The Power of Color

Currently Reading: Graphic Design Principals Parts 5-10 and Visual Communication pg11-20

So yeah, today was all about color. I learned about the three ways to perceive colors.  Objective, Comparative, and Subjective. I also learned about how colors of the same hue interact with each other, and is perceived as well.  And how color can change the weight of an object in a composition. Going through this book is going to be slow going. The chapters are huge, and I will be happy to finish a chapter a week.  Anway, that's all for now.

Colors and illusions

Currently Reading: Graphic Design Principals and Visual Communication: Images With Messages Chapter 1 pg1-7.

So back to the studying. I missed studying friday, because I got too rapt up in photoshop and didn't stop making stuff until Sunday.  Now, I'm back to the theory. My two books Visual Communication and the typography work book came in on Friday. I just started but, I'm so happy that I am able to highlight and annoate in my own text books.  I couldn't with the design elements book so this is a happy change.

I'm going to look if there is a open course for Visual Communication.  I'm also really happy to review design principles because I needed it. This tutorial is long, but it breaks in down in simpler terms for me and I wish I found this site first, to be honest. I really like this book, it's pretty straightforward and it going more indepth into how perceieve things and about visual illusions work. The real visual communication lessons won't come until the next chapter though. This is going to be slow going, but I'm willing to do it.

I'm also going to put sometime going through photoshop tutorials at least once a week to keep up my skills and build up my portfolio. 

Balance (On Repeat)

Currently Reading: Graphic Design Principles Index Parts 3-5

So yeah, a lot of this is just a repeat of what I just read, but I don't mind the review. I might start practicing tutorials 3 times a week to add the theory. My books still haven't showed up, but I'm willing to review and expand my knowledge on the principels. I also got this study session out and done early. So yay!

On To Design Principles

Currently Reading: Chapter 26 & 27 of Language of Graphic Design | Graphic Design Principles Index

So I'm done with LoGD, and now on to Design Principles. I decided to postpone my typography lessons and the grid chapter was uber short.  Unfortntely now there ere is just one small problem, I can't find a good book that doesn't cost a fortune. I'm still waiting for my thrifty books  purchase because I really want to get a good crack at Visual Communications. So instead right now I'm using the graphic design principles tutorial from Duke University, which is a good susbitute right now.

As why there are gaps in my study days, well, I have barely have energy to actually do my household chores, I just fall alseep after five hours of being up. Getting up athe butt crack of dawn has put a huge crimp in my energy reserves.

Patterns and The Beginning Of Typography

Currently Reading: Chapter 24 and half of 25 of Language of Graphic Design.

Hey I'm back! I had to skip out on Friday because I was feeling under the weather. I'm just currently getting back up to speed with my studying. The pattern chapter was very short, but the typography chapter was WAY over my head. I'm thinking of just skipping it and go back further indepth in the subject later.

So a friend of mine, on a form I frequent told me it was hard to get into the industry without a bachelor's degree, but I already know what field I want to specialize and I'm pretty sure that self-published authors give a sodding hell about degree, and more what's in your portfolio. I plan to be like gingerhaze and get fandom to propel myself to success. Moma didn't raise no chump after all. I'm bound and determined to get into this industry and I rather be working freelance anyway/

Images and A Peak Into The Future

Currently Reading: Chapter 22 of Language of Graphic Design

So very short chapter. I am continued to be surprised how complicated seemingly simple concepts such as images are not as simple as I thought. My notes from yesterday didn't save correctly, but they are now gone, which sucks.  I was way too tired tonight, but I managed to drag my ass to studying. My visual communication book just shipped, so I should get it soon.  In the meantime, I'm going to finish this book, and then I'm going into Universal Design Principals.

Now, I took a peek at The Complete Graphic Designer, and it showed me the design process and WOW. Of course, it's for people who are working for a firm, but I want to be a freelance designer so it's going to be a lot of work. I got some experience (but not a lot from working with big bang challenges).

It's totally in my alley, tbh. However, it's scary. It feels like driving fast on a road,  like you know it's going to be fun as hell, but scary too. I'm so glad that I finally nailed my ass down and started really taking studying seriously.

I think my blogging and this is the best career decision I made. It just feels like a click in my head. Anyway, one more day until the weekend, and I think I will finish this book this week. So double break!

Although I have the long painful process of revising and reviewing. *le sigh*

Late Nights is the New Proportion

Currently Reading: Chapter 21 of Language of Graphic Design

I been getting up really early, because my mom is working later than usual. So it's been cutting down my time. Seriously by 3 o'clock I need to sleep. So that's why I'm up this late. It was a pretty short chapter, and I learned about Proportion and Scale. I had a hard time with The Golden Ratio, because I'm suck at math. However, I get the general gist of it and I checked out an article for as well which I will link below.

I also bought two books, Visual Communication: Images with Messages and the Typography Workbook on Thrifty Books.  I want to learn how communicate a message efficiently and I need to read that. I think next while I'm reading for those two books to come in, I will be reading up on Color Theory or Design Principals.

I think Design Principals before Color Theory. *lesigh*

Supplemental Reading

• Design in Art: Scale and Proportion 
• The designer's guide to the Golden Ratio

 

Figure-Ground Contintued + Frames

Currently Reading: Chapter 20 of Language of Graphic Design

So this study session was a bit shorter than yesterday’s.  It was basically mostly finishing reading the rest of the supplemental articles. Also today’s chapter was on frames and it was basically straightforward and short. I’m almost done with the book and then I’m going to take in a video lecture on the elements of design and then review my notes (there are not many because I was postponed until now). 

I’m going to end up typing them up into google docs as a review.  And then I’m going to take a self-test.  I will diffidentally tell you guys what I get on that test.  Then I plan to move on to color theory which I am really looking forward to.

I also want a book on visual communication as well. So I’m going to look that up as well. I like learning more in depth into graphic design. There are so many nuisances and details that go into design. Like frames, and space. It’s so fascinating.  I’m still chopping at the bit to get my hands dirty, but I have to wait The theory is just as important as the practical stuff. I just got so many ideas.  *le sigh*

Contrast, Figure and Ground

Currently Reading: Chapter 19 and 20 of Language of Graphic Design

I never thought empty space was so friggin complicated. To be honest, a good bit of the chapter went over my head, although I got the gist of it. I tried studying for an hour, and my brain feels like it's going to explode.  I'm actually started taking notes today. And low and behold I'm getting more information (I learn by writing things down who knew) and I diffidently learned a lot more. The con to this is that I feel that my head is about to explode with too much information (and subsequently starring at a screen for a long time, it's a problem).  So I'm going back to doing a chapter a day, but now with notes.

I'm not done with the learning about Figure and Ground. As I mentioned before I already read up on the gestalt theory, but I need to really get handle positive and negative space, and active and passive space before I move on.

This last past week has been fraught with personal and family issues, so I was tempted to just skip, but I didn't want that little dialogue saying I dropped the ball.  So I sucked it up and studied.  I will be back tomorrow for some more reading on figure and ground and on the exciting subject of Frames.

The thing about this book, with all the photos of the projects of graphic designers really just pulls that wannabe designer in me. I want to create that, but I don't have the skills yet. *shakes fist up the air* So not easy.

FYI:  I need to actual buy school supplies for schoolish things. Just saying.

Supplemental Reading 

• Design Principles: Space And The Figure-Ground Relationship
• Positive and Negative Space
• How To Activate Space In A Design

Value, Tint, and Shade

Reading: Chapter 18 of Language of Graphic Design

Another short chapter, but today I really did need some supplmental items. I found a site that broke down all the color terms for me in more simplicitic terms.  Because the book I was reading was a bit more complicated than I needed and I still need to work on how to use a color wheel more effecitively and I decided to use google docs for my notes.   I really love color and I really want to learn how to use it effectively in visual commuication.

Although I'll wait to go further into that when I study color theory in more depth. I'm still not looking forward to the hellish adventure that is revising, but it is very much needed.

But it feels all so complicated at times, and I often feel that I'm out of depth. I also have to start studying more, but I want to gradually up the time so i won't be overwhelm with too much information. I want to be fully trained this time next year and I want to be a working graphic designer in two years. So we shall see how I meet that timeline.

Abstraction

Reading: Chapter 17 of  Language of Graphic Design

So today was a short, to the point chapter. I really didn't need any help, and I thought about going on the next chapter. However, a chapter a day does wonders and makes the concepts and topic sink more deeply.I actually going to start revising and reviewing what I read and then I'm going to move to color theory.

Express yourself (Expression)

Currently Reading: Language of  Graphic Design - Chapter 16: Expression

So this is yet another simple chapter. I really didn't need any supplemental stuff again. Expression is the graphic designer's feeling and emotion that goes into the composition or design. I often find myself chomping at the bit to get to a hands-on portion of my studies, but I have to remind myself that I have to know the theory before I touch photoshop in a meaningful way.

I just so want to create all the beautiful things that I see in the book and I'm such a hands on person.  I just go to be patient. I'm almost done with the book, and I'm both dreading it and excited to move on. I'm still looking for a cloud notepad for notes. I think that's it for it today. I will update this blog tommorw.

Closure Is The Name Of The Game

Correction from the last post:  The last chapter was chapter 14 of The Language of Graphic Design. The current chapter was Chapter 15.

Okay, so this chapter was much more easier to understand than the last chapter. I really didn't need any supplemental items like videos or tutorials. This chapter was about concept of closure in graphic design and that we as humans tend to visual close things in our mind, and that a closed object instinctively brings harmony to most compositions.

The chapter also talked briefly about the gestalt theory, which I actually already read the basics of that theory on this, which was a very helpful primer on the subject on how we as humans perceive images and art.

 In more personal news, I was very late in studying today. I didn't get a good night sleep and was like a zombie for most of the day. So this is the reason why I'm posting this so late. Although, I am glad to be even a bit productive today.

I am also currently looking into cloud note taking apps, because I suddenly realized that I haven't been actively taking notes, and I want to test myself at the end of the book (which I'm a quarter from  being done with).

Oh, on another random note, I'm following a self-study outline that I found on design tuts.com. So I have a lot to go still. I'm thinking it's going to take me a year to go through it all.

It's All About The Tension

Courtsey of Shawn Berry 

Reading: Chapter 15 of The Language of Graphic Arts

So I took Friday off to celebrate a  religious holiday, so I had to take time off from my studying. I'm back and I'm here to talk about tension. No, not about emotional tension, but tension between items in a composition and what causes that tension. At first I didn't quite get it because the book was kind of difficult to understand. I got the jist of it, but I decided to get a easier more straightforward explanation of tension.

What I come to understand is that Tension is the spatial relationship between the objects of the composition. I know I'm not explaining this right. So I'm going to try to explain it.  Tension can be a vocal point. Tension also can be in relation to where the objects in a composition are to each other. The best way to figure out if there some tension in the composition is to see if everything is on an axis.  Things on axis's have lower tension than asymmetrical objects in a composition.Also color, and value can cause tension in a composition as well.
I also found this video here that also explains it pretty well too. I also suggest you to subscribe to the channel, because Shawn Perry has a whole series of this.  I tend to get things when I see and hear it and experience them first hand.