Illustration and Visual Narrative Task 1 - Exercise

25.9.2023 - 3.11.2023(Week 1 - Week 6)

Lew Guo Ying / 0365721 / Bachelor of Design in Creative Media

Illustration and Visual Narrative

Task 1 : Exercise

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Jumplink

1. Lectures

2. Instructions

3. Feedback

4. Reflections

5. Further Reading

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LECTURES

Week 1 : Briefing

Firstly , Our lecturer Mr. Hafiz Zamri give the briefing about the basic knowledge about illustration and visual narrative.

Afterthat , taliking about the main application need to use which is abobe illustration. Then , let us train our control pen skill by using Bezier Game (https://bezier.method.ac/ ).

Week 2 : Character design basic

 Fig2.1 Character Design Basic PDF

Stylized Design

• Stylized designed characters are often iconic and easily recognizable.
•  The simplicity of the design allows viewers to easily understand the purpose of the characters.

Uniqueness

• Stylized design makes characters unique and memorable.
• They leave a lasting impact on the viewers.

Shapes

• Shapes are used to identify characters from one another.
• Combining interesting shapes can create iconic designs.

Colour

• Colours play a role in determining and separating character characteristics.
• Different colours evoke different emotions in viewers.

 

Shapes

Mr Hafiz teach us to download the W2 vormator shape and use adobe illustrator(AI) to draw to the same shapes. 

Fig2.1 Shapes

Week 3: Light and shadow

This week, the lecturer talked about light and shadow and drew a pear to learn about this topic. Firstly, we learn to use a pen tool and pencil tool to draw a pear and use a pathfinder to divide the light and shadow sides.

Fig3.1 Pear

We learned also to use knife tool to divide the pear and recolor it to become colorful. After that, the lecturer gives homework which is to find a picture and draw the shadow of the picture at the pear to show the picture on the pear.

Week 4: colour and blending mode

Fig4.1 Chiarocuro PDF

Chiaroscuro Technique

• Chiaroscuro is the use of light and dark to create the illusion of three-dimensional volume on a flat surface.
• The technique involves clear tonal contrast to suggest three-dimensional volume and modelling of objects and figures.

Tenebrism

• Tenebrism is a painting method in which significant details such as faces and hands are illuminated by highlights contrasted with a predominantly dark setting.
• This technique is often used in visual artworks like comics, films, and digital works.

Low Key Lighting

• Low key lighting is a style of lighting that accentuates the contours of the subject by throwing areas into shade.
• It is commonly used in photography, film, and television to control contrast.

Chiaroscuro in Visual Narrative

• Chiaroscuro is an excellent lighting choice to differentiate positive and negative spaces.
• It increases dramatic tension, creates sensational effects, attracts attention, and makes tasteful compositions.

Week 5,6&7：Composition and depth

Fig5.1 Composition Theory 1 PDF

Composition in design

• Composition in design refers to the arrangement of elements in a visual.
• It involves making conscious decisions about what to include or exclude and how to arrange objects in the frame.

Effective arrangement

• The most challenging part of composition is arranging elements in a way that brings out meaning.
• Composed shots should focus on the scene and stand out, even in subtle ways.

Basic composition rules

• Visual narrative: Complement all aspects of the narrative.
• Visual flow: Have a clear flow that directs the viewer's eyes.
• Visual balance: Arrange visuals to balance the composition.
• Visual hierarchy: Direct the viewer's eyes to specific details first.

Complementing subject focus and narrative

• Compose your shots to complement the subject focus and reflect the narrative.
• Consider the look and feel of the scene and evoke the desired emotions.

Determining the viewer's eye path

• The composition also determines the path of the viewer's eye through the visual.
• While you can't know the exact path, you can nudge the viewer's attention with composition.

After that, Mr. Hafiz gave us a briefing on task 2, which involves finding an urban legend and creating an animation that includes a climax.

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INSTRUCTIONS

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IkNB42lp-8LRHm-CQ8rc7MsnloFO355d/preview" width="640" height="480" allow="autoplay"></iframe>

Exercise

Week 1: 

After class, we try to practice use pen tool using Bezier Game. 

Fig1.1 Bezier Game

Week 2: 

After that, the W2 vormator challenge is given, we need to use those shapes combined to a new vormator. We just only can use three color.

Fig2.2 vormeter Dragon

Fig2.3 Vormeter joker

 

Week 3: 

Mr Hafiz gives homework which is to find a picture and draw the shadow of the picture at the pear to show the picture on the pear.

Fig3.2 Pear with shadow

And also need to add the shadow of the vormeter dragon.

Fig3.3 Vormeter Dragon with Shadow

Fig3.4 Ex pear shadow

Fig3.5 Put vormeter in the card

Week 4: 

To create a human silhouette drawing with a shadow, you can use a pen tool to trace the outline of a person and then use the Pathfinder divide tool to create the shadow. Next, you can find a watercolour background and blend it with the shadow by selecting the same colour and using the fill and stroke option. To create a compound path, you can select the object and choose the compound path option. Finally, you can place the background behind the silhouette and apply a clipping mask with a similar colour to the background. 

Fig4.2 Chiaroscuro

Week 5：

Do the background of the vormeter card.

Fig5.1 Background of vormeter

Fig5.2 Final submission Vormeter

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FEEDBACK

Week 5:

General Feedback: Please be reminded that the submission due date is on November 3, 2023. Additionally, for Task 2, you need to find an urban legend.

Specifit Feedback: All is good, but the vormeter card cannot use picture, need to use shape.

Week 3:

General Feedback: Can look for the chiaroscuro and learn how to use shadow to print another picture on the pear.

Week 2:

General Feedback: Try to use shape to combine to a vormeter .

Week 1: 

General Feedback: Can use Bezier Game to training use pen tool.

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REFLECTIONS

Experiences

Creating the dragon in Vormeter was indeed challenging. It required the combination of basic shapes to form this majestic creature. Nevertheless, the final result left me satisfied. Adding shadows was equally demanding, as I needed to refer to online resources to understand how light affects the appearance of shadows. While my rendition might not have captured a completely natural feel, the search process introduced me to various artistic interpretations, which proved to be highly enlightening

Observations

I've observed that working with images is fascinating, as is working with shapes. Basic shapes can be combined in numerous ways to create a variety of images. When you add shadows, it introduces a sense of depth, making the images more three-dimensional. However, relying solely on shapes can be quite limiting, as it requires a multitude of ideas to bring the mental images to life.

Findings

During the process of using Adobe Illustrator, I gradually found it to be quite intriguing. The tools within it allow us to seamlessly combine shapes and background images to create the images we desire