My Homepage

I've finished designing my homepage for the webpages we're designing (both desktop and mobile). I wanted to create a 'fun' looking webpage that has elements of humour it in as well as good selling points.
To the left you can see the desktop version. I've put a CTA button ('buy') in clear sight so people can have the option of going straight to the product page. However, I also have links in a toolbar including a gallery of images. I have also added hover states to the toolbar so it looks really professional and cool to click.

You can also see some comedy in the webpage, for instance the moustache pun which links to the product itself. Also, in the footer, you can see 'all products' but I'm only selling one product so I've added 'Cakes and Actors' listed there, too.


The mobile version is a bit more condensed. I've gotten rid of the toolbar and added an icon in the top left corner instead, which has also been done for the cart. I've done this so it runs smoother on a phone. I've added a catchy tag line, also.

There are some similarities such as the CTA button on the image so it's easy to reach the product page. Also the footer is very similar.

Campaign Logo

I wanted to create a logo for my campaign so people could recognise it quickly, or even associate similar things to it. For instance, like the fighting rabbits in the Fighting Animal Testing symbol in Lush's campaign is easily recognisable and when you see two rabbits you can link it to that campaign.

I looked at some other logos for inspirational and knew I wanted something that included the mind. I was thinking of doing something like a brain or speech bubble in the brain, but I realised that wasn't too recognisable because of it's popularity and you wouldn't associate much to it, either.  

With a bit more thought, I had an idea to design something as it how the mind feels with a mental disorder, but it was a bit difficult, and as I was designing in Illustrator, I got impatient and scribbled all over it. This gave me the perfect idea of the logo I designed in the end, as mental illnesses are a bit too complicated and 'messy' to really just put into a logo.


Something that was pointed out to me was the organisation 'mind', who had a similar logo. Seeing that, I wanted to put an individual twist on mine so I created a new logo and name. I used the name 'psyche', because it represents the mind, body and soul and I thought it was a good word to represent health, because not all illnesses are physical.

I created this new logo. I like this one because I experimented with the brush strokes and colours a bit more. I kept the scribble because I liked that idea I had before. I may still experiment a little more with it but I like how it's turning out so far.

Experimental Shoot

Today, as an experiment, I tried out an experimental photography shoot for my campaign on mental illnesses. In my shoot, I wanted people to see what depression and anxiety feels like in a visual way, and for this I used a prop of black fabric. I also plan to use this black fabric in a bath tub to show some variety.

I've also drawn out some ideas for the next shoot, including some sketches of the images I've already taken. Some of the new images include using clingfilm to show how mental illnesses can 'trap' you, and also a bathtub.

Construction Toy Poster

In class we had to create illustrations of our toys. I designed our light-up shapes in Illustrator.

To the left you can see it.

I used the 3D tool to create the shapes and blocks, and then put them all together to build a 'night-light'.

I made this illustration into a poster, explaining the product with a little bit of detail. I used shadows to help create a 'night-light' look to it. I wanted to make the background a faint lilac, but I had trouble with the gradient and blending as I'm still a little new to the software.

I did change the poster around a little so the fonts, etc, but I think the black and white theme dulled it a little.

I also created had previously sketched how the pieces connect (previous blog), and what the shapes look like, for instance.

Finishing my Film

Today, I finished editing my film but I have decided to publish it after finalising some details. For four weeks, we swapped filming for other's pieces but there were complications along the way with availability of certain locations and timing of other's schedules. However, I did get all of my filming finished.

However, in the editing process some scenes were cut because they didn't look as good as I intended them to. This means I didn't follow my shot list completely but I'm happy with the outcome anyway. 

Our Audio Piece

For my individual audio piece, I have decided to do two Instagram promo videos for a certain cause. For instance, a friend of mine creates well-supported petitions which I could promote. I would do this is the style of lyric videos, like this one. However, I need the audio over the facts and information to match the video but not overwhelm the viewer.

To do this, I may put audio over the video of someone saying the 'facts' so it's not too much, and maybe a soundtrack. This will help with the tone of the video, without overwhelming the viewer.

Music and Copyright

Copyright is a law that allows a creator of a piece of work certain rights for that works use. This applies to audio including certain music, soundtracks, theme songs, and much more.

Creative Commons

This is an organisation that allows the free use and distribution of pieces legally. This isn't an alternative to copyright, however, as the creator can modify their copyright terms with 'All Rights Reserved' or 'Some Rights Reserved'. 

Fair Use

Fair use is a more limited version of creative commons, as you can use some pieces but only for certain reasons. For instance, you can use a song in a video in it's for commentary or criticism reasons. Also, you can use certain pieces for parody reasons - which is, for instance, changing lyrics to a song for comedic purposes.

Royalty Free

Royalty free is a little bit similar to creative commons, and is often confused. However, there is a difference. RF is where you secure your use for a piece - most of the time using money - and, after that initial permission you can use that photo freely all you like. 

Communication Channels

Television was created after WW1 in the late 20's

However, like the ASA, Ofcom is an organisation founded in 2003 that helps regulates what's viewed on television. This includes the 'watershed' where, between 5:30 am and 9:00 pm, channels cannot view shows distressing to children or with adult themes.

So far, Ofcom regulates BBC, ITV, Channel 3, Channel 4 and Channel 5. They also regulate radio channels, telecoms, mobiles, postal services and airwaves for wireless devices. In addition, they can also regulate Amazon Prime shows but not other applications like Netflix (as it is not UK based).

Print V Broadcast

Writing for print is a lot more casual than broadcast. With broadcast, you have about 30 seconds to introduce/talk about a news story, whereas in print you have a whole article to describe the situation. so you have the time to include opinions. For instance, there have been many cases where writers have had to apologise to certain people (celebrities, fans, etc) for any offensive points made in their articles. Similarly, articles can be more relaxed and use more jokes or puns, etc. For instance, Cosmo articles are very relaxed though can be about news.

However, the biggest difference is the detail involved. Print can describe the story in depth, using longer words and sounding very professional. However, in broadcast, you, again, only have limited time so you need to use simple words and have less detail. This is so people watching can understand fully what is happening in the story in the limited time.

Radio

Radio and podcasts helps to communicate through just audio, so it's good for when you're out and about rather than somewhere comfortable enough for television. There are a range of channels on the radio: mostly music; talkshows and shows like Radio One, which feature a range of types of channels in their show. Majority of channels feature the news. 

It's different to TV for obvious reasons (lack of visual entertainment), but it's also a lot more descriptive as people have to describe or make it obvious with what's going on around them in radio. In television you can just see what is going on. Radio is usually a lot more informative and can also have a lot more humour involved.