Module 6 CP - Home Page & Navigation System, Final Project (Part 2)

This is my redesign of the home page and donate page for The House of the Good Shepherd. The current pages can be found at www.hgs-utica.com. I wanted to simplify them significantly and change the color scheme. I also wanted to get rid of the plethora of links that find their way onto the home page now and segregate it into a few different categories.

The home page includes a little bit of information about The House as well as all the ways that someone can follow us online. The three links at the top would be drop downs that would give the website visitor an option to select from many categories to learn more about the organization. For the landing/home page I just wanted something simple and bright.

The donate page is also very simple with just a few links at the top. From what I have found in my nearly 10 years raising money for non-profits, the best way to get someone to give is to directly connect them to what their donation can accomplish. People usually do not like to give directly to general operating expenses but if they can see with their own eyes what the impact is of their donation they will give more and give more often. I tried to keep the page itself simple with just a few images and very little text.

Module 6 - Part 1 - Website Design Sketches

The timing on this project is actually really good. I just started working for The House of the Good Shepherd about 2 months ago. We just contracted with a really talented agency named Trainor and Associates (http://www.trainor.com/). We are going to be paying them to rework our logo (not change it but we are going to be changing the coloring) and redo our website.

I want to be prepared to show them what my vision is (though my work will obviously not be as well done as theirs) when we meet next week to start the 3-4 month process of re-imagining our image. As the Director of Development and Communications the landing page and the donate page are the two most important ones for me.

I will lay out with my limited Photoshop skills the way that I would like to have the landing page and donate page look so that when we meet with Trainor they will have some idea on what I would like to see. I am going to change the color of the logo and the color scheme from what we have on our current website (www.changingchildrenslives.com). On the donate page, I want to add some functionality for them to go to a page that lists our various special events, a page that takes them to planned giving (which includes large gifts, wills and bequests) and then a link for them to donate online. Though of course these links will not actually go anywhere in this design.

Below the links on the donate page I would like to show potential donors what their donation can do. I always have been a big proponent of connecting a donor's gift amount with something specific that it can accomplish. I have not decided for sure yet on what the amounts and links will be. I just put in a few gift amounts and a few things that they might be able to do with the gift amounts and I will refine that when I actually make the pages in the next few days.

Photomontage - Avatar - Part 2

I originally was going to do a zombie hunter but I wanted to make some adjustments to his face so I made a zombie instead. I found the background and the lower half of his face along with the photo of Luke Evans online. I then merged them all together for this image.

I also added some tearing to the skin on the forehead and cheek and darkened his eyes quite a bit to make them look almost black with a hint of the iris in them. It would not have been realistic to change his eye size to make him into a zombie so I did not do that. 

Photomontage for Module 5 - Fantasy Avatar

For the fantasy avatar project I have two sketches. These are each characters that I use in various online games. The first avatar is for a character that I have for an online game that is set up much like The Walking Dead. Post zombie apocalypse.

The model for this avatar is Luke Evans, he was in Dracula Untold and various other movies. In the background I would place a post apocalyptic type skyline, to the right of the frame would be a set of shambling zombies and the main character would be on the left side. Under the entire image I would place the character's name which is Victor Cain.

The second avatar is for a barbarian character that I use in Diablo III. Though in both of these cases I don't actually need avatars I think that since I have spent time building the characters that it might be fun to put together something to visualize them.

This avatar is for a character named Exavier Exeter. The model would be Jason Mamoa from Conan the Barbarian. I would have mountains or some other scene like that in the background and then to the lower right I would insert some sort of a battle scene. I would place the name on the avatar in the center. 

I am not sure which I like better at this point but I am leaning towards the zombie hunter character.

Final Book Cover Photomontage for Module 4

Photomontage for Module 4 - Book cover for a band

This book cover would be for one of my favorite bands since I was in college, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. I have loved their music which to me is reminiscent of old folk music with new sounds mixed in. I think Bela Fleck describes it the best by saying, "I think the Flectones are a mixture of acoustic and electronic music with a lot of roots in folk and bluegrass as well as funk and jazz." I was able to see them several times when I was in college and I think that Victor Wooten may be the most talented bass player I have ever heard.

The front cover of the book would include their name with one of the interesting font styles that they use on their album covers. Below that I would include their trademark spaceship but instead of using the point that they usually use on it I would use the head of a banjo. Then below this creation I would add a picture of them on stage with a group of fans around it.

For the spine of the book I would have Flecktones, their regular trademark spaceship without the banjo head and then my last name. I would have the thrusters from the spaceship carry over to the back cover just a bit.

On the back cover I would include a picture of the band at the top. Probably a promotional picture if I can find one that I like. Below that would be the quote that I referenced above. At the bottom would be the members of the band along with what instruments that they play.

I may decide to work something into the background as well but it will depend on how the entire project looks when I have it finished. At this point the background will be black but I may change my mind in final production.

Final Photomontage for Module 3