OUGD603 EXTENDED PRACTICE - ARMED FORCES - PUBLICATION THEORETICAL RESEARCH

Grids
Exploration was undertaken into the use of a baseline grid and a normal grid on InDesign. This was following a feedback session and mini tutorial/workshop from one of the founders of Venn Creative on this publication, where he talked me through the different grid options and ways of manipulating a grid, and what each element is used best for, and how it can really simplify your life.
This proved to be so beneficial when it came to producing the publication, as the baseline grid meant the text lined up on both the front and back pages, and it gave the publication much more of a structured and purposeful appearance.

Binding
Different binding methods were researched and considered for the use on this publication. The main one researched was multiple pamphlet stitches, including coptic binding. The choice to choose a sewn bind over a glued one was to create a more rugged and natural appearance for the publication, reflecting the nature of being in the Armed Forces, and how they use rope climbing in their training sessions.
In this research I had to find a way of binding the 3 signatures together without losing any of the centre of the spreads, so a Japanese bind wouldn’t of been appropriate.
Through this research it was determined that a cross between a pamphlet stitch and coptic bind would be the best option, by which the first signature is bound in pamphlet stitch, but then is linked to the next signature at the end, and then that signature is bound using an alternative pamphlet stitch, where you cross the string over from the previous signature, thus linking the two together. This allows each signature to be bound securely individually, whilst also allowing them to hold together collectively. This binding method also allows the pages to lie flat, which will show off the information in the best way possible, and mean that the spine couldn’t be ruined as if it was covered. Unlike perfect binding, using this method the pages are really securely in place, they have no chance of falling out as they may do with a perfect bind that is quite thick.

Type Hierarchy & Character Styles
The use of character styles was something taught to be by one of the founders at Venn Creative, to ensure each set style of text within the publication is consistent throughout, with no slight variations. This also means that if I wanted to change the point size of all the sub headings within the publication I could do so really easily in the character styles and Find/Change options, without having to go through each subheading individually and manually adjust each one.
The research into type hierarchy, mainly the use of “Type Scale” a visual hierarchy guide in which you can input the body copy point size and it figures out what point size all other elements should be, has been really beneficial to ensure the text within the publication is of the correct scale, with no element out of size compared to others.