Work Related Learning // WRL // Session 2

It was our second session for the WRL unit and hallelujah my peers turned up, which was good as we all get on well and the majority of us have the same interests. We basically went through what I had done in the previous session but in more depth. This is what I brought away from the meeting;

1. Look at high level companies as well as independent small companies.
2. Broaden my views on the creative world.
3. Look at how the business is run.
4. How do they bring in clients.
5. How do they settle on a price.
6. Make sure I attend all portfolio reviews.
7. Always take your portfolio along to the companies if they agree.

Relevant names:
Laura Walker - Old Vizcom Student
Jonny Whelles - Old Vizcom Student
Stevie Boxall - Old Vizcom Student
Martin Coyne
Eden Frankem - Started his own business
Claire Blackmore - Paintworks. (Talk 23rd March)
Hamish someone - Octavo
Luke Lobbley - Wonderland Magazine
Jeremy Prescott - Gate Worldwide
Steve Gordon - Careers Advice (sgordon@aib.ac.uk)
Pentagram

ALWAYS MAKE A PLAN!! Thorough research and planning is needed.
Write down what you initial career plan is and do a personal brainstorm on what you would like to get out of this unit.

Mike Ryan Talk // Take 2

I had my second talk with Mike Ryan today. We started off by going through my Learning Agreement and sorting out a couple of bits and bobs in it. We then delved into what I had done for the research of the project. I had looked into various magazines such a GQ and had collected many cutouts from each.

Once we had skimmed through the cutouts we came to the conclusion that the different pieces of clothing weren't that important to my project. It was more the logo design and branding that was what I should look into. We also discussed how the more expensive brands tend to use serif fonts and the less expensive, usually high street retailers tend to use san serif fonts as this usually portrays the correct image for both, across to the public. As I taken this into account I had been coming up with possible names for the brand. We went through these and discussed in detail which Mike thought worked the most. The name Tendenza was the one that stood out the most. It means Trend in Italian.

Mike also told me he thought it be best I stick to a certain age range. Preferrably the young professional from about 24 to 34 years of age. This would benefit my project considerably compared to the age group I had in my Learning Agreement.

For next week (Thurs 5th March) he wanted me to create a mood board of all the fashion logos I can find. Photocopy them and place them in different catagories depending on the fonts used.

Work Related Learning // WRL // Session 1

Today was the dawning of a new era; the Work Related Learning era to be precise. I am glad to report it was a success, and a flop at the same time. The success was that it went really well and looked like it was going to be a great project, the flop was that I was the only one that turned up!

The unit is intended to help me to develop my understanding of the creative industries, and identify future employment opportunities.

My plans and expectations in relation to the unit will be presented in the form of a Learning Agreement, which will be discussed with my unit leader.

I will be expected to make all relevant industry-level contacts through my own research, and the onus throughout the unit will be on me to arrange visits, interviews, and a work experience placement and/or professional assignment.

I was given a brief introduction to what is asked of us and how I go about doing it. We lightly discussed what I would like from the unit and what I can see my future consisting of.

HDR Experimentation

Yesterday and today I started playing around with my camera again. I'd always been interested in HDR images and have never managed to make a decent one. HDR Image = High Dynamic Range Image. In image processing, computer graphics, and photography, high dynamic range imaging is a set of techniques that allows a greater dynamic range of luminances between light and dark areas of a scene than normal digital imaging techniques. The intention of HDRI is to accurately represent the wide range of intensity levels found in real scenes ranging from direct sunlight to shadows. My first inspiration came from this amazing image of an Aston Martin V8 that I found on Flickr which was shot by Rob aka Robmcm. I just think the whole image works so nicely, the tones and reflections are just awesome.


So yeah, that was my inspiration and I took a few "experimental" shots of different objects, which to be quite frank, came out crap. Yet I then tried doing a HDR of my girlfriend's Ford KA. By using Photomatrix Pro I managed to come up with this...

It was shot on an overcast day at about 4 in the afternoon. I was pretty pleased with how it came out as it was my first real HDR. Yet once posted on Flickr I managed to get some feedback from Guru Photographer Dan Hodson, who advised me to sort out the white balance of the image. I will know for next time!

Learning Agreement

Today we also had to hand in our Learning Agreement for the Professional Project. It was a big relief as it took a lot of my mind and showed me what I really needed to put into action.

Synopsis of Study

For my Professional Project I am going to create a clothing brand that will compete with the likes of Bench., Burton, Topman and River Island. It will be a clothing brand that will concentrate on contemporary fashions and have a range of clothing to suit the pocket of both students and professional individuals. I am going to look into the difference between high street retailers such as Topman and River Island, and the more expensive high-end clothing companies, such as Armani and Gucci. I will look into how and why they are more expensive and whether there are any ways you can get such a good quality clothes for high street prices.

As I am starting the brand from scratch I will decide on an appropriate name. Possibly generate about 5 or 6 names and let my peers decide which they like the most. Both genders would have to be taken into consideration for this in order to avoid gender discrimination although I would like to mainly stick to male association. By deciding to undertake the brand development side of things I am venturing into the field of what I would like to do in the near future, it will also show that I am capable of developing a company from scratch.

My target audience will be the younger generation, yet not too young. 18 - 30 is a good age range as the brand will benefit all groups between those ages. The clothing will be high quality at affordable prices. Yet there will also be sections where higher paid individuals can splash out on more expensive clothing.

The brand development would consist of the designing the Logo, Stationery and Website Layout. Besides the required I am also going to design a few items of clothing that have the company’s style or signature on them. By designing the clothing ranges I am stepping out of my boundary, as I have never created anything to do with fashion design before.

Recently I have become more interested in the modern fashion era. Which I wish wasn’t the case as it involves spending money I currently do not have. I wanted to do this project as it would be something I have never even thought about doing, hopefully it will be very different and give me a whole new incentive on the aspect of work I wish to undertake. I propose to present the brand development and brand guidelines; along with some clothing designs in order to kick-start the company. I also think this is going to be a very successful project as it looks about the correct amount to do in the time given. It is not too big and yet it isn’t too little either.