Written Reflection
Over the semester, I think I have definitely grown as a creative-content maker of the digital variety. I came in only knowing very, very minimal skills and tools about programs such as Photoshop. Mainly Photoshop. I have strong mean feelings about Photoshop. But, ya know what, I've come to somewhat appreciate what Photoshop can offer me. It's like a relationship -- we need constant communication and checking in with each other so we can both grow to produce something remarkable.
This class has also taught me about certain technical terms in this realm, such as "phantasms" (not to be confused with phantom orgasms). Will I ever use these terms? Probably not. Higher education? Nah homie, I'm not about that life. But it's fun trivia knowledge, nevertheless.
As a general overview of this term, I have completed many projects that I could not have done before this semester. This includes: two websites (a personal one and a portfolio one), Photoshop (movie poster, logo, advertisement), and Audacity (soundscape). I think that the biggest issue throughout the course of this semester was just the learning curve, because I get defeated pretty easily when something doesn't come naturally to me; I think normally I would have given up if I were to do this on my own (and I definitely have before when it came to Photoshop), but because the class has forced me to complete the word I have this huge sense of pride now. I might have done very basic things to make a photoshopped piece of art, but oh my goodness I feel like I can Photoshop anything now (and I am completely aware how wrong that is, haha).
If someone were to see this current website, I think that they would be amused. Mainly because of what I write, because that has more of an entertainment factor than any of the pieces I did. Actually, maybe they would also enjoy my storyboard cause, I mean, it's so freakin' cute! I don't think they would vomit at the sight of my site or its millennial pink background, or at least I hope they don't puke.
I also did not have many recurring techniques or topics. I think aesthetically they share a similar pattern because I am a huge fan simplistic and clean designs. They're also funny if I can throw in something that appears humorous (like the blood in my advertisement or the title in my "frustration" page. But because each work has a different type of structure or meaning its trying to convey, I think that you have to approach each one a little differently and use a different technique. Like when you're writing for different genres, I like to understand where I am coming from and go from there. So obviously a brand like Orion is going to need a different vibe and meaning behind their logo than what I might do for the Titanic II poster. It's all about what you are trying to create.
I think revision can be defined as the ability to go back to a piece of work and revise it after initially completing it. For me, revision is a tricky thing. Because of my perfectionist tendencies (and this is not me trying to brag about being "perfect" like this is actually very debilitating for me), my writing/creating process looks like either me having to be right on the first time, or not do it at all (or do so poorly that I can make myself feel better because of the intentional poorness of work). So a lot of these projects that I did were basically as complete and perfect in the WIP stage, and therefore needed little work done to it as a revision. Is this great? No, not at all. But I think that the majority of my revisions in the class was the clean the projects up and help the audience more easily understand what I was trying to communicate.
With that being said, the target audience really has little impact on what I am creating (except for my personal portfolio website (also the professor does not count as audience)). I think that what I am making for the class serves the purpose of what needs to be graded, but I do it on my own terms and what I think looks best (while doing the best I can with what little skills I have). So no, it does not matter if my vintage ad is off-putting to certain people because I like it and I think it is funny. But in that sense, the purpose and context is important to me because if the purpose of my vintage ad is to show that ancient ways of thinking are dumb, then perfect I succeeded.
In regards to peer review, I definitely take into account what my peers think. Do I do everything that they suggest? Not really, because I either don't agree with it or lack the skills to do what they are suggesting I do. BUT when it comes to people that I think have really good tastes (like Ryan) then I really want to consider what it is they are pointing out to me. But anyway, I still like the idea of showing off our works to the class because it's pretty fun and nice just to see what everyone else is doing.
When it comes to to editing, I often like to just... not. I don't like editing. Like I said before, I want things to be right on the first go around. I hate the idea of major overhauls, even if I know I should do one (but I guess who really does love major revisions anyway). But, being the adult that I am, I should recognize that editing is a crucial part of critical self-analysis and self-improvement and it is unnatural to be perfect the first time EVERY time. So when I go back and edit, I look for jarring things or egregious errors that would make me look dumb if anyone ever saw it. But even the smallest thing, like a picture being a centimeter off, will get to me, too (I know there are a lot of errors in this website, but honestly some things are just beyond my capability to fix, to my chagrin). But I do the best I can.
And finally, my semester long goals. I think the biggest goal was tackling Photoshop because if I was never going to force myself to learn it, I probably never would have. And now I have, and it feels so good! I am so proud of the Orion logo because it looks clean and is definitely my style. I am also EXTREMELY proud of my personal portfolio website and will want to continuously update and improve it way long after this class ends (heck, it saves me a monthly charge on Squarespace fee so i will definitely want to take advantage of github as long as possible).
Thanks for a great semester Professor Lavin :)