Typography Reflection

Today I had my learning team with Kate. Instead of asking us how we are getting on like usual, she just launched straight into how she thought we should be starting.  Although what she showed us was useful, it is something I would rather do once I have made some of my key decisions about voice, theme, audience, style etc.  I did then get to show her what I had done so far which she liked, although I didn't get to show her my typography options because they didn't print. I didn't get to see anyone else's work either, which was disappointing.  At home, I looked again at my type options. With fresh eyes, it was clear that one pair of serif and sans serifs worked far better together than the others. I also experimented with possible colour schemes, and how they could be used to create structure. I have now ticked most of the questions off my list and am ready to start looking at flat plans and making spreads.  I didn't do as much as I would have liked today as I wasn...

Today I started designing the publication. First I watched all the videos, then in the afternoon, I began the brief. There were quite a lot of elements to consider, so I started by writing a list of all the questions I would need to answer before I made my publication. I then started to try and answer my questions. I decided on which articles to use and the page size very quickly. I even chose a grid to use fairly easily, by drawing out several different options and seeing what variety of layouts could be created on each grid. But I am really struggling to pick my typefaces. The amount of choice is overwhelming. I have created a list of options and I will show them to my learning team tomorrow. 

I borrowed "Making and Breaking the Grid" from the library and it is brilliant! I have been pouring over it all afternoon. I think it will really help me understand which type of grid to use when and how to get the most out of using a grid. I have also borrowed "how to use type" so hopefully that will be just as informative! 

Today we had textwork. I got up early to watch the lecture before our online discussion. I struggled a little to make visual notes this time, as we were discussing abstract concepts that were hard to illustrate. The lecture was interesting, but a little confusing at times, as she talked about many different theorists complex ideas and didn't really explain any of them in detail. I will have to do some of my own research to ensure I understand. I then did the reading we were required to do for textworks. It was interesting but I didn't understand how it linked to what we were studying or what the author was trying to say.  Then I had a go at one of the extra tasks Kate set me. She has asked me to have a go at copying a layout on InDesign. I thought this would be really quick and easy but it was much more complicated than I realised. I managed to make my version look pretty similar though, except for my choice of font which wasn't quite right. It made me realise how many comp...

 As I had pretty finished my work, I went to Falmouth library to get some extra reading. I found a very helpful book there called "Making and breaking the grid" which I think will improve my skills in this area. The I had my one to one with Kate. She told me how to improve my layout. Plus she also gave me a couple of extra things I could do and gave me some advice about how to cope at the weekends when I get a bit lonely.  I took her advice and edited my layouts in the afternoon. 

Today I had a workshop. We had to create a layout that was very readable and one which was not. Initially, I designed something very simple and a bit dull, but then I thought back to the designs I had seen the day before and moved the elements around to create something much more dynamic that used white space really well. Steve said he really liked it and just got me to change one tiny thing. It is the first layout I have ever created I am really properly happy with.  I feel like I am have improved so much in the last 3 weeks. I started this module having never created a layout I thought looked good and now I can create something Steve is happy with in less than 2 hours!  I then started moving the elements around to make them less readable. I created something I am pretty happy with, but it is not quite so perfect as the first one. I might have another look at it tomorrow.  I have felt really fed up when I first woke up this morning, but after my workshop, I was really re...

Today in the stage meeting we got to see some of the best pieces of work created last week. They were all much bolder and unusual than mine. I think I played it a bit safe last week. I need to be braver and create something risker. I also noticed that many of the best ones used lots of white space. I will keep this in mind when designing my next layout.  I then did activity task 1. I used the books in my room rather than the internet, as I have plenty and I like looking at physical books. I found I had completely finished by 12.30, so after lunch, I had another go a playing "find the grid" with a few of the books in my room. It was very interesting to do this with whole publications rather than just single spreads, as you have to find a grid that works for every page. A few of my books didn't appear to have a grid, and I had no way of knowing if I was right or if it just couldn't find it, which really bugged me.