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Barrett Honors and Graphic Information Technology Student References and Information

Information for Honors Students in Graphic Information Technology

The Graphic Information Technology (GIT) program is cross-media and includes courses in web design and development, user experience, photography, video production, animation, print and digital graphic design, and print technology. GIT offers honors students a variety of opportunities to extend their focus of interest into new areas, produce higher level academic and professional projects and products, and use their imagination to expand their learning beyond the classroom. For more information, visit the GIT webpage. Any Barrett student who is considering majoring or minoring in Graphic Information Technology should contact the lead FHA.

Lead FHA: Jessica Barnett j.barnett@asu.edu

Thesis/Creative Projects

A GIT honors thesis typically focuses on a creative project, such as a complete animation, book design, video production, web site or other product with a specific purpose. It may also include quantitative and/or qualitative research, depending on the focus of the project. All GIT full time faculty have a masters degree, which is considered a terminal degree in the program, and can serve as a thesis director or as a second committee member.

GIT Teaching Faculty & Expertise Areas

Past Honors Creative Projects from GIT Students

Earn Honors Credit with AIGA Poly

Barrett students interested in working with other creative-minded Sun Devils are welcome to attend the weekly meetings of ASU’s student chapter of AIGA, the professional organization for design. AIGA members work together on design projects for clients at ASU and the community and often, for each other. AIGA members also engage in community outreach, like giving Adobe tutorials to high school students and mentoring younger designers. Barrett students have the special opportunity to earn honors credit for their work with AIGA and may be able to complete their honors thesis requirement on AIGA projects.

Academic Preparation

Students should be prepared to take four GIT and related courses in the area in which they plan to complete their thesis. They may also benefit from undertaking an internship in a related industry.

Recommended Timeline

Student start work in the second to last semester before they wish to complete the thesis. In semester one, students will confer with their committee to determine the thesis topic and goals. Before the end of the first semester, they should have a full proposal to submit to their committee with approval and start work on the project. In the second semester (the semester of graduation), students will complete their thesis by the deadline for submission and present their work to the committee.

Past Honors Contracts by GIT Students

For GIT135 - Graphic Communications:

  • Create a multi-paged website that compares and contrasts the advantages and disadvantages of publish on the web as opposed to print. (differences in design of the documents (layout, graphics), comparing color differences, advancing technology, fonts used, type of audience and purposes of the page, accessibility, etc.)
  • The project will be a set of tutorials for every section that we cover in the class. The tutorials will be posted online for the other students to use in the future. Each tutorial will contain specific details that should allow any student to recreate a project.
  • The honors contract will consist of a creative and artistic project that demonstrates an understanding of graphic communications.

For GIT210 - Creative Thinking and Design Visualization:

  • For this course I will utilize the creative skills I will learn from this course to create a proposition for new branding standards for United Airlines. I will be making a branding standards PDF that I will display on my website and turn in to the professor. I will also write a bit about transitioning from my aviation major to GIT and how I will apply my aviation knowledge in the GIT field.

For GIT211 - Introduction to Video Game Art:

  • Going along with the 3D model project in the class using Maya, I will use the same program to create another 3D model to go along with the one for the class, with the assumption that both are meant to be included in art for a video game.

For GIT215 - Introduction to Web Authoring:

  • Our final project for this class is to create a website. For my enhancement activity, I will wireframe my website.
  • Throughout the semester I will be learning how to use wireframing programs so that I can make a companion to the final project that we will be doing in class. The details of the project, such as which program I am to use and what it will consist of, will be decided by Professor Squire and I throughout the semester.
  • Throughout the semester I will teach myself how to use a wire framing program of my choice (Adobe XD recommended). I will use Adobe XD to create an exact mockup of our semester-long assignment, Sparky's Coffee House. I will submit the final mockup/wireframe for all four pages that link appropriately for my contract.

For GIT230 - Digital Illustration in Publishing:

  • The activity is to illustrate the differences between vector and raster art in the form of comic pages. This will explore the advantages, disadvantages, and limitations of using Photoshop or Illustrator for this purpose.In addition to producing these comic pages, progress shall be posted on fixersue.wordpress.com, to explain the reasoning behind each choice made in the comic, as well as explain the limits of each program.
  • Over the course of the semester I will create tutorials (either short videos or graphics) of the concepts/skills students struggle with the most in the GIT 230 course. After each class I will use google forms to survey my peers and find what concepts the majority struggled with and then create a tutorial every week or so in response to the surveys for adobe photoshop or illustrator.

For GIT303 - Digital Publishing:

  • The student will create a multiple page printed document of the Interactive Portfolio PDF project in addition to the required digital version. The student will also complete a four to five page research paper discussing design portfolios. The paper will detail the process and importance of creating a design portfolio, what aspects make a portfolio successful and unsuccessful, and any other important information relevant to the topic.
  • In this project, I will be drafting a presentation using PowerPoint/Keynote/etc. to demonstrate a brief history of fonts, why some fonts give off certain emotions and why they work in certain environments. This entails getting into detail with the anatomy of fonts, how they were used in the past, and human expectations for them in certain situations (like psychology). I will also include a transcript of what I will be saying in essay form, as the presentation will obviously not include every word I will be saying. Proper citations and sources (both scholarly and non-scholarly depending on what they pertain to) will be included.
  • I will create a series of magazine covers (3 total). I will do this using InDesign, but may use Photoshop and Illustrator to produce components of the design if needed. The magazine covers will be for a fashion and/or lifestyle magazine.

For GIT312 - 3-D Computer Graphics Modeling and Representation:

  • This project is to create a documentary video describing the differences between 2D and 3D animation. It will be completed by the end of the semester, and be at least 5 minutes in length. It will detail the history of both, and compare and contrast their capabilities in the different forms of media they appear in.

For GIT315 - Digital Video Techniques:

  • I will be doing an honors contract in the form of my own video. The theme would revolve around automotive videography and will contain different techniques such as tripod panning, gimbal shots, and possibly even slider shots. I will also use an external audio recorder to record exhaust notes and then sync that up to the main rolling shots. I also plan on using my GoPro for action shots that will otherwise be hard to shoot. This includes undercarriage suspension and tire shots. I'm thinking that the length of the video would come out in the 3--5 minute range but that can also be decided based on your decision. Editing would be done with Adobe Premiere Pro. By taking on this project, it will reinforce lessons taught within the class dealing with pre-production, production, and post-production while also giving me creative freedom to truly put my skills to the test.

For GIT334 - Image Editing and Manipulation:

  • For my honors enrichment contract, I will be creating a presentation about the various adobe programs that are available for web development. This presentation will list through the various programs available as well as compare their strengths and weaknesses against each other. One of the programs I will be looking over, and the one that will be the primary focus of this contract, is Photoshop's own Design Space. I will look into this program, its limitations, and see how it fits into the bigger picture of Adobe's web development options. Such a contract will allow me to explore the many different tools available to web developers and designers, and better understand the various ways to make a website and/or working mockup of one.

For GIT337 - Web Content Design:

  • I will create high fidelity mockups of a fictional fashion website that I will design using Adobe XD (and Photoshop or Illustrator as needed).

For GIT384 - Commercial Photography:

  • For this honors contract, I would like to photograph and write about students around campus using technology to help their education. My goal is to photograph some of the technology that a lot of students are not familiar with or have yet to utilize. This includes students using new software, printing technologies, computing devices, and other technologies that can be found around campus. For every picture, I would like to create a one to two paragraph write up about what they are doing, what technology they are using, what the technology does, and how they are using it for their education. For the pictures, I will incorporate the skills learned in the course regarding lighting and camera settings and I will be sure to include these in the write up.At the end of the semester, I would like to compile all the images and blurbs into a display or a website that I can present to Professor Dolin or to the class (and maybe even some other GIT professors). Throughout the semester I will show Professor Dolin the photos I have taken and she can tell me if I need to improve on a certain skill or try to get a different perspective.
  • For this course, I will study low-light photography through a series of photographs utilizing various lighting and latency levels. I will then compile the final images into a catalog for review. For each shot captured, I will also write a short procedural type description outlining the process of each shot, and whether there were certain obstacles to overcome or not. In addition, I will write a short paper on low light photography and how latency affects shots when paired with different aperture settings and various amounts of available light.
  • What I would like to do for my honors contract is take photographs using the concepts we are learning in class, so, start off with good photos, and then use these techniques to make them into glitch photography. This is an experimental method of making photography images where you use image processing programs to separate the colors, and then convert the image into sound, apply sound filters, and then re-convert the image. It is documented well online, across different websites. I would also write a detailed journal about how I made the photos, and why I chose the effects I did.
  • I will take photos, using the concepts that we have learned in class, and then use image and sound processing programs as well as some techniques used by glitch artists to turn the photos into glitch photography. I will also write a paper in which I describe the techniques used and the significance of glitch photography, and the reason behind the images.

For GIT411 - Computer Animation:

  • For this Honors Contract I will be using Python to automate the rigging process of a Hand in Maya. This is a commonly used tool to recreate basic object rigs for similar objects in movies, video games etc. I will use current tutorials provided online to help me learn and execute this honors contract.

For GIT413 - Professional Portfolio Design and Presentation:

  • For this contract, I am going to host a portfolio picture day! I will set up a day where students from the class and even other GIT students can come and take professional pictures of their portfolio projects. The goal is to make my portfolio as strong as possible for future jobs and internships. I will also work on any side project that comes up like what was discussed in person.

For GIT417 - Advanced Web Markup and Scripting:

  • For this contract, I will create a portfolio site using JavaScript techniques discussed throughout the course. I will implement these techniques in my creation of the site, and will include various site features showcasing what I have learned. In addition to this, I will experiment with a JavaScript library known as jQuery in order to build on my current knowledge and expand my experience with front-end web programming.
  • I will create a game using javascript/html. The game will be a memory card game. There will be an NxN size grid (depending on difficulty selected) of pairs of cards that will all be face down. The player will select two cards to flip over and if they are a pair they will be removed. This will continue until all cards all removed. There will be both single and multiplayer functionality. The single player aspect will give the user a certain amount of times they can guess incorrectly (depending on difficulty selected) and the game will end when either they successfully guess all pairs (victory) or run out of lives (game over). In multiplayer it will be player vs player and the player that guessed the most pairs correctly will win.

For GIT432 - Graphic Industry Business Practices:

  • Student will complete a 5 page case study on a freelance graphic designer. Topics to be covered MAY include, but are not limited to, estimating and pricing, job costing, structures, management tools, business model, best practices, trade practices, marketing, operations, human resources, social media and branding, and the challenges and rewards of developing a creative entrepreneurial business.
  • For this project, I will create a booklet outlining various aspects of print technology specifically for viewing by a potential client of ASU's Print & Imaging Lab. This booklet will include sections illustrating the proper file preparation techniques for media output, appropriate color spaces for various types of printed/web materials, information on ASU branding including proper font usage, color schemes etc. and an overview of proper file resolution and stock choices. Jan 17 - Feb 14: Content compilation outline and wireframe of booklet due Feb 14: Final edits to content and preparation for document layout Feb 28: Layout complete and ready to print Mar 3: Final copy due

For GIT490 - Advanced Commercial Photography:

  • I will create a photography portfolio book containing ten photos with mini tutorials for each photo. Each of the photos will be inspired from other photographers and will mainly focus on interesting composure, lighting and final editing. This book will be separate from the final project. This book will be design in an appealing manner and it will be distributed to other novice photographers.

Other Honors Opportunities

Many GIT courses allow for honors contracts on a case-by-case basis. Students propose contracts to the GIT professors for their acceptance. GIT honors contracts typically extend the classroom learning. For example, in the print design course, one student designed a set of candy packages, while another designed a set of magazine covers.

Resources on the Barrett Student Website