Critique: Simplicity Cover for print

This past week I won my first cover design competition! My Simplicity (Now "Keeping it real simple") cover will be published for the 3/29 issue. I'm so excited for my first cover!
Here's what the new version looks like. Unfortunately I only have the .indd document on my computer, so the font for the story title and blurb is changed. When I get on a Vox computer next I'll fix this...

I definitely like the color scheme more now than on the version I showed on the blog last week. I also like the fading of the handwritten text. I didn't want to fade it too much or the last few words become completely lost, but I thought this was enough to give it a nice feel. What do you guys think? (minus the font problem os course).

Response: Double production

Due to meeting this week, I do not have much to respond to. My portfolio review is tomorrow and therefore have nothing to talk about from class Tuesday. Instead I would like to talk about double production week(end).
This weekend I was working on two issues. First, I had the departments from the 3/22 issue. That was a whole mess in itself seeing as a story that was supposed to be a secondary was written as an anchor, but I'll spare you the details. At the same time, I had to produce the cover for the 3/29 issue. It was definitely interesting to keep track of everything. I must admit that I got lost in PlanJob a few times because I was under the wrong issue. I can't even begin to imagine how the editors felt this past week. I must say though, I really did enjoy it.

You Can't Miss: these awesome logos

This week I went and looked at more logos. I found this interesting collection of logos. It contains 40 logos that the site found to be interesting and creative. My favorite happened to be this one:

I absolutely fell in love with this logo. I love how the bottle turns into a peeling apple. It's such a simple touch that really elevates the feel of not only the logo, but also the company. And the color choice goes great with the company as well. Overall, I think it was a great job.
What's you favorite logo?

Critique: Simplicity cover

Tomorrow in class I will be presenting my final Simplicity cover. I'm finishing it up in the morning (I need a break just to work on some other things) but I'm happy with how it is going. All that's left is figuring out how to fit the title onto the page.
I took my original idea of using the handwritten piece from the woman on the cover and pairing it with her image. For this draft, however, I cut out the woman and placed the text beside her. This really gave me a chance to play with cutouts and photos a bit more. It also took me a while to literally trace every single letter with the pen tool to extract the text and be able to manipulate it. I think had to place everything word by word to make it fit onto the page. It was a tedious process, but I'm happy with the results so far. Now I just need to figure out the title placement and font. Wish me luck! Can't wait for you to see it tomorrow.

Response: Helvetica and Just My Type

Helvetica...

Where do I begin? I didn't hate the documentary. I found it to be interesting and enlightening. I never actually paid attention to how often this typeface is used. I mean yes, I have noticed many uses for it, but it wasn't until they had one man point out different places where Helvetica was used on the streets until I actually realized that the font was all over. It has definitely given me a new appreciation for Helvetica and, at the same time, made me want to avoid using it whenever possible to avoid becoming just another overlooked designer with boring, basic type choices.

Just My Type...

I have actually found this book to be quite enjoyable. At first I thought I would be bored while reading it, but I found it to be a quick read with some interesting ideas. As requested, I will be talking about three chapters that I particularly found interesting.
12: What the font? I found this chapter interesting for its mention of an iPhone application that can identify fonts. While this chapter also admits that the app has its issues, I still had no idea it even existed. Needless to say I put the book down and picked up my phone the second i saw this and downloaded the application instantly. I still have yet to try it out, but when I do I will let you know how it goes.
2: Capital Offence I didn't necessarily learn much from this chapter seeing as I already understood the connotation of capital letters, but I found the chapter to be very entertaining. It is also refreshing to hear someone else speak of (or write about) type etiquette. As designers we must evaluate our type choices and use fonts that are relevant to the message we are trying to convey. Therefore, this chapter is a very important lesson for us.
3: Legibility vs. Readability This is an important concept for all designers. We have to make sure it is possible to read what we create. It doesn't matter how great something looks if no one can understand what it says. This also relates to a post I made a few weeks ago in a "You Can't Miss" section where the bottom of a logo was cut off and the entire meaning was lost. One problem I run into is that I know what I mean for something to say so I'll assume everyone can read it. It is important for us to let a fresh pair of eyes see our work so that we know it is legible.

You can't miss: Logos in maps

This week on the blog I'm following I found an interesting article about the use of logos on online maps. The article talks about how CityMaps now uses logos within their maps to show where certain places are. It is only like this for a few cities so far, but it's still very interesting. Here's what it looks like:

I think it's interesting that logos have become so recognizable and distinct that they can be used on a map and (mostly) everyone will know what they are. I think it's even easier to read than a regular map.
I hope they come out with a version for Chicago soon!

You can't miss: Pelogo

As we all know, I chose to look at the website "Logo Design Love" this semester. This week on the site I found a very interesting logo. It's made of.... hair.... Check this out:

I'm all for adding a personal touch to your logo, but I never thought anyone would take that as adding their own hair to their logo. I have to commend them, it looks pretty cool. I just don't think I could chop of some of my hair for the sake of a logo. What do you guys think... genius? or purely insane?

Response: In class critique

This week we looked at one another's work to give feedback. I received feedback that was pretty much what I expected. Nothing too spectacular (I'm still learning after all) but still marks above just a standard "good."
One comment that many designers had about my portfolio was that a lot of the pieces seemed very clean, but at the same time very safe. I do agree that I need to push my boundaries a little more, especially with typography. I want to start branching out and exploring what more I can do with page layouts. But at the same time I was glad to hear these comments that my work was simple (while still impactful).
My current dream jobs are at a magazine like Real Simple or Martha Stewart Living. In these magazine the goal is to be simple, yet with an impact. I mean let's face it, that's pretty much the whole reason behind the magazine Real Simple's title.
So while I do agree that I need to touch up some work and play with bigger, bolder choices, I'm glad to see I'm at least on the right track for these kinds of magazines.

Critique: Softball Covers

This week I worked on potential covers for the softball issue of Vox. I presented three covers, each using a different one of our photo choices. Here were the three options I gave:



This week I started showing my work with cut outs. I did a cutout of the girls arm and leg on two of the covers so that I could put her over the text. The leg cutout turned out successful, but I had some difficulty with the arm. Since she was pitching at the time the image was taken her arm and the ball were extremely blurry. If I choose to put these covers in my portfolio I definitely need to clean up the cut outs. That's what happens when you try to do a cutout with little to no time... They don't look up to your personal standards.
I hope to do more work with cutouts in the future, however, and then come back to deal with the more difficult, blurry image.