ILLUSTRATION & VISUAL NARRATIVE Task 1

22/4/2024-9/6/2024 (Week 1-7)

Liu Yitong/0370907

ILLUSTRATION & VISUAL NARRATIVE / Bachelor of Creative Media Design / Taylors University

Task 1 Exercise

---

LECTURES

Week 1

This week, Mr. Hafiz gave us a briefing about Illustration & Visual Narrative,and give us some module information.

This module aims to introduce the students to the process of creating visual concepts from ideas and its pictorial communication to an audience in the form of illustrations.

He explained what we would learn in this class and showed us our tasks for the semester.

Week2

·The Bezier Game

This lesson, Mr. In order for us to understand how to use the Pen Tool, Hafiz introduced us to a game called The Bezier Game.

Fig.1.0 The Bezier Game

Although there was a slight loophole that prevented my last stroke from showing up in the picture, I felt a sense of accomplishment in being able to reduce the number of notes.

After that, Mr. Hafiz tells us about the Vormator Challenge, which will be completed in the next two weeks.

Fig.1.1 The Shapes

We'll use the Pen Tool to recreate these shapes to stitch together our own characters.

·STYLIZED DESIGN

There are three main points in stylized design--ICONIC,SIMPLICITY and UNIQUE.

·PRINCIPLES OF CHARACTER DESIGN

Think back on the basics of design principles and apply that into the creation of a character.

Fig.1.2 Principles of character design

1. Shapes

Use your character's persona as the basis of the shapes for your design.

2.Color

Different colours give impressions of different emotions and is easily relatable by the viewers.

3.Emphasis,Contrast

A good character exaggerates on the emphasis and contrasting visual elements to make the design stand out by using colours.

4.Harmony

EVERY ELEMENTS IN YOUR DESIGN SHOULD COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER

All shapes, lines, colour, motifs, patterns must be put together in a tasteful manner.

5.Expressions poses

EXPRESSIVE EMOTIVE CHARACTERS, WIN THE AUDIENCE

Week3
In this lesson, we learned more about the use of AI, and we can restore the graphics in the previous lesson in more ways.

Fig.1.3 Shape Tool

Shape Tool + Pathfinder Unite

Fig.1.4 Pen Tool

pen tool + curvature tool + directselection (corner 2mm)

Fig.1.5 Pen Tool

Pen tool + reflect tool + shape builder

Week4

· CHIAROSCURO

Fig.1.6 TheThe Calling of St Matthew (Caravaggio, 1599 - 1600)

In paintings the technique refers to clear tonal contrast to suggest three-dimensional volume and modelling of objects and figures.

The purpose of chiaroscuro is to increase the scene’s dramatic tension by exaggerating the subject’s importance using color or light contrast.

1.TENEBRISM

Fig.1.7 The Taking Of Christ 

A certain type of painting method in which significant details are illuminated by highlights which are contrasted with a predominantly dark setting.

2.LOW-KEY LIGHTING

A style of lighting for photography, film or television.

· CHIAROSCURO IS USED IN VISUAL NARRATIVE

This method is an excellent lighting choice to differentiate positive(Refers to subject matter or object of interest in a visual) vs negative spaces(Refers to the filled space or background that surround subject matter or object of interest in visual).

1.INCREASE DRAMATIC TENSION

2.CREATE SENSATIONAL EFFECT

3.ATTRACT ATTENTION

4.MAKE TASTEFUL COMPOSITION

Week5

No lectures this week due to public holidays.

Week6

Composition Theory 1 // Visual Types and Shots

Introduction to Composition

Definition of Composition

Composition in design means the arrangement of elements in your visual.

Every time you take a photo, you make conscious decisions about what items to include or exclude, and how to arrange the objects in your frame.

Fig.1.8 The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Andersen, 2014)

Importance of Composition

The most challenging part of composition is arranging the elements in your visual effectively to bring out meaning.

Your composed shots should consciously arrange the focus of the scene to stand out, even in subtle ways.

Basic Composition Visual Rules

1.Visual Narrative:

o Your composition should complement your subject focus and reflect the narrative.

2.Visual Flow:

o Your composition determines the path of a viewer’s eye through the visual.

3.Visual Balance:

o The visuals should be arranged to balance the composition in the scene.

4.Visual Hierarchy:

o The visuals should be arranged to direct the viewer's eyes to specific details first.

Visual Narrative

Think of the look and feel of the scene. Ensure the emotions are on the same page.

Visual Flow

Your composition determines the path of a viewer’s eye through the visual.

Visual Balance

Even though you can’t know the exact path a viewer’s eye is going to take, you can nudge things one way or another.

Visual Hierarchy

The way you visualize and focus on your subject matters can have huge effects on the composition and sometimes can even affect the course of history.

Different Types of Shots

Fig.1.9 Different Types of Shots

1.Establishing Shot:

o Wide shots often used to establish the setting and give audiences the chance to take in all the splendor and grandeur of a location.

2.Bird's Eye View:

o Also known as overhead shots, where the POV is placed directly above the subject, around a 90-degree angle above the scene.

3.Frame Within a Frame:

o Using foreground or background shapes to create a frame within a frame can emphasize and highlight underlying meanings and break up the information in your frame for maximum impact.

4.Medium Shot:

o Frames three-quarters of the character, a standard camera angle used to frame a character, between a close-up and a long shot.

5.Close-Up:

o An intimate moment, a look into a character’s mind, emphasizing emotions and thoughts within a grander context.

6.Worm's Eye View:

o A low angle shot looking up at the subject, creating a sense of power or dominance.

Week7

Mr.Hafiz Zamri explained to us how the next task should be done, that we should make a few animated changes based on the album art.

Fig,1.8 Required Deliverables

Composition Theory 2 // Perspective

Definition of Perspective

The art of representing three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional surface to give the right impression of their height, width, depth, and position in relation to each other.

Fig.1.9 Definition of Perspective

One-Point Perspective

Fig.1.10 One-Point Perspective

Description:

o The simplest method of producing three-dimensional images, where objects emerge from a single point on the horizon.

o As images get closer to the vanishing point, they become smaller until they vanish completely.

Application:

o A single vanishing point establishes the guide lines, and all objects recede toward this one point.

Two-Point Perspective

Fig.1.11 Two-Point Perspective

Description:

o Involves two vanishing points on either side of the horizon, with objects and buildings drawn to both points.

o Creates a greater sense of space and dimension in a scene.

Application:

o Place two vanishing points on the horizon and establish two sets of overlapping perspective lines fanning out from them.

Three-Point Perspective

Fig.1.12 Three-Point Perspective

Description:

o Consists of two vanishing points on opposite sides of the horizon and an additional vanishing point above or below the horizon.

o Useful for achieving a sense of drama and scale or showing more objects in a single scene.

Application:

o A third vanishing point on the vertical axis provides a broader range of angles, allowing viewers to “look down” into the scene.

Isometric View

Fig1.13 Isometric View

Description:

o For creating detailed concepts of individual buildings, a simple isometric view is beneficial.

o Allows clear presentation of three sides of the design without distorting perspective or obscuring details.

Dynamic Application

Fig.1.14 Dynamic Application

Description:

o Perspective can be applied to almost any illustration or scene. It doesn’t need to be rigid or boring.

o Mixing different perspective methods can create dynamic visuals, such as visualizing a crashing spaceship and the ground below.

Example

Las Meninas (Ladies in Waiting):

o A 1656 painting by Diego Velázquez, known for its complex and enigmatic composition.

o Raises questions about reality and illusion, creating an uncertain relationship between the viewer and the figures depicted.

o One of the most widely analyzed works in Western painting.

---

INSTRUCTIONS

---

TASK

Vormator Challenge

I had two inspirations for character design.

Fig.2.0 Draft1

The first one was a mushroom inspired by a blue mushroom called "Lactarius indigo".

Fig.2.1 Draft2

The second is an octopus kitten designed with a black cat combined with the Cthulhu Mythos.

Lab 2: Chiaroscuro Exercise

1. Applying skills and techniques learned in previous class (Pathfinder tool, Blending Mode, Knife tool, Pen tool, Simplify)

Fig.2.2 exercise1

Fig.2.3 exercise2 Slice the pears

Fig.2.4 exercise3

Fig.2.5 exercise4

2. Later on in a more complex exercise, I learned to use the bending tool and add textures.

Fig.2.5.2 Process

Fig.2.5.1 exercise5

Lab 3: transparency gradient and noise

Create textures by adding shading to your illustrations by using the Grain Effect combined with linear, radial and freeform gradients.

Fig.2.5.2 exercise6

Pokemon Card

This should be the second exercise on the Vormator Challenge.

I've made a lot of very interesting attempts at Pokémon, so I first tried a sketch.

Fig.2.5 Pokemon sketch

Then I tried to color stroke him and deal with shading relationships.Using the intersection of shapes I created a lot of little shapes that were hard to pin down.

Fig.2.6 Process

Finally I settled on a flat character with no shadows.

Fig.2.7 My Pokemon without shadows

This still looked too flat though, so I started using the shape generator to add shadows to him to make him look more three-dimensional.

Fig.2.8 My Pokemon with shadows

Finally, to make it look less flat, I tried adding textures and gradients.

Fig.2.9 My Pokemon

Then I started designing the backgrounds for my Pokémon decks, and we were asked to design a composition that effectively utilized the foreground, midground, and background to tell a softer narrative about the character.

Fig.2.10 My Pokemon with background1

Fig.2.11 My Pokemon with background2

Eventually I decided to use the second version.It gives me a more pronounced front, center and back composition.

Then I started designing my Pokemon's features and skills.The final results are as follows.

Fig.2.11 My Pokemon Card

I have endowed it with interesting habits and skills and feel very satisfied.

---

FEEDBACK

Week2

For the two sketches, Mr. Hafiz felt that they were two good works, but since I finished them quickly, he thought I had time to do more, such as in terms of proportion.

Week3

This week I realized that my character was a little too simple, so I set about trying to redesign it. Fortunately, the process went smoothly.

Week4

This week I hope to add some details to my Pokemon. So I added shadows and made gradients and noise effects for some tails, which I wanted to look like smoke.

Week5

Then I started working on the background, but I was struggling with the work here. So I finished two and wanted to choose between them. In the end, I hesitated and chose the second one.

Week6

Finally, I started thinking about my Pokemon's skill traits and habits, and it was so exciting for me, because that's what I'm really good at. So I started to develop my imagination, and it was really a very enjoyable process.

---

REFLECTION

This mission was very inspiring for me, it was one of my favorite missions, designing my own Pokemon is something I've always wanted to do. While performing such interesting tasks, I also learned a lot about the methods and techniques used by Ai, which made me feel very satisfied.