Portfolio

Sheila Wilkerson

Contact me
SHEILA WILKERSON
e. sheilawilkerson14@gmail.com
w. sheilawilkerson.wordpress.com

Contents
PHOTO DESIGN
MAGAZINE SPREAD
LOGOS
LETTERHEAD
BUSINESS CARD
MONTAGE
WEBPAGE
FLYER
EVENT AD

Photo Design
DESCRIPTION
Full-bleed, 8 1/2 x 11 photo design project that includes an original
quality image, a consistent color scheme based on that image, with text
and a few design elements.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Demonstrate photography and image editing skills. Create a layout
incorporating photo, color scheme and typography skills.

PROCESS
I staged the lemonade and lemons outside and then took several photos in
the morning light with my Canon Rebel DSLR camera. I used Photoshop to
size and crop the photo to 8 1/2 x 11 and begin the photo design. I used
layers for non-destructive editing to adjust image levels, saturation, color
balance, and to sharpen the image. I used a yellow-monochromatic color
scheme to keep the design clean and elegant. The yellow hues in the text
were selected from the photo. I varied the typography to create contrast
and interest.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Photoshop

DATE February 7, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

Magazine Spread
DESCRIPTION
Two-page 18 x 12 inch magazine spread for an LDS Church magazine.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Write an inspiring, personal spiritual story using 400-800 words. Then
create an engaging layout using at least two images to communicate the
message to the audience.

PROCESS
After writing my story in MS Word, I sketched possible layouts for the
project. Then I created a digital shape map in InDesign based on my
sketch, so I could visual where the images, title and body copy would
go. I placed the body copy in text boxes and threaded them all together.
I used paragraph styles to keep the design consistent. The text boxes are
arranged to simulate the rise in the hiking path. Using my own images, I
created faux Poloroid photos in Photoshop. I also croped the image of the
hiking path. I chose colors for the title based on the colors in the images.
The project was printed on 18 x 12 paper and trimmed to 17 x 11.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, and Microsoft Word

DATE March 28, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

The Price
We Had To Pay
Recovering from choices isnt always easy, but the
journey is well worth it.

ur family enjoys visiting

Grand Canyon National
Park. There are many paths down
the canyon available for hikers of
all levels of experience. However,
weve never strayed far from the
canyons rim because our children
were too young. Now our family is
older and ready for a hiking adventure. Located near the visitor center
is a pavilion with signs explaining
the various trails, their difficulty
and recommended provisions.
Guests are strongly cautioned
against trying to complete long,
strenuous hikes in one day.
Our most recent visit was in
early spring and the trails were still
icy; even clampons (shoe spikes)
were suggested for some paths.
Considering all the warning signs
and the activity level of our group,

2 New Era

we chose to hike to a point on the

South Kaibab Trail called Cedar
Ridge. The course was only three
miles, round-trip, but the vertical
drop was nearly 1,200 feet. We
laced up our shoes, and donned
our backpacks loaded with sports
drinks, water and trail mixwe felt
well prepared.
The paths descent started
quickly with switchbacks heading down the face of the canyon
wall. Luckily for us the warm
temperatures had melted most of
the snow and ice, and the trail was
easy to manage, especially downhill. Occasionally one of us would
slide in the loose dirt, but it wasnt
a big deal. Our ten year-old son,
Jimmy, kept bounding ahead out
of sight despite our reminding him
to stay where we could see him.

The weather was perfectnot too

hot, not too cold, and the view
was spectacular. In no time at all it
seemed, we had reached Ooh-Aah
Point, a little more than half way
to our turn-around point. After a
little rest and refreshments we kept
going deeper into the canyon.
The day grew warm as it
approached noon. I was thankful
I had left my jacket in the car. My
shoes and pant legs were covered
in loose red dirt from the trail. The
hike was going great, and everyone
was having a good time. As I kept
walking down the trail, the thought
of walking back up to the trailhead entered my mind, but I just
dismissed it thinking, How bad
could it be? Finally we made it to
Cedar Ridge; the one-and-a-half
mile downhill trek had only taken
about 50 minutes. We posed for
some pictures and had more trail
mix before beginning the climb
back up to our original elevation of
7,260 feet.

It didnt take long before my

muscles were protesting and
my breathing was heavy. I kept
reminding myself to take it slow
and steady. Jimmy was now the
last person in the pack, I hung
back with him and my 13-yearold daughter, Isabelle. We stopped
often to catch our breath and
quench our thirst. My husband,
Mark, and my 12-year-old daughter, Bailey, had gone on ahead. The
family hike that was initially so
fun, was becoming miserable. I
asked Isabelle, When you were
walking down, did you ever think
it would be this difficult going
back up? Her hasty reply was a
resounding, No! We were both
surprised with how challenging
it had become to recover from
our journey down the path; going
back up was infinitely more difficult than we had imagined. I
remembered a passage in For The
Strength of Youth, which reads,
Some people knowingly break
Gods commandments, planning to
repent later I realized that this
hike was like some of the choices
we make in life. The tough journey uphill was the price we had

to pay for the path wed taken earlier. We didnt think it would be so
hard to return to our starting point.
Had we realized the determination
and stamina required, we may have
turned around at Ooh-Ahh Point
or never started at all.
Of course, we kept climbing
upward one step at a time, ever
thankful for the bodies given to
us by our creator. Im proud of
everyones efforts and endurance.
Stepping off the trail at the top was
exhilarating and empowering. We
did it! So it is in life, when we are
required to work hard to overcome
our transgressions, we will know
for [ourselves] the power of the
Atonement and the love God has
for [us]. [We] will feel the peace
of the Lord Jesus Christ, which
will bring [us] great strength,
and [we] will become more
like him.
NOTE
1. For The Strength of
Youth, p. 29

Abide ye in the liberty wherewith ye are made free; entangle

not yourselves in sin, but let
your hands be clean, until the
Lord comes. D&C 88:86
April 2015

Logos
DESCRIPTION
Three logo variations created with vector graphics for the same company.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Create three completely different variations for a companys business.
Research what type of logo would best communicate a companys brand
and design.

PROCESS
I used Illustrator to created three different logos for the Chips Ahoy cookie
brand. I did this by using the Shape tool and Pen tool to create common
shapes that I manipulated into my desired shapes using the Pathfinder tool
and the Free Transform tool. I chose colors based on audience appeal.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Illustrator

DATE February 21, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

Chips Ahoy!

Chips

ORIG

INAL

Ahoy

Original

Real Chocolate Chip Cookies

Letterhead
DESCRIPTION
Letterhead that is part of a stationery set.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Design a new logo and stationery for a company. The letterhead should
have the same look and feel as the business card.

PROCESS
Since the company name is Matrix designs, I researched how to visually
communicate a matrix. Using Illustrator I created the logo made up of
shapes in varying colors and opacities to represent development of a
design. I sketched layouts for the letterhead keeping in mind the desgin
of the business card. I then designed the letterhead in InDesign. The
masthead is designed to be flexible for different company employee names
and titles. Function was also considered to allow for the most printable
area for content.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Illustrator and InDesign

DATE February 28, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

MATRIX

Sheila Wilkerson

executive director

designs

1629 East Main Street, Mesa, AZ 85212 480.354.3344 matrixdesigns.com swilkerson@matrixdesigns.com

Business Card
DESCRIPTION
Business card that is part of a stationery set.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Design a new logo and stationery for a company that makes a connection
between the customer and the company. The business card should have the
same look and feel as the buiness card.

PROCESS
I created a logo and the letterhead for the stationary set first (see
letterhead on previous page). Using InDesign, I created the 3 1/2 x 2
business card to complement the letterhead. I made a two-sided horizontal
card, so I created a complementary brandmark for the company in
Illustrator. Both of the logo images where linked in InDesign to allow for
easy editing. The card is designed to be flexible for different company
employee names and titles.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Illustrator and InDesign

DATE February 28, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

MATRIX
designs

Sheila Wilkerson

executive director

1629 East Main Street, Mesa, AZ 85212 matrixdesigns.com

480.354.3344 swilkerson@matrixdesigns.com

MATRIX

designs

Montage
DESCRIPTION
Poster with blended images depicting a spiritual theme.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Create a poster that is spiritual in nature. Demonstrate ability to blend
multimple images with intermingled pixels and no hard edges.

PROCESS
I designed a layout with Christ as the focal point. The design flows from
the hiker to the Savior to the Title. Using Photoshop I blended three high
resolution images with masks and the blending brush tool. I applied a filter
over the layer with the hiker image to give it a canvas look. I chose to make
the title orange to contrast with the blue in the background.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Photoshop

DATE February 14, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

Webpage
DESCRIPTION
Screenshot of a webpage I created to showcase a logo and the design
process to a customer.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Create a webpage to display an original logo and demonstrate html and
css skills.

PROCESS
I created this logo for another project using Illustrator. I converted the
file type to a png file and resized it using Photoshop. I indentified the hex
colors using the Eyedropper tool for use in my webpage style sheet. I also
created the cookie background in Photoshop using an image I created in
Illustrator. I used TextWrangler text editor software to work with html tags,
and css code in order to style the webpage.

PROGRAMS USED
TextWrangler and Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator

DATE March 14, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

Flyer
DESCRIPTION
Black and White promotional flyer.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Create an informational flyer that is attractive and inviting to read using
design principles and typography.

PROCESS
I created this project in InDesign. The images and event information was
provided by the client. I thought about the audience and message when
sketching layouts for the flyer. I chose to emphasize the leadership aspect
of the conference. I used the shapes to help direct the readers eyes so they
can skim for the information that is most important to them.

PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Illustrator and InDesign

DATE January 24, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

GRADUATE

Leadership
CONFERENCE

Oct
21
8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Lincoln
Convention
Center

Do you want to have the

competitive edge
in business?

Come learn how at Vouant Communications

annual Graduate Leadership Conference.
Vouant Communications is devoted to helping
tomorrows leaders gain essential leadership skills
in the workplace. During this dynamic three-day
seminar, attendees will meet with top executives of
Vouant Communications to discuss breakthrough
leadership techniques, while cultivating attributes
of leadership that will market to any employer.
Conference is available to graduating seniors.
Space is limited. Registration and more information
are available on the website.

www.vouantcomm.com/leaders

Event Ad
DESCRIPTION
Promotional ad for a charity fundraiser.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Create a color ad to promote a fundraising event to a target audience. Use
a high quality scanned image and Microsoft Word.

PROCESS
I scanned the card image from a magazine using an Epson XP 820 printer.
I inserted the image in Word and created the flyer using text boxes and
shapes. The event title is the focal point of the ad. I designed the ad to
mimic the square shape of the greeting cards shown in the image. I made
use of the event theme when choosing colors of red and pink.

PROGRAMS USED
Microsoft Word

DATE January 30, 2015

COURSE Comm130, Visual Communications
INSTRUCTOR Caryn Esplin

CARD

MAKING
WORKSHOP

Make
Cards

for

$20

JAN 31

2 4 pm

MESA You can change a life forever

All proceeds benefit Operation Smile to provide a free surgery
ARTS for a child suffering from a cleft lip or palate, saving them from a
lifetime of pain, shame and isolation.
CENTER
201 W. Brown Rd. Fee includes all pre-cut supplies, envelopes and adhesive.