20 Jun Interning at BWD

Posted at 14:15h in Internships by

My Time at BWD

I have reached month seven of my internship at BWD and I can say, without a doubt, that I have learned an incredible amount. Far more than I could’ve learned independently or from a book. The learning I have done at BWD has been almost exclusively through practical application. Two sayings that stand out with my experience here are:
“You’ll learn everything as you go”
“Practice makes perfect”
During my time here at BWD I have learned a lot about:

  • Photoshop
  • Design concepts
  • Illustrator
  • InDesign
  • Photography
  • Videography
  • Image Selection

1. Photoshop

Photoshop was easily one of the most painful, yet rewarding things I have ever learned. BWD taught me how to use this powerful program through video tutorials, practice projects and consultation with the other designers. My true test, however, was when I was given the task of designing social media posts for a certain company.  Learning how to use photoshop is more than just the interface. It’s about finding the quickest and most effective ways to create, manipulate and design.

2. Design Concepts

Design concepts was a phrase I had never even heard of before coming to BWD. Learning about them made me realize that the rules of design aren’t far off the rules of photography. Small things like color contrast and the rule of thirds. These are concepts that I was familiar with but not in the same way they’re used in the design. Advanced things like drawing the eye and creating a “path” with which to get the consumer to follow absolutely blew my mind! I feel so privileged to know these concepts as they have helped me improve in both design and photography.

3. Illustrator

Illustrator is a program that has a similar feel to Photoshop but it’s more for illustrations and artworks. It, not unlike Photoshop, is a very powerful program and I’m still in the process of learning how to use it effectively but so far it’s blown me away. Just a few months ago I hadn’t touched Illustrator and in a matter of a month or two I can create simple artworks. All from the phrase “Practice makes perfect”.

4. InDesign

InDesign is a layout program used to create things like booklets, brochures, magazines, or anything with multiple pages. InDesign was a massive challenge for me as I had never touched on anything remotely similar to it. However, with the help of the designers at BWD and the projects I had to complete, I built an understanding of the program.

5. Photography

Photography was an area of expertise I already had some experience in when coming to BWD. But not nearly at this scale. I had always relied on natural lighting, lights in the room or the camera’s built-in flash. To work with such professional-grade equipment was absolutely monumental to me. BWD taught me so much about lighting, background control as well as features on my camera, I didn’t even know existed!

6. Videography

Videography is still a relatively new concept to me but that doesn’t mean I haven’t already learned a lot! So far, I have only been in charge of recording the BWD vlogs, which are very interesting and you should check them out. During my time at BWD, I learned a lot about videos that are fit for the editor, lighting, and audio.

7. Image Selection

Image selection is one of those things nobody really thinks about when they imagine design but it is one of the most important parts of the design process. Selecting the right image is crucial in the design process. Image selection involves thinking about color contrasting, selecting an image that can be easily manipulated in Photoshop, as well as selecting an image that actually fits the message that you’re trying to portray.