Extra Credit: Andrew Byrom Guest Speaker

After seeing his personal work on Friday night, I was able to see his strong passion for the work that he does. Although I have already seen the majority of the work that was already shown during this event, I was just as excited to see his work as I was the first time around. He mentioned that he started to see letters all around him that resembled letterforms: Band-aids, for example. His typeface design based on band-aids turned out bad, but as mentioned by him and any other graphic design professors I've had up until this point...you must have your fair share of failures because it is through those mistakes that will be used as a reminder to you as to what NOT to do when you come across the same scenario. Back in his studio in London, he was able to see a potential typeface design from chair that resembled the lowercase letter h. He created the entire alphabet with similar characteristics as the chair and it became pretty successful. He also came up with the idea of creating the typographic furniture for UCLA, and had put together a video for UCLA extension recently, but the video was actually taken at CSULB with CSULB students, not UCLA students

Weekly Inspiration#15: Visual Communication

I thought that this particular billboard was very affective when I first looked at it. The execution that had been put into play for this billboard have made visualizing the difficulties of stuttering so much easier. The idea of putting the issue being discussed into use, and integrating it into the composition itself, is something that I have always found interesting to see. Basically, the concept behind this is to encourage those who are caught in a conversation with people who stutters to not interrupt them while they're talking. People tend to finish the sentences of those people who stutter, and so, this billboard designed for the NFS (Dutch Stutter Foundation) is saying to have a little bit of patience.

Poster Sketches/Revised Logos

Poster Sketches

Revised Logos

Research: Project 4 Brand Identity

Amusement Parks: Raging Waters, Aquarium of the Pacific, Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm

Beaches: Venice Beach, Santa Monica Beach, Manhattan Beach

Ethnic Enclaves: Little Tokyo, Chinatown, Koreatown

Hiking Trails: Griffith Park trails, Santa Monica Mountains Waterfall Trek

Landmarks: Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Downtown Los Angeles, Griffith Observatory

Recreation: Hollywood Bowl, Nokia Theater, Santa Monica Pier, Music Center & Disney Hall

Sport Arena: Dodger Stadium, Rose Bowl, Staples Center

RESEARCH:
http://www.hotels.com/de1439028-la/all-landmarks-in-los-angeles-california/

http://anothersideoflosangelestours.com/

Extra Credit: Panel Discussion Critical Analysis

    There were three alumnus who were the main focus of the night, and they spent the evening discussing topics related to design and how they got where they are now. The first alumni, Amanda, graduated in 2009 and works in a studio called Citizen Global. She provided the audience with ten tips of her own as to how to become a better Graphic Designer, few of which we students should already be doing as we attend these Art courses, and those that encourages us to get into a more driven mentality that differentiates a good Graphic Designer from a great Graphic Designer. For the second alumni speaker, Neil Gutman, whom graduated from CSUN in 2008, he specializes in designing movie/TV show posters and works in the BLT studio, a design firm for the entertainment industry. He discussed several daunting projects that can last for several months,having to work 12-16 hour days without any lunch/bathroom breaks whatsoever, but there must be a small exaggeration in what he said. The last alumni speaker, AJ Himenez(?), specializes in Product design and he is a Freelance Designer, and promotional branding/identity is basically what he does. At one moment during Q & A, a student asked a question somewhere along the lines of whether he was prepared for the real world after he graduated and whether he was afraid or not. He responded to that question by saying that, as designers, you will constantly fail, but you must keep at it and learn from those mistakes and just try to avoid them next time, and that you also must love what you do, otherwise you will suffer and have a harder time competing with other designers who are more driven and “hungry”.

Weekly Inspiration#9: Baseline Grids

http://methodandcraft.com/videos/extensible-baseline-grids/

This video will instruct you on how to create a grid system that fit your style when it comes to designing. Taking the time on figuring out how to construct a grid system that works for you will make your designing process much quicker. Not only that, but it will also create a sense of consistency in your design to make it appear more organized. Instead of having to reposition guides on your artboard one at a time, the guides are locked down and kept in place. This is great for creating detailed work for websites, whereas everything will be aligned properly if you make good use of this method.

Revision for Website

Website Remodeling

http://www.brentsdeli.com/

This is the website that I decided on to make revisions for. This appears to be an already good looking website, but I will make an attempt to make it more simple to navigate through. There are several pop-up menus that are hidden behind the slideshow of images at the center, and I will try and figure out a way to  position them differently. There are only two locations of this family owned restaurant in the state and their mission is to be the best at what they do nationwide.

Weekly inspiration#8: Typography

http://developer.apple.com/safaridemos/showcase/typography/

I've always had a great deal of trouble when it came to choosing the right typefaces that fits the theme of my design. This little typography demo provided from the link above can give you a sense of typographic layout. If you're having trouble with tracking and leading, this interaction with typography might give you more knowledge as to how much leading is necessary, or how much tracking is considered to be TOO MUCH. The features that make this demo more complete are the provisions of a Grid system below the placement of your text, and the fact that you can also edit what text you want to display will give you more of what you want to see.

Weekly Inspiration#7: Anatomy of Typography

What are some important factors other graphic designers/typographers must be aware of in order to discuss typography? You must know your art terminologies for one, for it'll be easier to understand what needs editing when you are told what changes to make. It is ALWAYS a good thing to make it seem as if you know your stuff, and one way of doing so is KNOWING your terminologies. Take a look at the link below to rewind in your learning process and learn these typographic terminologies once more because there may be some of those you may not be too familiar with.

http://www.typographydeconstructed.com/

Weekly inspiration#6: Environmental Awareness

 I've always been fond of how designers make creative use of the environment and provide additional imagery to bring about awareness. The followings ads I have found had caught my full attention as I watched and viewed them. These ads that requires the interaction from the viewers and the creative usage of the environment that they're placed on are filled with the intent of making a change in bad human behaviors.



 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiYaz6xg4mM

This was used to raise awareness for the Weingart Homeless Center

Child Labor Awareness

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7we0kmf5v8

  

Deforestation Awareness

Domestic Abuse Awareness