Development done

This week I have gotten the results from my development part of this porject and now I want to focus more on what I could have done and how is the final product of my project.

I have answered these questions through out my project, however I would like to take another view and look at it again

1. How effective is the final piece?

I find the final piece to be very effective in showing concentrated information, empathetic, authentic and passionate look and feel and a real winner for standing out and promoting the 15 below jacket.

It displays the information to donate quickly and it doesn't take long to get to grips with what the 15 below project is about or on how to help them, by downloading my media. In this respect I have created a very friendly donation system that anyone can use since money is not an issue here.

This site or at least the concept is a winner through and through.

2. Does the Final Piece match the brief?

It does in all aspects, it has learning, a fund raising idea, a multitude of media to access, the 15 below logo on every page, a link to the original site on every page, I added one colour to the colour scheme and interactivity throughout.

Also it goes beyond the brief including non essential materials into the site such as wallpapers, an animation a multitude of audio components and I have hosted it live which was not suggested in the brief.

3. Is there any thing I would change about the design?

I would have changed the container it is in, possibly to either take it away and have it all on a blue background or change the shape of it, however I think this one encompasses what I set out to reach fromt he start. Also I would like to have added mroe wallpapers in that section however the original extras I made I have lost, but I might end up making new ones if I have time.


4. Why did I choose this design solution?

In the end I made 5 versions of my idea, I moved back and forward testing each one in aesthetic look and I finally came to the decision of a V3 modified which is the final piece I have shown. I chose it because evrything merges well, I design ed tghe 15below jacket myself in illusstrator, unknowing it would affect my whole design.

What I mean by this is I tried to make it more shiny and photo realistic after this and it just didnt work together, I later figuired out it was my jacket and background that were doing it, so I made new buttons in illustrator and a background in photoshop and it worked instantly.

It fits the brief, im happy i made it, Thats why I chose this solution

See here

5. What difficulties did I find and overcome?

The first major one was the Flash menu bar I could not integrate it into my design as it only worked in firefox, i since solved this by redoing my menu with roll over images a change Im happy off since it was then that I realised I had to change my menu button icons that i mentioned earlier.

I also found little things like transparency issues, layout shifting and such but I solved that with discussion to my human resources and online searching or related issues. There was one other issue of compatibility issues between my laptop and the macs in college which in some cases were unavoidable but most I fixed with simple cleaning of the code.

6. What are the Strengths and Weaknesses of this product?

The main strengths I think is that it looks crisp, and pops out at you, and that it gets the information across very quickly as there is not a lot of reading required.

Also the fund raising idea probably the biggest strength as it doesn’t require people to actually pay money to this charity to get credit to make the jackets its totally self efficient and could easily be modified to include other media at any time.

Another strength for my personal reasons is that all design was made by me, no stock photos, no copied code, all downloadable media, it was all from the ground up created by me and I’m very proud of that.

The other strengths lay in the construction of the site, it’s all named correctly no AP divs named from AP div 1 - 33 or anything like that, and it’s all professionally done. Also the colour scheme fits in well with what 15 below are trying to express about the homeless situation, they need help to stop people dying from the cold, and they need it now.

Also I have delved into other areas of design that could be applied if I had more time to do it, I made numerous Audio tracks to be laid into the site, unfortunately it would be impractical in this site as the music would have to be clicked to play on every page from the beginning, and also the flash elements.

The main weakness I would have to say is there isn’t any, there may be design issues or different perspectives but in terms of it, without thinking of what else could be done to it, it’s perfectly fine.


7. What would I change if anything about the product?

Well after a long consideration, nothing. This is because of the results of my questionaire and I am happy with the results

8. What would I change about the way Ive handled this project?

Nothing, Ive handled it better I think than anyone that was doing this project, I have diaries, I have ablog, I had questionaires, I researched a lot and have applied it too the design of the final peice, and I now have my own site with this blog and piece linked to it. I have even deleved into other possible areas of ideas. I have done a lot.

My site

9. In what way have my skills improved?

I have done graded units since I first entered college, and so the concept is not new to me, however this is the first one that has been visual orientated and so It was my first sketchbook project and I enjoyed working with it, unfortunatly my drawing skills were not top standard and I would liek to correct it by seeing what is top atandard and in that thought It would have been nice to see what what top standard throughout the project.

Also I have improved in Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Flash, Illustrator, Reason and Audacity the programs I used int his project, I have gained more confidence in using them since this project started even tho most of them I've only come to grips with this year.

I also saw new ways to do projects, like this blog for instance I never used them before This project willingly. Its great I find for projects as its easy accessable and anyone can see exactly how your projects doign without needign to meet you.

But the biggest part of my that has improved is my understanding of the whole design process, I have a much bigger appreciation of how an idea is formed and If I had known now what I knew when I did Higher Art I would have passed with flying colours, enjoyed it much more and maybe even had a differebnt mind set on everythign after that.

The whole prospect of these graded units is very exciting hte expanding of thoughts and minds and I look forward to my next project eager to improve in every way.

Thanks for reading I hope you enjoyed my project.

My site
Final Piece