Design

Design is one of the trickiest, but most enjoyable skills I've learned over the past four years. I've found the process of designing to be surprisingly easier for me with more experience. Sophomore year was my first year in the Livewire magazine, and I never thought I would ever get my designs right. With time, I learned that there is no "right" way to design, but there is a way to utilize your abilities to create visually cohesive works. I realized I had design skills when I was recognized with an "Excellent" award from Ball State's CCIM Student Media Contest for one of my infographics in my junior year. It was a spread I was very proud of. I started designing more and more until it became a part of my everyday life once I officially joined Charged Media. Take a look at some of my designs.

Posts

Designs for Charged Media's Instagram were spontaneous, and fun to create. It often involved me sitting down with a computer or Ipad and designing, scrapping ideas, and getting feedback from staff until it was exactly what I needed. 

The design process for the Livewire magazine is pretty intense, as deadlines are strict but that is not allowed to prevent your best quality work from being produced. When I make layouts, I often start with a pencil-and-paper draft of my ideas. I put them in InDesign, and I rearrange my components to fit my story best. I have to take theme, colors, and cohesiveness into consideration, which sometimes means starting the layout over completely. For example, in my third layout shown above, the only element on the final layout that I started with was the square accents on the sides. Consulting with our magazine editor and Editor-in-Chief regularly was necessary to make sure my layouts fit our theme.

Marketing and Branding

Creating a style guide was a good first step to establishing our brand through our designs. When we market or advertise our services, we consult with our style guide to ensure our visual vibe is recognizable, and authentic. Through projects like our pamphlets or business cards, we had to make sure our fonts and colors were consistent and appropriate for our brand. 

All of these projects above required me to consult with our client beforehand and take notes on what the project vision looks like, what the limiattions and specifications are, and what a deadline is. For example, with the two logos "FBLA" and "Charge Up Cafe", we had client satisfaction with both designs' first draft. In the second poster "Fall CTE Advisory Day", our client liked my deisgn but requested colors to be adjusted. In the first poster, "Anna Tinelli", our client worked with me throughout all stages of my drafts, and told me what she did or did not like, which showed me how important it is to be persistent, becasue eventually the end result will be successful.

Along with my creations, I have been certified in Adobe programs Photoshop and InDesign since 2022 making me an Adobe Certified Professional in Print & Digital Media Publication and an Adobe Certified Professional in Visual Design.