Tag Archives: photoshop

FORREST GUMP – WIP 4 (Design)

I had two design ideas for the quote “Have courage and be kind” from Cinderella, 2015. One of which is a deer and a lion head, the other is a lion with the dolphins in the background.

cinderella_edit02

For this composition I thought that dolphins are considered kind and friendly creatures. So I had a lady with a head of the lion to show that she have courage as they are considered as one of the strongest animal. Hence, this composition is to show her exuding kindness despite her being courageous and fierce.

cinderella_edits01

This is the design that I actually pick for the quote but somehow I feel that it is a little too clean cut and lacks the sort of vintage texture feeling to it. So I edited a another one with the texture using halftone and noises. This design has an opposite meaning to the first design. The kind lady actually has a courageous side that is lurking inside of her. Hence, explaining the birds which shows that the courage is actually surging through her.

cinderella_edits02

This is my final design for the first quote with the textures.

The second quote would from finding nemo, 2003 “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.” For this I only had one design, but I tried editing it again since I was not happy with the idea design ever since I showed it for my transparency printing.

finding_nemo_test_01

At first I thought that the black thick lines passing through the shark looks really plain so I tried to use the same method as the shark, by putting little dots among the back space.

finding_nemo_test01_print

But then I felt that the black lines were really weird with the parts removed and all. It did not felt right to me, and somehow  I felt that it could not tell the quote that I was trying to portray. So I decided to change it again.

findingnemo_edit_02

This is my final design for the quote. I changed it to dory and marlin because throughout the movie, even though there is actually so many other fishes, they are the one that we would actually remember the most. So I used them to show them like swimming with the waves illustrations. The shark and the jellyfish being  one of the few reasons that “forced” them to keep swimming on.

Another quote from the movie would be “I shall call you squishy and you shall be mine.” Even though it is one only one design, I was not really sure of what elements to use for it to be able to portray the quote strongly.

squishy_first-edit

At first I thought of just leaving it but I felt that it was too simple and the fact that dory sorts of blends into the bubble as the tonal value is quite similar. So I decided to try changing some of the values and try out different elements to it. Also, I added the collar to symbolize the jellyfish being Dory’s pet.

squishy_second-edit

I changed the background to black to make the girl more prominent and also added the white stripes to make it look like a jail cell. Since the quote is about Dory wanting to make the baby jellyfish her pet. However, I feel that the white stripes are not that obvious into showing that they represent jail cell.

squishy_4-edit

In the end, I changed it to jellyfishes watching dory as they are actually quite protective of their young ones when they are in danger. But I felt that the background somehow swallowed up the jellyfishes at the back.

squishy_third-edit

So I ended changing the background to white again making them more prominent.

The last quote is from Hunger games, 2012 “I volunteer as tribute.” I originally had two ideas for this quote.

hunger_games_design_test_02

In this design I wanted to show katniss and her “manager” ,for district 12, seem like they are the powerful and in control. Also to show how Katniss has the confidence to win and represent the hunger games in order to protect her sister.

This other one being the one that I pick to print on my tote bag.

print

In this design, I tried to make Katniss look strong and that she is confidence enough to face snow, the villain in this movie. He was the one who created the so-called hunger games. Hence why I wanted to make him look like a figure looming over the city as he takes control of them all.

Freedom – WIP 02 (Fail)

After the reading the brief before the consultation we had during the recess week, I thought of trying out the photo montage. I was like really excited and all, trying to do in reference to the Ashley Edwards mainly and other artist inspirations I have for this assignment. I was like digging through the images online, trying to test the compositions out.


Since I wanted to do about freedom from worries, for the first composition I tried to do like a little girl blowing bubbles. Somehow bubbles feel like a very joyful thing. Also, there is clouds which we would sometimes just zone out seeing them drifting by so freely. Then I thought why not putting them together like ; in a sense “blowing away all  the problems and worries”. The background was this mountains and the rectangular vectors which I thought feels like windows. The meaning I was trying to tell was like the hardships or worries will pass by.

test01

For the second composition, it was more like using the representation of wings to show like flying free and away from the problem. I guess I tried or rather I wanted it to feel like the person grew out wings. Be free.

test02


After the consultation, my images were somewhat too abstract and hard to understand. The fact that my topic on freedom itself is already quite vague, I should try to narrow down my search instead of finding the images online, confusing myself and the search scope is just too big.

The suggestion I was given was to maybe try finding images from newspapers since it is full of daily worries and all. I could probably do something like picking out the beauty advertisements, talking about how this is all that we are into nowadays and all. Perhaps I could try to use our daily worries and try to use “negative” images like the slimming advertisement or world problems to make my stand in freedom from worries. Something similar in a sense but not too off and deep at the same time to get the message across.

FORREST GUMP – WIP 02 (Transparency)

I tried out some designs for the transparency prints, not sure whether they are okay? It is actually pretty hard to try and save some of the details I realised. This are the few that I thought might be some probability to printing it for transparency but I am not really sure which quote to pick for the final, but I would most probably go with the Cinderella or Hunger games one as I find that they have more composition ideas to play with.

The first two designs are from the Cinderella movie ; “Have courage and be kind.” The following two is from the hunger games ; “I volunteer as tribute” and lastly Finding Nemo “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming“.

Hope to get your critique for printing of transparency, thank you.

FORREST GUMP – WIP 01

The first try-out of the designs for assignment one during last week consultation was pretty bad since I was not really clear of what I could do or should do. I actually thought that what we have for  the prints needs to be the same as the one for our tote bag. I actually only managed to produced 3 designs one for each of the different movie for the consultation last week.

The first quote is from the Cinderella remake of the animated movie series.

Have courage and be kind.

Synopsis of Cinderella (2015) :

Her father died, in turn leaving her to be with left with her step-mother and step-sisters as her kin. However, they treated her like their maid instead. Until one day an invitation to the palace ball came but her step-mother prevented her from going by destroying the dress that she has put together on her own. She was really depressed at that moment until the godmother heard Cinderella’s plead and help her to get to the ball and meet her prince charming in the end.

cinderella_design_test_01

The message given in the illustration I made is apparently very unclear as the branches since to be overpowering her. Also the fact that she is holding out to a butterfly might not get the message of kindness across even though the thought of courage could plausibly be seen as she is in a spooky forest and somehow she does not look timid. The fact that she is somewhat floating gives the imagery that she is not stable?

The next two quotes I did was from the movie Finding Nemo.

“Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.”

“I shall call him squishy and he shall be mine.”

Synopsis of Finding Nemo (2003) :

After having his other children taken away from him, his one and only son was also taken away by the humans. He together with a short-termed memory blue tang swam across the ocean in search of his son, Nemo.

finding_nemo_test_01

The message was able to be portrayed through this illustration however the jellyfishes somehow looks like mushroom instead. I should find images that are actually obvious enough. Also, I need to work on the waves and how I can push the design of it even more instead of it being too direct.

The third movie quote that I actually picked is from the movie Hunger games.

I volunteer as tribute.

Synopsis of Hunger games (2012) :

Every year a district will be force to randomly pick a girl and a  boy to participate in the annual hunger games for entertainment and also the glory. This is to be broadcast on the live television – a fight to death. That is when Katniss volunteer to take her sister’s place when the sister was being pick to participate in the game.

hunger_games_design_test_01

The imagery of the hand sign could not be seen as the details are lost when the image is darken this badly. Also, the silhouette of katniss is not obvious enough, she could just be any other girl. The whole message of the image just somehow is not being brought across correctly.

I will post of the edits with the following post. Regarding the thought process of this assignment I think I will record all of them down in the OSS since it it easier instead of having double copies in the Journal and OSS.

How i see the world – Final

Artist statement

“Freedom of memories” is about showing the different types of freedom in the form of my memories through my life. 

I wanted to work on the theme “free” because of the funny dream I had when I was a kid. I have always wanted to be like a cloud. As a kid, I really liked to lie on the floor of the playground and look up to the clouds that is floating so ever peacefully  in the sky but yet I am just in this world, not understanding anything but the fact that I just have to live through it and survive.

Through this I have put together the images using double exposure. Since I am trying to portray the image of memories, I have thought about how the effect of double exposure actually gives the photos a type of faded and yet nostalgic feeling. “



Reflection:

After having actually gone through the whole assignment, I found out that double exposure really requires a lot of trial and errors. The fact that I have to go through  the many photos i have taken and still have to pick another suitable one to overlay it. Sometimes even when I thought that they fit but when i overlay them over one another, the tonal values that allows certain details to pass through may not be the one that I want. Also, somehow my photo looked like really bright and cheery but somehow it had a tinge of morbid sense to it, kind of ironic I guess since I was trying to make it a happy thing.

It is actually a tiring type of photography but I had fun still. I got to learn a lot of things like manipulation of photography, how I actually frame my photos, the painstaking testing of trying out black and white photos and also learning more about myself.

I realised that my thoughts can be very scattered at times. I struggled through assignment one a little because I was like jumping sort of everywhere before actually settling down and knowing what I really wanted. I guess I really need to focus on a specific subject especially when it comes to photography since a subject can be shown in many different ways.

How i see the world – WIP 04

I thought that since I am doing a topic on memory perhaps I could make use of old photos and mix together with a recent one that I actually took. After through all the different thought processes, I have actually thought up of a few freedom that actually means a lot to me or kind of shaped me into the person I am now. Freedom from life, insecurity, loneliness, responsibilities, emotions etc. I thought that maybe I would elaborate more together with my final photos.

This is just the photos i used to get my final outcomes. I was actually really struggling choosing between the colour version and the black and white. As much as I really wanted to do my images in black and white somehow the photos all turn out to be in such a negative tone even though I wanted my meaning of freedom to be more light-hearted.

I will show both the black & white and colour version. The bigger images for the final pieces will be in the final post.

Original:

20160411_092824 20160228_1913311

Edited:

04


Original :

img_20150715_172033 img_20150715_172126 20160818_1623431

Edited:

colour_07minus07


Original :

20131217_135339 img_9068

Edited:

colour_0505


Original :

img-20160417-wa0028 img-20160413-wa0063

Edited:

colour_09 09


Original :

20150902_125614 06 20160821_1147191

Edited:

colour_1111


Original :

20160818_162155 20160603_185826

Edited:

colour_0606


Original :

20151119_081013 3 Edited :

colour_1414


Original :

03 06

Edited:

colour_1515


Original:

snow-tree20160821_115001

Edited:

colour_1313


Original :

20160818_161125img-20141114-wa0017

Original :

colour_0808


Original :

20160908_111416 20160902_180526

Edited :

colour_0303


Original :

img-20160411-wa0047 img-20160413-wa0064

Edited :

colour_1010

Why I have posted WIP 02-04 seperately instead of a post because I thought the post would be too long. I have actually documented everything in a post but I realised it would be too much to read everything all together, so i decided to separate them from the trial and error to my final processes.

How i see the world – WIP 03

I also went to a few other places within the few weeks with my friends and family. I went to the Botanic Gardens to actually get information for the module but I thought Hey! Botanic Garden is also a place that I really would visit from time to time because I am a nature person. I also visited the S.E.A Aquarium with my family just for fun.

After trying out the black and white edits, I figured that maybe I can try out colours for the project too. It was just to try out whether I can also portray the same feeling using colours since I am not really a black and white person, I realised I have a few difficulty when it comes to adjusting the contrast between the value. The trial and error for the black and white really help me learn a lot and observe the different tonal values better.

So I went to the Botanic gardens, it was a downpour before I reached there. Everything was pretty much wet but hey that is actually a good thing because that would mean the flowers would have water droplets on them which can actually make them prettier. I kind of forgot I went there on a Sunday so the number of people kind of eek me. This would mean that it is more difficult to take photos of the landscape without the people swarming everywhere. Morever the recent Pokemon craze isn’t helping either.

20160821_1147371 20160821_1220041

I tried to put together the process of the blooming of flowers since I was actually thinking about how as our life, or rather my life, proceeded on it felt like you as a person becomes a better person. This in turn shaping us into a more defined being different from everyone.

colour_18

I did not want the colour to be too vibrant since I did not want the whole image to come off as too strong. I just wanted it to be subtle and the I have sort of decided that I want my photos to all have the washed out feeling. Somehow it just felt more calm and collected instead of the thing shouting out at you.

18

I did not edit too much for this photo but just mostly tweaked with the level of the images to bring down the contrast. It was somehow actually much more natural for me while doing colour as compared to black and white.

Somehow the black and white photos seem to make me depressing in a sense. The feeling of it being very solemn is there and I feel like I am not a person who can bring out a happy tone from a black and white image. It feels more natural to me in expressing my feelings in colours. Perhaps my animation background has something to do it since I am constantly told to try not to use muted colours.

06 20150902_125614 20160821_1147191

I actually merged 3 photos together to give it more details instead of having something just in one place. For this photo I actually thought that it reminded me of being free of constraint. The cloud being “me” trying to control myself, the pink flowers indicating the problem growing and the yellow flower making it look like it exploded.

colour_11

11

I actually had to change the colour of the whole image because all 3 of the images have very different tone. The flowers have a very yellow greenish tone to them while the image of the cloud is super bright and blue. I gave it a little more reddish tone because I thought that it has a more fluttering feeling to it, since warmer colours  give a happier feeling.

After trying out even more on double exposure and putting the images together. I thought that maybe I could actually use a different meaning of being free for my photos. They would still be from my memories but the different memories would represent a different type of freedom that actually means something to me.

Extra photos that I actually tried to edit :

How i see the world – WIP 02

Honestly speaking for two weeks, i just went to different places to shoot photographs of places or people that mean something to me, apart of my memories in a sense since my topic is about being free from my memories. What do i actually mean by being free from my memory, is that perhaps that is a particular incident or a place that stuck to me ever since because of something big that actually happened there or it just sort of changed me as a person on a whole.

So after trying to figure out exactly what I am trying to show through my photos after the first consultation/presentation during class, I thought of starting it simple with just shooting around my neighborhood. It was what I did for the first presentation but I was actually kind of lost still that time. However after the feedback, I realised actually what I wanted. I went around taking photos of the HDB flats, the trees, the temple, the playground and even the sky – even though the sky might not have been the same since last time but it was that particular spot that I would look up to the sky.

I thought was actually just testing out the different pictures and just putting them over each other.

20160906_1649041 20160818_1622091

The images I picked out was a photograph of the temple at the front of my block and a photo of my block behind the shades. At this point of time I still do not really have a specific idea of what photos I really wanted to overlay over each other. It is still just experimental.

16

I remember that among the two paragraphs, my black and white image was said to have a more define feeling of faded memory because of the softness the layers were over one another instead of the harsh one for the coloured one. So I tried also using the blending method that our lecture, Robert suggested. However, for this photo i did not use that method.

15I changed the layer of the temple to screen and toggled with the opacity and fill. That was only managed to change a little of how I wanted the photo to look because the contrast between the tonal values were still pretty harsh among each other. I ended up pushing the darker greys into more of the mid-tone range to give it a more washed out feeling.

16a

Also as seen in the photo to the left, the white of it is too harsh, eliminating too much of the information for the temple. I ended up trying the channel mixer and toggling with the different colour to bring out the different shades which in turn gave a more clearer view that it is a temple.

I went ahead and got a photo of my kindergarten, the first time I made so many friends.

20160906_1643101 20160818_1623081

The sky photo was supposed to be vertical but I decided to rotate it in a way to fit the image of the kindergarten. For this image I tried out the blending method, I kind of realised the method is more easier to use and control is the tonal value has a difference between the darkest and the lightest shade.

17

This photo was actually more difficult to edit because I realised the photo of the Kindergarten when taken then value were mostly all the same. It kind of affected the whole image when I tried to put them together. The leaves were really much darkest part of the whole image so I needed to balance out the contrast between the two images, if not it would have looked like a very harsh contour between them. Also, I will ended up over exposing the sky part since it was the brightest part.

17aThis is what the photo would actually look like. I do not know why but somehow I feel like everything is too harsh and a lot of the details of the leaves around the kindergarten are lost.

I have always like double exposure photography but maybe I just haven’t the sense of style that I like yet. Maybe that is why I still feel kind of lost through the process.