Project 3 Description

For this project, we were split into groups of four. We each chose a word out of a hat, and then had to come up with collages that represented the meaning of that word. In these collages, we could only use our word once but repeating our letters was acceptable. The collages were put up on the wall to be analyzed by the class. The next step of the project was to make our word into three foot, 3D letters. We had to come up with ways of representing the meaning of our word through these letters. These letters were taken all across campus to spots that showcased the word. We then took pictures of these letters in these settings. The last step of the project was to place our pictures in a photo essay book. We had to create these books ourselves, and they had to incorporate elements within them that represented our word.

Word Construction Reflection

When we first started our construction on our word, we had a lot of ideas on how we were going to make it. Eventually, we narrowed it down to making our word out of cardboard. We used white paper to wrap the outside of our letters and then used duct tape on the X and the last E. This was to show the exchanging of the first E and the last E, which helped to show the meaning of our word within our letters. After constructing our word, we brainstormed a list of places that we could take it that would symbolize the meaning of the word. This made it a lot easier to plan out where we were going to take our word, and it also made it take less time. Since our letters were very simple, they meshed well with all of the places we took them. The places we went included: the round-about, the library, vending machines, mailboxes, a classroom, and the statue before Lippioncott as well as Lippioncott itself. All of these place represented our word, exchange, in one way or another.

Project 3 Reflection

At the beginning of the project, my group got together and planned out when we were going to do everything. Unfortunately, we never gave eachother our phone numbers so it was very hard to contact one another if we were unable to make it to the time we had planned or if we needed to tell whoever wasn’t there our next meeting time. We eventually got one another’s phone number, but I think we all learned from our mistake. We also went into the making of our letters thinking that paper would be the best way to cover them. Half way through doing this, we found that it was actually very difficult, and it was also very difficult to make the edges of the paper look good on the letters. We tried putting duct tape on these edges, but did not have enough material or money. Because we planned out where we were going to take pictures before we headed out, it went really smoothly. Our pictures turned out great, and we planned it so that the sun was up just long enough to take our outside pictures.

Photography Essay Reflection

It was really interesting at the beginning of the essay when the author was talking about the difference between regular photography or documentary and art-photography. I’ve done a lot with photography, and I think there is a real difference between just taking a picture and actually being aware of what you are doing and how it’s going to turn out looking. I also thought it was interesting on page 8 of the essay when the author says that, “Documentary is said to provide its viewers with direct access to truth.” The statement is correct, but to provide the truth must we sacrifice the artistic part of photography? I think the two should be intermingled. People should be able to receive direct access to truth through pictures in an artistic way.

Type

I thought this showed a lot of really good examples of text. There many ways the text is used in this image. Personally, I really like the central, red squares type as well as the central white squares. Both of these have very simple designs, and they work really well.

Parts of the Letter

I had never really thought much about letter before, but it was interesting to know that there are actual names for all of the parts of the letter. I think the most interesting thing I learned, though, was that two different fonts can be 12 point and they still may not be the same size. This information will be helpful when I'm designing because I'll know to look for this problem.

Two-point Perspective

I had never used two-point perspective until my BDS 103 class. I always just drew what I saw, and this usually caused the drawings to be unproportional. Using two-point perspective helps to cut down on this inaccuracy, and I've found that it's much easier drawing with this perspective. The only problem I had with two-point perspective was when the things I was drawing were too close, and I had to draw them really tiny so that I could fit my perspective points on my page.

Cross-Contour Tutorial Reflection

Today in BDS 103, we watched a tutorial on how to draw a cross-contour drawing of an apple. It was really easy to follow, and when I went home and tried it, it worked perfectly. At the beginning of the tutorial, the man draws a box for the apple and then lines for the bottom and top of the apple. I found this part of the video the most helpful. The box and lines help you draw the apple proportionally. I also found his shading tips helpful. My apple drawing turned out great because of this helpful tutorial. :)

Design Project 2 Reflection

The project overall was really good. There was only a one part that was difficult about it. The poster had a lot of elements that you had to put in it, which made it hard to make a design that looked good and brought them all together. I think the challenge was kind of fun, though. I thought it was really interesting learning how to fit all the pieces together. It was also interesting redesigning the fly swatter with my group. We found that a mind map worked best for us when thinking up ideas for the new swatter. I personally like word lists, but for this project, I think that mind map was the best option for us. It was fun narrowing all of our crazy ideas down into a one solid, realistic idea. It was pretty interesting finding materials to make our fly swatter out of, and I think by the end we came up with something that was unique and impressive. I’m very proud of what our group accomplished. We all meshed together really well and came out with a great prototype.

IDEO Reflection

Basically, what this documentary was trying to say is that design is all about being free and
letting your mind latch onto to every idea it has, no matter how stupid it may be. It also showed that there isn’t really a system of hierarchy in a design work environment. The people with the best ideas are the most important, not the people who have worked there the longest. In a design work environment, they don’t want you to ask permission, they just want you to just go with things, and if they work great, if they don’t so what. The point is that some of best designs come from designers who don’t ask permission, because if you ask permission someone might not like or get your idea, and then you’ll never do it. If you never try something, you’ll never know if it could have been great.

Project 2 Brief

For this project, we began with each of us finding five poorly designed object. We then were put into a group of four people. Each group consisted of a graphic designer, illustrator, industrial designer, and photomedia major. Every group had to choose one object from their poorly designed objects to redesign. We had to create a mind map and fifteen sketches each of our object to analyze what was needed in our redesigned object. After we narrowed down what was needed, we then had to make a preliminary prototype. While creating our prototype, we also had to be thinking about our poster. We had to create several thumbnails as well as make a preliminary poster. After all of this, we then had to create a final prototype and create a commercial. Each team member had to make three storyboards for the commercial, and then one was chosen from these. By the end of the project, we had to have a final prototype, a final poster, and a commercial for our redesigned object.

Exchange Definitions

1. to give up (something) for something else; part with for some equivalent; change for another
2. to replace (returned merchandise) with an equivalent or something else
3. to give and receive reciprocally; interchange
4. to part with in return for some equivalent; transfer for a recompense; barter
5. Chess . to capture (an enemy piece) in return for a capture by the opponent generally of pieces of equal value

Writer's Toolbox Reflection

I thought that this reading was very informative and helpful. I’ve tried some of the maps and writings that it talks about, and I’ve found that, for me, the word list works best. It seems to pull the most ideas out of me, and then I can categorize those ideas and see what I can find in them. I thought that the other maps were helpful as well. They all let you get every idea you have down on paper in a fast and easy way. I will definitely take the things I learned from this reading and use it throughout my design career.

Objectified Reflection

I thought this movie was really interesting. It was amazing to see the process of how things go from the drawing board to the store as well as how many things in our world are designed. Almost everything has been touched by design in some way. One object that they talked about in the movie was a toohtpick. I had never thought of a toothpick as being designed. It’s just a sliver of wood, but it was amazing how many aspects of it are designed; they can have different grooves designed into them or a piece at the top the breaks off so you can have something to sets your toothpick on instead of placing it right on the table. I think the toothpicks are what  really made me understand the movie when it said that design touches everything, because a toothpick is something so insignificant, you never think about it. If design can touch a toothpick, than it must be able to touch everything else.

Final Prototype Concept Statement

We found the design of the fly swatter to be uncomfortable and unattractive. The main problems that we wanted to solve were the insubstantial handle, the pliable shaft, the shape of the head, and a way  to dispose of the fly. We changed the handle to a solid rubber piece and we changed the shaft so that it wasn’t as easily bent. We also modified the shape of the head, making it a more interesting and less predictable shape. Lastly, we added a frame that flips up to curve the fly swatter into a scoop for picking up and disposing of flies.

Final Prototype Interviews

1. What do you like about the new prototype?
2. Is it an improvement from the original?
3. Is it understandable?
4. Do you like the scooper?
5. How much would you pay for the new fly swatter?
6. Would you change anything?

Stephanie (18 years old)
1. It's cool. If I saw it in a store, it would catch my eye.
2. Yes. It has a good grip.
3. The scooper isn't very understandable.
4. Yes
5. No more than $3-$4
6. No

Andrea (40 years old)
1. It's stylish. It has a good grip.
2. Yes
3. Somewhat
4. Yes
5. $3
6. No

Kelvin (40 years old)
1. It has a good grip.
2. Yes
3. Kinda
4. Yes
5. $3-$4
6. It should be a different color so you can't see the fly guts.

Seth (15 years old)
1. It's light weight, and it's a good color.
2. Yes, a big improvement.
3. There should be instructions for the scooper.
4. Yes
5. $3-$4
6. It needs slits or air holes so it's faster. 

Understanding Comics Chaper 2 Reflection

This chapter opened my eyes to what I see when I look at drawings and comics. It is completely true that when you look at things like comics you want to identify yourself with it and feel like a part of it. I thought it was really interesting when the author broke down the picture of the face until all it was was a circle with two dots and a line in it, and you could still make it out as a face, in fact you couldn't not see it as a face. The same thing occurred when he drew the shapes on page 32 and put dots in them. I instantly could not see them as anything other than faces. It's crazy how our mind is able to do that, how it can take something so unrealistic and make it seem real. I also like on page 35 and 36 how the author showed how we see other people when we are talking to them and how we think we look in our minds. It was really true. You never can get a good detailed image of yourself when your thinking of it, but when your looking at someone, you can see every little detail of their face. I think this is why we can identify with such unrealistic shapes as faces, because there are times when the only way we can see ourselves in our mind is like that.

Understanding Comics Chapter 5 Reflection

This chapter was really interesting. I never really thought about how the use of different lines can change the way we feel or see things. Take for instance page 126, all of the pictures on the page give you a different emotion and tell you a different story, and that's primarily because of the variations of lines used in all of them. If they were all the same kind of line, you wouldn't know what emotion was trying to be portrayed and the image and the message would be confused. I also liked on page 134 all of the different ways to show words in comics. Even without the words and just seeing the different lines, you could somewhat match up what's suppose to be happening. Such as the "bring!" illustration. I would know that something is moving or shaking by looking at the lines without ever having the words there. I think that's pretty neat that you can understand images just from personal experience. It makes you feel one with the artist, because they must've experienced the same thing that you did.

Preliminary Prototype

 



We found the design of the fly swatter to be uncomfortable and unattractive. The main problems that we wanted to solve were the unsubstantial handle, the pliable shaft, the shape of the head, and a way  to dispose of the fly. We changed the handle to a solid foam-covered piece and we changed the shaft so that it wasn’t as easily bent. We also modified the shape of the head, making it a more interesting and less predictable shape. Lastly, we added a frame that flips up to curve the fly swatter into a scoop for picking up and disposing of flies

Fly Swatter Interviews

1. How often do you use a fly swatter?
2. Do you want it to be fun to use?
3. What is the most important thing you would change?
4. Would you buy add-ons if it were possible?
5. Would you like a humane option for flies?
6. What do you like about the fly swatter currently?
7. How much would you pay for a fly swatter?

Stephanie (18 years old)
1. Not very often
2. Would appreciate it being fun
3. No more grid/ small holes
4. Depends on add-on
5. No
6. It's easy to use
7. $2-$3

Seth (15 years old)
1. Once a month
2. Yes
3. Would like a fly targeting device/ fly locater
3. Yes
4. No
6. You can pick the fly up with the swatter
7. $2-$5

Andrea (40 years old)
1. Once a month
2. Yes
3. Flimsy
4. No
5. No
6. Kills flies
7. $5

IDEO Summary

Basically, what this documentary was trying to say is that design is all about being free and letting your mind latch onto to every idea it has, no matter how stupid it may be. It also showed that there isn't really a system of hierarchy in a design work environment. The people with the best ideas are the most important, not the people who have worked there the longest. In a design work environment, they don't want you to ask permission, they just want you to just go with things, and if they work great, if they don't so what. The point is that some of best designs come from designers who don't ask permission, because if you ask permission someone might not like or get your idea, and then you'll never do it. If you never try something, you'll never know if it could have been great.

Project 2 Progress

Our team chose the fly swatter to redesign. Here we are working on our mind map for it. 

This is our completed mind map for the fly swatter.

Nav is interviewing someone about the fly swatter.

Someone testing out the fly swatter. 

Another person testing out the fly swatter.

Painting the Picture

 I was looking through Google images and this picture really caught my eye. I love the idea that the person is painting the color onto this apple. It got me thinking about graphic design. Graphic design is like painting a picture for someone. As a designer, you're trying to make them understand and get information from your poster, but at the same time, you're trying to paint in their minds a picture of what this information deals with and what they should expect from it.

Less Is More

As I get further and further along in my project, I'm really starting to understand that less is more. I think sometimes it feels like you have to put every cool element you find into your design but that's not the case. It's better if you make a list of the things you like, then pick one or two if you think they go together, and then save the rest for another design. As a designer, you'll always be designing new things so it doesn't make any sense to throw out all your tricks at once, plus the design probably won't look as good as if you hadn't.

The Cloud Gate "The Bean"

I thought this sculpture was a really good example of a simple, beautiful design. There isn't much to the Bean but people come to see it from all over the place. I think this is because it allows people to feel like they're a part of the sculpture when they get close to it and can see themselves mirrored in it just as well as the city behind them. It's simplicity also lets you focus more on the beauty of the city it's mirroring than the sculpture itself. It's surroundings are what makes it beautiful and it's simplicity work.

Color Lecture

The lecture was really informative. I had some idea of what colors to put together in a design, but this helped significantly. I never knew about the different color unities, but they are really helpful. It amazed me that so much of a design relies on it's color. The color is what catches your eye first so if you use yellow or some other bright color amongst a bunch of darker colors, it will grab your attention first. You have to make sure that you put these colors where you want the viewers eye to go and make sure their not too distracting.

InDesign Tutorial

I've been using InDesign for a while, but I thought that the tutorial was really helpful. He pointed out a lot of things that I didn't know about. For instance, how to make pure whites. I never knew how to do that. Overall, I think that the things I learned from the tutorial will help me a lot as I progress in my graphic design major.

Good/Bad Color Unity Examples

Good

This is a good example of color unity because they didn't a really nice job using the gray background to make the red on the package really pop. Since it's such a light gray, it mixes well with the white on the package, and there is also a bit of gray in the shine on the cherries, which seems to bring the two together.

This is also a really good example of color unity. The red background automatically draws it all together and makes it feel like a whole, but there are other things that bring it together as well. The white bird with the yellow leg make the font in the right, bottom corner understandable. The yellow hand does this too, and the blue and green guitar is the thing that catches your eye since its different colors than the rest of the poster, but it doesn't seem out of place because of the yellow hand holding it.




Bad

This is a bad example of color unity because of the layout of all the different colors. The pink really catches your eye, but because it is only on one half of the poster, your eye never goes to the other side. The other side of the poster is lacking in color. The muted green and turquoise make it boring, and from the looks of it, I'm pretty sure that side is the most important. It has the information you want to know on it, and you completely pass it up when looking at the poster.

This is a bad example of color unity because of its lack of interest. The neutral color does bring it together but there is no exciting aspect to the bottle, which makes it boring. This bottle would never catch my eye in a store. If they varied the values of the neutrals on the bottle more, I think it would look a lot better.

Design Questions

Dieter’s 10 principles

I learned from this article that design is made up of a lot of components, and it’s only a good design if these components are up to par. For my project, I chose a stapler. I chose this object because it has all ten of Dieter’s principles, the components that I spoke of. It is innovative, useful, aesthetic, understandable unobtrusive, honest, long-lasting, thorough down to the last detail, environmentally friendly, and has as little design as possible. All of these principles together make the stapler simple, easy to use, and visually pleasing. The stapler not only encompasses Dieter’s ten principles but design as a whole. My major is graphic design, and the point of this career is to design something that gets a point across in a way that’s simple and easy to understand. The stapler is both of these things. The design is simple. You don’t have to look at the instructions to understand how to refill it or how to staple, and the simplicity of it makes us comfortable with it, which makes us want to buy and use the product. The major point for me in Dieter’s ten principles was that overall good design is about doing something to the best of your ability, not overthinking it, and making sure that what your sending out is something that you could understand and use yourself. These points are extremely important in any design, but especially in the project we’re doing now, because if you keep these things in mind when working on the project, then your bound to make something good that will get you a good grade.

Think and Make

For the longest time, I’ve though that design is all about art and pattern, but this reading opened my eyes. In the reading, it stated that, “design is a process for making things right, for shaping what people need.” This line managed to change my entire outlook on design. It really isn’t all about art. It’s about making something that makes people’s lives simpler. The object I chose was a stapler and it embodies simple to a T. The design actually makes it so that stapling takes less effort meaning that your hand doesn’t get as tired and you can do more, faster. The simplicity doesn’t just show through in my stapler, it also shows through in my major, graphic design. In graphic design, it’s all about getting a point across or giving out information. To do this, you can’t overthink things. You have to make a simple, clean design that easy to look at and understand. I think the main point of this article was to make people understand that you can’t put design into a mold. It isn’t associated with just one thing it’s associated with tons. Once you start seeing that design is endless you think of the endless possibilities you can do with it and then you come up with something great.

Don Norman Video

I learned from this video that design isn’t only about functionality. In the video, Don talks about a mini cooper and he says that it’s not the greatest car ever but you should still buy it. The reason why you should buy it is because its fun and fun makes people happy. That’s what design is all about, making people happy. It doesn’t just have to be fun, though, to cause this emotion. It has to be simple, understandable, and most importantly, visually pleasing. I find that my object, a stapler, has many qualities that make me happy. For one, it has a no slip grip pad on the bottom so it doesn’t move around on me. It also is designed so that it’s easier to staple with, making my hand less tired, and the design is sleek, making it look very high quality. In graphic design, as well as in a stapler, we find that people respond better to things that make them happy or things that are fun. I think the main point of the video was that design is supposed to make you happy. In design, the point is to get information to a person as simply as possible. If you can do that, then you make that person very happy. The two, design and happiness, are interconnected.

Best Examples of the Color Assignment

This granola bar box demonstrates harmonious hues because of the red and orange on the box. Since these two colors are right next to each other on the color wheel, it makes the box easy to look. Along with the colors, the clean text also allows you to clearly discern what the product is.

Since the two colors on this box, the blue and the orange, are on opposite sides of the color wheel, it is showing contrasting hues. The box is easy enough to look at, but the blue somewhat intrudes, making the two sides seem disconnected. The orange side of the box is not only demonstrating contrasting hues but also limited palette, since it is using only shades of orange.

This box has many light yellows and light browns on it, which shows harmonious values. It is also showing some darker colors, like the blue and red, that are contrasting colors. The box is easy to read, and I think that the font used for the blue title makes it stick out less and fit more with box since it has the same rustic feel as the rest of the box.

The light and dark blues on this bottle are showing contrasting values as well as the dark gray labels and white background. The bottle is also showing contrasting chromas, since there is both gray and dark blue on the bottle. I think that the bottle is easy to read, although it might be a little cluttered at the bottom, but the large logo at the top balances this out. Overall, it’s a good, clean design.

 This box shows harmonious chromas because it only has really strong chroma colors. The red, orange, and yellow are very rich. It also has a lot of chroma dominance, which catches your eye. The box is easy to read, and very clean. The little green box at the corner may not go with the rest of the box, but it grabs your attention which had to be the intention of the boxes creator.

This package is a perfect example of contrasting chroma because the red is such a strong chroma and the gray is such a weak one. The gray background really makes the cherries and logo pop out. The label is easy to read and gets its point across in a simple, clean way.










Since the poster consists only of hues of red, it is demonstrating limited palette. You can draw from the color of the poster that the movie is scary because of the dark red, which usually is associated with blood, and the black which is associated with death and funerals. The poster is easy to read and really draws your attention.














In this poster, all the colors are very muted or weakened, which causes them to blend together really nicely. The poster is very whimsical and the colors make you happy because they’re so bright. The title is also easy to read, and your eye is drawn to it because of the picture below it. The poster, overall, has a really good flow.











The transitions in this poster allow the viewer to understand that the words and woman go together. I think the poster has a great impact. The colors and word make it feel important which catches your attention. It’s also easy to read, other than some of the fancier fonts that may be hard to read from a distance away.

                               
This bottle is using a lot of neutrals, and since it’s for tanning lotion, this works really well. When you look at the bottle, it almost shows you how much the color of you skin will change. The lighter shade of brown at the top and bottom to the darker shade in the middle creates this affect. The bottle is very easy to read, especially where it says “natural glow” because of the glow that is around it.

This poster has a lot of chroma dominance. There really aren’t any thouroughly drawn pictures on the poster. The colors make up the images and our brains piece together what they are. Overall, the poster is really vibrant and easy to read. 

On this cover, there’s a continuous theme of purple that makes the whole thing mesh together. From the girl’s face and clothes, to the background, every part of the cover has a different shade of purple. I think that the cover is fairly easy to read, although the font for the title isn’t the cleanist. The purple tinge and skeleton girl cause the cover to feel really creepy.