The Magazine (Idea and Apps)

Cover Image, created using vector and pixel based applications

The idea

The purpose of the Capstone course is to showcase the students ability to make use of any, all, or a few of the teachings received at the institution within the program. A component of the thesis is that the student has to create the assignment for himself. For the class the thesis doesn’t have to be proven it simply has to be presented in an understandable and visually appealing manner…which is the entire point of Graphic Design.

This was not an easy task. (And it shouldn’t be.) I’ve been through a few idea. Not only did I think they were good ideas I actually began developing them so much so that I’ve got videos from two writers who dabble as instructors one of whom is from and lives in (Joseon,) Africa. That idea was based on the concept of reading being important, and how it shapes or lives. Not only did I contact a few writers who would have the ability to express their thoughts on the topic clearly I went through the process of researching the best way to deliver the ideas so that they wouldn’t bore the viewer. Alas I wasn’t able to find enough research material to support the view. Since I wanted to prove this I thought it best that the topic should be approached with a more serious tone, and in text. So I went back to the drawing board.

The next idea (which I can remember) was a response to an international video competition which requested that youths create a five minute video about social inclusion, diversity, and migration. I wrote a script/treatment. I contacted a few migrants on the island, set times to shoot them, after telling them what the idea was, shot two individuals, got stuck in the production aspect in relation to capturing the sound in specific locations that would aptly capture the essence of the island, and gradually I gave up on the idea.

Oddly enough the first two ideas were making use of thing learnt at a training facility which wasn’t associated with the institution. However I was given the okay to do them once I incorporated graphic design into them. The next idea came back to the original outline in that it focus was entirely on areas explored in the two-year program.

Before entering the program I did a little running about in an effort to put together my portfolio. The first time I painted was in Antigua State College, and I sent all of my pieces to Cambridge for the exam (which I failed). This little run-about was three years after the exam so it took some time to locate them. Thankfully, they hadn’t been sent to be burnt yet. In the days I spent transporting my portfolio (the actual case) between my home and the Ministry of Education and back, and then to the institution I was met by a number of persons who proclaimed their artistic ability, and their love for art. As time progressed I met artist who had chosen art as a career, and I’ve met lovers of art. The problem is that there always seems to be a divide between artists, and the art lovers, as though most are unable to find one another. In addition, a lack of desire to push one’s head out (in relation to artists) seems to be predominant.

In light of that, the idea to create something which begs artists to display themselves, and also lights the path to the cave of local artistry produced itself. That is the basis of the magazine.

“Lights. Camera. Action.”

Then you edit.

Edited Image

For every job there is a tool which allows you to get the job done, then there’s the tool which makes it easier. The Adobe suite was a great assist for graphic designers. It has everything I need: Photoshop; Illustrator; and InDesign. Perfect, right? No, not perfect because I don’t have the suite. Thankfully there are a few programmers who design open source applications which share the essential properties. Inkscape is a vector based application which can be used in place of Illustrator. You can take note of its handiwork when you see the extension ‘.svg’. And for my layout exploits I’m using Scribus. Though there are numerous Photoshop stand-ins but I’ve yet to find one I feel as cozy with.

When you learn and become accustomed to one application then switch to another it feels a little awkward. It has a very fish-out-of-water feel, and that’s exactly how I felt using Inkscape and Scribus for the first time, and for some time after that. However, after awhile the grew on me. I was introduced to Inkscape before I began my thesis, two years earlier I believe. However, I found Scribus sometime into creating the magazine. Due to the state of get-it-done that I’m in I didn’t, and don’t have the time to fiddle with the controls. I’ve gotten quite frustrated with the application even leaving the project for an extended time as I tried to figure how to get the application to do what I needed it to do. I returned to the project after deciding to give it one more try and then starting over in the photo editing software and making it work somehow. The time had allowed me to gain some patience and I noticed a few checkboxs and tabs I hadn’t noticed before, and the kinks were dekinked.

The magazine is still a work-in-progress, but it’s well on its way. I’ll be sure to inform you of its completion and leave a copy of it here as well. 😉 Thanks for sticking around. Share your thoughts. What do you think of the cover image? What applications do you use, and for what? (For anything text-oriented I use Evernote. It’s awesome. A few of the updates displeased me in relation to the visuals, but it still ranks as the best.)

See you next week when I’ll be writing of what could possibly be my next step education-wise, and how it came to be.