Design Practice: April 2014

BA (Hons.) GRAPHIC DESIGN		LEVEL	05
Module Code	OUGD503
Module Title	Design Process

END OF MODULE SELF-EVALUATION

NAME	Sophie Abell

1. What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?

The biggest skill I have developed would be Photoshop and Indesign. Normally I would shy away from these software’s however I pushed my self to try and learn these software’s. Obviously I knew the basics but I never actually really used them to the potential I could have. I also believe that time keeping and communication skills have improved hugely. When working for clients or in a collaborative partnership if you don’t do something then your not only disappointing yourself but others too, so that has been something that I have tried my best to follow through out this brief. Communication has been key, I believe that throughout this module if you didn’t communicate with either client or you collaborative partner then your project wouldn’t be a success, because the whole idea of the module was to create for others and not just yourself.

2. What approaches to/methods of design production have you developed and how have they informed your design development process?

The approaches I have taken when at the design production stages is to try something different, I think it is important to hand draw things yet I very rarely do this so it was a pleasant surprise to go back to that way of designing rather then going straight on to the computer and creating and developing the design. This has worked most effectively with my Cath Kidston brief for YCN but also that way of thinking has further been pushed from working in a collaboration where my partner did all the hand drawn parts and I did all or majority of the digital work. Designing like this not only gives you more freedom it also adds another personal element to your work. So in the future with other briefs if It is appropriate I will try and use a hand rendered style of designing more often.

3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?

The strengths within my work would probably be how different they are, I believe I haven’t yet found my ‘style’ of design it is still unrecognizable however I have come to the conclusion that Branding is a considerably big part of my design and something that I thoroughly enjoy the most. Another strength within my work would be the time keeping aspect of it all, I submitted or handed in all the briefs on time and there isn’t a brief which I feel has been particularly poor so I think I coped well with self motivation and time keeping

4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future?

Documenting my development, as I tend to design on the computer, I have realized that I Hadnt saved all of the different development stages I went through to get my final outcome, which really isn’t helpful when the development and the story of how you got the final outcome. For future briefs this will be something that I work on. I also wish that I had taken on bigger briefs as until I was writing the report had I realized the majority of briefs I chose to do were primarily all branding so within the future I need to remember to push out of my comfort zone and try something different.

5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?

-Try different types of Graphic Design, such as packaging, info and way finding etc

-Save and do more development, As soon as im happy with something or as soon as I have an idea I tend to just stick with that one idea rather then push it further.

- Take part in more live briefs and competitions, this is going to be one of most important ways of getting my work out there but also feeling that my work is apreciated

6.How would you grade yourself on the following areas:

(please indicate using an ‘x’)

5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor

Attendance

Punctuality

Motivation

Commitment

Quantity of work produced

Quality of work produced

Contribution to the group

The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.

Self Evaluation

One of the biggest issues I have faced throughout this course so far I guess is, is Graphic design right for me, am i equally as talented as everyone else on this course. Am i a graphic designer ? I guess it is a confidence thing more then anything. I am very self aware of my abilities and i do restrict as to what i design because i am always wondering as to wether is this right for the brief am i doing it correctly. Within this brief I truly believe all these feelings came about at some point along the way, I feel as if I did tackle them to the best of my ability, and tried so hard not to compare what i have designed with other people. I believe in what they say when they say your a good designer if you make other designers wish they had thought of that’

This brief has been incredibly beneficial to me, answering the above questions and in some respect made me feel even more self conscious of my designs however having the ability to design work for clients and them eventually being happy with what I have produced has been a confidence boost. Having the freedom to do briefs that I wanted to do, that feel have suited me has been such an incredible experience i have not only learnt about what i can and can’t do, as well as experience working with clients who have a vision just like i do of what they want. Also it has changed my view of working as a collaboration, something that i would have shied away from, however int he final outcome I ended up taking part in two collaborative briefs which in my opinion have had successful outcomes after all two minds is better then one. I have come to the conclusion that Graphic design is all about pleasing the viewer, If you please at least one person at least your doing something right.

This module has been a roller coaster it has been stressful, hard work but it has been rewarding and fun. Self motivating myself to do briefs in the correct time frame, to work with clients who want something specific and working with them to create a piece that you are both equally pleased about.

I have become more confident with using Adobe photoshop and Indesign too programmes that scare me more then anything and this is something i tackled, taking time to watch tutorials on how to do something a certain way and using it for the final pieces is something that i can take with me, and know that i can use them with out ruling them out altogether.

However one thing I believe i wish i had pushed my self to do more of is web design, I focused on collecting and gathering print based briefs because this is something within my comfort zone so although i pushed my self in one direction i shied away from this form and thats something i should have possibly used as an advantage to try and do more of with in this module.

This module has given me the confidence to show and be proud of my work which is why i have finally created a Behance portfolio and along with my new found knowledge of where and how to complete live briefs I will aim to keep doing these in my spare time, as practise does make perfect and whats the point in being a designer if no one is going to see and appreciate your work, so that is something that i will continue to do, as well as push my self into different directions of design, after all i can only improve.

Overall the Positives and the learning outcomes i have achieved are:

-Time management

Iv always had an issue with prioritising what is important, but when working for clients, within a collaboration and with competition deadlines you can’t be lazy and put things off to the last minute because quite frankly its selfish and you are not taking advantage of the opportunities given to you.

-Criticism

There were times within the briefs when i have received some criticism on my work, I used to hate people looking and judging my work but now i welcome it with open arms as this is only going to help get you a better outcome as well as giving you fresh new ideas ones that i may not have thought about before

-Software

Feeling more confident in using photoshop and Indesign is such a relief and this had broadened my design knowledge and what i am capable of doing with this software at hand.

-Confidence

I truly feel that this brief has given me the confidence that i needed, even though that none of my briefs won any competition i strongly believe that i have grown as a designer throughout this module and that i shouldn’t be so worried and shy about my designs