A Time for Reflection

As I commenced the Interactive media course in September I was excited to be presented with a fresh new challenge . I will admit that I was apprehensive of what was to come but more than anything I was hopeful that the course would be a channel for my creativity, which had been seriously neglected during my teaching career. Now, reflecting back, I know all of my hopes have been more than adequately met and I feel greatly fulfilled and proud of my achievements so far.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the projects we have completed so far. With each one presenting a fresh challenge and requiring a varied approach in order to achieve success. Overall I feel the course has enabled me to communicate on a whole new level to which I had previously experienced. It has taught me to be more considered and refined during the design process because of the requirement to meet the needs of the target audience. This has installed a realistic element to the web plans we have authored and increased my awareness of the attention to detail which will be required in industry. Equally the time scales we have been working to has added intensity to the projects and hugely increased my time management skills. In summary the first semester has been intense, the work load was far greater than I could of ever anticipated but I am certain the development I have made is immeasurable.

Next semester my main objective is to become proficient in Adobe Dream weaver. This will present an entirely new challenge to me as I have absolutely no experience of using the software. Therefore, it will be essential that I use a sufficient amount of self study time to undertake tutorials. Hopefully this will enable me to build my original website designs without having to compromise on details because of my limited technical knowledge. Of course I am aware that this is an idealised view, and frustrations are inevitable in the transfer of concept to creation. However, I am determined to achieve my full potential as a ‘creator’ and I believe my focus and passion will be the key to success.

In terms of my premonitions for the second year of the course my main focus will be to compile a strong body of work for my portfolio. I intend my portfolio to reflect my combined talents as photographer, artist and designer. I feel this will enable me to offer a more versatile skill-set to future employers. To do so I must continue to explore and expand my creative skills. I aim to combine a range of media and techniques in the developmental stages of future projects, this will add an element of originality into my work. I feel that this will be essential when seeking employment in the highly competitive market of Interactive media.

In terms of my future career I feel it is too early to define the exact path I wish to pursue. Particularly as I have no experience of the technicalities of building a web site. However, I am certain that I wish to utilise a range of creative skills in any position I apply for. Of course, I am aware that this may not be possible in the primary appointments I undertake. Nevertheless in the distant future I perceive that my photography and conceptual skills will play an important role.

¼ Full or ¼ Empty?

So what’s yours? My response is currently under construction after pondering the question throughout the day. The question arose after Steve informed us that this time next week a quarter of the course would be complete. It didn’t shock me to be confronted with this realisation; in fact it was quite a relief to be that step further to being employable. However, it did make me conscious, of the importance, to push through the pain barrier this week with A3 and A4.

I’m apprehensive about the work ahead of me, I feel confident I am clear of the requirements. Yet, there is always that nagging feeling that those simple tasks will turn into arduous epics, the stuff of nightmares that we’re all aware of. I guess my biggest concern is getting everything correctly formatted in the template. This is mainly due to my dislike for formality and standardisation. I fully understand the necessity for these requirements but it doesn’t improve my motivation for conforming to them. I guess it stems from the importance of freedom in my life and to a lesser degree conflicts with this value quite harshly. But, as I don’t live up a tree on a desert island I should be used to such things by now!

My progress so far this week has been fairly consistent. I managed to complete most tasks I had planned for over the two days. However, it has been hampered some what my inability to full concentrate on some written tasks in class. This is something I have greatly improved on since the beginning of term but still causes the occasional problem.

Feedback over this week, in our designated groups and in people in general, has been particularly beneficial. So I’d like to thank everyone who has made an input so far in my work.

Once again, I’m finding it difficult to focus on reflecting so rather then faff I’ll close on my targets this week;

• Finish gathering assets
• Complete all screen designs
• Place A3 and A4 in template
• Check suitable references have been used
• Proof read
• Upload banners
• Burn CDs
  

Oh and here's a link if you need to check the contrast on your screen designs;

http://juicystudio.com/

Developed Screen Design

I'd really appreciate some feedback on my developed screen design. This is the template for the home page. I'm aware some alignments need re-adjusting and spacing etc.

Thanks!

Blinding Design

I’m not really sure what has happened this week and my now throbbing head is completely disengaged so this entry could be interesting to say the least.

Yesterday is gone, of that I’m certain. Content is done, of that I’m not so certain, but hopeful none the less. Screen designs are floating somewhere in time, along with my head, most probably. Other Doojimme flips and what’sitsnames are in progress and A3 is coming along well, as far as I know, this may change in the bright light of a new day.

Today has been painful, I feel as if I’ve had a near death experience. Not that I’ve come anywhere close to death but I’m certain I have known what its like to relive your life in a matter of seconds. Churning out 40 ideas in 30 minutes definitely equates to this, both in the horror and the glory of the moment. Personally I’ll take my chances with fate if I have the option again. However, all in all it has been productive and if I regain my eyesight sufficiently no damage will have been done.

So, at the end of what seems like a week, but in fact is only a matter of days productivity may have reached an all time high. My developed banner ads are flowing relatively well and by tomorrow I’m sure I will be able to regain focus and finish the whole of A3 by Monday night (standards mustn’t slip).

I’d be grateful for any feedback on my current designs, posted with this blog and please check back in the next couple of days for my new screen designs.

Targets for this week (joking aside)

• Gain sufficient feed back to finish screen designs
• Create asset imagery
• Finish Banner ads
• Place A3 in template
• Repeat my FAFF mantra every morning and night

Logo Feedback Please!

I'd appreciate some feedback on these logo designs for the 'Back to Basics' project. The intention of the website is to create a fresh and simplistic approach to accessing the information. The name derives from the phrase 'Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezey' (I'm aware the spelling is slightly altered). Equally the logo's are intended to be viewed on a yellow or green background, possibly with a gradient fade.

F.A.F.F

This week is reflected by the simple acronym F.A.F.F. I could really end this entry here as this encompasses my entirety at this current moment. However, this may be severally detrimental to my progression on the course and also being let through the door on Monday morning. So I shall explain;

F stands for;

Factotum, this is how I would describe myself this week, or actually every week. This was most appparent as I approached the week in my usual unbalanced fashioned, unbalanced in every sense of the word !

A stands for;

Arduous, this is how I would currently define A3. This is mainly due to creating the content for the site. Equally reaching the required level of work for next week’s feedback session will be reflected in this word. Another significant word which could easily substitute Ardous would be Arrrrggghhh ! ! (not in a pirate sense, but more a horrific realisation of the work-load sense).

F, number two, stands for;

Fast, this describes my realisation at how I can work when I put my mind to it. Equally fluid could replace this word. This discovery resulted from the two morning lecture sessions which revolved around creating a finished business card in 30 minutes (including a range of initial designs and a final printed version). I thoroughly enjoyed this part of the week and it gave me a real buzz to work under such pressure.

F, number three, stands for…..wait for it……

Floccinaucinihilipilification! This is how I would describe this blog entry. However, it has enabled me to fulfil my new resolution DO NOT FAFF !


So on that note I shall close, this weeks targets are;

• Complete content
• Create lots of screen designs in colour
• Work on obtaining assets
• Work back into A4 essays

False Contractions ?

This week I’ve realised I’m expecting and instead of the usually 9 months I only have 7 weeks, and already I’m nearly half way through! Now as you can imagine this has come as a massive shock to myself, but it does explain a lot of peculiar experiences I’ve been going through. So I’m trying not to panic and I’m working on my breathing….isn’t that what they tell you to do?

This realisation occurred when I experienced a sudden burst of pain mid week bought on by the delivery requirements. It was a familiar ache, yet still caused the same discomfort second time around. With every painful contraction I questioned if it was coming, or was it just a false alarm? I’m sure any expectant mother has the same worries, and equally those of more experience can glide through the process, glowing all the way. Alas not I, still every Monday the morning sickness overcomes me; have I prepared well enough for what is to come? Should I be taking it easier through the birth? I guess these concerns are perfectly natural, or so my midwives reassure me! But I know I can’t worry too much because soon it will be upon me and there’s still so much to do.

Of course there are many pleasurable parts of the experience; strange cravings for ‘fresh tastes’ and indulging in creative passions in preparation for the new arrival. Equally, there’s a certain amount of enjoyment gazing at the beautiful creations of others, or, snidely casting your eye over some of the less desirable efforts. Always, with the knowing assurance that, of course, I will never make the same mistakes they have.

So, I think things seem to be going to be okay and as long as I listen to what the professionals say I’m sure I’ll be fine. I’m still having trouble trying to comprehend having twins, especially giving birth to them simultaneously, but I’m hopeful!

Targets for this week

• Settle on a name
• Get to grips with the technicalities of the birth
• Continue to enjoy some ‘fresh tastes’
• Indulge in some creative preparations

Sculpture Anyone?

After reading the second year blogs on the sculpture park I felt inspired to go. I mentioned it to Steve and he said it might be possible dependant on interest. So, is anyone else interested?

Living the Non Lossy?

This weeks learning has been some what of a revelation and has enabled me to make fundemental discoveries about my life as I know it. Now at this point I would urge Steve not to get too excited as, despite his commendable delivery of the course content, this discovery is more a result of 'self-study’. In fact it is possibly more a result of the ‘dangerous’ excesses of thinking time employed between my travels between civilised Norfolk and some place they call Wakefield!

These life changing events began on the morning of 13th of November as the topic of compression was introduced to the group. Of course the talk was essential to our progression as Interactive Media Designers, or Graphic Artists, to be politically correct! Equally, when coupled with the input we’d been given on colour it was obvious we were building a strong 'technical amoury' to enable many future victories on the design battlefield. Yet, sadly, it was not this 'geek' driven vision which fuelled my moment of revelation. In fact it was the implications that compression and colour had in the context of my day to day life.

As we all know one of my, and many others, major downfalls is time management, or at least the lack of it. Every week is an on going battle to squeeze everything in. So I began thinking of this ‘time’ as a file or a number of files which all could be found in one ‘folder’, the ‘folder’ entitled; ‘Michelle’s life’. The folder, having been created in 1980, was getting pretty full and compression of the major files had been performed. The only problem being the wrong type had been applied, causing a lot of ‘Artifacts’ and in some cases loss of information and colour. The folders were as follows;

Rebecca.gif - In theory a loss-less compression, yet there is a significant reduction in colour range and vibrancy.

Work.jpg - No real noticeable differences to the human eye and overall quality still good yet information has been lost. Recent overly progressive compression is starting to cause defects.

HND.png - Is of a higher quality than ‘Rebecca.gif’ but is no comparison to Work.jpg where it shows noticeable anomalies.

So, to conclude, I feel firstly that some things simply shouldn’t be compressed. And if done continually there will be severe loss of quality until the file becomes obsolete, unable to compare to the original in any way. Secondly, you need to make sure you’re apply the correct compression format to files or qualitive comparisons will shock you and in some cases causes distress and discomfort. Lastly, never delete or save over the original files, that way there is always the chance to start over.

With this revelation now firmly embedded in my thinking I will endeavour to meet the following targets this week;

• Complete compression essay
• Amend TDR essay
• Amend Production Schedule
• Delivery Requirements
• Choose websites for competitive analysis
• Re-organise my original ‘Life’ files

Extreme Design

This week it seems I decided, unknowingly, not to continue to with the usual study but embark upon a stomach churning adventure. Which, in hindsight, I have no hesitation in recommending for classification as an extreme sport. The journey began as reading week came crashing to an end. All that I hope to comfortably achieve was now traumatising my mind as I desperately tried to float off to firework land but with no avail. The pressure I felt over the weekend was tremendous and I began to resent the commitments I had made which were, ever increasingly, eating away at any remnant of freedom I once enjoyed. So the familiar blackness of Sunday evening enveloped my mind and exhaustion prevailed once more.

I awoke Monday, unsurprisingly, in a state of despondency. Still questioning my decisions and contemplating a move to the HNC. The only positive was the fact I had got out of bed and I still was determined to go to college, even though I felt grossly unprepared for the presentations, which I had once been looking forward to. So I arrived at college after practising my talk to a number of unappreciative and unresponsive roads, vehicles and trees. My mind felt a little more settled more in the fact I had accepted my fate and a gentle slide into insanity.

The atmosphere at college was sombre, there was to be no gentle re-introduction, we’d hit the ground but were we running? My only comfort was in the fact I believed in myself and my ability to ‘fly by the seat of my pants’, as I’d done fair too regularly in my teaching career. So with wings desperately flapping I bumbled through my presentation to Steve. Steve who I knew I’d let down by not keeping up the correct level of communications in emails and blogs. I didn’t feel good, I didn’t feel in control and overall a huge wave of disappointment washed over me. Only I could take responsibility for the emotions I was experiencing and the slight burst of relief at completion of the talk was not enough.

My anxiety stayed with me for the rest of the day. I was impatient to know my grades for the first 2 units, as I was certain this would seal my fate. However, my spirits were greatly lifted by talking with the other members of the group. It helped me to re-focus and appreciate what life is really about; enjoyment. So I decided to just go with the flow and make the most of what was left of the day. I guess this was wishful thinking and as we re-grouped after lunch the atmosphere once again became suffocating.

My emotions were still in a state of turmoil, I questioned my every decision; about travelling, my financial commitments, how neglectful I’ve been of people closet to me, all in order to succeed on the course. What had it all been for? I had re-signed myself to a referral, a referral which would create a work load I felt I simply couldn’t cope with………then suddenly, I heard the word ‘pass’.

Confusion…….relief……..guilt……..compassion……..emptiness.

Now a few days on things are settling down and introduction of the new units helped to wash away the emotional perspiration which had clung so defiantly to my skin. Once again the realisation of why I’m putting myself through it all is with me again; the passion I have for Design or Art! So I’m back inspired, stimulated and enjoying being amongst others who share my passion.

I just want to congratulate everyone on their achievements so far regardless of their results, we have all worked so hard. Equally I was in admiration of how professionally everyone dealt with the difficult situation we were faced with. Each and every one of you have my respect.

Love the Things You Hate

Although we supposedly gained an hour over the weekend I’m certain this was merely a ploy by the government, to create a distraction, enabling them to steal an entire week. Either this or I have foolishly misplaced 168 hours somewhere. In which case I’m sure it will turn up in a ‘safe place’ somewhere, along with a couple of odd socks and a few marbles.

As you can probably tell any amount of freedom can be severely detrimental to the state of my mind. So despite regaining my thoughts over this ‘supposed’ week, on several occasions, to peruse Design magazines and inspirational art work Monday came as a relief! So the ‘surprise’ brief of giving a presentation on next week gave structure, momentarily, to my thoughts.

I have to say, surprisingly, I’m actually looking forward to the prospect of delivering the presentation next week. In the past, like many others, I have greatly disliked and tried to avoid presentations whenever possible. But, as time has gone on and I’ve gained more experience in presenting I’ve grown to like them. This may also coincide with my ‘love the things you hate’ policy I developed a while ago, which I will now explain.; A long time ago I figured if I trained or evolved myself to like the things I hated life would be a lot easier and more enjoyable. Really ‘dislike’ was really only a matter of my own personal preference (within reason) and served little function other than to make things worse than they seemed. As we all know everything has its pro’s and cons and so by focussing only on the pro’s the world seems quite nice, sometimes.

Therefore, by looking at the presentation in the same way you can see in fact it is a joyous and up-lifting experience (or at least its not as bad as it seems)!! So here’s a list of the pro’s of presenting;

• You’re in control (you have the power)!
• You can make a difference to someone’s hour/day/life by what you say (whether it’s the knowledge you give them or just a smile)
• You in turn have gained knowledge in researching the presentation (which you’re likely to retain because you have to know it so thoroughly)
• You gain self confidence
• You increase you’re employment prospects in the design industry
• You have the opportunity to show off your personality
• You feel a real sense of achievement at the end

So by ignoring, or at least excepting the negative side to a presentation you can look forward to it, I hope!

In terms of progress leading up to this momentous day things are going quite well. I’ve found lots of research on the internet and I’ve found it pretty interesting. My main task at the moment is cross referencing what I’ve found with paper based sources. This is proving to be a bit of a problem as the local library isn’t that fantastic, but hopefully I’ll overcome this somehow.

Other than that my sketchbook is slowly developing and I’ve purchased some lovely colouring pencils which I’m very excited about. I’ve also got some design books on order which I’m sure will make for good bedtime reading. So tasks for this week are;

• Annotate up to date in sketchbook
• Finish presentation before the weekend and practice
• Ensure I have sufficient paper based references

Vacant Minds

This weeks journal entry my be slightly shorter and less thoughtful than usual, this is due to my body and mind currently being on vacation! I have to say I definitely feel I’ve earned the rest and I’m thoroughly enjoying regaining my thoughts and composure in sunny Norwich (Norwich is always sunny!).

However, I’ve learnt by now I can never fully switch off , so I’ve spent plenty of time reflecting on last term. My biggest conclusion is that I have to tighten up my creative and chaotic approach to tasks! However painful and difficult this may be I must persevere, and once again I call on anyone with any incredible strategies in combating this. Hopefully I’m not quite classed as an ‘old dog’ and there’s a few new tricks in me!

So as I’m now greatly digressing or regressing I better finish up. Targets for this week are as follows;

• Start my new love affair with the new sketch book?!
• Progress to reading the design mags I’ve bought instead of just looking at the pictures
• Have a play around with some new programmes
• Don’t get addicted to Jeremy Kyle

Enjoy the rest of your holidays folks

Dead Calm...

The title really says it all, not particularly for me but more a statement about the group ethos this week. In a sense it has been a surprisingly pleasant hand in with a feeling of togetherness amongst the group. Well that’s everyone apart from Gary who imposed his obvious superiority with his callas rejection of my plastic sleeve! However, contrary to this my feelings over the week have been somewhat more chaotic, nothing new there then.

Really, this week should have been a breeze, I had an entire week solely dedicated to completing the assignment, but yet again circumstances over took. So instead my leisurely week was completely over shadowed and my time was distilled once more. Thankfully my major task for the week was one that I enjoyed, involving completing my screen designs in InDesign. This all went without a hitch and it was pleasing to see the designs professional presented. It gave me a real sense of reality as to the direction this course was taking me in. In-fact, even though it is earlier on in the course, I often muse about the future career I am heading towards with a real sense of delight. I finally feel that after several ‘detours’ I’m on the right track, about time really!

The rest of my time this week was dedicated to the dreaded ‘humdrum’ evaluation. As usual my time estimation for this task may as well have been pulled from a hat, hopefully next project I may get a little nearer the mark. Anyway, progress was initially slow which was mainly due to my inability to simplify things. After taking great pains to detail every breath I’d taken over the past six weeks I scrapped the whole thing, made a nice scribble diagram in my sketchbook and began to move forward. The unfortunate interim fire bell created a completely loss of focus which really didn’t help a great deal, such is life. The remaining tasks seemed to fade into insignificance, but of course were all of equal importance none the less.

My main concerns about the project, which always have a tendency to linger on, mainly surround the technical aspects of the unit. I hope I have grasped these well enough to pass the unit and I’m determined not to feel this way next unit! Equally as I reflect, I know I made un-necessary work for myself revising references and indexing my sketchbooks. Most of all I must sort out my time management and this means revising outside work commitments. Back to being a dirty student again, lucky I like beans.

So the deadline has passed and we all made it through. Well done to everyone, enjoy your break and thanks for the birthday card it was a really nice thought!

Humdrum and Merriment

After putting in a momentous effort over last week and having time off only to eat and sleep I managed to get back on track with the assignment. So on Sunday night apart from being exhausted and bleary eyed I felt relieved and confident about meeting the deadline.

Progression over the week had been varied on different tasks and it really bought to light my strengths and weaknesses which I will elaborate on now;

Humdrum

At the age I’m at I’m quite aware of ‘what makes me tick’ and equally ‘what makes me zzzzzz’, unfortunately an awareness is not a cure! Written tasks which involve repetition of a writing structure have never been a pleasure for me. Even though I know I’m capable of completing them the left and right side of my brain have an on-going battle about discipline and having fun! The competitive analysis fell into this category and a task which should of only taken a couple of hours filled the expanse (on and off) over a week purely due to my Id dominating my Ego. After 27 years I still haven’t managed to win this battle and with nearly any task I undertake I have great pains in sticking at it till the end, so instead I live in the world of ‘half-finishedness’ which is very exciting and interesting but not very constructive! Any strategies for over coming this I’m all ears!

Merriment

At the opposite end of the scale I rediscovered one of my strengths which I had missed greatly over the last two years in my teaching career, Creativity! Transforming my screen design from a sketch to a screen was a joy, from taking the photographs, manipulating them and then placing them in my design. Sadly as with all good things it was quickly over and I was surprised at what little time it actually took, lucky it did really as things took a turn for the worst..

Unforeseen Circumstances

As always the monster of ‘unforeseen circumstances’ reared its ugly head as I opened up Page Maker and tried to import parts of my screen design. My beautiful photographs transformed into pixelated monstrosities and my heart sank. After spending considerable time trying to place the down sized jpeg files in a variety of ways into the programme I retreated and decided to re-think. I then spent at least 3 hours down-loading a trial version of ‘InDesign’, learning how to use the programme, re-drawing the site structure diagram and tables. Finally I got around to attempting to transfer the screen design. The results were a considerable improvement but more than 4 hours on it had been a costly realisation.

Sketchbooktastic!

Finally the invented word ‘sketchbooktastic’ must be mentioned. Although my sketch book and now books are becoming journals discovery of enlightenment they are also falling awkwardly between the categories of ‘Humdrum’ and ‘Merriment’. I have discovered I just love printing (especially screen shots!), cutting, sticking, drawing, doodling and drawing the odd arrow but that’s about as far as the fun goes! So I must make a concerted effort not to move onto the next pages until I’ve added all the annotation, otherwise ‘sketchbooktastic’ could transform into ‘sketchbooktragic’ which doesn’t bear thinking about.

So in conclusion the state of play is good, I’ve now formatted all of my written work into the InDesign template have left pages for the screen designs (which still need a lot of work to transfer) and added all of the other components to the document. Over this week I need to do the following to meet the deadline;

• Write a detailed Evaluation
• Complete the screen designs using InDesign
• Make minor edits to the ‘Delivery Requirements’ section
• Add all references and align
• Document Merit and Distinction evidence
• Index my sketchbooks
• Print and proof read
• Buy CD labels and create the CD

Feedback Please!

With the deadline looming I'd greatly appreciate some constructive 'urgent' feedback on my screen design, more so for evaluation purposes at the end of the assignment than major design changes!

The website is aimed at teenagers revising GSCE English (Shakespeare), I'm aware I need to format the layout and include browser chrome etc.

Thanks

Stiff Upper Lip

This week has passed with considerable speed as now seems to be the norm. It’s difficult to assess my current progress as my mind presently seems unable to focus on any one task. Every element of the whole project is careering around my poor bewildered head and the control and focus I had on Monday morning is ‘temporarily unavailable’.

However, I feel it is important, in the traditional British way, to keep a stiff upper lip! I’m not entirely sure what this will do, or even how to achieve it, but I’m sure if I do manage it it’ll do absolutely no good. So back on track, what have I learnt this week? I have learnt that simple tasks are not simple, time planning is not my forte and the quality of my Blog entries is deteriorating. The actions I have taken to resolve this are;

• Make sure I have all the back up research complete before starting any final task
• Be more disciplined in my time keeping and move on to the next task after the allocated time period
• Don’t rely on my frazzled brain to write a Blog on Tuesday afternoon, start a rough draft Monday evening

On reflection my current state of being in a state is not due to my complete incompetence but more the pressures of life. One thing I have learnt is that these pressures cannot be ignored but must be dealt with. Those of you who work, travel, live busy lives I empathise with you and thank-you for the support Chris, and equally the comments everyone has made so far. Those of you who are lucky enough just to be able to focus on the course make the most of it, you are in a really privileged situation make sure you push yourself to your full potential!

So this week I have an awful lot to do, unfortunately Royal Mail may suffer a devastating blow but it will be for a greater good. I feel positive about the impeding deadline and all I can do is work as hard as I can to meet it, worrying never helps. So Good luck to everyone else and remember we’re all in this together!

Targets for next week

1. Complete competitive analysis of 2^nd website
2. Refine screen designs
3. Complete screen designs
4. Review past project sections
5. Comment on Blogs of others…I promise!!
6. Learn how to survive without sleep

Week 3

Instead of waiting for divine intervention and an interesting and witty start to my journal this week I will just begin. Perhaps, by the end of the cog churning, a suitably clever title may emerge at the end, if not then it’s just not meant to be! This week has passed at a considerable speed and rather then leaving me dazed and confused I finally feel more at one with the World Wide Web.

My work is progressing steadily, I’ve done mountains of research and my head is bleeding a little less profusely. So what have I learnt? Well I have started to tackle my limited, in fact non-existent, knowledge of coding language. HTML, XHTML, CSS, CGI, ETC! I produced my first HTML file on note pad and opened it on the Internet browser, this sounds quite impressive until you actually see the page! However, I did manage to then edit the text and change the background of the page to a rather shocking eye-watering yellow, pure genius. So with this small triumph my confidence grew and somehow my mind decided to deactivate its Firewall (sad I.T pun) to all things technical and things started to make sense.

On a more social and non-isolated IT geek level I feel the group is starting to bond and the banter is beginning. I feel particularly comfortable in my seminar group as I hope do the others, despite the lack of humour. I’m finding the seminars useful and it’s good to benefit from the experience and knowledge of others.

So in general all is going swimmingly, the parts of the project I have completed so far need a little fine tuning, but not a great deal. I’m looking forward to tackling the screen designs but I am aware of the importance of completing the project methodically, so I may be able to hold back for a few more days, just. For the rest of this week I need to focus on annotating my sketch book and also finding some truly inspirational design, unfortunately a 'Lucozade' wrapper and a booklet on ‘Love and Sex’ is hardly the stuff of dreams.

Finally inspiration has faltered, sorry, I'm tired!

Week 2

From now on this journal will be used to record my progress, thoughts and feelings as I continue on my journey in the world of interactive media!

As I approached this week I was filled with the same nervous anticipation which I had experienced on the first day. I felt sure I had chosen the correct path by embarking upon the course and returning back to the classroom, but the induction had passed and playtime was over.

After being given the first brief and thoroughly going over it with Steve the apprehension lingered. I understood the requirements of the brief but I felt a little disillusioned as I realised the enormity of the technical input into each project. On reflection this feeling emanated from my naturally creative side trying to dominate, but mainly because of my lack of knowledge in this area. However, I decided that if I was truly creative this quality would not only emanate in my aesthetic output but also in my approach to tasks…who was I trying to kid!

Nevertheless the first task was to select a ‘Great Briton’ from the brief so this allowed me to gently flow into the work and begin researching. My biggest concern at this point was to be disciplined in my time management and not becoming too involved in a simple task. This thought slowly dissolved as the wonders of the internet infiltrated my mind and after a long day of note taking and over thinking time won and it was the end of day one. Thankfully as day two progressed I became more in control of my destiny or at least I was able to manage my time on each task a great deal more effectively!

Personal Statement

Throughout my life I have always had a passion for Design, initially; it took the form of a continual subconscious analysis of the imagery around me. As I gained inspiration and understanding it culminated in the production of my own imagery. I enjoy the challenge that Design presents in being able to communicate a concept entirely through a visual source. I feel it stretches my ability in a variety of areas, particularly my understanding Psychology within the Design process. I have been fortunate to be able to indulge this passion throughout my academic and professional career through the diverse range of techniques and medias I have been exposed to.

My degree at Norwich school of Art and Design allowed me to fully realise the incredible potential and influential presence that Design encompasses in our society. This realisation enabled me to refine my own visual awareness and cultural literacy. I feel this contributed to a new found sensitivity within my work as both a Photographer and a Designer as I graduated the course.

Alongside my new found personal understanding of Design I was also fortunate to develop my commercial experience during the degree. I was selected to undertake a series of ‘live projects’ for outside clients, these include; BBC Radio Norfolk and Pricewaterhouse Coopers . These experiences have allowed me to greatly develop my interpersonal skills and adopt a high level of professionalism in all aspects of my work.

After completing my degree I felt a strong desire to install in others the passion I held for Design. I completed my PGCE at Homerton College Cambridge and have now been a Secondary school teacher of Art and Design for over a year, teaching pupils aged 11-18 years. This experience has been invaluable to me in terms of the huge personal development I have undergone. It has installed in me an ability to communicate effectively on a range of levels, a strict sense of personal discipline in order to respond well to pressure and a renewed drive in all tasks I undertake. However, I strongly feel my own creative development has been neglected and my real potential is not currently being explored through my teaching. I have therefore taken the decision to return to education and expand on my knowledge and skills in a new area of Design.

I feel the Interactive Media course will present me with a fresh and exciting new challenge. I look forward to combining my natural creativity with the technical skills of Interactive Designing. I feel the course will enable me to communicate through Design on a whole new level to what I have previously experienced. I am now focused completely on refining all of my Design skills in this new vocation and excelling in Interactive Media.