Intro to Computing // Simple Logo & Resumé

For Intro to Computing’s final project, they built simple personal logos (in Illustrator if necessary) and constructed resumes in InDesign. This project was meant to create an awareness of how much or how little they have accomplished during their first years of college, as well as give them a little experience with logo development and InDesign. Many of the students had not typed a resumé before, and they found this project useful as they prepare to apply for part-time jobs and post-graduate jobs.  The layout needed to be organized, easy to read, and fluid with a sense of style. Creating hierarchy with text was a new challenge for most of them, as they have not taken any typography courses.

In addition to the course project, we appreciated the resumé presentation given by Ryan Colvin of Mississippi State University’s Career Center.

Below are some resume examples that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was pleased with their results at this level of their education.

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website. Contact info is purposely fake for their protection.

by Carson Brantley

by Elizabeth Gammill

by Julia Thompson

by Madison Wigginton

by Whitney White, page 1

by Whitney White, page 2

Design I // Stop Motion Animation Final

For Design I’s final project, we focused on time and motion. With technology speeding ahead these days, it is beneficial to challenge students to try this as a school project.

Students had to produce a one-minute stop motion animation consisting of photography and sound. Creativity wise, the sky was the limit! The best video-editing software available to them were Apple iMovie and Windows Movie Maker. The more frames per second that were compiled, the smoother the video appeared. To put this into perspective, the Wallace & Gromit 30-minute shorts were shot close to 20 frames per second, adding up to be around 35,000 shots per video. That’s a bit extreme for my students, so they were encouraged to place at least two frames per second. We also watched short films by Disney and Tim Burton, and the hilarious YouTube classic “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On“.

It was a challenge for students to work on an art project of this scale, especially if they were new to Apple iMovie & Windows Movie Maker video-editing software. However, they were very proud of themselves for figuring out such a feat. We had a lot of fun in both sections eating snacks and watching everyone’s videos, and celebrating the end of another school year!

Below are some examples of what was submitted. So turn up your audio and be entertained by these one-minute shorts!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

2 sections:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Design I // Texture

For Design I’s fifth project, we focused on texture. Students collected an assortment of black and white textures including…
• found (photography, magazines, books)
• rubbed (charcoal rubbing of physical texture on paper)
• created (using a range of mediums to invent a texture).

Then they collaged and glued them together into a quilt block pattern of their choice. They had to be precise and mindful of their workmanship. Since they were working with a grid and pattern, slight mistakes would be noticeable.

Below are some of the composition sets that were submitted. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

by Breanna Rochelle

by Landen Rucker

by Lexi Bennett

by Olivia Lewis

by Bess Reilly

by Samantha Marshall

by Taylor Fikes

by Wes Edgeworth

by Willie Griffin

by Kaleb Baker

Intro to Computing // Impossible Reality

For my students’ first Photoshop project, I wanted them to think outside the box and create an “Impossible Reality”. They had to gather their original photography and make new photos as needed to compose their surreal image. The main artist of inspiration was Eric Johansson. He is an incredible Photoshop artist, but also kind enough to post photos and videos to demonstrate his entire process, which is great for beginners to see. Like Eric, they needed to produce an image that tricks the eye to appear realistic.

Below are some examples that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

by Carson Brantley

by Elizabeth Gammill

by Hunter Smith

by Tori Mullins

by Julia Thompson

by Shannon Shepherd

by Whitney White

Intro to Computing Art // OMG American Gods

For students to refine their skills using Adobe Illustrator’s Pen Tool, my students accepted the challenge of the OMG project, as in “Oh my gosh, this is so challenging and time consuming!” But the effort is well worth the outcome.

The theme was to recreate a god or goddess in modern society. Students researched Greek, Roman, and Aztec mythological figures to learn about their core characteristics, and brainstormed how to apply them in our current culture.

They photographed themselves, friends, or family as their models. Then they used that photo as a template to make a vector illustration in Adobe Illustrator.  Tiny solid shapes make up the entirety of the photo to make a realistic representation.  They spent about three weeks on the project. The process is like creating a digital painting! Below are some examples that were turned in. I also included the outline imagery of a couple illustrations to show the number of shapes that were created to make up the compositions. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results! These illustrations are sure to blow your mind!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Aditi by Madison Wigginton

(Outline of shapes)

Hera by Carson Brantley

Venus by Caylee Hubbard

Apollo by Darren Cheairs

Hecate by Elizabeth Gammill

Athena by Grayson Brown

Loki by Rebecca Bailey

Apollo by Whitney White

Intro to Computing // Simple Logo & Resumé

Fall 2016: For Intro to Computing’s final project, they built simple personal logos (in Illustrator if necessary) and constructed resumes in InDesign. This project was meant to create an awareness of how much or how little they have accomplished during their first years of college, as well as give them a little experience with logo development and InDesign. Many of the students had not typed a resumé before, and they found this project useful as they prepare to apply for part-time jobs and post-graduate jobs.  The layout needed to be organized, easy to read, and fluid with a sense of style. Creating hierarchy with text was a new challenge for most of them, as they have not taken any typography courses.

As a new addition to the course project, we appreciated the resumé presentation and content critiques by Mississippi State University’s Career Center.

Below are some resume examples that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was pleased with their results at this level of their education.

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website. Contact info is purposely fake for their protection.

3 sections

by Ashley Rude

by Austin Smith

by Carly Bond

by Hannah Livingston 1/2

by Hannah Livingston 2/2

by Kaitlyn Upton

by Kennedy Caldwell

by April Porter

by Bethany Smith

by Gerald Wicks

by Laura Leigh Hicks 1/2

by Laura Leigh Hicks 2/2

by Mary Emily Moore

by Parker Webb

by Allie Hanson 1/2

by Allie Hanson 2/2

by Meredith Morris

by Morgan Helton

by Ques Nevels

Design I // Texture

Fall 2016: For Design I’s fourth project, we focused on texture. Students collected an assortment of black and white textures including…
• found (photography, magazines, books)
• rubbed (charcoal rubbing of physical texture on paper)
• created (using a range of mediums to invent a texture).

Then they collaged and glued them together into a quilt block pattern of their choice. They had to be precise and mindful of their workmanship. Since they were working with a grid and pattern, slight mistakes would be noticeable.

Below are some of the composition sets that were submitted. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

by Anna Terry

by Ashtyn Carpenter

by Karleigh Harfst

by Mary Katherine Swindoll

by Megan Henry

by Meghan Norman

by Melissa Sones

Intro to Computing // Impossible Reality

Fall 2016: For my students’ first Photoshop project, I wanted them to think outside the box and create an “Impossible Reality”. They had to gather their original photography and make new photos as needed to compose their surreal image. The main artist of inspiration was Eric Johansson. He is an incredible Photoshop artist, but also kind enough to post photos and videos to demonstrate his entire process, which is great for beginners to see. Like Eric, they needed to produce an image that tricks the eye to appear realistic.

Below are some examples that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

by Bryce Sheasby

by Hannah Livingston

by Kaitlyn Upton

by Brittany Riland

by Gerald Wicks

by Olivia Ketchum

by Allie Hanson

by Ann Gray Flowers

by Canaan Griffin

by Ques Nevels

Intro to Computing Art // OMG American Gods

Fall 2016: For students to refine their skills using Adobe Illustrator’s Pen Tool, my students accepted the challenge of the OMG project, as in “Oh my gosh, this is so challenging and time consuming!” But the effort is well worth the outcome.

In the past the theme has been to recreate a movie scene.  This semester to mix things up, the theme was to recreate a god or goddess in modern society. Students researched Greek, Roman, and Aztec mythological figures to learn about their core characteristics, and brainstormed how to apply them in our current culture.

They photographed themselves, friends, or family as their models. Then they used that photo as a template to make a vector illustration in Adobe Illustrator.  Tiny solid shapes make up the entirety of the photo to make a realistic representation.  They spent about three weeks on the project. The process is like creating a digital painting! Below are some examples that were turned in. I also included the outline imagery of a couple illustrations to show the number of shapes that were created to make up the compositions. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results! These illustrations are sure to blow your mind!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Huitzilopochtli by Moesha Wright

(Outline of shapes)

Apollo by Allie Hanson

(Outline of shapes)

Poseidon by Kaitlyn Upton

Aeolus by April Porter

Aphrodite by Bethany Smith

Dionysus by Gerald Wicks

Karpo by Mary Emily Moore

Hephaestus by Parker Webb

Dionysus by Ryan Guillory

Hekate by Canaan Griffin

Hermes by Josie Goodman

Ninkasi by Meredith Morris

Demeter by Morgan Helton

Aphrodite by Taylor Knight

Design I // Shape

Fall 2016: For Design I’s second project, we focused on geometric and organic shapes. Students constructed 3 compositions: 1 for all geometric, 1 for all organic, and 1 for a combination of geometric and organic. The medium used to depict these shapes was black construction paper, and good craftsmanship was emphasized. They also had to implement the elements and principles of design in their work.

Below are some of the composition sets that were submitted. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Combo by Anna Terry

Geometric by Anna Terry

Combo by Ashtyn Carpenter

Organic by Ashtyn Carpenter

Combo by Caroline Fitzwater

Geometric by Elise Sears

Combo by Hayden Hunt

Geometric by Hayden Hunt

Combo by Megan Henry

Geometric by Megan Henry

Combo by Megan Norman

Organic by Megan Norman

Combo by Melissa Sones

Geometric by Melissa Sones