Major Project Update.... Ugh.

Major Project Update.... Ugh.

Wow. As I just mentioned in my Productivity blog, it turns out I can barely learn Photoshop in the time I can allot for this Major project - let alone the 3 programs I had intended on.  These programs are so complicated nowadays.  They are definitely more for professional editing than for introducing middle-schoolers to graphic design.  Or mildly experienced future art teachers.  I was starting to get frustrated with Photoshop, so I decided to work on my logo in Illustrator.  Ho. Ly. Cow. 


I know exactly what I want my final logo to look like. I could even draw it out for you!  I have all the elements I need, it's just that I can't get the program to do what I want. I spent several hours trying it myself. I thought of a name, a slogan... I found and downloaded a font - a first for me! But that's where the successes ended. 

I've perused YouTube, referred to Adobe's Help resources there's even an Illutrator Logo design help, even had a short pow- wow with my graphic designer resource person.  We literally sat in front of my laptop for an hour messing with it.  All I want is for the pink text to be incorporated into the bottom arch of the oval - like interrupt the line but continue the shape visually.  I kid you not, we couldn't do it! He kept saying how un-intuitive the Illustrator program is. 

Apparently he uses something called Corel and he said this would take 3 minutes in that program.  He even showed me where the buttons would be to do it! Seriously - we could get the text to link to the shape.  We could get it to "flip". We got it to rotate (the wrong way). But it was impossible to get the text in to the right position, facing the right way.  Very frustrating. I don't know if I'll be able to really become familiar with both of these programs by the end of this project. I will give it a go. I've got no choice!  But I just wanted to update you all... this is not going well!!!  I'm going to try that Lynda program he told me about - maybe that will help! At this point, it couldn't hurt. Because there's more I want to do - manipulate the "Good Witch" text, make the "W" look like a wand with the star serving as the dot for the "i" - but I need the oval the way I want it first!   I'm half tempted to just try to do the logo in Photoshop and devote the project to just Photoshop. There's certainly enough to learn that it would be a thorough learning experience. 

I think the problem is that this is ALL so "un-intuitive" for me.  Normally in creative endeavors I know my medium.  I know how to use a brush and paint and turpentine and linseed oil to make a great portrait.  It's not easy by any means.  It takes me months to end up with a painting I'm proud of.  But it's all about experimenting and seeing just what my medium can do. What effects I can achieve.

See, this stuff I can do!!!

With this Photoshop, Illustrator thing I already have a finished product in my head and I can't figure out how to use this blasted "medium" (my computer) to make it a reality.  A painting evolves.  I have a general concept but just go with the creative flow as I work.  With this graphic design stuff I am trying to do such specific actions to achieve an image I already have planned.  A professional can do it (with the right software, apparently), that's how they work - taking client's vision and making it real.  An amateur like me is just getting overwhelmed.  It's hard because I don't know how to word exactly what it is I'm trying to do in order to find the resources to instruct me.  

I'm trying to remind myself this is my first "blended learning" class, that I've never tried to teach myself something techy completely unsupervised. As much as I've enjoyed the class-and-blog combo for this class... as far as Adobe goes, perhaps a self-directed learning exploration of this medium was not the way to go.  This might be more of a thing I need an instructor over my shoulder, pointing things out and explaining... answering my specific questions.  Hopefully I figure this out soon, because I'm running out of time.