Layout design and printing process. OUGD405

I really like how this layout has a really interesting way of mixing type and image

http://inspirationhut.net/inspiration/54-fantastic-and-modern-magazine-design-layouts-to-inspire-you/

http://vimeo.com/42665793

This is just some of the research into layout design of magazines that i have done in order to create an interesting and unique magazine. 

In the time frame that i have for the project i won't be able to do any kind of screen print or letterpress which is a shame as i would have liked to experiment with the use of different textures and layers within the format of a magazine.

















 

InDesign workshop 17.01.13 OUGD405

When we place an image into InDesign, we see on screen a low resolutions preview of the image. It is only a small part of the image that we have brought over from illustrator or photoshop.

The links panel on the right hand side it shows the different images that are in the document. The number next to it shows which page the image that you have placed is on.
When the document is sent to print, InDesign finds the original vector and will print the full high quality image.


If you save just the InDesign file and none of the images, when we go to print the document the images will all be of very low quality, so any projects must be saved in one file with all the images and documents available to InDesign.
If the images are not saved, when the document is re opened the image will appear in low quality and the missing link can be found by using the links panel.

Using the display performance option you can change the display quality of the images so that you can be more accurate with high quality display, or by sing the fast display the preview of the images disappear completely so the computer will work much faster.

When preparing photoshop files you need to make sure that the colour mode, size and resolution is correct so that everything will work well in InDesign..

To resize an image in InDesign you can select the image by clicking on the two circles in the centre of the image so that the outline is brown rather than blue, and this allows you to resize  the image, then make the frame smaller to fit the new image. However, because InDesign is linked to the original image, we have to change the original image so that the image in InDesign will always be that size.

To edit the original right click on the image and choose edit with photoshop. Then to rescale the image in photoshop open the image size in photoshop and change the percentage to the percentage that is in the links panel in In Design. Also make sure that the image is in CMYK colur for print.

Then you just have to save the image to the same file is was originally and it will be saved as that size into InDesign. Also, any changes that you make to the image in photoshop will be saved automatically to the image that is in InDesign so you don't have to re place the image onto InDesign.

All images should be saved as tiff files or photoshop files so that the quality of the image is good enough for print. 

To keep layers and transparency, save the image files as photoshop files but otherwise save the files as Tiff files.

 To see a preview of your page and see what it will look like without any of the guides or rulers etc, you can press the 'W' on the keyboard.

Once you have finished with your InDesign file and want to print, the print options are more complex than most other software. Make sure that these options are all correct to how you want them and that is all. You can also save the file as a pdf file, where press quality is the highest quality you can get for commercial print, and smallest file size creates the smallest file size but cannot be printed well and high quality print is good enough for print but not good enough for commercial print. 

Magazine Binding. OUGD405

I really want to create a unique booklet/magazine for the Obama inauguration and so i think that hand binding the booklet will make it feel more special for the day and original. However I am worried that as I have only done bookbinding a few times before i might not be able to make it look as professional as i want it to look.

I like how the stitching on some of these books are visible so that you can see how the book is put together, but if i were to do with i don't know whether i could make it look as professional. Because of this I think i will cover the binding edge with fabric so that the edge looks clean and crisp.

Research, Collect, Communicate. Magazine Idea OUGD405.

From my initial research i have decided to create an outcome for the 'Product and Publication' part of this brief. I want to create a limited edition magazine to mark the second inauguration of Barack Obama into power. In this magazine i will include a timeline of the past 4 years of Obama, the times of events happening throughout the day on the 21st of January and some information about Obama and the campaign this time around. 

Typogatauex Research and initial designs. OUGD405

For my typogatauex cake I had the idea to create my own design for an ampersand that I can decorate onto the top of a cake. I have started with finding many examples of the ampersand i could find, and it showed that there are a lot of ways to design one. I also found the perfect recipe for lemon and blueberry cake with an earl grey frosting which I think will be delicious and not too complicated to make.

Photoshop Workshop 29.11.12. OUGD405

The first thing we learned to do on Photoshop was to make sure the colours we are working with on the computer will come out the same after printing it out. The colours can sometimes change because RGB colour, which is used on screen, can create a lot more colours than CYMK colour which is what the printers use. To show this on screen you can use the gamut warning which will show which colours the CYMK printers cannot create.

To counteract this you can change the levels and/or the colour of the original image so that the printers will print out the exact colours on screen and the image will be just as you want it.

After playing around with these for a while you can create an image that will print perfectly using the CYMK printers.

Next we were shown how to use the mask tool to edit images so that parts of the image weren't too bright or not detailed. 

First you have to create a mask layer using the button at the bottom right corner of the screen. Then change the levels of the image to get the majority of the image how you want it to be, in this case we just wanted to get the bottom half of the image brighter and more detailed. Then using the mask tool you can  take away the top layer to reveal the original image, meaning that the top of this image was slightly darker and not washed out as it was after changing the levels. 

Thirdly we were shown how to use the quick selection tool so that you only change part of the image that you want to. This is good for when a part of an image is slightly too dark or light, and using the quick selection tool means that you can change just this one part of the image. 

Using the quick selection tool to select the statue in the foreground of this image means that i can just change the levels, colour and brightness of the statue keeping the background sky exactly the same. 

Finally we were shown how to create a panoramic image using numerous photos, using a tool on photoshop to stitch the photos together. 

Using photomerge means that you can simply select the images you want to put together and then select which layout you want, then Photoshop does all the work for you. Then the only thing you have to do is crop the image and edit it how you like and the panoramic image is done.

End of module self evaluation - OUGD403

End of module self evaluation

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

Throughout this module I think I have developed many new skills, including how to quickly and effectively come up with ideas and turn these ideas into a piece of work within a small time frame. I have applied this skill in all of the studio briefs and although towards the beginning I found it quite difficult to get into the flow of things, I feel that I have managed to do this more effectively in the latest studio briefs, mainly the message and delivery brief. I feel that I have also developed skills in assessing my work, both individually and as a group in group crits and have been able to use this assessment to develop my work more effectively. I have also developed an interest in type and typography that I wish to pursue further and develop a better understanding of it.

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

I have developed my method if idea production and significantly reduced the amount of time it takes me to put down my ideas onto paper, meaning that I have much more time to develop the solution to the brief and make it as good as it can be.  I have also developed my researching methods, finding a lot more visual research making it easier for me to find inspiration and generate visual ideas much more quickly.

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

Some strengths that I can identify in the work I have done since starting the module are the way in which I lay out my piece and I also think that the print workshops also show that I have a strength in those processes. I will capitalise on these by experimenting with layout and different print processes in my work in the future and see how I can use these strengths to make my work more interesting. I also want to learn more about these parts of graphic design and see what new things I can capitalise on.

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

I can see that my computer skills could improve, especially my use of programmes such as illustrator, but I think that this is purely because I haven’t really used these before and so I think that all I need to do is practice using these programmes more and learn new skills and this will improve. I also think that I need to be more experimental in my work as what I have done so far is playing it quite safe and I would like to create much more dynamic and exciting work. For this is will spend more time experimenting with my ideas and thinking outside the box for new ideas that could become a part of my work.

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

1.     Practice using illustrator more and for different things to see what I can do with it and so from this I expect to develop my skills and create more professional looking work.

2.     Develop my skills in the print room by learning different processes to create more exciting work

3.     Put my ideas down onto paper much quicker at the beginning of a brief so that my ideas can develop more and have more time to create the final piece, meaning it will look much more professional.

4.     Continue developing my research methods to give my work a more contextual knowledge and a depth that I haven’t had in my work so far.

   

ocontinue learning about type and typography so that I can use this more in my work to create more interesting pieces of work using type as a main part of my work.