WEEK 02: Lecture and Practical
DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING GCD 61204
WEEK 2: PRACTICAL
NAME: Adeline Wong Chyn Nee
I.D: 0344017
COURSE: Bachelors of Design in Creative Media
GROUP: C
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Going into our 2nd week of lecture, I was excited as I get to learn from Mr. Martin again, I feel that his lessons are interesting and insightful. He tends to interact with the students a lot while teaching, which helps students like me to speak up or even just type in the chat.
LECTURE NOTE:
In our second lecture, we are introduced to basic composition. To be a designer is to understand the composition of your work well. Before this lesson, I knew that we have certain rules when it comes to designing however never really went deep into the subject and study it, so I did not know the intricacies of composition. Coming to know the importance of this topic, I shall apply it in my future projects and works.
- Introduction to Basic Composition
1) Focal Point- A key element to any good composition is a strong focal point, as it helps your viewers’ eyes naturally settle on the important pieces of your design first.
Fig. 1.1 Focal Point
2) Scale and Hierarchy- Scale is often used to help communicate hierarchy by drawing attention toward and away from certain elements, thus signifying their importance to the communication.
Fig. 1.2 Scale and Hierarchy
3) Balance of the Elements- A good technique for mastering asymmetrical balance is to think of each element as having a ‘weight’ to it. Smaller objects might ‘weigh’ less than larger objects, and heavily textured elements might ‘weigh’ more than flatly colored elements.
Fig. 1.3 Balancing the elements
4) White Space- White space is mostly known as “empty space” to balance up the main focus of a composition. White space when used strategically can help boost your design’s clarity and overall look by balancing out the more complicated and busy parts of your composition with space that helps your design to breathe.
Fig. 1.4 White space 1 Fig. 1.5 White space 2
2. Rule of Thirds
The Rule of Thirds is the process of dividing an image into thirds, using two horizontal and two vertical lines. This imaginary grid yields nine parts with four intersection points.
Fig. 2.1 Rule of Thirds
Rule of Thirds is used as a basic in graphic design, photography, filmmaking and etc. It should be cut into 9 pieces equally and the key elements are encouraged to be placed on the red dots.
Fig. 2.2 Rule of thirds in photography
In this photograph, the key elements are placed on the intersections of the Rule of Thirds.
When you position the most important elements of your image at these intersection points, you produce a much more natural image. It is also suggested that any horizon is placed on either the top horizontal line or the bottom horizontal line.
Fig. 2.3 Rule of thirds focus percentage
The Rule of Thirds is a way to:
- Use composition techniques that are in line with what’s naturally pleasing to the eye.
- Creatively use negative space.
- Create a conversation between the subject and background.
Fig. 2.4 Use of white space in Rule of Thirds
In the lecture slides, Mr. Martin included some videos which further explains the Rule of Thirds. When I saw that he included Wes Anderson's video, I was so excited as I am a fan of his work. In the video made by Marcelo Paulo De Souza, he showcased Wes Anderson's unique filmmaking style of always placing the key element in the middle of a frame, it is absolutely satisfying to watch as a design student who loves symmetry and balance, and so I really recommend Wes Anderson's films to whoever is interested in centered composition and satisfying cinematography!
Fig. 2.5 Wes Anderson by Marcelo Paulo De Souza
3. Golden Ratio
The Golden Ratio is a mathematical ratio. It is commonly found in nature, and when used in a design, it fosters organic and natural-looking compositions that are aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Fig. 3.1 Golden Ratio
Fig 3.2 Golden Ratio in nature Fig 3.3 Golden Ratio in nature
My own take on the Golden Ratio
Fig. 3.4 Trying to draw the Golden Ratio
I attempted at the Golden Ratio for the first time, and it turned out not the way I expected it to be however, it made me understand better how to apply it to designs and photography as I learned how it is formed and built.
Fig. 3.5 Golden Ration in design
In design, the Golden Ratio boils down to aesthetics — creating and appreciating a sense of beauty through harmony and proportion. When applied to design, the Golden Ratio provides a sense of artistry
Fig. 3.6 Application design
The golden ratio in this application design tricks the user into pressing the 'Save' button' unknowingly. The Golden Ratio is a useful guideline for determining the dimensions of the layout. One very simple way to apply the Golden Ratio is to set your dimensions to 1:1.618
4. Composition (Framing & Cropping)
Fig. 4.1 Video (Composition)
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PRACTICAL CLASS ACTIVITIES:
In our practical class, we are given 3 hours and tasked to complete 3 sets of physical collages by searching for possible cut-outs from magazines, books, or etc. We then scanned them and insert the images into a google doc which we submitted before 6pm.
1. PRE-COMPOSITION #1
Fig. 5.1 Pre-composition 1
2. PRE-COMPOSITION #2
Fig. 5.2 Pre-composition 2
Fig. 5.3 Pre-composition 3
As I lacked materials for my collage at that time, I felt that my final product was not the best I can do. Mr. Martin then reviewed them after class and explained to him that I have insufficient material to create a proper collage. I am advised to try again after getting enough materials.
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PROJECT 1- PHYSICAL COLLAGE
For project 1, we are required to gather interesting graphics from old magazines, or any printed materials and cut the shapes of chosen pictures then gathering them to make a collage. After this step, we would have to arrange the material to create an interesting composition. For this physicals collage exercise, I made 2 in total.
Pre-Composition #1
Fig. 4.1 Pre-composition 1
Pre-Composition #2
Fig. 4.2 Pre-composition 2
In these two collages I made, I'm trying to express the greediness of a man who was too content with his work life and neglected the important things like his family and the valuable time which he lost from always being at his work.
Final Composition Submission
Fig. 4.3 Final Composition PDF
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