Clockwork Orange - Initial Ideas

Using a wind up toy in order to communicate an object that is out of control that links with the violence and behaviour of Alex's group in Clockwork orange. Also the teeth signifies danger and you're most unlikely to touch teeth that are chomping down constantly. Having these wind up toys scattered around should create a scene of mayhem that should hopefully represent the book successfully.

This idea is mainly based around illustration of city streets. I wanted to communicate the most important scenes from the book into one setting. I came up with the idea of having an illustrative city scene with five main scene from the book running throughout the city. For example, at the start of the book Alex's group beat up a homeless man and this is represented by the top right hand corner of the illustration. Other scenes would include,  the beating of the man and woman, Alex's experimentation etc. Illustration would be used as it would be difficult to use any form of photography and also illustrations would appeal to a younger audience, people who wouldn't normally read this kind of book.

Simplistic idea to have a little figure to represent Alex and a large hand grasping him, the hand being an exaggerated representation of the government controlling him. This idea focuses more on free will with Alex himself being controlled and experimented on by the state.

This idea is also communicates the experimentation part of the book but in form of typography. The type would be very structured and rigid, almost with no flexibility or weakness to it. This structured techniques showcases the constraints within Alex once he's being experimented on by the state. Unable to think for himself or move without being controlled.

Studio Brief 3 - Feedback From Independent Book Shops

As I see my publication being sold in independent book shops and creative scenes around Leeds, I thought It'll be beneficial to ask for some feedback and direction into what they looked for when it comes to publications and books.

I sent an email to Village Book shop and Colour May Vary to ask what they look, especially Village Book shop where anyone can get their book sold in their store.

The email I sent was:

"Hello!

I'm a student at Leeds College of Art and we are currently doing a brief to create a publication. I'm gathering research at this moment, which hopefully you can help with?

Would it be possible for you to describe in a short paragraph or a couple of sentences about what you look for in the publications or zines that people send in? 

In terms of the style or production method?

Thank you!"

Unfortunately Colours May Vary and Village book shop both didn't reply back to my email. Which is extremely sad to see as a young creative. But anyway I shall venture into the store the next time I'm close by. 

Studio Brief 3 - Print Finishes

Today we got given a task to search for different print finishes. Knowing the different types of print finishes would give us all a good indication as to what method would be the most effective for our own publications. Knowing the right method could be the extremely beneficial for the aesthetic of the book and also could be an effective method when it comes to the production. One method could give you the same result as another but by choosing a similar style it could save you a lot of time and money when it comes to the production and making of the book, commercially and at a small scale.

Letter Press

"Letterpress printing is one of the oldest printing techniques available. Some printers may call letterpress printing by the term debossing. A letterpress is used to depress or indent certain portions of the page. It can be seen as the opposite of embossing. Traditionally, the letterpress technique was used only for applying ink on a page as a form of relief printing and usually only for text. But it has evolved to also include pressing logos and other design elements directly into the paper substrate."

Production

In terms of production, choosing letter press would be time draining and unreasonable for a commercial route but if the publication is for personal use then letter press would be fine to do

Embossing

"Generally, embossing refers to raising parts of the page for emphasis and texture. This print finish adds physical depth to the embossed elements and thus, shadows and highlights are also produced in the design. Embossing also adds a tactile dimension to your design. Images and text are literally felt. Often, embossing can be combined with other printing techniques such as foil stamping to enhance the effects of both techniques."

Production

Again production method for embossing could be a bit unreasonable on a commercial level. However it could be done if you get your publication embosses externally at a printing company. It would be more expensive, but would essentially be more professional and of a higher quality look of the stock.

Foil Stamping

"Foil stamping is the use of a malleable metallic material applied to the print surface by using heat and pressure. Foil stamping adds reflective properties to various elements of your design and can serve to add a bit of luxury to your project. Typically, it is used on text and the logo on the page or when certain elements call for it."

Production

For a small scale budget foil stamping isn't an effective method of production. For personal use then it would be reasonable but commercially on a small budget wouldn't be a worth while to take. A higher budget would be appropriate as this method creates a professional and luxury feel would would relate to the higher budget.

Spot UV Varnish

"Spot UV varnishes are paper varnishes applied to the printing surface and is cured or hardened by UV light during the printing process. UV varnishes are usually used as a spot application where only specific parts of the page get a UV varnish. This effectively gives texture and focal interest to different areas of the printing surface while leaving other areas untreated."

Production

Expensive method. Would be unreasonable for our publication unless there was a higher budget. Also this method would be extremely time consuming.

Lamination


"Lamination adds a layer of protective coating (usually some type of plastic), often glossy or matte, to the printed surface while also improving its sturdiness and water resistance. Lamination also has the added benefits of improving the tactile feel of the of the printed surface, lending it a smooth finish.

If a high gloss laminate is applied to the printed surface, photos and images appear to have more contrast and have better sharpness Lamination is not unlike varnishes. However, whether lamination or varnishes are to be used in a project is wholly dependent on your needs and your desired outcome. Typically, lamination is used if sturdiness is required such as for business cards and soft covered books. Also, in my experience, lamination tends to be one of the more expensive print finishes."

Production

Lamination would be a sufficient technique to protect your publication which in return would make the book more durable, therefore saving money in the long run. Laminating could be a pointless task as it only protects the stock and not necessarily adds anything aesthetically. If your target audience would appreciate this method or you want your books to come across as strong with a nice textured finish then it would be a reasonable option.

Varnishes

"Varnish is often associated with wood. However, what you may not know is that varnishes are also used on paper. Paper varnishes are applied to paper stock to give the page a smooth and consistent texture as well as having the added benefit of sealing the printed material to help preserve it better.

High-quality books and magazines usually have a paper varnish applied to their pages. Typically, varnishes are applied to the entire printing surface when a page needs to be robust but without adding too much weight to the paper stock, making it suitable for magazine pages, magazine covers, and brochures."

Production

Similar to the previous method varnishing is use to preserve your stock. This method would be most beneficial for magazines, if your publication is aimed at that market then this would be a good method. Cost wise, it wouldn't be viable for a low budget as it would only be an extra feature to showcase the strength and durability and not the overall benefit for the production. 

Digital Printing

"This involves printing straight from electronic artwork, eg. from a PDF (no plates are involved unlike litho printing). Typically printed out of four colour process and ideal for short run printing (10 – 100 copies). This process can also be used for personalisations, so each piece can have elements that are unique to the recipient, starting with their name."

Production

This would the obvious choice most people would chose. Production wise this method is cost efficient and saves the most amount of time. Digital printing fits any publication for any target audience. If you're on a low budget then this method would be the most beneficial.

Screen Printing

"The screen is made from a fine mesh material fixed to a wooden frame. A stencil is placed under the screen and ink forced through the stencil onto the material below. Screen printing with stencils is best for blocks of colour. Screen printing is used to print small runs of posters, display boards, fabrics, wallpaper and control panels of electronic products."

Production

Screen printing would only be used for the front cover. It should only be used for small project and not at a commercial level. It would end up becoming cost efficient and restricts the use of design. In terms of time management with this method you could do many front covers at once but more often the screen would become dry so if it took longer then a day to do it could become some what unreasonable. Small scale, yes. Commercial scale, unless you have a lot of time on your hands then no. Lastly buying the inks for screen printing could also drain your budget even before you start to print.

Studio Brief 3 - Experimental Stock

When I visited Fred Aldous in Manchester I stumbled across this stock (below). As you can also see from the image below, the texture of the paper was sort of a criss-cross pattern that was slightly raised on one side but was smooth on the other. The moment I saw the paper, it felt contemporary and modern. I proceeded to print a mock up onto the stock to see how reliable it was as the main problem I had was that the ink might transfer through due to the little scoring marks.

I printed two double page spreads. One was my old layout choice and the other my new layout choice. The results are also below

Cut down into an A4 sheet.

As you can see from this image, the marking made on the paper. On side was smooth and the other reminded my off Braille.

This is how the image turned out of my old layout choice. Comparing it to the new layout choice, this only further confirmed to me that i made the right choice to come up with a new layout system. The images just seemed to big and all aspects on the page seem unreasonably over sized. However the printing inks came out fine. None of the ink transferred onto the other side of the page.

This is what the out come was for my new layout choice. When i saw it i loved it. The combination of the red duo tone, layout grid and stock, reminded me of a contemporary museum I went to in Berlin, called the 'topography of terror'. 

However even though I loved the look and feel of the stock, there was still a problem. First of there wasn't a justifiable reason for me to use the stock. I didn't relate to my publication or Berlin. Simon agreed with me on this and said it could be used and a feature to easily tear photos out of the publication as the paper would be easily tearable due tot the meshed marking. But my book wouldn't be formatting in that way, so i would have to redo my whole layout to fit this concept, which i wasn't prepared to do.

Lastly, the side I printed on was the smooth side and I had not yet printed on the raised part of the paper. I went down to James in the print room and asked if the raised marking could jolt the paper or ink, making it some what wobbly and not a clean finish. James suggested that it could indeed do that but wouldn't know until you actually find out. After speaking to James, i came to the conclusion to abandon the textured paper. If there isn't no solid design decision as to why I chose that stock then it could come across as unprofessional and could throw the whole theme off with a lot of people asking "what's the reasoning behind the choice of stock?" and i wouldn't want people debating my decision.

Studio Brief 3 - Final Book

The end publication based around Berlin's typography, communicated what i set out to achieve. First of I wanted to create a contemporary style publication that communicated the creative scene of Berlin. The way I translated this through my book was by using design features like colour, layout and typefaces. The grey front cover translated a modern, neutral colour scheme along with the red tape showcasing an experimental style, influenced by contemporary methods. The front cover feature with the tape attached to the photo gives the book a conceptual aspect to the publication, giving something exiting and interactive then just you're ordinary photo book.

Production has been successfully implemented from start to finish, ensuring that I could create a book that was cheap to make but still expressed a contemporary style. something that could be affordable for young creatives but was still influential in the style it expressed. The cost efficient methods I put into place were as follows.

 For all the photos a red pantone colour was added to insure the printing cost would be sufficiently lower as a pantone colour only prints with one ink. By doing this I still made sure the contemporary style is still implemented as overlays of colour is still a current trend of modern books. As you can see the front cover has no text on the front or back, which will also save money as it wouldn't need to go through the printers. But the front cover feature still delivers a modern style and without any text the cover would enhance the users interest into finding out what the book is about. The stock I used for the inside pages is a huge cost saver. The glossy Atalis Digigreen paper would only need the laser printer to print out the inside pages. The benefit of the laser printer is that it's a lot cheaper then using ink jet. It only cost £4.20 to print a 26 page A3 booklet out. If I used any other paper then it would of cost me between £10-15. And that is only for a one of booklet. If i was going to print the publication commercially then the price would dramatically drop due to bulk buying and printing. Then again even though the I used the laser printer with stock that didn't cost as much the publication still maintained it's fashionable style due the publication being a photo book and glossy paper gives photographs the best outcome on glossy paper then any other.

Lastly Binding method. I chose to staple bind my book. I didn't wanted my book to have a complex bind method just to make the book look 'fancy'. I wanted my bind method to fit it's purpose. When you look at my publication you can instantly tell that it isn't a book for the higher class society. It's essentially a publication that is solely aimed at young creatives. Most books in contemporary book shops aren't binded in a fancy way , they are their to get their message out to the audience in the cheapest means. And to me the staple bind suited that purpose which related to all other aspects of the book.

Studio Brief 3 - Final Stock Choice

The stock I chose for the front cover of my publication was the Dark Grey Colourplan with the gsm off 175gsm. In my first mock ups, the gsm I used was 135. To me 135 was to thin to be used for a front cover. When the mock up version was physically in my hand it didn't feel as strong and durable. It was easily bendable and just about stood up on it's own. These downfalls could translate into a cheaper feel, which is something I don't want my book to express, especially if I can get a thicker paper weight for the same price as it wouldn't effect me in the cost range. However once I did change the gsm to 175 I instantly felt the difference, it was more tangible in the hand and was a clear distinction between the front cover and the inside pages.

For my inside pages I had a lot of trouble finding the exact paper I had in mind. I knew through primary research that photos looked more visually appealing and of a higher quality on glossy paper. However, It seemed impossible to find the kind of glossy paper I was after. The only thing closer was the Antalis Digigreen Silk 115 gsm paper in the print room. This was the closes I had in mind but would of like that exact paper in a slightly thicker gsm.  I felt this paper did the job well, It communicated a professional aesthetic to the publication and enhanced the photos within the book something that the target audience would appreciate.

Front Cover colour plan

Glossy Inside pages

Studio Brief 3 - Target Audience

So for brief 3 I wanted my publication to be aimed at a younger demographic. All my photos were taking in Berlin and from my perspective and experiences, Berlin is a hot spot for contemporary Graphic Design. Also Berlin is a very artistic city that is heavily influenced by young audiences.

Taking these points on board, my target audience should reach out to young people as the content and style of my publication would reflect Berlin as a influential creative city. My vision for my publication would be for it to be sold in contemporary book stores and institutes like colours may vary, village book shop, LCA, Leeds uni and Headrow house. The production method will link in heavily with my target audience as they should go hand in hand.

But overall to reflect the culture of Berlin, I want my publication aimed at younger people, preferably students or young people interested in any creative movements. So by creating a book which is cheap to make but still holds it's contemporary aesthetics then this should be the most logical solution for the production method and for the target audience in terms of budget.

Studio brief 1 - Folding Task

In preparation for studio brief 1, we were set a task to come up with as many leaflet folds as possible with one sheet. Brief 1 will be about designing and producing a leaflet so knowing the different folds will give me a good indication of any fold I'm thinking of for my leaflet.

The half fold

The half fold below can be made by folding the paper in half twice. It's a simplistic fold but is  a clean and timeless fold. It's fit for purpose and can be also used as a fold out poster. The front is A5 size, leaving a good amount of room for information. Folded It's small to slip in your pocked and under doors if used for promotional purposes. 

The main benefit is that with thinner stock you could keep folding & creating a structured grid system.

Roll fold

The roll fold has two or more parallel folds which fold in on each other. It's a simplistic fold and is tall and thin once folded which limits the width space. It's functionally and practical for mass production due to it's simple fold. The style of the fold is overused by many brands and companies, therefore the audience may not be as engaged or attracted to this style of fold. This is because the user may be programmed to know that that overused junk mail style of leaflet will be another annoying and irrelevant leaflet with no relevance.

Gate fold

The gate fold is a popular choice by many business especially the food industry promoting their products. It folds out into the full width of the a4 paper, leaving a lot of room for a visually appealing advertising spot to catch the users eye. It may not be a popular choice by creatives, due to it's unpleasant aesthetics. The main advantages for this fold is the it's an easy fold to create. It's functional and simple to navigate around. It's a cost efficient and time saving leaflet fold.

The annoying fold

This fold would be more of an interest to creatives. It's more aesthetically pleasing with it's clean lines that would satisfy any OCD sufferer. However, this fold can come across as confusing for the user due to a lot of folds. If the user struggles to understand what sections of the leaflet they should be looking at next then they won't engage as much with the fold, leaving most of the information undiscovered. 

The advantage for the fold is the amount of space once the fold is opened and even the back when the leaflet is folded. It's a nice amount of space for large images to attract and stand out amongst other leaflet.

Studio Brief 3 - Questioning My Layout Choice

Today I had a chat with Simon about the briefs requirements as I was slightly confused about what the requirements were for the content of the publication. I wanted to find out whether or not we had to use the theme of the alphabet throughout our book. So starting at 'A' and ending with 'Z'. I told Simon of my concerns how using the alphabet could possible make my book too long due to my layout restrictions as i can only use one letter of the alphabet on a page spread. Simon said that we didn't have to use the alphabet theme but as long as you use a variety of type images with a bit of information then that would be perfectly fine. Another thing Simon noted was that the main aspect of brief 3 was not focused on the design of the book but the production. And everything we do, it must be backed up with an explanation of how it would effect the production method, at a small scale and on a commercial level.

Taking all this on board, I may work out if i want to proceed with my current layout or simplify my layout so i can fit more images on one double page spread. The main issues with my book is the restrictions. The way I've designed the book only allows me to have 2 images on each spread which will impact my production budget. The main way around this problem would be to go back to the drawing board and to create a layout which communicates with my target audience and allows me to be more flexible and fluid with my layout. Instead of only a maximum of 2 images it would be desirable to create a grid system where i could have up to 5 images on one page.

If i can achieve this effectively then it opens me up to a range of production methods that wasn't available with the current layout choice I have. More binding opportunities, cheaper printing cost and thicker stocks are only sum of the avenues that would open up but the main advantage is just how cost efficient it would be and that could be reflected if the publication was to be printed commercially.

Studio Brief 3 - Testing Different Bind Methods

Following on from the previous blog post 'Printing Price Research' I went about conducting a variety of binding methods for the 52 page mock-up publication. The mock-up paper is A4, 100gsm printer paper. The kind of paper I was using was basic printer paper that was cheap enough to test out my mock-ups without wasting money, so it served as a reference point that i can compare other stock too. Below are a couple of bind methods I tested the 52 page mock-up on to experiment if the bind method is durable enough to with stand 52 pages.

Staple Bind

As you can see there are no photos showing the staple bind because the stables didn't work due to the overall thickness of the publication being to thick. This method may work if the stock was thinner but even if you could find a stock thin enough to hold 52 pages with staples then how long would it last until it weakens and breaks. I'm looking for a bind method that's cheap in production but reliable with long endurance

Saddle Stitch 

Images below showcases the saddle stitch method. Saddle stitch worked effectively but not without it's concerns. Due the thickness of the combined 52 pages the binding was more difficult. For example when using the awl to create holes within the book, it took me a while to puncher the paper, which meant that I had to use more force and that led to the paper creasing. On the positive side the thread seemed strong enough to hold the paper intact. 

Lastly, the overall book has a gap in the middle and this is due to the paper not folding and then it building up through the number of layers. Aesthetically, this makes the book look undesirable and the designer look unprofessional and questioning his ability, which is something I wouldn't want to come across as. In retrospect there are both advantages and disadvantages to take into consideration for this method. The method is strong enough but at what cost?