The Brief
I was commissioned by a Product Manager at BHP Billiton to lead the design of a commemorative publication celebrating the 80th Anniversary of the Marine Deck Apprentice Scheme. The booklet was the centerpiece for a gala dinner honoring past program participants as a tangible keepsake to celebrate nearly a century of maritime history.
The scope included the layout and design of 68 pages of content, utilizing client-supplied copy and a vast, eclectic archive of historical imagery.
The primary challenge was the source material. The assets provided were a mix of original photographs, newspaper clippings, scanned tickets, and official documents spanning decades.
The quality varied drastically; many items were heavily worn, faded, or discolored due to age. The goal was not just to display these items, but to create a cohesive visual narrative that honored the history without making the booklet feel like a scrapbooked collage. We needed a system that would unify high-resolution scans with gritty, low-fidelity newspaper clippings.
To unify the disparate assets, I developed a color strategy that turned a flaw into a feature. Noticing that many of the aged documents had yellowed into a light orange hue, I saw an opportunity to bridge history with the client’s modern branding.
I matched the archival discoloration with BHP’s signature vibrant orange. To create depth and contrast, I pushed this further by treating the imagery with a stylized duotone system of orange and constrasting purple inks. This approach normalised the varying quality of the images, giving the entire 68-page book a consistent, intentional, and striking aesthetic.
Significant time was invested in digital restoration. Beyond the color treatment, I performed extensive retouching to clean up scratches, tears, and artifacts, ensuring that while the character of the age remained, the quality was suitable for print.
With a heavy volume of visual assets, the layout needed to be rigorous to avoid clutter. I employed a Swiss grid system throughout the document. This approach ensured high legibility for the text while allowing the images—the true heroes of the story—to breathe. The grid provided a modern, structured framework that balanced the chaotic textures of the historical documents.
I managed the entire pre-press workflow, including pagination and print setup. The book was digitally printed on a premium semi-gloss stock to retain image sharpness, bound within a thicker card-stock outer cover for a more premium feel in the hand.
The booklet was successfully printed, boxed and delivered for the gala dinner, serving as both a program guide and a historical artifact. The client was elated with the result, noting that the design successfully elevated the archival material into a polished, celebratory narrative worthy of the 80-year milestone.