Digital Photography and Imaging: Final Compilation & Reflection

29.3.2021 - 28.6.2021  (Week 1 - Week 14)

Wendy Seto / 0348805
GCD61204 Digital Photography and Imaging  / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Final Compilation & Reflection

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INSTRUCTIONS

Project 1: Collage

Project 2A: Photo Manipulation & Recolouring Exercise

Project 2B: Poster Design

Project 4: Self-Titled

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SUBMISSIONS

Project 1:

5.4.2021 - 23.4.2021 (Week 2 - Week 4)

1.1 Project 1A: Collage Design

fig 1.1.1 Project 1A: Collage Design.jpg 5/4/21

1.2 Project 1B: Digital Collage

fig 1.2.1 Project 1B: Digital Collage.jpg 23/4/21

Project 2:

26.4.2021 - 31.5.2021 (Week 5 - Week 9)

2.1 Project 2A: Photo Manipulation & Recolouring Black and White

fig 2.1.1 Project 2A: Hearst Mansion.jpg 5/5/21


fig 2.1.2 Project 2A: My Reflection.jpg 5/5/21


fig 2.1.3 Project 2A: Recolouring 1.jpg 6/5/21


fig 2.1.4 Project 2A: Recolouring 2.jpg 10/5/21


fig 2.1.5 Project 2A: Recolouring 3.jpg 10/5/21

2.2 Project 2B: Poster Design

fig 2.2.1 Project 2B: Refugees in Malaysia Poster Design.jpg 29/5/21

Project 4:

31.5.2021 - 28.6.2021 (Week 10 - Week 14)

4.1 Project 4: Self-Titled

fig 4.1.1 Project 4: Self-Titled Poster.jpg 14/6/21

fig 4.1.2 Project 4: Self-Titled Video.jpg 28/6/21

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REFLECTION

I learned using pen tool from this module and it has changed my life. At first, it was so hard I almost gave up. But after a while, I slowly became get used to it. Although, I still struggle sometimes when masking until now. I also learned about After Effects from this module, it stressed me out in the beginning but it is actually a lot of fun to play around with. I have not really explore enough about After Effects yet, but I will do in the future for sure. The most interesting exercise is the recolouring black and white, I had so much fun doing it! Well, never thought that we could do that before hahaha. 

I wanted to thank my lecturer, Mr. Fauzi for guiding me for these past three months. It was one hell of a journey! This first semester has been really hard, I am struggling so much on managing my time between work and school. Also, my sleeping schedule has became so fucked up which I have to fix real soon. Nevertheless, I think it was all worth it. I hope I can do better next time though. Thank you so much once again sir, hope to see you again soon!

Digital Photography and Imaging: Project 2A - Photo Manipulation & Recolouring Black and White

26.4.2021 (Week 5)

Wendy Seto / 0348805

GCD61204 Digital Photography and Imaging / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University

Project 2A: Photo Manipulation & Recolouring Black and White

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LECTURES

Week 5: This week, Mr. Fauzi gave us a brief explanation about our next project, specifically to design a poster for the community. We can start from doing a research about our topic, brainstorming the ideas, defining the concept to developing it into one impactful poster. Mr. Fauzi also told us some of the key features to create a successful poster project:

1. Layout
2. Flow
3. Colour
4. Title
5. Text
6. Graphical element(s)
7. White space

Week 6: Mr. Fauzi did not talk much in todays lecture, he mainly just talk further about our poster design execution. 

Week 7: This week, we learned about colour theory. There are two types of primary colours, RGB and CMYK. RGB refers to the primary colours of light, stands for  Red ,  Green  and  Blue  which are used on monitors or digital screens. On the other hand, CMYK refers to the primary colours of pigment and it stands for  Cyan ,  Magenta ,  Yellow  and  blacK . RGB is an additive colour mixing model while CMYK is subtractive.

I understand a bit about CMYK since I have had an experience of building my own home printing before. To be real, it is way more complicated than only "a printing colour system". There is something called as an ICC Profile, a set of data that characterizes a colour space or input. Based on my personal experience, it is not easy to get a similar colour result as shown on the screen when printing an image. In fact, it also depends on the type of ink we are using. For instance, printing using a dye-based ink should not be as complex as when using a sublime. We can just go with the default printing colour profile when printing using a dye-based ink and there should not be any severe colour mismatch. However, printing with sublime ink can be challenging. Besides the fact that it could damage the print head, it requires a lot of trial before we can finally find the best colour profile that suits. Also, am I the only one that feel like the CMY colours in sublime ink kinda look like RGB? I guess a further research about it would be worthwile. I do not know much yet theorically though, so this is an interesting topic that I am willing to dig deeper.

Back to the lecture, Mr. Fauzi also explained about the basic colour terms:

1. Hue (pure colour)
2. Shade (add black)
3. Tint (add white)
4. Tone (add grey)

Next, we learned about colour harmony, the colour arrangement in design works:

1. Monochromatic - Distasteful colour scheme.
2. Analogous - Three side-by-side colours on the colour wheel.
3. Complementary - Opposite colours on the colour wheel, to produce higher contrast.
4. Split-Complementary - One primary colour and two colours adjacent to its complement.
5. Triadic - Three colours that equally spaced around the wheel.

Lastly, we were introduced to the psychology of colour. Colours have qualities that can cause certain emotions in people while the perceptions are somewhat subjective.

Todays topic was pretty heavy in my opinion, the colour theory is very wide and an evaluative comprehension is needed to really understand everything.

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Photo Manipulation

Week 5: Part 1 - Hearst Mansion

I followed the breakdown tutorial to finish the exercise. 

fig 1.1 materials given

fig 1.2 masking out shazam using the selection tool 5/5/21

fig 1.3 layering it with the hearst mansion, adding a colour matching, shadow and reflection 5/5/21

fig 1.4 final hearst mansion part 1 exercise 5/5/21

Part 2 - My Reflection

Using the same techniques, we were assigned to create one using our own picture.

fig 2.1 the only full body picture of me I can find on my phone that I think might work for the exercise

fig 2.2 masking out myself using the selection tool 5/5/21

fig 2.3 layering it with the hearst mansion, adding a colour matching, shadow and reflection 5/5/21

When creating the reflection, I did not use the exact same technique as part 1 because I realized that my pose and Shazams are different. I placed myself closer to the pool and it looks like my shoe almost touched the water so I think every part of my body has to be in the reflection as well.

fig 2.4 final part 2 exercise 5/5/21

Recolouring Black and White

Week 6: This week, we were assigned to recolour a black and white portrait provided using these techniques in Adobe Photoshop.

fig 1.1 black and white portrait provided

fig 1.2 recolouring progress 6/5/21

I started colouring the entire skin first then continue to the hair, lips, eyes, shirt and finally the background. I changed the colour several times because sometimes I think they are too bright when the blending mode is applied, a lot of experiment is needed I guess.

fig 1.3 final recolouring black and white exercise 6/5/21

Can I say that this is the coolest exercise I have ever did? It is very interesting that we can actually colour a black and white photo, also such a genius techniques to do it that I have never thought of before. Will definitely try to recolour more pictures in the future and see what I can do with them!

Week 7: The next recolouring exercise has two parts, in the first one everyone has to recolour the same portrait. 

fig 2.1.1 the black and white portrait we have to recolour

What makes the exercise different from last week is that this time we were directed to use new tools that we have never used before such as the marquee tool and eyedropper. The masking steps are also a bit more complex than how we used to do it. 

fig 2.1.2 part 1 recolouring progress

fig 2.1.3 final part 1 recolouring exercise

In part two, we can choose an image from the folder shared by Mr. Martin. 

fig 2.2.1 image selections provided by the lecturers

I wanted to try something different, so I chose this full body portrait of a guy model. Previously, I have only done a recolouring of close up portraits so why not experiment with the full body one this time?

fig 2.2.2 picture I have chosen to recolour

I used a mixed recolouring techniques from this week and previous week to do this part of the exercise, still figuring out which one is more enjoyable to me.

fig 2.2.3 part 2 recolouring progress

After finished recolouring everything, I added another solid layer and blended it together to liven up the whole image. It looks like I am applying a filter which is why I really like it. 

fig 2.2.4 adding another solid layer to liven up the whole image

fig 2.2.5 final part 2 recolouring exercise

Digital Photography and Imaging: Project 1

5.4.2021 - 19.4.21 (Week 2 - Week 4)

Wendy Seto / 0348805

GCD61204 Digital Photography and Imaging / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Project 1: Collage

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LECTURES

Week 2: Today we are learning about the basic composition in photography. I have heard about this topic before actually, but haven't really got the chance to dive deeper into it. There are 4 basic compositions mentioned:

1. Focal Point

2. Scale & Hierarchy

3. Elements Balance

4. White Space

Next, Mr. Fauzi talked about the Rule of Thirds. The Rule of Thirds is the process of dividing an image using an imaginary grid to produce a more natural shot. We were shown to some graphic examples, from posters to movies. It was very satisying in my opinion, I'd love to see more of them. There is also the Golden Ratio, which can help to create a composition that is aesthetically pleasing to the eye through harmony and proportion. Lastly, we talked about Framing and Cropping in composition.

Week 3: This week, we got another explanation in how to use Adobe Photoshop. Mr Fauzi introduced us to the top 3 tools we will be using, the lasso tool, pen tool and layering. We also learnt the difference between both lasso and pen tool, and which one is better for certain work type or situation.


Week 4: In week 4, we were introduced about how to use the adjustment layers and filters in Adobe Photoshop. The adjustment layers are a group of image editing tool to add colour and tone without permanently changing the images pixels. Some of the adjustment layers that are commonly used are:

1. Brightness and Contrast

2. Level

3. Curves

4. Exposure

5. Selective Color

On the other hand, filter is an essential element to change colour, add blur or create a completely new image effects. We were shown a video about a photo filter trick in Photoshop, the person in the video really did change the entire image vibe. But to be really honest, I think the 'before' image is much better except for the details hahaha.

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PROJECT 1A

Week 2: We were told to prepare some magazines cut out graphics for our collage exercise since last week. I enjoyed making some similar projects previosuly, so it is not my first time doing this kind of stuff! 

My concept here is: Self Love. How? As you can see, there are a lot of food graphics (I found them on my high school biology text book), I chose them because I have a very bad habit of eating procrastination. I don't like to do things half way, so I always manage to finish it before I start doing something else. There are few times where I ate breakfast at 5 P.M. I know it sounds crazy and not healthy, but I kept on doing it. Hence, I decided to create this collage to remind myself if eating is a form of self love. The butterflies are to symbolize that growth is a process, we don't just wake up and become the butterfly. Piano is a musical instrument, I want to tell that music can help me heal. For the background, I ripped out a random page from my Physics Schaum. I will still read my magazines at some point in the future, but not my science books. Also, I found this heart patterned paper and a quote from my previous collage archives. I think it suits the whole concept very well. Mr. Fauzi asked us to take 3 pictures of the collage pre-composition:

fig 1.1 pre-composition #1 9/4/21

fig 1.2 pre-composition #2 9/4/21

fig 1.3 pre-composition #3 9/4/21

From the three above, I can't decide between the first and second one. I tried to ask some of my friends which one do they like better, but no one is answering until I realized that I only have 10 minutes left to submit the assignment. I finally decided to go with the second one, but the result is a bit different since I unintentionally paste them not in an exact position as before. Not gonna lie, I think I like the pre-compostion one much better!

fig 1.4 final collage 9/4/21

I then stick it on my wall and hope it can help me fix my eating pattern as time goes by. Thank you so much for the exercise Mr. Fauzi! 

fig 1.5 the collage on my wall 10/4/21

PROJECT 1B

Week 3: Mr. Fauzi wants us to practice applying what we have learnt today in our next exercise. He has prepared us a folder of pictures to create our digital collage in Photoshop. There are 16 pictures in total if I am not mistaken, and I have chosen 6 to use for my exercise. 

fig 1.1 my 6 selected pictures

Furthermore, Mr. Fauzi wants us to create 3 compositions just like our previous practice. Here are what I came up with:

fig 1.2 composition #1 16/4/21

fig 1.3 composition #2 16/4/21

fig 1.4 composition #3 16/4/21

I have to re-watch the lecture beforehand to be able to use the tools in Adobe Photoshop. When I am ready to start creating the digital collage, the software on my laptop crashes which made me have to find another alternative. I finally did the exercise on my phone, using Superimpose, because the Adobe software still won't work until Friday (the assigned due date). I am currently trying to re-install the software so I can use the lasso and pen tool for future projects. 

fig 1.5 my saved masks in superimpose 16/4/21

Back to the three collage compositions I created, I think I like the second one the most. The concept this time is basically about how people are living the world right now. We hear news everyday, from medias such as televison and newspaper. We transport, from buildings to buildings, cities to cities, and of course from news to news. News are spreading so fast nowadays, just like the movement of the train shown in the picture. No matter it tells the truth or false information, it will keep on spreading, widely. It is our choice whether to believe it or not, and that will affect how we live in the next day.

I like the first composition as well but not as much as the second one. The only thing disturbing me is the fact that the 'white sand' in the background and the 'newspaper texts' on the TV together are so crowded. Because they own the same monochrome colours with many details on each which I think it is a little too much. If only we are allowed to apply the blending mode it will be much better. The second composition, I should have added something else to be shown on the TV instead of nothing. But I just don't think there is any right picture for this, just trying to not ruin the whole concept. Lastly, the third composition. I can't say I like it but I don't hate it either. I think this one will look good if I put different objects on each TV screens. But a repetition kinda make a lot of sense too, don't you think so? Overall, I think I can still improve these three compositions I made. Really enjoyed doing the exercises so far, looking forward to explore more in future classes!

Week 4: Mr. Fauzi told me to continue with my second composition from previous week's exercise. This time we can enhance the composition by applying what we have learned in today's class. I love playing around with colours and blending effect more than cutting and masking so I guess I enjoyed this week’s exercise a lot more! 

Before start doing it, I have to redo my composition in Adobe Photoshop first because I was unable to do it last week. As I have mentioned in my week 3 DPI blog post, my Photoshop crashed so I had no options but to do it on my phone. Luckily, I have successfully fixed the issue now! This is my first time using the pen tool in photoshop to cut selections and actually kinda enjoying it. However, when I am almost done with the masking, the software quit unexpectedly. I tried to re-launch it several times but I can't see my work. I was so frustrated and regret that I didn't save it in the first place. I followed every tips I found on Google on how to recover it, but none of them is working. The only thing I can do is start doing it all over again. It is overwhelming, but at least I learned a lesson.

fig 1.1 cutting and masking progress 23/4/21

fig 1.2 my final composition using the pen and lasso tool in Photoshop 23/4/21

fig 1.3 adding adjustment layers, photo filter and blending effects 23/4/21

fig 1.4 final collage result 23/4/21

I don’t really like cool tones but I think it perfectly matches the composition and concept. I realized that everyone is wearing winter outfits in the train station and the white sands look kind of like a snowy road which unintentionally supports the environment. My imagination can be really wild sometimes but  somehow I like how it turned out!

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FEEDBACK

Week 2

I received a direct feedback from Mr. Fauzi about my collage exercise during the week 3 lecture. He said the compositions are good and he loves the way I played around with the space to show depth. He thinks I did pretty well by balancing the background to not look too obvious and succeed in making the elements look clear for the viewers to see. The flow and focal point are also there, including the golden ratio. I didn't do it on purpose but somehow I managed to own all the 4 basic compositions in my work. Really glad to hear this from Mr. Fauzi, it made my day!

Week 3

Mr. Fauzi didn't say much about my exercise this time, he only suggested me to use the first composition. I also told him that my Photoshop crashed so I have to do the exercise on my phone, and he said it is okay but I have to make sure that it will work in the next few days. 

Week 4

Mr. Fauzi did not talk much about my work this week as well, he only told me to submit the final collage result (fig 1.4) for project 1. I am not sure whether he likes it or not but at least he did not ask me to change or fix anything which should means that I did the exercises correctly.

DPI: Project 4 - Self-Titled

31.5.2021 - 28.6.2021 (Week 10 - Week 14)

Wendy Seto / 0348805
GCD61204 Digital Photography and Imaging / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Project 4: Self-Titled

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PROJECT 4: Self-Titled

Self-titled is an exploration project for the students to express their own individuality and reflect their personality into digital art self-expression. The main idea is to build up self-confidence and discover their interest.

1. WEEK 10: Idea Development

1.1 Biography

INTRODUCTION: (Tell us about yourself)
Wendy is a design student from Bali, indonesia. Despite that fact, she is a full time video creator and small business owner as well. She has been enthusiastic in being a successful entrepreneur ever since she was 7 and started expressing what she loves through creating videos when she was 14. She got her first internship when she was 15. Capitalizing from what she has earned in the past years, she decided to built her own business from scratch when she was 19.

PARAGRAPH 1: (What is your passion?)
Wendy enjoys the process of creating, she believed that it helps her grow. She loves creating art, taking photographs and editing videos. Having a short break to stare at the skies and breath is also one of her passion.
PARAGRAPH 2: (What motivates you to achieve your dream?)
As an INFP, she always follow whererever her heart takes her. Her happiness is seeing the people around her happy and that is what motivates her the most to where she stands now. She admires the stars so much as they are one of her biggest source of inspiration.
SUMMARY: (How do you want to visualize your dream into an artwork?) Simply visualize it in my own way. As long as I like my work, others opinion doesn’t matter. 1.2 Statement INTRODUCTION: (Tell us about your work)

On this digital artwork, I want to focus at me and the things I love or enjoy doing. Things that inspire and makes me happy.
PARAGRAPH 1: (What is the concept behind it?) A "personality" kind of artwork.
PARAGRAPH 2: (What is the message you want people to understand?) I want people to feel inspired. SUMMARY: (What is your motto / quote?) Trust the process, hard work pays off. / When you are not feeling well, just look at how the stars are shining for you, 1.3 Moodboard

fig 1.3.1 moodboard

2. WEEK 11: Design Direction

2.1 Mock Up Posters

fig 2.1.1 mock up #1

fig 2.1.2 mock up #2

fig 2.1.3 mock up #3

2.2 Digital Posters

Masking:

fig 2.2.1 masking process

fig 2.2.2 masking results

fig 2.2.3 digital poster #1

fig 2.2.4 digital poster #2

fig 2.2.5 digital poster #3

3. WEEK 12: Execution & Post Production

After creating 3 different compositions for my digital poster, I decided to continue work on the last one. This poster is more into my soul as it titled as “A Conversation with the Stars”. I talk to the stars when I don’t know who to talk to, and sometimes I feel like no one can understands me more like they do. I used to have someone really close to me who was as excited as I am with the stars, we used to watch the stars together and just sit and talk for hours. The stars have been the silent witnesses of my journey and I feel so connected.

4. WEEK 13: Animation & Finishing

4.1 Video Progress

fig 4.1.1 video draft #1

I continue working on my final poster based on the one I done in the previous week. However, I decided to make it more simplified and contain less explanation. I basically used the same concept but this time I make myself smaller because my mom said the previous composition was a little weird. This poster is portraying me working on my laptop, with a camera and a tripod, and also a printer around me. This is basically what I do everyday, caught up between school and work, with these three things. I do most of my work on laptop, doing school work and editing videos. I film my videos with my camera and tripod, but not this camera shown exactly because I only own a budget pocket camera hahahah. And lastly, the one I am having the love-hate relationship with, my printer. Not this printer too, this one is too expensive. My printer is basically the heart of my small business, it can’t run without it. In fact, this printer has a lot of problem, so everyday I will have to deal with a lot of it’s issues. I still stick with the starry skies background because it just explain my soul and there is no way I am excluding it. The stars have inspired me so much on doing what I am doing right now, on helping me going through things I am going through. Whenever you are feeling down and unmotivated, just look at the skies, and see how the stars are shining for you!

fig 4.1.2 further progress

fig 4.1.3 final poster 

This is the final animation i created (or at least I thought it was final). It is just a simple one with thousand hidden messages. For the background music, I am using my current favourite song from Sleeping At Last, Saturn. It is literally the most beautiful song I have ever listen to. The song is very peaceful yet deeply touching. The lyrics are very strong. Everytime I listen to this song I immediately reflect on life, it makes me travel back and forth in time. I have so many stories with the stars and I feel so connected to them. The stars have inspired me so much in many stages of my life. I want everyone who sees this feel the same way as I do. All the objects in this video are the things that I can’t live without. My laptop, my camera and tripod, and my printer. They are my partner in crime, all of my work revolves around them. The animation I did is not that obvious, but if you focus on looking at it everything is moving slightly, including the paper in the printer paper tray, the camera, and even my own body. I mainly focused on animating the stars and the lighting. I think it turned out pretty nice.

fig 4.1.3 video draft #2

I added the song lyrics because Mr. Fauzi said there was too many empty spaces. I actually have so many more ideas in mind on how to animate the entire poster but it was hard to make them come to life since I am still new to After Effects. Well, there is still a lot to learn but I am happy with the result so far!

fig 4.1.3 final video