PROJECT 2 DAY 2

Regrouping a day after our initial ideas, everyone agreed that the video needed to take a different direction to be made shorter from how it was originally planned in day one. The theme of music was still popular to take as a direction so we looked into how we would cover this in the film.

These are some of the suggested album covers that we agreed looked older/ of a different era to when they were actually made.

The first 3 listed tracks and artists are covers of previously original tracks and we are going to focus/ question what is new the track as a single or question it being new at all because it has been recycled. The next 3 listed are all tracks that sound like they have been made in another musical era to that of which they have actually been made in.

These are two squares from the story board we made for the film planning. The combination of text and sketches explain themselves.

This is the basic idea for the title sequence and introduction to the film.

This is the whole storyboard which shows the basic outline of the film we plan to make. This plan is flexible enough to accommodate any last minute changes particularly if the music sections are longer than we expected.

 

Overall I think that a solid plan has been created and laid out by our group which has worked well together with every individual putting effort into the construction of this film. I think potentially we have been optimistic in hoping to fit everything in this storyboard into a two minute video however if it does work it would be great, but even if we didn't manage to fit it all in scrapping the fashion section or changing timings of the music and album cover graphics sections can be altered. At this stage I feel confident that we can achieve an end product which is quite successful if we carry on working at this rate. Although if the computer editing does not go to plan then we could be in serious trouble because we are heavily relying in the music sound aspect to run smoothly because essentially that at the moment is the main part of our film. I need to work on producing a poster for this film now and I have many ideas which are relevant to the current plan so I am looking forward to creating my own film poster.

 

Images: Authors own.

 

CHC

PROJECT 2 DAY 1

Our group picked out the word 'new' from the hat. The task is to create a short 2 minute film based on this word; so we started off by creating a mind map of all the possible words, connotations and general ideas that spring to mind when considering the word: 'new'. This is a great position to start and makes you consider ideas that you previously would have not.

When talking in groups we all agreed that the word 'new' has been talked about so much so it would be much more original to look at the word from a different perspective and we all liked the idea of the contrast between new and old and the theme of 'deception' arose as a popular idea to delve into. Deception of the new or not seemed like something profound enough to make an audience think and generate enough content to allow for an interesting film.

We also defined the word: new  using the oxford dictionary which allows a definite clear understanding of our chosen word. Knowing this exactly would be great as a reference point to look back on and constantly link to when looking further into the topic of deception.

Plans began to be made about sections within this film, having 'chapters' which each group member would focus on individually would allow for a greater range of topics to cover and make the film interesting because it didn't stagnate just focusing on one point.

 

This was a very interesting start to a project, beginning from the luck of picking a word out of a hat never allowed anyone to get a head start or to be prepared for the task so it was up to sheer creativity and imagination to nothing into a potentially brilliant video. Some people would've considered the large amount of time we spent on the mind map too long but this ensured that we covered all possible routes the film could take and gave us more time to choose a quality theme. Although not much ground appeared to have been made in this first day, we have progressed a lot and now vaguely know what we are going to do and how we will go about achieving this. I feel that the group is starting to work together well, a slightly reserved group allowed me the opportunity to step up and point the project in the right direction and then people started to get less shy and all group members started to suggest some good ideas. It is hard to summarise anything at the moment at such an early stage in the project but as a group we have discussed much and edited many mistakes and are generally heading in the right direction.

 

Images: Authors own.

 

CHC

GRAPHICS PATHWAY - PROJECT 1

I really thought about this project a lot when considering what aspect of graphics appeals to me the most; the were so many things that I liked so after a few previous sketches I ended up with the idea of 'visual communication'.



Visual communication is basically the core feature of all good graphics.



I used a basic colour scheme for my poster, only using the primary colours; I generated tone using blue and yellow whilst using red to separate and make the font stand out.

After the completion of my hand drawn poster I scanned it into the computer and then using a simple editor, toggled with basic brightness and colour levels.

I looked at different saturations, the above clearly shows the yellow making the scuba diver stand out but the rest of the colour disappears which is not an effect I was looking to create.

I didn't like the areas where you can see the pen lines/ rough texture of how I have coloured in the scuba diver and I only saw this on certain levels of shadowing so I decided to avoid levels like this which show a not smooth texture.

This is my final edit; I had to compromise the smoothness to accelerate the colour level and contrast to a level I wanted and felt overruled any unsmooth areas.

I am pleased with how this turned out and printed on gloss paper it is even more visually attractive. I like the bright colours and even using colours so much is something I have not delved into much so far this year so I am looking forward to carrying on with this colour heavy style. Colour combinations are often key in the manufacturing of successful artworks so I feel I have done well with these basic colours but maybe to improve on next time I could try using a greater range of colours (secondary and tertiary). I feel that the text and background image both combine to successfully generate the message of 'visual communication that I wanted to present to the viewer using the most obvious form of visual communication- sign language, from somewhere where most people would recognise it, in the form of a scuba diver signalling 'ok' underwater using sign language. The text is very contrasting so to improve perhaps sometime I could use more complimentary font styles.

 

Images: Authors own.

 

CHC

WHAT I'VE LEARNT FROM THE EXPLORATORY STAGE

CONCLUSION OF 6 WEEKS EXPLORATORY STAGE AND WHAT I HAVE GAINED

Throughout this process so far I have covered a wide range of topics within artistic design and media. Each week as a group we looked into something new.

 

Week 1: This week involved the introduction to topic of memory where we had to take pictures of items then draw them as if they were still life manipulating the composition and then finally burying these objects in a time capsule style and photographing the process. This seemed like quite a dull process however it gave the opportunity for creative juices to start flowing and for us to get into the habit of recording/ photographing all the actions we take and things we do. It was a steady preparation for the weeks to come and it also worked well as a bonding process where we got to see what objects represented peoples memories. The trip to the V&A museum was great for inspiration as well as bonding with people; seeing unique artwork in the form of graphics (a topic I am very interested in) helped me feel glad about my choice to study at Ravensbourne and also the 'memory palace' exhibition started to make me think in a new way where I am really beginning to look at the world through a creative lens questioning the normal and looking for original ways for looking at the world in my own work and ideas. When creating my timeline I went for an ambitious design which took many redrafts and in turn a lot of time (much more than it should've taken), however making this mistake of bad time management so early on in the course allowed me an insight to plan projects more carefully in the future considering time management significantly.

 

Week 2: This week was based upon a topic that I honestly was not looking forward to, however I was extremely surprised to find that I really enjoyed it and think that I did quite well when designing and creating my final garment. I am glad I went into the topic of fashion with an open mind and actually tried hard to do well instead of feeling nervous and not bothered about something that I originally thought that I would be awful at. My uncle Gary Harvey has worked in the fashion world at a high standard so referring to some of his advice during the week allowed me to look at fashion seriously. I still prefer other topics more than fashion but I am glad that I participated in this week, it has given me confidence and some very compelling information on jobs involved in that industry. To cover this alien (to me) topic so early on in the course was great because it puts you into a mind set where you are now able to deal with anything.

 

Week 3: This week consisted of many different topics; under the name of contextual studies I delved into what kind of learning style I have. I am a theorist, we were given a sheet to show how we work best and where we work not so well, this was a very simple process but I feel that it has given me a clear vision on how to go about my work in a methodical manor to achieve the best results. I also looked at the computer programmes including: 'photoshop' and 'illustrator', exploring the basics of each programme. This brief insight into something that I am likely to use much more in the rest of the year was essentially a great ice breaker to a new world which I had previously no knowledge of. Visiting the Tate modern again inspired me especially when looking at the Russian revolutionary posters, this trip also helped me to realise that I always need to be feeding myself artistic inspiration in order for me to keep relevant with art and keep producing fresh ideas without mental stagnation.

 

Week 4: This week involved a topic I knew a little about but I was very curious to find out much more as I have always admired architecture and the design of 3D products. I really enjoyed the first day when we lost all restrictions and started designing everyday objects which had to originate from an everyday object for example a rabbit hutch designed in the shape of your favourite fruit. This exercise was amazing for bringing out the creative thought, which is a fundamental aspect of all art and design in my opinion, so it was great to do a task like this so early on within the topic week. Since a young age I have always built models using 'lego', books and all sorts of random materials so I felt right at home when carrying out these tasks of bridge and tower building and I feel that overall I designed very well especially when creating my spaghetti tower making it the tallest in the class whilst supporting the necessary objects. The only area where I struggled slightly in the week was when I had to work in a group and stood back instead of taking control allowing others to take charge and essentially fail the task. But from this mistake of standing I have learnt something to take into the remaining weeks and the rest of my future.

 

Week 5: This was the week that I was most looking forward to, graphics as a topic mainly involves two areas which I am very attracted to: typography and illustration. So with the format of the week covering the two main aspects on separate days then combining them on the final day was great and made further impressive by the fact that the tasks set were actually very enjoyable and could easily be moulded into each individuals likes or even dislikes depending on what effect they were striving to achieve. Again for my final poster I planned well but I did not consider my resources running out and did not consider time management in the case of mistakes so again I have learnt from my mistakes but this slight dip in form was brightened out by my overall enjoyment throughout the week and this is why I chose graphics as my pathway to take.

 

Week 6: This week involved a topic which I have always respected and enjoyed but realistically I had never studied it at any higher level then simply experimenting on my own. However this week shocked me in that it was more about the process of film making and storyboarding rather then actual actions and making films which honestly I was slightly disappointed at. I did not let this get me down though and I kept on going taking the topic seriously without getting disappointed from my original assumption. I started to really appreciate the process of planning and how constant editing and following a flexible structure great stories can be created. I felt I recognised my strengths residing in the areas of character design and out of the box ideas for plot which others would not think of straight away. I learnt a lot from this topic but I would not follow it up as a pathway because it seems to be to much of a risk diving into the unknown; the week was good but not insightful enough about actual photo taking and the animation we did was great but we only did that for a single minute so I couldn't seriously decide to take the topic any further if it was going to be as simplistic as that. I feel that it was too easy and ideally it needed to be more challenging and not as disconnected as it felt.

 

Overall the 6 weeks have had their ups and downs but as a beginning it has been a vital learning process to the course and at the stage where I am currently at I have made much improvement since the beginning of the 6 weeks. At times it will appear boring but you have to make it appealing to yourself on your own sometimes and that it when you tend to achieve the best results. I am glad I have done this process and experienced a range of topics at a fast pace which have generally given me enough information to make a good estimate and decision as to what pathway is best for me to take through the rest of the foundation course. I have made enough mistakes to help me overcome the basic principles of projects to aid me plan and save time and resources successfully whilst achieving quality results. I feel so far that generally everything has gone rather well but I am keen to keep moving onto the next stage of the project and polishing off my work to achieve high quality results for the assessment which should allow me to proceed onto the next stage of the course.

 

CHC

FINAL CUT STORYBOARD

Boy is stressed struggling to do homework.

So to relieve stress he runs out to trampoline but when its too late he realises that this is not an ordinary trampoline but one which has ridiculously large amounts of bounce. It catapults boy up to the clouds and almost out of the atmosphere (much like a 'Looney Tunes' cartoon).

Boy crash lands next to trampoline much later at night, he is disorientated and confused.

When boy walks into what he thinks is his house he is shocked to find some monster freaks sitting on the sofa watching TV where he expected to see his family watching TV.

This still shows the fear and shock that boy feels when he sees the unexpected sitting on the sofa watching TV.

Instead of running away or getting stressed about everything not being right, boy just sits down next to the monster freaks to relax and watch TV, he soon realises that they are not as bad as he first thought.

 

REFLECTION

This was a great task for sheer creativity with a brief to create a short story following the basic principles of story creation. This brief gave me a lot of room to work with allowing me to create quite a quirky story. The process at first seemed very slow where constant retaking of images for the story seemed often pointless however I soon realised that after a few drafts of the storyboard that the editing was worth it to increase the enjoyment the viewer gets from the story and its profoundness. To give the story a meaning generally allows it to make sense with beginning, struggle and resolution occurring throughout the storyboard. I feel that my story has improved but it has a lot of room for improvement still, where I could make the story more relatable to the audience in particular. If I was to carry out this task again I would most definitely expand the amount of settings that I used and I would use a much less quirky storyline to make it more relatable to the audience and in turn hopefully more popular.

 

Images: Authors own

 

CHC  

EDITING FOR FINAL STORYBOARD

WEEK 6 DAY 3

This is the selection of images I used in the story board for the first draft of my short story

I went on to annotate this A1 storyboard editing the plot and introducing new ideas for the sequence as-well as taking out less interesting/relevant images to make room for the new images.

This shows the stress of homework through the pose of the protagonist in my short story- 'boy'.

This is where the boy gets so stressed he contemplates suicide with a gun held to his head.

Luckily he reconsiders the suicide and instead wants to relieve some stress by bouncing on the trampoline.

The struggle begins when boy realises this is not an ordinary trampoline and the bounce sends him up ridiculously high past the clouds much like a 'Looney tunes' cartoon.

Much later on at night time the boy crash lands next to the trampoline, he is disorientated and confused. 

Boy decides to head back into his home.

Instead of seeing his family watching TV as expected he is shocked to see a bunch of monster like people from a parallel universe watching TV.

This is a redraft of the original image I took above, I feel this image has a stronger composition.

This still shows boy in absolute shock.

 



Instead of running away (which was one of my original ideas) boy just accepts that these people are freaks and sits down next to them to watch TV and relax relieving stress...READ ON, THROUGH BLOG POST NAMED: FINAL CUT STORYBOARD...

ELEMENTS OF A STORY IN STORYBOARDING

WEEK 6 DAY 2

After a brief on what elements make up a story from beginning to end involving struggle and the final resolution; we had to sketch out a few characters and settings. These characters were referenced from strong characters that each person had come across in their lives.

The settings had to represent a dream escape, a time of sadness and excitement individually. We later used these characters and settings to create our own stories.

These are some of my own sketches, they were done at speed but I feel I captured the essential characteristics to bring them to life.

It is interesting looking at other peoples drawing styles and how lines are made differently, these sketches were done by another group member within the task.

These are the 3 horizontal storyboards for the 3 short stories my group created. The task involved doing the storyboard over our original sketches creating a busy by contextually relevant scene.

This is part of story 3 involving a crazy cyclist cycling around with hands off the handlebars on a skate park 'half pipe' with his dog in a basket on the back of bike. The problem is when his dog runs away and then he becomes depressed; but when he sees his dog happy with a new family he is happy for his old dog and realises he is better off without him so they go their individual ways and both individually do what they enjoy. 

This shows two scenes from a story; here Sonic runs so fast he breaks the treadmill machine at the gym and in doing so he injures his leg so he ends up in hospital worrying about all the people he is now unable to save, then along comes his compensation money for the damage caused to him at the gym.

This shows two scenes from a story where here the chicken is on the rollercoaster but the seatbelt is not fastening properly!

The combination of past sketches and new storyboard sketches provides an interesting set of layers in the eye of the viewer.

Storyboard combined with: happy setting, nightmare...

We also carried out a quick animation sequence involving moulding a ball of blue-tack into shapes stretching them then filming in between to show the gradual change in shape or movement of the created form. At the end all these small frames were combined into one much larger and longer film. The following images are some random snapshots from the final film. 

 

REFLECTION

This was a very interesting day in that it really opened my mind on how to create a story and how simple it is following a simple formula in order to generate a story with a real meaning a sense of profoundness to it. I feel that I am getting used to expressing my imagination well with pen on paper but I could still improve much. The storyboard was created amongst our group efficiently and successfully in my opinion considering the small time period we had to complete it in. If we had much more time I'm sure we could produce something quite special. Also I was impressed how easy the blue-tack animation was and am keen to investigate that technique some more (it reminded me of a Wallace and gromit film which I admire a lot). The idea of doing a rough storyboard on top of the original sketches was thought provoking but I think its too much of a messy idea to use again; next time I make a storyboard I will be much neater and clearer so the images are less rough and more understandable as to what they are actually showing in order for the storyline to be obvious. Overall I am proud that I worked well in a group raising my voice so that it was heard and so that we created final produce as a group quickly and fairly successfully. Ideally I would like to work at this efficiency throughout the rest of my work whilst always working out ways to improve and avoid time wasting problems along the way.

 

Images: Authors own

 

CHC



PHOTOGRAPHY BASICS

WEEK 6 DAY 1

I took many photos based on places of memory, preceding to this day of photography at Ravensbourne. Out of all of the photos I liked this one the most because of the cinematic effect it creates through the panoramic lens.  I found it to be the most interesting composition out of all of my photos because it was not definitely a perfect scene with some mysterious disfiguring and generally there is so much going on in this scene.

I redrew this image in a 45 minute time period on a much larger scale than I have ever done before in pencil, I used 3 lots of A2 paper to create enough length to draw out this panoramic scene. Its not perfect because it was carried out at speed but I have managed to note down all features from the original picture.

Here is a quick sketch of the figures of me and my brother in the mirror. Here we were looking into the context of cropping and selecting certain parts of the image to give the image a whole new meaning to the original.

This cropping of the image shows a cartoon ducks face smiling and this is clearly a completely different atmosphere compared to that created in the original image.

Again here not so clearly is a cropped area which just shows the washing in-front of the back windows making it appear to be a boring and average photo of something most people see in their everyday lives.

The next task of the day involved looking into the meaning of photos and what kind of mood that they are trying to create. The theme of this photo was JUMP, its fairly unoriginal and also blurred but what I like about it is the shadows in the background which show the jump at a much more emphasised level.

Here the theme was SAD so I attempted to create a sad face with some sugar on the floor.

The theme here was FALLING, I saw an image of 'buzz light-year' from toy story and remembered the classic line where he states that he is not flying but: 'falling with style', so I thought this was relevant.

When looking for an image to represent ECHO, I struggled however this image here involved the repetition of the blue circles and repetition is a key aspect of the echo so out of everything I found I thought that this was the most successful way of representing echo in the short time period which we had.

The theme here was CRUSH, so when I saw 'ironman's' strong wrist clenched as if crushing something I thought it represented the theme perfectly.

Here the theme was HAPPY, this I found was a very easy theme to represent because a lot of advertising has happy faces such as on the dancers here.

REFLECTION

This day started off well being introduced to photography which I have always enjoyed but never studied to a detailed degree, so much of this day involved learning new things which helped me understand photography much better. I quickly realised that I liked busy photos with lots to look at especially in the panorama form. This panoramic form is much similar to the lengthy image you see in cinema, this is a technique I would like to take further into a lot of my work because it is not too common and is really visually impressive. My sketch was successful in that I completed it so quickly and my sketching skills at speed have improved rapidly so far over this process. However it was not perfectly accurate but there is plenty of time to improve this aspect of my artistic skills. Looking into cropping and the meaning behind photos was very intriguing and I have definitely learnt a lot more which should help improve my photos to the next level. Then when capturing photos trying to represent a certain theme was interesting because it makes you look at the world in a new light really searching for something in your surroundings. In this topic I am only a rookie at the moment but there is plenty of time and space to improve so I will keep trying my best and see how it goes.

 

Images: Authors own

 

CHC