layout studies

I've been experimenting with layout!

and these are my final decision! :D (I have a final decision finally!)

note: each life style has a master page!

concept: Menial jobs make big difference

my idea was to show a sequence of images of what those five different life styles go through everyday...I also treated each spread as a screen...so it wouldn't be static images and text only!

so each spread will continue the next spread > the idea of active jobs, movements...of those lifestyles!

I hope that makes sense to you -_-

here's how my final decision layout >

fieldtrip_AlDohaPrintingPress

haven't updated for ages :( I've never been THAT lost in the whole history of me being at VCUQ :P...but it's okay, I'm trying to keep up! "just stay positive" as fatoom alremaihi says! :D

so today we went to AlDoha printing press...

we saw the whole process of printing a book, poster, bussiness cards ... etc

printing main stages:

pre-press (color proof..etc)

printing (films, plates...etc)

post-press (binding, stitching, uv, lamination...etc)

pictures are NOT in order!!!

from left: mold of an envelope (folding and cutting)>uv exposed to sensitive plate to transfer artwork from film to plate>film transfered to plate> guy showing us how the 70x100mm sheet works when printing>pre-press, color proofing.

Type Workshop

We were in DESPERATE need for a type workshop! so Pornprapha decided to give us a basic typography workshop.
We were asked to replace simple shapes (square, line and dots) with type, without losing the essence of the shape. We had to conceder negative, positive space, composition, layout...etc

ProcessD

Okay so...based on the lifestyles I have, I decided to have a theme or a concept for my catalogue. So I started figuring out the form of the catalogue based on my concept, that is, an informative catalogue of the different lifestyles in a factory.
My form is basically a one piece poster that folds into a catalogue.
I have built my grid based on the form itself >>
NOTE: form is pinned on the pin board behind my desk if you're interested! ;P
The next step was to build a grid for each unite of the folds that works as a one piece fold by itself and that works as a whole.
so composition by itself and a composition that works as a whole.
AND THEN...I chose a typeface for the title, captions discriptions...etc, basically created a system that is based on my concept
AGAIN...system sheet is pinned on the wall behind my desk if you're interested.

WEDNESDAY'S CLASS UPDATE (11.03.09): Start all over again...PAY ATTENTION TO HOW you organize your items, the images style. PAY ATTENTION to the system. WHERE THINGS go exactly! FORM CAN COME NEXT, it's more important for US to concentrate on organizing the information or the system.

NEXT STEP:
Start over again...build up my grid for a spread, have a size...build the whole system again. MONDAY MUST: have ONE LIFESTYLE COMPLETED COMPLETLY!!! as if you're handing it in.

Visual Research

This is a series of ads that I found when Pornprapha asked us to do some visual research of different catalogues.
Pre-Icograda research ;)

This is just a simple research I did of how the basic catalogue layouts works. (where do the page numbers, information and images go) and how the user understands the information!

NOTE: If you want to see these ads in details come by our studio, it's pinned behind my desk directly!

P2 PROCESS/C

Like most of you, I have started brainstorming each life style and I kind of have a concept for all five styles. The problem is, I get so lost in the details...to me a catalgue is all about details...! size, materials, colors, function...etc! I'm a person who loves adding all kind of details, but do I really need to include all that? what are the things that I should include? What do my audience need to know exactly?
I have been looking through real catalogues and most of them have NO details. It's always about how it looks and the price...to me, this isn't enough! I need to know more!
UPCOMING PROCESS: list down what I REALLY want to include according to the concept that I have > build a layout for the catalogue > figure out the format of the catalogue according to the concept.
NOTICE: sketches and catalogue research images will be uploaded to the blog this sunday! my home scanner is from the stone age! -_-~

Comprehensive sketches

Chosen lifestyles after analyzing the flickr group photos:
1-Truck Driver
2-Secretary (Office user)
3-Athlete
4-Housewife
5-Adventurer

Sketches:
Done in details, focusing in color, size, material, function, size, priority and importance.

NOTE: these are only screen shots, for details...come by our studio class, it's pinned on the wall! 

Flickr upload

All hundred photos are uploaded to my flickr and to our flickr group.
NOTICE: all uploaded images are in .jpeg NOT .tiff due to the limited space flickr provides.
All orginal images will be available in our classroom's mac by next sunday!

enjoy the rest of the weekend (;

Maryam's Thumbnail

thumbnail sheet will be distributed to you this sunday! if you don't get a copy please let me know or come by my little corner! 

I can't upload all of my pictures to flickr, I used all of the space already. I will have them on our classroom's mac just as Reem suggested. I might resize them and make them a bit smaller for my flickr account.

Have a great weekend!

Group 2 - Workshop/Process

First we decided that all of our images are related to people in general. So our main category was people. From there, we divided it into four main categories, which are=house, technology, clothing and food. Our criteria for these categories was that they are the essentials for living. 

Categories in details:

1-House

-Bathroom:

Tissues

Toothbrush

-Lights

-Furniture

Couches

-Kitchen

Mugs

Dustbins

-Facade

-Doors

-Office

Stationary

Boxes

Pens/Pencils

2-Food

-Sweets

-Italian

3-Clothing

-Shirts

-Shoes

-Uniforms

-Accessories

Jewelry

Watches

Glasses

Handbags

4-Technology

-Transportation

Cars

Car keys

Accessories

Trucks

One Bicycle 

- Phones

-IPods

-Laptops

P2.1 PROCESS/a

In-Class notes:

-Experimentation leads to final products
-Subtle differences make a difference
-IT'S ALL ABOUT THE DETAILS, what make each different (brand, function, size, color...etc)
-Have a category (cars) and a subcategory (sports car) and maybe you can have a sub-sub category of that!

Next Class goals:-Create diversity.
-Analyze.
-Image Quality (reshoot some photographs if not satisfied, or replace)
-COMPLETE and organized.
One last note: PAY ATTENTION to INDIVIDUALITY and LIFESTYLES.

P2.project brief

04.02.09_wednesday

Project.02_Brief

Duration_five to four weeks

end product is = catalogue (DO NOT THINK OF THE LAYOUT, SIZE and THE FINAL PRODUCT yet_this will be developed as you do your research)

People have different lifestyles and different needs-clothes, food, transportation...etc, our mission as designers is to observe all that by taking as many photographs as we can of what we see around us. We should also think of the possibilities and the choices that are offered and seen around us.

Mission: take photographs of 10 different categories_five are provided by the instructors and the other five is up to your imagination_go as crazy and wild as you can.

ARTIFACTS:

01.clothes

02.cars

03.food

04.furniture

05.phones

06.your choice

07.your choice

08.your  choice

09.your choice

10. your choice

tips: think of VRIETY, think of CHOICES, think of OPTIONS, think of AUDIENCE, you will develop a concept as soon as you observe and collect the things around you.

DO NOT take pictures of people or things that are easy for you to reach (your friends, your car...etc) be as open as you can.

when printing the photographs: make sure it's 300 dpi, CMYK and .tiff format.

have fun and good luck to you all.

due this monday_images cut of each category 8cm x 8cm at 8.00 am exactly, NO DELAYS!

P1.2 Final.

Critique 02.02.09

-don't be stuck with a straight grid.

- it's overwhelming

- a little too tiny

-play around with the size, make it a poster size or something that can be hanged on the wall and kept as a memory (which i did before, but turned out to be gigantic) 

-not  re-doing my work. but I will keep in mind these comments for the upcoming projects!

P1.2 Final

P1.1 Final

This is the final solution i came up with.
I tried to make it pocket size or (agenda size) so you can include it in your daily agenda...or whatever you're using.
It was a challenge for me to include all information in one little piece of paper, but I figured out a way to include all that.
so these sheets I designed work as keys for your agenda in which you can interact with. for example, if your busy from 8.00 am untill 10.20 am you cross the dots all the way from 8 am to 1020 am. this will tell that you're busy at that time. Any extra appointment details will be added somewhere else in your own agenda.
so basically this calendar tell you when you're busy or when you're not...in minutes! 

P1.1 Comprehensive sketches/b

Comprehensive Sketches brief:

breaking down main information (year, months, weeks, days, date, hour and minutes) > product is big (wall calendar) > product waste too much paper > calendar turned into a box > idea rejected (busy people = no time to build boxes) > tried to make it small > but still too much paper to waste > got rid of the comments area where people write down appointment details > final.

My calendar aim: make it as clear as possible, neat, legible, easy and quick to use.

click here to view digital sketches.

P1.1 Comprehensive sketches/a

While sketching I found that if I needed to include all information I will have to do a matrix design (branching information). THAT is the most precise way = (size problem). This, however, can be abstracted...I'm sure there's a way to do that.

I also thought of doing an interactive print piece...but the project has limitations and...production would be expensive as Pornprapha said and I agree.

click here to see the sketches in FULL details.

P1.1 PROCESS/C

Okay!

so I finally found a solution for the "TOO much paper to waste." since I needed around 356 pieces of paper that are 80 cm x 50 cm each. I thought of REUSING that paper again, after using it as a calendar.

You know how precise people like to keep things organized...well, I thought of doing a box template on the calendar itself, so when the person is done with the calendar, the calendar can be turned into a storage box...so at the end of the year you would have 356 boxes for your office paper work or whatever! :D

here's the digital sketch I did yesterday.

UPDATE: MEETING WITH PORNPRAPHA TODAY:

-I need to rethink the layout again, be as divergent as I can. make some hand sketched

-2 be as precise as possible. (tuesday 27th of January, 2009 at 3:18 p.m)

Maryam, P1.1 Process/a

My older process post got deleted for some reason! :S so I'm posting this again >

The first concept I came up with was, good days to die, meaning, days in the Hijri calendar in which people who die are considered good (not necessarily though). Like, dying in the last ten days of Ramadan. I wasn't so sure if it made sense to some people! we don't know when we'll die and I didn't really need to get deep into religion SO I changed my concept completely.
The second concept I came up with is making a detailed calendar for precise people. I have always wanted to get a VERY VERY detailed calendar.
Why do calendars have to be in months, weeks and hours only? why not have a calendar that include every second of every minute of the year? WHY NOT?
For my research, I thought of looking at different calendars around my house and ask myself:
How are they organized? How did they work the typograhy? What's bold? What's underlined? Why those lines? Why all those colors? Are the calendars detailed enough? Is there enough space for the user to write plans? to do-lists? goals? I wanted to be inspired and figure all that by looking at real examples around me.
Here is some of the things I found around my house! It might inspire you guys as well! :D
excuse my REALLY OLD scanner! -_-;;
click here to view my research