The Saga of the Banner

So last week, in the midst of singing and visiting and trying to find some quiet time, I started to kick into NQC planning mode. It's been so busy lately that I've had very little time to think about it, so I'm now forced to do lots of last minute preparation. Not my favourite way to work, but one of the gifts of working in theatre and film is learning to be creative, open, and organized with very little time or resources.

I know my booth number (448 - come visit me!), but not my showcase time (reminder to self: email for that info). Tara and I are sharing a booth, so that eases some of the planning, but I still need to find a hotel room.

I'm planning a Single Release Party for the Thursday of NQC, and that's going to be a big deal. We have a lot of the details narrowed down, but we're still trying to find a time that won't conflict with any of the other radio events happening that day.

And I'm getting a banner! Originally, I didn't think we'd be able to afford one right now, but God had a different plan, and now we're getting a banner. And I don't mind saying: This whole process has stressed me out!

When we were doing the packaging for Real Big Fan, I knew exactly what I wanted things to look like. I knew what photos I wanted and where I wanted each photo placed. Unfortunately, I'm lacking this clarity of vision for my banner!

(Let's remember that a banner isn't cheap, so I want to choose my photo well!)

On the weekend, I visited and revisited all my Real Big Fan photos, and finally narrowed it down to five. I then sent the photos to a few trusted friends to get their opinions. They all came back with different favourites.

Then I narrowed it down to three. Tara (bless her heart!) has been my liaison in Nashville, so she sent the three to the graphics designer to do some rough mock-ups of the banner design. Meanwhile, I sent the three photos back around to the trusted friends. Again, no consistent answer! Dad took each of the photos and loaded them into a projector so we could blow them up to banner size and view them on the wall. That helped, but still no absolute clarity.

Last night, I received the three mock-ups, and sent them around again. And yes, everyone still has a different favourite. Dad took the mock-ups and projected them onto the wall again. I can't recommend this technique enough! Photos look so different when you see them this size, and it really helped all of us envision the banner in a church or convention or whatever.

Well, this is where things got all messed around. Mom and Dad and Gerald had all chosen photo number 3, but after seeing the photos on the wall, they all changed to photo number 1! (the numbers are arbitrary, but you get my point) Even I started to fall in love with photo 1 again. We were all surprised by our responses, which lead to a bit of a debate as to why we were reacting this way.

I've finally decided to sleep on it, and pray that I wake up with a clear answer. As it stands now, it's probably going to be photo 1, but you never know what's going to happen with this. I'm pretty sure I've aged through this whole process. Good thing I'll have a good looking photo for my booth!

(hahaha - seriously people, just kidding!) (I clearly need some sleep...)