Pencil Design

When it comes to graphic design, one of the many tools you come around to using is Adobe Illustrator. it's a vector-based program with a mean learning curve. So to start off we made  a step-by-step basic vector pencil. As soon as you understood what was going on in each step, it became easier to create and alter. One of the big things I learned from this first project was: That you can actually detach nested tool groups and transform them into a window. This was very helpful to me in this and the next project.

The next step was to elaborate on the skills that you learned the first time around, to create a more personal pencil. I went with purple, since it's a color I'm quite inclined to. The difference and learning this time around was in the use of gradients, joining, and the deceptions of the live paint bucket tool.

I was shown that the live paint bucket tool creates a separate fill layer instead of joining a fill to the actual lines, making moving these shapes hard. Instead, it was easier to join shapes with 'Command+J' and insert a fill beyond that. My biggest takeaway from this part was the use of gradient fill being more versatile than the paint bucket.

The third part was to create your own pair of complimentary objects, and it was there that I discovered the wonderful use of the option button with the scroll wheel. It allowed me free zoom and made this part a lot easier! I had to wrestle with the ship, however, a the triangles needed to be mad outside the group before they could be added, or the gradients wouldn't align right and try to cut off at the underlaying paths. The planet still isn't aligned right, but I do not know how to fix it.

So in summary: The biggest three things I learned were:

-The paint bucket tool is not as friendly to moving shapes as regular gradient fill used with the join tool.

-Free zoom scroll can be activated by holding 'Option'

-Nested docks can be detached and made into windows by clicking the bar on the right when expanded.

I hope to learn more about this program as I continue to use it!

First Bouncing Animation

Animation class so far has been all that I hoped for! The first thing we began to work on was a simple ball bounce. Of course, we discussed that there is more to a bounce than a simple up and down motion. Things such a timing, height, physics, squash, stretch: all these things added to the quality of the animation. We added the proper squash and stretch, and that made it look so much better, learning this trick. It may have taken a while to get it down, but I am very happy with the results! Keyframe animation is something that I'm getting the hang of, and I can see where it would be useful, but also cases where that would be a tough way to go about animating, like something subtle. (That or I have not considered it) For this case, however, keyframes were the way to go, and the process went much smoother than it would have in photoshop.

It may be a simple animation, but it's got me pumped for the rest of the year, especially character animation! So far, the hardest thing i've had to do was get a handle on the various programs we used to make this. (After Effects). But I will soon triumph that learning curve!

What is Graphic Design?

"It can mean a lot of things, can't it?"

Coming into the realm of the graphic design class, we were set off to discover what the word meant to the rest of the world, and to us. When I, personally, think of graphic design, I think of colors, shapes, and perfectly placed contrast all used in harmony to draw the eyes of whoever looks at it to a certain area of the image in a certain order.

Like a book title, it aims to draw you to it's cover with the design, and to the title next to display what it is in all it's glory. 

(My oh my, don't my word choices make me sound so preachy?)

Learning graphic design is like learning how to grab someone's attention. Learning how  to make them feel a certain way, understand a certain concept. it's almost to me, appearing like a subliminal art that gets into someone's head and makes them think certain things or feel a certain way.

Like an advertisement that invokes a sense of pity or tugs at your heartstrings to get you to donate. Like a sleek ad that just screams 'New!' or 'Shiny' at you to convince you to get that new car. Though this art isn't restricted only to advertisements.

I am exited to learn the art of inspiring people and communicating my message through my designs, and I hope when people see my future works that they get something from it to take home, and possibly create things of their own for the inspiration I give them.

It's always been enthralling to see someone creating something based on something they saw from me. I love to create, and I get the same thrill form inspiring others to create. I feel that this is why graphic design is so appealing to me.

It's the art of communicating ideas, sharing feelings, and that maybe why I feel such a deep connection to (And am so exited by) the idea of it.