Thursday, February 14, 2008
Week 4
Monday, February 11, 2008
Week 3
Reading on in Designing a Digital Portfolio (DDP), by Cynthia L. Baron, Publisher: New Riders Press;
Chapter 3; titled Audience.
In your quest to designing a portfolio, we are creating the look and feel of our own work. This chapter talks about taking what we know and making the 'audience' understand it. When presenting your projects, it is in your best interest for your potential employer to view and see things in a way that is familiar to them, BUT unique without making them uncomfortable with your ideas and design.
"Your portfolio is an expression of who you are. But even the unique "you" changes according to your mood and situation. Kicking back with friends sparks a different state of mind than visiting family. It should. Your're relating to people whose assumptions, goals, and values are probably galaxies apart. However, unless you're a chameleon, you don't become someone new with each group. You adapt your style to feel more comfortable-or to make the people you're with more comfortable with you." (DDP Ch 3 P.41)
What do you do now? Asking yourself some key questions can get you started in the right direction. "Who's your target audience?" (DDP Ch 3 P.43) Create a personal definition of your target audience that you want your portfolio to appeal to. This will help you organize information that may be key to the employers and or clients whom will view your work. You wouldn't want your painting projects to be the forefront of your portfolio design if you were working on grabbing the attention of an Animation position; unless they of course are related.
Research, Research, Research! Knowing what other companies are looking for is key to answering many of the questions they may have about you in your portfolio design. The book explains how you can make a market assessment by specialization, company size, geography, etc. In addition, you can find out the clientele of many companies. Knowing whom you may be working for and getting a grasp of their current market will help you conceptualize your portfolio.
Free Advertising! Carefully planning your web page, discussing area's of expertise and experience along with other helpful hints will help you become available to clients whom may enter in local searches. Most search engines like Yahoo.Com, Google.com and others use <meta> tags as well as other information on your site when indexing. This information allows viewers to see links relevant to the content on your site. Planning these carefully will help a potential customer find what they need right away when they do their search on your site. Important keywords should NOT be in area's of your site that are irrelevant to their potential search. This will cause the client to click off and continue to another search.
Your not done yet! Or will you ever? Plan accordingly and expect expansion. You should always be looking into the future as you get more experienced. Your portfolio is a great opportunity to continually update. The more current experience a client views on your site, the better your chances of landing that job!
More on;
How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul (HBG), by Adrian Shaughnessy, Stefan Sagmeister. Chapter's 5 & 6
Running a Studio; Finding Talent
Chapter five pointed out some great points about acquiring talent and referred to the importance of talent diversity. There were a lot of great advice que's, especially about borrowing money, finding talent in I.T., and the importance of a good book-keeper. Something that really stuck in my mind was the fact that the chapter focused on starting small and letting the revenue pay for the upgrades to the business. There is no better way to run a business than on cash. When funds are low, the overhead is also low, unless you have collectors on your tail about repayment.
Finding a name, creating your identity, and other graphic elements may come easy to some. I would have a lot of fun with this. I like playing with logo design and thinking up creative but effective business names. Most successful businesses however use names that the customer/client will identify with. It is a tough job to find a successful business that completely creates an identity from nothing; however, Apple Computer Corp and GOOGLE have done a fine job creating an international identity from objects and colors nearly completely unrelated to the products and services they sell.
Find Great People!
As you build your business, it is important to hold diversity key in finding talent. A collaboration of different ideals will help create new concepts that can be interpreted more accurately by a wider audience. Take for instance an insurance company A. Insurance company A employs a 'mold' of people whom received a specific degree, then tailors their own training to all employees.
Now take your design firm and think about the processes you might undergo when selling a product to your client. Insurance company A will have to be very competitive and unimaginative as they go against all other companies whom sell similar products. Your design company however is handling the advertising for GEICO. GEICO uses amazing caricatures, plot-lines, graphic elements (the Geco), etc. They get these ideas by having a diverse design team. They are selling the same services as other insurers, but they make it fun, colorful, exciting, and most of all unique.
Finding a creative team that will help you come to these solutions for clients is key. Having them all with the same backgrounds will render new ideas as variations of the older. The United States is a great example of the strength of Diversity as it has landed a multitude of cultural music, art, inventions, and the list goes on.
With this strong team, it will be easier to approach new clients, find work and be competitive in the diverse market place.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Week 2: Logo Research and Design (There's a lot here but it's worth it!)
January 31st; In Class Topics;
(Copyright BAmagazine.com)
Thank's to the editors of BAmagazine.com and others for giving me a head-start on preceptualizing my rough draft logo design. Because my name is very unique, I feel that I am going to go with a type-face alteration appraoch to my logo design. An inital thought would have been to begin a brand. For this to be successful, my initial fear was that employers might remember an my initials rather than an icon representing myself. There are very few "Krys'" on the planet, and my last name "Romanczak" is far too long for a quick iconistic approach. Using the letters K, & R however could be a great sollution. I could work on these two letters to create a logo that is both Iconistic and Texual. Take for example these logo's I discovered utilizing the links and PDF's suggested by my professor, Pattie Bell Hastings.
More on these books below: See my Journal Entries detailing my personal weekly readings:
My Mind-Mapping Portfolio Edits: Attached is a new Mind-Map detailing experiences:
The original mind-map was soo extensive, it was thought that I should reduce some of the information on it. After my readings, I can see why "Quantity would hinder Quality" (see recap on my readings below) There were area's of the mindmap that contained more data than needed. This refined version will help employers better focus on the area's pertenant to the positions offered in Interactive and Graphic Design.
MindMap Link
Version 1.1
CH 2 - Adaptation: Designing a Digital Portfolio (DDP), by Cynthia L. Baron, Publisher: New Riders Press;
Adaptations.
The Experienced Viewer; Using Self evaluation to present your work
In this chapter, the author talks about using adaptive skills to present your work towards a targeted audience. This chapter has helped me realize new ideas that I can implement into my portfolio. I have learned that there are several way to overcome this obstacle.
"What are your strengths? What will you need to overcome? Do you have the talents that your target audience wants?" (DDP Ch 2 P.21)
"Soul-Searching" (DDP Ch 2 P.22) is an important process for you to undergo while contemplating your ideals for your portfolio. This important step will help you analyze values, personal strengths, and weaknesses. (See pages 23-25 for the self assessment checklist).
Self reflection is helping me realize my strengths and weaknesses. Stan Richards is quoted on page 26 about a key element sometimes overlooked while using this technique.
"The one thing I won't ignore is a lack of understanding of typography. There are lots of pieces of advertising that we can do without photography, illustration, or even color. There is nothing that we do that is without typography It is the single element that is omnipresent. It must be understood before a person can operate at a professional level.”
Goals are also a very important development that is derived from self reflection. New goals and former goals are strengthened when one realizes his/her area's of improvement. "Begin a portfolio without understanding why you're making one, and it will fall prey to one of the classic portfolio concept errors." (DDP Ch 2 P.28).
Reading on I have a better understanding of the thought process behind the creation of your portfolio. Many things make more sense to me. When you have established goals for your portfolio Values, Quality, Quantity, Reworking, and Rethinking (DDP Ch 2 P.27-31) become pivotal steps in creating something that will stand out well above the others.
Quantity: Be sure you have a wealth of information and examples without becoming a burden to the experience viewer. Being concise, to the point, and ready to display your best efficiently is far more effective than listing a plethora of information and content that may loose a viewer.
Quality: (Followed by Reworking and Rethinking) - Quality is far more important that quantity. Reworking old projects, rethinking old ideas will build a 'thought process' for the experience viewer. Showing your potential employer and or client a thought process can be invaluable to landing that new account or position.
Invention: Your portfolio should be a representation of yourself without the lacking of great navigation. Without clear navigation, you will loose your audience, or worse off, make them feel confused about your site. Make it easy for your audience to remember their footprints with clear, creative direction. When they visit the main page again, you want them to recognize the few steps it took them to get to a specific piece of information.
Balance you content with photo's, color, project samples, and complimentary typography that is easy to read. Your content layout should reflect your target audience. The text uses HPD as an example on page 38. "The HPD site page design has a distinctly corporate/professional feel. The layout is spare and tightly gridded." This effect was to entice the Microsoft audience for the summit 2000 invitation.
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How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul (HBG), by Adrian Shaughnessy, Stefan Sagmeister. Chapter's 3 & 4
Being Freelance.
“Design is either a solitary or a communal activity depending on your aesthetic view and psychological makeup." (HGP Ch 3 P.48).
How do you design? This chapter discusses two types of life styles for the freelance designer. The loaner and the resourceful. The loaner is described as not being of the conventional office/design studio setting, whereas the resourceful is typically associated with specialists such as a flash/java developer or typographer. Those whom are resourceful tent to be very skilled and can charge enough for their services to take some time off in between jobs. The loaner is someone "whom possesses strong personal vision that cannot be comfortably accommodated within the structure of a design group or an in-house studio."
How do I fit into this? I have very aggressive and oral communication skills and am very comfortable, however I see myself looking towards a design experience with other designers and developers. I feel like I have the flexibility to work both inside the confides of my own office space and out in the work with a team of people. This excites me as I feel like I have the flexibility to take my career where the market goes.
The chapter elaborates on how the ability to work from home is appealing, however, if you don't contain aggressively strong communication skills and a way to sell your product from across the country, this lifestyle of the 'loaner' may not be suitable for you.
Stability:
The freelance designer is only stable once he/she has secured enough accounts that provide a continual flow of work. If the work is not available to the client, or the client is not in need of work at a given time, the 'loaner' may have to rely on reserve funds to get by.
One whom is employed by a firm or corporation is only limited to employment if the firm as a whole is suffering due to the economy. The chances of loosing work is limited due to the relationships the firm has established, especially firms that have been in existence for some time.
Clients are also determinants of stability. If the client becomes unhappy with the work from a designer after some time, the position of that designer may be compromised if there are other clients that are moving away from the work provided by the artist. Clients also use outside determinants, such as personality, lower cost from freelancers, and other factors.
When working in a firm, you have the ability to bounce ideas off of colleagues whom are working towards similar goals and whom may not necessarily be in direct competition with you. Bouncing idea's off of other freelancers would pose a problem when trying to develop new ideas with your competition.
Be prepared to do your own business work and take time off from design to manage your business affairs such as taxes, savings, bills, and other administrative tasks.
Having the ability to take on new clients and create your own business freelancing may be the right thing for you! Or it might not. Taking your newly acquired skills out in the world will be a big test. Being able to grab onto clients, establish rapport, and creating new relationships all while managing your personal finances with those of your business is a big task, but if done right, it may be the most rewarding task you have undertaken. Be prepared to use the multitude of resources to bounce idea's. Get creative and be sure to use clear communication skills when communicating with your clients. Taking on freelance work may be the best thing you've ever done, but if it doesn't work out to freak out. There are many other opportunities with firms and corporations that may better suit you.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Week 1: Initial Concepts
January 24th; In Class Topics;
Today in class, we discussed the overall importance of 'branding' when it comes to selling ourselves to our potential employers. I have attempted this on my ROUGH DRAFT SITE (Picture is the Link)
Please keep in mind, this site was only designed to get a better grasp on implementing multiple products to create a website. The site was created using Flash, DreamWeaver, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Autodesk's Maya, and other products listed on the site.
In addition, we discussed purchasing a URL for our site. I was fortunate enough to be proactive and land the URL krys.us. A four-letter anything is hard to come by, especially one that is accurate to the spelling of my name! Thank you mom and dad for such a unique spelling!
Two Great Readings: See my Journal Entries on these great books below:
My Mind-Mapping Portfolio Preperation: Create and Extensive Mind-Map detailing experiences:
This mind-map will help me to assess ideas for implementation to my portfolio site. This mindmap was done using NovaMind. I used free trial download in wich I later upgrated to the paid-for version as I found the program very valuable in sorting my thoughts. CLICK HERE to checkout the program in a new window.
CH 1 - Professions: Designing a Digital Portfolio (DDP), by Cynthia L. Baron, Publisher: New Riders Press;
Goals of a Portfolio.
“Defining yourself to the work is more difficult that it used to be.” (DDP Ch 1 P.4) Cynthia, author of Designing a Digital Portfolio, underscores a growing concern amongst new designers that are in the midst of obtaining new careers in Digital Design. The chapter points out frustrations and concerns of defining ourselves amongst the multitudes in the ever-growing digital medium.
In addition to the laptop and desktop now in the homes of almost every American and top nations, the world wide web has provided a place for even the inexperienced to display their works. It has become an ever-increasing area to find uniqueness amongst the many. It is this problem that designers have found opportunities to express a higher level of professionalism and creativity to stand out amongst the masses.
The modern digital designer is in need of a well defined digital portfolio with easy navigation and clear concept creativity to express and showcase their projects. Easy is a victim of conformity that will blunder and bury the potential creativity of a designer.
This is especially true in the world of Digital Photography where it is ever more important to have a portfolio site that sets them above the others. Interactivity and creativity using newer versions of Flash and Photoshop have given designers new tools to show interested individuals uniqueness amongst a growing and popular field.
“Experience Designer”
Defining yourself as a Graphic Designer..
Are you a designer or an “experience designer”? An experience designer is able to create experience by expressing variety, style, technology, craft, process, and concept/creativity. (DDP Ch 1 P.7-8)
“… a digital portfolio offers the opportunity for a performer to establish credibility and to provide a more professional presentation.”
(DDP Ch 1 P.18)
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How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul (HBG), by Adrian Shaughnessy, Stefan Sagmeister. Chapter's 1 &2
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Introduction
Hey! My name is Krys Romanczak (Sounded out, it's Chirs Roman-Zack). I am a senior at Quinnipiac University in Hamden CT.
This Blogg was created to follow my portfolio progress while in my IDD 480 portfolio class lead by Professor Pattie Belle Hastings. IDD Stands for Interactive Digital Design. It is a four year Bacholer's of Art program offered at Quinnipiac University located in Hamden, CT USA. In this Blogg, you will see weekly a journal of my assignments, reading, and progress during the creation of my portfolio updated daily.