Author: Patrick Moran

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Improve Your UX/User Experience and Wayfinding Capability

No one likes to get lost. #Wayfinding is the ease of #navigation that applies to both physical locations as well as #web and mobile applications. With proper wayfinding and #UI/#UX design, any product or service can provide the ease of access to it’s content that is necessary for them to thrive.

New England Institute of Technology 3rd Floor Map
I would be able to provide your service with the proper wayfinding to provide your users with the most intuitive #interface for your #product. An example of a successful project that I have completed in wayfinding is seen above. A #map designed for the 3rd floor of The New England Institute of Technology #NEIT. This map was designed for an assignment in order to improve the ability for visitors and students to find their way around the building. As a way to create the most efficient map, the goal was to #target a specific #persona based on who was found most commonly on the 3rd floor, and then develop a #hierarchy

New England Institute of Technology 3rd Floor Hierarchy
This type of project can be applied similarly in many different aspects, such as web design and mobile #app #layout as well.
Improving wayfinding will help to increase:
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Use Engaging Three Dimensional Visuals to Grab People’s Attention

The objective of this project was to develop a #3D render that represents a headline in recent news and then later use that render to create a faux #magazine cover. The topic that is modeled here is the “Superman Crystal that can Store Data.” My plan from the beginning was to create a model that didn’t resemble what the actual crystals look like in person, but to create an image that relays the idea of what these crystals do.

Modeling:

When starting the modeling process for this project, my knowledge of the software was only basics, starting with simple shapes and getting the idea on screen quickly. After learning more about the program, I was able to flesh out my plan for this project much more efficiently.

Texturing:

Once I was happy with how the #model looked on its own, it was time to give it the green crystallized texture. Developing the #texture was one of the most time consuming parts of this project, working with #transparency as well as glow and exterior lighting proved getting the right look to be a challenge.

Lighting and Camera Angle:

Once the texture was complete and applied to our object, it was time to #compose our shot for the magazine cover. To do this, the #lighting needed to be set so that it continued to agree with the texture of our crystals while being viewed from the chosen angle.

Magazine Build in Photoshop:

After the shot was composed, the scene was rendered with an alpha channel, which meant that I was able to remove the object itself from its background. The final #render without the background was placed on top of a faint white and gray radial gradient which was done to preserve the 3 #dimensional look. I began with a basic Times Magazine cover but then decided to give the piece more #depth by placing the render above the border and the title. To create the #illusion of the model and the typography being one unit, the papers were then made to appear as though they were passing through the letters in the TIMES title. The tagline was added at the end and was given a simple type treatment to fit a square. I also added a small green glow to the back of the model to add a layer of interaction between the model and the background.
Developing the final product, I found myself spending a considerable amount of time messing with different #camera-angles and even rendered my complete 3d model a second time simply to be sure that the final magazine #design was not heavier on one side than it was on the other.