OUGD603 - Work Experience/Starting My Job - The First 2 Weeks!

So I started my job at Engaging Education 2 weeks ago!

It has been a jam packed 2 weeks but I have thoroughly enjoyed it and am loving working in the professional world!

Here is a round up of what I have been up to for the last 2 weeks;

MONDAY 15TH APRIL:

- Today I had my introduction in which I met the rest of them team, settled into my desk space and was then given a brief overview of the clients and projects the team work on. We then had a Streamtime meeting at 9AM which is a weekly Monday thing. This is where the team discuss exactly what each person is working on what day that week. I was shocked when I saw that the team had already added me to the timetable and I had a project to work on on my first day! After the meeting we then came back upstairs to the studio where I was given my first project.

The project was to create branding for a school's visions & values - this included things like social media posts, posters and banners. I was quite nervous to begin with as I was wary of designing something that would be appropriate for the school. I was sat next to Amy, another designer, and she was really helpful with any questions I had.

TUESDAY 16TH APRIL:
- Today I was given another task, which was to help with some pages from the post-event magazine for National Careers Week. The particular pages I was given to work on were the social media pages, that displayed a collection of tweets and Instagram posts from the week.

I really enjoyed this particular task but also found it quite challenging as I don't have much experience with layout design. It was great to learn some new tips and tricks within Illustrator! 

WEDNESDAY 17TH APRIL:

- This morning I was carrying on working on the NCW social media pages, which were then sent off around lunchtime to the client!

After lunch myself and the 4 other designers had a design team meeting, which is something they do every 2 weeks to keep each other in the loop with what they have been working on. It was interesting to see what the other designers had created and it really helped me get to know some of their other clients better.

After the meeting I started working on a new task, still related to National Careers Week, but for a different booklet for one of their sponsors. Again, this is something I found interesting to work on as it was all new to me!

After work we all went out for a meal in Wakefield to celebrate expanding the team! I had a great night and the team made me feel so welcome.

THURSDAY 18TH APRIL:

- Today I have been working on the NCW booklet again, which took most of the day but was finished by home time ready for the client. We also had a dog in the studio today! Amy's dog Louie came in as he would've been left home alone if not. He was so cute and even sat on my knee for a bit whilst I did my work!

FRIDAY 19TH APRIL:

- Today is Good Friday so we haven't been in work! Reflecting on my first week I have had the best team, I really like the team and the studio vibe is so relaxed! Looking forward to returning for my second week.

MONDAY 22ND APRIL:

- Today is Easter Monday, so again, we haven't been in work. I have been wondering what
I will be working on tomorrow - I am finding it all so exciting! 

TUESDAY 23RD APRIL:

- Start of the second week! Today I have been given a fresh project to work on - a parents booklet for a primary school. We also had our weekly Streamtime meeting this morning, in which I received some good feedback on my designs from last week. 

WEDNESDAY 24TH APRIL:

- Today I have continued working on the same project from yesterday, the parents booklet. In the afternoon I got some feedback from the design director Imran, who helped me get my designs ready to send to the client. By the end of the day the designs were sent off ready for feedback! 

THURSDAY 25TH APRIL:
- Today I got given fresh project to work on - creating some branding for the 'moving up' scheme at a school. This was aimed at new year 5/6 students moving up from primary to secondary school. The purpose of the branding was to get them excited and help more people choose that particular school to go to. This branding was then to be applied to goodie bag materials such as badges etc.

I found I quite struggled with this task for a variety of reasons. I was given free reign with no design direction from the client, which is good in some ways, but I didn't really have that much room for manoeuvre as it still had to be relevant to the school and their current branding. The branding also had to have a formal, almost prestigious element to it, which still being appealing to 10/11 year old children. This is something I found quite difficult to get the balance with! 

FRIDAY 26TH APRIL:
- Today I have just carried on working on the 'moving up' project. I have had a full day just hammering out lots of different concepts so am feeling a bit better about it today! On Monday I just need to put my final designs into a presentation format ready to send off to the client.


OVERVIEW;

Overall I have really enjoyed my 2 weeks at Engaging Education! It has been a real eye opener for me to see how a studio actually runs and functions on a day to day basis! I have realised that it is a lot busier than I thought, and hard to keep to tight deadlines! I have loved getting to know the team and they have made me feel welcome from day 1.

I am really excited about the future and looking forward to moving forward in my job! 

OUGD603 - End of Module Evaluation

Overall, I have really enjoyed this module and believe it has taught me the essential skills needed for a career in the creative industries.

During the early stages of the module, I found it quite difficult to adapt to working on multiple briefs at once. I found it quite hard to balance different projects at the same time and jumping from one project to another was quite confusing at times. Contrastingly, especially during the later stages, sometimes I found it nice to be able to switch to a completely different project as it felt like a breath of fresh air after focusing on one specific brief for a while. On certain weeks where I felt as though my ideas were drying up or I was having a mental block, it was nice to have the freedom to switch to a completely separate project and ‘refresh’ my creative mind as such.

I also found time management quite hard at times, especially when certain projects ran over the planned/estimated length of time. Sometimes I felt as though as I misjudged how long it would take to do things – some tasks took almost double the time I expected, whereas others only took half the time I had planned them to take. In that sense, this module has helped me get to know just how long certain things can take, which is valuable knowledge I can take into my professional career.

I really enjoyed the freedom of being able to choose my own briefs. This allowed me to really stay interested and passionate about the things I was doing, as it each project catered to my own areas of interests. As my main interest is branding and packaging, it was great to be able to either seek out briefs or make up my own in order to create the best, most engaging work I could.

Having such a busy, packed schedule over the course of this module has taught me a lot about how to handle multiple projects within an industry setting. It has made me better able to cope with tight deadlines and difficult briefs, and I certainly feel more confident in myself in terms of going into the professional world and knowing how to handle my workload.

OUGD603 - Pizza Box Rebrand - Evaluation

 Overall, I feel that this project has been really successful and I have produced an effective outcome.

Looking at the before and after designs side by side, you can see a clear change in style between the two.

The original packaging was very dated and overcomplicated, whilst the new rebrand is clean, fresh and modern.

The lack of graphics used makes a refreshing change, and puts the focus on the text itself.

There is still a light-hearted and quirky element portrayed in the small illustrations - this stops the design from being too formal or serious and adds a pop of colour requested by the client.

The cardboard background carries connotations of health and organic produce, which subliminally portrays a positive message to the consumer.
I managed to reach a well rounded and professional outcome in the space of two days, which I am really happy with. It is important to be able to produce a finalized design in a short amount of time, as the creative industry is infamous for tight deadlines.

I am happy with the amount of work I have produced in the short time frame, and believe that my final design is effective and eye-catching.

Given more time, I would’ve explored a few different ideas further, however this could have led to me potentially overcomplicating the designs and adding too much - so in this sense, the short time-frame has probably been beneficial in producing a simple yet effective final outcome.

OUGD603 - New Choice - Evaluation

Overall, I feel the rebrand has been very successful.

The simplistic and modern style is a breath of fresh air in comparison to the old branding, which was bland and dated.

The main typeface used has a sense of elegance and femininity, which is attractive for the female audience, without being too over the top.

The secondary typeface adds an element of formality and seriousness without being too heavy or hard hitting. The capitalized, sans-serif style creates a sense of luxury, implying that this is a premium product.

The focus on leaves, greenery and foliage is a unique style that will stand out on the market. The ‘back to nature’ theme is prominent, and takes away the scary, daunting nature of a pregnancy test (or other feminine products).

This is further emphasized in the hierarchy of information - facts and statistics are kept to a minimum, and any mention of numbers and figures are small and out of the way.

The simplistic nature of the design means that all clutter is removed, and the product is clear and straightforward - again, something that is attractive to the potential buyer.

Each of the products are very similar in the nature of the packaging, which makes it clear that they are all part of a range. The idea is that the branding will become familiar and trusted, and consumers will be more likely to branch out and try the other products.

On the shelf, the products really differ from others available on the market, and the fresh approach becomes the brand’s own USP. Consumers are to see the brand as calm, relaxed, natural, organic alternative to other heavily medical focused products out there.

Given more time I would have liked to have potentially developed the range further and explored other products that could be included.

In general I feel the products look well-rounded and professional, and the simplicity of the design speaks for itself.

OUGD603 - KFC YCN - Evaluation

Overall, I feel the poster campaign has been really successful.

The contemporary collage style adds a fun, quirky and playful element to the design. The half-tone is used to add a retro element - relating to when the business was first set up in the 1950s.

The illustrations over the top of the images add a sense of energy and swagger - the juxtaposition of the black and white imagery alongside the red pen is engaging and exciting.

The strapline in the corner of each poster further emphasises the focus of the campaign, stating ‘Authentic.Handmade. Handcrafted.’ This puts across a clear message to the audience and solidifies the idea. The ‘handcrafted’ element is then played on using imagery by incorporating craft-based equipment such as scissors and glue.
This is a light-hearted take on the hand prepared
element.

The light-hearted collages suit a contemporary and modern audience, and are relevant and fun in the
current advertising world.

Given more time, I would’ve potentially liked to have created a few more posters and different designs. I would’ve also looked at using the designs across different formats, for example seeing how they functioned online, on a website potentially. However, I did want to stick with a more traditional, print-based outcome in order to allude to the businesses history, rather than swaying towards a more digital approach.

I believe that the posters communicate the desired message very effectively and efficiently - the meaning behind them is very clear. The combination of both imagery and text solidifies this, and they compliment each other really well.

The aesthetic of the campaign is very memorable and would stick in people’s heads - which is the desired result from a project like this.

OUGD603 - Kankan Moussa - Evaluation

 Overall, I feel my final logo works really well.

I believe it answers the brief in a variety of ways - such as referring to African culture and focusing on the nut, but in a unique and unpredictable way.

The three-colour palette is simple yet eye-catching and striking. The red and white colouring of the nut is used, but in a slightly different way with a creamy off-white and pink toned red.

The thick black outline of the nut works alongside the typeface - the width of the two is almost identical, which creates a visual harmony.

The typeface itself alludes to African culture in subtle yet interesting way, and functions playfully alongside the logo whilst still keeping a formal element through the capitalization.
Due to the short, three-day nature of the brief, I was unable to explore my idea further. Given more time, I would’ve liked to have pushed this idea in a few different directions and explored more with form and layout. However, I believe I have reached a rounded and professional finished outcome in the short time I had.

I get the impression that culture and meaning behind the logo was very important for the client, and given more time I would’ve really liked to delve deeper into this. It would have allowed me to really put a strong message behind the logo and would’ve potentially pushed the design process a lot further.

OUGD603 - Hidden Figures - Evaluation

Overall, we feel that the final poster designs were really effective and portrayed the message we wanted to get across.

The simplistic nature of the designs means it is clutter-free and easy to engage with. We have touched on the struggles faced through autism by using disjointed text, but not so much that it is illegible.

The typeface chosen, Integral CF Bold, is strong and clear, ideal for putting across an important message. The capitalized nature adds an element of formality and seriousness to the design.

The disjointed text is used to show the difficulties people with autism face with reading and writing. Often people with autism struggle to read, and the words can become jumbled up on the page. We wanted to represent this by using a disjointed style - this was harder to read and uncomfortable on the eye, but this is the effect we wanted to achieve.

The large smiley face plastered over the text is a metaphor for the idea that autism is a hiding disability. The signs and symptoms are placed on a layer underneath the face, with the face on top ‘masking/hiding’ the true reality underneath. Many cases of autism go undiagnosed, especially in children, so the idea is to highlight the fact that deeper problems can be going on under the surface, behind a seemingly ‘normal’, happy person.

The text used is minimal - there are only three bits of information included on the posters. One being the symptoms, one being the strapline/tagline for the campaign ‘autism is a hidden disability’, and the other being a website address to visit for further information. We wanted the strapline to be simple, clear and hard-hitting. The idea is that people will see the graphics above, then read the strapline below that gives them a clear and concise message - autism isn’t a disability you can always see.

Given more time, myself and Dani would have liked to have developed this a bit further, expanding the campaign. We would have liked to have produced some other materials such as flyers and information books, even potentially a website - however due to the heavily research-led nature of this brief, we simply did not have the time.

We received some really great feedback on the posters, and people commented on how simple yet hard-hitting they were. Overall we feel we have answered the brief really well, despite swaying away from the original RSA brief and making it into our own. We felt that we were able to produce a better, more rounded outcome by using our own take on the brief after some in-depth research.