Idea & Inspiration

For my final graphic design project I created an informational graphic. My topic is about my dream of opening a nonprofit animal rescue and this graphic relates by showing happy and healthy horses after being adopted!

Design Process

One design principle I chose to incorporate in this project was the law of Similarity from the Gestalt Theory through the use of the circular shape in 4 visual elements on this graphic. I tried to maintain contrast between text and background in order for the typography to easily be read with a white background and black text. My main goal was the achieve intellectual unity so the viewers are able to easily identify the meaning.

Feedback Summary

• Crop or delete photo I previously had in bottom left corner
• Space out two circular photos to balance focus
• Make secondary photos larger
• Cite quote

Design Process Continued

After receiving feedback from my peers, I deleted a photo that was on my draft that was less fitting. I added two new photos to help balance the overall look, as well as making those secondary photos larger. I also added “-unknown” about the quote as I was unable to find a source.

Technical Detail

I captured the background image and all other images that I used in this project myself. First I set the background image, shifted the black point, and deepened the saturation. I used the elliptical marquee tool to create a circular shape for the images in all four corners. Then I used the rectangle tool to maintain contrast between the quote and background. For final touches I added some brush details.

Sources & Materials

I created all images used in this project.

Idea & Inspiration

I created an informational graphic for my draft graphic design project. This project idea relates to my topic of a nonprofit animal rescue because it shows an extremely abused horse before adoption and three others after adoption. It shows the potential change in quality of life of these gentle giants by adopting.

Design Process

One design principle I incorporated into this project was the law of Similarity from the Gestalt Theory through the use of the circular shape in two visual elements. I was aiming to achieve intellectual unity so the viewers are able to identify the meaning of this informational graphic. I also tried to maintain contrast between the text and background in order for the typography to be easily read.

Technical Detail

I took the background image and all other images that I used in this project myself. First I set the background image and edited the color to a deeper black and white. Then I used the elliptical marquee tool to create a circular shape for the two images on the right side. I used the quick selection tool to crop the image on the left hand side to fit more appropriately than a bulky rectangle photo. I used the rectangle tool to maintain contrast between the quote and background. I also added some brush details.

One challenge I encountered with the quick selection tool was that it was cutting off parts that I wanted to keep. In order to keep the parts that I wanted, I selected all the stuff I wanted to crop out instead of selecting the parts I wanted to keep.

Sources & Materials

I created all images used in this project.

I plan to create an event poster for a showcasing event for rescued horses to make them more attractive for potential adopters.

Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.

— Oscar Wilde.

This is the first post on my new blog. I’m just getting this new blog going, so stay tuned for more. Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.