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A freaky one for you all...

magazine collection

I grabbed some magazines for my budding collection and haven't thumbed through every page yet, but I'm finding some interesting and useful things already. In particular, Best Life magazine which is a spin off of Men's Health, has intriguing typography in their articles and ads. I was also drawn into their articles, simply by the fact that I can relate to the topics they discussed (fatherhood, etc). I'm still looking for that great compare/contrast ad though.

switching gears

Well, I certainly understand our assignment better after our class last Saturday. I decided to change my common fruit to a bartlett pear because its attributes fit better when comparing and contrasting to my other choice, the "exotic" quince. My previous common fruit were blackberries, which seemed to fit nicely with my previous concept of having both fruits on each ad and using the "preserves" and "raw vs. cooked" themes, but I took the wrong approach with that concept and I'm finding the bartlett pear is making my life considerably easier. Okay, maybe it's just making this project easier to deal with. My life remains hectic!

Profile...again

I subscribe to Graphic Design USA and the first issue of the year has "People to Watch in 2008", which highlights designers, their backgrounds, and asks them two common questions regarding the industry. On each page there also is a sidebar which delves into that deisgner's interests, from favorite movies, to bookmarked websites. I found this interesting in terms of getting the perspective from a variety of designers on how they approach their work and what they use for inspiration. Here is a link to one of those articles which features Michael Hendrix, the chief brand officer and creative director of Tricycle, Inc. : http://www.gdusa.com/issue_2008/01_jan/feature/p35.php

...and a painting from a website on his “bookmarked sites” list:

Profile details

I've chosen to profile my father-in-law, who used to play the trumpet. At 15, he was the youngest member of the Colts Marching Band in 1965 and later in high school he played in a band called La Moures. They covered Chicago, The Beatles, Blood Sweat & Tears, and other Top 40 Bands of that era. They were one of the original bands to play in the Fells Point Festival and are listed in Baltimore's Book of Bands. I found the interview very interesting, so much so that I could barely keep up, and then found that I couldn't fit all of his information into a 250 word story, so it has really been pared down to the essentials, per the project requirements. The magazine I chose to model from is Rolling Stone. I had to buy it covertly because it has Britney Spears on the front!

checking in

I'm trying to get as much done on project 2 as possible. It looks like we are to bring in 4 different rough drafts as opposed to 4 copies of one rough draft. That would make sense. It shows we've put thought into different layouts. I'm happy with my concepts for the first project, but hoping to print out some better versions than what my printer has provided. I guess this Saturday's class will really set the bar in terms of where we think we are at versus what reality is. Looking forward to it, actually.

Inspiration

I find the Absolut vodka ads, produced since 1981 by the international advertising agency TBWA, very inspiring. I can point to this particular ad as one that piqued my interest in graphic design many years ago. The ad is simple in terms of what it communicates, yet it upholds the sophisticated standard by which these products are typically judged.

workload

I'm wondering if the workload given to us for these two weeks away would be the normal workload given to us for one week. My thought is "yes" and I'm preparing as such.

Hale

As I read through Sin & Syntax and try to incorporate the grammar "do's and don'ts" into my own writing, I find myself drawing an analogy to golf (which I happen to not be very good at as I don't play much). When I (resisting urge not to misuse the pronoun "you") am teeing up a shot in golf, I think:
1. keep my head down
2. swing easy
3. keep my elbow straight
4. hold the club loosely
5. make sure my stance is correct
6. bend at the knees
etc etc
Now, when I write, I am constantly looking at the details of the sentences and not just going up there swinging. I know that as I write more and more, training the ears and eyes to see these details and follow these rules will become second nature, just as my golf swing will grow better with the practice and repitition. Just a random thought...

coming to conclusions

I’ve chosen to use blackberries and quinces for my fruits. I went to the Wegmans in Hunt Valley to do research. Given the location of that particular Wegmans, the variety of products they sell, and their prices, I figured my audience will be either stay-at-home moms, working professionals, or retirees. In all cases the large portion of the audience will probably be above the median income.
I am going to compare my fruits by discussing how they are both ideal for making preserves, jams, and jellies. This will cater more to the retirees and perhaps the stay-at-home moms who might have more time on their hands to make homemade goodies.
When I contrast my fruits, I’m going to focus on the raw vs. cooked angle and throw some facts about perish-ability (did I just make that word up?) in there as well. Quinces are not to be eaten raw due to their astringent and tart flavor, and so cooking them is recommended. Quinces can also be stored up to 2 months without going bad. Blackberries, on the other hand, can be eaten raw and they actually don’t keep more than 2 days.

Wegmans sign

Sign from Wegmans taken as part of my research. Some of you may find this useful.

my fruits

would a quince be considered an exotic fruit or a common fruit? "Exotic" to me would seem to imply something tropical, but a friend said quince would be exotic just because it's not one you hear of often. Just looked up "exotic" on Webster's on-line and it said: introduced from another country : not native to the place where found .....so I think I just found my answer. I digress...

Class groundhog...for your viewing pleasure!

february 2

I looked for a 4GB flash drive today and saw 2 different kinds at Best Buy...one for $30, and yet another for around $68. The cheaper one was the "Geek Squad" version which looked as if no one had bought. There were only 2 of the $68 dollar flash drives remaining. The only difference I saw was some anti-virus protection offered on the more expensive one. I have an IMAC, so I'm not sure I'd need the extra stuff offered with the $68 flash drive. Any suggestions and/or advice here?