My name is Sydney Walker and I am majoring in Graphic Design and Studio Art with a minor in Marketing at Mercer University. During my Spring semester, I am enjoying an internship with Elizabeth Schorr & Co. Throughout my internship, I have had the opportunity to sit in on weekly production meetings and exercise my illustration and design skills on a client project for Ocmulgee Outfitters. Ocmulgee Outfitters is Central Georgia’s premier retailer for outdoor gear including kayaks, backpacks, fly fishing equipment, hiking and camping equipment as well as outdoor/active clothing lines located in downtown Macon.

The project began with a meeting of the store owner, store manager, Elizabeth, and myself in their Popular Street location. They shared their ideas with us for a new shirt design. Ocmulgee Outfitters currently has a large selection of shirts that feature the Ocmulgee River but very little imagery of the Ocmulgee Mounds. They stressed the desire for more apparel and merchandise for tourists visiting the area. 

Here are the final designs. Available for purchase at Ocmulgee Outfitters:

Visit The Mounds

The Ocmulgee Mounds is a great place for people to enjoy the outdoors, learn about the history of the area, and take in the beauty of nature. Learn more about visiting the mounds. 

Along with shirts representing the landmark, Ocmulgee Outfitters wanted a design depicting local wildlife. We felt this fish design depicted the best fish native to the region. 

The Process Behind The Design

Sydney started this process by sketching, taking inspiration from merchandise already being sold in the store and other leaders in the outfitter category. She digitized different options until the main 4 designs were selected. The ES&Co. Team met and collaborated on several design review and revision iterations before arriving at the final designs.

This was one of my sketchbook pages for the project. Basically just getting ideas out and jotting down notes. I like to make a list of potential fonts to try out. I think sketching helps me when I start working digitally because I have some reference points. Some ideas don’t translate well digitally, but they evolve from there. 

More About Sydney Walker,
ES&Co. Intern from Mercer University

“I really enjoyed experiencing this process and am beyond excited to have my designs in Ocmulgee Outfitters!” – Sydney

What do you love most about Macon? Right now, I’m loving all of the Japanese Magnolias in bloom downtown! But I’ve grown up here, and love the community and the family and friends I have here. 

Why graphic design? I’ve always been a creatively inclined person, and I love that graphic design combines art and visual problem-solving. Through my classes and internship with ES&Co. I’ve also seen how good graphic design can have a huge impact on an organization. 

What is a ritual or routine that helps you find your creative energy? When I feel like I’m in a creative rut with a project, it always helps me to step away and go outside with my dogs for a bit. I also think spending more time in the sketching and brainstorming phase always helps me to stay creative. I also enjoy working in spaces outside of my house at coffee shops or outside around Mercer’s campus. 

Salty or sweet? I’m always in the mood for something salty, but if there’re sour patch kids, I’m eating those first! 

Music or quiet while you work? Definitely music or a good podcast!

A favorite place to find inspiration? I think the default and guilty pleasure answer is Pinterest. I also follow a ton of amazing artists, illustrators, and graphic designers on Instagram and love seeing what other projects people are working on. In the classroom setting, it’s always really interesting to see how everyone handles the brief differently. I really enjoy seeing my classmate’s work and how they approached the same problem in a way I hadn’t considered. 

Anything you have learned or hope to learn during your time with ES&Co. ? I’ve been able to observe how client meetings and interactions go and the real-world experience has been very beneficial. The work environment is so friendly and helpful and it has really helped me shake off some of the senior fears of graduating and joining the workforce.