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MGD 1011 & MGD1012 Past Projects

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Personal Avatar Design

Overview

You will be creating an avatar to replace your current avatar in Google. Your avatar could be an illustration of yourself, a logo that represents yourself or any sort of design that represents you. Even if you don’t use the avatar for real, you will need to place it into your Google account to mock up the design.​
 

Objective - What is the problem I need to solve?

  1. How will I incorporate old and new skills into Illustrator?

  2. How will I keep a simple, but advanced design, that will translate well into a small avatar design?

 

Project Requirements

  • Avatar is placed into Google to mock up your final design. 

  • Sketch is embedded into Illustrator and used directly to create your design.

 

Avatar Help Resources

 

Sketch to Vector Help

 

Step 1: Brainstorming Steps

  1. Create a new folder inside your Final folder and name it “Avatar”.

  2. Create a new Google Doc inside your Surrealism folder and copy and paste the Avatar Creative Brief into this new doc.

  3. Fill out the top of the Creative Brief and title it by clicking on Untitled Document. 

  4. Complete the Creative Brief brainstorming steps. 

 

Step 2: Project Steps

  1. Create a new Illustrator file that is 1000x1000 pixels 

  2. Select your circle tool and double-click on the background to set the size. Size it to be 130x130 pixels. 

  3. Size the artboard correctly by going to Object>Artboards (at the bottom)>Fit to Artwork Bounds. 

  4. Design within that circle, although you do not need to have a circle in your final design. This can be just used as a guide. 

  5. Upload your sketch into Illustrator and embed it.

 

Step 3: Turn In Steps

1. Save your Illustrator file as “lastName_Avatar.ai”. 

2. Export your file as a JPG by going to File>Export>Export As and changing the format to JPG. Make sure to check the Use Artboards box on the bottom left. If you don’t, you will not have a nice rectangle design and you will lose points.

3. On the next screen save your JPG file using the settings below:

       - Color Model: RGB

       - Quality: 10

       - Resolution: 300

4. Go to Gmail and click on your avatar icon on the top-right corner.

5. Click on the pencil icon>Change>My Computer and upload your JPG.

6. Once your icon is updated in Google, take a screenshot of it by using shift+command+4. You then can click and drag around the icon. Make sure to include a large enough representation of the image and don’t just screenshot the avatar. The purpose is to see how the avatar looks with the surrounding elements. Screenshot Mockup Example

7. Turn in the AI, JPG and screenshot. 

8. Complete the self-evaluation on the rubric. 

9. Complete and submit the checklist in Schoology.

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Fall Final: Art Style Poster

Overview

You will be researching an art style and then creating a poster based off of characteristics of that art style. The topic of the poster is totally up to you. Possible art styles could include:

 

  • Art Nouveau

  • Bauhaus / Modernism

  • Pop Art

  • Surrealism

  • Constructivism

  • Swiss / International Typographic Style

  • Dada / Collage

  • Futurism

  • Fauvism / Expressionism

  • Neo-Expressionism / Street Art / Graffiti

  • Minimalism

  • Vaporwave / Synthwave / Retrowave

  • Ukiyo-e / Japanese woodblock inspired

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Objective - What is the problem I need to solve?

How will I incorporate elements of an art style into a Photoshop design?

 

Project Requirements

  • Characteristics of the art style must be seen and you can explain what they are

  • Try to use only copyright free images

  • Design need to be photo based and not vector based

  • Photo editing skills need to be used

 

Step 1: Brainstorming Steps

  1. Create a new folder inside your Final folder and name it “Art Style”.

  2. Create a new Google Doc inside your Surrealism folder and copy and paste the Art Style Creative Brief into this new doc.

  3. Fill out the top of the Creative Brief and title it by clicking on Untitled Document. 

  4. Complete the Creative Brief brainstorming steps. 

 

Step 2: Project Steps

  1. Create a new PSD file - size 11x17” and 180 resolution

  2. Start to add copyright free images and apply photo editing skills to the images to blend all of the images together. 

 

Step 3: Turn In Steps

  1. Save your PSD file and a high-res JPG file as “lastName_Art Style” and upload both files to your Final folder. 

  2. Complete and submit the checklist in Schoology. 

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Environmental Poster

Overview

You will research an environmental topic that you want to base your design around. When thinking about your topic, try to get outside of basic “pollution” kind of themes and think deeper. Specifically what type of pollution do you want to educate about on your design?

 

Possible Topics

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Objective - What is the problem I need to solve?

  • How will I use photo editing skills to create an environmental based poster design?

 

Portfolio Requirements

  • Try to use only copyright free images

  • Design need to be photo based and not vector based

  • Photo editing skills need to be used

 

Step 1: Brainstorming Steps

  1. Create a new folder inside your Final folder and name it “Environmental”.

  2. Create a new Google Doc inside your Personal Impact folder and copy and paste the Environmental Creative Brief into this new doc.

  3. Fill out the top of the Creative Brief and title it by clicking on Untitled Document. 

  4. Complete the Creative Brief brainstorming steps. 

 

Step 2: Project Steps

  1. Create a Photoshop file 11x17” or 17x11” and 180dpi. 

  2. Use many layers to create an elaborate design that showcases your photo editing skills and new Photoshop skills.

 

Step 3: Turn-In Directions 

  1. Save your file as a high-res JPG and PSD titled “lastName_Enviromental”. 

  2. Turn-in both your PSD and JPG files into your project folder, which needs to be in your Final folder.

  3. Complete and submit the checklist in Schoology.

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Personal Impact Poster

Overview

This project will allow you to express yourself by creating a poster that represents an event that impacted you personally. If you can’t think of something that impacted you personally, then you can use an event that may have impacted your close family.

 

Objective - What is the problem I need to solve?

  • How will I creatively represent an impactful event in a unique manner?

  • How can I use copyright free images in my design?

 

Project Requirements

  • Try to use only copyright free images

  • Many layers are used to create the poster

  • Attractive typography was used that represents your theme if needed 

  • A variety of past AND new Photoshop skills are used

  • Design need to be photo based and not vector based

 

Project Help

 

Step 1: Brainstorming Steps

  1. Create a new folder inside your Final folder and name it “Personal Impact”.

  2. Create a new Google Doc inside your Travel folder and copy and paste the Personal Impact Creative Brief into this new doc.

  3. Fill out the top of the Creative Brief and title it by clicking on Untitled Document. 

  4. Complete the Creative Brief brainstorming steps.

 

Step 2: Project Steps

  1. Create a Photoshop file 11x17” or 17x11” and 180dpi. 

  2. Use many layers to create an elaborate design that showcases your photo editing skills and new Photoshop skills.

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Step 3: Turn In Directions

  1. Your PSD and JPG files should be saved as “lastName_Personal Impact”.

  2. Go to File>Save A Copy and change the Format to JPG. 

  3. Select the highest resolution option selected when you are saving it.

  4. Upload the PSD file and JPG file to your Personal Impact folder.

  5. Complete and submit the checklist in Schoology.

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Travel Poster

Overview

You will be creating a travel poster that represents a destination of your choice. This poster should revolve around promoting the destination using visual identity.

 

Objective - What is the problem I need to solve?

  • How will I incorporate visual identity to represent my destination successfully?

  • How will I apply new and old photo editing techniques to my design?

 

Project Requirements

  • Many layers are used to create the poster

  • Attractive typography was used that represents your theme if needed 

  • A variety of past AND new Photoshop skills are used

  • Design need to be photo based and not vector based

 

Project Help

 

Step 1: Brainstorming Steps

  1. Create a new folder inside your Final folder and name it “Travel”.

  2. Create a new Google Doc inside your Travel folder and copy and paste the Travel Creative Brief into this new doc.

  3. Fill out the top of the Creative Brief and title it by clicking on Untitled Document. 

  4. Complete the Creative Brief brainstorming steps.

 

Step 2: Project Steps

​Create a Photoshop file 11x17” and 180dpi to start your design. 

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Step 3: Turn In Directions

  1. Your PSD and JPG files should be saved as “lastName_Travel”.

  2. Go to File>Save A Copy and change the Format to JPG. 

  3. Select the highest resolution option selected when you are saving it.

  4. Upload the PSD file and JPG file to your Travel folder.

  5. Complete and submit the checklist in Schoology.

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Student Choice Design

Overview

You will create a personal poster of your choice in Photoshop that refreshes your Photoshop and design skills. The theme can be whatever you like. Search for tutorials if you are struggling to select a topic for this design. The poster should use a variety of design skills and use design principles from last year such as balance, white space, flow, etc.

 

Objective - What is the problem I need to solve?

  • What skills/tools will I need to refresh myself on?

  • How will I showcase my knowledge of the design principles?

  • How will this design relate to me?

 

Project Requirements

  • What did you do this summer?

  • Create a design around music or TV you are into right now

  • Sports theme

  • A design around your family or culture

  • Create a design around your name

  • A landscape design

  • Fantasy Landscape Design

 

Project Skills

  • Correctly set up a file, save a file with the correct extension and submit files correctly.

  • A variety of past AND new Photoshop skills are used.

  • Creativity and attention to details are used.

  • Exploration of photo editing skills were used. 

  • Design principles were used successfully 

 

Project Help

 

Step 1: Brainstorming Steps

  1. Create a new folder inside your Final folder and name it “Student Choice”.

  2. Create a new Google Doc inside your Personal Design folder and copy and paste the Student Choice Design Creative Brief into this new doc.

  3. Fill out the top of the Creative Brief and title it by clicking on Untitled Document. 

  4. Complete the Creative Brief brainstorming steps.

 

Step 2: Project Steps

  1. Create a new file that is 11x17’’ and 180dpi resolution. 

  2. Rely on your old skills and learn new Photoshop skills while you create.

 

Step 3: Turn In Directions

  1. Your PSD and JPG files should be saved as “lastName_Student Choice”.

  2. Go to File>Save A Copy and change the Format to JPG. 

  3. Select the highest resolution option selected when you are saving it.

  4. Upload the PSD file and JPG file to your Personal Design folder.

  5. Complete and submit the checklist in Schoology.

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