Design is fine, but I'm feeling weary...

Week 4:

It's the fifth week of classes and my final year of college. With graduation fast approaching, it's getting harder and harder to keep myself focused on doing quality work now rather than putting all of my energy into worrying about and fearing the future. I am not usually one to worry for too long. Instead, I have bursts and short periods of worry that pass as soon as I give them permission to. When these periods of worry come over me I like to mentally play the song "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley or pray...which are both a better alternative to pulling out my hair. In regards to IDD 480, I have had a few of these period of worry when it comes to my logo design. The problem is that I don't love my logo as much as I think that I should, seeing as I will be spending a lot of time over the coming weeks with it.

Designing a Digital Portfolio has put so much emphasis on the designer's portfolio (as if this couldn't be determined from it's title...) so naturally, as a hopeful designer I want to put a lot of quality work into the portfolio that I design. I have learned a lot of great tips from this book, such as format and directional suggestions, but I still feel like all of this has to be built off of an overall website design. My fear is that since my logo is so specific right now (it's my name in alphabet refrigerator magnets) my portfolio will also have to be very specific. I want to make sure that I really like the overall design that I come up with for my website, but I am worried that I will not have time to get it just the way that I want it.

On a more positive note, I did learn a lot from chapter four of Designing a Digital Portfolio. I had originally thought that including a lot of my photography would be a good idea for my portfolio site, but after learning about duplicating, dividing, and doubling websites I feel a little differently. I think that the best thing for me to do now is have some photography on my portfolio site and considering doubling it to create another site that is just for photography. I think that I will most likely not create this second site this semester, but keep it in mind for the future in case I decide to one day pursue a career as a wedding photographer or Sears portrait center associate.

I really enjoy the interviews at the end of each chapter in How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul. They make me feel like it's okay that I don't know exactly where I am heading career-wise and reassured that if I continue to pursue my passion or art and design I will eventually find my way into a career that I love. I just hope that this "way finding" occurs sooner than later because I am starting to feel a little anxious!