Final Project

When first given the assignment to create a complex visual for the final project, our group, consisting of Bronwen Kalmes, Vanessa Silveira, Tom Garvey, and Colin Mallory, had a number of ideas. Trying to construct a visual of what we have learned this semester with the purpose of educating someone who has never take the course is a difficult assignment however our group developed numerous design schemes.

Our first idea was to construct a game. A game appeared to be the best way to cover all the class material while avoiding a monotonous, dull list that would comparatively increase the cognitive load. The first game concept that was constructed was a rendition of the already popular Jeopardy. Drawing rough sketches, we were almost positive that Jeopardy would be our final project.

The first problem we ran into was that we also wanted to incorporate a time-line aspect to the project. This idea of a time-line would allow new students to understand the progression of the course however attempting to incorporate an organized time-line in a game like Jeopardy, that lacks order and direction, proved to be difficult. Our first attempt to overcome this obstacle was to create three columns that divided the semester into three sections. Realizing that the class did not have three discrete sections but numerous sections of equal importance, we eventually decided that Jeopardy would not be the best way method to explain Visual Communications.

Going back to square one, we recognized that we would instead like to create a visual that best represented our idea of a time-line. Reflecting on the semester as a whole, we discussed the most prominent parts of the course and what we would have liked to have access to when first entering the course. We all agreed that creating a visual that focused on the blogs would be the best direction to take.

 

Deciding this was the best idea, ideas were sketched and we created a design very similar to the popular game ‘Candy Land,’ consisting of a definitive beginning and end with stops in between that sequentially relate to the blogs that were assigned throughout the semester. Each space that we created was a pocket with the appropriate title and inside each carry two index cards: (1) an image acting as an example as well as what was expected for each blog; (2) a description of the graphic and requirements. Another aspect that we were sure include was the intended path of the visual. As we learned in class, we utilized the ‘Z-format’ in order to decrease the cognitive load and correspond with the way our eyes natural read text.

Titling our visual “Comm 165 Visual Tour,” we believe that our outcome had many more purposes than we originally intended. Apart from acting as a graphic that would introduce new students to the course, it would also act as a visual syllabus that students taking the course could refer to, it could be used as a reference for students if they were confused about what was expected of them in each blog, and it could also be used as a visual study guide for exams.

 

When it comes to working on group projects, the steps are almost always clear, blatant, and ‘black-and-white.’ For this project, however, the steps were less blatant and were open to interpretation forcing my team members and I to brainstorm, experiment, and put trial-and-error to the test. For this project, as thoroughly described above, our team was forced to test the limits and bring many ideas to the table. It was not uncommon that we had to start from scratch after realizing that some ideas simply would not work out as well as we initially thought they would. However difficult it was to overcome the obstacles of trial-and-error, I believe that we constructed the best visual that we could while focusing on our idea of a ‘visual-syllabus.’

Regarding the group, this team was by far one of the best groups I have worked with since I have entered Roger Williams University. Working with Bronwen, Vanessa, and Tom came naturally and each team member contributed valuable aspects to the project. It is not often that each team member gets along and there are minimal communication obstacles however working with these three proved to be the best possible scenario. I believe the process of brainstorming helped to contribute to the open-mindedness of each team member. Each member was free to share his or her ideas without judgement and when it was discussed whether an idea would be valuable to the project or not, we always came from a positive perspective and worked through the ‘hiccups.’

If I were to create this visual again, I would make the poster more visually appealing. Maybe icons or a simple background image would be attractive and utilize ‘stage-setting.’ Overall, I am very satisfied with the outcome of the project as well as the teamwork put forth by each member of the group.

Visual Resume

Before completing this assignment, I’ve never heard of a Visual Resume. Being slightly familiar with the traditional resume I never thought they could ever be colorful, graphically advanced, and extremely visually appealing. I believe that Visual Resumes bring an exciting twist to the boring, traditional method however I do not find them to be productive unless applying for a Graphic Design position.

Upon completing this assignment, I found it pretty difficult. I had to sketch the design for my Visual Resume much more extensively than any other assignment for this class. Given the instructions, I found it to be most difficult trying organize which graphics I would use for each section of the Resume. Once figuring out which graphic would go where, I used the application InDesign to transfer my sketches into the computer using skills I’ve learned in Digital Communications this semester.

For this assignment, there were 4 requirements that I chose:

1. A categorization graphic
2. An explanation graphic
3. A table
4. A graph

1) For the categorization graphic, I chose to create an organization map to highlight my skills and qualities. I made sure to utilize straight lines, branches and organized, linear visuals to best display my ideas.

2) For the explanation graphic, I chose to use a timeline that showed my prior and current education. I differentiated my high school education from my college education by using different colors and also used a dotted line to represent that my college education is not yet finished.

To add additional information, I chose to add another explanation graphic representing qualitative data. For this graphic, I used a map that identified where in the whole I have studied at a university level. Studying in the United States, Italy, and Spain, I believe that a visual resume would be able to highlight these best and compliment my major in Global Communications.

1. For the table, I chose to share my work experience, volunteering experience, and extracurricular activities. I organized this chart by paid and non-paid participation.

1. For the last part, a graph I chose to highlight my language skills. I organized a bar graph that had three levels on the y-axis. These levels included “Fluent/Native,” “Conversational,” and “Basic.” On the x-axis, I included English, as well as two languages I have studied here at Roger Williams University: Spanish and German.

Creating the Visual Resume, it took a lot longer and much more effort than I anticipated however it challenged me to return to everything I’ve learned this semester and attempt to apply each aspect in one document.

One Subject InfoGraphic

When trying to decide what I was going to research for my One Subject Infographic, I was not sure what I was going to do. Randomly searching the internet for information, I came across something regarding natural disasters. Researching further, I tried to find the number of natural disasters per year for a ten year period, I found it easier to find the lives affected by natural disasters.

Gathering quantitative data, I was able to construct a graph depicting the number of reported fatalities caused by world-wide natural disasters. Using Google Table, I found it very easy to organize this data and construct a bar graph. Another crucial part of this assignment was to find qualitative data that is relevant to the quantitative data I found. Researching natural disasters, throughout the years 2001 and 2011, I found which prominent natural disasters took place in which years.

After creating the graph and gathering my qualitative information, It took a little bit to figure out how I was going to display both of these in a single graphic. At first, underneath each each year on the x-axis that had a corresponding natural disaster, I added text boxes that contained what tragic event took place (i.e. an earthquake or a tornado) and where this event took place. Once completing this, I though I was done however after examining my new graphic, I found that the copious amount of writing was really harsh on the cognitive load and decided to start from scratch.

Again, I created a graph and I decided to replace the confusing text boxes with smaller graphics that would represent which type of natural disaster I was referring to. The four natural disasters that were included in my graphic include flood, earthquake, tsunami, and hurricane/tornado. Searching the internet for appropriate graphics, I was able to find four similar, small, simple logos that represented each disaster. Underneath each logo I was able to add small text that included which country each of these events took place and in order to avoid confusion, I added leader-line to connect the small graphics with the corresponding years.

Throughout the process of connecting qualitative data and quantitative data together in one graphic that could convey information as well as attractive, I found it to be pretty difficult. It took any rough drafts and formats until I was able to come up with the completed assignment however I believe that many trials are necessary for creating the best graphic possible.

Simple Tables to Graphs

For this assignment, “Simple Tables to Graphs,” we were instructed to collect quantitative data about Roger Williams University.  Researching some statistics on Roger Williams University students, I found a multitude of information that stated how many current students were graduate students and undergraduates. To take this information a step further, I then recorded how many of each type of student (graduate vs. undergraduate) were part-time students and full-time students. Using an excel spreadsheet I created an easy-to-read table while also including important percentages that each group of data represented out of the total.

The first chart that I created is a take on a classic pie chart that I’ve seen previously online. Like a normal pie chart, I used this chart to clearly show what each group of students take up out of the entire student body. However I have two groups of data (graduates vs. undergraduates/party-time vs. full-time), I created what is called a “Double Pie Chart.” The first, inner pie chart displays how many current students are graduates and how many are undergraduates. The outer circle, while being perfectly lined up with the inner pie chart, shows how many students of each category are full-time versus part-time. I created the two pie charts separately through a website I found then later combined the two using the “Draw” option on my Google Drive.

The second chart that I constructed is a bar graph. Using the actual number of students in each category and subcategory, I decided this was another useful way of displaying the information. Viewing the bar graph, it is easy to see process and understand the information in ways that it may not be clear with other graphs or charts. For example, while viewing the bar graph, it is easy to identify that the total number of graduates that are enrolled as Roger Williams University students is so low that it is nearly half the number of part-time undergraduate students. I created this graph using the “Spreadsheet” option on “Google Docs” and simply transferring my information to a bar graph.

The third design that we were assigned to create is a Metaphorical Infographic. I decided to create an infographic that shaded in section of a silhouette of a student that would represent the number of students who were part-time and how many were full-time. To take this design a step further, I chose to use two silhouettes to represent the graduate student body and the undergraduate student body to fill in and size the two silhouettes in relation to one another. In completion of this Metaphorical Infographic, one can see that the number of current graduate students is about 1/10 the size of the the undergraduate student body and this is obvious because the second image, representing the graduate students, is quite literally 1/10  the size of the other image. I created the Metaphorical Infographic by placing images into a Word document and experimenting with the opacity of the images to blend the silhouettes and colors together.

Information Graphic

For the assignment, we were instructed to choose a system that would increase a cognitive load and create an Information or Explanation Graphic in order to relay the given information most effectively. Researching ideas, I came up with the idea regarding the film industry. Bouncing from site to site, I came across an article written by John Campea titled, “Economics Of The Movie Theater – Where The Money Goes And Why It Costs Us So Much.” Reading this article, I became interested in a portion titled, “1) Who Gets What From Your $10 Ticket?”. Within this section, Campea discusses the percentages in which ticket sales go to within the span of the first four weeks a movie releases into theaters.

Because the information that I gathered included quantitative data, data that may increase the cognitive load, I knew that I wanted to include graphics that made it easy to decipher. An effective graphic that we had been introduced to was a pie-chart and I decided to take a twist on the classic pie chart and replace the typical circle with the shape of a movie ticket. In each ticket, representing “Week 1,” “Weeks 2-3,” and “Week 4” that a movie is released in theaters and colored sections of the ticket either blue, representing the percentage of ticket sales that go to the theater itself, and orange, representing the percentage of ticket sales that go to the film distributers. Although only including the percentages and colors in the graphics, I added text to the Information Graphic. On the right of each graphic I included text to further explain what each graphic was displaying.

Looking through Shriver’s Model, I include that I utilized the Complimentary Model. While the text explains the information I decided to convey while using the graphics alongside to compliment the text and allowing the audience to actually view the increase in money a theater would obtain throughout the span of four weeks.

The information that I obtained this information is found here:

http://themovieblog.com/2007/economics-of-the-movie-theater-where-the-money-goes-and-why-it-costs-us-so-much/