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Cover Design
First place
Mercy Academy High School *Y
Creative combination of candid photos and iPod design make this cover unique to the 2008-9 culture as well as "tell" the yearbook theme in a memorable and attractive way.
Second place
Bardstown High School
A successful blend of retro and current photos help make this centennial celebration cover attractive and thematic. Not easy to do -- it blended the past and present. Something tells me this cover was appealing to the alums as well as the student body. Next time, please put the volume number on the spine, helping make this yearbook correct and easily identifiable on the bookshelf.
Third place
Crittenden County High School
Good form and correct information on cover and spine. A fun cover, for sure. Good to be subtle, with classic foil embossing and 60's footprints. Retro is "in" but the staff might consider blending contemporary design elements as well.
Writing Style
First place
Crittenden County High School
The staff didn't let the format stop them from getting all the 5Ws and H in their headlines, captions and stories. Good research and faithfulness to captioning make everything readable and interesting. This book will definitely increase in value to readers as years go by and memory fades.
Second place
Carroll County High School
Competently written stories and theme-based headlines lead the way, but skimpy captions can leave the readers wondering about the "rest of the story." Stories are correct but need more direct quotes and facts. Good effort is evident!
Third place
Mercy Academy High School *Y
Journalistic-style stories and meaty captions star in this book. I recommend using real headlines and avoiding labels as dominant elements on pages -- give the readers a fresh statement on every spread. But captions and stories show real research and effort. Good.
Overall Yearbook Design
First place
Crittenden County High School
The staff followed the rules and broke them, too, all to create interesting and impressive eye-candy, from page one through the ad section. Kudos for the extra effort, tilted and photoshopped photos, headlines and captions-- all legible and contribute to a pleasing design.
Second place
Carroll County High School
Big photos, bright colors and easy to read fonts all contribute to a classic look. The circle borders on pictures helped tie the book together but may have become a little monotonous by the end. Consider using a varied but contemporary style in design, consistent through each section. The staff has the basics nailed.
Third place
Fairview High School
This chronological order book is successfully held together thematically by color swatches, references to time and dates, and monthly event calendars throughout. Season by season copy blocks (stories) would help the reader get a more accurate and thorough picture of the people and culture, events and memories season by season. I commend their ambition.
Theme Development
First place
Carroll County High School
The book has a well-unified and thematic message effectively presented on the cover, title page, divider pages, graphics and main headlines. The copy in the introduction also contributes to the central theme. Correct and interesting, the competitive nature at CCHS last year came through loud and clear.
Second place
Crittenden County High School
Cover, headlines and stories support the theme as well as retro "surfing" feet which remind readers of the Rockette theme. I especially liked the divider page copy -- helping readers focus on how the theme relates to each section. The theme itself is a little vague, so all these thematic references help clarify and reinforce the theme, "With Each Step."
Third place
Washington County High School
Unifying a chronological order yearbook isn't easy, so having headlines with three punchy words each unify the book and aids the reader. Emphasizing a "unique, spirited and distinguished" events and people throughout the book pull it all together for this reader.
Use of Graphics
First place
Fairview High School
Big, bold and beautiful. The Talon staff wasn't shy about using color swashes and cutout pictures to give their book style, pizzazz and a big voice. Good effort on graphics for survey says, quotes and (my fave) calendars. It's a wake-up call for the eyes.
Second place
Crittenden County High School
Tasteful and attractive, blue feet walked all over the pages and away with second place. Shades of blue quote marks and big picture division pages added to the contemporary look of their magazine-style graphics. Font usage was good as well.
Third place
Carroll County High School
The Olympic circle graphics were a standout design element, enough to place. But it is important to be careful of tinting the photos, and font outlines for the headlines which can be a little much when over-used. Also consider that when type is run on pictures and over 100 percent sat color, legibility is lost. Sometimes it's worth it.
Yearbook Photography
First place
Carroll County High School
Candid photos show tons of action as well as careful editing and placement. Numerous photos on division pages as well as in spreads tell the story of CCHS well, with emotion and clear thinking. Technical quality is great.
Second place
Crittenden County High School
Using an action photo as the dominant element on the spread played up the emotion and gave big impact. Good that most but not all photos were technically correct. The composition as well as the quality needs to be there -- avoid using any dark or any blurry photo -- ever. Most photos you selected did capture the moment and made significant contributions overall.
Third place
Washington County High School
Having high standards for photo quality really paid off for this staff. Pics are clear, crisp and well-cropped to emphasize the action or emotion desired. Consider more action and fewer posed photos, and run your best photos larger, which is better than too many equally sized or small elements that give the reader little direction as to where to look first.
Advertising Section
First place
Crittenden County High School
Hello! What a big ad section. From the division page to the index, I found eye candy and fun on almost every spread. Custom-made ads showed student skill and creativity. Loved it. Suggestion: do not allow advertisers to submit poor or low res logos or too much body copy. And consider using no more than four font families, which will help unify section and give it a little more sophistication.
Second place
Carroll County High School
Neat, classic ad composition is a stand out. Readable type and creative use of photos and layering make this ad section visually appealing. I recommend fewer pics of buildings and more of people, which will please readers and ultimately, patrons. Skillful and balanced with consistent design -- nailed it.
Third place
Washington County High School
Ads appearing throughout the yearbook gives the annual a magazine-y feel and increases readership of ads, something sponsors will appreciate. But, in addition to this professional approach, please make ads more eye-friendly. Require photos on every ad and make ads as appealing to the eye as the rest of this book.
Overall Coverage
First place
Crittenden County High School
Every spread is cram-packed with photos, captions, stories and graphics about the student body experience of '08-'09, both on and off campus. Careful attention to "changes" and "storm" coverage pulled this yearbook to the head of the pack.
Second place
Carroll County High School
From the title page to the colophon, this yearbook covered almost every aspect of the school year. Careful attention to captions and journalistic style stories will make this book readable and valuable to its owner. I suggest that the student life section reflect more of what goes on after school in "real life" and capture the whole year.
Third place
Mercy Academy High School *Y
Stories and photos, captions and photos galore -- so much of the Mercy year is on these pages. Congratulations! The coverage may be a little inconsistent. Kick it up a notch: caption all photos, include scores with W-L record, and expand student life coverage to non-school activities and student culture.