Funny Compositions
In Digital Media, we had an assignment where we created two “funny” images. We had total creative freedom to use Photoshop and make something unique! I created two images: one of a dog on a skateboard and another of a Christmas tree with a hat/face. Photoshop is one of the more difficult Adobe platforms for me to use, but I had fun thinking of something to make! I was able to use the software to blend multiple images together.
My key takeaways from the funny composition assignment were practicing blending images and thinking about funny and creative choices to complete the project.
Motion Graphics
I created an After Effects motion graphics video, which took a lot of time and practice. I first watched a series of practice videos and watched multi-part tutorials to help teach me different skills. I learned how to animate lines, create a “fireworks” effect, create music that correlates to a beatbox, and more. I spent many hours learning these intricate skills, and I feel that it really helped my skills in Adobe After Effects in many ways. I combined all of the skills I learned in the short video shown below.
Overall, my key takeaways are that I was able to experiment with the many tools that Adobe After Effects has to offer. Whether that is music, movement of lines, coloring, or creating unique shapes, I feel that this multi-step project helped me build a better understanding of this technology in several ways.
Multi-Layered Art Project
The multi-layered art project was based off of our world-building project we created in English. We used Adobe Illustrator to create 2D art that will then be transformed into a 3D display. We had three main choices: we could either create ring art, a light box, or stacked wood art. I decided to choose the lightbox because I liked that I could choose the different colors for it and thought it could be a cool art piece to bring to my dorm room! We first began with sketches, then uploaded them into Illustrator, created the physical final product, edited it in Adobe After Effects, and then finally created a video of the assembly process!
Since my English project was about how dreams are outlawed, I decided to do a dream-themed lightbox. I drew stars, a ladder leading to the moon, and a dreamcatcher to represent that magical and mysterious feeling that dreams convey.
After creating my digital artwork, I created a 3D video showcasing how my drawing includes many different layers. My behind the scenes of my nine different layers is shown below.
My artist statement that depicts my thoughts on this project is shown below.
Dreams
My inspiration for this project was specifically what I wrote about in my world-building assignment in English. Along with my partners, I created a story about a world where our main protagonist lives in a world where dreams are outlawed. I decided to use this as inspiration to create a dreamcatcher, and I chose to make a lightbox to combine elements of both my English work and digital media skills. I am inspired by dreams myself; the meaning behind them, why we dream, and the way it can take you to magical places.
I thought that producing a 2D multi-layered concept into a 3D physical and digital production in After Effects was challenging. It was difficult for me to visualize where the laser would cut the paper, and it took me many trials/errors (along with the generous help of Mr. Flo). I really valued this production in After Effects because I was able to learn how to create a drawing of my choice and convert it to such a unique and cool physical piece of artwork. I thought it was really cool I learned how to use lights, shadows, and virtual cameras; these are all things I previously did not know how to use before. The cameras made it possible to show different angles, which is something I particularly found interesting.
Knowing Illustrator and After Effects in general has helped me to be unstoppable in terms of producing media of all different types, because I have gained a new skillset I previously wouldn’t have had. At first, I thought the project looked really difficult, and I didn’t know how I would complete it. These platforms taught me new ways of editing, effects such as shadowing, and other unique skills that have given me the ability to create more projects such as my “dreams”-themed lightbox. I am grateful for all I have learned during this project, and I look forward to seeing what else I can create in the future!
My final assembly is shown below. I took time-lapses of my building process to show all the different steps: lasering each layer, gluing it all together, and adding and assembling the lights.