Portfolio

sarah broat akkula

Contact
Sarah Broat Akkula:
11811 Centerline Dr
Pinckney, MI 48169
208.497.9712
sarahakkula@gmail.com

Table of Contents
Brochure
Logos
Web Page
Letterhead
Business Card
Event Ad
Flier
Montage
Imaging

Brochure
Description:

A two sided (duplex) offset fold brochure.

Date:
12/6/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign

Objectives:

Create a logo in Illustrator.

Design a duplex brochure layout in InDesign.
Write original body copy for the brochure.
Edit four additional images for the brochure layout.
Master visual hierarchy via headings and subheadings.

Process:

For this project I created the logo in Illustrator. I also

created the background for the outside and inside
of the brochure in Illustrator, using the pen tool and
the text tool. I then created a preliminary layout in
InDesign, and placed my logo and placeholder text,
along with the images I had found. Later I created my
body copy and inserted it into my layout where the
placeholder text had been, and created my header
type to institute a visual hierarchy. Finally, I adjusted all
of the text and elements to make sure that there was
enough white space left in my layout.

Logos
Description:

Three logo variations for the same company.

Date:
11/1/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Adobe Illustrator

Objectives:

Create a variety of logos to fit a company.

Use the basic tools of Illustrator.

Process:

For this design I first created a fictional company (the

Jolly Bee Apiary) and then settled on the image of
the bee. I wanted my bee to look cute and modern,
but for the rest of the logo to look more refined, like
this was a smaller company that had been around for
a long time but was updating their logo for a fresher
look. I used the pen and shape tools in Illustrator to
draw the general form of the bee, and then settled
on a monochromatic gold color scheme for the bee
with black accents. I had originally also created a
honeycomb that surrounded the bee, which I really
liked (in the same color scheme), but which ultimately
did not work for a print logo because it was too busy.
I then played around with the colors a bit to add more
contrast, and added text (originally in brick and violet
in the version of the logo I chose to edit as my final
draft, but simplified to just brick, which is two steps
over on the color wheel). I wanted my logo to have a
very balanced and traditional feel, so for this project I
chose a center alignment.

Web Page
Description:

A web page designed to showcase a personally

created logo.

Date:

11/22/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
NetBeans
Adobe Photoshop

Objectives:

Size and optimize an original logo as a .png for web.

Write content to describe the process of creating your
logo and how it appeals to a target audience.
Design a web page using HTML to display the
optimized logo and content.
Acquire a working knowledge of HTML and basic
understanding of CSS.
Identify hex colors for web design.
Compress multiple files in a zipped folder to attach
and submit as one file.

Process:

For this project I downloaded the base HTML and CSS

templates and added my own appropriately resized
logo (optimized for web as a PNG in Photoshop) and
body copy. I altered the HTML and CSS in my favorite
IDE, Netbeans. I centered the logo, altered the colors,
border thickness, padding around the logo, typeface,
and font size. I chose a serif typeface for the headers
and a sans-serif typeface for the body copy for
contrast and readability.

Letterhead
Description:

Matching letterhead and business card designed using

a personally created logo.

Date:
11/8/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign

Objectives:

Create a new logo to fit a company or personal image.

Design consistent layouts for a business card and
letterhead with unified elements.
Use the basic tools of Illustrator & InDesign.

Process:

For this design I first created a fictional company

(the Laughing Heron Printing Press) and created a
fictional logo based on an image I drew freehand of
a heron using the pen tool in Illustrator. I then chose
a color scheme- blues and greens with orange and a
brick color to contrast. I then opened up InDesign and
started arranging my layout. Initially I had the heron
logo much larger and in the bottom, but ultimately it
worked best for it to be smaller and in the top, with
the grass lining the bottom of the page to give it an
aquatic feel. I had much less white space available in
my rough draft as well, and had to keep working on
that to open up my design.

Press

Laugh
in

ron Prin
e
ti
H
g

ng

Larry Broat Senior Editor 734 417 3168

larryb@laughingheronpress.com
www.laughingheronpress.com
11811 Centerline Drive,
Pinckney, MI 48169

Business Card
Description:

Matching letterhead and business card designed using

a personally created logo.

Date:
11/8/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Adobe InDesign

Objectives:

Create a new logo to fit a company or personal image.

Design consistent layouts for a business card and
letterhead with unified elements.
Use the basic tools of Illustrator & InDesign.

Process:

I used the same heron logo as my letterhead, but

adjusted it to fit the size of my business card layout.
I then added and aligned text with the appropriate
contact information.

gh

eron Print

in

ess
Pr

Lau

H
ng

Larry Broat
Senior Editor
734 417 3168
1811 Centerline Drive,
Pinckney, MI 48169

larryb@laughingheronpress.com
www.laughingheronpress.com

Event Ad
Description:

A color full-bleed event ad to promote a fund raiser

using only Microsoft Word and a scanner.

Date:

10/10/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Microsoft Word
HP Scanner

Objectives:

Find, scan and import a high-quality image.

Create a full-bleed design.
Use text boxes for layout in Word.
Insert and edit images in Word.

Process:

I first chose a company, charity, and event for

the flier. Next I scanned in and cropped an image
from a knitting book. Then I created a basic digital
brainstorming sketch in Word by blocking out some
layout ideas. Once I had the layout arranged I then got
to work editing the scanned image. Finally, I chose the
color scheme to add contrast and created the logos in
Word to add in repetition and unify my design.

HOLIDAY

CRAFT FAIR
Join US MATTRESS for a charity holiday craft fair!
All proceeds go to help the HURON VALLEY HUMANE SOCIETY

Pinckney Community Library

December 5, 2015 11 AM - 4PM

Flier
Description:

This is a flier that we have created to advertise an

upcoming leadership conference to graduating
seniors.

Date:
10/4/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Adobe InDesign

Objectives:

Apply the design principles and use appropriate

typography with two contrasting fonts.
Incorporate InDesign skills to improve flier layout.
Create a project folder with image, logo and InDesign
document to keep links intact.

Process:

I first sketched out several rough drafts of my design

using a pencil and paper, and then transferred the best
design to Adobe InDesign. After this first digital rough
draft I had one of my classmates and a family member
review and critique my design. Finally, I simplified
my design in the final editing stages and kept the
elements that worked the best.

October 21-23 8 a.m. 5 p.m.

Lincoln Convention Center

g raduate

leadership
conference
Registration and more information available at

http://www.vouantcomm.com/leaders

Do you want to have the

competitive edge in business?
Come learn how at Vouant
Communications annual
Graduate Leadership Conference.
Vouant Communications is devoted to
helping tomorrows leaders gain essential
leadership skills in the workplace. During
this dynamic three-day seminar, attendees
will meet with top executives of Vouant
Communications to discuss breakthrough
leadership techniques, while cultivating
attributes of leadership that will be
marketable to any employer. Conference
is available to graduating seniors.
Space is limited.

Montage
Description:

An inspirational montage made by the blending of two

or more images, and the use of typography.

Date:

10/25/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Adobe Photoshop

Objectives:

Learn to manage Photoshop layers.

Learn to blend images together smoothly, using masks
and other layer tools.
Use filters.
Apply appropriate typography.

Process:

For this design I settled on a quote and message

first, and then found images that would fit. I knew
that I wanted my project to showcase families, and
to use an image of family that is not one that most
people would immediately think of. I also wanted to
use this quote because its one of my favorites. I then
used Google Images and Flickr to find high resolution
images that fit the general design I had imagined.
I created this in Photoshop, and used the quick
selection tool to cut the mothers and their children out
from the background they were originally on and then
placed them on top of the sunset, which I had resized
and cropped to show the portion of the picture that I
liked best. I tried to keep the family on the lower third
horizontal line and right most third vertical line and the
text on the upper third horizontal line. I also tried to
use a lot of contrast between light and dark values in
this piece.

Imaging
Description:

A personally taken photograph that has been edited/

formatted using Photoshop.

Date:

10/21/15

Course/Instructor:
Comm 130 Section 12
Emily Kunz

Program(s)/Tools:
Canon PowerShot Camera
Adobe Photoshop

Objectives:

Learn basic photography skills.

Use a digital camera to take a quality image, then
download it to a computer.
Size and crop the image.
Adjust image brightness, contrast, hue and saturation
levels to achieve a good balance.
Use a selection tool to isolate a portion of the image.
Desaturate the selected portion of the image.
Use a filter or colorize a portion of the image.

Process:

I took this picture using my Canon PowerShot

SX530 camera. While I was taking this picture I was
particularly focused on the high contrast between
the dark shadows and the bright natural light.