Gretchen Helpenstell

For our traditional "student nightlife" coverage I wanted to focus on one organized event rather than a collection of photos provided by students. I went into the photo shoot with three main areas of focus: candid students, Dockweiler State Beach, and the sunset for dramatic lighting. We missed the actual sunset and got an even more dramatic dusk sky that balanced nicely with the bright orange of the fire pit. Here's what the judges had to say: "An extraordinary picture. Such rich color and such wistful, warm emotion. The type treatment is restrained and perfectly placed. Man, does this bring back memories. Which is the point. Kudos." Photo: Justin Vitug AWARDS • 1st place CMA Apple Award for Best Yearbook Spread (2012) • 3rd place APC Design of the Year (2012)

Our 2012 Athlete Highlights were heavily influenced by modern magazine design. We focused on using sharp geometric shapes and contrasting colors to organize multiple elements: name, tagline, quote, short questionnaire, interview, grade, major, and photos.

Unlike previous years, we highlighted our 2012 study abroad program using a full bleed infographic. We interviewed students who studied abroad in each of the programs available during the Fall semester.

For 2012 commencement I wanted to develop an infographic for students not sure what all the "garb" meant. The other half of the spread was dedicated to the commencement speaker and student awards.

The Den, our student-run coffee shop, is always packed with caffeine-hungry students. I wanted to capture what the student baristas feel "after-hours," as they close down shop. To do so I organized as many student baristas as possible into a group shot, with a twist that they had to be dressed in their best "Den Hipsters" attire. Thus, the themes of The Den and hipster-clad students merged to create, "The Densters". (2013 Production) Photo: Nathan Podshadley AWARD • 1st Place, 2013 ACP Design of the Year

For our 2013 dividers we wanted to use typography to engage the reader, breaking from our traditional full bleed photo. White space was critical to the success of this concept. We utilized bright colors to signify the six main sections of the 2013 book: Live (Student Life), Learn (Academics), Train (Athletics), Join (Clubs and Organizations), Love (Senior Ads), Find (Index).

This spread tells the story of three college students experiencing life off-campus during their senior year of college. I wanted it to feel like a magazine feature of the "Workaholics" TV series. (2013 Production)

I wanted to make a chronological infographic documenting the campaign trail. The timeline leads the reader to the far right typographical element honoring the President-elect. Information includes LMU student voting polls on the president and Props 37, 36, and 34, a map of Electoral Votes, and the first half of President Obama's acceptance speech. (2013 Production)

Our coverage of LMU's annual winter event, "The Christmas Tree Lighting" produced this stunning shot of a horse carriage ride. To give the photo space to breathe we refrained our copy to just the headline and a student quote about the event. (2013 Production)

Our Photo Director took this stunning shot of student dancers. Because I was also in attendance we were able to incorporate the song title they were dancing to into our headline "When the Chips Are Down," with a sub-head detailing the names of performers and choreographers. (2013 Production)

My love for our on-campus bar, The Loft, brought this spread to print. I organized The Loft coverage around a "beerology" type infographic along the bottom breaking down each beer according to taste, type and tap handle. There is an editorial on the student experience, and the top right infographic displays the layout of the venue. (2013 Production)