September - November - Focus on researching studios, figuring out a way of approaching talking with them and what I want to say, contextual & visual research into self promotion
December - Make any personal branding changes and devleop a plan of relevent collateral, create a plan for contacting studios
January - Make contact with studios, begind with online self promotion
February - Make PDF portfolio & CV to show studios, make professional Instagram, begin website design
March - Finsish website design, talk about internships with stufios
April - Be doing or have done an internship, have all self promo done, print any self promo materials (portfolio, business cards etc.)
May - Submit PPP, have job interviews and be actively be applying for jobs and internships
June - Do internships and freelance briefs
July - Hopefully have a job!
Sunday 14 May 2017
~ Level 6 - Final self evaluation ~
This year has been completely pivotal for me and my personal design practice. I have changed the way I view my work as my work has improved massively. I realised I spent the first 2 years trying to conform to what I felt graphic design should be and should look like. This meant my work was bland, didn't stand out and wasn't true to my creativity and imagination. This year was a year for discovery and finding a new process of working and coming up with original ideas for answering briefs. I look at my portfolio as a whole now and its so colourful, illustrative, expressive and bold. I think in comparison to the bog standard and regular designers portfolio it does stand out and thats what I was trying so hard to achieve before but I didn't realise I needed to stop trying to be something and just let it flow naturally to achieve this.
Another thing that i've gained masses of confidence in is my presentation and general professional interaction skills. At the beginning of the course I felt really anxious in presentation and interview situations. My increase confidence in my own work has helped in the ease I now feel speaking about my work and practice. These skills are key for thriving as a designer as meeting with/pitching to clients will be a huge part of selling my ideas.
My biggest negative/worst trait during the year has been my overall time management. Many of my briefs this year have challenged my time management skills; demanding certain submission dates. These have pushed me to organise myself well and plan ahead particularly within production. But unfortunately this meant the more self directed briefs that didn't have set deadlines often got pushed aside and left to last minute. In the future I hope to find better ways of organising my time across multiple projects without any having to get lost.
One of the most valuable experiences this year has been during my internship. I interned as an in-house designer at a tech based recruitment company. The internship was very cooperate based; producing mainly web based designs following a strict existing brand identity. The lack of creative freedom and focus on digital design really wasn't for me. This experiance has helped show me that going forward I need a job in a more creative studio environment in which I can express my multi-media, illustrative and creative style.
The past year I have engaged outwardly with studios. Talking and engaging with studios I find inspiring within Manchester, Leeds and Hull specifically. It's really gotten my name out their in terms of future employment opportunities and they have given me so much valuable advice in going forward. I aim to use these valuable contacts in the future when looking to collaborate, work, freelance or just network.
I have also improved my online & print presence massively - as advised by Craft (creative) recruitment. I adapted my portfolio into PDF, print and website form which gives me masses of options in terms of approach dependent on the context. I have printed a miniature portfolio also for interviews - I will be printing a full size one after the planned portfolio surgeries we have in the calendar. My brand identity is now looking secure and demonstrates my working style and positive, bright personality well.
Over the past 3 years i've had the best and worst experiences of my life. But I really feel like this is the first step on my path of success and look forward to an exciting future in the creative industries.
Another thing that i've gained masses of confidence in is my presentation and general professional interaction skills. At the beginning of the course I felt really anxious in presentation and interview situations. My increase confidence in my own work has helped in the ease I now feel speaking about my work and practice. These skills are key for thriving as a designer as meeting with/pitching to clients will be a huge part of selling my ideas.
My biggest negative/worst trait during the year has been my overall time management. Many of my briefs this year have challenged my time management skills; demanding certain submission dates. These have pushed me to organise myself well and plan ahead particularly within production. But unfortunately this meant the more self directed briefs that didn't have set deadlines often got pushed aside and left to last minute. In the future I hope to find better ways of organising my time across multiple projects without any having to get lost.
One of the most valuable experiences this year has been during my internship. I interned as an in-house designer at a tech based recruitment company. The internship was very cooperate based; producing mainly web based designs following a strict existing brand identity. The lack of creative freedom and focus on digital design really wasn't for me. This experiance has helped show me that going forward I need a job in a more creative studio environment in which I can express my multi-media, illustrative and creative style.
The past year I have engaged outwardly with studios. Talking and engaging with studios I find inspiring within Manchester, Leeds and Hull specifically. It's really gotten my name out their in terms of future employment opportunities and they have given me so much valuable advice in going forward. I aim to use these valuable contacts in the future when looking to collaborate, work, freelance or just network.
I have also improved my online & print presence massively - as advised by Craft (creative) recruitment. I adapted my portfolio into PDF, print and website form which gives me masses of options in terms of approach dependent on the context. I have printed a miniature portfolio also for interviews - I will be printing a full size one after the planned portfolio surgeries we have in the calendar. My brand identity is now looking secure and demonstrates my working style and positive, bright personality well.
Over the past 3 years i've had the best and worst experiences of my life. But I really feel like this is the first step on my path of success and look forward to an exciting future in the creative industries.
Saturday 13 May 2017
~ Internship review ~
Internship review - DanTech Talent
This internship was within a tech based recruitment agency as opposed to a creative design studio. It was something I wanted to experiance in order to know which jobs to apply for and which direction within graphic design I felt best suited to. This was a huge learning curve for me as i'd never produced design work within such tight brand guidelines - being told what colours, typeface, tone of voice needed to be portrayed throughout.
For me this wasn't an enjoyable experiance what-so-ever. The office environment was rather intimidating and very dull - it didn't inspire me at all. The corporate tone of voice of the work I produced allowed for no creative freedom and I really didn't enjoy making it. It taught me however how to engage with clients on a professional level, appropriate ways to conduct myself within an office environment etc.
I really did learn a lot from this internship mainly about the route I wish to take with my personal practice in the future. I most definitely do not want to work in house within a brand at all. It's too tightly bound and has too many constraints. From this I know to apply just for freelance and creative studio based work in the future.
I have made a client out of the company and do plan to work on a freelance basis with him in the future - but only on small and quick briefs.
Timescale - Date started 27/02/2017 End date 10/03/2017
This internship was within a tech based recruitment agency as opposed to a creative design studio. It was something I wanted to experiance in order to know which jobs to apply for and which direction within graphic design I felt best suited to. This was a huge learning curve for me as i'd never produced design work within such tight brand guidelines - being told what colours, typeface, tone of voice needed to be portrayed throughout.
For me this wasn't an enjoyable experiance what-so-ever. The office environment was rather intimidating and very dull - it didn't inspire me at all. The corporate tone of voice of the work I produced allowed for no creative freedom and I really didn't enjoy making it. It taught me however how to engage with clients on a professional level, appropriate ways to conduct myself within an office environment etc.
I really did learn a lot from this internship mainly about the route I wish to take with my personal practice in the future. I most definitely do not want to work in house within a brand at all. It's too tightly bound and has too many constraints. From this I know to apply just for freelance and creative studio based work in the future.
I have made a client out of the company and do plan to work on a freelance basis with him in the future - but only on small and quick briefs.
Timescale - Date started 27/02/2017 End date 10/03/2017
Wednesday 10 May 2017
~ Position statement ~
I have spent the most part of the past 3 years trying to categorise my work and design towards standards of what I felt design 'should' look like. This year that has completely changed, I have learnt to work in a more fluid way which has allowed me to develop my own individual style.
My work is illustrative in nature, colourful and emotive in positive ways. I like to work on briefs in which I can explore multi-media outcomes - print, animation, digital & physical. I feel this drive to create work that goes beyond the brief and beyond the guidelines makes me stand out among the crowd.
I plan to use my degree experiance and the skills gained through the past 3 years to pursue a career in design, multi-media creativity and art direction. I feel more comfortable than ever leading a group and taking the reigns both individual and group projects. Due to this new found lust for leadership I can see myself having a future in freelance work - hopefully leading on to the opening of my own design studio.
My portfolio is at a place that represents me as a designer well currently. I have only included work that I feel expresses my morals and preferred working style. My main fear being that I could end up working within a studio that is really corporate and dull which is the polar opposite of the type of design I enjoy creating.
My plan going from here is rather fluid but looking positive. I have been offered summer internships at Elmwood (Leeds), Alphabet (Manchester) and Music (Manchester. I then have an interview for a junior designer role with Graham and Brown (Manchester) who specialise in wallpaper & pattern design. And another interview for a graduate designer role with Strawberry Too (Hull); which is looking to be the preferred first job for me currently. I have also been in discussion with a creative in Hull setting up a multi-disclipinary creative hub/studio within the city; desk space for freelancers will be rented at a reasonable rate so this could also be a potential direction for me. Lastly i've been in touch with Hull's Humber street gallery about being taken on as an assistant curator - I have close links with a lot of local creative talent so this would also be a good outcome for me.
In terms of the future location isn't something that will limit me or my decisions. I am willing to go where the wind takes me as long as my creativity is not muted or pushed aside wherever I am working.
My work is illustrative in nature, colourful and emotive in positive ways. I like to work on briefs in which I can explore multi-media outcomes - print, animation, digital & physical. I feel this drive to create work that goes beyond the brief and beyond the guidelines makes me stand out among the crowd.
I plan to use my degree experiance and the skills gained through the past 3 years to pursue a career in design, multi-media creativity and art direction. I feel more comfortable than ever leading a group and taking the reigns both individual and group projects. Due to this new found lust for leadership I can see myself having a future in freelance work - hopefully leading on to the opening of my own design studio.
My portfolio is at a place that represents me as a designer well currently. I have only included work that I feel expresses my morals and preferred working style. My main fear being that I could end up working within a studio that is really corporate and dull which is the polar opposite of the type of design I enjoy creating.
My plan going from here is rather fluid but looking positive. I have been offered summer internships at Elmwood (Leeds), Alphabet (Manchester) and Music (Manchester. I then have an interview for a junior designer role with Graham and Brown (Manchester) who specialise in wallpaper & pattern design. And another interview for a graduate designer role with Strawberry Too (Hull); which is looking to be the preferred first job for me currently. I have also been in discussion with a creative in Hull setting up a multi-disclipinary creative hub/studio within the city; desk space for freelancers will be rented at a reasonable rate so this could also be a potential direction for me. Lastly i've been in touch with Hull's Humber street gallery about being taken on as an assistant curator - I have close links with a lot of local creative talent so this would also be a good outcome for me.
In terms of the future location isn't something that will limit me or my decisions. I am willing to go where the wind takes me as long as my creativity is not muted or pushed aside wherever I am working.
Tuesday 9 May 2017
Thursday 4 May 2017
~ Portable portfolio ~
When creating my PDF portfolio I considered layout in a way that it could be adapted into a small portable portfolio - to take with me to interviews and such. This is the final result, I am really happy with this as it gives interviewers and clients something physical and real in-front of them to show my work.
One negative thing I found was that many of my briefs have used stock choices or colours that cannot be printed using CMYK so these pages do not look as effective in printed format. This just means that I will always be sure to take my laptop or a tablet to show my digital portfolio alongside a physical one so they can really appreciate the real colours and effects of the final products.
I took this mini portfolio to my interview with Music and they really liked that i'd considered doing a miniature version as they are so used to seeing huge a3 portfolios and this is really different and shows my different thought process and approach to design and not being 'ordinary'.
~ Interview with Music ~
Today I had my interview with Music Agency in Manchester - to discuss my portfolio, so they could get to know me on a personal/professional level and to talk about dates for me to intern with them over summer.
This was a brilliant experiance as it was my first time going into a purely creative studio environment and I was so amazed by how beautiful and inspiring the interior of the studio itself was. It's brilliant to be around such a creative, open and free flowing space and is most definitely the kind of place I could see myself working and thriving in the future.
I took with me both a digital form of my portfolio and a 'portable' printed version. I wanted them to have something to hold and appreciate physically but also my digital version was important as many of the colours and stock choices I have used cannot be printed properly using a lazer printer and can only be fully appreciated on screen.
They were really friendly and it was so awesome to meet other creatives as always. They said they found that my portfolio as a whole was really illustrative and thats something I should develop further as its what makes me stand out amongst other junior/graduate designers.
They talked through my 'misc logo' page of my portfolio and said it would be interesting to see some of the concepts even the un-used ones taken further so they could be appreciated in context. I talked through each one and it was great to brainstrom with them about how each brief could be taken further.
They were a huge inspiration and help to me in terms of advising me to take each brief further and really begin to consider how each brand could be translated onto different and imaginative forms of collateral.
They basically asked me to talk through each page/brief of my portfolio and I was really proud of myself as I did so with confidence and clarity and made sure to tell them about how informed each of the design decisions had been.
They said overall their favourite brief was actually my Nest 12 Planets/Space submission; they felt it was really bold and creative and expressed my vibe as a designer well. I told them how I planned to take this brief further into my Final major project and they asked me to send them a digital invitation to the end of year show as they would love to come see it!
I was offered a month long paid internship around July/August and I cannot wait! It couldn't of gone better and I cant wait to start.
Monday 1 May 2017
~ Logo design ~
This is my logo design from first year. It was created using the four z's in my name as I felt this was something iconic, simple and relevant to me. I made it orange as this colour gives off the vibe of positivity and brightness.
In second year I took it further; keeping the same basic form but making it hand rendered. I wanted my logo to be representative of my illustrative style and the fact I like to work away from my laptop a lot of the time.
I developed this idea further to incorporate other ways to show that I am multi disclipinary; a designer, illustrator and animator. This gif is what I feature on the ends of all my emails and within my web presence. Its simple and effective and just lets people know its me they are talking to; I think the simple fact that it moves makes me memorable in comparison to others who dont.
I took this idea of using moving image to promote myself even further this year in creating an addition animation. The animation will not act as my logo or replace the logo but will be an additional part of my self promotion as a designer. It will feature on all online media and act as a way of saying that I can animate and hopefully direct people to visiting my website.
~ Website creation/design ~
I kept the design really minimal and straight to the point as I am not a web designer; I wanted the work shown to be what represents me as a designer as a pose to the design of the website. It looks really professional as I used SquareSpace which allows you to create something well designed, easily editable and effective for displaying a portfolio.
I used the font Chivo as this has become part of my new brand identity this year; used in my portfolio, CV and business cards so I kept my website consistent with this. I used the colour yellow throughout as its also part of my brand identity, featured in my 'profile' image, CV and all of the links featured on the website.
I also included my gif logo in the top corner so that it links clearly to all of my emails and people know they have reached the right web address.
I set up the home page so that when you hover over each project image it automatically swatches a colour from that image; and creates a hover over with the pages title. Its a simple addition but looks really effective and well considered when using the site.
This is what one of the click through work pages on the site looks like. I chose to use full spreading images so people could really appreciate any detail in the images and its really immersive to view. Then smaller additional images at the end just to give some context and more views of each project. I also include a small description of each brief.
The site features links to all the other briefs at the bottom for ease of navigation.
Because I chose to design my website using Squarespace it means all of the templates are already compatible with mobile usage also; so I know i'm not limiting anyone who might want to view it. This image shows how the home page looks on mobile
This image shows the hover over coloured title in mobile.
How a project looks on mobile.
And last but not least, the navigation tab on mobile.
An important feature of my website was to include an about page; it's basically an online compressed version of my CV. Allowing people to see my employment experiance and all the exhibitions i've taken part in. It also has quick links to all my forms of social media and a contact form button which links directly to my work email. I also featured images of myself just to put a face to the name; I want to be memorable.
Another important addition to my website was my animated manifesto which has it's own page. Each animated is full spread as I really want to get the message across of exactly who I am and what I expect from other people in respect to working with them.
The last page i've created so far is the links page. This will include any links to other social media, online presence and anything I feel is relevant. This image shows a quick links panel to LinkedIn, email, Behance and Instagram.
I have also synced my Instagram feed live to this page so as I update that will work that is in progress that part of the links page will stay updated.
Another parts of my links page is my PDF portfolio. I have created an Issue virtual publication of my portfolio and had this embedded into the links page.
I have also embedded my creative report that I did with Alphabet to show my engagement with studios. I will continue to embed any publications I do in the future and this might even become a page for itself eventually.
The last thing on my links page is quite simply links - links to the relevant people/websites of people I have worked with and clients of mine as this displays my work in its actual context.
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