50 things you
probably need to know and maybe wanted to know but no one ever told you or you didn始t listen and you were too afraid to or
didn始t bother to ask.
Introduction. You’ve made it. You’re here. BA Graphic Design at Leeds College of Art. You have fought off the competition and are one of the chosen 55 from the 500 that applied, so feel good. Now you’re here, this year will fly past in a blur of graphic design and partying. With that in mind here are a few tips and tricks, bits and bobs, that I wish I had known during my first year. This booklet contains the serious stuff, such as blogging and work but it also has stuff for normal life, like shitty TV and why to not drink White Ace.
As well as this pocket book the information also comes in a digital version for all of you iPhone mavericks, so follow these tips, work hard, play hard and enjoy your first year as a graphic designer..
1
Lunch?
Bakery 164
Leave College, cross the road at the traffic lights, follow the road down the hill and it is on the right. 3 minutes.
Bakery 164 is a popular deli sandwich shop that serves a massive variety of sandwiches as well as other foods, toasted sandwiches and hot drinks.
Mangal
Leave College, cross the road at the traffic lights, follow the road down the hill and it is on the right. 2 minutes.
Mangal is very similar to 164 but with a smaller variety of sandwiches. Mangal also does good meal deals on a sandwich, crisps/cake and a hot/cold drinks.
Tesco
Leave College, cross the road at the traffic lights and follow the road round the corner and continue past Costa. 5 minutes.
Being only a small Tesco Express it is not a full supermarket, however, it has a vast choice of readymade lunces, including pasta and noodle dishes.
The Smoothie Co.
Leave College, turn left and cross the road. Impossible to miss. Less than a minute.
If you are after a healthy, refreshing drink, look no further. With a good selection of sandwiches, it is the smoothies that makes this place appealing.
Other lunch places include Cooplands, Francos, Flames, Costa, Coffee Rand, Miro, Froth & Fodder and Wok Star, as well as the college canteen. Although prices vary, you can get a good lunch for ÂŁ3 to ÂŁ5. My personal favourites are a Dairy Mango Madness smoothie from The Smoothie Co., a meat feast sandwich from Mangal and a roast chicken, bacon and chilli mayonnaise sandwich from Bakery 164. See also: 9, 13, 14, 19, 20, 38, 42, 45 & 48
2 The best time to blog is the night you do the work or had the session. Blogger is easy to use but it may take a little while to get used to.
Blogging:
DO IT. You can sometimes get away with not blogging until the end of the week but don’t let it pile up or you will run out of time. See also: 8, 11, 34, 35, 36 & 40
3
9:30am. Get in on time. I know this sounds basic, but even if you’ve been out until the early hours, just get in. The earlier the better, swanning in at 9:30 wont help. 25 past is scraping it, quarter past is good and any earlier you have time for a coffee, bacon sandwich or a fag. It is simple and easy to do but it will help you massively.
See also: 10, 33 & 48
4 WHITE ACE. A drink that should be reserved for alcoholic tramps, White Ace is a cheap, chemical, so-called cider. At less than £1 per litre, it is a toxic concoction to not remembering any of freshers. Just don’t touch the stuff. See also: 25, 26, 30 & 47
5
2nd & 3rd Years. 2nd Years
3rd Years
We’re the ones you will be sharing a studio with for the next year, so get to know us. We have all been through it before so can help you out and give advice.
Mostly keep themselves to themselves as they have their own studio, however, they’re mostly happy to talk and if you get to know them, more than happy to help.
// Keep the studio tidy = Everyone is happy //
See also: 6, 12, 21, 27, 29, 41, 45, 46 & 49
6 Lectures. The last thing you want to do after a heavy Tuesday night is to sit in a stuffy lecture theatre at 9:30am, yet the lectures are informative, interesting and mostly relevant to what you are doing, now or in the future. Take note.
See also: 5, 12, 21, 27, 29, 41, 45, 46 & 49
7
Some words that you may or may not already know but it saves you asking and looking a bit daft like several of us second years did in you position.
Stock
Stock is the material, specifically paper/card that you use to print on or to create your work from.
Bauhaus
A German art and design school, the Bauhaus is famous for its approach to design - form follows function.
Crit
Short for critique, this is a situation where your work is discussed and analysed providing you with constructive feeback to improve your work.
Manifesto
A manifesto is a published version of the issuers opinions, ideals and views, usually with strong feeling behind it. See also: 15, 36, 37 & 39
8
Blogging:
Which one?
PPP
PPP is probably the hardest to get right. PPP is everything to do with your Personal & Professional Practice, which is everything from PPP tasks through to module & project evaluations.
Design
Design Context is any and all the research you do. This is the place for other peoples work, be that designers or whatever. This is also where you blog your lecture notes and Context of Practice tasks.
Context Design Practice
This blog is dedicated entirely to you own work and group work. Anything you have produce or is your own goes onto this blog. See also: 2, 11, 34, 35, 36 & 40
9
With the intensity of the course and the advice to live, breath and sleep graphic design, it is important to have time out to relax and clear your head.
Make Free Time.
See also: 1, 13, 14, 19, 20, 38, 42, 45 & 48
10
Swipe Card.
Pretty important if you want to get in and out of college, it’s just a pain if you forget it. They’re strict and get a bit irratated if you forget it and try and get through with someone else. They also start to charge you if you lose you card more than once. A new card is £5.
See also: 3, 33 & 48
11
Notes.
Make them. In sessions. In tutorials. In crtis. In lectures. If you have it written down you are less likely to forget about it. A notebook and pen are essential almost every day. *
*Even if taking notes turns into doodles and drawings, it is still work making them
See also: 2, 8, 34, 35, 36 & 40
12 Your college emails are the main way for the college and the tutors to contact you and vice versa. You can ask questions to your tutors, let the course administrator know if you are ill and going to be off, recieve briefs from college and keep up to date with all college activity. If you can, sync them with your phone or download the gmail app. If not, you can also set it up so that any email to you college account will automatically be forwarded to you personal account.
Check them regularly.
emails.
See also: 5, 6, 21, 27, 29, 41, 45, 46 & 49
13
Shitty TV.
The downfall of many students, shitty TV is a dangerous area. Everybody likes to sit down and watch a bit of crap every now and again, it provides an antidote for the intensity of life. As long as you get your work done and you’re enjoying life it can be a good escape. A Game of Thrones is up there with the best and if you don’t watch it you probably should.
See also: 1, 9, 14, 19, 20, 38, 42, 45 & 48
14
ÂŁ
Money is a pain in the arse. You will be told how you should budget and where the cheapest place to by your cheese is but it all comes down to being careful with your money. Spend a little, save a little and invest a little and you cant go wrong. Just think about it.
See also: 1, 9, 13, 19, 20, 38, 42, 45 & 48
15 The college macs are there for you. To sign in you just need your user name, which is you initials followed by your student number (found on you swipcard) and a password that will be sorted out in your first two weeks. Once you are all set up, signed in, and when using them in the future, use the USER WORK space to work in. The reason you use this space is because it will enable everything to run quicker.
College
Macs. When using the USER WORK space is you must save the work to your desktop before you logout, otherwise it will all be lost. If you need any help at any point the technitions are always really happy to help. They can be found in the small room that joins two of the mac rooms.
See also: 7, 36, 37 & 39
16 Photoshop. The use of software is very important in this industry. If you have no experience at all, or you think you are a pro, it doesn’t matter, you will learn so much more here. In the 1st year you will learn all the skills you need.
Although you can do a lot on photoshop, it should only be used for editing and manipulating photos. Any other type of work should be done on the other softwares.
See also: 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44
17 Illustrator. Where as Photoshop should only be used for editing photographs, Illustrator is a much more versitile program. Illustrators fundamental use is to digitise illustrations, drawings and ideas. The main advantage about producing work in
Illustrator is that the work produced is a vector and therefor does not pixelate or distort when resized, unlike a photoshop image. This means the work does not have to be made to scale. See also: 16, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44
18 InDesign. InDesign is the software you are probably least likely to have used. InDesign is a layout software that is used to create books, ebooks and publications such as this one. It allows you to create grids and place images, text and Illustrator files.
You will be taught all of this during the year. If you want to own the softwares you can buy them at software4students, or acquire them by other means but they are all on the college Macs. See also: 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44
19
Sharp Knife. Probably the most important thing I forgot. A sharp knife is the ultimate kitchen utensil. It makes cooking and preparation much easier and quicker, even if it is a little more expensive, it is definitely worth it.
See also: 1, 9, 13, 14, 20, 38, 42, 45 & 48
20
Coffee, Tea & Energy. Whether it is to get you up in the morning, keep you going on a long day or just a brew, I found them to be a life saver. A cuppa in the moning is the perfect way to start the day.
See also: 1, 9, 13, 14, 19, 38, 42, 45 & 48
21
There is no denying that the course is tough and that the course is intense but you are good enough to be here. So
DON’T PANIC.
See also: 5, 6, 12, 27, 29, 41, 45, 46 & 49
22
Less is Less.
More is More.
When producing work it is important to create a good balance in terms of how much you do. Overworking and underworking will not make your work as good as it can be. Too much and it is obvious, the work can be crowded and sterile, too little work and you page can look empty and like you couldn’t be bothered. Balance is everything.
See also: 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44
23
Start Straight Away. Starting straight away means you haven’t forgotten anything and your innitial inspiration is still flowing. Starting straight away also means work doesnt build up and you can do more with the time you have. Start now.
See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44
here.
24
here.
here. here.
here.
here. here.
here.
Start Anywhere. Starting anywhere means that you do not limit yourself at all. Starting anywhere means you can think as big as possible See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44 even impossible.
25
Pre-
Drinking. Most of you will already know this, but predrinking is the foundation for any night out. Its cheap, its easy and there will always be a party going on somewhere in halls.
See also: 4, 26, 30 & 47
26 One of my biggest regrets from my first year is not exploiting freshers week as much as I should have. Even though you have to be in at 9:30 every morning, that shouldn’t prevent you from going a bit wild during freshers.
Make the most of it. Go out every night, take every opportunity you have, as you will only get this opportunity to do it. As long as you are in on time and don’t fall asleep in sessions, the tutors and the college won’t care.
FRESHER.
See also: 4, 25, 30 & 47
27 Start up a Facebook group. One of the best things we did as a year was to set up a Facebook group that we can all contribute to and ask questions in. It enables you to ask questions about work, keep up to date and organise nights out.
See also: 5, 6, 12, 21, 29, 41, 45, 46 & 49
28
Tools of the trade.
See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 31, 32, 42, 43 & 44
29
Get to know your year. They can help you, work with you and party with you. You are all in the same boat, so there are no excuses.
Name:
Number:
See also: 5, 6, 12, 21, 27, 41, 45, 46 & 49
30 Set
Alarms.
You need to be in college before 9:30am and you have been out on a large night out. Set alarms.
Give yourself enough time to get up, take a shower, grab a cuppa if you like and get yourself into college. Attendance is important, so getting in on time is crucial. Set alarms. To make my life easier I set a few alarms to ensure I am up and ready to walk into college so that I get there on time. Set alarms.
See also: 1, 4, 9, 13, 14, 19, 25, 30, 39, 42, 45, 47 & 48
31
printing. Printing at college can sometimes be a fucking pain in the arse. To get over this, here is a bit of information that should help you out.
-A4 pages cost 2p for black and white and 25p for full colour. -A3 pages cost 4p for black and white and 50p for full colour. -If you print doublsided you get a 25% discount, so instead of a doublesided A4 print costing you 4p it will only cost you 3p.
-You get £10 worth of printer credits every semester (term) so you don’t have to spend loads unless you need to. -To buy more printer credits just go to the library with your money and they will sort it out. See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 32, 42, 43 & 44
32
The Digital Dungeon is the college’s digital print room, located on the bottom floor underneath graphic design. This is the place to go if you want to print anything larger than A3, on a alternative stock or if you just want to make something look more professional. To print in the digital dungeon you need to book a print slot in advance. I advise booking an apointment well in advance of your deadline as slots are in high demand. In the digital dungeon you can print on a wide variety of stock which you can either buy there (this is more expensive) or take your own. You can also print vinyl stickers too. If you need any help or more information just speak to James who works there.
The Digital Dungeon. See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 42, 43 & 44
33
Sept. - June 2013 - 2014 Academic Diary
Use your diary. Although a fairly basic point, using the diary you are given helps you keep on top of your work. It allows you to organise your work and any meetings, tutorials and deadlines you may have. It is a fairly bulky diary which is a pain in the arse but it is useful and will help you throughout the year.
See also: 3, 10, & 48
34
Photograph
Everything.
As blogging is so important, so is documenting your work. Anything physical that you produce should be photographed so that you can put it on your blog.
See also: 2, 8, 11, 35, 36 & 40
35
Screenshot
Everything.
As with your physical work, anything you produced digitally should have screenshots taken throughout the process and of the final outcome. See also: 2, 8, 11, 34, 36 & 40
36 Check
Design
Check theses out: www.underconsideration.com wemadethis.typepad.com www.booooooom.com acejet170.typepad.com www.designobserver.com
Blogs Regularly. To keep the inspiration flowing and the ideas coming it’s a good idea to check out design blogs as much as possible. Everyday is good, twice a day is impressive but as long as you do it you will thrive. Immerse yourself in graphic design.
www.johnsonbanks.co.uk www.designobserver.com www.xs4all.nl www.a2swhk.co.uk www.creativereview.co.uk/cr-blog
Personal favourite: www.theinspirationlist.com
See also: 2, 7, 8, 11, 34, 35, 37, 39 & 40
37 Script
Roman
Designed to imitate handwriting. When printed it can appear joined up and as with actual handwriting some versions are harder to read than others. Not commonly used.
With proprtionally spaced letters and serifs and is the most readable font type. As it is the most readable type, it is used in body copy. Roman fonts do not work well with large point sizes.
Gothic
Block
Unlike Roman fonts Gothic fonts do not have serif. Very modern in style, they have very simple designs and clean forms. Are not as readable as Roman but can still be used for body copy.
Block fonts immitate fonts from the Middle Ages. They are not commonly used as they are very difficult to read and appear dated.
Typography.
See also: 7, 15, 36, & 39
38
Although it’s not always as quick or as easy as microwave meals, it is much healthier, more sociable and much cheaper in the long run. Here is an good recipe for a quick dish; chicken and chorzo risotto.
Cooking.
Ingridients.
Recipe.
Chorizo [cooked] 1
Chop up Chorizo, onion and garlic. Put them into a large frying pan. When frying the Chorizo produces enough oil, add the diced chicken breasts. Once turned white, add rice and mix 1 stock cube into boiled water. Gradually add the mix, covering the contents for 20 minutes.
Chicken Breast
2
Onion
1
Garlic clove
1
Arborio Rice
Packet
Chicken Stock
2
Water
See also: 1, 9, 13, 14, 19, 20, 42, 45 & 48
39
One of the most important things for your development as a graphic designer is to emerse yourself in it. If there is a bit of packaging you like, a flyer, anything, hold on to it and you can use it as reference material. You could also look into who designed it so you gain a wider insight into the industry.
Collect graphic design you like.
See also: 1, 9, 13, 14, 19, 20, 42, 45 & 48
40
Blogging:
In Sessions.
This is something that is up to you. Some people find it easier and quicker to blog during the session so that they don’t have to do it later. Some people prefer to take notes and then blog during the evening. Personally I prefer to make notes and blog later but blogging during the session does save time. Some tutors don’t like you blogging in their session as you do not pay as much attention. See also: 2, 8, 11, 34, 35 & 36
41 Probably the best decision I’ve made since joining the college in September was joining the football team. Not only does it give you a bit of fitness twice a week, it also gives you a chance to meet people on other courses and other years. As well as the fitness side, and tieing in with meeting new people, there is the social side to the sport. It gets you involved in whats happening at the college and provides socials and nights out. Just do it.
S P O R T
See also: 1, 5, 6, 9, 12, 13, 14, 19, 21, 27, 29, 38, 42 45, 46 & 49
42 Work where YOU work best. You will repeatedly told to spend excessive amounts of time in the studio. The studio is a great place to work as you are surrounded by people who will help and inspire you. You have acces to macs, printers, the library and other resources, however, it is not always the easiest place to work. If the studio is crowded and there is a lot going on it is difficult to work without getting stressed or annoyed. So, even though you will be told the best place to work is in the studio, if you are going to be more efficient and produce better work elsewhere, do it. Work in the studio. Work at home. Work in a cafe. Work where YOU work best.
See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 43 & 44
43
Last Not always the best way to work but some people work best when everything is left to the last minute. The problem with working like this is that the work can become rushed and not as good as it could have been had the work been done in advance. Not doing everything in the last minute means the work is more thorough and thought threw. The outcome will most likely be of poorer quality if rushed and not developed.
Minute. See also: 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42 & 44
44
Macs
Helpful, but not essential. Yet. One of the ultimate tools to any designer is their computer or mac. In this industry the Apple Mac or Macbook are the most common choices, due to both their design and their function. Although thet are not essential, as time goes on their benefits become obvious. Even though they are more expensive, the average life of a Mac is 5 years compared to the 2 years of other manufacturers. As you are at the college you can get a discount on apple products, as long as you order them from the college surver.
See also: 1, 9, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 28, 31, 32, 42, 43, 45 & 48
45 estudio.
Using 45 & 46 are two of the most important things as a student on this course. Estudio has all the information you need about the year, the course and most importantly the work.
well as resources and information to help. You can access estudio from any computer with internet and all you need is your username and password.
Estudio has all the tasks and work you have been set (or will be set), the briefs for them - including all of the deliverables - as See also: 5, 6, 12, 21, 27, 29, 41, 46 & 49
46
Equally as important as estudio, google calendar runs your Leeds College of Art & graphic design life.
It has all the sessions for that semester (term) added, including briefings, crits, hand-ins, reading/research weeks and ‘holidays’. Google calendar changes as things get added and removed during the year so checking it regularly is a must. If you can, sync it with your phone and/or your laptop or mac to keep you up to date where ever you are.
google calendar. See also: 5, 6, 12, 21, 27, 29, 41, 45 & 49
47 Stay Healthy. This should be applied to all aspects of life, from common living through to nights out. Without sounding too much like a mother, you need to get enough sleep and eat decent food in life. Nights out are the same, don’t do stupid shit but if something happens ensure your friends are there. Don’t get so fucked you have to go to hospital because that doesn’t help anyone and is just stupid. When it comes to the opposite sex, it’s basics. Protection almost guarantees you stay healthy, so just don’t forget them.
See also: 1, 4, 9, 13, 14, 19, 25, 30, 39, 42, 45, 47 & 48
48
As well as getting in on time, and as attendance is very important on the course, signing in is crucial. Even if you attend all of the sessions but forget to sign in, it will go on record as an abscence and that isn’t good.
Sign-in. Sign in before 9:30am on a morning and before 1pm after lunch. Easy.
See also: 3, 10, & 33
49 Earphones. The studio can get quite raucous and loud at times so, if you want to or need to work in there, a good set of headphones or earphones wont go amiss.
See also: 5, 6, 12, 21, 27, 29, 41, 45 & 46
50
One of Fred’s favourite analogies is “being on this course is like jumping into a swimming pool fully clothed, you’ll learn how to swim but more importantly you’ll learn how to enjoy drowning.” Although that seems fairly intimidating and scary - the course is tough and intense, there is no doubt about that - the work you do is relevant, interesting and most importantly will develop you knowledge and skills as a graphic designer. You are here because you are good enough, if you weren’t up to the standard required you wouldn’t have been offered a place. They don’t choose just anybody. Remember that.
So, enjoy Drowning.
Notes: