Final Portfolio Pages

I am really pleased with the overall look of my Portfolio. I think the layout reflects my interest in Magazine and PR effectively and it is fun and very creative. I particularly like my CV layout as it is clear and concise.

The only regret I have is not having an InDesign version of my CV as this would include the interactive page curl and complete my double page spread look. However, InDesign just was not working for me so I had to settle with PDF. Even though I had changed all of my images to 72 dpi throughout the formatting process, they still exceeded the allowance of 40 MB massively! My final PDF was 298 MB, so I had to compress the file down to low quality and this made a massive difference taking the overall size down to just 3 MB!

I am pleased with what I have achieved throughout this project. I think if there was anything I would do next time around it would be to perhaps update some of my promotional work with my own images. For example, when I updated my Topshop PR project, I would have liked to have done a photoshoot to incorporate on the webpage header. However, I did not realistically have enough time to achieve this with other projects, so time management was a top concern. I think overall though, my projects and portfolio look good!!

Kate

Progression- Extras in my Portfolio

Contents Page:

I formatted this page as I went along with the others to add sections and page numbers and I then began to add images as little 'previews' for each project:

I made use of my fonts on this page and also the brush stroke effects to give it that magazine style finish.

Final Page:

This page was just used to sum up the portfolio and show it was at its end:

Again, I just made use of my fonts and other effects such as drop shadow and my ellipse tool to keep this page in theme with the rest of the portfolio.

Disc Cover:

Front

Back

I formatted a disc cover by copying and pasting the main elements from my portfolio and adding key details such as the module title and the blog URL.

If i had allowed myself more time I would have like to create a Disc Sticker for the front of the CD. I did not realise I had to give notice in for this service and therefore could not get it done. This is something I will keep in mind for future projects, however. 

Progression- Title Page and CV

Title Page:

I had some difficulties when trying to create my title page  in InDesign which is what made me move onto using illustrator which I am a little more used to and know how to use better.

I was unsure of how to create my title page as I wanted it to represent a magazine cover but I was unsure of using an image of myself- especially as it would have to be quite a main part of the cover! A lot of the research I have done advises against using an image in a CV, but I feel that in this instance it works for the theme I have created and would look silly without one. Therefore I edited an image of myself on photoshop:

I did not do a massive amount to my image as I did not want it to look unrealistic! I did need to fit in with a magazine front cover though, so I tried to reduce any flaws to me skin and I edited my hips a little too! I also used a warming filter to warm up my skin tone and make it seem a little brighter. I chose this image as it is quite a natural one, yet still looks smart enough to be seen by an employer. I contemplated taking one especially for the cover, however, I think this would have looked to forced as I would have been aware of the camera and the fact it would be the front cover for my portfolio!!

After I edited the image I started to create the cover, using More magazine as inspiration:

I used a colour strip I had created for myself on kuler.adobe.com I kept this throughout all of my formatting stages to make sure there was always a consistent colour theme running throughout the entire portfolio. 

I was really pleased with my design for my title page, I think it really represents a magazine and which is somewhere i would like to be in the future. It is colourful and vibrant and fun to look at. I particularly like the brush stroke across the front of the page as this is a new effect I have recently discovered on Illustrator which I will be making full use of in the future!

C.V:

As I was using several copies of More magazine as inspiration, my CV layout design was also taken from their. They have recently started a new feature where they showcase women in creative jobs called the More Bulletin. This has a cork board background and looked really good and I thought it would be a perfect layout for my CV. I therefore created a title page for my personal profile and contact information and then used this cork board idea for the larger chunks of text.

I created my cork board background by cutting a frame out in Photoshop from an image off the internet. I also cut out a drawing pin template to use as decoration for when I finished formatting the page. I created the actual cork board effect by adding effects such as mosaic tiles to create the small squares and layering a grain effect over the top.

I then added 'post it notes' to pin on my board and created a note paper effect at the bottom. I then copied and pasted my CV into text boxes and formatted them appropriately using the grids on illustrator. 

I also created page curls and used the drop shadow effect to make the post it notes seem more realistic. I used a fancy font for headings but kept the main information in a simple style so as it is easy to read. 

I also incorporated another image of myself- this one to look a little more like a job profile image. I did not want it to be a main focus so I made it black and white and I also reduced the image size of the file in photoshop:

I am really pleased with my CV layout, I like how everything is sectioned nicely so it is easy for the employer to find and read the part that interests them the most.

Progression- Project 3

This was the semester long Product Development Project, where I created Topshop Vibe- Topshop's own in-store cafe. For this project I had created a lot of practical work such as a press pack, goody bag and everything that went with them. I had also made a Topshop cup sleeve as free gift for my press pack. Therefore I had to take images of these and edit them in photoshop. I got my sister to take the pictures with her Nikon SLR so they were good quality for editing, and I then reduced the image size on photoshop to 72 dpi.

I also reworked the webpages I had created to make them look less 'Kitsch' as this was a negative from my feedback:

 I did not want to be too drastic with the change as it needed to stay consistent with my practical promotions. I felt the biggest issue with the website was the colours I had used as they were abit too feminine and the pink and the green together did not really reflect something the brand would do. The website is fairly simple so I went back to basic colours such as black and grey to create a more simplified version of the webpage. I kept the green header to keep a consistent colour throughout.

I formatted the project onto the portfolio, again assigning it its own signature colour to separate the section. I used the eyedropper to take a green from one of the promotional materials and reduced the opacity down to keep it subtle. I wanted this page to look like a PR page of a magazine showcasing products. I also enlarged part of the Press Release from the press pack to make it legible to whoever is visiting the portfolio. I used the elipse tool to create a decorative circle design to highlight the press pack and project title.

Progression- Project 2

Debenhams Styling Project

I did not have to do a massive amount to this project to rework it. This was the photography/styling project we had with Debenhams and the feedback was mainly concerning our time management and research. However, in regards to the images we were told that they were more suited to a beauty styling shot rather than a store promotion shoot.

This fits in perfectly well with my magazine layout theme as the bold colours and props fit in much better with a magazine styling shoot that can afford to be a bit more creative and not so corporate.

Therefore I just re-edited the images slightly to increase the colour vibrancy and make the images really pop! I then added a title and text to the image to say clothes prices, etc. to make it seem like a spread in a magazine.

I formatted it into my report and kept my colours consistent with both the portfolio and the images by creating my own colour theme on kuler.com

 I think this was a great project to include as it works really well with my theme. The only downside to it is I have created double page spreads for this section, but I have been unable to create my portfolio in Indesign as I started to have problems re-opening work in the program and it made it difficult to keep re-editing. I therefore had to switch to illustrator which does not have the facing pages function. However, you can still see the images as a double page in PDF, it is just not as effective or does not have the interactive page curl that I wanted.

Progression- Project 1

T-shirt Project:

Above are some of the screen shots of my progression through my first project. I decided to rework the Spring/Summer trend board as all of the inspirations for the graphics were there but just not being communicated enough. I therefore looked up for more suitable trend images and found more that were closer to my original design. I felt that the graphics trend board needed to be completely redone however, as it had too many images and none of them were reflected in my designs. I knew that my designs had been created from my graphics research however, from looking at the boards this was not very clear. 

I began to format the project in my portfolio to suit the magazine style. However, I decided each project needed a separate colour scheme, with consistent colours running through so I updated this:

I used the eyedropper tool on an image from the trend boards to create the background colour and lowered the opacity. I also used the pen tool to create some blue splashes in the background to match the colours in the T-shirts and to create an interesting design. 

The inspiration for the page was from More Magazine, where they had an image of a celebrity with arrows pointing from her clothes to separate pieces that were similar. I therefore thought this would be a great way to really show off the ideas behind my trend boards.