Monday, April 21, 2014

Studio Crawl

The Studio Crawl was a GREAT event! It was a way to see inside some of the local creative design firms. There was a paper making group, a research company, graphic design and photography. Pretty nicely rounded out group of businesses. It was put on by CUDO (Champaign Urbana Design Organization).


Here's a map of all the stops we made.

First up was Fresh Press.



"Mission
Fresh Press is an agri-fiber and agri-fiber waste paper-making lab on the Illinois campus that explores how a collaboration of farmers, artists, designers, and academics can revitalize a slowly dying manufacturing industry in the Midwest.
Sudan Grass
Why Agri-fiber paper?
Agri-fiber (agricultural fiber) paper materials embrace a vision of regional vitality and local knowledge that can act as a catalyst for Midwestern job creation.  Agri-fiber material is a celebration of regional people, culture, and wildlife. It is an economy that helps keep our air and water clean and maintains our forests and works to preserve natural ecosystems.  
Fresh Press aims to reduce or offset significantly the impact of greenhouse gas emissions in three ways:
  1. Providing local farmers an incentive to reduce carbon emissions caused by the burning of waste crops
  2. Lessening emissions from the transport of wood-pulp paper from forest to pulping mill to paper distributor
  3. Creating agri-fiber and wood-pulp fiber blends from the reclamation and reuse of campus office paper waste, thereby negating around 47% of the CO2 emissions typically produced from virgin wood-pulp fiber paper (Alliance for Environmental Innovation)." 
Then we went to Wolfram Research.
"Founded by Stephen Wolfram in 1987, Wolfram Research is one of the world's most respected computer, web, and cloud software companies—as well as a powerhouse of scientific and technical innovation. As pioneers in computation and computational knowledge, we have pursued a long-term vision to develop the science, technology, and tools to make computation an ever-more-potent force in today's and tomorrow's world."

Third up was Thunderstruck Design.


"At Thunderstruck, we are visual communication specialists. Every image, every graphic, every word, every line, is designed with a purpose in mind... to hit home with a clear and concise message to the audience you desire to reach. Our communication skills get your message across loud and clear.

We are a team of graphic designers, creatives, marketing experts and dreamers that come from diverse backgrounds enabling us to view each project from a different perspective and objectivity. This leads to new, fresh ideas and solutions. Bold ideas. We think of the things you may not... that's why you'll want to hire the Thunderstruck team.

Our Mission 
Thunderstruck Design exists to inspire, persuade and communicate through design.
Our mission statement is simple, yet it holds a lot of meaning for us. We strive to obtain this objective for each and every project we work on by asking ourselves these three questions:
1) Does the design message inspire the viewer?
2) Does it persuade the person to take action?
3) Does it effectively communicate the message?

If it meets each of these criteria… then we have succeeded in our mission."

Lastly we went to Jason Lindsey Photography

"I grew up in a small farm town as a child of factory workers, surrounded by "Salt of the Earth" people. I am still grounded in that upbringing and love being surrounded by the realness in the world. When I started in photography I knew I wanted to bring more authenticity to advertising. I later realized authenticity is part of who I am at the core.

As a former art director, I understand the relationship between art and commerce. As an experienced photojournalist, I create the narrative of the brand. As a Photographer and Director, I use this experience to tell honest, inviting stories. I create the backdrop for the story and then I provide the simple direction that lets that story unfold, capturing real moments and emotions that pull viewers into the shot.

I love shooting in water up to my neck, swimming with sharks, laying in the mud and doing whatever it takes to get the shot. Mostly because that's often what it takes to make a great shot but it is also a great way to live life and have fun shoots. As my crew knows, I likely have not found the shot yet if I am not in the waterfall or the mud hole."


Monday, April 14, 2014

Field Trips

I have to admit, I LOVE field trips! I get excited to go see how different business' design departments work and how their desks and work areas are done. It's just so interesting to see another creative persons' creative space.

This semester we went on four field trips (with a 5th one planned but not yet accomplished) to various design firms in the local area. Each one was really good in it's own way and each one had their forte.

The first place we went to was McKenzie Wagner.
"McKenzie Wagner, Inc. is a small advertising agency with big ideas. We mitigate our clients’ common marketing concerns by implementing strategic, and innovative creative solutions. We believe in the power of branded goods and services, and strive to build our clients’ strong names, and stronger reputations. We offer cutting-edge creative efforts and consumer-savvy marketing messages designed to stand out, make a statement, and leave an impression. Above all, we are dedicated to the growth of the businesses we represent."

The second place we went to was Adams Outdoor Advertising.
"From the University of Illinois to the stature of artists the galleries and theaters attract, Champaign is a town that thinks on a grand scale. With a restaurant landscape that surprises the most seasoned palate, events that attract a national following and being a main hub for the silicon prairie, we are reinventing the Midwest every minute of every day."


Then we went to Horizon Hobby.
"At Horizon Hobby, we believe that who we are is not defined by what we do, but by the values we live by. – So while the development, distribution and retailing of innovative hobby products is what we excel at, it is our vision and core values that give meaning to that work and provide the inspiration for outstanding product expertise and tremendous attention to the needs of our customers. Three central values drive the Horizon approach and serve as the company's foundation:
Golden Rule
Treat everyone with utmost respect as we would best like to be treated ourselves.
Consumer is Boss
A caring, can-do attitude in every situation.
Inverted Pyramid
A servant leadership model in which leaders serve those they lead."

Then lastly we went to Spinlight Studio.
"We make learning fun. — Kids are natural born explorers — and the best educational apps tap into their sense of wonder and curiosity to make learning fun. At Spinlight, we make more than apps. We create enriching play experiences that invite children to tap, touch and discover, turning the facts they need to know into the games they want to play.
Since 2011, that simple philosophy led to a long list of awards from some of the most prestigious names in childhood learning, including multiple Parents’ Choice Awards and ON for Learning Awards. Welcome to Spinlight and a growing collection of educational apps built to make learning fun."
 

Monday, April 7, 2014

Delicious

Some of you might not have ever heard of the local sight called Delicious, but, you should check it out!

Delicious is a site that links you up to most of the local art scene. When I say this, I mean art of any and all kinds! There are artists, graphic designers, marketing design firms, museums, photographers, you name it in the "art" field, and you will probably find someone under that category. There's no way that I could possibly write about everything there, so, just go check them out!

Monday, March 31, 2014

Favicons!

I was surprised as to how many people didn't know what a "favicon" was. Well... here is the official definition from Wikipedia:

A favicon /ˈfævɪkɒn/ (short for Favorite icon), also known as a shortcut icon, Web site icon, tab icon or bookmark icon, is a file containing one or more[1] small icons, most commonly 16×16 pixels, associated with a particular Web site or Web page.[1][2] A web designer can create such an icon and install it into a Web site (or Web page) by several means, and graphical web browsers will then make use of it.[3] Browsers that provide favicon support typically display a page's favicon in the browser's address bar (sometimes in the history as well) and next to the page's name in a list of bookmarks.[3] Browsers that support a tabbed document interface typically show a page's favicon next to the page's title on the tab, and site-specific browsers use the favicon as a desktop icon

So, those cute little mini logos you see on your browser tabs, yep, those are favicons!

Take a look at the one's on the tabs you have open right now. Some make sense, others, well, you get the idea. Personally, I was ecstatic when I figured out how to add them to websites I had designed. I'm sure everyone around me got sick of hearing about it too! Haha! The point is, if you are able to make one that "makes sense" to your design, by all means do it! It will add that little bit of extra character to your website, and it might one of the little things that a potential client might remember.
 

Monday, March 17, 2014

Parkland Alumns

This week I'm going to simply give you a link to some of the very creative Alumni that Parkland College has produced. Please check them out and see how many really talented people are in your community. You can find them here!

Monday, March 10, 2014

Social Network – Can it help you promote yourself?

This week's homework was all about the different social networks out there. We all know the big ones – Facebook & Twitter, but is everyone aware of the others? There are LinkedIn, Google+, Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest, YouTube, Blogger, WordPress, etc. Even if you hadn't heard of some of them, you might recognize their icons.


Your assignment, if you wish to take it, is to check all of these out and see which ones you would like to use, or be seen on. Good Luck!

Monday, March 3, 2014

Pinterest for Inspiration

I have been using Pinterest for quite a while for inspiration purposes, so I though I would share a quick view of some of my design related boards with you.