Thanks to this project I learned the importance of photo editing and the value of proper lighting. When photos had better lighting it was much easier to edit. Proper lighting not only improves the quality of the image but also creates an opportunity for a greater variety of editing choices.

2. What was easy?

I found that manipulating the image using levels, curves, saturation, etc. was particularly easy. It was a simple yet powerful way to improve the quality of the images

3. What was challenging?

I found that using the stamp tool and the healing tool to fix this photo of Saint Basil in Russia was challenging. I wanted to remove all the construction materials from the photo. It took a very long time because it was very easy to make a mistake and redo the same portion-time and time again. 

4. How could your submission be improved?

Taking the time to learn about other tools in Photoshop would definitely improve my submission. I also believe learning to properly take pictures and frame objects would have helped my submission look more professional.

5. How could the professor improve the assignment for the next class?

The assignment was fairly straightforward and fun. However, more time to work on it would have been much better especially since school computers can be hard to come by.

6. How might you apply your knowledge in future assignments or work scenarios?

Every time I submit photo assignments I will make sure to make them look better every time even if that is not the primary goal. The small improvements can really make a piece look complete.

7. How did a specific reading or video inspire or help you?

I did not really read or watch a video that inspired or helped me.

1. Identify a popular CRM and conduct a QA analysis. 
   1. Is it easy to complete basic tasks? How many steps/swipes/clicks does it take to complete the task on a desktop computer? What about on a phone?
      1. I used Hub Spot as the CRM that I conducted a QA analysis on. It took me a few steps to find the reset password. Generally, with most apps I have found it difficult to navigate to find the place to reset the password. 
   2. Are there any issues that make the app difficult to use? Can you imagine a person who might find aspects of the app inaccessible?
      1. I feel that the main group of people who would find it difficult to navigate would be the older generations, but that seems to be a side effect of not growing up with this kind of technology. It can be difficult to understand the icons. 
2. Identify a target demographic and list requirements. This can be a club, your family, friends, classmates, any group that can be described with specific characteristics, such as age, interests, location, ailments, social/economic challenges, etc.
   1. The target demographic for my app would be people who are in long-distance relationships. This can include anyone but I would expect an age range from 18-25 years old. 
3. Identify at least one useability, accessibility, and/or a technical issue you will address in your design. This should come from your QA analysis.
   1. My main usability issue as to how to find the place to reset the password. During my QA analysis of the Hub Spot, I felt frustrated because I could not find it for a long time. It was under security and then I even needed to scroll down. Since portions of the webpage stayed in place during the scrolling process, it did not click with me that I even needed to scroll. 
4. Identify at least one new feature you will integrate in your design.
   1. My new feature includes the location of your contacts, the forums, and pinned messages. Pinned messages include specific forum messages or personal messages that the user would want to highlight. I also believe my concept for a CRM is also fairly unique.

Post Project Questions:

1. What did you learn? I learned a lot from this project. I learned how difficult it is to make something, especially when uninspired. I learned to allow myself to take time and think about possible solutions. Most of my ideas came to me while I was walking. I also learned how to utilize different effects and shadows to polish the final look of my app. Before I added a shadow it looked tacky but afterward, I felt more confident in how it looked.
2. What was easy? The easiest section to design was messaging. I have seen a plethora of different messaging apps and many of them are already well designed. I implemented many ideas that felt natural for me, making it the easiest.
3. What was challenging? The sorting system was one of the more challenging concepts for me. My CRM is in its nature different since it is all about long-distance relationships. Because of this, it uses different groups as the main way of sorting individuals. I found it difficult to conceptualize the most straightforward sorting system for the groups I felt were most important for my CRM.
4. How could your submission be improved? I really liked using components but I do not think I used them to the best of my ability. As I was working on the final touches I needed to move something that was on each frame but I did not make a component and I needed to change each frame. I also feel that with more time I would add more features to the app, especially in the menu section of it. Right now there is only a reset password feature, but with more time I would add more to the different sections of security.
5. How could I improve the assignment for the next class? Like the previous question, I would add more features. I would also probably use Maze again to do some more testing to see what else I could change. 
6. How might you apply your knowledge in future assignments or work scenarios? One idea that I will definitely apply is to start early. I slowly worked through ideas over the course of three weeks. Some nights were definitely longer than others but I did not feel overwhelmed closer to the deadline. I would also definitely use the component aspect of Figma. It was so nice to only need to fix one thing, and then everything else would change as well. It saved so much time and a lot of hair-pulling. 
7. How did a specific reading or video inspire or help you? The video that most inspired me was the Netflix movie The Social Dilemma. I wanted my CRM to be more specific for the user, with no companies for which the information is being used for. It is for the users and only the users.  
8. Comments:
   1. I have a few personal comments on my work. First of all, I would utilize version saving. I did not do it because I just counted on the autosave. The problem that occurred for me is that I changed the messaging logo but I can not show how I changed it because I did not save the earlier versions of it. 
   2. Also, I did use AB testing at the beginning of the project. However, this was before I knew of Maze. So I just asked my friends in person. I do not have a report on it. For the most part, I used it for the color scheme. The original colors were purple and pink or green and pink. All but one of my friends chose pink and green so I continued with that.

Maze Report

Project 1 Figma

What did you learn?

This project really helped my understanding of the gestalt principles. It’s one thing to hear a lecture on it or read an article, but it is entirely different to put these concepts into use. I never knew there was a rule of thirds but following this rule really makes a huge difference when making the frames look aesthetically pleasing.

What was easy?

Using figma was pretty easy compared to my previous exposure to Adobe Illustrator. It was very user friendly to use and gave this project an interesting spin. Since I concentrated less on how to use the software, I could focus more on the frames and the ideas conveyed by the frames themselves.

What was challenging?

I have never in my life done anything like this project before. Thinking about things abstractly and making this abstract drawing be visually appealing and still have the viewer understand where I was coming from was a challenge. This project challenged me to think about graphic design in a way I never thought before, from similarity, proximity and continuity. Taking in all ideas I learned from lecture and from the multitudes of articles I read and then bringing the Itsy Bitsy Spider story to life in a creative and interesting manner has been a very fun challenge.

How could your submission be improved?

I feel like my submission has a lot to improve. I feel like still do not have enough understanding on some of gestalts principles, like closer. I tried to use all of the gestalts principles in this project but I do not think I am at a understanding where I can successfully implement all the different rules make my story even more compelling and aesthetically pleasing. So having more time and more experience with these principles when it comes to graphic design would really help my submission.

How can the professor improve the assignment in the future?

It would be interesting if each frame had to represent a gestalt principle as well as a frame from the story. It would really help with each principle since the best way to learn something is to actually physically work with the idea.

How might you apply your knowledge in future assignments or work scenarios?

I am interested in game design and using any ideas from gestalts principles and the thirds rule will always be useful when making different game covers or any design needed. I really enjoy these kinds of design projects, so this knowledge will always be useful for any other design project.

How did a specific reading, video or example inspire or help you?

I really enjoyed Sam Hampton-Smiths article on “The Designer’s guide to Gestalt Theory”. Sam explained each principle in the contact of graphic design today. It was easy to understand and it helped me identify and use the different gestalt principles in my work.