Graphic Design Reflection

Over this past year in Graphic Design I have learned many things, from technical skills to communication and project management. In the technical skills aspect, while I already had basic knowledge of Illustrator and Photoshop, this class has taught me various tools that I was previously unaware of, such as the pen and fringe tools. This class has also taught me pretty much the entirety of InDesign. As for communication, I have learned to be more outspoken about my opinions, and have become more helpful. Project management wise I have learned to never slack off, as that can hold you back in the long run.

            I learned these things mostly from teacher-informed tutorials, as well as my errors in trial. While we were taught several things via teacher, a lot things were learned were from tutorials, and we were encouraged to find tutorials on our own to increase our knowledge. Towards the very beginning of the year I was a tad shy, but I figured out how to adapt and towards the middle and end of this class I was the opposite. Also in the beginning of the year my project management was extremely hectic. Realizing how this was holding me back in projects, I took a stab at it. Now, while my skills are not what you would consider organized, I manage my time and image resources to a degree.

            These skills are important because not only do they increase quality and efficiency of your projects, but also all of these skills can be applied throughout your entire life. I don’t know how often I will need to use the pen tool in Illustrator later down the road, but communication can mean the difference in being an great employee. Project management skills can also later help me when adult life becomes stressful, with things like bills, taxes, and student loans.

            I believe my greatest strengths are technical skills and communication. I feel that I know enough when working through software that if I have a problem, I could figure out a solution on my own. Also, I feel that I can easily communicate with each one of my classmates and work together. Weakness I may have are likely collaboration and leadership, as I have a hard time combining my skills and work with others to create a quality design, and my leadership doesn’t really help acknowledge that within the group.

            One thing I want to change is the frequency in that I use my sketchbook. I feel that one of my weaknesses in this class was my negligence of my sketchbook, and that I would probably do better if I wrote down more ideas and sketched more drawings and designs. Another thing I would change is my focus skills. While I definitely improve in second semester, I would sometimes miss vital information during demonstrations. I will absolutely work on this, as it is a very important skill.

            All and all, I had a pretty good time in this class. I made what I believe to be quality (or at least decent) designs, while also making some friends. Next year I won’t be doing graphic design, as I will be headed to Entertainment strand, likely to work on something involving music and music production. However, I will remember the things I learned and worked on in this class, because you never know when they will be useful.