To the point

I went to visit Nikki Gay at to the point when I was in London. You could tell they were very busy in the studio so it was nice that she still took time to see us. She advised us that we need to make our portfolios apparent to what job we are going for. For example if its a packaging a company make sure out portfolios relevant for that company. As I am still un sure which type of design I wan to go into she reassured me I will figure this out through placements. She said our course seemed interesting and open and she liked our use of typography in our work.

She liked the idea of making a book to leave and especially liked our pictogram's as it showed a fun way to show our illustrator skills. She was very interested in our course and asked us questions about what we learn and how open our course is. Regarding our portfolios she said we could pick one or two of our projects and expand and showing the work in context.
When we asked her what she looks in graduates for placements and jobs she said she looks for ideas, explanation of the work and the process.

Very Studios Visit.

On our London Visit I visited Very Studios for a portfolio Visit. The Visit was with John Paul and Richard. The main piece of advise they both gave us generally was make sure we know the brief and can explain it properly, Also to be able to explain our work and ideas in a confident way. They said that it is good to show scamps and a way of doing this could be having a separate book to your portfolio with scamps in. The reason for this is that you can show a process and different ideas that may not have been executed. It shows your way of thinking and process. When it came to Flash projects they advised showing it on a laptop and iPhone. And if we include logos in our portfolio make sure to show it in black and white as well as colour.

When it came to my portfolio they gave me some good advise. They said I should look at my layout of the portfolio because my strongest work was all at the back. When it came to the furniture posters they said i need to know the chair used in the poster in case a designer asks when I'm looking for a job, as i didn't know when they asked me. For my British dental museum work they suggested I expand it, by including a leaflet or direct mail. They advised me to make my Kitchen of meaning work bigger as my layout loosed detail in the posters. And i should do this by expanding the project over two pages. For my flash Pantone work as before they said it would work better being shown, maybe using a flip book. For my observer magazine they said they liked the spreads but my front cover isn't very good. They advised i redo it or make my spreads bigger and the front cover smaller when I'm showing it in my portfolio. For the lifeline work they said i had to show the a2 poster bigger than the a4 ones as it looked like it had inconstancy in the typography due to the the sizing.

It was a great experience going to very and I took a lot away from it. The told us the pros of coming down to London and advised us on placements.

Portfolio visit at Liquid Solution in Liverpool

On Thursday (12/11/09) I went to liquid solution in Liverpool for a portfolio visit with Karen. I was excited to see a women and get her perspective on my work appose to all male views.

Solution was a big studio and we went for the visit in there Library which was cosy and full of books. Karen told us she likes to see idea based work when she looks through portfolios and make sure you target the audience you are aiming at. The work in your portfolio shows your strengths and your variation of skills. She told us that layout is very important so posters like the History of furniture briefs are good in there to show your layout skills.

When it came to looking through my portfolio she gave me some really helpful suggestions. When it came to my Observer magazine she said its always good to take the final image it lets them look through something although the downside is it often distracts them from what you are saying.

The kitchen of meaning work she suggested I applied it to different things. For example stands or signs in the exhibition. I like this idea and will defiantly work on that.

She said that the world strongest man work was good as it made her smile. A reaction like that will make the piece more memorable.

When it came to my British dental museum work she suggested showing my logo big appose to hiding it away in the poster.

I learnt a lot from this visit and also feel more comfortable talking about my work. When it came to asking questions I was keen to ask her about the male domination in Graphic Design. She said it seems to be a myth as in liquid solution there is always a balance of men and women. The only real reason is women go off and have children and cant put in the hours graphic design requires.

Portfolio visit at 999 design

On Wednesday (11/11/09) I went to visit David Sedgwich . He told us how to possible make a book as a leave behind and helpful hints like that which he touched on in the lecture he did with us at Stockport college. He preferred us to talk through the portfolio then he came back to us with advise. It was quite daunting to talk about your walk in front of a professional designer but was a helpful exercise to get used to doing that. He told us if we are unsure of the work do not put it in, and also to check the print quality of some of the images in the portfolio.

He kept reassuring that everybody has different opinions so don't take everything to heart but i prefer the honesty, and as i am getting through my visits early on in the final year i have enough time to adjust the faults.

The min thing i took out of the visit was not to hesitate when going through your own work and show confidence. If it is hard to talk about it shouldn't really be in there. For example he told us to explain our flash stings in more detail including the progress, as flash was a soft wear Dave was not very aware of. 

When it came to my portfolio Dave gave me some good guidance. He also said the photography work was not needed. He liked my kitchen of meaning work but suggested going back to the original photographs to make it more personal. He also liked the Pantone work and suggested showing as a series and to try find a better way of showing the idea.

If i had time Dave suggested expanding the idea of my British dental museum and dropping the colour repetitions.

Today was very successful and i feel more confident in where i need to  build on my work.

Portfolio visit at Bourn design

On Wednesday the 11/11/09 myself and 3 other class members went to Bourn design for a portfolio visit. As soon as we walked in they were very friendly and you could tell it would be a nice agency to work for. We went up to the meeting room with Mark and Matthew joined us a few minutes after. It was good to get two different points of views, as there views differed in certain ways giving us a wider opinion.

At first they sat down and told us how to approach getting a job and helpful tips.

They told us to have a variety in our portfolio and we were all lacking web design in our portfolios which will be very important. They showed us how students typography is there biggest down full and also there speed of work.

They also suggested that we go to a printers. Chapel press in particular mention there name and go in for a look around. This would help us to get the experience we only learn once we get a job.

When it came to my portfolio they were very helpful and gave me some handy tips and guidance. They were impresses with my pantone end sting work but suggested also showing it in situte I.e in a t.v. also showing different variety's such as a post box, black cab e.c.t. They liked my kitchen of meaning work but suggested working on the typography and they also likes the world strongest man group work. with the worlds strongest man they suggested adding type to the ambient media pieces and keeping the placing of the sign consist ant. They said the experimental photography is not necessary in there.

Today was very positive and i came out feeling very happy with the outcome. They also suggested a list of books to get and read which i will.

Portfolio Visit at Like A River

Portfolio Visit with Rob From like a river.

 

Rob had said on emails that he preferred to see students as a group. This was good for me nerves wise and for the reasons why he did it. He likes to look at students work in a group crit so more than one person has an opinion.

 

As soon as we arrived at like a river he made us feel right at home and sent us to make tea while he was finishing up some important work. When we sat down in the room with him he told us about life in the design industry and a number of awards and competitions they have entered.

 

The first thing he made us aware of was that like a river does not show their work that is done for an image purpose. He was big on ideas. This was reflected on their website and when it came to my portfolio crit. The first year work was posters made to look pretty rather than holding a strong idea. Although it padded out the portfolio it was not necessary in there. He advised us to go back to them, ignore the brief and certain fonts we had to use and include an idea within them.

 

 It made me realise I needed to have a stronger portfolio based on ideas. He liked the identity group work we did and my kitchen of meaning posters. If he had some criticisms it was to benefit me.

 

He showed me how to layout my portfolio better and told us the important of typefaces. Our lack of knowledge on font was obvious and has made me want to get a better knowledge in this area.

 

He is emailing me some past roses briefs for me and Casey to work on. He has invited us to come back for help and guidance on these briefs to make our portfolios stronger. It was a very insightful and interesting visit that I have taken a lot away from.

As we were leaving Rob gave us both a copy of their Like a.... book.

Portfolio Visit at Williams and Crosby

My portfolio visit was at a company called Williams and Crosby in Macclesfield. While I was waiting for the creative director a designer called Laura showed me work the company was doing at the moment which was a book for an exhibition being held in the Manchester art gallery Cube.

  

After this The Creative director Ed came in and sat me down around a big board room table to look through my portfolio. He liked the way I had created a book but suggested printing off a few as a leave behind But not as a main portfolio. He suggested either the folders  or the box Portfolio. He was impressed by my typography skills which I was shocked at because I also see typography as my weakness.He also spotted mistakes in my photo shop work which I hadn't noticed.This was quiet embarrassing but showed me how i need to look at my work in detail in the future. He obviously new I was a student but suggested more work in my portfolio including scamps and more explanation on how the work was put together rather than the brief.He was impressed with me showing photography work and the animation, He said he always looks for a range of work in Peoples portfolios.I will take all this advise on board when I next have to create a portfolio.

After he looked through my portfolio I asked him a number of questions which he was happy to answer. He said C.V's are a big impression on him before he even looks at the portfolio. He said he can tell someones creativity by the layout and font used. He also said he looks at marks such as GCSE more then degree because you need good grammar and degree marks don't always reflect the students work. He talked me through a typical pitch and how there company never do free pitches..he showed me examples of work and gave me price estimates on how much the work costs to produce and there asking price if the company is interested. The visit was not as scary as I thought and now I have been on one i no what to expect in the future.