Reflection

In my pr publications class last week, I learned how to use InDesign and Photoshop. It was a new experience for me and I was definitely nervous. I had wanted to learn the basics to InDesign ever since I learned photoshop this past summer at my internship with OU Medical Center. However, I was still nervous because I wasn’t sure if I would figure it out quickly. After receiving help from the instructor and friends in class, I walked away with a better and more functional understanding of how to use InDesign as well as create better content in Photoshop. The next few paragraphs will explain my assignment and my thoughts throughout.

The entire class was asked to do a typesetting assignment in InDesign and a Photoshop assignment where we combine two photos. For the InDesign assignment, we were shown a picture of a newsletter template and we were told to recreate it from scratch using our new found knowledge in InDesign. For the Photoshop assignment, the class was asked to create a new picture from two separate photos. For me, I chose to take a picture of the NYC skyline with an American flag in the foreground and combine that photo with a bald eagle soaring through the clear, blue sky. I used different photoshop tactics to cut, paste and blend the two different photos to create one.

I believe that I responded quite well. I was nervous and a little apprehensive at first about doing the project well, but after a little while I realized that everyone else was learning too. It was an unfair expectation for me to expect that I could do professional quality work on my first week of InDesign and Photoshop. After I had this realization, I worked much better because I knew that this was a learning process and there was no pressure to perform as well as a professional graphic designer.

I think that my first project in InDesign and my fifth or sixth project in Photoshop went well. They do not look professional quality, but I feel more confident in my ability to use them now after the bootcamp last week. I know that my work is only going to get better and that gives me confidence to keep learning and to further developing my skills. It wasn’t perfect, but I know there is definite room for improvement. All in all, I was pleased with my work, but I am excited to see how I can get better.

Lastly, I think my reaction was like that because I know that I am just beginning and I will only improve if I keep working hard. I know that my early work will most likely not resemble the image that I create in my head, but the good news is that someday I will be able to take an image in my mind and recreate it on the computer. I am not very good at InDesign or Photoshop today, but with more practice I know that I will have the talents and the abilities to create truly original and great work in the future.