Monkey see, Monkey...attempt.

     This week, I've been challenged to look at examples of layouts and designs with a more critical eye after reading chapters from Golombisky & Hagen's (2010) text White Space Is Not Your Enemy:  A beginner's guide to communicating visually through graphic, web & multimedia design, Krause's (2004) Design Basics Index:  A graphic designer's guide to designing effective compositions, and other online how to's.  I cannot say that a week's worth of reading makes me knowledgeable or skilled enough by any means, but that doesn't mean I can't try to take guidelines to the drawing board, be it a sketch pad or computer monitor.

     First, we were asked to select a design example and point out 10 elements that either work or doesn't work based on what we've gathered thus far.  I apologize in advance for the excessively feminine nature of my example of choice, but I get a ton of these e-mail fliers, and it only makes sense for me to analyze what is in front of my face...

1.  Minimal font selection:  I am only recognizing two, maybe three different kinds of fonts, which prevents the advertisement from looking "busy."  The fonts used are also reader friendly, and it allows me to focus on the content; had the text been in a more fanciful font, then I would be straining to read the words rather than get the message as a whole.
2.  Font weight:  Where the selection of the fonts are good, there is an excessive use of capital lettering.  I did not think much of it before the readings, but after glancing through Golombisky & Hagen's don'ts of designing, I do realize it.
3.  Text grouping:  The information is in chunks, an element that is part of Golombisky & Hagen's "works every time" layout.  When similar and important information is grouped together, the reader feels that less energy is needed to read all of the content.  The groupings in this ad make sense: the special gift at the top along with the picture, an eye catching phrase along with subtext, and short-but-sweet details on the product.
4.  Text alignment:  Another "don't" from Golombisky & Hagen is aligning everything in the center.  Here, we see that the text follows different kinds of alignment, but none of them centered.  The key title and subtext are aligned to the right, where the rest is aligned to the left.  I feel that the ad's alignment and grouping of text works well, which helps alleviate the fact that a lot of text is all capitalized; its as if it is spacious enough to still be easy on the eyes.
5.  Properly proportioned photo:  Yes, the product looks huge in the advertisement, but the reader can tell that it is a close-up of the product or an enlarged version of the photo.  Using a close-up of the product allows the reader to focus on the product without the distraction of anything looking out of place.
6.  Distinct photo:  This is not what Golombisky & Hagen would call a "naked photo."  The edges of the photo are distinct and do not blend into the negative space that is between the main ad and the promotional offer at the top.
7.  Line placement:  The most clear cut line is the black bar that is set towards the top of the advertisement, with contrast colored font alerting the reader how to redeem the special offer.  This line creates and interesting break as Krause would explain.  It is not set in the center of the advertisement; its placement at the top generates space proportions that are interesting.  There is also interesting line placement in the photo itself.  The arrangement of the product in the photo creates interesting lines in an atypical way (slanted instead of horizontal/vertical, creating more uneven space, etc.).
8.  Harmony:  From the give-away to the pictured product to the background, there is a color scheme that just works.  All of the colors work well together, nothing clashes.  We can also see repetition in one specific color (purple), but at the same time, it is not overpowering.
9.  Font in reverse:  Golombisky & Hagen say that text can get lost when its color is "reversed," that is, light against a darker color.  However, I think the grouping of the main phrase and its subtext works, and it also accents the "shine" effect in the photo of the product.
10.  Focal point:  To piggy-back on the element of the font color in reverse, I think this subtly groups together the intended focal points.  First, the shine effect in the photo captures the reader.  With a light font color to match, the reader notices the key phrase next to the photo, which would bring the reader in to look into the product detail.

     What follows are the assignments to accompany the advertisement critique.
1.   Repetition Exercise - Krause, 2004, p. 57
     Doing what I can with Power Point, I decided to attempt making fliers for capoeira kid's class that I participate in (I assist my professor).  I used the circle as my repeating object.  The concept of the circle is important when playing  capoeira, and I wanted to show that in different ways that (I hope) are not overbearing.  I also wanted to play with our group's colors, which are mainly in the red and gray color scheme.  All of them have the tag of our group logo and website on the bottom right.

 

 2.  Decisive Presentation Exercise - Krause, 2004, p. 71

     I was happy to take a pencil to my sketchbook again after what seemed like an eternity.  I found this activity refreshing since I felt like it was forcing me to create, but in an abstract way, which is something I haven't really done before (I was never strong at just "doodling").  I just created circles and lines that eventually turned into other rectangles or triangles.  I also played with different kinds of spaces and lines.  I think I enjoyed the pencil and paper too much, as I had fun with texture and shading as well.  I apologize if it is hard to see, as I used my phone to take a picture of my sketchpad page.  I didn't have access to a scanner at the time.