Digital Design
Welcome to AS/A2 Digital Design
in Photography.
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Digital Design through photography has had a long relationship, this course will give you a rounded exposure to different aspects of Digital Design allowing you to display and convey your abilities in a variety of disciplines and demonstrate your understanding in contexts.
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Digital design is a branch of graphic design, you will be asked to produce multimedia based works and work to a live client brief. The course is similar to that of graphic designers, with an expanded skill-set in using digital tools across different platforms. In addition to creative practical work, you will also establish links between your own practical work and the broader art world.
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How could you develop your Digital Design, Well this depends on your own personal interpretation and Client requirement, Your creative direction could be:
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Interactive Media (including Web, App and Game Design)
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Advertising
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Packaging Design
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Design for Print
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Illustration
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Communication Graphics
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Branding
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Multimedia
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Motion Graphics
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Design for Film
Digital Design is an exciting and wide-ranging subject and I hope you leave the course multi-skilled and aware of all the opportunities that exist within this interesting industry.
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You will encompass a breadth and depth of Digital Design through your studies, building on the strengths you already have
You will produce a portfolio of work which has a Personal and Client based result.
Along with an investigation to include a related personal study that must be between 1000 – 3000 words.
Finally a Controlled Assignment were by you will select one starting point from an early release question paper from OCR in which a 15 hours of controlled assess piece of work will be submitted where you will demonstrating Planning, Preparation and Relisation with an Outcome.
A critical awareness of the social, cultural, historical and economic meanings contained within own and others’ art and design work.
Knowledge is the communication of meaning through a Digital design response. This includes methodologies such as visual analysis, materials and technical analysis and critical discourse.
Understanding is demonstrated by applying appropriate analytical skills in a variety of differing solutions for example, studio based work; design in the community, Client based brief. This can be evidenced through both theoretical and practical outcomes.
Skills are defined as the use of formal elements, techniques and technologies and their application to a selected media.
Semiotics
" the study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation."
Semiotics can translate a picture from an image into words. Visual communication terms and theories come from linguistics, the study of language, and from semiotics, the science of signs. Signs take the form of words, images, sounds, odours, flavours, acts or objects, but such things have no natural meaning and become signs only when we provide them with meaning.
The semiotic theories are not definite but constantly being reviewed, extended and developed to become more precise and improve the significance of the information gathered when these theories are applied to works of art.
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Visual Art consumers have become highly sophisticated readers of signs and signals, decoding subconsciously art work compositions. Everything surrounding us human beings today, including our own identities are all moulded and manipulated by signs, words, images and our visual language.
Communication can be a form of mind control, the same happens with artworks with a conceptual meaning that stand and activate other people’s minds.
The principles of semiotics come in use when we begin to map out and decode
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To begin with you will be developing your understanding of graphic communication by participating in a range of exciting design briefs. You will be introduced to a wide variety of creative artists and theories in the field, as well as having the opportunity to explore both traditional graphic design techniques and the use of industry standard software.
1. START SOMEWHERE......
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You are given a challenge that is restricted by time , this is a great way to increase creativity and produce some fun, unexpected results. You will produce varied collection of individual letter forms, words and phrases in a multitude of styles from graphic and 3D to hand-rendered.
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TASK 1: You are asked to choose 5 words of your choice and illustrate them to capture the very essence of the feeling, action etc that word conveys.
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TASK 2: From the list given or the "Heard or Said" Brief, Illustrate a TYPO POSTER that is bold and catches our gaze. You are asked to put into practice the elements and principals of design, to create a poster that uses a quote. There is no room for creative indecisiveness but instead brings in the kind of spontaneity that helps your creativity grow.
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You can use Dafont, 1001 fonts, Photoshop or any other means that allows you to generate your responses. Think carefully about the Font, Size, Colour etc which will generate the overall impact.
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Remember when a poster focuses only on typography as its main element, the designer has to carefully craft the design to make sure that the type is both legible and artistic at the same time.
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COMMON ENGLISH IDIOMS:
Rolling & Tumbl'n
Get Stuckin
Bite the bullet
Cutting corners
Start over
A blessing in Disguise
You can say that again
Go back to the drawing board
Don't give up
Don't sell your self short
You can say that again
I have no idea
2. DIGITAL DESIGN HISTORY
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Individually you are asked to make a Graphic/Digital Timeline banner. There are several points you will need to know for this unit:
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When did Graphic/Digital Design first appear.
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What was the progression through time, to as we know it now.
process?
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You are asked to look at the Sub-sections listed below and conducted research into them, and present what you have discovered with a growing personal apriciation what what type of Graphic Digital Design your like.
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Before the printing press.... graphic design was considered a form of art, and people have always been drawn to expressing themselves through art. In fact, some people would argue that the history of graphic design can be traced all the way back to cave drawings, like the pieces created in Chauvet in 30,000 BC.
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Sumerian written language – 3300 – 3000 BCE
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Advancements in Chinese printing 200 CE – 1040 CE
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Medieval calligraphy – 700s
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European heraldry – ~1100
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Storefront signage – 1389
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The birth of graphic design: Renaissance and Industrial Era
modern era
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The Wiener Werkstätte
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Staatliches Bauhaus founded – 1919
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The term “graphic design” appears for the first time – 1922
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Paul Rand publishes Thoughts on Design – 1947
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A glimpse into the digital era, the history of graphic design is still ongoing.
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The progression of visual communication from cave paintings to digital
software can serve as great inspiration, but what fruit that bears is
up to you, whether you’re the next generation of
designer or the client whose brand might lend itself to a new leap in
design thinking.
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Identify the key movements and at least one influential designer from each era.
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In your iBook sketchbook create a research page on each one, showing visual reference as well as written summary.
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Create a graphic Info-graph / timeline in Photoshop, click on the link above there are some wonderful examples.
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Use the Pinterest to inspire your choice of layouts.
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3. GET CREATIVE......
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You are asked to choose from the FOUR mini projects briefs below, Each mini design brief is to start getting you to look a digital design with an audience in mind before your embark on your own personal project.
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A RECIPT CARD FOR MAKE A MARK
They’ve just released a new Global Awareness Challenge to help combat food insecurity – read this article to start off and find out more details about the cause.
Food insecurity is defined as a lack of access to food that contributes to a healthy lifestyle. In most cases low income houses aren’t receiving the proper nutrients to live a healthy, active lifestyle that then impacts their bodies and minds.
People don’t want to eat what they are unfamiliar with, which can often result in a cycle of consuming junk food. The lack of familiarity, even if the produce is free, causes confusion and lack of adoption amongst the hungry.
As a way of helping to introduce young people, as well as parents cooking for their children, to affordable and healthy food items, we’d like you to create a recipe card using food icons that can be distributed in either print or an online format. As people may not know what some ingredients are, it should have clear icons which represent each ingredient with some easy to follow cooking instructions. The recipes should contain no more than 5 easily accessible healthy ingredients – keep it simple!
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Deliverables required
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1 recipe card
CUSTOM LUGGAGE TAG DESIGN
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For this personal project, choose a few destinations that either mean alot to you or have some level of importance in your life and create a collection of custom luggage tag designs based around this theme. Taking a quick look at the inspiration shots we’ve included will give you guidance as the type of thing you could create. Here’s a few essential things to think about when getting started on this personal project brief:
Originality
There’s a lot of luggage tag designs out there, having a quick search on DRIBBLE for example shows how sometimes these can start to look quite similar. Try to think of ways you can make your designs stand out, wether it’s by including custom illustrations, a unique pattern or another graphical element which will make yours unique
Destinations
We’ve suggested you use a few destinations that mean alot to you, but.. you could think outside the box and push this even further. For example check out these Star Wars themed luggage tags by Ronald Ferree. We love the nod to this classic pop-culture phenomenon. Or.. you could just give your own city some love and put together a mini set based around one place which is what we did for concept – see our approach below.
Presentation
We can’t stress enough how the way you present your final artwork is just as important as the design itself. Think space and padding and complimentary background colours over obviously make mock-ups and heavy, tacky background scenarios! Taking a subtle, minimal approach to laying these out is the key here.
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Deliverables required
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At least 2 bespoke luggage tag designs
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A description of your approach
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Any sketches or initial ideas that didn't make the cut!
ICONIC LANDMARK ILLUSTRATION
Today we want you to design an iconic landmark of some sort. This is a great opportunity to practice your illustration skills and maybe explore with a style that you’re not very familiar with. To add a further challenge to the brief, we want the final piece to use no more than 4 colours. You’ll find this can happen quite often in real design briefs as printing can be so costly that many clients will request that you keep the amount of colour down to reduce printing costs.
First thing’s first, choose your landmark. Do some research of iconic landmarks across the globe and pick one that particularly resonates with you. It could be a landmark that you’ve visited or seen in real life, or it could be one you’ve always wanted to visit.
Once you have decided which landmark you are going to illustrate, now it’s time to choose the style you want to illustrate it in. Do you want your final piece to be abstract or realistic? Do you want it to be monochrome, two-tone or using the full 4 colours? Do you want it to be a line drawing or a geometrical piece? The choice is yours. Experiment with different styles and techniques in your initial sketching stages and home in on a style that you feel works well for that particular landmark.
Once you have finalised your sketch, it’s time to digitalise. Choose the method you want to digitalise your drawing but remember, it has to be finished in only 4 colours!
Perhaps finish your piece with the name of the landmark. These can make great postcards or posters so take your time, you may want to get some of printed and give them out as gifts to friends and family?
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Deliverables required
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1 page of initial sketches in different styles
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Final digitised design with maximum of 4 colours
HONEY LABEL
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‘Henry’s Honey’ is a premium British company that pride themselves on producing luxury, organic honey; it’s the best quality stuff on the market today. They are looking for a passionate designer to create a brand new logo and label design that represents the high-end, pure honey that ‘Henry’s’ produce. The design will need to intrigue customers and stand out on the shelf. The client is really keen on keeping the label clean and modern, with a ‘less-is-more’ approach; only include essential elements.
Consider imagery and typography in your design. Maybe create a small illustration of a bee, a hive, or a field to represent the organic nature of the product. Experiment with different techniques in the design stage; try using paints, pens, inks and other materials to help give you a variety of textures and aesthetics to work with.
As this is a brand and label project, you’ll need to initially work on your main brand concept, before getting started with the label artwork. The client hasn’t specified what style of typography or which images you should use, and so you’ll need to experiment with plenty of concepts loosely and then 2 or 3 further; which is feeling best? After you have the brand nailed, start incorporating the brand into a strong, clean and easily digestible label design.
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Deliverables required
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1 final logo
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Alternative version of the logo
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Icon to represent the brand
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Honey jar - label mock-up
4. Community Mural......
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You are asked to design a COMMUNITY MURAL for the Bodmin Town. Murals have the opportunity to tell the community's story, create a unique experience, engage citizens, increase foot traffic and tourism, increase appreciation for the arts and artists, and increase overall attractiveness of the space.
Your Mural design could depict an activities of a particular civilization's people, encapsulating a moment in time, or a range from scenes of hunting, gathering, and family life, to religious and funerary scenes. Remember it's a combination of a wide variety of artistic style, Realism with a dramatic sense of scale and amazing depth.
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Task 1: You are asked to research initially a Cultural or Historical reference in and around Bodmin Town which will be the underlining narrative of your mural design. Present this across three pages of your sketchbook. Identify key visual elements that could be incorporated into your design.
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Ideas to get you thinking.........Historical - Commemorative of our local history
Botanical, mycological, or culinary mural
Welcoming community, refugees, LGBTQ, etc
Green, Social and environmental justice.
Subtle protest and resistance, speaking to/claiming public memory and space.
Black Lives Mater, Keep Families Together.
Local scene...... the choice is yours.
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Task 2: With a camera you asked to wonder around the town of Bodmin and choose a location for your Mural design, think carefully about the location!!
It's no secret: murals make our neighbourhoods beautiful! They add colour to building walls and streets that would otherwise go unnoticed, which is a treat for locals and tourists alike. Murals attract new local businesses, help bring customers to pre-existing locations, and boost the economy of an area.
Capture 30 possible locations, edit and present across several pages in your sketchbook, Identify the perfect place/ location for your Mural design consideration
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Task 3: Its time to start designing!! Every mural idea begins with a single individual with a vision.
Find images online of other murals you admire, or if you have identified a particular artist you want to work with, get images of their murals. Photoshop the photos of sample murals onto the photos you took of your local public walls.
Things to consider when designing........Make sure that the purpose of the mural is clear in your sketchbook. Who is this mural for? What speed and angle will the viewer see it from? What is the energy or style you want to convey? Once you know the purpose, you can make decisions about the design.
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Your design can including the following: Photography, Illustration, Graphics, Abstract, etc BUT please consider to the main principles of graphic design are balance, contrast, emphasis, repetition and pattern, proportion, movement, white space, unity, and variety in your concept piece.
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BODMIN TOWN
5. Take on a brief."
You are the "New Blood" of image makers ..
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......CHOOSE... D&AD or CREATIVE CONSCIENCE they are asking you to take on the brief.......
Step 1.....
You are asked to read through the various briefs and take it on....."
..so picked your brief(s)
Begin..... start to research
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Start pinning - create a new pinterst board and begin to collect visuals that inspire your own ideas and concepts for the brief....
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RESEARCH:
Find and Research your first 4 artists using the links above.​​
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REFLECT:
A Minimum of 8 beautifully presented pages in your sketchbooks with detailed reflection and descriptive analysis of their work and how this connects with your own ideas for the brief.
Step 2.....
Respond...... Plan and execute three photoshoots that support your research and initial conceptual idea for the brief....
 f09d98d0b9377bcf7dc24959b0c56757 |  f67c2adf000dd8b21d0609cdcc72ce07 |
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 cf210ec7705e242840201db2adcfb2fd |  babe65a0e43f9b1a3133f082e4512af5 |
 c75da2952a3a08dc6628e982946f018f |  63801b872b9371828bd3344091838598 |
 9b073317d7795b775e8e990b84922057 |
Refine.....Take your very best 10 images and edits and begin to experiment with them in a conceptual manner...."What you take from the process will take you forward"...
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The idea......Forget the box, think anywhere and be creative....
Step 3...
Step 4...
Present your work in a nutshell. Show the key elements of your concept. Explain your creative process, how your research and development connects and how you arrived at your solutions.
Your Final piece could be a series of images showing your solution to the brief, a 2 min film or a single image.
6. "It's Over to You Now."
Step 1.....
It's now time for you to begin your own line of inquiry.....Over the past few months you have explored Digital Design in many formats....For most of you this would of highlighted what and how you would like to take you own ideas/ work forward during Yr.13.....So what direction are you thinking?
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Begin..... Start to Research
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Start pinning - create a new Pinterest board and begin to collect visuals that inspire your own ideas and concepts for the brief....
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RESEARCH:
Find and Research 6 artists
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REFLECT:
A Minimum of 8 beautifully presented pages in your sketchbooks with detailed reflection and descriptive analysis of their work and how this connects with your own ideas.
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RESPOND:
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DESIGN & PACKAGING
ADVERTISING
DESIGN FOR PRINT
COMMUNICATION GRAPHICS
REFINE & PRESENT...
Refine your work by developing further into an outcome / final piece(s).....Take your very best works and begin to present your ideas into a well considered layout format .
Show the key elements of your concept. Explain your creative process, how your research and development connects and how you arrived at your solutions.
Your Final piece could be a series of 3 pieces that showing your solution to the initial idea.
.."What you take from the process will take you forward now into Yr.13"...
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Click on the buttons below and get experimenting
Click on the button below and get presenting
From the Digital Experiments this student has created, the Final Piece was a Double Page and Front Cover for a New Magazine
