A Designer's Perspective: Copyright Law

Having found myself recently needing to refer to copyright law in some of my own freelance dealings, I found last week's lecture to be very informative and reaffirming that I was in the right in protecting myself from exploitation. Mr. Astrachan not only refreshed my memory on certain areas of copyright law, but was able to shed light into the areas I have felt a little less confident about.

To me, the most important piece of information that Mr. Astrachan provided was a clearer picture on what the requirements are to be protected under copyright law. His definitions for "Originality," "Authorship" and "Fixation" were all concise and easy to understand. In addition, he provided us with valuable information on damages due to copyright infringement.

I never realized how important copyright registration was until Mr, Astrachan pointed out that statutory damages (which can be up to $150,000 per piece of infringed work) can only be collected if a copyright is registered with the copyright office. Well worth the time and money involved, considering the possible payoff if your work is exploited.

I also found the portions on copyright marking and Fair Use to be very informative, as they have come up frequently in regards to work done within the Pub Design program. I found the criteria for fair use to be very interesting, as I would never have even considered the amount of the copyrighted work used to be of consequence. But, given the example Mr. Astrachan gave in class involving the filming of Mr. Zucchini's cannon act, I realize that it truly is of vital importance, especially if the use takes the "heart and soul" of the work.

A Designer's Perspective: The CityLit Project

After taking a few days to absorb our first presentation in class, I found that I was very impressed with Gregg Wilhelm's lecture on New Technologies in Book Publishing, as well as the work he is doing through the CityLit Project.

Reading has always been a part of my daily routine, beginning from the time I was a child. Early on, a life-long relationship with the written word was instilled in me by my parents and I've continued to nurture that relationship throughout the years. I am always amazed at the fantastic worlds that would unfold within my mind's eye every time I picked up a story and usually can't wait to turn the next page and see what awaits me. But, what has amazed me even more is how few of my friends ever shared in the same passion for literature that I've always had.

Unfortunately, it seems to be a growing trend in our technology-driven society that affects not only publishers, but educators as well. From comic book companies looking to attract young, new readers, to teachers looking to enlighten the future through glimpses of the past, the act of reading has seemed to have been replaced with viral videos on the internet.

Although I am all about the occasional visit to YouTube or working on professional development on sites like Lynda.com, reading is a fundamental skill that must continue to be instilled within the youth of our society. That is where CityLit has stepped in. Beginning with their mission statement, which reads:

"CityLit Project elevates enthusiasm for literature, builds and connects a community of avid readers and writers and opens opportunities for young people and diverse audiences to embrace the literary arts. CityLit has established a family of programs that serve different audiences toward instilling and sustaining a life-long love of literature."

and continuing with their work through CityLit Press and Apprentice House, the organization has take the charge of "Nurturing the Culture of Literature" and truly done some amazing work.

In addition to discussing the work being done by the CityLit Project, Gregg also provided valuable information about new technologies in book publishing. From age-old concepts such as "content is king" to the digital on-demand printing process, Gregg shed some light onto an area of publishing that I have always been interested in exploring. I felt that this was a great way to start the semester and a very informative lecture to kick-off Perspectives in Communication Design.

A Designer's Eye: Typography - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Although it's been a few months, I'm ready to jump back into the saddle and start contributing to the blog-o-sphere again! So, without further ado, here we go...

Over the course of this last semester, while taking a Typography class in school, I came across some interesting example of good, bad and mediocre typographic solutions to design problems. Some of them could have been spectacular with a few small tweaks, while some were just terrible.

Here are few of the ones that really stood out:

The above example is one of the less-than-successful examples I found. Aside from the obvious use of random colors and typefaces, the choice of all centered text within the center white text block is hard on the eye and doesn't align in any meaningful manner. Although I believe the choice of colors and typefaces was done purposefully, it still looks random and unrefined.


These next two examples I found to be very interesting. Both make use of horizontal lines to break the letters within the design, but each one seems unfinished.

In the first example, I fail to see why the designer chose to use a lowercase "e" in the logo while every other letter is capitalized. This very easily would have worked (and been more successful) with a italicized capital "E". Aside from that, I really like the path that the horizontal line creates, leading not only the eye, but the bike that is a part of the logo, throughout the piece.

In the second example, I like the way the idea of a horizontal line breaking the word "Fraction" through the middle, but feel like the line is poorly placed. If the line was widened to the size of the crossbar in the "F", I feel that this would be a more successful solution. The letters would still be recognizable, because the is no other letter in the alphabet that looks like a capital "F", and the design wouldn't look so awkward. I would have also rearranged the type so that each line fit on a piece of the stacked fruit. The lone "A" looks out of place with the longer and larger lines of text...

Finally, this example if one of the most successful that I found. The use of lower case letters throughout, the justified text and the select use of color to draw attention and connect to the theme were all excellent choices. The use of color was not overbearing, nor was is inappropriate. It was an all-around well designed piece of typography.

From the Box Office: Sherlock Holmes

Robert Downey, Jr. continues to impress me with the phoenix-like resurrection of his career, adding another stellar performance to his resume with Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. Playing the title role of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's enigmatic detective only goes to cement his standing among the Hollywood elite and A-list actors.

From the opening scene through the closing credits, Downey, Jr. creates a believable real-world adaption of England's most famous sleuth. In addition, Jude Law's portrayal of Dr. Watson plays perfectly off the eccentric nature of Downey's Holmes. The on-screen chemistry the actors bring to these characters is the best I've seen since Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson in Wedding Crashers.

Upon first glance at the trailer, I was less than impressed with the story, but after hearing several good things, I decided to give it a go. And let me just say, the trailer did not do justice to the film at all. The story was excellent and the set up for a sequel was flawless. The special effects and backdrop of 19th century London were believable, while the science behind the story was grounded in reality.

In addition, the fact that Holmes Kept referring to a short red-headed character as "the Ginger Midget" during the whole film kept me laughing throughout. I definitely recommend Sherlock Holmes to anyone who is a fan of genre films and am personally looking forward to the announcement of a sequel.

Into the Blogosphere: TheDieline.com

As I was perusing the internet today, looking for something interesting to blog about, I stumbled across this blog dedicated to package design. The site includes not only studies of existing package designs and marketing strategies, but also conceptual redesigns of existing products. Since we just got our grades back for Project 5, I thought that I'd share the link for a little inspiration for revisions...

Here's the link:

http://www.thedieline.com/

A Designer's Eye: Free Icons!

Upon checking out Smashing Magazine's blog yesterday, I came across an article called "50 Beautiful Free Icons Sets for Your Next Design." Since I had just posted about icons last week in my blog and created some related ones for Project 6, I found the article to be chock full of great free resources and thought I'd share the link with everyone. The article also has some great free vector artwork as well. I highly recommend checking it out. Here's the link:

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/12/14/50-beautiful-free-icon-sets-for-your-next-design/

Show & Tell: Unnecessary Process

I came across this process while searching through the database at eHow.com. It's a three-step process for fastening a seat belt in a car. I feel that any child over the age of 5 who has ever ridden in a vehicle has had their seat belt buckled for them by their parents and have then learned by example. The written out instructions seem pointless to me. Buckling my seat belt is second nature to me and goes hand-in-hand with starting the engine, but I digress...

Here are the steps:

Step 1 - Sit in the seat of your car and adjust it so that you are comfortable. Usually the adjustments for car seats are underneath the front or on the side. Raise, lower or slide the seat to your desired position.

Step 2 - Pull the seat belt out from its holder. Seat belts are on a track, which automatically tightens part of the strap against your body. Pull the seat belt out far enough so that it can reach across your waist toward the receiving end of the belt.

Step 3 - Push the male end of the seat belt into the female end until you here a "click." At which point you can release the seat belt. The excess slack should automatically tighten back into the seat belt holder.

A Designer's Eye: Icons and Iconography

I recently discovered a previously overlooked area of the design world in that of icons. After playing around with them for the last several days, I have come to a new-found love of their simplicity and natural ability to express an idea, concept or phrase without the use of words or detailed pictures. In addition, I've had the pleasure of creating some of my own, but you'll have to wait 'til Saturday to see them. Below are some of my favorites that I found in my searching.

A Designer's Eye: Character Concepts

Monday, DC Comics announced that they will be launching a new line of graphic novels featuring their major characters that will set aside the continuity-heavy stories that occupy the DC Universe proper and open up the characters to be accessible to a new audience. The line, being called "Earth One," will open with Superman and Batman and will contain a continuity established across the line.

I find this particularly interesting because it mirrors a line of comics that Marvel had major success with at the beginning of the decade in their Ultimate Marvel titles. Now, DC has attempted to create a similar line in the past with their "All-Star" titles, but in my opinion, they never lived up to the hype. This time around, they seem to be keeping it simple, keeping the characters true to their roots (while modernizing the stories for a new audience) and continuing to use top-notch talent.

Only time will tell if these books can help bring new readers into comic shops as the "Ultimate" line did in the early-2000s, but after seeing the preliminary art (which I've added below), I'm willing to give it a shot.

A pin-up by for Superman: Earth One,
by written by J. Michael Straczynski
and drawn by artist Shane Davis.

Concept artwork for Batman: Earth One written
by Geoff Johns and drawn by Gary Frank
featuring Bruce Wayne/Batman.

Concept art for Alfred, by Gary Frank.

Show & Tell: Process - The Turkish Get-up

Recently, during one of our meetings at work, a guest presenter came in to demonstrate proper technique for using Russian kettlebells. One of the exercise that he demonstrated was called the Turkish Get-up. It is an advanced kettlebell exercise that works nearly ever muscle in the body in one series of movement. It is extremely difficult to master, but below are the steps in how to perform it (along with a series of images for each step).

Step 1 - Get into position. The starting position has you lying on your back with your left knee propped up and your right leg flat on the ground. Raise your left hand to the ceiling. If you want to begin the Turkish get-up with some resistance, hold some weight, such as a kettlebell, in your raised hand.

Step 2 - Prop up to your elbow. The first movement in the exercise is propping up to your right elbow (or to whichever elbow is not extended upward). Do so by keeping your raised hand completely straight. Roll from the shoulder up and slightly to the side to prop up. Make sure to keep yourself looking at your raised hand (or the weight you're holding) at all times.

Step 3 - Form a base. Once you are propped up on your elbow, you need to form a base. Do so by pushing your hips up, moving from balancing on your elbow to your hand and fully extending your leg on the same side. Make sure as you do this that your raised hand stays raised and that you continue to look at your hand or weight.

Step 4 - Move to a kneeling position. From your base position, move the front foot (the one on the opposite side of the raised hand) back and underneath you until you can put your knee on the ground. By this point you should still have your left arm raised to the ceiling, your left foot flat on the ground and your right knee posted on the ground.

Step 5 - Stand up. From the kneeling position simply stand up. Do so by extending your left knee as you raise your right leg to a straight position. Again, keep your raised arm straight as you do this. Once you have finished the exercise, reverse the steps back to a lying position. Then change sides and repeat.