with something simple and much more effective than the original idea. So there's something: don't be afraid to wipe the slate clean. Hard work means nothing if it isn't good work; throwing away the first idea only makes room for something better.

I also grew a passion for Starbucks this semester. I was always a regular coffee kind of girl, and I never won one of those elusive gift cards, but working on these projects late into the night was always better with a caramel macchiato.

McFarland | Wrap-Up Post!

There are so many things that I've learned in Graphics this semester. First, I found out that I absolutely love Professor Taylor and Paul. That said, I feel that they've spread their typoholic nature to me, as one of the unexpected things I've gotten out of the course is paying attention to the typeface for pretty much every restaurant, store and company logo that I see! I never anticipated to learn so much about the different typefaces and their individual personalities. I felt this was portrayed perfectly in the short video that Professor Taylor showed during class. It was amazing to me that by changing the fonts in all of my projects they could take on an entirely different meaning and be perceived in a different way by my viewer. It was really interesting to search endlessly through Suitecase and find so many different typefaces that I loved. I never really thought that I would formulate a strong opinion concerning this subject matter.

Another thing that I was not expecting was to be so intrigued by Indesign, Illustrator and Photoshop. I consider myself fairly old fashioned, as you will walk into my apartment and see a 1922 typewriter, vintage record player and various pairs of large headphones. I have of course engaged in modern forms of technology but have a greater appreciation for simple things like pop-up toasters and bicycles with baskets on the front of them, as strange as it sounds. Having these strong interests gave me a great feeling of trepidation when entering the realm of these new design programs, however I found that the lab was extremely helpful and it wasn't that difficult to pick up on the programs with practice. I learned a great deal about visual gestalt and attempted to apply this in many of my design projects. One of my favorite things about the course was the variety of projects. In some courses, I feel as if I'm writing similar things or working on yet another empty shell of a Powerpoint presentation. In Graphics, however, I felt I was able to follow certain design guidelines, principles and courtesies while still being able to express who I am and the various topics that I am interested in. I loved that I was able to engage in a large amount of design freedom within certain guidelines.

I also appreciated all of the course feedback, such as our project evaluations both to Professor Taylor and to our fellow peers. I watched in awe as Stevie splashed her anchor, Fran's initial popped out from his business card, Lucy showcased a man's bare bottom and Melia gave a whole new meaning to the term robbins-egg blue. Everyone else in the class was fantastic so if I didn't mention the name it's because there isn't enough space on this blog. I learned so much from the professor, the TA and my classmates and will forever be addicted to these programs and to type. I will forever stay away from the widows and orphans of the world, as I am now.

Annie Leibovitz | Extra-Credit

Annie Leibovitz delivered a very memorable lecture this past Thursday evening. From someone who had heard about Ms. Leibovitz only months prior to her arrival in Syracuse—I was star stuck. I had no clue she was such a talented photographer until seeing some of her work online, many of which talked about in the lecture. My favorite photograph of hers by far is the re-creation of the “Double Fantasy” album featuring John Lennon and Yoko Ono, which made its way on the cover of Rolling Stones. I find this picture extremely provocative; yet intrinsically profound. The semiotics behind this photograph encapsulates a quality of human intimacy that perhaps cannot speak on a verbal level. Recently I have encountered many artists that emulate this similar idea of. Ruben Brulat, a French photographer I recently interviewed creates autoportraits of himself completely exposed in various exotic environments. He believes in the removal of all clothing, stripping down to his bare essentials to represent his inner humanity. His work often reminds me of the Lennon feature. What I find most gratifying about Ms. Leibovitz’s work is how versatile and distinct her collections are from each other. Often times I find photographers geared strictly towards a specific genre or style of subjects which I ultimately find very limiting. Ms. Leibovitz on the other hand has covered political movements from Richard Nixon’s resignation and Obama’s campaign to musicians such as B.B. King and even iconic celebrities (Kate Moss, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg). Regardless of who it is she is photographing, each picture contains such genuine ability that separates her work from the rest. When asked what her favorite photograph was, she did not have an answer. Instead she believes it is the “accumulation” of her body of work that gives her the most satisfaction.

Project 5:Interface Design | Lang

The non-for-profit event that I chose for my website is C.A.R. It stands for Champions are Readers and it is a philanthropy event that my sorority Pi Beta Phi is involved in to promote literacy. For my website, I have the home page, about us page, photos page, events page, contact us page, and the location page. For my event, I felt that having these particular pages would be most effective because the reader can learn about the event and the organization that supports it as well as all the details behind it.
The typeface I used for my header is Futura with different variations and the two other big text boxes, “a book today…” and “share the magic…” is in Franklin Gothic. The rest of the type is in Helvetica Neue, either in regular or light. I chose Helvetica Neue as my main typeface because I found it really easy to read and after watching Helvetica the movie, I really enjoy this typeface! I didn’t add any text for the photos page and just kept it really simple with pictures and for the user to scroll through them.
I tried to incorporate a lot of visuals and images in the pages, but I didn’t want to put too many pictures, so I also added a lot of color boxes. The color scheme I used was yellow and blue and I also played around with the opacity to change up the color use. I used a book and the color cyan to show the active state of the webpage. I tired to put a lot of information about C.A.R. but I also felt that it was important to mention first book, which is the organization that donates the books, and also mention Pi Beta Phi who participates in this event.

Website | Wong

Design Strategy
    For my design strategy, I wanted to make a website that was both pleasing to look at, but easy enough for someone in elementary school to use. I’m not used to making websites through Photoshop – I prefer using Dreamweaver and actually writing out the HTML for the website to design it. But overall this was a great experience.
    For the banner on top, I wanted to make the title look like a book, but I think it looks more like a random blue rectangle. I was trying to figure out how to make either a gradient or a silver/gold color but overall I think I knew it would be difficult to make it look like a book’s spine. I also made the navigation bar horizontal instead of vertical because I knew I wanted to have drop down menus, and a horizontal bar looks cleaner than a vertical bar (for my purposes).
    I used elements from my poster project for the homepage, like my “Book America” and I redid the “Cat in the Hat” ribbon, so it had the allusion of having movement and being more flowing and less stiff. For the buttons in my navigation bar, I added the book images because the event is National Read Across America Day, which happened on March 2, Dr. Seuss’ birthday. This time, I didn’t focus on the Dr. Seuss aspect because it really is hard to design without running into copyright issues. But I chose to have an open book when the links aren’t clicked, and to have a book flipping pages when they are clicked. I chose to have a book flipping pages instead of a closed book because each time I designed a closed book, it seemed more like a rectangle than a book.
    I also added a picture of children reading for the other pages, as well as a stack of books because I thought that it added a nice touch to the website. Users could also scroll down for some of the pages. For the drop down menus, the link that is highlighted in a lighter color is the page that the user is at, so for “ideas,” the user is at the “elementary schools” page. I also kept the same frame for all of the pages because it made the website seem cleaner and more accessible and usable for users. In terms of hierarchy, I tried to make the baby blue stand out the most so that it would be what users saw first. I also made the books on the bottom large so that users would look at that, and then see the text next to the books and read the information given.

Choice of Typefaces
I chose to use Apple Casual for the homepage because I liked the playfulness of the font, and also because it was what I used for the poster project. I chose to use Chalkduster because it was also a fun font, and I thought it was appropriate because this website focused on students. I chose to use Georgia for the main text because it was a nice and clean serif font, but still playful enough to complement the other fonts I used. And Georgia is also very easy to read.

Color
I originally wanted to use a Red-White-Blue scheme because the event is Read Across America, but then I thought it would be too cliché. So I chose to do a red and blue scheme, and add images. I also wanted to do a red and white scheme for Dr. Seuss, but when I left the background white, the website seemed a little too boring – especially since it was more of an informative website that linked to pages that had materials that could be used or pages with more information about the organizations involved. Even when I added the graphics, the white seemed to be too boring so I made the background a baby blue to complement the navy blue I used for the header and the footer. The RBG colors can be seen on the markups.

Images
Most of the images used were found on Google Images or on the NEA Read Across America website. All of the information used was also taken from either the Read Across America website or from my own information – the Onondaga County Literary Coalition was a client of Hill Communications, Newhouse’s PR firm, and I was a member of the team in charge of the client. The scrollbar was created from making a screenshot of my current screen and then cutting & pasting together parts of a scrollbar into Photoshop.