My Portfolio
Welcome to my portfolio. Here you’ll find a selection of my work. Explore my projects to learn more about what I do.
DESIGN
Design was something that I really started to dive into my junior year when I became Editor-in-Chief of the Catalyst. Through learning the ropes of Adobe InDesign I started to breathe life into my ideas, creating visually compelling content for our newspaper. Experimenting with layouts, graphics and photos InDesign became my canvas for creativity, enhancing not only the visual appeal but also the storytelling impact of our publication. Through the world of design, I have not only expressed myself artistically, but have added a dimension to my role as a high school journalist.
NEWSPAPER
Becoming the Editor-in-Chief of the Catalyst newspaper was a transformative experience for me, particularly with my newfound love for design. My junior year marked the beginning of an exciting journey where I immersed myself in the intricacies of Adobe In-Design, unlocking a passion for layout and design that I never knew I had. The hours I spent in front of my desktop, meticulously arranging content, crafting engaging infographics and strategically placing photos, became moments of creative joy. The satisfaction of receiving the final product in print was unparalleled. Design, for me, transcended beyond a task—it became an expression of my commitment to delivering a polished and visually appealing newspaper to the Millard West community. Take a look below to see some of my favorite pages that I designed for the Catalyst newspaper.
DESIGN PROCESS
When designing newspaper pages, I first start off by looking for inspiration. I find many ideas throughout several types of media: magazines, local print papers and even social media apps. Pinterest and Instagram have proven to be great avenues of design inspiration. After mentally taking notes of ideas I begin to lay them out on paper. Below is an example of a Pinterest board I started for our newspaper.
As I begin to create the layout for my pages, I sketch out everything that needs to be placed. With my pen and pencil I create the boxes for future photos and lines for stories. After drawing it on paper, I then transfer it over to Adobe InDesign and create the base for the pages(where content waits to be placed).
After designing the layout on paper, I transfer it into Adobe InDesign. I create green boxes and spaces for potential photos and text. Then after, the stories in published online, I go in and copy and paste the article into its designated space.
After sending our layouts to the printer, we patiently wait for the finished product to be delivered to our school. There is truly no better feeling than getting the fresh copies of the newspaper back and flipping through the pages and cherishing the hard work and dedication that went into it.
YEARBOOK SPREADS
After discovering my newfound love for design, I decided to take the dicey jump and drop my Law Studies elective and pick up Yearbook. With the hope to expand my editing and design skills I embarked on my story-telling journey through a new lens. I immediately started to create and design spreads, while also picking up a camera to take pictures at all of Millard Wests' sporting events. I continued to place photos, write stories and design utilizing Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. Take a look below to see a few of my favorite spreads I created alongside the Prowler yearbook Editor-in-Chiefs.
REDESIGNING
The first spread below was the original template my partner and I were given from the Prowler yearbook Editor-in-Chiefs and the one below it was our finished product. After dedicating our time to rearranging text boxes and images on Adobe InDesign, we created a spread that incorporated key elements of design—creating a visual show stopper for our audience.
SENIOR TRIBUTES
As the Senior Tribute Editor for the Prowler yearbook I create, design and place all of the content given to us by Millard West parents. Through my design and editing skills I have contributed to making lasting memories for hundreds of families.
INFOGRAPHICS
I've found that the inclusion of infographics in opinion stories has positively enhanced the story itself and provided a more in-depth look at the problem at hand. This dual approach not only allows us to articulate statistics and facts related to our story, but also provides a visually appealing representation of our opinions. Below, you'll see a few of the infographics I've designed(featured in both our online and print publications) showcasing the power of combining written stories with captivating visuals.
ANIMATION
While my design skills flourished in newspaper and yearbook, I had struggled to find a method of incorporating it into broadcasting. Then my partner and I had the idea to make a completely animated Public Service Announcement that would showcase our love for graphic design and art. After devoting days to animating our sketches on the free app "FlipaClip," we were able to create a fully animated PSA that placed 2nd in the Broadcast Public Service Announcement category at NSAA State Journalism.