Student Union Icons: Finalising Icons

This step is to make the icons more uniform and follow the same lines, guides and rules.

For sport, I moved in to create a netball. I felt as though it was less harsh and generic. A football connotes football and always has. It is recognized as representing nothing else, due to its massive following and overuse in television and sporting pop culture whereas a netball and other balls from sports connotate a wider choice of sports which is most appropriate here, representing both football and netball. An example "focusing on the meaning of specific icons".

From here I picked out those that I 'gravitated' toward most. It was from here that I had to choose which worked the best. which were easiest to read, which were the most simple. This was done by mocking some up to be seen together. This allows me to recognise which ones 'don't look like the others'

Using a light blue as a dud colour I began to mock up the icons within circles. The blue was based on the blue seen often alongside with the Student Union's branding. This allowed me to see them within context, of how they may look on the website alongside similar colours. This was a visually pleasing decision, but it also allows me to regulate sizing and space. How much space do they need to take up and how small can they be before they stop communicating clearly.

I worked on various boards to allow me to still consider older designs or elements that might have been lost through development.
I also kept the reference the client gave me to refer back to, as well as the list of suggestions given.
Within Illustrator I like to develop in stages:
Initial designs
Mock ups
Finals

I keep art-boards separate in the event that a client will want to see development work, they can be exported easily as JPEGS of PDFs etc.

I preferred the look of the thinner line weights so explore only that section further. Below are experimentations in 1pt and 1.5pt. Some icons translate better than others. The events calendar does better with thinner line weights, due to its complicated line work. The lines become blurred and overlapped. I prefer the 1.5 weight. It looks friendly and less corporate: the core values of the Student Union. The version directly below though clean are cold with no 'padding'.
It surprising how much of a difference 0.5pt makes. I think I will look to mix both 1 and 1.5 in areas: the inside lines of the colder for example. I don't want to loose the overall feel, but will never sacrifices practically for aesthetics.

1pt line weight

1.5 line weight

The main thing from reading that I gathered was making sure they are clear and easily read. The only icons as of now that aren't fulfilling the brief are the weights and the events calendar. I will have to re-jig these wether through re-shaping, line weights or spacing to make sure they are communicated clearly their image. "Iconography should be crystal clear". I intend to make it so.