design
& layout
Layout, like any other aspect of a journalistic publication, is a group effort. While my primary responsibility as the Editor in Chief of The Bird's Eye has been to edit copy, I have also dabbled in the art of layout, utilizing the skills that my staffers have helped me acquire to create spreads centered around inclusion, coverage and diversity. The Bird's Eye staff has always been instructed that a layout revolves around the stories in which it tells. We consistently work to deviate from confining any stories by a layout or design in favor of expression through photographs and words. That being said, my staff and I believe that a layout is the stage that showcases both deservingly recognized stories and photos. The staff and I place heavy emphasis on a balance between copy and design which cooperate to showcase student coverage and uniqueness of the individual alike.
Each of the preceding layouts are awaiting their publication in The Bird's Eye, 2018. The theme of this year's publication is "Beneath the Surface," which strives to share stories that are eye-opening and generate a sense of compassion and empathy for our peers. When I came up with the idea of designing spreads like these, I pitched the idea to the class with a rough sketch. After officially designing the layout, putting photographs and copy to the layout and presenting it to the class once more, I was surprised to see that the staffers loved the idea. We decided to call these pages that appear throughout each of the book's six sections "showstoppers." The idea behind the showstoppers is to focus on a single student with a story that is unique and personal but also serves as a visual break in the book to reinforce the theme of telling deeper stories that lie beneath the surface, adding visual variety and interest to the pages. We also feature a module on the right side of each spread that focuses on other students who are similar with respect to the main student (the main student is featured in the photo that bleeds off the pages). The inclusion of this module draws focus to other students who exemplify similar characteristics so that student coverage remains balanced and would not be sacrificed for the sake of the showstopper. Design with maintaining coverage and inclusion of multiple students on each spread keeps our publication interesting and just.
The original summer spread that was to be published in The Bird's Eye, 2018 follows the scheme of coverage and unique perspective alike. The simplistic layout covers 19 students and features several elements of design, including the utilization of white space, proportional placement of copy, geometric arrangement of photographs and a dominant photo, which serves as both the image of reference for the main story and the source of the dominant color which compliments the dramatic blues and dark undertones of the other photos.
All-Florida, 2017 Fall Digital Contests: Summer Spread, Florida Scholastic Press Association
yearbook
newspaper
Our newspaper has endured a swift transition within the past year. In previous years, The Talon utilized traditional newspaper style and formatting. This year, the staff was excited to try something new: tabloid size and formatting. Vying to keep up with trends and evolving styles, our newspaper took a leap of faith by cutting dimensions and starting from scratch. We wanted to create something that was both enticing and informative. We adopted a style that somewhat reflects yearbook layouts with the inclusion of newspaper elements. Each of these pages are from different issues with different focuses. Overall, the layouts and designs were of my making and the staff members of my section added the content. Going from three years of yearbook journalism and adding newspaper was a bit difficult initially. I was having trouble fitting a lot of information on 66x75 dimensions, but the staffers in my section were of great assistance.
I designed this spread at the end of the 2016-2017 school year after the "Momentum" book was released. I presented the spread to the staffers and they thought it would be a great asset to the upcoming book. The student life editor put a twist on the spread by implementing articles of clothing rather than student cutouts in reference to trends on campus.
Our adviser encourages all members of each publication to exercise their creativity by choosing their own templates and modules for their page or spread. A staff member named Bryce needed help getting started with his golf spread and I offered him some advice. Initially, the modules featured on the left page were not there, and the only content was the photos numbered 1-4 and the accompanying copy. I told him that we could drag some module templates onto the page and try to finish the puzzle. He was stumped. I went home that night and implemented a vertical module with photographs from tournaments and implemented a horizontal module with athlete features. Bryce liked the look of the layout and filled them in with content.
Without question, the swim spread was a collaborative effort. Both pages are very busy and at one point I was not certain that the spread would have enough room for a story. After rearranging the spread with my co-Editor in Chief, we decided that horizontal modules and less white space were proficient.
A student life staff member named Valerie and I worked on the homecoming game spread. The modules titled "Fit to Win" and "Top Royalty" feature students who experienced homecoming court for the first time as well as the crowning of the king and queen. Valerie agreed that, after some alterations, the absence of modules on the left page complimented the dominant photo and, following the direction of the eyes in the dominant, the reader is compelled by the modules on the right page.