5366 Digital Graphics Reflection

Over the past several weeks I was taken into a journey of the general overview of graphic design principles and animation. This course was a little bit challenging in the fact that I never thought of branding, creating a logo, animation, and a newsletter. In order to create a professional and aesthetically pleasing product I was introduced to the basic design principles.

The principle we were introduced to was C.R.A.P. and it stands for contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity. The contrast is probably the most important element of the design principle in that it allows things to stand out and is easy to see and captures the eye. The second principle is repetition and it brings unity and similarity to the product. The third principle alignment allows the elements to have a visual relationship. The final principle proximity dictates that items that belong together should be placed proximate to each other.

Along with the C.R.A.P. principle we learned about self-branding. We learned about marketing the individual. It is the message that we want to be associate with us. In branding we want to create a positive image that set us apart from the rest, and the message that we want conveyed.

I will be honest and admit that I have never created a logo, animation, and especially a newsletter. In order to address the principles outlined in the course I had to delve deeper into the products that I had occasionally used before. I found that my level of knowledge in the Microsoft Office was adequate, but not up to the level required in order to create these projects. I found that in utilizing the applications a whole new avenue of possibilities opened up. I realized the more the knowledge and exploration process continued that I keep saying to myself “I did not know you could do that.” This process reinforced my mindset of a lifelong learner. The more I explored the more I wanted to know. I know that I expanded on my knowledge of the products and learned to use GIMP and it allowed me to create the logo with ease. I am positive that any challenges in creating animation and graphics will be easier for me to use than those of the teachers that I assist, since I use have used these products in the past and I am responsible in the transfer of knowledge in the form of training.

This knowledge has empowered me to mentor the teachers in our district. I will train them on the principles that have been learned. They will be showed concepts on utilized this knowledge to incorporate student engagement for diverse learners. Graphics and audio is an awesome method to address the needs of all students.

References:

Goldsmith, M. (August 2007). Authentic personal branding. Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/sep2009/ca20090929_228578.htm

Wahl, L., & Duffield, J. (2005). Using flexible technology to meet the needs of diverse learners. Retrieved from http://www.wested.org/online_pubs/kn-05-01.pdf

Yearwood, J. (2009), Basic Elements of Page Design. Lamar University

5366 Digital Graphics Week 3 Animation

This week was a little challenging.  I have never attempted animation much less work with it.  I downloaded the Stykz program.  I tried playing with it and was confused.  How am I going to accomplish this assignment.  I when through the tutorial and I still had questions.  I saw one of the demo sites on their website and downloaded their animation and looked at it frame by frame.  This all let it fit together.  The animation that I completed took a total of 78 frames.  In looking at the rubic it showed that we needed 10 or 12 steps.  This does equate to frames.  So to make sure that motion did indeed come through it took me all 78 frames.  This all amounted to just several seconds of video.  I have so much more respect for those people developing animation professionally.  Well please take a look at the animation at the bottom and feel free to comment.

This first one is in QTime, which was requested for the assigment.