Poster Design Help

[astrostu]

I'm starting work on a poster for the advertisement of a planetarium lecture I'm doing in April (on the Apollo moon hoax (it's anti-hoax, so don't start flaming me)).

Many of the advertisement posters at the planetarium are full-color with really cool background illustrations, but I can't think of a good one for the moon landings and hoax claims. For example, there are thumbnail illustrations of some of the posters here.

I'm attaching the version we went with last year -- it basically has 5 major pictorial claims as a "tease" for what will be discussed during the show. Unfortunately, I find it incredibly dull (note that I didn't actually make it, but I did revise it with vector graphics).

Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[SwiftLives]

This would be hard to shoot, but if you could have a picture of a fake/staged moon landing being held by an astronaut on the moon....

Crazy concepts aside, the suggestion I have for any poster is to focus on one dominant image. As it is now, you have five equally weighted pics competing for the viewer's attention.

Focus on one image. Keep the text short and simple. And make the text large so it can grab people from far away. That'll draw people in to look closely at the poster. Then put all of the boring stuff (i.e. who, what, when, where) in a less dominant position and much smaller.

Here's a headline for you: "TRICK OR TREK?"

Good luck.

 

[digitalnicotine]

I agree with Swiftlives. The previous poster has serious issues hehe. I agree with a single image of an astronaut on the moon with the flag as that visually tells the viewer a lot about the topic, and allows you to use very little text to further explain. It looks like the only required aspects are the logo, dates, and a catch phrase, eh?

Here are some more suggestions:

1. One Small Hoax?
2. One Giant Hoax?

Good luck.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

I would get rid of the white space. The poster you posted actually wouldn't be bad if, instead of white, there was a faded image of the moon, of astronauts, Earth, something.

 

[Topher15]

How about a black background with a image of the moon - small/medium so to not take up the whole page, the the title/caption (something like "One Giant Hoax" sounds good) underneath.

The image will be more suggestive - the viewer will know it is about the moon.

The caption will inform them what the lecture is about - a [supposed] hoax.

EDIT... I added a little mock-up.

 

[i3iz]

How about a black background with a image of the moon - small/medium so to not take up the whole page, the the title/caption (something like "One Giant Hoax" sounds good) underneath.

The image will be more suggestive - the viewer will know it is about the moon.

The caption will inform them what the lecture is about - a [supposed] hoax.

EDIT... I added a little mock-up.

i would search dpreview forums for a moon shot and ask the author if you can use it. i saw a ultra hi-res moon shot on digg.com a few weeks back.

I like this mockup, i also like the idea of having a cropped edge of the moon claiming the black negative space. Catchy title is huge as well as a brief bullet list of content would help me if i was the market. the old poster struggles with hierarchy and it almost appears to be pro-hoax instead of anti-hoax.

There was a BBC documentary about the hoax called "a funny thing happened on the way to the moon" it is catchy for me, but you need to be anti-hoax in your suggestion. you can also walk the line of "hoax or real?"

 

[astrostu]

I was working on a completely different mock-up before Tropher15 made his. I like this idea more than the original I posted, but I think t center text is too busy ... but then again, I like it somewhat scattered (like if it were a movie, it would pop up with slow fades in and out over different parts of the screen).

Elements I would like (need) to keep:
- The title and sub-title ("The Apollo Moon Hoax" and "why we did NOT not go to the moon").
- Dates when the show is.
- Planetarium information (required whether I want it or not).

Elements I should add/keep:
- I've been told that I should add my name to the poster, though I left it out of this version.
- Something visual. Replies here have generally indicated that I should keep the visual simple, the moon. That's fine, I guess, but I would like to possibly fit in one or two of those claims from the original poster ... not sure about this, though.

i would search dpreview forums for a moon shot and ask the author if you can use it. i saw a ultra hi-res moon shot on digg.com a few weeks back.

Don't need someone else's. I took my own and have them at 5760x5760 px.

 

[AlexisV]

I think the 'not not go to moon' part needs ditching. It's very confusing!

 

[MagicWok]

I was working on a completely different mock-up before Tropher15 made his. I like this idea more than the original I posted, but I think t center text is too busy ... but then again, I like it somewhat scattered (like if it were a movie, it would pop up with slow fades in and out over different parts of the screen).

Everything about it is too busy, it puts me off so much.

The typography needs a lot of attention. I would change the header and main text font, and try to work with a grid of some sort to help give an order to things. My eyes have no idea where to look first and in what order. Please get rid of all the '...' - you can get the same effect without their use by thought of layout and composition.

Just a question, and I'm not trying to be rude - but have you ever done any other typography before - or have any background in design?

 

[LeviG]

How about something really simple.

Black background with a picture of the moon shot from earth.

Simple text at the bottom saying
"Did we actually get there?" or similar
Then "Find out <insert date, time, place etc>"

EDIT: quick mock up added. Please note the image was found online and as such would need permission etc to be used

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

So...wait. Is your lecture saying the moon landing was a hoax or is it saying it was NOT a hoax? If it's the latter, your poster is confusing as hell.

 

[LeviG]

So...wait. Is your lecture saying the moon landing was a hoax or is it saying it was NOT a hoax? If it's the latter, your poster is confusing as hell.

I thought he was saying it was not a hoax

 

[snickelfritz]

Personally, I think a full-bleed composite of the moon and Earth on a space background would be a compelling image for this subject.

 

[joepunk]

How about something really simple.

Black background with a picture of the moon shot from earth.

Simple text at the bottom saying
"Did we actually get there?" or similar
Then "Find out <insert date, time, place etc>"

EDIT: quick mock up added. Please note the image was found online and as such would need permission etc to be used

If you found a good moon pic from the Nasa website/other government sites then you don't need permission. Am I correct on this? It's been a while since I had to deal with a copyright issue.

How hard would it be to create your own fake moon landing pictures? Possibly recreate Armstrongs foot print in sand w/black&white photos

 

[astrostu]

Everything about it is too busy, it puts me off so much.

The typography needs a lot of attention. I would change the header and main text font, and try to work with a grid of some sort to help give an order to things. My eyes have no idea where to look first and in what order. Please get rid of all the '...' - you can get the same effect without their use by thought of layout and composition.

Just a question, and I'm not trying to be rude - but have you ever done any other typography before - or have any background in design?

I have no formal background in design. Just web stuff for ~10 years, but again not formal. However, the person who I worked with last year on the original was an undergrad journalism (or some other unrelated) major, so I would rather work on this myself and be unhappy with the final product than have them do it and be unhappy with the final product. Of course, I'd rather get ideas here for a product I'd be happy with. And I agree, it looks way too busy, which is what I said in my post. It was a quick thing I did while watching an episode or two Star Trek.

How about something really simple.

Black background with a picture of the moon shot from earth.

Simple text at the bottom saying
"Did we actually get there?" or similar
Then "Find out <insert date, time, place etc>"

EDIT: quick mock up added. Please note the image was found online and as such would need permission etc to be used

I like that one better than the version Topher15 made (and Topher15 used a lunar eclipse shot, not a regular phase). The off-center non-symmetry appeals to me. Also, as I said above, I have plenty of high-resolution lunar photos.

I thought he was saying it was not a hoax

Correct. Part of the whole hoax idea is that people don't actually think about all the "evidence" that hoax proponents use. That's why I thoroughly enjoy using the double-negative in the sub-title, because people actually have to process it to figure out what's going on. I've gotten some resistance to this idea before, but I've gotten just as many people to say they like it, so I'm sticking with the sub-title.

Personally, I think a full-bleed composite of the moon and Earth on a space background would be a compelling image for this subject.

full-bleed composite? What does that mean?

If you found a good moon pic from the Nasa website/other government sites then you don't need permission. Am I correct on this? It's been a while since I had to deal with a copyright issue.

How hard would it be to create your own fake moon landing pictures? Possibly recreate Armstrongs foot print in sand w/black&white photos

Correct, NASA photographs are in the public domain and can be used. Also, the planetarium is an educational non-profit meaning that I can also use some copyrighted material without obtaining permission (so I've been told). As for creating my own fake photos, I lack that skill.

 

[SwiftLives]

Perhaps you should consider posting this on craigslist in your local area, and have local designers bid on the project. I'm not sure what your budget is, but you may be able to negotiate a flat fee.

Good luck.

 

[astrostu]

Perhaps you should consider posting this on craigslist in your local area, and have local designers bid on the project. I'm not sure what your budget is, but you may be able to negotiate a flat fee.

There is no budget. I'm not getting paid and they don't have any money for it.

 

[arkitect]

full-bleed composite? What does that mean?

Full bleed = printing without a border — usually to be trimmed to correct size later.

PS. The double negative is confusing and does the poster's message no favours.

 

[digitalnicotine]

I like Levi's rendition very much. I realize you feel the need to put in a lot of text, but honestly, I think less is better. The lure factor of Levi's rendition would definitely work for me, as I would see that, and the only other thing I would want to know is when and where, and I'd be there.

I can understand the need for the logo, the catch phrase, and the time/date/location. Anything beyond that seems unnecessary, as they will find out when they show up. The double negative with the insert text symbol is confusing and unprofessional. I understand you are doing this for free and have no budget, but if you go with something very similar to Levi's design, I think you will have a great poster for your event. I also commend you on doing this without the design background, and asking for input from those who do have experience with this sort. Good luck.