I get a lot of ideas while listening to my record player. This idea hit me while, yes, listening to it (David Bowie, to be exact!) So, I laid my daily schedule out as a record. On a record, you can tell a new song begins by the thicker lines. The time of day is therefore signified by a thicker typeface (here, Future Condensed Ultra Black). Short copy of my day is set in Future Condensed Bold. A sturdy typeface for readability. I'm a little concerned about the shape all the lines make as they make their way around the circle.
I am an indecisive person. To showcase this, here is a blank ledger with everything I could have/should have/wanted to do has fallen to the bottom of the space, all crumbled and in a pile. I'm not sure if I like how "I can't decide what to do today" is laid out. Also, I wasn't sure as to what times I should show in the ledger; I figured only the main part of the day would do (if I used more, I thought it would take up too much space). Again, I used Futura, for the sake of readability for the crumbled text at the bottom.
First post: Awesome idea! The reason why you designed your schedule on a record makes sense. It kind of shows that your day keeps going and going on its own beat. The thin/thick of the type gives a nice variety to the layout. Also I love how the lines wrap around and create a waves looking object. It makes my eye follow that line which is good. Try moving the record around on the page where some of it might fall off the page.
ReplyDeleteSecond post: Nice idea. I get the message right away. Maybe try moving the “do” down with “today.” Also, I think going to 5pm would complete the day. The pile of words is nice just continue it got to the right like you did the left. If I had to choose which one for you to do it would be your first post because it’s more complex and has more movement.
I really like your record one. The daily schedule of indecisiveness is kinda boring. I like the way the words pile up at the end however before I read your blurb I thought that it was because your words were falling off the schedule, like you were so busy your forgot what you were suppose to do next and all your tasks were all confused at the bottom of the page.
ReplyDeleteThe first one is nice. I like the simplicity of the letters and the uniformity of the lines it creates. It looks like the track grooves on an actual record. I would be interested however, to see what it would look like if the whole record was filled in. It might create in interesting negative space in the exterior. The composition itself is a little static and could benefit from adding some sort of other elements that add interest.
Comp 1: I love this! It is personal to you, creative and visually appealing. I wonder what it would look like if you rotated the record so the beginning was at about 9 or 10 o’ clock. I like how you put your name as the title but maybe you could make a title, like something that happened through your day, along with your name instead or just Daily schedule.
ReplyDeleteComp 2: Maybe you could ask as question, ”What to do today?” instead of saying you can’t decided what to do today and center the text instead of lining it up to the left. I think the times are just fine because the bulk of what you do in your day probably happens then. I like the pile of words and how you used both solid and stroked words. It balances out well.
Both of your compositions are wonderful! The first one is really dynamic and I can definitely relate. Some of my best ideas also come while I am listening to music. I really like the way each line of text wraps around the record, I think it looks a lot better than each line just going around and around in a continuous circle. I also like the words and phrases you used on the arm of the player. Those are the things that keep you going and that is the instrument that keeps the record going. The only issue I have here is where the arm connects to the record; there are just some legibility issues so maybe you could shift all the text on the record counter -clockwise just a smidge. Otherwise, I think this is great!
ReplyDeleteThe second comp is also great. It gave me a little chuckle when I saw it because I can definitely relate to this also. I think the layout is nice, and I think you picked a good time frame. I agree that continuing beyond 4:00 would be too much. It would be interesting to try to make some of the phrases at the bottom falling off a certain time line. I like how you did regular text and outlined text because it really gives the feel of a pile. I also think that “I can’t decide what to do today” is placed nicely, although if you were to make some phrases fall off the lines like I suggested earlier you might have to move that. That was just a suggestion if you wanted to mess around with it anymore but I don’t think it necessarily needs anything else. Good job.
I love both of your comps. In your first comp, I feel like you portray the concept very well. I enjoy the flow you have created; I get the feeling that your day creates its on soundtrack. At the size they are at on the blog, it is really hard to read everything, is it easier to read on your illustrator file? I agree with your choice of font, it works will with the imagery. Maybe a fun alternative for this comp would be to create a scratch on the vinyl that make a part of your day skip or repeat? Unless you are a very organized and structured person of course. Otherwise I think its great. Your second comp reminds me of how I spend some of my days too. I feel like you get the point across very well. the placement of words on the bottom of the page look great and I love the range in font size and stroke size. You said you were unsure of the placement on top, but I like the way it is.
ReplyDeleteAmanda,
ReplyDelete#1: This is awesome, and I can totally relate to this concept. I think the organization of the text is cool because no only does it resemble the grooves in the vinyl, but it gives the record a quality much like the shine that is actually present with the real thing. I also really like the unique way of setting up the times during the day, and the tasks being underneath it. I don’t really know how to achieve this, but if there was a way you could have the negative space (the white lines) between lines of text pop out more, I think it would add a nice quality to it. What would it look like if you widened the outer rip of the record…I don’t think it would have to be readable. One thing, I wouldn’t put your name on it. Maybe just leave as daily schedule, or put in a descriptive adjective or something. I don’t know, I’m just not feeling your name being on there.
#2:I like this one to. I think that the “go for a walk” should maybe just lie loosely on top, I don’t think it has to be “falling”. It’s obviously a pile of undone activities, and I think it would make for a better composition it wasn’t falling, because it sort of looks as if it’s floating upwards. As for the “I can’t decide what to do today”, I would think about just leaving that off entirely. In my opinion it would be clear that the schedule is unfilled but there a number of things that you could be doing. But all in all, I think these are both really great.
Can I just say that you get an automatic A because you mentioned David Bowie :-) Just kidding. I like the record and the lines. However, I think the arm should be treated differently. Use one bold line instead of two. You are missing a focal point. Making the arm with larger type would help direct the user to a "title" on the arm. So whatever you type on the arm needs to be significant and the focal point.
ReplyDelete