A Day in My Life

Writing about the Chicken Project reminded me of another open ended project I did in my final year at Conestoga. Week/Day was a project that asked my classmates and I to visually communicate what a typical week or day in our life was like. I do not remember how I came up with the idea, but I decided to create an impossibly long string of photos that I collaged together to show my path from my house to my classroom at school and back. I knew I would need to do all of the photos at once which caused me to be late for class, but I was, and continue to be, really happy with how it turned out in the end.

Once I had the photos together in one long strip I realized that my idea of printing a book was too difficult (though I would still love an enormous print with an accordion fold). To solve the printing problem I decided not to print at all. With the help of a couple classmates and countless internet tutorials I used After Effects and Flash to put the project together in a video format. My website will expire and soon this will be my sole online presence, but for the time being you can check out the project here. Below there are also a few screen shots of different parts of my day.

The Plan Ran Out

A friend from work posted a link today to a great article about millennial women in the workplace. (Why Millennial Women Are Burning Out At Work By 30). After reading the article I quickly checked that I was in the age bracket then continued worrying that I might let this happen to me.

The article explains that while young professional women may not be dealing with difficult financial struggles, they are still frustrated that their lives are not turning out how they expected. These women may seem to have it all, but before they reach 30, many are burning out at work. Like me, many women plan how to do well in highschool and post secondary but stop short of planning for what will come after they have graduated or secured their first job in their field.

I remember being excited to graduate but extremely nervous about what would come after. I had been planning for college graduation since grade 10 when I took an aptitude test and discovered graphic design as a career option. From then on I chose courses that would help me get into the school of my choice, and I happily accepted when I was offered a spot at Conestoga, my top choice. After getting into Conestoga I pushed myself to do the best I could so that I would have a great portfolio at the end of the program. What I didn't do was plan how I would secure a job and keep my dream of becoming a magazine designer on track.

After a little more than a year I am happily settled in Toronto and have come to realize that I thought about what to do after graduation quite a bit. When I didn't get a job immediately, I decided to take an internship at a magazine publishing house. After a few months of interning and a short contract I had enough experience to get a job in production at a book publishing company. I thought that I would like production, but realized I wouldn't be happy working if I wasn't designing full time. This led me to look for a new position, taking me to my current position as a junior designer at an architecture and exhibit design firm. The stress level is much higher, but I am really enjoying being busy and useful as a designer. Co-workers come to me and trust that I can design their next presentation or proposal and are happy to work with me to get what they want.

While the article has me a little worried that I will take on too much and make myself crazy, my record of strong, smart decisions has me hopeful that I won't let that happen to me. The article concluded by saying that getting a long sought-after job is unlikely to be the end of the journey. Instead imput from new friends, new places and new experiences will change the end goal and desired career outcomes. From what I have experienced so far I definitely agree. If I had stuck with my original goal I never would have learned about the book industry, nor would I have thought about becoming an exhibit designer. With so many options within my field, I anticipate a long meandering design career.

The New and Improved

I've always found the phrase new and improved a bit odd, should it not be either new or improved? Regardless, I realized on Friday how much I take for granted with the design software I use. In my first year of college I was blissfully unaware of the capabilities of the Adobe Suite as I did everything, including typography, by hand. In second year I learned how to use Adobe CS3 and then in my final year transitioned to Adobe CS5.

Keeping up to date with all of the software upgrades is very expensive and many companies skip a version or two to save on costs. At my new job they mentioned in the interview that they use CS3, which I thought was no big deal. I originally learned using CS3 and figured there couldn't be much difference between that and the updated software. I have been happily working at my new job for a month now, and finally came upon an upgrade I am sad to live without. In Photoshop you can use the "stamp" tool to clone parts of an image and paste it over other areas, an incredibly diverse and useful tool. I hadn't done any photo manipulation until Friday but when I did I thought I had forgotten how to use the tool. In CS4 and newer the tool provides a preview so that you know exactly what the tool is cloning and how it will look in the new area you are placing it. After I checked with my co-worker I realized that older software didn't provide this handy preview and that I would have to guess how it would look. It seems like such a simple little thing, but software developers clearly understand what people want and work hard to make our lives easier.

I don't mind working with CS3 at all, but every once in a while you realize how good you have it with all of the new technology we have available to us.

The Basics

The talk I went to last week at the Design Exchange reminded me of my start in art and graphic design for a few reasons. First, I ran into a classmate who I sat beside for the entirety of my first year. Next the speaker talked about using a grid to enlarge a drawing or painting and finally they brought up the odd things you learn when you become a designer or artist.

I enjoyed sitting beside this classmate during first year, he asked a lot of questions but was also incredibly supportive and creative. I remember him being the one to pick me up for class when I was sick, the one driving me crazy when he asked for the third time when a project was due, and also the one driving me home after a late night working at the school. Our first year of college was very stressful, but looking back, I can't believe how much we learned. At the talk we reminisced about how our teacher Vince used that Karate Kid method of teaching. You never knew why you were assigned the project until you had finished and started using the methods on other projects. I will never forget our first project, we had to cut up photos and splice them together, if any white showed on the edges of the photos you had to start over. While this seemed incredibly tedious at the time, I learned how to properly use an Exacto knife and continue to use that basic skill today.

I often think about how far I have come, from grade nine art, to working at an architectural firm as a graphic designer. Then I realize how much further I can go, it's hard to start new jobs but I am learning so much and enjoying the process of getting comfortable again.