Courtney's Web

In today’s society having access to someone’s profile and portfolio online makes things so much more simple. It seems today everything is available online. For a potential employer to be able to visit a website and view your work and find out about you shows that you not only are professional but that you are also experienced in technology. My website will be used to promote myself by representing me and my personality as well as portraying my work for potential employers and other professionals to view. It will give them an idea of who I am and what I have accomplished.

By linking my social media accounts to my website potential employers or other professionals may view my profiles and see what I am interested in and what activities I am involved in. This will help them to get a better understanding of who I am and it will offer them a way to stay in contact with me and to network.

It was new and interesting using dreamweaver to create my website. Seeing all the code that is required and how one little thing can affect the whole website is amazing. I enjoyed creating my website because I was able to make it to how I wanted it to look and personalize it. By including a professional picture of myself, whomever views my site can not only read about me and my accomplishments, but also get a visual of who I am. By adding the header it personalizes the website a bit more to my personality and who I am as a person.

Although most of the website was made for us a complete, each student was able to make it their own. I would be interested in learning how to make my own website completely but even just seeing how much work is involved and how you really need to be aware of every little thing you do is a lot. I liked working in Dreamweaver because it was something different from what we have worked in all semester.

Logo Designs

Logos are such an important part in creating a companies brand and image. They represent who you are as a company and what you stand for. Here are some logos I found to be well thought out and that work well with the company image:



The Twitter logo represents the the "tweet", like a bird. It is a simple image but known well; it related back to the name and the idea of a tweet.


The NBC logo has the peacock that represents the station being one of the first in color. This is a clever way to show the beauty of color, like how a peacock has beautiful color.


The Droid logo also represents the brand well because the idea of the phone is that it can do all these things, like a robot. We are becoming more technological and the robot represents that.


The Amazon logo is a works well because not only does it state the website within its logo but the arrow also represents a few things. The orange arrow represents a smile, like it is leaving the customer happy; as well as and arrow pointing from A to Z representing that they have everything from A to Z. The simplicity of the two colors works because the orange arrow stands out more with the black text.

The Volkswagen logo is simple and with the logo being blue and white it is clear to see the V and the W within the logo; obviously representing the name VolksWagen.

These images do a great job and relaying the message of what their company is all about and also, with most, incorporating the name into the logo.

Brochure ideas

American Cancer Society

The American Cancer Society is a nationally recognized organization that helps people overcoming cancer, people who have overcome cancer, and helping others to find a cure. Their goal is to eliminate cancer all together and to help people fight back. Cancer affects almost everyone today; whether it’s a loved one, a friend, or through someone you know. Personally I have been very lucky to not have it directly affect my family, but knowing someone dealing with this illness is just as heartbreaking. You begin to feel helpless; and through The American Cancer Society you may begin to find help, peace, and a way to give back. The American Cancer Society does research to help prevent this illness from hurting anymore families and they work to detect and eliminate cancer at it’s earliest stage. There are so many events that stem off of The American Cancer Society such as Relay For Life, or even my own personal 5K I direct at the gym that I work at; Race For A Cause. These are all events to raise money to donate to The American Cancer Society to help alleviate the effects of cancer on all.

Canalside Buffalo

Canalside Buffalo is a place for families to come and enjoy a beautiful sunny day full of fun activities for all ages. There is always something going on at Canalside. It wasn’t always this way though; Canalside sat as a pile of rocks and dirt for years before a group finally restored it’s greatness and the historic area became “the place to be”. At Canalside you can see so much history of Buffalo; the naval ships, the erie canal, the grain elevators, and so much more. It’s an exciting place to be because not only are you able to reflect on Buffalo’s history, but you can also enjoy fun activities while doing so. In the winter they offer various activities such as, ice skating, curling, ride on the ice bikes created here in Buffalo, grab food from the food trucks and food stands, children’s carnival rides, and pond hockey. In the warmer months you can sit at multiple outdoor bars and have a drink, grab lunch or dinner, ride on the water bikes or paddle boats, go to a free concert, take multiple fitness classes, and so much more! This is an exciting environment for all Buffalonians to check out!

Buffalo’s Farmers Market

Farmers markets are great because it is a way for us to buy healthy home grown fruits and vegetables instead of buying them from the grocery store and not knowing what may have been used on them. It’s also a great way to support our local farmers! Farmers markets are a fun way to get the groceries that you may need. It’s not only people selling their fruits and vegetables but there’s usually other vendors like a local winery with samples, a woman who bakes cookies out of her home selling the cookies she makes, local artists showing and selling their artwork, local cheeses and sauces. There is so much to see at a Farmers Market. It’s a lot more fun and exciting to enjoy the warm days walking around a farmers market checking everything out rather than walking into a huge grocery store. And the best part, is that you’re supporting all these local vendors so that they may keep growing and making their awesome products so that we may continue to enjoy them.

Contrast and Connections

Good Design

This business card not only communicates immediately that it is for yoga; but also does so in a humorous way. The way they used the finger holes to complete the pictures makes the business card interactive and fun. This is a good way for people to remember your business. The simplicity of the reverse side with the contact information is perfect so that this business card doesn't become too cluttered. Also, the slogan "get stretchy" at the top is great placement because it helps you to get a better idea of what is going on with the image and the point of it. 

This flyer garbs your attention immediately with the large BBQ in the center. This works well because it tells you what the flyer is for and its the first thing your eye goes to. Then it flows into the image below it which symbolizes a BBQ. This flyer has a great flow and your eye moves nicely through the information provided. Also the colors used are consistent throughout the flyer as well as the repeat in fonts. Using the same fonts in different spots shows repetition and ties everything together nicely.

This brochure works well because although the front cover has a lot on it, it shows what the brochure is all about and its a fun a bright colored design. The bright colors with the dark background makes the images stand out and pop more. on the inside the imaged continued along with the information keeps the brochure visually satisfying. The repetition of the colors creates a completion to the brochure over all and keeps it looking organized and clean.

Bad Design

A business card like this on the other hand is not as appealing; there are too many words and the white glow behind the words is unattractive. This business card has too much going on. There are a lot of colors and everything looks very crammed on the card. The glow around the word "Founder" is much too close to the image of the person being represented. The colors chosen for the background as well as the image. which is an odd choice in itself, do not make the business card pop and pleasing to the eye.

The use of font and color in the flyer is straining on the eyes. There is too much going on in this flyer and the lack of images does not give a good visual. At the top the very fist font is too hard to read and throughout the flyer the words that have a 3-D effect with multiple colors almost causes a headache. When looking at this flyer the eye doesn't know where to focus and what to look at next.

This brochure has a lot going on; it looks too crowded and messy. Although there is repetition of images there seems to be too much which makes everything look very cluttered. The use of images is good in a brochure but in this case there are too many. There should be more information and the type should be formatted better. Everything looks very scattered right now and unappealing. 

Visual Communication

Communication is the key to human development; from a young age we learn everything from verbal and non-verbal communication. We understand how people feel, their beliefs, what they think; all by communication. Today communication has expanded beyond just verbal face to face communication. Today one may communicate via text message, email, phone call; even video chat. With today's technology we have access to this kind of communication right at our fingertips. With Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and much more we have evolved through Social Media and created a much easier but less personable way to communicate. Personally I find that I respond best to verbal and visual communication. I learn best when someone explains something to me, and also being shown it. I have always been a very hands-on learner so seeing things helps me to get an understanding of what is being communicated.

Visual communication is everywhere in today's society. Everyday, visual communication is being mindlessly communicated to us. While driving down the thruway you may look at a billboard and for a few minutes after driving past that you may continue thinking about that billboard. This is how the company of that billboard is visually communicating with you and you may not even realize it. We see this with the front cover of magazines and newspapers; headlining an important or juicy story. They use this visual to draw you in and get their point across. Visual communications is also used with logos. If you see a Nike commercial starring the latest and most popular athlete... this will make you want to have something also made my Nike. And then when you wear your Nike clothing you are giving a visual message to the people around you because you are wearing that symbol.

Apple:

I chose the Apple symbol because I find it to be a simple yet meaningful logo. Apple is one of the most popular brands; everyone wants the latest iPhone, iMac, iPod, and iPad. This logo which is clearly an apple, is so simple for this company but has so much power behind it. The simplicity of it makes it look elegant and fresh. For the most part the symbol is usually white, silver, or black. This keeps it looking sophisticated and clean.

Starbucks:

Another image I chose is the Starbucks logo. This has become such a popular logo with many women. This symbol is of a mermaid; it is said to be the “welcoming face” of Starbucks. The colors are simple and the use of the shapes to create the image really makes it interesting.

World Wildlife Fund:

The last image I chose is the logo for the World Wildlife Fund. The black and white image of this panda bear is the perfect logo to help capture the idea of what this organization stands for. Although in some spots the image does not connect or look like it is completed; the contrast of the black and white makes the image as a whole look complete.