For the first time, the Society for News Design has released a digital version of The Best of News Design annual book for iPad and iPhone. Created by Douglas Okasaki, SND vice-president, the ebook is a completely new experience with videos, gallery and interviews.
“The competition comes to life with this project. It’s an ideal teaching resource for educators with comments from the judges. It’s an exciting overview of the very best design,” says Sara Quinn, SND president.
SND print competition committee chair Josh Crutchmer agreed, “This ebook is something SND members and participants in the Best of News Design deserve. It is long overdue … I hope people find it both inspiring and fun to use.”
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Print vs. digital
The printed SND annual and the digital version complement each other — providing very different experiences to view work produced in 2014 and recognized in 2015. Each are rich in material that will inspire those with a passion for design, illustration and storytelling.
Features of the e-book include:
1) Video interviews with judges.
2) The competition backstage: Behind the scenes as judges review more than 1800 pages/entries from around the world.
3) Links to winners of the digital competition, with judges’ comments.
4) Pages from special coverage, portfolios and long form categories that are not included in the print annual.
5) Videos from industry leaders at the student workshop held at Syracuse University during the judging event.
6) An interactive quiz: How expert are you about the SND competition? Test yourself. And much more …
What experts say
“This was long overdue, and well worth the effort. I must say that the digital version adds a whole other dimension to the book. I just saw the demo and I wish I could have seen the whole thing. I can just imagine how exciting it is going to be to get a better view of the winning pages and to actually interact with the graphics. It adds life and credibility to the whole process, and the judges are no longer just mug shots, they have a voice now. Definitely an added value for the members and very inspirational tool for the news media community at large.”
— Lucie Lacava · President, Lacava Design
“The printed book of winners will always be the biggest inspiration for me personally, as the physical book has lasting value and a reading mode that appeals to me. As a searchable reference though, the iBook is a more powerful tool, and it’s great to have video and interactive elements added to the experience.”
— Lars Pryds · Graphic Artist & Designer MD, DJ, BKF SND Scandinavia Magazine Editor
The ebook comes alive with the contributions of SND officers and board members, especially the competition directors, Josh Crutchmer (print) and Ryan Sparrow (digital); Annual Book Editor Steve Layton; Director of Strategic Programs Kyle Ellis and support from the SND officers.