My Own Designs

A couple of years ago, I designed and created a yearbook for the organization to which I belonged.  I've posted a couple of advertisements I designed.  Both ads were created and printed in black & white.  I did all of the design work using Microsoft Word.  I also did all of the work without any formal training.  It wasn't the easiest job in the world, but in spite of it all, I had a great time.  Guess that's why I decided to go for an Associates Degree at Parkland.  

The advertisement above has the black and white photo of the house (full of Pella windows) as the primary focal point.  Even though the photo is actually the background for the ad, I believe it catches the viewer's eye first as it is centered both vertically and horizon

tally.  One could also argue that the Pella logo and slogan are the primary focal point.  We naturally read from left to right and top to bottom, so I think having the logo in the upper left corner was a good choice.  The logo is also balanced by the address and phone information on the right.  Then, the text at the top is balanced with the text on the bottom.

The values of the ad (lights and darks) are fairly evenly placed throughout the design, creating unity.  This also shows balance; creating a safe, pleasing, and comfortable look.  The lake and earth at the bottom and horizon in the middle and sky at the top lend nicely to a natural balance.

And finally, the black lettering at the top against the white lettering at the bottom give the design a little bit of drama and uniqueness.

The other advertisement was for TGI Friday's.  I actually took the photo for this ad myself.  It was a somewhat cloudy day.  I drove up in my truck, rolled down the window, and took a couple black and white photos.  Then, it was off to Microsoft Word to create the ad.  How wonderful it is now to be working on an iMac with Creative Suite 3.  This is how design is suppose to be done.

A couple of points about this ad I'd like to make.  First, with the photo once again as the background for the ad, I've let the photo of the Friday's signage do the talking for me.  The store logo is the primary emphasis.  It is balanced by the text blocks at the bottom of the design.  Once again, I've used both white and black text.

Because both ads employ a photograph for the entire background, space wise, there is depth inherent in the photos themselves.  

Enjoy.