8 Practical Tips for Newbie Graphic Designers

While passing some time on the web, I came across this article from designblog.org written by Charlie B. Johnson giving his tips and advice to entry level designers entering their first design job. Some of it may seem simple and obvious but sometimes, people forget the obvious. Worth a read.

Revised Tunmore Landscapes Logo

Image Copyright of Tara Gardner

Tunmore Landscapes became a Ltd company so needed their logo to incorporate this. The design has changed slightly, now with 'Landscapes Ltd' placed underneath, fitting under 'Tunmore'. 

End of Year Graphic Design Degree Show 2011

The 'Next Batch' End of Year Graphic Design Degree Show which opened its doors last night marked the end of three years hard work and dedication for me and all my peers. The night was very successful; the turn out was good and our work looked great. It took many days of cutting, sticking, hanging, cleaning and organisation to get the show looking perfect but we got there in the end and the outcome was amazing - the space looked great!
While at the show I even managed to get myself a job interview, which was fantastic! I will keep you posted how that goes :)
A few photos of the show are shown below.

Next Batch

As of June, we will be the next batch of graphic designers setting foot into the design world and in the run up to our graphic design degree show, we have launched our show website.

Our work will be displayed at University Campus Suffolk for two weeks from Thursday 9th June 2011. 

We have all worked hard for the last three years and the show is to mark the occasion and demonstrate the talents we have to offer. 

We look forward to seeing you all there and we hope you enjoy our display!

http://www.nextbatch.co.uk/

Landing Your First Graphic Design Job

Article from youthedesigner.com written by Nichole Nelson

UCS Art & Design Degree Show

• BA (Hons) Computer Games Design
• BA (Hons) Film & Media
• BA (Hons) Fine Art
• BA (Hons) Graphic Design
• BA (Hons) Graphic Design (Illustration)
• BA (Hons) Graphic Design (Motion Graphics)
• BA (Hons) Interior Design
• BA (Hons) Photography
• MA Design Context & Practice
• BSc (Hons) Computer Games Programming

Art & Design Degree Show

9th - 19th June 2011

Arts Building and Waterfront Building, University Campus Suffolk.

Weekdays 10am - 6pm

Weekends 11am - 3pm

Well worth a viewing! Please come along! 

Tunmore Landscapes Logo

I was asked to design a logo for a newly established Landscaping company; Tunmore  Landscapes.

The company wanted something simple and this is the outcome, which I am pleased to say, they are very happy with.

Crescent

Image from Crescent's brochure

Dissertation: Done

After months of researching and writing, Dissertation is now finished and has been handed in :)

*huge sense of relief*

Even though I didn't particularly enjoy the experience, It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and to be honest, it taught me a lot.
I now completely understand the importance of research and time management.

But I still hope I never have to do something like that again any time soon...

The D Word : Update

With 831 words left to write and 11 days till hand in, I am feeling very pleased with what I have done and achieved, and I am obviously feeling happy and relieved that the whole process is nearly over and is something I hopefully, will never have to do again. 
Writing the dissertation has been a hard and long process for me but I have found it surprisingly easier than I thought I would and I feel a great sense of self achievement from doing it and completing it (nearly), especially with time to spare! 
Now I just have to think about the design of it.....

I (heart) NY concept sketch

1976. Ink and tape on paper envelope, 2 7/8 x 3 5/8″ (7.3 x 9.2 cm), Museum of Modern Art, NYC.
Found on MoMa, via this 30-Minute BBC Production for Radio 4.

The D Word

Dissertation....
Staring at a blank page is always hard and I was worried about the writing process as its not my strong point, but I have currently managed to write around 2000 words which I am very happy about.
Honestly, I didn't think just writing and not caring would work but it has. It's not in order and some of it probably doesn't make sense but I now have something to work with and build on. 
I'm feeling a lot better about writing now, I'm optimistic that it will turn out well. 
I can but only try :)

TCM Posters

These are three movie posters designed as part of a project set by TCM. The films for the posters were given by TCM and although all three films are completely different, the posters had to have a common theme running through them to act as a set.
I am pleased with the simplistic outcome. Comments welcome as always.

Coca Cola V Pepsi

And the winner is....


For me it will always be Coca Cola. It seems there has always been a silent war between these two top brands. Why do some people choose Coca Cola over Pepsi and vice versa? Is it design or taste? Does one have more appeal than the other? Or do people simply just go for what is on offer in the supermarket at the time?
This advert is Pepsi obviously implying that Pepsi is the better choice. Just by the colours of the can, we can identify that the 1st can is to represent Coca Cola. 
For me, Coca Cola will always have the upper hand when it comes to design and taste. Coca Cola is the original cola; Pepsi mirrored themselves after Coke. Pepsi took years to get their identity right, Coca Cola was almost instant; their logo hardly changed since 1886. 
Whatever your preference, the two are more than just beverages, they are a brand.

Semester 2... New Project

So, Semester 1 is officially over, all work completed and handed in. Nothing more can be done now, even if it could have done with it.
A slight sense of relief that its done and dusted but as always, I think I could have done better.
And it all starts again... Semester 2... New project.
I received my Collaborative Project brief on Tuesday, an interesting brief, should be good. I now need to decide who to collaborate with, I have an idea, but I'm not completely sure at this stage. 
Only time will tell. 
And of course there's the Dissertation, but I'll leave that to talk about another time.