MNF graphics

[BrandMooreArt]

i did this thread once some time ago but couldnt find it, so im starting over here plus this project has come a long way sense then. this is a concept for monday night football on air graphics. all comments and critiques welcome. my goals are as follows

1. simplicity - cutting the fat; no on field overlays or useless graphics. nothing "shiny" for the sake of being shiny.

2. primetime palette - a color scheme that represents the night but also allows for team colors to "pop" and attract the eye.

3. modern style with "football edge". angles for attitude and to direct "flow" of information, slab serifs for football culture.

UPDATE 02 BELOW:

[wyopokes2]

Somebody sure does hate the Patriots haha. I really like the graphics though. Fantastic job!

[BrandMooreArt]

these JPGs have really robbed the color from the photos. ill post some PNGs later to see if it helps. the orange looks awful. as you can see below, this is the how-to guide for teh graphic, as well as some "throwback" game ideas i have. maybe something that would be used on Thanksgiving weekend, but would require participation by the 2 teams playing as well. more to come on that later

[Brave-Bird 08]

[Lights Out]

Hmmm... as an illustration, it's fine, but it just isn't working for me as TV graphics. There are too many small details (the week of the season, the "MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL" full title, the stat headers, etc.) that would get lost on smaller televisions, and most football fans generally don't like it when the quarters are displayed as anything other than a number. Furthermore, the font selection could be improved, and while I understand that you wanted to avoid gradients and the like, the end result is a bit too simple for the average American sports broadcast. With some refining, this could look TV-ready, but right now, it looks more like fake graphics that a movie would use, if that makes sense.

Also, another thing that would help this concept out a lot is using the actual ESPN logo.

[fkaKrock5cent]

It looks very good, I think if you used the actual ESPN logos and fonts, as well as adding more red might make it look more like something ESPN would use. Also, it appears based on the Matt Ryan photo, that the in-game scorebug will be top right. I personally am a fan of having it on the bottom just because I think it's more out of the way, but that is just me. As for the score notice, will it blink? I ask because you used two colors with each.

Other than that I think you did an awesome job with these! I'm all for using team logos as much as possible as well as using helmet colors to identify each team from another. Lovin' the addition of # of challenges to the time outs. You have something awesome going here!

Quick Edit, after reading Light's Out post. Most NFL TV Graphics are this small anyways, and it's not a problem for HDTV. For example, FOX's NFL scorebugs are almost useless on a non-HD screen, even at a large size. However it looks fine on HD

[Jarred Revolver]

Looking good. You should totally use the proper ESPN logos though.

[The Fixer]

I'd like the see a yellow or orange outline around who has possession of the ball, ESPN's actually logos and fonts, "safty" spell corrected in the 7th picture, and honestly it needs some flashy gradients or bevels to make it look like TV graphics. Every company will want that. I REALLY like that Vick banner!

[BrandMooreArt]

thanks for the quick replys guys. are all the photos showing up for everyone? should be 6 in the 1st post and 3 in the 2nd

i know some details are small, but its hard to judge on a computer screen. in context, these graphics would be at least 2x larger. i may revisit some of these details though

ive gone back and forth on the quarter number vs lights thing. right now i like the lights and feel its more visable at a small scale but is another element i will work on

i kind of wanted to redo the ESPN logo for this but ill change to their current one.

the score bug would alternate between left and right, away from the direction of the offense. the last thing i want that to be is in the way and annoying, so i may change it to a horizontal bar on the bottom. the score indicator would have some annimation, not sure about those details though.

i dont feel it is necessary to indicate who has the ball, as that is obvious by whats going on on the field and would add to the score bug details

ill have another update tomorrow

[Trevis Meseroll]

NICE and clean look w/ this idea!!!

[WSU151]

I would have never guessed that the white squares were timeouts and the red squares were challenges until you told me. In your graphics Tampa has one challenge remaining...but did Tampa use one challenge or two? If it were me, I'd take out the challenge part of the bug and bring up challenge stats on a graphic when appropriate.

I would connect the score notice box to the team logo somehow...it would better show who's scoring rather than "similar" team colors. If you have the Bears and Broncos playing...who scored? You kind of have that problem with Colts/Pats. White and blue are close to both teams, and blue and gray could be either team.

[AHcreative]

I would have never guessed that the white squares were timeouts and the red squares were challenges until you told me. In your graphics Tampa has one challenge remaining...but did Tampa use one challenge or two? If it were me, I'd take out the challenge part of the bug and bring up challenge stats on a graphic when appropriate.

I would connect the score notice box to the team logo somehow...it would better show who's scoring rather than "similar" team colors. If you have the Bears and Broncos playing...who scored? You kind of have that problem with Colts/Pats. White and blue are close to both teams, and blue and gray could be either team.

I agree with most of what WSU is saying. For me, I would really like to see the 'penalty' bar under the team that committed the penalty, or use one of those fade-away red arrow graphics (that's as best of an explanation as I can give)you sometimes see. Also, I have mixed feelings for the orange dot being used to indicate which quarter the game is in. I like the simplicity of it, but half of me thinks that it might be a little too hard to "figure out" for some people who are just coming in or those who get a quick glance at the TV.

Very nice stuff though. I like how the Colts are smashing the Pats too.

[BrandMooreArt]

when doing the TO/challenges i was thinking of the best way to represent both, what would communicate that info best? after some thought those squares are what i came up with and was what worked for me. its been an issue with a few people though. i feel that after a game or two it would make sense and just wouldnt be right without it after geting used to it. still, its another one of those details that i may have to revisit.

i like the idea of connecting the score notice to the team box. it wont be in my next batch of updates but is something ill work on this week.

as for connecting the penalty to team icon, thats a little bit tougher. often, we dont know who committed the penalty until the ref gives the call. for the graphics/tv team, their job is to get that info up quickly.

will have an update in the 1st post soon

[BrandMooreArt]

heres a few shots from the "throwback" idea

[mbannon92]

This looks really good. I like the simpler style, as well as your choice of fonts. The score ticker looks really good. I like the emphasis of the team logos, and it's very clear. I personally have no problem with the time out/challenge squares. When I first looked at them I understood what they meant. Also, the update is solid with the added gradients and the actual ESPN logo. I do agree with the others, though, that the scoring and penalties need some clarification. Maybe for the scores you could flash the team logo in the box before "Touchdown" comes up.

[WSU151]

I like the stats graphics for the players. I like the font used for the numbers. A lot of times in games these days, it's hard to distinguish between a 3 and an 8, or a 6 and an 8, but I see no problem in your graphics. Overall it's pretty slick. I think it looks better (more official) with the current ESPN logo. One other suggestion...when you show Tampa defense has been called for 5 penalties, I might include the yardage too. 5 penalties for 25 yards can often be less significant than 5 for 75.

[slapshot]

None of these are working for me...starting with your choice of fonts.

Even though most people are getting HD TVs, ultra condensed fonts are still hard to read. You still need to provide a legible typeface. If you squint at yours (especially the "Last Drive" graphic), all I see are vertical lines instead of letters. Watch any game and look at the proportions of the text. You can still maintain a hierarchy of information while retaining legibility.

NESN uses Interstate for most of its in-game graphics, and that's one of the most legible sans serif fonts by design.

The next thing to work on is the hierarchy itself. The ESPN/MNF graphic dominates the page, and makes the matchup itself secondary. When the teams are shown, shrink the size of the graphic. Titans/Bills is what's selling the game, not "ESPN/MNF". It should be set up more like "ESPN/MNF presents Titans/Bills". Like Kellogg's Frosted Flakes. Frosted Flakes is what sells, not Kellogg's.

I'm not a fan of team logos in the score bug. It's easier to use a city abbreviation, and maybe the color of the team. In your example, you have both the logo and the team name. When using a larger graphic, the addition of the logo is fine.

Add drop shadows or thicker outlines when setting simple text against the background. This adds to legibility.

You don't need to flood the screen with info. Keep it simple.

[YessSir32]

This is just great. I would love to see any of these used in the games.

[BlueSky]

In ballcarrier graphics (like the Chris Johnson example), omit stuff like fumbles or drops unless the player had one in the time period covered by the graphic. It doesn't happen often enough to justify space on every such graphic.

[fkaKrock5cent]

How come you keep using pictures of day games? Isn't it Monday Night Football? I'd like to see it on the darker background.