Unit # 4 test

Throughout all three projects, I didn’t really have a lot of experience with the Adobe program, especially the Adobe After Effect. So, while working with the program, there are a lot of exploring the interface, a lot of trial and error. The main concerned that I had with all three projects was how to connect all three projects together, and to interoperate the cultural studies. For the beginning phase of each projects, I would look and try the tutorial that the class offered like from the official Adobe website, and even look up tutorial on YouTube, which I heavily used as additional resources when I was working with Adobe After Effects. While working on all three projects I considered the form, content, and the elements of the design.

When I first learned that for the first projects, we have to either manipulate or combines pictures on photoshop, the main obstacle was to find the right pictures without getting copyright issue, are free to use, and can also be manipulate. To find pictures that are free to use, I used a lot of different websites that offers non-copyrights picture, like “Pixabay”, “Unsplash” and many others, I also used advanced Google search to only show free to use pictures. For the background of the 1980s Collage I decided to combine two popular things in the 1980s, the NBA and graffiti art. Since the two ideas are mainly outdoors, and I feel like it’s something realistic and could blending really well. The basketball court in the center and the griffin art wall in the background. Since during that time, conflict was not unusual. The red person on the wall also represent the conflict with the hand up. I also changed the color tone to be darker to match the tone during the 1980s.

The cultural studies that I choose to interoperate to my projects is stereotypes, which mean that a repeated characterization of a group of people based on their race/ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and etc. Since my main background is the basketball court, so I decided to incorporate basketball element to my Sprites. Back in the 1980s, when basketball just started to gain more popularity, people tend to think black-American were superb at playing basketball. There were no Asian American in the NBA. The players were mostly black. People tend to think that Asian American are just short, book-smart, and not as athletic. I used Stereotypes aspect of the Cultural studies as the main inspiration, so I decided to make my Sprites character Asian (anyone that’s non-black).

I wanted my character to have a realistic design, but also a simple look. I mainly used the pen tool in illustrator to draw my character. I have some pictures and some hand-draw sketches as a template while I was designing the character. I first originally have four separate layers, before I was working with After Effect. Later, I quickly learned the importance of layers when working with animation. Each body part has to separated so it can move and be animate.

The animation project is where I had trouble the most, since I never used After Effect before. There was a lot of trial and error during the process, especially timing the keyframe. Each body part needs to be at the right place with the right timing, or the movement would be awkward, and unrealistic. I learned that to synchronize with other part of the body when working with keyframe, it is important to view the other body part keyframe using the next or previous keyframe button, then make the keyframe on that exact frame.

Throughout the three projects, the most difficult part wasn’t design part, but the execution. When working with programs that I don’t have a lot of experience on was a challenge for me. I was having a hard time looking for the right tool, or not using a lot of the features that the program provided. It shows the importance of knowing the tools when creating. The only thing that I regret or hoping to change for my future projects is to have a better understanding and experience with the adobe program, so I can create a piece that matches with my ideas or even better.

Cite sources

Dtc 201 – Cultural Studies Words Tth by Ruth Gregory

http://www.cram.com/flashcards/dtc-201-cultural-studies-words-tth-9033361

Elements and Principles of Design

http://augustana.net/users/arwalters/design/components.htm

Original Design Overview by John Lovet

https://www.johnlovett.com/design-overview

Adobe help page

https://helpx.adobe.com

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