Design

(9/2024) This entry is important to me because it was one of the projects that I had worked on earlier in the year where I had limited experience and was still trying to adjust to the working environment. I approached this project by consulting with the rest of the design team assigned to the story, which had multiple pages, planning out the elements that would go on each page and complement the writing by providing a visual representation of information regarding the presidential election. Some challenges I faced during this project included learning and working with new resources such as Procreate.

(9/2024) This entry is important to me because it was the first ever professional spread that I have worked on for the publication and showcases the start of my journey in design, where I am still experimenting with my style and layouts. I approached this project by looking at other feature spreads on the publication to get an idea of layouts and how to make my work more interactive and visually appealing for readers. Some challenges I faced during this project included gathering all of my media for the spread in order to put it together as some elements were weren’t submitted to me yet making it difficult to visualize the project and determining where certain elements would go on the page as new additions arrived.

(11/2024) This entry is important to me because before going into this spread I had never worked on any sports related projects which made this such a unique experience to add to my portfolio. I approached this project by doing research on sports spreads, looking at numerous magazines and booklets to get an idea of how others have approached similar projects in the past with different layouts and design elements. Some difficulties I encountered in this project would include having to rearrange my layout as it did not fit the guidelines of the spread overall, creating a cluttered look.

(12/2024) This entry is important to me because it allowed me to reflect on my personal values and beliefs through my designs. I approached this project by looking on the Scholastic website for the 2023 winners of the ‘Editorial Cartoon sponsored by the The Herb Block Foundation’ for inspiration with my submission, allowing myself ample time to really discuss the political injustices of the 21st century and add my own perspective to it. Some difficulties I encountered includes finding an idea that was unique to the previous work on the website which consisted of policies like abortion, gun violence and LGBTQ+ rights, but ultimately I was able to create something that expressed my exclusive views on the political dilemmas of todays world.

(2/2025) This entry is important to me because it was one of the more challenging spreads that I was assigned this year, teaching me a lot about layouts and the importance of planning as a design staffer. I approached this project by looking at the photos for this spread because I wanted the story to be photo heavy to display the emotion of the article, being Senioritis. I then pursued photo heavy spreads in other magazines for inspiration on layouts and design. Some difficulties I encountered included experimenting multiple times to ensure the spread wasn’t overwhelming or awkward to look at.

(2/2025) This entry is important to me because it mirrored the potential of a minimalistic yet effective spread and how it shouldn't be deemed as "bad design." I approached this spread by building off of a layout that highlighted the well-designed graphic, showing off the main concept of the story, Academic Rivalries. With that being at the top of the design hierarchy, I built the rest of the spread to complement the graphic, avoiding excessive elements while encouraging pull and inline quotes to showcase important statistical information. A difficulty I encountered was the off-putting amount of white space remaining.

(4/2025) This entry is important to me because it incorporated an exuberant amount of different elements that were on the spread and how I was to maintain proper hierarchy on the page. I approached this project by designing my spread on a life-size page to ensure I had thoroughly planned out the location and size of different elements throughout the spread so it wouldn't bleed into my time for designing as the deadlines were fast approaching. Some difficulties I encountered included perfecting the hierarchy of the Beach Rankings to keep the reader engaged as they scan the page, without excess clutter or confusion.

(4/2025) This entry is important to me because it was accomplished in a time crunch with a lack of completed elements and other necessary resources. I approached this project by looking for inspiration online, since it was notably my first feature story. Since the photography for this spread was extremely detailed yet expressive, I wanted it to be the prime focus of the story because it provides visual background information to the reader before they even engage with the complementary copy. Some difficulties I encountered included getting the proper materials such as the copy and long-awaited photos in time, which delayed my start.

(9/2025) This entry is important to me because I was challenged with finding a creative way to display and draw attention to the story through my graphics. When looking for inspiration, I explored magazine spreads that published political stories with different angles and visuals. They were helpful, yet I still struggled to create an idea that fit my specific vision. To work through these challenges, I used Procreate and gridded spread-planning paper to sketch possible layouts and graphics. This process helped me combine the information in the story with my own creativity while still taking inspiration from professional design work.

(9/2025) This entry is important to me because it required using multiple mediums and aligning each element on the page with intention. I looked for inspiration by reviewing alternate copy stories and studying how designers balanced photos with text while keeping hierarchy clear. Applying this to my own spread, I enlarged the photos to create strong leading lines toward the text so everything appeared organized and purposeful. Some challenges I faced included adjusting the sizes of elements to fit the spread, making sure each had enough space, and preventing the overall layout from feeling crowded or overwhelming.

(10/2025) This entry is important to me because I was assigned to add a new element to my designs, following trends in news magazines. This was the story starter, where I created an illustration to tease the story and show its angle. To find inspiration, I looked at political cartoons since the story shared a similar idea about the political divide among students on my campus. Using those styles, I designed my own illustration. Some challenges I faced included choosing meaningful graphics to fill the spread and reaching the page count, since the text was too short and left white space.

(11/2025) This entry is important to me because it was the first print photo gallery style story I had ever worked on. To design it, I looked at past archives of photo galleries from our own print issues to understand caption placement and how photos were arranged. To add a creative touch, I cut out elements from the photos, like the dancers and disco ball, to add depth instead of using a block structure. Some challenges I faced included choosing the right photo sizes to fit the page and cleanly cutting out each image so the spread looked clear and polished.

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