Information is Beautiful

I thought it might be a good idea to try and work with an interior architecture student, to try and give more realistic ideas of what the inside of the exhibition/event could look like. We met with Ben, one of the second year's on the interior design course and tried to explain the project that we were doing and how he could fit into that. These are the visuals I took to try and explain the space but said that in terms of scale the space we'd want would probably be about the size of the mosaic cafe and maybe he was better qualified to work out dimensions.

The black circles show the different view points that Ben has already started looking at, the pink circles show the viewpoints that I have asked for. Hopefully giving me enough visuals to think about the wall graphics and way finding for around the site. One thing I have asked for is for the lighting on the floor to be removed because I think once I start applying wall graphics they will be fighting for attention.

Floor Plans

The Custard Factory is to be our venue for electronic waves... I was hoping to be able to find floor plans of the building but the only thing they really provide is an illustration of the outside of the building complex. So from this I've generated these approximate floor plans, to be honest they're pretty much guess work but it doesn't really need to be exact for the purpose of this project.

Considering different angles for the floor plans and different quantities of perspective. Testing different colours for the building and shading.

Using the day and night colours to colour code each of the buildings on the floor plan. This seems like an appropriate visual to start mapping things onto.

Starting to look at how the floor plans could be used within publication, i.e. using a dark background for the night one. Since this is one of the design decisions we made with regards to print and publication and the environment itself.

Colours

New colours for mine and Ian's collab. We decided to go for this yellow and blue on a dark background for the night events and a blue/green and red for the day events.

I then tested this against some of the visuals I had already done for the work:

to ensure when we get the photographs they are in the correct format etc, this image guidelines/preparation sheet was put together to give to the students, hopefully reducing the amount of time spent on reformatting/resizing etc

Unseen Boards

Pitch boards for our final design concept (all information on boards)

Yearbook Update

3 Varying cover ideas, one with the separation of the word 'unseen' and the names of the photographers exhibiting, so that it actually reads as these are the people you haven't seen/you've just seen...

Another option was to have really large type across the cover, this would suit the spread designs which were a bit more in your face, I don't particularly like this approach I think it's too abrupt but I felt it should at least be explored.

The third option is to have simply the title on the front cover.

We're thinking about how we can use finishes so that the concept is reflected through the clear visibility of some parts of the word and not as clear in other. So at the moment we're thinking maybe a varnish or emboss for the 'un' and a foil for 'seen'.

Trying to take the design direction from the spreads and applying the methods to the Foreword written by Adrian. Originally this was going to be an introduction, however it's not really an introduction into the book rather a written piece about photography in general, with slight reference to the photographers in 'unseen'. And so we decided that it would be a foreword instead.

Some other layout ideas for spreads. I was concerned that the spreads were a bit too simple and so after speaking to Gasi thought about how the information could be presented in a much more uncomfortable way so that maybe it's not all aligned and although looking interesting forced the audience to look at the photography because it was easier for the eye to settle on. I thought that the addition of thumbnails was interesting however probably unnecessary because there aren't that many photos for each photographer and it draws attention away from the larger images.

Open publication - Free publishing - More covers

Starting to think about which illustrations should be used for a selection of prints and onto what stocks. I think the more delicate prints onto tracing paper work quite well so might explore this further. However I need to think more about format and how they relate to another.

critting the spreads between us, picking out bits we need to change/experiment more with and picking out between different spreads which we prefer/why/what we need to do etc.

http://www.open.ac.uk/inclusiveteaching/documents/how-buildings-can-be-improved-for-deaf-users.pdf

how to make a building more accessibile

CONTENT & CONSIDERATIONS

http://www.rnid.org.uk/information_resources/factsheets/communication/factsheets_leaflets/communication_tips.htm

If you're deaf or hard of hearing

Try these tips to communicate with hearing people:

• Have you thought about learning to lipread? Everyone lipreads to some extent, especially in noisy places.
• Be open. Tell the person you're speaking to that you lipread, before you start a conversation.
• Ask people to get your attention before they start talking to you.
• Don't stand too far away from the person who's speaking to you.
• Try to keep calm and don't panic. If you become anxious or flustered, it might be harder for you to follow what's being said.
• If your hearing isn't the same in both ears, try turning your better side towards the person speaking to you.
• If you don't catch what someone says first of all, don't be afraid to ask them to repeat it or say it in a different way.
• If necessary, ask people to slow down and speak more clearly.
• Don't be too hard on yourself. No one hears correctly all the time.
• Make sure you can see the speaker's face and lips. Their gestures and facial expressions will help you understand what they're saying.

If you're speaking to someone who's deaf

Try these tips if you are speaking to someone who is deaf or hard of hearing:

• Even if someone is wearing a hearing aid, it doesn't mean that they can hear you. Ask if they need to lipread you.
• Make sure you have the listener's attention before you start speaking.
• Speak clearly but not too slowly, and don't exaggerate your lip movements.
  Use natural facial expressions and gestures.
• If you're talking to a deaf person and a hearing person, don't just focus on the hearing person.
• Don't shout. It's uncomfortable for a hearing aid user and it looks aggressive.
• If someone doesn't understand what you've said, don't just keep repeating it. Try saying it in a different way.
• Find a suitable place to talk, with good lighting, away from noise and distractions.
• Remember not to turn your face away from a deaf person. Always turn back to your listener so they can see your face.
• Check that the person you're talking to can follow you. Be patient and take the time to communicate properly.
• Use plain language and don't waffle. Avoid jargon and unfamiliar abbreviations.

The Plain English Campaign (see page 6) defines plain English as ‘something the intended audience can read, understand and act upon the first time they read it.’

Here are some basic guidelines to get you started.

• Keep sentences and paragraphs short.

• Always substitute short words for long words where possible. For example, say ‘use’ not

‘utilise’ and ‘buy’ not ‘purchase’.

• Avoid jargon.

• Break up the writing with headings and bullet points.

• Think about using clear diagrams to replace long written descriptions.

• Use photographs. These can be effective, especially if they are real people and not

models.

• Don’t say ‘the deaf.’ Say ‘people who are deaf’, ‘people who are hard of hearing’ or ‘people with a hearing loss’. It’s offensive to define people solely by their deafness.

• Never use the phrase ‘deaf and dumb’. It’s offensive and outdated.

• Many people whose first or preferred language is BSL consider themselves to be part of

the ‘Deaf community’. Some may describe themselves as ‘Deaf’ with a capital D, to

emphasise their deaf identity.

• Try not to use negative phrases such as ‘hearing impaired’ or ‘partially deaf’. You can

say people are deaf, hard of hearing or have a hearing loss.

• Don’t use negative terms such as ‘victim’ or ‘sufferer’.

• Use accurate terms such as ‘hearing aid’ not ‘deaf aid’. Use ‘cochlear implant,’ not

‘bionic ear’.

How can I make my website accessible?

It’s important to make your website accessible to everyone. Below are some tips for making sure everyone can use your website.

• The text should be a readable size. Make sure you can resize text in the browser

options.

• Check that the colours on your website don’t clash, particularly the text and background

colours, as this can make reading difficult.

• Make sure the content is written in plain English and evenly spaced for easy reading.

• Make sure that all the images have alt tags (name tags) that accurately yet briefly

describe the graphic content of the image.

Producing information for people who are deaf, RNID Information, September 2010

4• Think about how your website will appear to screen reader users. A screen reader is a program that reads out a computer display to people with a sight loss or those who don’t have access to a monitor.

• If you are using images for headers, make sure they have alt tags that match the headers for screen reader users. For example, if your header is ‘Brighter futures for people who are deaf or hard of hearing’ the accompanying images in the header should have the same alt tags.

• Are the links easy to spot and are they clear? Make sure the link text makes sense. Once again, people with a sight loss may use screen readers, which navigate using links so these need to make sense when taken out of the content. ‘Click here’ and ‘more’ tell users nothing about the link target.

• Can you navigate the site easily without using the mouse? You should be able to move around the website using only the tab key, shift-tab (to navigate forward and back) and return or enter (to follow a highlighted link or form action).

• Is there a site map or site index on your site?

• If there is any video content, make sure it’s accessible. You could provide equivalents

like captions, audio or text.

• The Web Accessibility toolbar is a very useful tool for checking your website. Visit the

Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) site www.w3c.org/wai/ for information on how to make

your website accessible.

YEARBOOK IMAGES FOR ALEX

Spreads from the last week or so

pdf showing the development of layouts from the week, starting by looking at how the logo's system of a weight contrast could be used within other elements of the design, e.g. names, titles etc