Animation in Photoshop

The first task in this session was to create an animated GIF. We started by setting up the Photoshop document size and setting the width at 300 pixels and height at 100, then made sure the pixel aspect ratio was set at 'Square Pixels'.

Once the document was set up we then added the timeline by going to Window - then selecting to show the timeline feature. Then we changed the option on the timeline to 'Create Frame Animation'.

We then created the layers to turn in to animation. To do this we created a new layer and then deleted the background layer to have a transparent layer.

We were then asked to create artwork on 10 layers - something different on each layer. Here is what I created using the paintbrush tool:

Once the artwork was created we converted the layer stack to frames by selecting all the layers and clicking the 'create animation button', then selecting from the drop down menu the 'Make frames from layers' option.

We then changed the timing. We set the loop to 'Forever' to make the gif loop continuously. The animation so far was playing too fast so we then changed the time setting by selecting all the frames and clicking the '0 second' drop down, which made time options appear and we set it to 1.0 second per frame.

Here is my Gif, which I think has turned out well for a first attempt, and I feel that learning how to make a gif is quite a useful skill and with more interesting artwork than what I have created here in the first instance, an impressive looking moving image could be created, as well as text being incorporated which is something I will consider in my future projects and personal work:

The next thing we looked at was video layers.

The first thing we did was set up the Photoshop document to 'half' HD settings, so 960 pixels by 540 pixels. We also made sure the 'square pixels' option was selected. 

We then went to Layer - video layers - new blank video layer.

Which then made the timeline appear like this:

An animation is usually 24 fps, but we did 12 fps instead. To set this up we went to the drop down menu on the timeline and selected 'set timeline frame rate'. We then clicked the cog icon to loop play back. 

We then learnt about 'Onion Skin settings' which allow you to see work drawn on a previous layer to create a smooth animation. The Onion Skin setting is found in the drop down menu on the timeline and just needs to be enabled.

Here is my work using video layers: 

The final thing we looked at was Video Rotoscope.

We set the Photoshop document up to 1280 by 720 first of all, then went to the Layer tab and then Video layers - new video from file, where we chose from a selection of videos of people dancing or skateboarding. Then we changed the frame rate to 12 fps, and created a new blank video layer on which we would draw over the video frames to create a dancing/skateboarding animated person.

Here is what I managed to create within the session:

I felt like a learnt a lot in this session, and found the techniques interesting to try out so I decided to use the skills I learnt in the session and experiment a bit with better artwork. 

Here is an experiment I did using the video rotoscoping technique, this time using a video of a ballet dancer dancing to Tchaikovsky's 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy', and as I had more time than in the lesson to really focus on it I drew round the figure of the ballerina properly and tried to make it look good, I think the use of something like a graphics tablet in this instance would produce some good work, but overall I am quite pleased with how I managed to draw the figure of the dancer even though it took me quite a while to do frame after frame (I now feel like I could draw a ballerina in my sleep) 

I am happy with the final outcome which can be seen below:

rotoscope ballerina from Libby Howker on Vimeo.

Typography in Graphic Design - Task 3

For the third task we had to select the most appropriate design out of the three roughs and create a complete alphabet on graph paper. Here is my first attempt at my chosen design out of the three drawn previously, drawn on graph paper.

I used pencil and made sure each box for the letters was the same size, but when creating the final version in Illustrator I will need to make sure each letter is the same width and height for it to look like a proper font and for it to work well.

On Illustrator I used the guides and rulers to scale my letters more accurately and to make sure each letter related and fit well with each other. 

I used the pen tool to redraw my letters and also the ellipse tool,for the circular components of my typeface. 

Once I had finalised my design on Illustrator I experimented with different colour schemes inspired by El Lissitzy's 'Proun' piece, which my letters were transcribed from. 

Post Modernity and Design part 1

 In this lecture we looked at the features of Post Modernism in design, from the lecture I noted these key words down for Post Modernism which I think explained the movement quite well:

- Pastiche
- Language
-Gender
- Fractured narrative
-Repetition
- Cultural discourse
-Parody
-Mirrors
-Tensions
-Rejection of binary
-Multiperspective
-Collapse of the sign

One thing we looked at was deconstruction, which is a form of literary and philosophical analysis and aims to show how truth and meaning are always unstable and contingent. It questions logocentrism - the privileged category within a text/work which suggest a 'truth'. Truth is leased language and language is not a fixed system but 'free-play' of signifiers.

We also looked at how deconstructivist typography was popular in the 1990's and also self-referentiality - making transparent the reason that design happens. 

Also, we covered Jean Baudrillard - Simulacra and Simulation and the idea of 'Hyper reality' an example being the Disneyland theme park which is visual reality, the houses look real, but then at the same not real, and there is a questioning of what is real and what is a phantasm. We also looked at 'Plato's Cave', an idea posed by the philosopher Plato about prisoners who only ever see shadows of the real world, so the shadows are their reality, not the real 'real world' things making the shadows. The shadows are the simulacrum. 

In the seminar following this we watched a clip from the film Avatar and the Matrix linking to the theme of 'augmented reality' and were asked to consider in the Avatar all the features which show the idea of simulation and hyper reality. These features could place Avatar on the 'Uncanny Valley' graph as it is sort of 'real beyond real' so real the reality is questioned like the Disneyland example.

Titles, Slates and End-boards

In this session we looked at 3D tools and masks.  The first task we did was create the assets that would be used in our After Effects work, which we did on Illustrator, using 5-10 layers and set up using HD settings. For my work I took inspiration from the sequence shown to us at the start of the session which featured the title 'Jojo in the Stars' which had been animated along with some images of stars. I felt the idea of a single word that had a simple image to represent that word like 'Stars' was quite effective so decided upon the word 'Rain' using an appropriate font, with quite a heavy weight so any applied textures could be seen, and drew some simple shapes that would be 'rain drops' which I felt would work well. 

Once the assets had been created these were imported in to After Effects on a new Composition with the 'retain layer size' option selected so the different layers created in Illustrator would be the same when imported and be editable. 

Then we looked at toggles, switches and modes and made sure all layers had the 3D option turned on. We then focused on X and Y rotation - how you spin objects in 3D space. We applied this to the text and staggered the layers so the letters would animate in turn, but made sure all animation of text had happened by 4 or 5 seconds. To make the letters 'spin' we changed the values to 360 degrees.

We then created a background layer, using a flat block of colour and made this the same size as the comp, and chose an appropriate colour, mine being grey to reflect a grey sky behind the 'rain'. This flat background layer was placed behind all other layers.

After this we imported a texture we had found, to be used to fill the letters and objects. Firstly we selected the layer we wanted to work on, selected 'layer new' then the option pre-compose, and then the 3D layer attribute, which meant that everything stayed in a new comp by selecting 'leave all attributes in main comp' option. Double-clicking this opened a new comp which appeared in the time line. Then we dropped the texture in to the background and then using the track mats option, in the toggles, switches and modes selection and clicking 'alpha mat' the texture was 'pushed through' the object/letter.

The next thing we did was apply styles to layers, by choosing 'layer new' then 'layer styles'. The two styles I looked at and applied were the 'bevel and emboss' and 'drop shadow' effect. The bevel and emboss style changed the look of the depth of the object and a inner or outer bevel could be chosen. The drop shadow effect affected the outline of the object and 'pulled out' the shadow from object.  I then copy and pasted my layer styles on to each object so the effects were identical on other layers.

The final technique we looked at was masks, a post-production technique. We created a new black solid, selected a new layer then selected the mask layer option, the mask option then appeared in the timeline. Then we adjusted the width and height and the feather , which softened the edges of the mask.

Here is my final clip:

Overall I am fairly happy with how this turned out, as I managed to follow all the instructions correctly and apply all the effects covered in the session so that my final work plays properly and the applied effects work well.

Illustrator Tutorial 2

In this session we looked at the Appearance tool/panel and creating photo-realistic gradient meshes. 

When recording the session I wrote down the instructions in a steps format which I will document here with screenshots of my work in Illustrator to show the steps involved.  
The first thing we looked at was the Appearance tool/panel:

1) Select ellipse tool

2) 3 pt stroke

3) Anchor point tool - under pen

4) Click top anchor and drag to right to make more pointed

5) Direct selection tool - deselect object

6) Side anchors - hold shift, then use down arrow key to make bottom wider

7) Use handles at the bottom - drag out to meet long handles.

8) Appearance panel - modifies how paths appear

9) Add stroke - (square box icon) - add new stroke - same as top stroke

10) On top stroke change to black and weight 1 pt

11) Fx panel - path - offset path - dialogue box - offset: -5mm - OK

 

12) Select black - stroke option - dash line

13) Draw a rocket 'foot' with pen tool and add same stroke and appearance options

14) Select foot

15) Rotate tool - hold -reflect tool - hold down alt

16) Select anchor point at the bottom of rocket - will become axis - select - dialogue box - copy

17) Send feet to back - object- arrange - send to back (while selecting both feet) 

18) Select rectangle tool - no stroke - fill any colour

19) Click anywhere - options box - 80 mm 40 mm

20) Opacity to 50% from appearance panel

21) Rotate tool - click center - 90% - copy

22) New rectangle tool - fully white - drag to make square over other rectangle

23) Group objects together - cmd + g

24) Object -pattern - make

25) Dialogue box appears -  new pattern added to swatches panel - OK

26) Hit 'done'

27) Fill shape with pattern from swatches

28) Double click swatches tool -> dialogue box - 20% uniform . Options: transform pattern - tick box - OK

29) Do same on feet

30)  Create porthole - Ellipse tool - 3 strokes, fills, scale these

31) Add shadow to rocket - drag and drop underneath contents

32) Fx panel - stylise - drop shadow 

Finished rocket:

The second activity focused on using graded mesh:

1) Create new art board 

2) Find pear image 

3) Place on to Illustrator on new art board

4) New layer - 'img' - drag pear layer on to this

5) Options on layers box - template

6) Info: Template untouched by outlines

7) New layer 'mesh'

8) Select mesh tool

9) When doing mesh, always start with rectangle 

10) Select centre point

11) Arrange handles so white shape molds to pear shape

12) Mesh tool to make more lines 

A = anchor points selected

cmd + y = outline mode

i = eyedropper tool, select colour - assigns colour to anchor points - do this to all anchor points

13) Select mesh - object - path - offset path - 1 mm

14) Find a texture to apply to pear a black and white one

15) Send texture to back

16) Select texture -  object - transparent image trace

After image trace:

17) Select both texture and path - object - clipping mask

18) Move over pear - bring pear to front if it has gone behind
19) Transparency menu - change from normal to multiply - opacity down

Finished Pear: