End of Module Evaluation | Final Major Project

¬My original statement of intent focused on typographic based communication in the fields of editorial design, type design, web design, moving image and interactive media. It was my love for typography, shaping, styling, and manipulating letterforms that steered me in this direction. This is something that still stands today. Something else that has still stood is the way I develop work. In the original SOI it stated that I would work in two ways, one being to show my skills on a professional practice basis, skills that would potentially get me a first job. Secondly there was a much more experimental, almost personal approach that had more concern with building character into the alphabet to make engaging typography. What I have learnt now is that these two work in harmony. The less controlled type design approach is given a form of context through the ways in which it is executed through. This has potential to be across print and digital.

It was important for me to cover both print and digital forms of communication. I came to this conclusion through understanding where design and advertising is moving, but also by talking to people on work placements. It is only now that I realise I always favour print. However I am still conscious of digital, which is evident in the advance level software workshops I have completed, these being in Dreamweaver and Flash. There were small parts in the E numbers and football hooligan promotion that documented this, plus my website which has been built on Dreamweaver. So even though the digital has not featured heavily in my work I still feel it is a part of what I can do. A point made in my SOI was to be well rounded in terms of software and application to various media channels, and this is something I achieved by incorporating the workshops.

The approach to designing and thinking towards an outcome has changed dramatically. Prior to the final major project I was less concerned with researching and finding out. I was much more interested in designing. It was only when I started to think more about what I wanted to achieve with my work, rather than diving straight in, that the work became more interesting. A great example of this was with the E Numbers brief. It wasn’t until I did the research that I could inform myself of the materials I had to work with. It was the finding out of what is in some foods that became the starting point of styling the typography. This researching and finding out needs to become fundamental to future practice. Not just for a given brief, but in general. Within editorial design it is important to understand where the font originated, this way conscious decisions can be made. I am not trained within true typography design, which is why it is vital to know what and where a font was made for.

Another approach change has been within the designing process. The designing and evaluating have become two separate things rather than going on at the same time. This allows the work to become more experimental in it’s approach. Its then after when you have a wide range of possibilities that you can think what is and is not working and for what reasons. An example of this was with the layout of the football violence publication. I would produce 30-50 spreads, print them out in a booklet and then see which ones were responding conceptually to the brief but also fundamentally to typography.

A major influence on the final major project has been the design context. It is only now that I am learning and continuing to do so, about the areas I wish to work among. It was the research into editorial design that continued to add to my bag of questions when working with type. Previous to researching editorial I was too naive to think that everything should be designed with huge white spaces, tidy type set to a corner e.t.c. However when working on the 5-A-Day Recipe book and the Football Violence publication I was trying to make each page interesting, rather than being generic. This was various parts stand out to the viewer with the aim to engage with the pages oppose to just flicking through. An example within the 5-A-Day publication was the layout of the recipes. I used an order of 3 to a double spread, some large and some small. The idea being the small ones would seem easier and the larger more challenging. The reader then appears to have that choice. This process was also though about with the Graphic Design Yearbook, using the same grid but having a rhythm sheet that broke the visual order of the publication up. This was important, as not to bore the reader with the same page after page.

Time management. This will be the one thing I continue to keep up with. When I get the balance of planning and doing I am clear about my objectives. I think the balance comes with how long I actually plan for and in what detail. Giving a specific allocation to how long I should spend on a brief, start to finish is fine. It is the hour-by-hour planning I cannot arrange and manage. There is an element of the unplanned with my experimental type work that I cannot stick to within a timetable. On the contrary, this has all been in a college environment. Working freelance, when having to give a price for a specific deadline then time management and budgeting will be essential. I hope in this case I don’t feel too pressures to produce and in turn loose the creativity. This is something that will only come with experience.

To summarise the final major project module has informed how I want to function. It is only now, within the past couple of weeks that I am realising the strengths and pitfalls in my work. I can only hope that the way I work is suitable to an agency. One of the main things for me is to keep on learning. The design context got me excited about design, the finding out of how people work and how their methods conflict with others. It is only myself that can start to test these now, wherever that may be.

Yearbook | Final Version

Yearbook | Print Production

After meeting Clive (Duffield Printers) we got our hands on some of the foiling processes we could use. Originally we did not have a cover sample so it was difficult to make final decision.

After getting back in touch with the printers we managed to get hold of the GF Smith paper samples book. We were choices for the cover that would have durability but also would suite the yellow pages.

Here some of the samples we had to consider.

Yearbook | Size and Handling

One of the early decisions with the yearbook was having something substantial to handle. The 210mm square gave us enough room to handle the publication within the set margins whilst still maintaining sufficient space to show off the work.

The dummy that came back from the printers confirmed our choice.

Yearbook | Rythme Grid

Ken did a lot of research into grid and layout. He introduced a rythme sheet into the development. This added to the original editorial decision, which was to make the yearbook less generic and ultimately mix the pages up. This is the engaging aspect we tried to capture throughout the process.

Yearbook | Photo Choice

To continuity within the publication we decided to shoot peoples work over two days. This also added to the aesthetic of the yearbook. Rather than single flat images making for a generic page, the photography allowed for a fresh appeal throughout the pages. This potentially gets people to look through all the work rather than getting bored of a continuous layout.

After the two days we met with Lorenzo to discuss the best potential for each image. This was based around cropping and highlight/shadow manipulation.

It was at this stage we realised that photographic on a white background was not the best option. For future reference it would be more appropriate to have options to suite the varied amount of work coming in.

Yearbook | Development Progress | Initial layouts

Through the early stages of the development it was about understanding the relationship of the editorial design ad the content. It was about being sympathetic to the text.

Some of the choices we tested involved bright, bold colours which were too over-powering. The red bold colour worked with some of the work we were dealing with, but wouldn't with others. However at this early stage is was more about testing how much space should be given to talk about the individual compared to the work shown.

Final Changes | F**ligan

Ok. The book has been proof read twice now after noticing a few grammar problems yesterday.

Whilst doing this i decided it would be great to relay everything out to suit a new point size. I like to make things hard for myself.

It was a change that needed to be made because of the size of the publication. You read a novel close to your eye, so the point size can be smaller. However, with the F**ligan publication you read it further away. So-taken up more time, but in terms of legibility-it needed changing.

Hot off the press | F**ligan Printing

On a previous post you will see a failed attempt to print onto newsprint, through a laser. With the help of Mike (computer tech) and an old, dusty B&W, i was able to get the publication production in order.

Te key was in the feeding and manual duplex. Heres a few snap shots of the first few. Hot off the press!

Billboard Idea

I liked how 'the b***tiful game' represented the both the football and violance aspect. I had a quick test to see what else i could come up with. I have decided to go with this. Its even shorter, which means it can be understood quicker on a billboard.



Some of the others were

A P*ssi*n*te G*me
Th* Engl*sh Dis*ase
H*w D* Y*u Get Y*ur Kicks?
Wh*n's Ki*k *ff?
T*ckling Th* Engl*sh Dis*ase
P*ying Th* P*nalty
F*ul Pl*y

F**ligan Promo | Billboard | Initial Thoughts

I have been deciding on what information to display within the posters. Considerations have been based on context and form of the poster. Looking at how much time people have to spend reading it, dictating how much information is shown. 

I have been choosing elements from the actual publication, so there is some analysis of form and layout of the within chosen quotes, and which fit best within the size/format of the posters/ads.

The above examples have become too simple. It would be too much of a teaser when the adverts would only last for a week before the actual publication is released.

The above example is possibly not associated with football enough.

I would say the above image has too much to read on it. A billboard should be understood when driving past. It would take a good 15 - 20 seconds to understand the billboard on this scale.

The above example works the best. It has the element of football in there. The swear symbols lead you to understand the bad language link, all these adding to the understanding of what is being given out free with the Observer.

I like the format of the above example. It puts across the aggressive dialogue as well as giving the viewer something to read. This could be built on for the in carriage underground ad. 

It could be an idea to extract all the pull quotes from the publication and lay them out in poster format.

Digital version of F**ligan Publication | Issuu

Ad Sizes | Promoting F**ligan

I have been browsing the internet for sizes to work to for the poster campaign. With this i had a browse through a few past issues of The Guardian to get some specific sizes.






Here are the sizes im going with

Bus Stop - 66cm x 97cm
Billboard Standard - 48 x 14
Subway Carridge ad - Ratio 1:2.5
Web ad Standard
Newspaper ads - 28.5cm x 24.5cm // 14cm x 22.2cm

F**ligan | Muting The Ident

The crit made me aware that the hooligan ident doesn't need sound. There was practical and conceptual reasons. In an office environment you don't want aggressive swearing coming from the speakers and also most people don't have the volume on.

Also within the printed publication i have worked with type and minimal image to communicate aggression. This is how i themed the ident. In this case the ident communicated enough anger through video alone. 

Final Crit | Assess F**ligan

The crit focus today was on the F**ligan publication. What needs doing to the publication and where to take it, were the main talking points. Suggestion points,

• Use for a newspaper
• Promoting of the publication
• Can it be given out at football matches?
• How does the guardian sell/advertise a publication?
• Drop the sound on the ident/ web ad.
• What is within the publication that can used to promote it?

The main focus to take forward is the pace of the publication final and also its promotional. With that i need to look at the ways in which a newspaper would promote an up-coming feature. I have the web ad already, its the print promotion i need to focus on.

There are elements within the publication already that could adapt. These being the pull-quotes, the symbol use and also the stock its printed on. 

The other consideration is audiance interactivity within context. A bus stop poster will have more information than a billboard. Likewise a metro platform ad will have less info than inside the train. 

First Draft | What needs changing?

For the crit tomorrow i aimed to get a first draft ready, so people could give feedback on how the publication was working as a whole, rather than individual pages. On first look there seems to be a good balance with image and type. I wanted the publication to be type driven, but the images aided the concept and writing, when the type was not enough.

The first draft still needs work on some of the pages, but now i can understand how the publication is working as a finished piece to look through. Most changes are grammar, others are obvious. 

Below is the centre spread which still need developing. There are 30,000 O's representing the crowd, with a typical 400 police represented by the strikethrough. These figures are based on a typical high risk game. 

I want the viewer to understand the centre spreads through the one image as much as possible, without reading the caption. I will experiment with ways of blocking out, to make type. I need to investigate what the copy should say.

The crit will help decide whether i have chosen the right spread tomorrow. Not sure if this works the best. 

I need to watch out for how parts cross over two pages. Below you get very small breaks in the text. With kerning this could be avoided.

Interview | Nick Lawson

In the last blog post i was interested in having the balance between type and image. This has lead to the interview with Nick Lawson being type based.

The main focus for this spread was for it to be neutral. Showing the text is neither hooligan or police.

I wanted to keep the text justified with minimal gaps. Below shows some of the ideas used to resolve the legibility and navigation to aid this.








Below shows how the experimental approach of producing pages and pages within a new document. The spread became much more conceptual. The 30'000 'O's represent the fans and the strike-through represents the 400 police/stewarding for the event. I like the idea that the strikethrough could spell what it is representing. For example, police.