Rationale

Over the first 12 units, I have aquired many different skills and made a lot of progress. At the start of the year, I didn’t know how to use much of the Adobe software and couldn’t manage my time well. This led to be getting behind easily. However, during my time of this course I learnt how to edit video and audio, make illustrations and create brand identities. This has opened many opportunities for me to persue realistically for my FMP. When chosing what project to do, I looked back on my experience on my course and what I found enjoyable and what I was proud of. Whereas there was parts of other projects I liked, I think that the album cover project covers the media that I find enjoyable such as photography and photo editing. This allows me to have more creative freedom and draws on my experience from the earlier of the 12 units where we took photos in studios and on site. This was by far my favourite project as photography and illustration are big passions of mine and the chance to possibly persue both was something I couldn’t pass up. Another essential skill that I learned over the year is my ability to manage and complete my work. This is a very important skill to know for an equally important project, and definitely shows my growth as a student and an artist as I really struggled with deadlines.

Project Concept

For this project, I have been approached by the indie band Poet's Corner. They asked for a album cover design that appeals to the target audience of older British teenagers. I will be creating 2 different designs for my album cover, including a front and back cover so I can show more information such as track lists. Using different designs allows me to experiment with my creativity and the clients requests. I will be making the design for vinyl and CD format, with the design being easily translatable to a digital format for streaming and online listening. I wanted to try and experiment and create something unique, something different from the average band photo and fancy font that you see plague other indie and rock albums. The exact concept of what I want to do will change slightly over time, however I know I want to include multiple different programs and possibly the use of mixed media to create something that disrupts the monotonous flow of uninspiring albums and to attract listeners before they’ve even heard the song. Therefore, for my inspiration and research, I have chosen to look at to support its development focuses on looking back on the past for inspiration from album covers that were setting trends at the time and styles that were unique to certain periods. In addition to this, I will be researching modern day albums as a part of my inspiration, but also my market research as it shows what designs are popular and attention-grabbing when compared to streaming statistics. Obviously this isn’t a direct correlation, but its extra evidence to help influence me in my final design.

When producing the album cover, I will need lots of resources to create something that aligns with my creative vision. This includes: a camera, editing software (Photoshop, Illustrator, Lightroom), and studio access to showcase the band. Throughout the process of experimentation and making of the cover, I will utilise peer feedback to help refine the technical aspects of my design and show me an idea of audience reception to my cover design. I will get this feedback using questionnaires and podcasts to produce a natural but concise response. This helps me to better cater to the target audience when my cover is finished. I will use independent study to research things like the history of album covers and the varying designs based on genre and other factors.

The style I am aiming for with this album cover is a mix of realism and abstract design, incorporating mixed media and digital techniques to produce something that is a mix of creative styles.

Analysis

I will evaluate my work through the use of blogs and personal evaluations to help me reflect on every stage of the project. This will allow me to look back on my research, idea development, and production thoroughly and in regular intervals. By evaluating regularly, I can identify mistakes and unproductive habits that reside within my work habits or techniques and will therefore benefit the project as a whole. Another element that I will be utilising in my evaluation is the documentation of my decision making process. I will be doing this through blog posts every week to show the step-by-step processes I undertake to create my final project, and all the research and experimentation that comes along with it.

Time Plan

The time plan helps me plan and organise the 10 weeks I have to do my FMP. I have made sure that I didn't have much unproductive time, as this allows me to spread all my work over a more reasonable amount of time and avoiding things like burnout. There is a gap in the middle of the time plan to accommodate for the Easter break. I decided to plan a few things for over the easter break, as it would hopefully make things easier for me later on in the project.