So here’s mine… I switched up the idea a little by getting each student to hold up their first name instead of fake numbers. This way I had a very convenient visual aid to quickly learn their names with too. Ha!

If interested you can view large versions of these images on flickr.

All feedback welcome!

Ever think up a really nifty ad campaign that you just know your client will love – and does – but then helplessly watch it die on the vine? No reason given is ever good enough is it? Someone gets slightly cold feet and the entire conference room transforms into chaos with everyone 2nd guessing themselves. That’s what happened to this series of ads I created a few years ago. Though I still know they were the perfect answer for the project scope. Oh well. All said and done it’s those same clients paying my salary. All’s good.

For previous Crankin’ for a Cure entries click here.

Another 2010 venture I’ve devoted myself to is my 365 photo project. Everyday I take a photo of something, anything, (everything?). My theme features a different color every month – ie: January was white (above), February is orange, March could be green, maybe metallic or blue… I haven’t decided yet but you get the idea. It’s these types of projects that keep my creative thoughts flowing and also strengthen my design work. This exercise in particular has made me much more observant of my surroundings and I’m finding I brainstorm photo ideas wherever I go. I approach photography the same way I’d sketch out a design layout. I look for interesting patterns, contrasting light and dark areas, different typography, balancing angles, opposing textures, etc. Then I select subjects that intrigue me the most.

You can view the whole images up close here: Brand A Day

Company names, trademarks and trade names are the trademarks or trade names of their respective owners.

Did you know the Starbucks Coffee name came from Herman Melville’s 1851 novel Moby-Dick?

In the famous American tale Starbuck is Captain Ahab’s first mate on the whaleship Pequod. One of the coffee company’s original founders (there were 3) was a big fan of Moby-Dick and wanted to name the business “Pequod” but his colleagues nixed the idea. They thought the company should represent more of the Seattle, Washington area and liked the name “Starbo.” This was the name of an old-time mining camp on Mt. Rainer and both partners thought it was perfect. Not to be outwitted, “Starbo” reminded our Moby-Dick fan of “Starbuck” and the “Starbucks Coffee” name was born.