InDesign 3 - Interactive PDF

Our final Indesign tutorial showed us how to create interactive PDF's , this was an extension on generic pdf files as the interactive ones can contain internal hyperlinks , videos and buttons to create a different viewing experience. Our task was to create a PDF about music , specifically looking at Count Baise and Jazz.

I began the task by reconstructing an old percussion album cover on illustrator , we did this as we were to use it as our front cover , however the original image was far too low resolution. another reason was that changing it into vectors would allow us to link in buttons to the PDF. When creating the button i added a drop shadow that would activate when the button was hovered over so the user would identify the internal hyperlink.

This would link the reader to another slide of information , taking them through the pdf presentation in a more unique way to the conventional next button way. The slide that this led onto was about Count Baise , i didn't put any information in the text boxes , however i learnt about the placeholder text tool that would fill the box with random words to fill the page , i feel that this tool would be useful when creating a mock up for a project. 

The final step in the interactive text was to add the swing of change video to the PDF. I encountered a lot of problems with this step even though it was simple to do , i asked the tutor if there was a reason why the software would not place the video however we were unable to solve the issue. But to place a video in the indesign document you follow the same steps as you would for placing an image. when the user clicks on the video the video will activate and play. this would be useful when displaying animations we have created on a PDF for deadline hand in's.

After effects 3 - Character

This after effects session was based around creating a character using vector shapes to animate. We initially had to find an image from the internet and use image trace to change the shape into a vector or create one from scratch.

I chose to create a character from scratch in illustrator , i felt that this was a good starting point for me as choosing an existing character would take too long as i wouldn't know what to pick. My character was a floating head that multiplied using its body parts. As this was one of my first few weeks using after effects i felt rather inexperienced therefore had to stick to using simple effects when using the keyframes. The main two transformations i used were the opacity key and the location.

One thing i struggled with when creating this animation is the motion paths of the character as they constantly kept overlapping and ruining the sequence.i eventually solved this by taking more time to analyse the timeline , plotting my keyframes more precisely so the timings were exact.

As a final touch to my sequence i added some moving clouds as the background , i felt that was relevant as the heads i created had no body to situate them on the ground. The floating heads outcome now looked rather trip. I felt that the moving clouds swell as the heads worked well as it added a sense of motion to the piece , making it more detailed.

After the session had finished i felt a lot more confident with after effects , feeling like i could start to look into the more complex pieces in the sessions to come. although the animation was basic i feel that it has set foundations for my skills to develop over time. This session has also made me more confident with illustrator as i mainly worked on photoshop before the course.

Heads by Ben Moulson

Narrative Design

We began the lecture by looking into different ways of establishing a narrative. We looked at the most basic form , Freytags prymid , which involves all stories consisting of Exposition , rising action , Climax , falling action and a denouement.

"A whole is that which has a beginning, a middle, and an end."- Aristotle, Poetics

This simplistic layout shows what a story should contain , this is a linear approach to story telling. Majority of stores are told this way as they all result in a positive outcome which will satisfy a mass audience.

We then looked at exposition which consists of setting the scene and content for the chosen piece of work. Exposition within narratives stands for ' The insertion of important background information within a story' When a background story is given it is called the establishing shot. a famous example of an establishing shot is the opening of StarWars which quickly establishes the audience with information that they need to know about what has happened prior to the film they are about to watch.

Further into the lecture we looked at why narrative was an essential part of any story. Narratives can be a written or spoken account of events. As designers we should be able to visually narrate a series of events that successfully explain what is happening to a wide audience.

To support this we looked into the story of TOMS shoe company. This shoe company would donate a pair of their shoes to children living in poverty every time you purchased any. This story was then created in a video to visually communicate with the public and give them an insight into what the company do. The narrative was created to emotionally attach the audience to the company as it gives an establishing shot into what the company is about and what their plans for the future are.

We ended with a list of questions to trigger our mind when designing using story telling:

'What do we  want the story to tell?' 

'What is the issue?'

'What will be the events/ moments?'

'Who are the characters?'

Unlocking Innovation

We began the seminar by looking at a quote from Albert Einstien. "what is 5+5? , Now , What two numbers make 10" This quote shows that you can think around a problem by using a different perspective but still get the same answer , this also shows that a wider range of answers can be created from just a simple question. This relates to this mornings lecture on perception.

Our task was to design something that could be flipped , for example writing that can be read backwards or even M.C Escher's Sky and water piece and how we can simply shift one for to another using basic techniques such as pattern , colour , type or imagery. another example is how a piece of type saying hot could transform into the word cold in 9 steps.

Guest Lecture - Territory Studio

At first i wasn't sure what this lecture would be about as it was more based around 3D design. However I can say that this lecture was one of the most interesting and inspiring lectures so far this year. I feel that the main reason it was inspiring as it showed that there is possibility to work for huge company and on worldwide projects. In this case Territory Studios have worked on many visual projects such as The Avengers , Prometheus and The Martian. 

I found Territory studios work interesting as they design graphics for computer screens that are used within films. They create hundreds of animations and stills that are filled with statistics and facts that help tell stories within the films that could not be told by objects or characters , Below is an example from the film The Avengers : Age of Ultron

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Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron UI Reel from Territory/a> on Vimeo.
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All images and video belong to : http://www.territorystudio.com/work/motion/

Style

What is style?

A particular procedure by which something is done; a manner or way

A distinctive appearance, typically determined by the principles according to which something is designed.

We watched a video of Cornel West who elaborates on clothing and style from his point of view. he focuses more specifically on the style of clothing , clothes are not just clothes in their style , they reflect a persons characteristics and personality. the way people dress reflects who they are and how they live as a person.

can there be content without style? How can something be created without it having a certain style. if somebody decided to wear a bin bag it would still be a certain style although it assent what most people would chose to wear.

We then looked at Marcel Breuer who was a Hungarian architect and Furniture designer. We looked at one specific chair names the Cesca chair where Breuer changed the generic style of how people would expect a chair to be built by swapping out parts and re-defining its style.

Styles fade in and out , they work on intensities and the styles will fluctuate , they're constantly moving and changing and evolving with the way we live.