OUIL405 Visual Narratives Module Evaluation

Throughout this module, I have drastically developed my research and digital skills. For example, during the research stage, I sketched from observation and collected information about a specific topic just by visiting different locations and studying people. My digital skills have improved with my new knowledge of InDesign - a program that I hadn't heard of before and I now feel confident using. I also pushed myself with creating illustrations in Photoshop - creating a different aesthetic which I have never tried before and using different tools such as the Cintiqs.
The research stage really informed my work because I collected people's opinions as well as collecting observations. As the concept of my book (mobile phone addiction) was greatly influenced by opinion, it was important to talk to my peers, gather facts and opinions in order to decide on the content of the illustrations.

Across this module I think my biggest strength was the research and informing/creating a concept for a book. It had been a long time since I did any in-depth research to inform a project and I feel it's really important to creating anything with any sort of meaning. I used different methods of research than I would usually use, for example, rather than using the internet as my sole source of information, I used simple things such as observational drawing and questionnaires to inform myself of my subject.

Although it may not be a strength - more of a personal achievement - I feel as though I created work of a higher standard than I have previously submitted. This is something I was really conscious of from the offset of this project and so throughout I tried to be really disciplined with my image making and presentation. As book binding was a new skill for me, I chose the binding I was most confident with and decided not to make a hard-back cover because I knew I still needed more practise.

My biggest weakness from this module would be the lack of visual developmental work I produced. I could have experimented with different media and image making processes. Through more experimentation I could have taken my illustrations in a different direction and possibly developed the whole concept the my book further. This is an area I have previously lacked in, so I will make a conscious effort to explore it in future projects.

If I were to do this project again and for any future projects, I would make the research a priority to begin with,  so I can develop a solid concept to expand on. I found it really useful to look at other illustrators work before I started making my own illustrations. It made me thing about the tone of voice I wanted to portray, the colour palettes I might use and a general consideration of frame/format.
Although I am pleased with the work I produced using Photoshop, I don't think the tone of voice I created really suited me as an illustrator. I tried to portray humor and I don't feel as if it worked. I don't know what my tone of voice is as an illustrator yet but I will continue to explore and try something new in each project.
My main concern about my work is the quality. However, if I compare the work from this module to work from the beginning of the year, I can already see how much I have improved, so this will always be an ongoing target.

I have learnt many new skills in this module and I am gradually learning about myself as an illustrator. I am starting to get to grips with what my strengths are and where I need to focus my attention is future projects. My goal for any future work is to explore different ways of image making and to not rely on just one method throughout a whole project. I want to create some kind of synthesis between my personal work/interests and the work I produce for briefs. I want to feel proud of all the work I produce and push myself to create better illustrations whilst still being flexible with my tone of voice.