Promoting Your Work
Journal Ella Sedman Photographic Journalism c3388577
Week 1 Functioning as the introduction to the module, week one consisted of extensive discussions between course members. This communicative process is fundamental in securing the success of the end product, which is an exhibition. Showcasing student’s work, the exhibition should commence with a successful, opening event that radiates professionalism. Alongside organising the event, a journal needs to be created and developed throughout the module’s discourse. Furthermore, sponsorships, funding, design, social media, websites, finance and the production of a book all need to be considered and coordinated to guarantee a strong, skillful and rewarding event.
Exhibition 60%
Journal
Marks
40%
At the moment, the showcase is to be scheduled between the 15th-30th of May 2017. Although this is to be confirmed, the dates should not vary from those shown considerably. In terms of the venue, unlike other years the event is to take place on the student grounds. Located on the Leeds Beckett Headingley campus are the rooms’ Acre and Jubilee. Found in the James Graham building at the center of the university, they should attract more traffic and hopefully, in turn, interest. A rough guide to the room layouts can be viewed below. Jubilee
Acre
James Graham The journal should also include a self-analysis and rationale regarding the effectiveness of both the events leading up to the exhibition and the showcase itself. Therefore, this should be completed by the end of the module. After establishing the module’s specific requirements, considerations into the roles that need to be adopted could commence during this week’s tutorial session. This time allowed the various jobs to be identified and group members assigned to each role. Although appointed to specific people, they are subject to change, especially when absent group members need to be factored in. As of this week, the list exists as witnessed below. /Roles/ Design- Ella, Harriet, Alex. K, Dan, Simon, Rebecca. C, Lucie & Rose Website-
Euan, Josh & Adam
Venue-
Rachel, Kate & Maisie
Book-
Alex. T
Sponsorship- Maisie & Jenna Social Media- Becky & Ollie Accounts-
Kate
Alongside distributing roles, funds were organised. Deciding to each put in £50, that brings our total budget to £1,300 as of this moment.
For each role, certain expectations and requirements exist:
Design
This area requires plenty of people as they workload is extensive. Each group member should have a good eye for graphic design, be skilled in InDesign and be decisive even in a pressurised environment. Responsible for the posters, invitations, artist bios, name plates, and other potential design-related components, these event materials should be creative yet still relevant to the showcase.
Website
Needing a smaller group of digitally skilled website designers, commitment to publishing content on-time is a necessary trait. Alongside achieving a professional aesthetic, website designers need to have a good understanding of social media linking, tagging, SEO and other Internet-based knowledge to encourage Online traffic.
Sponsorship
Responsible for obtaining funding and sponsorships for the event, this group requires a small number of highly dedicated, sociable people. Happy to contact potential sources, good communication and organisation are pivotal for this area.
Venue
A key part of achieving a highly successful finished look, the venue team needs to have dedicated, enthusiastic members who are happy to plan and set up the room, arrange refreshments and make any necessary adjustments if problems arise.
Social Media
Responsible for setting up, establishing and developing various social media accounts for the event, this role requires daily-engagement, knowledge of promoting traffic and networking a brand. A lot of time and effort needs to be emitted onto this task and a smaller group of people appointed to this task will make it more coherent.
Book
Created to function as a show book, the book must be designed, uploaded and delivered via Blurb. Featuring showcased work with each person’s individual bio, the one person associated with this role must possess a knowledge of Blurb, having used them before. They also must possess good organisational and conversational skills when collecting materials from each student.
Accounts
Likewise to the book, the accounts require just one person who again must be organised and confident when contacting classmates. This person needs to be efficient in collecting, distributing and handling funds to ensure the overall success of the event. Upcoming Weeks:
Alongside distributing roles, funds were organised. Deciding to each put in £50, that brings our total budget to £1,300 as of this moment. Once the group accountant has set up a bank account for the funds, each person’s money needs to be transferred. The deadline to do this is by the 17th of February, giving all students two weeks to do so. Each student now needs to decide what they are going to showcase in the exhibition. Whether new work or something produced since last year, making this choice quickly, will allow other aspects to fall into place. Alongside this personal decision, the group collectively needs to decide upon a name and subsequently brand for the exhibition. Reflection
I overall found the first week to be enlightening and engaging into the module’s content. Important decisions were made and it felt like we had got the ball rolling. Having already secured a venue, some of the stress should be released. I’m optimistic for the future of this module as long as students carry on attending the sessions, which I feel will be vital in upcoming weeks.
Week 2 Coming into the second week, further decisions in regards to the showcase were explored and subsequently made. With the knowledge we were going to view two various Leeds Beckett rooms, the group aim was to come to a general consensus into which room was preferable. To prepare for this, the morning lecture consisted of conversations surrounding potential dates, new job roles, and each room’s unique characteristics.
D A T E S
Acre 22ND-23RD OF MAY 2017 (MONDAY-TUESDAY)
Jubilee 22ND-25TH OF MAY 2017 (MONDAY-THURSDAY)
From these two options, we also need to decide whether we want the exhibition to run for two days or potentially longer. This needs to be decided before the meeting with University head Colin next Friday morning where similar topics are to be raised. Representatives from the venue, design and accountancy teams are to attend this meeting, readily equipped with appropriate questions. Organised through Jane Utley, the Friday meeting is to take place on the 17th with Alex. K and Rose representing design, Maisey venue, and Kate accountancy. This meeting will be pivotal to the success of the event as through this exchange, limitations, and possibilities can be established, the financial side featuring heavily in the outcomes. During the morning lecture, we discussed the possibility of employing a projector to play a show reel featuring all students’ work. This also would allow more content to be displayed without needing much space. This could be incredibly beneficial to the industry event by allowing a wider range of professional skills to be showcased.
Acre
The smaller room, the jubilee room featured lighter, green walls, wooden flooring, a large projector screen and a piano that cannot be moved or used.
The larger of the two rooms, the acre featured a lot of brown wood, natural light with the potential to hang prints from hooks.
JUBILEE
For the teams, Jenna and Macey were added to the venue group and Connor into the sponsorship workforce. Missing students from last week also stated where their preferred placement would be. Mostly positioning themselves in social media and website design, this could be problematic as they were already over-subscribed last week. Therefore, further movement and re-arranging needs to be completed next week. Potentially moving into sponsorship and venue, more focus on these areas would be fruitful to the success of the event. Potential areas for next week’s proposal: • Design team: x2- one for us, one for the showcase • Design team: Postcards (6x4)- one for us, one for the showcase • Design Team: Morris Calvert- print room printed program, possibility? • Prints: University fund and potentially keep?
Acre Room Floor Plan
Past Exhibition Example Images
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Having initially explored the rooms ourselves, our decision was assisted through the professional guidance of AET help-desk head, Seb. Presenting potential ways to showcase the work, gantry was introduced early on in the exchange. A strong suggestion, this was deemed the best route in which to proceed. Whether set up straight down the middle of the room, zigzagging or into individual areas, the possibilities are looking promising. Specific space in which to do what you wish with would be my own, preferred arrangement. At the moment, an area of around 1.5 meters is looking likely. Having weighed up all the pros and cons from each room, the larger acre room became the first choice. This space would also allow prints to be suspended around the room, potentially against the wooden paneling. With the possibility of purchasing, painting and erecting whiteboarding, this could make the event space more neutral. Overall I found this session to be developmental in our progression. Now having a clear direction in terms of the space and its possibilities, we can now begin to start considering print sizing, booking additional event requirements and designing event materials. With the dates definitely secured to the 22nd and 23rd, arrangements can now be made.
Drawing of the chosen room: The Acre
22nd of May- Launch Night The first night of the showcase, this is where friends and family are to be invited to witness the work. Functioning as a celebration, a fully packaged event should be achieved that is not only highly professional but enjoyable too.
23rd of May- Industry Event The second night of the showcase, this is where industry professionals are to be invited to view students work. With the potential to network, additional invites can be sent out by students to local professionals. This could lead to job opportunities and future industry experience as it would demonstrate a strong sense of initiative.
Next Week. . . Coming up next week is the meeting with Colin and further discussions into the direction of the event. A decision on the name of the event is to be made based on the suggestions given in by students this week. Re-arrangement of the group positions would also be useful so momentum can start to build up to the event. Looking into sponsorships would also be beneficial as it would allow a clearer inclination into our budget and henceforth what is achievable within those means.
Week 3 With group members having had the meeting with Colin on the morning before our session, a greater idea of the capabilities of the university resources was defined. After this conversation, Rose, Alex. K, Maisie and Kate presented the feedback back to the class. Colin confirmed that photographic journalism course were first in line for the acre room. It was also stated that additional gantry and MDF boards could be ordered and funded for the showcase. Providing essential, additional space to display work, this extension also enables further flexibility in the showcase’s arrangement. This could provide the space with a greater aesthetic appearance as it enables students to be more creative in the room’s arrangement, Furthermore, meeting participants expressed printing possibilities. The university will fund the general showcase posters, whereas the rest of the individualised posters, specific to us will be funded on our side. Sponsorship from the University, however, is also a possibility that should be later revisited. Confirmation of the posters, alongside the guidance of the marketing became a strong point within the report. A necessity, conferment between Colin and Seb was mentioned as a way in which to develop the showcase further. Another outcome from the meeting was the ability to set up the room on the Sunday before the event. Additionally, the Friday before is even a possibility. Last but not least, a conversation into the possibility of sharing the acre room arose. Only a possibility and hopefully not a cause for concern, as a group we will attempt to oppose this but if the event the room has to be shared, we will do our best to best utilise the space. During the morning lecture, Lizzie also rose the idea of possibility changing the family/friends celebration night to the evening of the industry day. I think this would be a great idea as it would work as an end celebration, away from the potential stress of the industry day that was originally meant to follow the morning after the opening night.
SUGGESTED SHOWCASE NAMES
VENUE Maisie Macey Mel Kate Jenna Alex. K Rachel
DESIGN Ella Simon Jemma Lucie Harriet Dan Rebecca. C
WEBSITE Josh Adam Euan Ollie Nat
SPONSORSHIP SOCIAL MEDIA Connor Rachel Maisie Jenna
Ollie Becky. H Gabbi Aran
BOOK
FINANCE
Alex. T
Kate
The groups as they stand are as displayed above. Another role for consideration is the showreel. This, however, was discussed as a potential job for Luke (who is currently away) or maybe Ollie. The showreel also came under a consideration for a meeting we have booked in two weeks time. Organised with Jemma Povey at 1:30pm on the 3rd of March, the meeting is to discuss showcasing our work on the screen in Millennium Square. Located in town, the appropriateness of the content employed needs to be kept in mind when the film/show reel is constructed. This product may also be the one adopted in the showcase. As noted last week, discussions into potential names were to be had this week. After the class provided a large number of suggestions, we did numerous votes to narrow down the choices. The final two that were chosen in the lecture are highlighted below. However, in the tutorial, another vote with new additions was fashioned and posted Online. Located in the design time, we agreed that the overall look plays a large part in the name choice. Therefore, various members of the design team created multiple posters with different names present.
EXPOSE SLATE ARCHIVE
END PRODUCT UNDERLINE PROJECT...
A FEW FRAMES EXPOSURE C3
Poster Design Everyone was situated in his or her exhibition groups in the tutorial session. Being in the design team, I used the time to demonstrate some ideas I had for the posters. Employing InDesign, Fonts were downloaded from DaFont and images obtained from Google Drive. The student images functioned in the layout too as examples, so people could visualise how their images would work within the posters. Adopting the names Underline and Product, two alternative posters were created. In addition to my suggestions, the rest of the design team presented their ideas. At the end of the session, all the rough drafts were successfully uploaded to Google Drive for each other to access, examine and consider for the showcase. The final products can be viewed on the following pages. My own contributions are displayed on the next, double-page spread. I was happy with the ideas presented, I feel we worked well, gave constructive feedback and have a great basis to work off. In terms of my black & white, Underline poster; the idea of employing different black & white images with a different bold colour was raised. Creating different versions of the poster would generate variance and a sense of professionalism. Overall I found this week was incredibly developmental, creative and enjoyable. I’m looking forward to the next available time to work in the design team.
Poster Artists (Opposite page: left from right) Alex. K, Harriet and Simon. (This page: Top to bottom, left from right) Lucie, Sarah, Rose, Lucie, Rose, Sarah and Jemma.
[Task One] “Put together a first draft of a biography/artists statement of your work with three of your photographs.” When considering what to showcase for the exhibition, I initially explored my most recent, favorable work. Although I have produced a number of independent projects within my own time, I had to consider my future after university. Wanting to pursue a career in magazine design, I decided to tailor my exhibited work to resemble this. The industry event further reiterates this point and I understand I should use this event to potentially network myself. Therefore, understanding this, I want to showcase my magazine She. that was created for last semester’s Creative Media Practice module. Planning to make further additions and amendments, it should be my strongest piece of work to date. In regards to displaying the magazine, a number of copies will be printed to allow multiple people to physically interact with the work in an informal manner. Hopefully showcased in a magazine rack, a bio/ artist statement will accompany the magazine alongside possible a few larger prints taken from the magazine. Therefore my first draft bio and three images that could potentially be printed and framed can be accessed below.
[Image Three may change to a more recent addition]
Ella Sedman She. magazine is an independent art, photography and culture magazine that celebrates contemporary girl culture. Created by photojournalist and designer Ella Sedman, She. was developed to encourage creativity, conversation and a sense of community for girls. Made up of short photostories, She. Editor Ella says, “I wanted to produce something myself and my friends would read.” Primarily a portrait photographer and designer, Ella specialises in producing editorial content and hopes to pursue a career in this field.
[Image One]
[Image Two]
Week 4 Coming into the fourth week of this module, notable strives in the organising of the showcase have been made. For this week, we were arranged by our work groups and advised to develop on our specific team duties. The morning lecture ran by Lizzie entailed further considerations for the exhibition name, brand and what needs to be completed in upcoming weeks. To better visual and organise each team’s collective responsibilities, mood boards were started. The plan is to bring these large sheets of paper to each session to allow them to be further developed on as events transpire. During this session, we also inspected the posters that were produced by the design team in last week’s tutorial. Through this examination process, we identified the strengths and weaknesses of each. This led us to choose our favourite design that we felt best suited the showcase. My design created around the name Underline was chosen to further explore and develop as a concept. Therefore it was decided that I would experiment with this poster design using different images that were to be uploaded to our shared Google Drive folder. The rest of my design team decided to explore potential logos using the event names Underline, Archive and C3. Fashioned on Photoshop and InDesign, they were to be fed back to the class at the end of the tutorial session. Some of the main topics of conversation were as seen below alongside what deliberation was reached. Timetabling- To be done through new use of physical sheets Budgeting- Showcase account to be set up by next week Fundraising- Printing, charities, ‘in-kind’ transactions Publicity & invitations- Provoke attraction, information, desire and action Transport- Need to consider transporting of the prints Private view - Possible move to same day as industry event Edit, Print & Frame- Possibly done through university. Explore potential leads. Installation- Possibly to be completed prior to the event date Insurance- Consider for artwork in case any damage occurred during event
An Update on Funds... Once the official bank account is set up by hopefully next week, money can finally be paid into it by each student. Although slightly behind schedule, this should not hinder the progress of the event planning. As the establishment of said account is to be soon upon us, budgets need to be tackled in upcoming weeks. The main areas that need to be addressed are hanging costings in the form of fittings and fixtures, private view materials such as refreshments and documentation of the show. This is also where the fundraising and ‘inkind’ conversations become applicable and should be followed up by the sponsorship team in coming weeks.
Tutorial Session For this week’s tutorial session, I personally got underway with producing the sample posters for the exhibition. After downloading all the images that were put forth by students, they were inserted into the original InDesign document that was created last week. Having to accommodate the individualised compositions of each image, slight adjustments in regards to layout had to be made. I personally like the name Underline and think it should be exercised in our exhibition branding. From a typography perspective, I find it to be graphically strong and impacting. Furthermore, we are first and foremost photojournalists whose photographs possess underlining meanings and stories. This could attach a meaning to the name; further justifying its relevance and subsequent place within the showcase. In regards to logo design, we collectively established beforehand that the logo should summarise the poster header and work as a motif for the event. Succinct, clear and simple, the logo needs to be aesthetically powerful as it is to be exercised through various designs, marketing, and promotional avenues. The following pages feature the posters produced by myself and the logos that were developed by various members of the design team.
under ine Photographic
Journalism
under ine Exhibition
Tuesday 23rd May 2017 The Acre Room james graham Leeds Beckett headingley
Photographic
Journalism
Exhibition
Tuesday 23rd May 2017 The Acre Room james graham Leeds Beckett headingley Tuesday 23rd May 2017 The Acre Room james graham Leeds Beckett headingley
Here features what I managed to produce during the tutorial session. I like the motif of the line that is reflected in all of the posters. I feel it develops a sense of brand identity that will be good for marketing. The bold colour also generates diversity likewise to the varying photographs. Collectible and striking, with further development I feel they could be fruitful to the showcase.
under ine Photographic
Tuesday 23rd May 2017 The Acre Room james graham Leeds Beckett headingley
Journalism
Exhibition
under ine Photographic
Journalism
Exhibition
Tuesday 23rd May 2017 The Acre Room james graham Leeds Beckett headingley
under ine Photographic
Tuesday 23rd May 2017 The Acre Room james graham Leeds Beckett headingley
Journalism
Exhibition
LOGOS
A r t i s t S tat e m e n t Revisited
Although I had already produced a rough, first draft for my bio, further questions for consideration were presented during this week’s session. The bio should therefore include:
1) Title of work
2) Artist’s statement
3) Guide to the work
The artist statement should also answer the following questions... • • • • •
Who are you? What you are? (Photographer, writer, graphic designer etc.) What you did Why you did it When you did it
Acknowledging these suggestions, I therefore amended my artist statement to: Born in Manchester, Ella Sedman is a photojournalist and designer who specialises in magazine design. After consistently opting to create magazine content throughout her university life, her most notable work came in the form of She. Magazine. Established in late 2016, She. is an independent art, photography and culture magazine that celebrates contemporary girl culture. Developed to encourage creativity, conversation and a sense of community for girls, She. is primarily made up of short, femininity-orientated photo-stories. She. creator Ella says, “I wanted to produce something myself and my friends would want to read and enjoy.” After digitally constructing the magazine, it was pushed into print. After uncovering her passion for producing editorial content, her move into magazine design was the next logical step. “Magazine’s allow me to practice in various creative areas from photography and writing to graphic design and art. I love the fluidity and creative freedom that is facilitated through magazine production and hope to pursue this further.” Ella predominantly focuses on portraiture photography which is reflected throughout her showcased work.
Final Notes for Next Week. . . To allow further development of the posters to prevail, it was suggested that I upload a template for the rest of the class to download from Google Drive. This will allow class members to experiment with their own photos in the poster outside of the university timetable. To enable this productiveness, I uploaded three versions of the poster (two portraits and one landscape) alongside some recommendations. The instructor advice was as followed: The InDesign documents have been uploaded to be downloaded and used as templates. There should be both a landscape and a portrait option. Images can be dragged and dropped into the document where the current image is situated. Feel free to experiment with different text colours to tailor the poster to your specific image. Students will hopefully practice this throughout the coming week, ready to feedback during next week’s session. To finish off the prevailing week’s tutorial session, each event team fed back what they had managed to achieve during the past two hours. The website team appeared to have made great strides in developing and planning our Online presence. Disclosed was a new deadline, one in which all students are expected to complete by the 1st of March, one which entails uploading a minimum of three images to the Promoting Your Work Google Drive folder. Potentially featuring the work in which you wish to showcase, they should be sized to 72dpi to make them suitable for Online, which will likewise have to be done with all images going onto the website. This should provide the website team enough materials to start laying out the team’s site to create a highly useful template. It was also communicated that profile images to go alongside our bios need to be taken, which will be done so next Friday on the 3rd of March. The aim is to get Online in all senses (website and social media) by April. We also need to start considering a press release and who to potentially invite to the event. This is however dependent on capacity numbers for the acre room as fire safety could dictate the outcome...
Continued. . . Therefore, to try and obtain this information, an email was devised by the venue team during the tutorial session. Also featured within this message was the proposal of another meeting to further discuss arrangements. This will hopefully get a reply ready for next week’s session. Within this session, the previously mentioned talk with Gemma Povey is set to take place. In preparation for this, each student must submit 10 images to the Google Drive folder with the letters “mov” in the file name whilst being in accordance with the specifications provided last week. Ollie could also do a try run of these this coming week in preparation for the meeting. In said meeting, we should also remember to ask about else is needed from us, whether we need a chosen press person and what is suitable for the Millennium Square audience. Lastly, artist statements should also be developed for next week for Lizzie to provide feedback on. A word count of around 200-250 was also deemed appropriate for both the showcase and website profiles.
WEEK 4 WHITE BOARD & TEMPLATE SCREENSHOT
Week 5 In preparation for week five’s Friday session, the previously requested images from each student were uploaded within the week. After creating an individual folder for myself under the Promoting Your Work> Website area of Google Drive, my images were resized before they were uploaded. Understanding they will appear online, all three images were resized to a dpi of 72 via Photoshop and the colour space changed from CMYK to RGB. From previous experience, most printers employ the colour space CMYK and websites, RGB.
f Likewise, the current draft of my artist statement was uploaded to the same Google Drive under the folder bios.
Lecture on Job Applications The power of effectively marketing yourself when applying for postuniversity jobs was discussed in great detail during the morning session. Employing a wide selection of job advertisements, each student selected one they believed would best fit their skills. From assistant photographers to editorial copywriters, the variety of positions that apply to our specific experience was vast, evidencing how varied our potential career paths can be. I personally chose to explore a photography assistant job based in London. What attracted me to this role was not only the shadowing of a professional photography environment but the mention of magazine production. Hoping to follow this interest in the future, the job seemed perfect. Although this role is to commence in March, which would conflict with my current university schedule, it states they welcome future applications, meaning I can contact them to enquire about another period of experience post studies. Within the lecture, Sarah also addressed some industry standards when applying for different forms of experience. Marketing yourself effectively, respecting the employers time and self-brand consideration were all mentioned. Furthermore, Internet-based techniques such as textual hierarchy, SEO and contextualising your work should all be considered when attempting to establish a strong Online presence. A testimonial would also be relevant to a creative professionals website, likewise to social media links to help develop one’s brand whilst demonstrating individual interests. These connotations could be the difference between getting a job or not, I therefore plan to develop my social media account further and set up a Pinterest profile.
Tutorial and The Big Screen Gemma commenced the afternoon tutorial by talking about the show reel and basically the main restrictions that could dictate what is displayed in the Leeds city center. As well as the Millennium square space, there is a 4k video wall outside the city campus university entrance that can be used with slightly more artistic freedom. Product placement and sensitive content, and provocative activities were reoccurring themes in regards to what cannot be screened. Although I don’t think this should be an issue for my own work, the message needs to be passed on throughout the class. After exploring potential ideas and what is achievable within the screen’s and council’s individualised guidelines, we went on to tackle more design-specific jobs for the event. Having produced a few ideas for the logo last week, the design team re-grouped to address some of the issues raised. Initially, we changed the text placement on our original favourite, but then decided to further play around with logo structure. Exercised on InDesign, we all contributed our suggestions, which led a stronger end result to materialise.
Logo We decided to create a more succinct design that excludes the text. Summarised and more visually striking, a cleaner overall aesthetic was achieved. Furthermore, the poster motif still remains by keeping the same font and distinctive line.
Becky produced the final design, which was then uploaded to GoogleDrive as a PNG for others to download. We make the decision to have the logo colouring dependent on the photo, likewise to the line. Examples of this can be viewed on the following page. Overall I found this keep to be both productive and enjoyable. Pinning down our design has helped brand ourselves further. This hopefully can now be mirrored throughout our Online presence and physical materials. The design team’s attention can now focus on finalising posters, creating invitations and eventually, printing.
Week 6 Week 6 entailed a catch-up session with Peter and the city talk with The Guardian writer Christian Bennett. During the lecture session, Peter was caught up to speed with the progression of various event teams with presentations. Part of the design team, I created a PowerPoint presentation listing everything that had been done by my group within the past two weeks. Alongside previous work, future actions were also touched upon for the coming weeks. Said slides can be viewed below.
After a briefing, listed were the duties that were to be tackled within the coming weeks. This included creating the book, pushing poster materials to print and organising the event space. Now we are in week 6 of the module, I feel we are at a steady place but further efforts need to be exercised to complete all the tasks in time for the event. Invitations need to be addressed soon and sponsorships confirmed to allow them to be placed on the posters and other necessary formats.
Week 7 Confirming schedule dates was the prime focus of this week’s session. During the morning session, we discussed the duties of each individual group, which will function as a checklist for the coming week. Also clarified was the current status of each group for Peter, so he could effectively delegate the necessary tasks to the appropriate person. The list for consideration and the correct person of relevance can be accessed below.
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- Rose (Book)- Create a template for the book, which should also include the names of each student, placed in alphabetical order. Furthermore, 8-10 slides per person should be established. -Kate (Accountancy)- Set up a spreadsheet listing who has/has not paid to £50 deposit. A list of every type of expenditure to determine what is and is not essential to the showcase would also be useful. -Ollie (Showreel)- Establish a show reel that includes a place for artist’s bio and images. If portrait, two or three images can be fixed into one slide, instead of a singular landscape photograph. Trialling this with posters can also be done now. The final reel will also be broadcast two weeks before the showcase and a deadline for images was set for the 10th of April.
Gantry
Seb is current drawing sketches for gantry arrangements, which need to be contemplated with one of the venue team. In a few week’s time, this person needs to witness one section of the gantry physically set up with Seb to gain a better idea of what is achievable.
Website Student’s should also provide their personal website addresses for both the website and showreel. This functions as an Online portfolio and could lead to networking.
Prints
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Prints can be 60cm wide, which was the largest format witnessed in last year’s show. Creative freedom is the key, however, design your own space. However plastic glass is essential to ensure a professional aesthetic is achieved. Frames are likely to be funded by students and therefore should be taken away by them.
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We also have access to an A2 printer that prints 420 wide (height is flexible). Seb could order paper, some ink is already obtained. However, Peter could shadow this or another process similar. This would need funding but could be gained via the univeristy as the event would require a considerable amount of time and energy on Peters behalf.
b
Another area for deliberation is installing duplicate prints in the Leeds bookshop Village. Possessing an empty space above the store, we could use the 60x70 silver edged frames, accessible from the university AET helpdesk. If exercised, the run time would consist from before to after the showcase and would require a duplicate bio statement and name card for each student. Furthermore, if ventured, we would need to find out who would hang them.
Design Team Check List Part of the design team, I was instructed to investigate the printing capabilities of the on-site print room during the session break. Here I discovered that the university printing department only has one type of paper for A3 posters, this being 170g silk. Although the do have 200g as well, they do not have enough to accommodate our printing needs. I fed this information back the rest of the class during our tutorial session later that day. After this, we decided that the event poster needs to be updated with images and details of the event (venue, time, date etc.) but this is still waiting on information from Colin in regards to finalised venue information.
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The design team also needs to contact Greg from the marketing team, to obtain a template for the poster in terms of brand recognition for Leeds Beckett. From logo colouring to placement, this contact should be done within the next few weeks and a logo file and template retrieved. For next week, I personally need to ask the print room how long a poster can be turned over, which will be essential when producing a trial print run before Easter. The posters need to be up by the end of April, therefore the trial needs to be completed by the 7th and all images for consideration submitted by the 3rd. Uploaded to Google Drive, I will place put forward images into the template and decide alongside the design team what works best, producing the trail poster as a result. However, it is likely that several versions of the poster will be produced, a rough total amount for now coming to 120. The design team also needs to contact other department heads within the showcase to determine what they require in the overall showcase poster. As I already possess the job of producing a poster for next week, I delegated this task to Alex. K who happily took on the role. Furthermore, Simon adopted the task of producing trial bio statements for next week. Creating both A4 and A5 variations, this should hopefully help us visualise what would work best. The A4 option should include a space for both a bio and profile image, whereas the A5 alternative should just entail the bio. A trial name place is also being created by Simon, using both the shortest and longest names from the class to ensure no sizing problems will occur.
Final Notes
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- All images for the website also need to be submitted by the last day of March/first day of April. - Everyone needs to provide a rough design/ sketch of their own creative space to the venue team. This should allow them to begin visualising the overall space and start considering where work should be cohesively placed. - The charity of our choice was presented by Maisie and entails soldiers who suffer from PTSD. A small, sentimental charity, it was declared fit for our event. - Student’s need to contemplate self-promotion in terms of business cards and portfolios for the event. I plan to design and print business cards for myself using an Online software. - Confirmation of who is definitely in the showcase needs to be addressed. Peter sent out a message to the whole class stating that every is to be in next week. This should hopefully resolve this issue.
Next Week
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- All checklists established in this week’s session should be completed and fed back to the class in week 8. A presentation of around 5 minutes was deemed appropriate to determine what has been achieved. - Headshots for each artist bio are to be taken by Euan next week. Using studio equipment and a white background, unison amongst the images should create a sense of professionalism and harmony.
Week 8 Equipped with the checklist from last week, the design team worked throughout the week in preparation for the Friday session. Personally working on the poster, I redesigned and reshaped the format based on an existing draft. Employing one of my own images, the poster was developed via InDesign and can be viewed on the following page. I presented this information back to the class during this week’s session via the sideshow witnessed below. The printing turnover time of three days was an important fact to feedback to the rest of the group.
When presenting, feedback was encouraged by myself. The general reception was positive but areas that required further attention and development were outlined. This included making the title and subtitle more prominent, possibly reworking the social media icons and including sponsorships at the bottom of the poster. It was also decided that I would create a folder where students can submit their photos for consideration by next week.
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At the beginning of the morning tutorial session, Hugo addressed come previously unanswered questions, which was very useful. He expressed how we had full, sole use of the Acre Room and also had access to more mounting boards through the university. It was also mentioned how the date of Monday the 22nd of May was confirmed as the industry event, which should run from 3-7:30pm. We now need to discuss whether we are the have the family/ friends event alongside, after or the following day to the industry event. As previously mentioned we are to design the generic poster for the entire event. However, we are also to construct an A4 format, bio template to be used by all students across the event. This, however, needs to be done alongside the guidelines of the marketing team. A draft for this should be constructed for next week’s session. Maisie also addressed the potential Village showcase. After sending a Behance portfolio made up with some students work, we are still waiting for a response. Rose also showed the early stages of the Blurb book template in the tutorial session. This is to be further developed as work starts coming in during the coming weeks. Prints were also confirmed through the university by Peter. A CMYK printer, the flattered saturation and dulled black needs to be accommodated using Photoshop. The process of printing can be done in small sections as and when work is finished to release some of the stress nearer the time of the event. We plan to start printing some of the additional materials A2 at the university soon also. Presenting on the website was Ollie and Nat, who showed the current state of our Online presence. Looking strong, it was stated how each person’s images need to be a multiple of three. In class, we decided that 12 images would be the maximum. We also expressed our desire to have individual social media links for each individual artist. All of this information is to be expressed in a document in the artist bio folder as found on Google Drive.
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During the tutorial session, the photo shoot for the headshots was set up and captured by Euan. Present students filtered out throughout whilst having group meetings and going over our artist bios with Lizzie. My conversation with Lizzie was incredibly useful and my final artist statement is now finalised, ready to be placed within an A4 template. A big group conversation ended this week’s session. Functioning as a briefing for next week, it was mentioned how the marketing team have sent over a template, which tackles the guidelines of University branding. This information was emailed to myself by Harriet on Monday the 27th of March, ready to be applied to the poster.
Kate’s Online payment spreadsheet can be witnessed above. It worked as a great indicator for the rest of the class as we could see who and when students had engaged.
Week 9 After being left with a new checklist of duties after last week, a number of people worked throughout the week in preparation for Friday’s session. The design team kept in close contact all week to ensure tasks were being completed and decisions were being made. This high level of conversation was great for the success of the design team and will hopefully prevail over the coming weeks and the Easter break. The design team produced two templates for bio statements, one produced by Simon and one by myself. These were fed back to the rest of the class during Friday’s morning session.
Ella Sedman
Ella Sedman is a photojournalist and designer from Manchester who specialises in magazine design. Predominantly a portraiture photographer, Ella has also worked alongside various protest groups and independent art companies. After consistently opting to create magazine content throughout her university life, her most notable work came in the form of She magazine. Established in late 2016, She is an independent art, photography and culture magazine that celebrates contemporary girl culture. Developed to encourage creativity, conversation and a sense of community for girls, She is primarily made up of short, female-orientated photo-stories. She creator Ella says, “I wanted to produce something myself, and my friends would read, and enjoy.” Through the artistic fluidity magazine production facilitates, Ella relished in the creative freedom magazine design facilitates. Working in a variety of creative disciplines from photography and writing through to graphic design and illustrative artwork, she plans to continue with magazine design after university.
The feedback was generally positive but some areas still need further development. These include enlarging the name slightly and hopefully getting rid of the bottom banner. The type of employed font was also explored. Ollie voiced the idea of using the font as seen on the website. This can be explored once the name of the font is obtained.
Furthermore, the possibility of adjusting the image sizing to a square was also explored. This, however, will be dependent on the images captured last week and therefore needs to be decided alongside the input of Euan. In the morning session, we also discussed the layout of the book as presented by Rose. Every student is to have 8 pages (4 double-page spreads). For next week, each person is to create a rough draft to illustrate how they want their work to be displayed. This information is to be placed within a document on Google Drive, alongside taggings within each specific image to help anchor Rose to identify which image is which.
Page Sizings: A1- 84.1 x 59.4cm
A2- 59.4 x 42cm
Book guide
The deadline for payments was again addressed, which does not apply to myself as I paid previously. However, the importance of obtaining all funding remains as a clear budget needs to be defined to allow money to be distributed. This deadline is next Friday (7/04), which is also the deadline for the images to be uploaded to GoogleDrive and the layout sketches. During the tutorial session, the venue team distributed A3 printed layouts, which are to be used for sketching ideas for showcased work. These are to be employed to allow students to visualise their curated space. These are to be completed and handed in next week. My own contribution can be viewed on the following page. The sketch includes a magazine rack and two printed images. The magazine rack will feature a number of A5 magazines that can be picked up and viewed by people at the exhibition. To work out sizings, I obtained the correct measurements of the magazine rack, which then allowed me to consider what is possible within the remaining space using A1/A2 etc. measurements. These were converted to cm as the measurements presented by the venue team were likewise in cm (170x180).
A3- 42 x 29.7cm
A4- 29.7 x 21cm A5- 14.8cm x 21cm
27 cm
91.5 cm
170 cm
Magazine rack to be purchased from Urban Outfitters for ÂŁ40
BIO
180 cm WHITE BACKGROUND
a3 PRINTS: (42 X 29.7CM EACH)
Week 10 This week consisted of the majority of the deadlines for various event areas. Deadlines existed in all design, venue, book and website elements. Although time-consuming, it was pivotal that all students upload their personal content and sketches for different groups to access. Without full class participation, the organisation of the pre-event materials cannot get underway. The final deadline for poster images was the 3rd of April, to allow myself enough time to print the trial A3 poster and come up with accompanying variations in image for the Friday session. Furthermore, the design team decided that my idea of having three portrait images to feature on the posters and three landscape images to feature on the postcards, was the best way to proceed. Acknowledging this, I got underway with locating images and creating different poster designs for final consideration. Alongside this, changes to the initial design as presented a few weeks ago were implemented to accommodate the general views and opinions of the class.
A selection of the submitted images for consideration. After producing the final trial poster, it was emailed to Peter who printed it off for the Friday session. This was done as still, the class budget has not been fully collected as some students are still yet to pay. For those who have, they received a digital receipt this week as set up by account manager Kate. This email confirmation was great as it presented a sense of financial security when involving a sufficient amount of money. Kate so far has been highly professional and organised in regards to the obtaining and handling of funds.
The template used for the posters.
The design process entailed: - Bleeding of the image - Converting all images to 300dpi - Ensuring the colour space was cmyk - Tailoring the line motif to each specific image - Adjusting the placement and colouring of text dependent on the image
Digital receipt
Design team Having uploaded my previously created artist bio statement Online, Alex. K took over the role of designing the official template. Having talked to Hugo, he obtained the additional branding material needed for the A4 statements. Furthermore, he placed the official portrait images within the design to allow a finished aesthetic to be achieved. After producing a strong result, he sent the results to Hugo to be officially approved.
The fIrst Finished artist bio statement as created by Alex Koscian.
The deadline for this template was again the 7th of April, as per the mass uploading of files to the Google Drive. Every student was responsible for uploading their own work Online for other students to utilise. Employing the guides produced my myself last week, I uploaded the correct content Online ahead of the deadline for both the book and the website.
Book Images Uploaded to Google Drive
image processing for website
All of the book images were resized to 300dpi with a colour space of CMYK. Alternatively, the website images were adjusted to 72dpi with RGB as it’s colour space. After altered accordingly and names appropriately, they were uploaded to the folder Website>Artist Bio Images> Ella.
The final versions for both the postcards and posters can be viewed on the following pages.
Under ine Photographic
journalism
exhibition
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22ND march 2017 7:30 -10:30pm leeds beckett
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the acre room: headingley
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invitation The third year Photographic Journalism course invite you to their final showcase. This celebration will feature student’s individual work alongside friends and family. Refreshments, prizes and something else will be present on the night. Details can be found on the front of this invitation. From all the final year photographic journalism students, we hope you can make it and contact us for any additional information.
The invitation content was updated and altered at a later date.
Under ine Photographic journalism exhibition
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22ND march 2017 7:30 -10:30pm leeds beckett
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the acre room : headingley
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Under ine Photographic journalism exhibition
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22ND march 2017 7:30 -10:30pm leeds beckett the acre room : headingley
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Photographic journalism exhibition
lbu-underline.com Lbu_underline
22ND march 2017 7:30 -10:30pm leeds beckett
22ND march 2017 7:30 -10:30pm leeds beckett
the acre room : headingley
the acre room: headingley
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Under ine
Photographic journalism exhibition
Photographic journalism exhibition
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22ND march 2017 7:30 -10:30pm leeds beckett
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the acre room : headingley
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pre-easter session The final session ahead of the Easter break required as many students as possible to attend as it is a pivotal stage in the event’s planning. Also functioning as the date for a number of deadlines, this in-class time entailed a lot of necessary feedback and showcase-specific-conversations. The morning lecture commenced with a quick talk from journalism society member and refugee awareness week organiser Holly. Voiced was the opportunity to submit an 800-word print/ Online piece by the 2nd of May. In collaboration with The Yorkshire Post, it would be a great experience for any of the photographic journalism students. Further mentioned in the early stages of the lecture was the 12-1pm guest speaker on the 5th of May. The talk will be led by The Guardian and world-renowned photojournalist Susan Schulman. Leading the rest of the hour session was Sarah, who discussed branding techniques for young creatives’ such as ourselves. Covered was the power of a strong CV, portfolio, cover emails (to job advertisements) and showcase. When branding yourself, the tone and style of your expertise should resonate throughout your Online presence. Whether through a logo or target readership, branding yourself effectively is pivotal when attempting to establish an Online and professional presence. I personally would consider myself a media creative, as although I specialise in magazine production, I would still consider a career in either photography or journalism, a possibility. I plan to consider my own branding much more over the coming weeks, focusing on typography and developing my Online portfolio. Reiterating on future jobs, Sarah mentioned the Enterprise Office and presented Gail Cherry’s name as a potential contact (her email being g.cherry@leedsbeckett.ac.uk for future reference).
Peter finally mentioned the IZO competition, which I plan to submit a portrait to in the hope of possibly gaining an internship. Even if unsuccessful, it will be good practice for life after university.
posters Proceeding onto showcase based discussions, I presented the final designs for the postcards and posters. A generally positive reaction was obtained alongside further areas for improvement. The month needed to be firstly addressed and subsequently corrected alongside a greater consideration for spare space that could better fit the featured text. This is easily doable by editing the current image layouts on InDesign. The problem of possessing too many similar themes was also voiced during this feedback time. Something I had personally thought myself for the portrait posters, a new extended deadline of Sunday the 9th of April was henceforth created for final images.
Illustrated are the two designs that are currently out of the running for printing. Instead, two alternative designs will be created over the Easter period to diversify the themes of the showcase.
Tutorial Featured in the tutorial were individual CV analysis with Sarah and bio statement development with Lizzie. Peter took responsibility for the showcase group meetings throughout this two-hour period. In the design team meeting, the following areas were discussed. Final poster proofread- The final designs are to be emailed to both class a members and the marketing team for the final check before printing can commence. s Timings- Work time for the event are to be obtained from Hugo. Postcards- any additional information needed. A map was considered f and confirmed to be placed on the back of the invitations. Furthermore, the mention of Millennium Square could be incorporated and the rewording of the posters will be examined. w Distribution- Who is to hang posters? We have decided to inquire about the involvement of other photojournalism years, who may be interested. Bio- Template to be completed and nameplates designed alongside the l thought of Hugo and his student’s needs. Alex is to inquire whether his students do in fact needs nameplates, which Becky is going to design. Prints- Every student is to submit one A1 image of both landscape and n portrait format in RGB. To be uploaded under the folder titled final prints. The printed images for the showcase are to be CMYK and alternatively, uploaded to the folder titled city prints. Raffle Poster- A poster needs to be designed for the showcase that covers e the prices, prizes, time of draw and charity. Possible a montage in visual appearance, all the information needs to be obtained from the venue team to allow this task to get underway. A great week for development, I feel like the event is eventually coming together and hopefully, everyone will complete their own individual and group designated tasks over the Easter period.
Easter Break Everybody left the last session before Easter with a list of jobs to achieve before they were to return. In the design team, the job of completing the raffle poster was bestowed to Harriet, whilst Alex. K was to keep developing the bio statements. Furthermore, I was to design one new poster and one new postcard for the showcase. A consistent conversation was upheld by the group, which was very beneficial to the level of progression. We involved each other in decision processes and helped each other when necessary. My own contribution can be viewed below. Firstly, Becky asked for a Facebook banner for the Online event. The banner, therefore, had to be sized to the specifications of 851 x 315 pixels. I therefore created three potential designs for Becky to employ to see which worked best. The design that was adopted and exercised was option one, which features Ollie’s New York image, as seen on the one the postcards.
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Easter Break Alongside designing the event banner, the postcards, and posters needed to be finished. Using the newly submitted images, I made up four alternative variations for the design team to vote on. The final decision came to option four, featuring Luke’s image as witnessed below. A vote was also conducted based on the third and final poster. The three options and the final decision can be viewed on the following pages. Now the designs have been finalised, we are just waiting on confirmation for the website URL and a seal of approval from the marketing team before they can be sent through to print. This will hopefully be achieved within the first few weeks after the Easter break.
Under ine Photographic journalism exhibition
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22ND May 2017 7:30-11:00pm leeds beckett the acre room
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headingley campus
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Under ine Photographic journalism exhibition
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22ND May 2017 7:3 0-1 1:0 0 p m leeds beckett the acre room
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headingley campus
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Week 11 Coming back after Easter, students regrouped and I managed to present my new designs to members of the class. The reception was generally positive and now on minimal changes need to be made and a poster sent to the marketing team within the next few days. As this lesson was a few days before our main hand-in, the Friday tutorial also functioned as an independent work session for students who required it. However, some development was still achieved in spite of this. Becky generously nominated her credit card to be used for purchasing the website domain. Adam then used it for the purchasing, meaning the website address was now confirmed and could be implemented into the event materials. The domain is LBU-Underline.co.uk. After altering all the postcards and posters to accommodate the new domain, a copy was emailed to the marketing team to have on file by myself.
Website domain was updated after Friday’s session to LBU-UNDERLINE. CO.UK, meaning the poster is now ready for printing.
Week 12 As the showcase nears, these next weeks have become pivotal to the success of the end product. The design team have been in daily communication this week and have tackled the long task of creating the artist bios ready for printing. After employing the template made by Alex. K, I began to obtain all the necessary materials from each artist from our shared GoogleDrive folder and construct the first section of the bios. After downloading the relevant components, I firstly adjusted the sizing of the portraits to the same dimensions of 32.51x 35.05cm to get the correct shape to fit Alex’s template.
After saving, this image was dropped into the template alongside the artist bio each student should have uploaded Online. During this stage, the text had to be adjusted to fit the layout as each student had diverse amounts of text varying from short to long artist statements. Once saved as both a Microsoft document and a PDF under their name, Photoshop was engaged.
The PDF was then transferred to Photoshop and opened as a Smart Object with the Crop Box option selected. Sized to A4, a light gray border of 3pt was placed on top of the image, which was the saved as a TIFF file, again under the artist’s name.
Once checked over, the final bio was uploaded to the Google Drive folder titled PJ Students Completed. Over two days, I completed 14 artist statements to go alongside Alex’s already completed one. The most difficult part of this process, however, was not being able to complete the job due to missing materials. Only 15 students had uploaded everything needed to produce their bio up to this point. Therefore, to organise the rest of the collection, I produced a spreadsheet listing what was missing from who. I then sent out emails to those people, stating what was still required from them. With this communication, I hope to gain responses quickly and obtain the remaining information necessary to complete this job within the coming week. The stated spreadsheet can be viewed on the following page and is updated to the morning of the 4th of May.
Key: Green= Material Submitted/ Bio Completed Red= Missing Material Yellow= Conversation had in response Orange= All materials obtained but bio not yet completed An additional job that came with producing bio statements was editing images. As some people missed the planned photo shoot, they were required to upload another image of themselves. Often not yet edited, I attempted to mirror the studio aesthetic of the previous artist images. Black and white with a white background, I believe a convincing end result was achieved, allowing the images to work as a cohesive collection. The first two processed as per this criteria feature Becky. C and Simon and can be viewed on the following page.
Nearly a week later, the marketing team responded to my email listing a number of requests for the poster. These came in the form of:
- 24-hour clock digits for the timings - Movement of the text - Updated Instagram symbol to the latest version - Removal of the Internet symbol - Changing of the event times
Once amended, the updated versions were re-uploaded Online and sent back to the marketing team (as requested). After done so, I was emailed a confirmation of received and that the poster had been put on record. The response was highly positive, which was great news to all of the design team.
Week 13 Not previously accounted for was the amount of time that would be required for amendments. Over this past week, I have received messages and requests to change different aspects on certain student’s artist bios. Although understandable, it has taken up a lot of time by re-editing the Word Document, transferring it to Photoshop and then uploading it Online. However, as the event nears, luckily less and less need to be done.
Tailoring Content Different event teams have contacted myself to request posters tailored to different platforms such as the social media application Instagram. Using this example, the poster needed to be sensitive to the square cutting that this platform exercises. Henceforth, new posters that accommodate this design feature were created and emailed to Becky. H, who initially inquired about it. Next on the design team’s list of duties was the poster cards. After initially designing the front of the invitation, I requested for another member of the team to take on the job of designing the back and ordering the finished result. Sadly nobody took on this role, which fell to myself. I personally found this to be a little frustrating as I already possess a number of responsibilities on the group’s behalf and feel a few members lack any responsibility. I hope this will be rectified within the coming weeks.
Harriet and Lucie also tackled the posters, pushing them to print on Thursday the 11th of May. They printed 10 of each design initially, providing the showcase with 30 in total. Printed via the Leeds Beckett print room, they were finished on the same day and hung up around the University. Additional posters were put in shop windows in Headingley and again around Univeristy over the week’s that followed.
The final designs were uploaded to the website VistaPrint and then adjusted for print. The colour space of all the designs had to be converted to CNYK to comply with the company’s printers. Once approved and processed, the order was placed and the postcards were sent to Harriet’s Leeds address. The order said it would take a week, they arrived early on Monday the 15th of May (a week before the exhibition).
On the same day, I was responsible for readjusting all of the artist bios, ready to be printed that night. Kate executed the final proofread with Sarah’s assistance and then sent me the adjustments that needed to be made. Every artist bio required some sort of adjustment, all of which were initially amended on Microsoft Word. The finished bios were then saved as a PDF, opened in Photoshop and saved as TIFF files. Once complete, they were saved to replace the original bios and emailed to Peter via WeTransfer. Once ten were finished, they were sent to allow printing to commence. The uploading process however required a few hours before this could be done. By the time they had sent, the remaining fourteen were again uploaded and sent. All day I was in constant conversation with Kate, who was incredibly helpful to the process. I also had to contact different class members to seek certain information as and when necessary. This often entailed approving a sentence change or requesting more information.
All the correct materials were obtained on the day, as witnessed above. Once all the corrections had been made, I placed all of the bios onto one Word document and sent it to the venue team and book team. This allowed them to employ the amended bios to the website and book. The bios amendment and finishing process was one of the hardest parts of the entire module. Although not physically challenging, it was timeconsuming and required a whole day of continuous work. The level of stress was also heightened due to the time restrictions made by the printing deadline. If I had someone else to help assist in this or even just take over the invitation role, it would have been a lot less of an anxious ordeal. However, even though it was difficult, it was completed on time and to a good degree, which I am proud of. Like I mentioned before, it could not have been done without Kate’s help and the 300+ messages that were set back and fourth over the course that day.
Week 14 One week before the showcase, the majority of the course have been in constant contact, relying on each other when necessary. On Monday night Maisie needed one of the design team to produce, “a vertical banner- sized 76.1 x 181.8 cm that includes the title, everyone’s names, a couple of the big sponsor’s logos and maybe the Leeds Beckett logo.” I put myself forward for this and under half an hour later, came back with four different versions.
Option three was decided as the best option and uploaded to Google Drive after a few minor changes were executed.
Underline Jemma Armitage Rebecca Clayton Maisie Coulbert Kate Finnerty Roseanna Gyles Luke Hannaford Rebecca Heyes Oliver Jackson Nathalie Kelly Rachel Kenyon Alex Koscian gabbi Parker Mellissa Pye Simon Reddington Euan Russell Jenna Scott Ella Sedman Harriet Skinner Macey Smales Alex Tomlinson lucie Waldron Aran Whalley Joshua Whittaker Adam Wright
Event preparation One week before the event, the event preparation is it full swing. The postcards arrived on the Monday, ready to be handed out this week. Harriet and Alex also constructed the majority of the bios on the Tuesday, which was a great help to the rest of the class. Board construction and painting was also performed by a group of people on the Wednesday and Thursday. I wanted to participate in this process but sadly had to go back to Manchester. However, I have voiced to the group that I will be on hand to perform and other tasks that can be completed from another city. For example, I put myself forward to create the banner for the event, as witnessed on the previous pages. Later on in the week, I organised the group and voiced areas for further development. Alex. K and Harriet reached a problem with the artist bio construction, which involved waiting times inbetween the different stages. Luckily Peter printed off new bios to replace the ones that had been ruined, which was a massive help. The finishing off of all the bios was done on the day of the event set up with Peter playing a pivotal role in this process. Alex. K also took responsibility for the name cards that were to be placed with the A1 corridor prints. This was a great help and beneficial to the whole class. Once designed, they were updated to Google Drive for Peter to print. A lot of the cutting out and mounting occurred on the event set-up days. Luke took on the role of changing the necessary corridor prints. Both of my showcase prints were used during this process, which was great to hear on the Sunday before the showcase.
Showcased work For the event, I am exhibiting my magazine She and two A3 Prints. The two photographs that I chose to showcase were converted to CMYK and 300dpi and uploaded to the Google Drive for Peter to print. These prints were ready to be picked up two weeks before the event. I picked up my own prints a week later to allow myself time to frame them well in advance to the Sunday before the event day. Each print needed to be carefully trimmed and then placed within the glass frames with care. As the frames are to be hung, they needed to be fitted with a wire. I made sure this was done securely so hopefully no problems will occur during the final hanging.
I also tried to make sure no dust was present in the glass when the framing process occurred. This was important when attempting to achieve a professional end aesthetic. All of the finished frames were then packaged up with bubble wrap, ready to be transported on the day of the exhibition.
My magazine was ordered to arrive on the Wednesday before the event. Three copies were printed to be placed in the three-tiered magazine rack. I was very happy with the overall quality and aesthetic of the publication. Having produced a trial one, the printing quality was increased during this second order. I find the magazine reflects my interests and area expertise at University and epitomises where I see myself in this future industry.
Printing Details: 72 sides (4 additional cover sides) Size: A4 portrait. Paper: Silk Weight: 150 gsm Print: Colour Binding: perfect bound (PUR Binding). Cover: 170 gsm Spine Width: 5.61
Preparing for Print
Final Stages Once exported as individual pages as a PDF, the InDesign document was uploaded to Mixam and then processed. Any problems were then highlighted and subsequently resolved before ordering.
All images were converted to a colour space of CMYK and a dpi of 300. The blacks were also darkened and the contrast and saturation, heightened, to avoid a flattering effect caused by the colour space.
Business Cards Business cards were voiced as a good form of networking early on in the module. Having decided to pursue this option, I decided to design my own business card on Photoshop, employing the dimensions 3903x 2440 pixels. This sizing was not based on general, Online ones I initially located, but the specific specifications presented by my printer of choice, Mixam. Having already used them to print my magazine, I deemed them appropriate for the business cards. Having addressed branding yourself as a professional throughout this module, I decided to choose a design that reflected myself and my field. The illustration of myself mirrors my designer side as well as my magazine She., which it features within. Relevant contact details also create a line of contact for future work. I also attempted to create a logo using my initials E.S. Since designing my final business card, I have mirrored my brand to my Online website, which should help define my unqiue Online and social media presence.
Online Presence
When it came to the final showcase, the website was up and running and social media accounts active. Overall I was happy with my own contribution to the website, which featured my artist bio, portrait, and artwork. My final six images appeared fine, proving they had been processed appropriately for this Online platform. Without the RGB conversion and dpi deduction, the images could have appeared discolored and the image loading time could have caused the website to become slow. The website I found to mirror our showcase and brand well, with our message radiating clearly. It is easy to navigate with work being easy to locate. Overall I am proud of what the website time achieved during the module and particularly like the moving imagery on the homepage. This feature shows a sense of awareness into the power of multimedia and interactive content.
If I were to suggest any further amendments, I would slightly alter the page anchors to allow a more fluent scrolling experience. Furthermore, if students had finished their bios and uploaded all their images at an earlier date, new avenues and areas for development could have been explored. Whether videos or audience participatory features, this could have been beneficial to the overall event.
27 cm
Everything moved upwards
91.5 cm
170 cm
The artist bio was moved to the gantry next to the showcased work.
When it came to be final layout, certain changeds were made to the original design.
BIO
A specific distance from the top was allocated for all students to abide by (size of an A4 piece of paper hold vertically).
180 cm
WHITE BACKGROUND Everything moved upwards
a3 PRINTS: (42 X 29.7CM EACH) Only two images were chosen to be showcased, instead of the three originally witnessed in the first layout.
A wider gap between the board appeared on the night ot the event.
A business card holder was fixed to the board
The event The venue team worked tirelessly in the days before the final showcase with the support of the rest of the class. The day before saw students’ work all day in order to set up the room ready for the 22nd. I personally came in the afternoon slot, which I had been booked on weeks prior. Here I saw how the room had already been transformed with gantry set up and work already hung. Each student had been allocated their own area to feature their work, which communicated specific measurement requirements. A piece of A4 paper indicated where the highest piece of work should be displayed in order to create cohesion amongst the showcase. Furthermore, student’s voiced to Mel where they would like their artist bio to hang. After seeking the artistic advice from Peter, I decided to place my own artist bio on a piece of nearby, exposed gantry. This allowed the bio to be viewed and associated with the correct work, whilst not distributing the overall art aesthetic. I assisted Kate with the set up of my own work, however, the venue team took the lead role on all of the picture’s hangings, which created a good unison amongst all of the work. If everyone had come in and hung their own, the showcase may have looked messy and unprofessional. After staying for a few hours to assist with additional hangings, I was dismissed by the venue team and told I had done everything necessary. Social media was utilised fully during the days leading up to the event, building momentum until the final evening. The entire set up process was effectively documented and posted for followers to witness. This really engaged our target audience who would be attending on the day. Posts to Instagram, especially Instagram stories, took full advantage of contemporary, multiplatform techniques of successfully displaying and promoting an event.
These photographs show my final exhibition space ahead of the event. Overall I was very happy with how my work was displayed. The magazine nature of my work allowed people to physically engage with the content, with attendees encouraged to touch and look through the pages of She. magazine.
Event layout
Each area within the final layout was a specific artist before the setup process c This allowed no confusion to occur an team to organise themselves fully. I wa
Raffle & Book area
Refreshment stand to be positioned here
assigned to a commenced. nd the venue as personally situated at plot 13.
Speeches
The event On the Monday morning, the venue team finished off all the final adjustments for the evening’s event. This was all completed by 3pm, ready for the industry showcase. Later on, friends and family arrived at 7pm where drinks were served. It was great to witness such a good and consistent turn out over the night’s discourse. The atmosphere was friendly and thriving with everyone appearing to enjoy themselves. The two girls who volunteered to man the bar were excellent. They were incredibly friendly and efficient when distributing, collecting and organising the refreshments. Also fruitful to the overall event were the two volunteers who took responsibility for photographing the event and selling raffle tickets. Without these four pivotal members of the event, the day would not have gone so smoothly, which I can only thank them for. Featured within the night was also a talk led by Sarah, with contributing words from Maisie and the head of the Leeds photography society. Sarah’s talk was emotional but lovely to hear, with the prizes being an added bonus for myself. Maisie furthermore addressed all the tutors, stating how incredibly grateful we were for all their help and support over these past three years. The raffle, which was advertised for 9pm, was led by venue team members Jenna and Rachel. The two girls were great at hosting this part of the event and kept the momentum of the night during their talk. Likewise to all the talks before, they spoke well and with great enthusiasm. Walking around the event, all of quality of the work showcased was to a good, professional degree. The
frames used although unique to the artist, were to a sufficient quality, adding to the overall effect of the showcase. It was nice to see students being proud of their work and showcasing it in the best possible light. I think the layout and quality of the set up also played a pivotal role in this. Without the help of Seb and all of the AET helpdesk, the end result would not have looked so effective. Their assistance in the setup and take down of all the space’s content, was amazing. Similarly to the venue team and Peter, all of their efforts contributed dramatically to the ease and flow of the overall event. Throughout the discourse of the night, many students including myself helped with the motion of the event. I assisted on the bar, getting people more drinks and attempting to clear up when I saw an empty glass or bottle lying around. All of the tutors helped with this, which was incredibly helpful for the next day’s take down. Ollie also managed to get the slideshow on the big screen in Millennium Square on
the day of the showcase. Projected were the work of all event students, their artist bios and the posters for the event. This was great to see and a strong form of self-promotion. Our feedback from the screening team was positive, with all the artwork being within the guidelines expressed in the early stages of the module all those weeks ago. Overall I truly enjoyed the event and only received positive feedback from attendees. I left feeling proud of myself and the rest of the course for what we managed to achieve even with the problems we faced. Everything appeared to come together on the night and ran smoothly. We managed to put on a professional, fun event that celebrated the efforts of our course, alongside all our friends and family. I personally took down all of my work early on the Tuesday morning with the help of the AET helpdesk. All student’s I witnessed there were taking full responsibility for their own work whilst the helpdesk tackled the gantry around. This appeared to have all been done to a good degree and on time. Although a few problems occurred along the way, I think most students rose to the occasion and worked hard to put on an amazing show. Upon reflection, securing the event space information would have been useful but that was out of our hands. Furthermore, being more decisive early on could have contributed to the rate we completed a task. However, this decisive nature was something we learned to adopt later on, which was exercised well during the later part of the module. It was emotional to leave the showcase feeling as if we had displayed our work to a good degree, created an enjoyable night for friends and family, whilst raising a sufficient amount of money for a great cause.
I do not think we could have done much better than we did, showcasing how we worked well within a large team. Everyone utilised each others strengths, with some possibly uncovering what those in fact were. I found myself to adopt a vocal, organisational, leadership role, which I was surprised at. I knew I would be best on the creative side of the teams but did not anticipate this new skill I now believe I have. I cannot thank the university, course, and tutors enough for the past three years. They have molded me into a high achieving, confident student who now possesses the potential for a future in this field. I cannot wait to begin my internship and hopefully start a long and successful career in this creative, exciting and forever changing industry.
Photographs documenting the event were taken by Jazmin Kirk. Kirk managed to capture a wide variation of images detailing individual work, the event attendees and the event itself. These were then uploaded to the shared Google Drive folder for students’ to access.
Self-Reflection The Promoting Your Work module has been the most eagerly anticipated stage from the entire three years at Leeds Beckett University. Its presence has influenced work to be produced to a high quality with the hope it could one day be exhibited in the final showcase. This effortevoking pressure has caused students to thrive and come together for this final stage of education. Although problems did materialise in the form of venue-related issues and evolving deadlines and dates, most team members remained optimistic and learned how to adapt to any particular situation. This new skill was evidenced during the final week before the event when difficulties arose. From incorrectly mounted bios to missing event materials, witnessed was incredible strength both in alternative thinking and utilising each other’s unique abilities. This module differed to others alike because the class was split up into such different, ability-dependent roles. The work performed by these different groups varied dramatically but still demanded the same attention to detail and consistent engagement from each person. The design team communicated relentlessly throughout the module’s discourse, which was imperative to our overall success as a workforce. We came together, feeding constructive criticism and praise when praise was due. Student’s organisational skills were persistently tested with most showing themselves to be highly competent, industry professionals by the end. If the Photographic Journalism class of 2017 were to put on another event, being more decisive would be pivotal. Encouraging a greater quality of conversation and increased communication would again further the rate of accomplishments, subsequently allowing the event to be organised at an earlier time and potentially developed further. Meeting deadlines also became a difficulty for some students, with many requiring extensions or missing them completely. This affected the whole class’s rate of progression because when one event aspect became delayed, other areas suffered consequently provoking a knock-on effect to occur.
However, in light of this, the creative thinking that was expressed during the module’s discourse was wonderful to witness. This was most prominent within the design elements for the event from the website to the branding, everyone demonstrated a certain level of creative ability at some stage of the process. Likewise evidenced was a sense of artistic pride within student’s work. Allowing student’s to curate his or her own space bestowed a sense of creative freedom. The fashioning of bespoke, individualised spaces for each artist to present their work, developed a sense of personality around the event space. It was wonderful to witness students standing with pride beside their accomplishments. This module entailed the final coming together of students to showcase how far they have come over the previous three years. Class members demonstrated their communication, teamwork and organisational skills, which in turn enabled them to exhibit their already known abilities in art. It has been a privilege working with some of these individuals and the tutors likewise. Through the lessons they have learned, students should now feel prepared to leave University and start their own, solo careers.
Ella Sedman