RESEARCH WITH REAL PEOPLE! 1. Get into pairs 2. Interview each other (2 x 5 mins) What was the last photo your partner took on their phone (nothing rude)? Find out all you can about how the photo was taken, the app, the scenario… make notes! you’re client is a mobile manufacturer. They want you to find out how people use their phone cameras. They want to understand what is working and what could be improved. Keep your notes – we’ll use them later on…
CHANGING EXPRESSIONS Draw FIVE empty circles in a line! Happy sad Neutral Draw a SAD face in circle one, ! then a slightly LESS SAD face in circle two…! continue until you reach a HAPPY face!
DRAWING EMOTIONS Look back at the notes you made in your interview.! What emotion did your partner have? Draw a character showing this emotion! Use BODY LANGUAGE to communicate the emotion! Happy sad surprised excited ANGRy sleepy Confused proud nervous confident 1. Draw a skeleton 2. Add weight to the skeleton 3. Add details
“Comics have a vocabulary that doesn't even require language. In fact, many of its symbols could be considered a language of their own that requires no teaching or explanation”! Kevin CHENG ‘See what I mean’!
SCENE SETTING Key rules to note: • Use simple props to set the scene! • A few, key items are better than loads of detail (it just creates noise)! • Consider each item’s role in the story! !
1. What’s the story? you’re going to make a single panel comic about your partner’s experience taking a photo with their phone. you need to use your notes to inform your panel content. Remember: you’re creating a single panel comic! TASK! MAKE A SINGLE PANEL COMIC 2. What are the key elements? Location, props, dialogue 3. Plan your panel: do at least three thumbnail Sketches before starting your final panel
1. Show your comic to your partner you need to know if your comic is effective – it’s time to test it! Getting feedback about comics is essential TASK! TEST yOUR COMIC 2. What works? What doesn’t work? Why?
1. Show each other your comics Find a new partner. you’re going to help each other problem solve the stories in your comics. TASK! PROBLEM SOLVING 2. Discuss how the photo taking experience could be Improved: what’s missing? What’s difficult? Note down your ideas. 3. Make a new single panel comic that improves the experience
SPEC WORK FOR PITCHES THE PROBLEM: Need to create ‘something’ for a pitch – there is no time or budget to do proper research.! ! Speculative work can come back to haunt you.! !
GETTING STARTED: The client’s brief describes how they currently have a well developed customer base of professional photographers, but they want to increase the number of amateur photographers shopping with them. ! ! We could ‘guess’ what amateur photographers want, or, we could look for evidence to spark our ideas.!
WHAT’S GOING ON HERE? ‘Bob’ wants to buy a new compact camera.! He has shopped around, but has been overwhelmed by the variety and choice of cameras.! He doesn’t want a lot of fancy features, but he does care about the image quality.! He has up to £100 to spend.! He is looking for help to make a decision.!
MAKING THE STORy Bob wants to buy a new camera because his current one has broken. He wants to replace his camera before he goes on holiday.! He has looked on several websites, but has been overwhelmed by the choice. He needs help to refine appropriate cameras into a more manageable shortlist, or even to find the best one for him.! The site or app needs to allow him to control his searching and browsing so he can manage the volume of results. It needs to give him choice but not overwhelm him.! He needs to be able to look at cameras based on their size (he wants it to be compact), their image quality (it needs to take nice pictures) and its price (it must be under £100).!
PLANNING THE COMIC 1. Introduce Bob 2. Bob’s camera has broken 3. Bob looks for cameras online 4. Bob gets overwhelmed 5. Bob finds The Camera Shop 6. Bob finds ‘The Compact Camera’ finder 7. Bob filters compact cameras by price and size 8. Bob finds a camera he is interested in 9. Bob browses photos taken with the camera from Flickr 10. Bob feels satisfied and purchases the camera
COMIC BENEFITS: • We have evidence behind our assumptions and ideas about the audience! ! • We can talk confidently about a scenario, without having to commit to details! ! • We still have something visual to show to clients in a pitch! !
EXPLORING IDEAS THE PROBLEM: As a team we need to see how an idea could work as a complete product.! If we focus on designing the interface too soon, we may miss opportunities to refine the process, or improve the structure.!
COMIC BENEFITS: • We can test the comic with target users and get feedback before we create wireframes or a prototype (faster, cheaper)! ! • Helps all team members understand how we’re proposing a process works – little imagination is needed! ! • We have a visual document that can be easily shared and reviewed with clients! !
EXPANDING PERSONAS THE PROBLEM: Personas have a mixed reputation. ! They can be hard to empathise with.! Communicating a persona’s core tasks and their setting helps build understanding. !
COMIC BENEFITS: • Easier to engage stakeholders and team members with a comic than a ‘flat’ persona! ! • Comic story can trigger more questions and feedback – meaning the team is sharing more information! !
COMMUNICATING RESEARCH FINDINGS THE PROBLEM: Long reports require a lot of effort to read! Getting things done can mean leaving out the little details! ‘Seeing is believing’ !
COMIC BENEFITS: • Faster to read than a report! • Subtleties can be communicated with facial expressions and body language! • Brings people to life (important if stakeholders & team members didn’t attend any research sessions)!
TESTING IDEAS WITH USERS THE PROBLEM: You’re not a unicorn! and/or! You don’t have time to prototype! You want to test an existing product, before it gets re-developed!
Across the UK and around the world there have been over 80 colloquial names recorded that people use to describe this common land-based crustacean. How woodlice can help your website The humble woodlouse is known by many names Depending on where you go, you can hear people talking about woodlice using vastly different names, for instance: 'slater' (scotland), 'Grammersow' (cornwall) and even 'Boat Builder' (CANADA). Did you know? roly poly Slater Butcher boy But why should this matter to you?
ESSENTIAL READING Understanding Comics, Scott McCLOUD! Making Comics, Scott McCLOUD! See What I Mean, Kevin CHENG! Cartooning: Philosophy & Practice, Ivan BRUNETTI! ! TOOLS Comic Life, Plasq! !
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