Photoshop Is My Best Friend

Being in charge of graphics for my Department while at school has allowed me to master the technique of balancing my time efficiently. Work that I am assigned for my job is similar to homework in that there are deadlines, but the hours that I am required to work are semi-flexible and tailored to my schedule. Ongoing projects that I am responsible for involve creating all graphics for the band we manage, Colour of London. Examples of graphics include the lyric of the day, fan of the week, and upcoming show/tour announcements. All of these graphics are created using a consistent sized template based off where the graphic will be placed. 

My first question when starting a graphic is what is it's intention? Is it for social media purposes, for print, or for digital viewing? Knowing the destination of the graphic is crucial because it determines what size the graphic will be which then determines how much content can be included. For example, if I am going to create a social media graphic, I am going to make it the appropriate size of an image that pops up on your Facebook feed, so that way all of the information is visible to the viewer without them even having to click on it. Similarly, if I am going to make an email blast, the graphic has to be appropriately sized. Like a Facebook graphic, I want most of the information to be viewable without even having to scroll down to view more, so I want the dimensions of the graphic to encompass the size of a standard email message. This automatic visibility improves the attention rate of the viewer and captures their attention faster. With advertising, everything you create has to capture a viewer's attention fast, almost instantaneously, or else it forgotten and the viewer is lost. Working in advertising, whether it be digital or print, enhances your eye for detail, nothing can go unnoticed, everything has to be justifiable and accounted for. 

This week I am creating seven lyric of the day's (one for each day), one fan of the week (that has a standard template with the fan's picture and name added each week), an email blast, revising a promo package that I have been working on for about two months now, and revising show announcements as the tour dates are confirmed. The newest addition to the Entertainment Department started this week, and she will be taking over managing the band's social media that includes creating/curating content, scheduling posts for the week, and analyzing the trends of our engagement and following. While I was on Co-op, this was part of my responsibility, however as tasks become more demanding, my job has shifted to designing and creating all of our Entertainment graphics. I can already tell that the addition of an official social media manager is going to help our Department a great deal because there are not enough hours in the day for me and my co-worker to dedicate to social media after all of the work we have on our plates! This addition will allow each one of us to focus our attention on what we are best at and will make us a better team for it. I am excited to see what she brings to the table! And I am so excited to see my Department expanding!

An example of a Lyric Of The Day used for social media