Graphic Communications

Design

Graphic Communications works with the printed image. Anything that can be printed on is considered a substrate. Those images we transfer or print are considered graphics.  Such as images on your t-shirt, coffee mug, pens and pencils etc.  There are many different processes in which to print on a substrate and you will learn about several of them in this class.

• Drawing – Fundaments of Drawing and seeing light
• Design Process - Thumbnail, Rough, Mechanical, Comprehensives
• Large format printing – our movie posters
• Laser printing – Advertisements, brochures, flyers and business cards etc
• Photo printing – Portrait, Nature and Perspective Photography
• Vinyl – Decals, Pin striping, Lettering, Signage and T-Shirts
• Computer Design - Adobe Creative Cloud

Photography

In this class you will learn history of Photography. Where it all started and how the industry has changed with technology.

• You will learn parts of the camera and how they work and why
• Lighting Techniques – Setting up the lights for portraits to reduce shadows and glare
• Posing Techniques – For girls and guys – those with glasses etc.
• The major differences between 35mm and Digital
• How to shoot in several different modes
• What F-Stops or Aperture settings are
• Photography Restoration on the computer

At this time we use high end Nikon and Cannon cameras so we have state of the art equipment to train you on.

We have added a prop closet and have a number of props available to use. Dresses, Suit Coats, Hats scarves, along with several different backdrops. All of this to help build a powerful portfolio for scholarships or a beginning career

Vinyl Graphics

This is the Vinyl station where a lot of customer jobs get created.  We work with a Roland Cam 300 Vinyl cutter.  There is a small blade that cuts the vinyl based off of the design on the computer.  It’s like Magic!  There is a lot of things to consider when using vinyl like what is the substrate, is it indoor or outdoor, does it need to be reversed, will it be one color or several.
We use different substrates such as 1-8 year vinyl, specialty vinyl like metallic and holographic as well as T-Shirt vinyl.

After the initial design we may have to go in and clean up the rough edges. Next we load the vinyl and set the machine to the proper force at which to cut. After the image is cut we do a process called plucking and weeding.  Finally after each of those steps we need to tape off the vinyl so that it can be applied to the substrate

Customer jobs we have worked on are the baja trailer and baja buggy for engineering and Design, Sandusky band trailer, Several signs for benefits, 4H banners and school banner etc.

This is a skill you can add to your resume and show in your portfolio

Experiences

While in the graphic communication program you will have many opportunities to work with customers and create a dynamic portfolio. We also interact with all the programs at the Sanilac Career center whether it is designing a poster, taking photos, or creating decals. 

Students work on community service projects and have also presented to various groups regarding our program.

Every student has the opportunity to travel to Grand Rapids, Michigan with us to attend ART Prize, the world’s largest art competition.  Students can compete in several poster and poetry contests as well as drawing contests.  Every year we hold an annual Art Show showcasing the students work from the entire year.