We have finally begun working on our prototypes for the big commission project! It is intense but exciting. This week we are turning in first drafts to critique in class. I am working on the Plaid Dad team. We will be creating a magazine for a "household hero." This publication is for the fathers who are kings of their kitchen, bringing them the latest trends in nutrition, flavor and convenience with the addition of humor and the subtraction of microwave dinners.
I had the most difficulty with my cover and feature spread. I know what I want to do with it, but finding the perfect photography posed a challenge. Since this is just a draft we just pulled images. I look forward to having more input on photo shoots. I wanted a cover that was edgy but manly. This publication is supposed to work as a spin-off to a very popular cookbook, but I did not want to use obvious colors. My color palette for the issue is very industrial. I am definitely having a hard time with the sell lines. Any suggestions would be much appreciated!
I am very happy with the way my department spread turned out. The tone of the magazine is similar to Esquire and GQ, so I wanted to continue with that edgy design that reflected a lighter mood. I was challenged with fitting nine gadgets and a side bar on the spread. My biggest issue is clutter - the first design was a lot more scattered, so I cleaned it up by adhering to a grid and aligning the numbers. I worked in a bit more white space, but I am still wondering if it could use more? Or if the sidebar could be downsized a bit?
The feature spread was the second most challenging. I chose to work with the story about fathers who have picky eaters and how they can sneak in vegetables and nutrition through foods that children like. Keeping with the manly, edgy theme but featuring a story about children is very dynamic. I know I want to improve upon my typography and work with that, but I was having difficulty with photography. A thought I had after I completed this design was adding cutouts of the vegetables, possibly on the lower right-hand corner. Thoughts?
RESPONSE:
Monday evening the magazine capstone courses skyped with a man in New York. He introduced us to Mag+, a new way to create applications for tablets by converting inDesign documents. With tablets such as the iPad on the rise, it is extremely valuable for me as a student to learn this world as I am about to graduate. Publications especially are trying to get their content and into an app to make it more mobile. I am currently in an application development course and am working on a team to create an iPhone app for a local company. We are also learning about iPad app development, so it was interesting to see this presentation. I look forward to looking into Mag+ more and to see if more publications utilize their program.
YOU CAN'T MISS THIS:
Lipstick art? Oh yeah. A blog posting on Designmodo's website featured these photographs by digital photographer Paige Thompson. Just goes to show that art and inspiration are everywhere! Here are a few of my favorites...
I like the industrial edgy feel, but I feel like I don't understand where "Plaid Dad" came from based on the design. Maybe making the words "Plaid Dad" plaid would bring that in without being overwhelming.
ReplyDeleteI personally think you came up with the most appealing masculine design for the Plaid Dad group. I like the typeface you used for the logo; it's both masculine and modern. I think your overall design definitely fits the target age group. I can see some influences in your designs from modern men's magazines, but you made it your own.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure where I stand on the debate of whether to include plaid in the logo. I feel like the meaning could be implied, and it might not mesh with what you already have going, which I happen to like a lot.
The only critique I have is to play with hierarchy on your department page. Since there are so many items featured, it might be helpful to pick a few to highlight.
I think your Plaid Dad design is really great. It looks very Esquire-y, but isn't too over-the-top. The only problem that I think your group has is knowing your target audience and nailing it down with the publishers. Your design is great and eye-catching, but it also only targets one type of male. But overall, I think your design is clean and fresh.
ReplyDeleteI thought you did a great job with the sidebar on the department page. I really like the 3D texture of it that popped off the page. It made the sidebar standout obviously, but it also fit nicely withing the overall feel of the page.
ReplyDeleteI think the color palette for your Plaid Dad designs has a contemporary feel, and is appealing to men. The green helps warm things up.
ReplyDeleteLove the lipstick designs! It's so funny what creative ideas people come up with. Who knew lipstick application could be so artsy.
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