Journal #7

For this journal entry, I decided to make a gun out of cigarettes to help illustrate the fact that cigarrettes are just as dangerous as guns. I think it gets the message across really well, especially for not utilizing type or any other type of graphic. I think this image would work really well if it was done in photoshop with real cigarettes; however, since you required it to be illustrated by hand I did my best to draw it. 

Journal #3

1. This is a picture of a burger king cup, but the symbols on the top and bottom are what I was trying to focus on. The symbols are of cups with a line next to them. They're supposed to symbolize how high to fill the cup with ice, and how high to fill it with liquid for the best ice/beverage ratio. I like the idea; however, I could barely tell the first cup was supposed to be filled with ice and didn't know that until I asked someone who works there. All in all, good concept, could of used some better execution when it came to the designing front though.

2-7. These symbols are in a diagram I have in my room showing important information in the home community. I'm glad they put the words describing the symbols to the right of the symbol because otherwise I wouldn't be able to tell what they were with the exception of the fire extinguisher. However the point of the symbols is to point out important emergency information on the map that isn't pictured in my picture. 

8. This photo is on the back of a can of febreeze. What I was trying to focus on was the Recycle symbol which is three arrows all pointing at one another. I like this symbol because it shows an endless cycle and that is essentially the point of recycling. All in all I think the designer of this symbol did an amazing job.

9. This symbol is obviously of the Sprite logo; however,  I was trying to focus  on the lemon/lime fusion. The designer obviously chose to show the fusing of a lemon and a lime to express the flavor of sprite (lemon-lime) On top of just the basic concept, I think the designer made it look really sleek, cool, while still maintaining the simplicity of the symbol.

10. This picture is of a guitar pick because guitar picks symbolize guitars. Although they're also associated with bass guitars, most people just think of guitars.

11. This is obviously a picture of my passport, but what I was trying to bring focus to was the Eagle holding the olive branch and arrows. This is truly one of the many symbols of America, and whenever someone sees it, they immediately think of the USA.

Journal #15

The product design that I absolutely love is my iPhone 4. I love the sleekness of the iPhone the most. The combination of the glass back, brushed aluminum, and black color really make the design modern and sleek! In addition to how nice the design looks, the simplicity and shape make it really nice to hold and do work on. All in all, the design of the iPhone makes is aesthetically pleasing as well as functional and that's why I really like it.

Journal #14

While in Hastings the other day, I noticed that the movie cover for the "Avatar" uses Papyrus to spell out "Avatar." I thought this was really funny because I feel like Papyrus is always being knocked down by design gurus and graphic designers, but in this cases, one of the most successful movies of all time incorporates the type in their logo! I actually really like the font; however, I think the fact that it's so common takes away some creative points off anyone who uses it. I think like any typeface, there's definitely some times where Papyrus may actually be the BEST possible choice of font, but again, the fact that it's so common makes it less of a good choice.

Journal #13

Journal #12

In this advertisement, it shows Halley Berry looking sexy in a lake with her signature written on her back and a picture of her fragrance in the bottom right. The handwritten signature is placed there to give off a personal vibe to viewers of the advertisement. The handwriting in this advertisement works well because it adds that personal touch to the ad, without sacrificing the beauty of the ad. The graphic designer did a great job choosing the color of the signature, because it flows really well with the rest of the colors in the ad. Ultimately, I think this is a good advertisement for the perfume because it looks good, shows people the fragrance, and the person backing the perfume. 

Journal #11

In this advertisement, it simply shows an attractive woman who's obviously in great shape, working out with the packaging  of the supplement, "Hydroxycut" right next to her. The connotative aspect of this ad is that if you take hydroxycut and work out, you will end up looking like the model in the advertisement.

This advertisement has shown to work very well in numerous cases because it like all fitness supplement advertisements use this method. By incorporating rapid physiological change combined with a good looking person, everyone thinks that if they were to do this supplement, they'll end up looking, or at least get as close to looking like the person in the advertisement, as humanly possible.

Journal #10

In this advertisement for Sony noise canceling headphones, the megaphone is a metaphor for the loudest, most annoying thing possible, little kids on an airplane! The message that the ad is trying to get across, is that these Sony headphones are so good that if you wear them, you won't notice any annoyances around you. I think this advertisement is very effective because it's clever, funny, and shows how effective their product really is.

Journal #10

In this advertisement for Sony noise canceling headphones, the megaphone is a metaphor for the loudest, most annoying thing possible, little kids on an airplane! The message that the ad is trying to get across, is that these Sony headphones are so good that if you wear them, you won't notice any annoyances around you. I think this advertisement is very effective because it's clever, funny, and shows how effective their product really is.

Journal #9

For my first logo, I chose Apple's modern logo. In this modern apple logo, the artist chose to go with monochromatic colors to make the apple look chrome. This chrome look represents the company really well because most of their products come in silver, and chrome somewhat represents modernity and the future which is what Apple always tries to achieve with their technology. I'm not sure why they chose an apple to represent their brand; however, it's still one of the most recognizable designs today.

For my second logo, I chose the recently new Starbucks logo.  The artist utilized only the colors white and green to make a beautiful, yet simple and rememberable image.The colors seem to represent fresh and naturalness. Most people don't realize, but the girl in the logo is actually a Siren, or better known today as a mermaid with two tales. I'm not sure exactly why they chose a Siren to represent their brand, but it ended up being a great choice because they don't even have their name in the logo anymore.

For my third logo, I chose Citi bank's main logo.  This logo was designed by Paula Scher of Pentagram design in New York. Scher chose to use red, blue, and a white background to show that it's a patriotic company which somehow has a way of naturally feeling good. If one looks at the logo, you can see how the I's are connected with a red arch. The t in between the i's shows an umbrella, which is supposed to represent security because banks what you to feel secure with your money.

Journal #8

When I originally read this journal, I was expecting it to be much easier than it proved being; however, I believe I found some good images to represent the emotions, angry, sad, joyous, uninspired, and scared.

I chose the one of the angry birds from the game "Angry Birds" to represent angry. The reason I chose this was because the game is so famous and well known that if someone spots one of those little red birds they immediately think of the game and the emotion, "Angry,"

For the emotion "sad," I chose an image of a teardrop. Tears are most known for being a symbol of deep sorrow, or sadness, so naturally I thought a tear would be the best image for this assignment.

Christmas is typically a time of year when everyone becomes more happy and "joyous" so that's why I picked a Christmas tree to represent this emotion.

Uninspired was probably the hardest emotion to come up with an image. When I'm uninspired, it's usually because I'm confused. So I chose this image of an apathetic looking character sitting inside of a question mark because to me that is really what being uninspired is about.

For the emotion, scared, I chose an image of a black cat with it's back arched. This image really represents the emotion and appears to also be a really scary image.

Journal #4

20 arrow pictures in flickr link below!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/63063702@N05/sets/72157626635714529/

When I first read the assignment for journal number four, I was really worried about how long and how far I would have to travel in order to find twenty arrows. Once I read the article however, the author said he noticed so many arrows around him in day to day live that they were "virtually unescapable." This gave me some confidence and I set out to find arrows.

The first arrow I found was in my house in Rio Homes. The arrow was simply an arrow pointing at where we were in the Rio Homes community. When I saw this arrow, I realized that there really were arrows all around me and I set out to find more!

It then occured to me that of course my computer has, arrow keys! Obviously these keys are used for a multitude of things. All the way from moving pixel by pixel in photoshop, to online gaming, these are probably some of the most useful arrows in the world when you really think about it. They have a million possible functions, but overall they just help you move throughout the computer.

I opened my pantry for a snack and then found another arrow! This arrow was on the top of a box of Raisin Bran cereal. It was put there to help people to identify how and where to close the top of the cereal box. To me I felt like it was kind of an unnecessary arrow, but oh well it worked for this assignment!

The next picture, though somewhat blurry, is a picture of my thermostat for the ac/heater in my house. The arrow is there to point at the precise number of cycles the AC/Heater does a day. I had never noticed this arrow before and I think it's supposed to only be used by HVAC specialists but I'm not sure.

I then noticed the arrows on my roommates PC. His arrows were similar to my Mac's but had a different style. Again, probably the most functional arrows in the world.

The next arrows I immediately saw were on my roommates printer. These big blue arrows are there to direct you on how to load the paper properly into the printer. One arrow points and draws attention to the gray slider, and the other shows the direction in which to load the paper into the printer.

I then walked downstairs in which I immediately noticed another arrow! This arrow was on a piece of paper attached to the wall, pointing at the door. It was actually a homemade arrow that I made to remind people to close our outside door so that it stays warm/cool in the house.

Now in a hunt for arrows, I went to the medicine cabinet knowing there would be some type of arrows! I found arrows on almost every bottle of medicine telling you how to get the cap off. These arrows are really useful because I remember for the longest time when I was little not being able to figure these dang caps out!

Our DVD player also had numerous arrows. There's an arrow that signifies play, skip both directions, and open/close the DVD tray. This is truly an example of the arrow signifying so many different reasons and taking many different, yet similar forms.

I then walked out back to notice we had a keg shell with a giant arrow right on the top. This arrow was placed there to warn people where the tap is supposed to go and not to put the keg on the wrong side. The arrow is simply pointing at the opening of the keg.

The next arrow I spotted was on my xbox. This arrow is like one on the DVD player and represents the button for opening and closing the tray of the xbox.

My phone recently broke and when they sent me a new one, they included a prepaid envelope to ship the phone back. That's when I noticed the recycle logo on the bag! The recycle logo on the bag is made up of three different arrows pointing at each other in order to represent a cycle. I didnt realize what a cool logo/symbol it was until now.... it's awesome!

In order to find more arrows, I got in my car and noticed another arrow! In order to start my car you have to put one foot on the brake and push the button with your hand. The arrow in the picture is showing you that you have to push downward on the brake.

After being in my car I quickly realized two more arrows... my turn signals! So I snapped a picture of them in delight that I just found two unexpected arrows in my car!

Then I found another set of arrows in my car! These arrows were on the CD player showing what direction you can seek to find the song/radio station you desire.

At my friends house I noticed his TV had arrows representing which direction the channels would change if you pushed the corresponding button.

I figured I would take advantage of the channel change arrows, and also take a pictuer of the remote control.

In my bathroom, I noticed while brushing my teeth that the toothpaste has an arrow letting you know when you're running low and that it was time to "buy more." I laughed and continued brushing my teeth with my 1/6th of a bottle filled toothpaste.

I was getting desperate to find more arrows quick, so I snapped a screenshot of my phone keyboard in which  there is an arrow representing the "shift" or "capslock" key.

Then I noticed one of the most common arrows of all that had been in front of my face the whole time, my watch arrows. Obviously, these arrows are used to point and signify what time it is.

All in all, this article and assignment really helped me realize how universal arrows are! They literally are everywhere and represent sooooo many different things. They also have an infinit amount of forms and these two factors combined is what makes the arrow such an awesome symbol.

Journal #2

My Interpretation of "Little Miss Muffet"

Journal #1

My Symbol

Skateboard Heart

My name's Colin LaBerge and I'm a junior majoring in visual communication with an emphasis in graphic design. I'm 20 years old and love all different sources of media including film, computer imagery, photography, etc. When I grow up, I'd like to own my own action sports brand similar to a company like RVCA or The Hundreds. Currently, a friend from back home and I are working on a brand called "Revrs" and during my free time I like to put a lot of work into that.

I chose this picture of a broken skateboard shaped like a heart for numerous reasons. I've skateboarded ever since I can remember, so I love the sport itself. However, beyond just a literal depiction of this picture, the skateboard heart seems to symbolize my love of adventure and all extreme sports. Also, I feel like skateboards are a strong symbol for a counter-culture that involves all things "street" including sports, art, music, clothing etc. All in all, street culture is my life and that's why I feel this symbol is perfect.




My Symbol From Others

Skateboard

For my symbol of how other people perceive me, I again chose a skateboard; however, just a normal skateboard. I chose this as my symbol again because I really do believe I embody everything that makes up a skateboarder from the way I dress, to what I do for fun. In addition to just the skateboard though however, most people that know me, know I also love street art very passionately, and a lot of skateboarders are associated in the street art scene. In essence, I feel that a skateboard completely symbolizes me, my lifestyle, and people's perception of me.