Week 4/29 – 5/2 : Even More Training :0

Pixel Art in Illustrator Training

This week I started another training on creating Pixel Art in Illustrator! This was fun because I love working in Illustrator and I got to use a picture of my cat as the reference photo. Here is what I came up with:

I like how this tutorial not only included how to use grids and the live paint tool, but also how to edit the colors afterwards using the ‘Recolor Artwork’ tool. Under here, you can edit global colors, adjust saturation, hue, luminosity, etc., and choose from provided presets. My favorite of the four iterations is the third (created using the ‘Earth-tone Preset’).

Week 4/22 – 4/25 : Training Continued

History of Design Training

This week I continued on trainings including the History of Design Training! After reading through the different design eras I chose to create a poster following the Postmodernism Era because I wanted to explore new techniques in Photoshop. Here is what I came up with:

This design fits into the Postmodernism movement because it uses bold, primary colors, a combination of text/photos, and texture. The repeating elements are also reminiscent of 60s pop art. I will probably use the techniques I learned from the filter gallery to achieve different textures and photo styles in my future designs. I learned how to alter Blending Options under the Layer Style panel. Before following the tutorial I didn’t know about what these sliders did:

Week 2 & 3 – 4/8 – 4/18: Time to Start Training!

Intro Training: Style A&B Course Graphics

After completing my STA orientation, it was time to start my basic training. The first training course was a walkthrough on how to customize online course graphics based on two basic styles: A and B. Professors can choose from either of these depending on their preference and they will receive a simple and cohesive asset packet for their course. For the training, I chose to make graphics for my favorite class this semester: Social Psychology in Film.

Here is style A:

And style B:

This was pretty simple to complete because there are easy-to-alter templates already in place. It mainly consisted of changing color overlays to make a cohesive design and adjusting opacity to make the photo in style B subtle but still visible. I also learned how to properly organize and name files.

Intro Training: Custom/Studio Course Graphics

For the next training, I got to choose between two courses to make a custom set of graphics based on the professor’s request. I chose EAS1030: Earth’s Dynamic Environment II. The client notes said he liked orange, but was open to other designs. In my first attempt I tried to incorporate orange by adding a sepia filter over a collage of photos:

Draft 1

After working on this for a bit, I decided I didn’t really like the color scheme because it didn’t properly represent what the course was about. I thought the sepia color made it hard to see what the course was really about, which is the ocean and atmosphere. That lead me to my second attempt in which I stuck to blues and created movement by cutting and collaging images of the ocean and clouds. Here is a design menu of my second attempt:

Draft 2

I really like the depth and movement created by the cutout images of water layered on top of each other to look like waves. I also think using blue better represents the course topic. I posted this design to Basecamp and received feedback from the STA trainer. She liked the concept and suggested adjusting the blues for the in-studio assets because they can show up different on camera. I also lightened the blue of the buttons and other Canvas graphics because they were appearing black on screen. Here is  close up of one of the studio graphics, a mockup of the designs in-studio, and a design menu with the suggested changes:

Draft 3

At first I was a little overwhelmed by the design freedom of this training, but after a few attempts and valuable feedback, I came up with something that I really like.

Week 1 – 4/1 – 4/4: STA Orientation

Day 1 – Introductions and STA Handbook

My first day as a Design STA consisted of learning about the day to day procedures and how to navigate the different websites and tools. I finished the day off with creating a few presentation slides documenting what I learned from the STA Handbook:

I came in with a nervous-excited energy that I always have when starting anything new. De’sha and Leilani made the experience feel very welcoming, and I know overtime I’ll grow comfortable and confident in this new position.

Day 2-4 – Orientation Projects

During the next few days of orientation I created an STA bio, a caricature of myself, and a banner for this blog:

So far, I’ve had fun getting to meet everyone and stretching my graphic design and illustration skills. I look forward to working on future projects on my STA journey!