Ed Harrison's illustrated scene of an octopus, shark, ray and seabed for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Graphic design, Infographics, Illustration, Campaign

Transparent Sea

Working with RSPB, WWF and MSC to create a colourful, cutting-edge report that outlines why using cameras at sea is essential if we are to eliminate bycatch and overfishing.

"With his eye-catching style, we knew Ed would be ideal for this project. He collaborated very well with our team to create beautifully designed, clear and engaging illustrations and infographics for our report.”

Dr. Jo Ainsworth, RSPB FFA Programme Manager

The brief

  • The Future Fisheries Alliance (a coalition of WWF, RSPB and Marine Conservation Society) wanted to create a short, compelling report to introduce the public and politicians to the benefits of Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) to fisheries management.
  • The team supplied me with several long and technical reports about REM and the impacts of commercial fishing. Before diving into the visual design, I distilled the in-depth information down into a short, engaging written narrative.

The idea

  • I started the design process by getting the foundations in place. I refined the colour schemes, fonts, illustration rules, and icon styles to ensure consistency throughout the visual report.
  • I used a 6-column grid to structure the content, interweaving the graphics and typography from page to page.
  • I used icons and infographics to help visualise the complex data in an engaging and understandable format.
  • I created a toolkit of illustrations to highlight some of the UK marine species that are likely to be positively impacted as a result of REM; from porpoises to gannets, sharks to spider crabs.

The result

  • The physical report is being used by WWF, RSPB and MCS as a key method to engage politicians in the benefits of Remote Electronic Monitoring to fisheries management.
  • A digital version of the report is available for the public to download from the Marine Conservation Society website.
Ed Harrison's colourful book cover with an illustrated seascape of a fishing boat, lighthouse, fisherman and scientist with wildlife flourishing all around.
Ed Harrison's graphic design brand sheet for the Future Fisheries Alliance consisting of a grid of colours, typefaces, icons and illustrations.

THE DETAILS MAKE THE DESIGN

I began by developing the colour schemes, fonts, illustration rules, and icon styles to ensure consistency throughout the report.

Ed Harrison's circular illustration of an orange octopus underwater for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Ed Harrison's green circular illustration of a shoal of fish underwater for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Ed Harrison's circular illustration of a puffin portrait with sand eels in its beak for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Ed Harrison's colourful illustration of a fisherwoman and female scientist back to back, created for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
A stack of magazines with a colourful illustrated cover of a fishing boat, lighthouse, fisherman and scientist with wildlife flourishing all around.
An open book spread with infographics about the impacts of commercial fishing designed and illustrated by Ed Harrison for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Ed Harrison's laptop with graphic design software open and a work in progress for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
A graphic design book page in progress with a colourful illustrated scene of a fishing village designed and illustrated by Ed Harrison for the Future Fisheries Alliance.

Laying the foundations

I used a 6-column grid to structure the content, interweaving the graphics and typography from page to page.

An open book spread by the Future Fisheries Alliance with content about fishing in the UK illustrations by Ed Harrison.
Infographics about the impacts of commercial fishing designed by Ed Harrison for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
A set of icons designed by Ed Harrison for the Future Fisheries Alliance.

VISUALISING DATA BEAUTIFULLY

The report contained heavy stats and facts about REM and commercial fishing in the UK. I used icons and infographics to visualise the complex data in a simple, engaging, and understandable format.

An open spread of a book with colourful infographics about remote electronic monitoring and marine wildlife designed and illustrated by Ed Harrison.
A set of icons about the advantages of Remote Electronic Monitoring designed by Ed Harrison for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Ed Harrison's illustrated diagram of a vessel at sea showing the various components of remote electronic monitoring cameras on board.
Ed Harrison's set of ocean-themed graphic icons with a green background for the Future Fisheries Alliance.
Ed Harrisons illustration of a pink spider crab for the Future Fisheries Alliance.

A lively and compelling report

The result is a colourful and engaging report that is being used by WWF, RSPB and MCS as a key method to engage both the public and politicians in the benefits of Remote Electronic Monitoring to fisheries management.

An open spread of a book with colourful infographics about remote electronic monitoring and marine wildlife designed and illustrated by Ed Harrison.
Ed Harrison's colourful illustrated seascape of a fishing boat, lighthouse, fisherman and scientist with wildlife flourishing all around.