I have a terrible cold...

and I would LOVE if any of you were willing to critique my comp for assignment 1 via blogspot. 

I created a bit of a National Geographic/National Geographic Traveler hybrid-design. The dimensions and the positioning of the elements on the page is very much like National Geographic and the type styles are inspired by Traveler. I chose the feature image because I liked that it was candid and it looked as though the farmer pictured was really working. The two additional items are a short bio on the farmer and a recommended blend. 

Thanks in advance for any comments, suggestions or feedback! 

Concept

I've always enjoyed the branding of Honest Tea.

Here's their mission statement: 
Honest Tea seeks to create and promote great-tasting, truly healthy, organic beverages. We strive to grow our business with the same honesty and integrity we use to craft our products, with sustainability and great taste for all. 

While this concept might seem obvious, I enjoy the simplicity of it. The first time I saw the packaging I thought– MAN! I wish I had come up with that. It's also one of the better bottled teas, honestly!

The Secret Law of Page Harmony

I've been working with one of the Graduate Associates in my office on a publication she''s been asked to layout. After one of our chats, she shared this really cool animation with me stressing the importance of grids in page layout.

In 13th century France, an architect named Villard de Honnecourt used the same methods for developing structures in laying out the pages of his workshop record book.

You can learn more about this particular grid method here.

National Geographic Traveler

I decided to share some screen grabs from National Geographic Traveler. It's a beautiful publication– I would love to see National Geographic implement some of the styles Traveler uses. It features a really nice mix of serif and sans-serif typefaces and utilizes the photography in a much more thoughtful way. I'm excited to combine the elements from National Geographic and Traveler into my layouts for project 1. 

Show & Tell: Process

Food Writing and Photography

I chose this letter from the editor in Cooking Light as my example of good food writing because I liked the image it created in my mind of chefs and staff members sitting around a table critiquing recipes. I particularly like this sentence, "Opinions vary, and we talk and talk."— It seems to break the rules in a way Constance Hale would appreciate.

I selected these two photos as examples of beautiful food photography for completely different reasons. I love the geometry of the lattice work on the top of the pie and think it was really smart to center the dessert in on the page, in a rectangular dish. The only think disrupting the geometry of the composition is the portion missing. Even the spoon is positioned in a straight line.

The photo below is all organic shapes and asymmetry. The plates bleed of the edges of the page, the fork and knife are offset. Even the food is positioned on the plate at an angle.

Project 1: Phase 1.5

As soon as I read the description for Assignment 1, I knew I would seek out an ingredient linked to an exotic place, a social issue or a health benefit. For my publication, I've chosen National Geographic.
I like the dimensions of the magazine and the opportunities it gives me in terms of photography.

IDEA 1:

Ingredient: Coffee

Audience: International Coffee-drinkers/buyers

Purpose: Increase awareness of the benefits of fair trade coffee. Fair trade coffee is purchased at a higher price, from growers with better working conditions. Points of interest could include a general picture of conditions on a coffee farm, typical number of hours worked, wages earned, a description of workers home-lives. Cost of coffee vs. the cost of production/farming.

Possible interesting ways to accomplish this: 
- How much a cup of coffee does for you, how little it does for farmers?
- Compare the average cost of a cup of coffee to the hourly wages of coffee farmers.
- Some comparison of the environments we typically enjoy a cup of coffee in vs. the conditions of a coffee farm.
- Guilt-free coffee, added joy in knowing you've purchased from a responsible grower.

Additional Items: Profile of a coffee farmer and statistics on worldwide coffee consumption- maybe a graph or chart.

Links/Sources:
http://www.fairtradeusa.org/products-partners/coffee?gclid=CJ3lm7y_s7ICFYhM4AodLH8A3w
http://www.globalexchange.org/fairtrade/coffee/cooperatives
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade_coffee#Popularity
http://www.thenation.com/article/169515/brawl-over-fair-trade-coffee#

ADDITIONAL IDEAS (coffee variations): 

1. Discuss health benefits and risks associated with coffee and choose a medical publication (it's more likely that benefits outweigh risks.)

2. Target leading coffee industries rather than individual consumers and discuss how corporations could benefit from buying from fair trade growers- is it worth it?

The velvety-smooth bisque's unctuous mouthfeel is lobster-tastic with its toothsome tidbits. To. Die. For.

I came across this article while searching the web for some good examples of food writing: Stick a Fork in ‘Em: Which Food-Writing Clichés Should We Toss Out Forever?

I thought it was pretty amusing, so I've decided to open my blog with some helpful hints for our first writing assignment, courtesy of Alan Systma at Grub Street. Check it out! Personally, I was thrilled to see "epic" made the list.  I certainly hope I never encounter a meal as painful as reading The Odyssey in 7th grade.

In addition to the article, Grub Street hosted a little competition allowing followers to tweet the most obnoxious food writing sentence they could come up with. My favorite of the three winners is featured as the title of this post.

I'll close now with Dilbert. He shows us why we should avoid speaking in cliche food-terms.