Reflection

Final Menu Piece

When looking at menus created by other football clubs and doing primary research I had gathered that the one thing I needed to tackle the most is the price. This being wether theres prices on the menu or it is being way overpriced for what is given. With keeping in mind the feedback of this I tried to keep to keep the prices lower, maybe a little too low if the club wants profit. I also needed to make sure that I didn’t pile the menu with a lot of information as people may loose interest in it quick and pick something easy if its time consuming.

The other thing that I needed to do was make sure that anything I put into the menu had something to do with the club, that’s the reason for the premier league trophy as United have won 13 of these, the shirt being the thing the player always die for and the football pitch as you cant play football without a pitch. Also needed to make this colour co-ordinated. I feel like the solution has been effective but the one thing I would change is the detail in the trophy, short and pitch or I could of drawn out certain players if I had more time and understood some more features.

Added other feature like Red Café as that is what the café is called within the club and this wasn’t of the things I aimed to change but thought would be a good addition. Then the we’ll never die is aimed from those that died in the Munich Air Disaster but also talking about the club in general, almost a little tribute that most Manchester United fans may rejoice over if they saw this in the background of something.

To see what other people thought of the menu I created a survey. This survey will allow me not only to know what other people think about the menu but it will ask questions about the problems I wanted to solve from what the target audience had said in my primary research. This is good as I will get a range of answers and will also tell me what things could be improved if I was to do this type of project again in the future. The problem with doing a survey is if I ask any of my mates to take the survey then I may not get proper replies that I’m looking for.

To start the survey off I showed a final product of what I had created so they knew what they was going off. The rest of the replies to the survey will be shown in the many screenshots below.

The first question I asked as shown in the screenshots above is what people thought of the menu. The main reply I got is the selection of food which is one of the things I aimed to solve when trying to make this piece. Other things like the use of colour, whether there was too much information on the menu and fonts are also some of the other things I  wanted to challenge as this was seen to be a problem in some menus as seen by my primary research. Other things like how it was laid out with text and the pictures was also good to see and good to be recognised amongst everything else.

As stated in the above one of the problems I wanted to resolve is making sure that the menu is well colour co-ordinated, this is why I asked this question. As the screenshot shows everyone I asked to take the survey gave me a 100% that it was well done. I did give the option for people if they said no to explain so it could help me learn from it in future projects.

Another problem I wanted to solve based on my primary research is the high prices that was shown in one of them. This is why I asked this question, it allowed me to see if I had made it cheaper with a better understanding of what you are getting within some dishes. The majority of people (76.5%) said that the prices was reasonable but 23.5% said that it wasn’t.

To find out why people said no I gave an option to say why within this question. The main reply being that the prices are somewhat low in some places. I can agree with this especially within the desserts one which is stated in the screenshot above but also in the drinks section. If I do this project like this I will do multiple google searches about menus and the prices to get more of an idea how to price the food/drink better.

I asked the people taking the survey the best way in which I could improve the piece as the screenshot shows. I got quite a mix result on things I should do. One I recognised is adding more designs to fill the room that was left in some places, I was going to add names of those who died in the Munich Air Disaster but it didn’t mix too well with the idea. Other things about the font was to possibly try to have posh all the way through but if I did that there’s a chance that it may not be able to be read. Prices are mentioned again within this questions. A few people said there was nothing that could make it better. Another reply I recognised is that I don’t explain what could come with the dish on the side or if it doesn’t and people buying need to do this.

One thing I know I should of done is write about allergies and any food difficulties as if someone was ordering they would like to know or at least be able to ask. This would be a problem as it could have consequences if they decide to eat something they don’t know could have anything in there.

Process of using Affinity Design

In the screenshot above I have embedded work that I have done when trying out the software but before I did that I added a rectangle which is the background and is red like the colours of the club. After embedding I was exploring fonts and came across this one and decided I needed to test colours before deciding on one, keeping a theme which is the problem I wanted to tackle when planning the menu.

This screenshot shows that I feel white was a better choice to go with the red background but also because of the badge in the top left being black.

This screenshot above shows the Premier League trophy and like my drawing show in the sketches blog is part of the menu idea. As you can see from the outline and to the right where layers are shown I have gone round it with the lasso tool.

In the screenshot above the Premier League trophy outline is shown by itself unlike in the other screenshot above. When moving the trophy I will be able to collect them all and move it over to the menu before grouping.

In this screenshot above I had selected all the layers that created the football pitch and pressed command and right on the mouse to get group up and grouping the pitch making it easier to move when I need to.

In this screenshot above I needed to find a font that would suit everything I had done to this point, keeping classy but also keeping it simple so people can read the text.

In this screenshot I was still deciding on the writing I am going to use for the main part of the menu but realised that at this point that it would be better if I underline the words starters, mains, desserts and drinks.

In the screenshot above I wanted to try and see what things would work well within the menu and I needed to make the prices somewhat away from the writing so I tried using the eclipse took to do this. Also testing which colour would go with the theme.

In this screenshot I have tried it more but realised that this wouldn’t suit the design and could possibly not be straight.

To see this more I tried to do this in the top corner of the menu but to get more than one I am showing that I am copying and pasting so they will be the same size.

Again having done more I realised that this wouldn’t work the way I wanted to as they may be too squished together or wouldn’t be lined even with the grids on.

In this screenshot I have gone back to previous logo making I did in another lesson and took of the background colour but when I switched the logo it has the many layers that made up the badge so I had to group it which is shown here.

This screenshot shows that from the change in colour of badge I could use it to my advantage and use these as the dots that break the dish to the price.

The screenshot above shows that I did this for every part to the menu.

Contextual Awareness

In these various websites are some menus that clubs have stated. This will help me in solving a problem of using a more simple food selection in each category while still having some class within the menu. A good idea to have the final output by putting it onto a website where everyone who is going to the club knows what is offered, only if I was to do this I wouldn’t have it laid out like these pictures show above because it may not get read as it seems boring. This gives me an idea that every bit of food can be different but so other people know what kinds of dish it is, what’s involved and so on. So to solve this problem I will state the dish and below I will write what is involved within the dish.

Another problem I plan to sort out is how much each dish costs. One thing I’ve seen from the primary research I did is that there has to be decent portion that matches the price because people may not buy as it may be too over priced for some people. With this I’ve gathered that if the menu is based on a football club then the club badge has to be involved so people know what the menu is for and what its for. The top screenshot of the menu is more likely to catch a customers/clients eye as it is the clubs colours, the club badge shown visibly and a plain coloured menu because of colour but with the selection itself there is quite a lot but I want to aim to have something everyone like, more of a mix and food they like.

 

Secondary Research

Typefaces of fonts can have similar design features. Every font have specific weight, style, width, slant and designer. In this link below is a link to typefaces that have been rated from top of the list to the bottom of the list. The best that could be printed off, like most menus have to be when used in a restaurant. This website is useful as I can look at some of these fonts when creating the project and see which one could provide an almost posh looking menu but keeping it complex.

Prepressure.com. (2019). Top 33 fonts | The best typefaces for print. [online] Available at: https://www.prepressure.com/fonts/interesting/important-typefaces [Accessed 7 Feb. 2019].

As I am creating a menu I wanted to find out what other fonts people think are good for this but also baring in mind that I want to keep it complex so it is easier to read. With doing this research I can also try out some of these and see if it suits my idea and theme. Test them with other things I want to try on the menu and staying to a certain colour theme.

McCauley, J. (2019). 10 mouth-watering restaurant menu fonts. [online] Creative Bloq. Available at: https://www.creativebloq.com/inspiration/10-mouth-watering-restaurant-menu-fonts [Accessed 9 Feb. 2019].

The PNG file is a Portable Network Graphics file. PNG files are mainly used to store graphics online. The issues with the PNG file is that it doesn’t support animation, can’t store multiple images in one file and it is isn’t that great working with full colour images. Older browsers can struggle supporting PNG files. PNG files allow transparency on a scale between opaque and completely transparent, for a faded but translucent look. It can be put on any colour background and keeps original appearance.

Lifewire. (2019). What’s a PNG File and How Do You Open One?. [online] Available at: https://www.lifewire.com/png-file-2622803 [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

Logo Design Blog | Logaster. (2019). Advantages and disadvantages of PNG format [Infographic]. [online] Available at: https://www.logaster.com/blog/png/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

JPEG means Joint Photographic Experts Group. Mainly bitmap images are saved in jpg form so the files can be compressed, making it easier to transfer or download the film from the internet. This file format is based on  24 bit colour palette but these type of files are known to drop information which makes the file decompressed. The problem with this file type is that at each stages of compression the file starts losing sharpness making the image look worse. The final result of using Photoshop for graphics or text then it may not come out the best.

File.org. (2019). JPG File – What is it and how do I open it?. [online] Available at: https://file.org/extension/jpg [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

Moodie, M. (2019). Pros & Cons of Shooting in JPEG: What you Need to Know Today. [online] Sleeklens – Handmade professional Lightroom presets. Available at: https://sleeklens.com/pros-cons-of-shooting-in-jpeg/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

PDF stands for Netware Printer Definition File.  PDF files are mainly useful for magazine articles, product brochures or flyers if people want to preserve their original picture online. PDF files can have more than one page, can zoom in and out as well as page forwarding and backwards. The cons of PDF files is that they cant be edited for free, need to be edited in specialised programs and it is difficult to with text in PDF files because they are seen as a picture.

Rouse, M. (2019). What is Portable Document Format (PDF)? – Definition from WhatIs.com. [online] WhatIs.com. Available at: https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/Portable-Document-Format-PDF [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

Logo Design Blog | Logaster. (2019). Advantages and disadvantages of PDF format. [online] Available at: https://www.logaster.com/blog/pdf/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

Below is a link to what some colours may mean. This is important because I don’t want anyone to get confused as to what the aim of the project is because of how they perceive a colour. This good be a problem when creating the menu so to try stop this problem happening I will try and use ones that don’t give out warnings.

Color-wheel-pro.com. (2019). Color Wheel Pro: Color Meaning. [online] Available at: http://www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html [Accessed 10 Feb. 2019].

In the link below is many tutorials to how to do things that I may not know how to. This web could help me when I’m not sure on how to do things that would benefit my work but also the simple things that may of been forgotten while making.

Vimeo.com. (2019). Affinity Designer. [online] Available at: https://vimeo.com/channels/affinitydesigner [Accessed 11 Feb. 2019].

Rough Sketches and Considerations

Above is the sketches I created, with writing explaining each part and what I plan to do. This sketch could possibly change when making the menu as I need to think about page size and how I’m going to fit it all into one page, one part may give and I think that will be the two players drawn out because the pitch could be moved landscape and desserts named in one while the other has drinks in like planned. Doing this sketch was important because it gives me an idea what it will look like but also makes it easier seeing this as I don’t have to mess around after creating things to try and make it fit the best of my ability. One thing I missed out in this sketch that if I have room I am going to put the names of the players that died in the Munich Air Disaster as they are the main reason we have a club now and died doing what they loved.

From research conducted I have decided to have red as the background mainly because this is the colour of the club. Going to use the colour black for outlines of drawings drawn out on Affinity (shown above) so then this doesn’t override the menu itself, with this black also being a club colour for many seasons. Going to have white as the writing so this is shown over the colours as the red is going to be a darker colour but also in the past it has been a club kit colour. When it comes to making this menu I am going to test out many fonts as I want a mix of classy but also simple so it is easy to read making it easier for the customer/client.

The layers are going to be quite different. To start with it will be a background, other things like the lines and curves will be grouped into a layer so I can move it all at once while still being able to change parts by double clicking on the things I want to change, this will be done for each drawing I want to create. Most of the text is also going to be grouped but some will be a layer itself because I can move it on its own but it is individual for moving in a way I want it to be.

 

Production Schedule

It is important that I do a production schedule so then i’m aware of what I need to do in all lessons and be caught up to meet the deadline.

In this screenshot below the time left from now is filled with things I have to go ahead and do.

In this screenshot it is showing the notes I have made within the system so I know what I need to do before i’ve completely finished this stage.

In this screenshot below shows what I need to do in the next week. Practical being mainly on Affinity design trying to create my piece.

In this screenshot it is showing that I will have time to reflect on the work I have done. What went right, what went wrong and so on.

Research (Primary and Secondary)

Secondary Research

https://www.manutd.com/en/visit-old-trafford/red-cafe

The link above is a football club that has a restaurant within the stadium. If you scroll down the website to the bottom there is multiple different PDF files that have a range of menus which are show below.

Main Menu

Children’s Menu

Red Cafe Breakfast Menu

Red Cafe Old Trafford Experience Menu

Red Cafe Dessert Menu

These different types of menus have the same reoccurring theme that stays within each menu e.g. the background, fonts and is coloured coordinated. This is inspiration as if I want to do multiple ones then I need to keep a theme that will also keep the reader interested. The prices of each dish is shown clearly so when someone is buying then they are fully aware of the price. The colours used is also a representative of the clubs colours, this will inspire me in my work as people may not like colours of rivals of football clubs and the thought of the target audience needs to be in mind. The other thing that I have taken from this is the way in which menus have to state there might possibly be allergies and need to make this known to the readers.

To find out more about the menus I created a survey and asked a few questions about two of the menus. This is important because i need to find out what other people think about prices, how well the menu is done, whether there is a good amount of selection, if the menus are well colour co-ordinated even to the clubs colours and also ask if there was anything they would change about the menus.

Primary Research

Below is the first menu I asked about.

The first question I asked was what people thought about the menu. The replies I got will be shown below in the multiple screenshots. I had quite the mix of replies but many ones I got is that there was no prices stated which is an important thing within a menu or a person may not order because of being unsure. Other things include things about the menu being colour co-ordinated, simple, creative and not being many choices. All these will need to be considered when creating my piece.

I then went on to ask about the selection of food and whether there was a good amount of choice. Again the screenshot to this will be shown below. The majority of people said yes so I can use the menu as inspiration to get a rough idea of how much I may need to include to have good amount of selection.

If people said no I added a question to ask why they said no so then I can find out the many different reasons that people think it isn’t. From this screenshot below I have gathered that the main reason why is because they may not like the food on the menu already and would something a little more plain.

The second menu I asked about is shown below.

Like the first menu, the first question I asked is what they thought of the menu. Ive done this so I can compare the views of other people from the two menus. Similar to the first question asked to the first question. The main reason given for this question is the fact that it is over priced for what you get, people want more reasonable prices.

With this menu having the prices on the menu itself I asked if people think the prices are reasonable, this is something I need to know because I need to take into consideration of the profit the club would have to make but also the fans can also buy. I found that within this question the majority of people said the prices wasn’t reasonable, with this in mind ill think of portion size and then try and suit the prices to this.

I then proceeded to ask the people who said no why, so then I know the reason and I can possibly use the ideas to my advantage when making my own menu. Most replies to this question is that the price of the dish doesn’t match the portions/drink size.

I then proceeded to ask what people thought of the use of colour in both menus and I got a 100% ration from people which is shown below in this screenshot.

After that question I did add “if no, why?” but because I got 100% in the above questions I had no answers.

I finally decided to ask if there was anything the people taking the survey would change about the two menus. In the screenshot it shows that 57.1% people said they would change something from the two menus where as 42.9% said they wouldn’t.

If the people said yes I gave them a chance to say what so I can keep this in mind too when creating the menu. A lot of the comments is to add prices but also decrease prices from the ones used in the examples. There was also comments about being a larger selection.

 

 

Investigation visual production and technology

The problem with any type of special menu is that people need a wide range of food to choose from but also a menu that isn’t too crowded. They need to know mostly what food is going to be served and drinks with the background suiting the colour of the text. To solve this I will be using Affinity design to create a menu that will suit the audience with the problems stated being in mind.

I think the Timescale to create this is around 4 to 5 weeks. This is so then I can research about my idea and how I can make it the best piece with the mind of the intended audience being number one priority. Other weeks made up of creating the menu on Affinity design, trailing designs and creating ideas.

For the style I will look at a range of football menus that are used in the catering areas of a stadium to get a full idea on what will stand out to the audience. Possibly do the food on the menu around the football theme more or players within a club that could make up the food choice.

For the font I want to keep it simple so it is easy to read. I will more than likely use a font on Affinity Design and see other ways in which I can twist it to suit the needs of the theme and the menu I want to create.

The picture below shows the wide range of colour palette that is available to be used on the computer. With the wide range of colours available I have a lot to choose from but based on the club I have decided to do the work on club colours and stick to these.

The Colour Palette I hope to stick to is a mix of a bit of red and possibly the colour green. The red because I’m going to make the menu based of the team I support, Manchester United. The teams colours. The reason for the green is because I may use the colours of the football pitch. I need to decide whether I’m going to use the black or white font when making the menu because I need it to be easier to read but also to help the writing stand out.

The format of the menu is going to be quite simple. Having used Affinity Design to try things out I already have a United badge all drawn out and ready that I could possibly use within the menu based on the colour theme. The menu is going to be in portrait so I can fit everything on and is a reoccurring theme in most restaurants to be like this.

The output I hope will to have a finished menu, it will consist off a football theme and I am going to aim to have it based on the club Manchester United. With this colours, badges, club players and so on that includes the club.

The context is to have the audience/consumer know what food would be available if they went to Manchester United restaurant. With a range of food available with the thought of different options for vegetarians and other food problems.

The client will be the people that use the Manchester United Restaurant or the owners of the club and the caters who could take in the possibility of changing their menus.