How does an X-Ray work?
How?
I first did some initial research to inform my self how an X-ray works. I based my information off what I find to be the most reliable source of information, the NHS website. Their official explanation of how an X-ray works is:
'X-rays are a type of radiation that can pass through the body. They can't be seen by the naked eye and you can't feel them. As they pass through the body, the energy from X-rays is absorbed at different rates by different parts of the body. A detector on the other side of the body picks up the X-rays after they've passed through and turns them into an image.' It turned out to be quite a simple process to understand so I began to make some plans.
www.nhs.uk/conditions/x-ray/
'X-rays are a type of radiation that can pass through the body. They can't be seen by the naked eye and you can't feel them. As they pass through the body, the energy from X-rays is absorbed at different rates by different parts of the body. A detector on the other side of the body picks up the X-rays after they've passed through and turns them into an image.' It turned out to be quite a simple process to understand so I began to make some plans.
www.nhs.uk/conditions/x-ray/
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What? Where? Who?
Target audience: Patients going for an X-Ray.
Aim: To inform the patient about the X-Ray process, what to expect and make them feel comfortable.
Ideas: To create a poster/posters you would find in a hospital waiting room when going for an X-Ray which is informative to ease someone who is anxious. Most of the posters you find in a hospital are very boring visually, therefore not engaging an audience. I hope to make a poster which is eye catching and does its job at the same time. This is very important for anxious patients as it can reduce the anxiety around a situation and make it achievable.
Aim: To inform the patient about the X-Ray process, what to expect and make them feel comfortable.
Ideas: To create a poster/posters you would find in a hospital waiting room when going for an X-Ray which is informative to ease someone who is anxious. Most of the posters you find in a hospital are very boring visually, therefore not engaging an audience. I hope to make a poster which is eye catching and does its job at the same time. This is very important for anxious patients as it can reduce the anxiety around a situation and make it achievable.
Examples of hospital posters UK.
Here are some examples of NHS posters showing a variation between graphic posters and image based. The majority of posters and leaflets you find in a hospital are very unappealing to look at, this is because their only intention is to inform. However recently hospital posters are more focused on the visual aspects of their posters (image one) as this poster is more appealing to an audience and much more likely to grab a persons attention compared with the other posters. Sometimes through using illustration rather than images (eg the X-ray bone images) it may help a patient to feel calmer and less fearful of the situation.
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Artist inspiration.
After looking at the current styles of hospital posters I have decided I would like to approach this in a different way, considering the visual appeal as well as the need for information. Therefore I have looked at some artists whose work I found visually appealing for all ages. Each artist has a very similar style through their use of colour and cartoon style.
Planning.
Rough initial plans.
Text and information to include, thumbnails of poster plans, quick sketches and layout design.
Text and information to include, thumbnails of poster plans, quick sketches and layout design.
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Development of ideas.
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Experimentation.
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I have created two posters that aim to communicate the X-Ray process, how it works, what it looks like. I have included a character in both posters to make it friendly to the audience as well as images of the X-Ray machine and what an X-Ray image looks like. In hopes that the patient will feel at ease and comfortable with going for an X-Ray with all the information and questions answered and available.
Poster re-development.
Illustrations.
In my design ideas the posters lacked appeal. There was too little information for the audience to understand how an X-Ray works and very text book style illustrations. These posters would possibly be engaging for small children but something anyone else would over look. I brain stormed some more ideas and sketches to fix these issues. Here I have gone for a more universal character design that would engage young and old audience.
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I drew out some simple X-ray images in my sketch book and further developed these in photoshop. I chose the colour blue as blue and white is what first comes to mind when you think of a hospital, both colours are sterile colours which are often found in hospitals. I did not want to over complicate my poster so I have stuck with very simple block colour illustrations as an audience would not bother reading if there was too much going on in the poster.
Quick thumbnail drawings in my sketchbook.
Sketchbook drawings and developed pieces in photoshop.
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Information on poster.
From my research I collated the information to include on the poster. My main focuses were 'What is a X-ray?', 'How does an X-ray work?' and what to expect 'During the X-ray?'. This answers my question of 'How does an X-ray work' whilst also informing the reader on other aspects of the X-ray process. I summarised the information down as I was aware of keeping the poster as simple as can be.
Poster layout.
I experimented with different layout ideas for the imagery and text. My first initial layout idea was to build up a skeleton out of X-ray scans next to the character as a comparison of where each image would come from. This layout didn't work very well as it formed a bit of an uncomfortable image. So I decided to place the images around the character, I liked the visuals of this idea. However I still wanted to incorporate my first idea, so I moved the X-ray illustrations around matching them beside each part of the body they would come from (image 3). I found this layout worked well as it was visually engaging to an audience as well as being informative through the illustrations.
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Once I was happy with the layout I began to consider the background and overall look of the poster, I decided that a plain white background was too plain and boring. I didn't want to go overboard with colours or patterns so I stuck to something very simple.
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I stuck with the blue colour palette to reflect hospital colours with the background. I created two borders a light blue including the illustrations and information, and a slightly darker blue border surrounding where the title is included. The outer border helps to bring attention to the illustrations/information and creating a finished look.
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I originally used a 'Microsoft sans serif' in my early poster development as I thought that it was easy to read and fitted well. However after some re-examination I found the font to be quite difficult to read especially as it was so small. That is when I decided to change fonts to 'Arial Rounded MT Bold' which was much easier to read and worked better with the illustrations.
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Final poster design.
Colour palette.
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Final poster design.
I have added more information using a smaller font which is easier to read in comparison to the first poster I created. I also added some lines pointing from each X-ray image to which part of the body you would find it.
I am happy with the changes I have made as the poster is more appealing and informs the patient on the what and how of the process in more depth. I have removed the image of the X-Ray machine as it is quite intense looking and could cause fear and stuck with cheerful illustrations.
I have added more information using a smaller font which is easier to read in comparison to the first poster I created. I also added some lines pointing from each X-ray image to which part of the body you would find it.
I am happy with the changes I have made as the poster is more appealing and informs the patient on the what and how of the process in more depth. I have removed the image of the X-Ray machine as it is quite intense looking and could cause fear and stuck with cheerful illustrations.
