Flex Student Newspaper: #31 Freshers 2012

Freshers Mood Board Cover

Production has begun on the Flex Freshers issue for 2012/13. Above is the mood board for the cover and we are pulling in articles, building the mood board and designing as content comes in. I am currently trying to find illustrators for the issue as well as the cover. Myself and the Editor-In-Chief Dan Simpson know that this issues cover should set the standard for the rest of year and this is what we want to kick off with.

There have been a few changes over the summer. All of the design team I had in 1st and 2nd year and left so they can focus all their time on their 3rd year. That was also my plan, to pass it on to a new designer but I could not find anyone willing to take it on. I sort of understand it because being a design director is a lot of pressure. So far I have one other, soon to be 2nd yr, student designing a long side me and I am very grateful. I will have a lot to balance for my third and final year but I will have less on my plate than I did last year as I was freelancing as well as Treasuser for the African Caribbean Society at University College Falmouth.  In October is the fresher fair where we hope to recruit new people for all departments I will have to find some new designers. We also have a Facebook group but will try to rely more so on email and phone calls for communication as simply being Facebook can result in procrastination.


Click Here to Read More..

Flex Student Newspaper #30

Flex #30 June 2012 is the final issue of the academic year and I am very pleased with it. Being the last issue of the year meant is was produced while people were trying to meet last minute coursework deadlines. I felt some departments looked quite strong and I will go into the summer holidays with a few ways we can improve our design. I will need to take some time to evaluate the year, production process and my team before making changes. Below are the pages I did the design & layout for in this final issue.

Flex #30 June 2012 Cover

Flex #30 June 2012 Editorial/ Contributors

Flex #30 June 2012 News Page 4-5. We have started to run the very short articles along the bottom. The black, blue and yellow bars serve as links to online and social media.

Flex #30 June 2012 News Page 4-5. We have started to get more vertical with some of the layouts as well as work things across the page and use the space more creatively.

Flex #30 June 2012 News Page 12-13. The centre page spread was one of the cover stories so we did something a little more special working closely with Sheri Matthews the Features editor. We decided to run the two articles along with a timeline of the queen at the bottom running the length of both pages to serve as a visual hook.

Click Here to Read More..

Flex Student Newspaper #27

Click Here to Read More..

Flex Student Newspaper #23

#23 Cover

Rugby World Cup double page spread

London Fashion Week double page spread

Lifestyle section

Click Here to Read More..

Flex Re-Design: Freshers Guide

On of the articles in the Freshers Guide is called '10 Things To Do Before SecondYear' by Hollie Anderson. I asked if I could see the articles before it was proofed so I could get an idea of what I have to work with. I will also be doing with for the other sections too.


After reading the article I felt that it would lend itself well to a poster quality approach. As you scroll down you will be able to see how the design has developed. I plan to experiment with illustration for maybe 5 of the 10 'things' and upload this later. But i personally feel that the last one, the most simple is the best and will continue to develop this.

Click Here to Read More..

Flex: Student Newspaper Issue 19

This term the design team says farewell to Rachel Maria Smith our regular Lifestyle section designer who is leaving the paper since being with us from the start of 1st year. She has done a great job and being a Designer for one of the UK's few student newspaper will look very impressive to employers on her CV. We are still looking for a new designer to take up the mantle. If you know anyone then tell them to get in touch with directly.

Despite our loss I feel this is the first issue of Flex that has been published after easter. I feel it is one of our best covers yet, something which we all need to put more time in. As you know I am Head of Design for the paper a role which involves working closely with the editors to achieve a quality and timely publication, managing a design team of of now 5; Mo, Nadya, Guro, Henry, Lou, designing a providing feedback on various designs, ensuring consistency across the publication, pre-press and enduring the printer gets the files on time.

There are only three issues for this final term so they should not conflict too much with course work and if they do it usually means I am up until about 3am on a Thursday night/ Friday morning with the printer screaming at me. (No, I kid. he does not scream he always seems very calm, I am the one who gets stressed.)

Next year there will be a new team of editors who are currently shadowing the 2nd year editors. I plan to arrange a meeting with them an improve the relationship between writers/ editors and the design team. Its will only the make the paper stronger. I have also had a few ideas about launching an online magazine to run a long side the paper. But i'll save that for another post.

Click Here to Read More..

Character Design on the way...

Click Here to Read More..

Flex: Student Newspaper Issue 15

Click Here to Read More..

University College Falmouth: First Term/

Click Here to Read More..

Flex: Student Newspaper Issue 13/

Now that i had some previous experience working on the paper I knew that we could do better this time. After having a meeting with the editors we proposed that there was much are feedback between the designers of and editors of each section

The team for this issue was Me, Morwenna, Rachel, Nadya, Lou, Henry and Guro For this issue below I had to put together Sports and heavily alter another section as well put in a lod of last minute adverts and prepare the paper for the printer. The cover was designed by Guro.

This issue the paper was much better. There were only issues with names of certain sections of the articles. To counter this I have made myself a strict checklist to run through before sending the paper off to print. One of the strength of this issue was in the process; the idea of having more feedback between the editors and design team made the work much smoother and meant I had to do much less tweaking in the end. I hope next issue there will be zero mistakes as it will be the final issue before the christmas break.

Click Here to Read More..

Falmouth University

I have been in Falmouth attending university for a week. There are some good things and some bad things but you deal with it. Thats life. I love Falmouth itself. The people are friendly (despite some of the looks I receive of old men) and the weather is nice. I have been surfing for the very first time (pictures will be up here soon). The course and the tutors are nice.

Although I am shearing accommodation (not only because Falmouth have taken on more students that they can provide accommodation fo but also because the government has given additional places for student within the creative industries because of our importance to the economy) the people I am with are great. I could not ask for better flatmates.

I may also have the opportunity to write for the Falmouth University newspaper 'Flex'. I may be able to get involved in not only the design side but the writing side also. More on this as i get it. In the meantime here are some pics of Gylly Beach in Falmouth.

Click Here to Read More..

Made in the Midlands Exhibition

Yesterday was the Made in the Midlands winners Exhibition is Snow Hill train station in Birmingham City Centre. The of myself and fifteen other students from Birmingham Institute of Art and Design (BIAD). I was the only Diploma student that won the rest were all Degree students. It was a good day and I handed out several business cards that I designed (see my first business cards) to some of the coordinators of the exhibition as well as the students. Our work will be featured in the Metro and on the BIAD website. There were rumors about turning the work into postcards, a collective book and being featured in the Creative Review, but these are just rumors. The co-ordinators will get back to us as to the exact date all of the work will be published. I am very grateful for this exposure where ever it may lead to. I also have an exhibition of my Final Major Project on the 16th June that is open to parents, teachers and the general public. As I am pretty confident in my work I am sure I will have a good grade. Seeing as I was given an unconditional offer to Falmouth University the grade is irrelevant but I am aiming for a distinction just to prove to myself that I can do it.

(Me and 15 other students at BIAD that were chosen in Snow Hill station)

(Me posing for the photographs that will be in the Metro and online)

(The poster that was chosen to feature in the exhibition)

Click Here to Read More..

Falmouth University... Here I Come!

I was given an unconditional offer to Falmouth University for which I am grateful. Some of the work that was featured in my portfolio can be viewed here. I will be doing a BA (Hons) in Digital Animation in September 2010 once my Art & Design Foundation couse is finished on 16th of June 2010. I will admit Falmouth was not my first choice because of its distance but because the couse is very good I applied and am so grateful for the acceptance. Below are images of the postcard I received through the post. I have decided to post it here because of the quality of the design on the postcard. it is simple and yet is able to convey everything about the university and choice i've made. I a looking forward to university in September although I am concerned about the distance.

Click Here to Read More..