Assignment 3 - New work, Final Submission

Decided to redo the assignment for submission as I realized that we are graded much on the quality of the photographs as well! I initially thought only the creative element, composition and angle would be graded as that was what we learnt during the week 4 lecture. But well, I had fun doing this again!

The series of photographs share the 'adventure' of the Cookie Monster, who escapes from his toy box to find his cookies (koko krunch here to be exact)!

I thought that taking pictures of still soft toy to tell the story is going to be relatively easier as they are easier to manipulate, I was proven so wrong! Faced so much difficulty along the way to inject life, actions and emotions into the lifeless creature!

The Cookie Monster soft toy was in fact inflexible and standing stiff! So, I had to explore angles and various perspectives to give the illusion that he is walking, climbing, bending and even hugging the box of cookie in the end when it was in fact all along in its upright position with hands wide spread.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed the sense of satisfaction after that though :D

Assignment 3 - Angle and Shot Exploration Part 2

Here are some other exploration shots which put me into thoughts before finalizing what to put in the portfolio.

Assignment 3 - Angle and Shot Exploration Part 1

Tried various angles, perspectives and composition along the way in order to find the mood and feel that I wanted to portray.

While I have my storboard as my guide, I also tried other possible ways to present the actions and emotions by the Cookie Monster. For instance, to show him climbing out, i tried shooting him top-down which emphasizes the height and tried shooting bottom-up to highlight his action of climbing out instead.

As the toy is really stiff, I had tried various positions as well to suggest movements. Just for the scene showing him peeking out of the box, I took as many as 20 photos before deciding on which was more effective in conveying the emotion and the story.

Assignment 3 - Storyboard

Did a fast sketch of the storyboard before shooting. Helped me to pen down some general angles/composition which i have in mind.

Assignment 5 - Refined for Submission

Made quite some edits to the final work - the colors, size, perspective and inclusion of the company's name at the top left to create a sense of balance (i find it too heavy on the bottom right initially)

In response to the feedback for the previous work that the electricity pole does not look like one, I adopted one of their ideas to make it red and white. Now the red seems to flow with my text and add 'loudness' to the piece :) Quite a serendipity.

Made the design more dynamic as well by exaggerating the perspective, making the distance relation more obvious.

Assignment 4 - Refined for Submission

Made some slight adjustments to the colors and font sizes to bring out more contrast for the words. The colors also create a greater flow for the audience now.

Assignment 2 - Refined before Submission

Final pick! Decided to choose the last frame instead ( the most abstract in the process). Was contemplating between the last two frames.

Finally made the decision based on the consideration that it is simple-to-understand when put into context.

Assignment 1 - Refined for Submission

Woo! Refined the colors before submission! The class feedbacked that the worm and hook doesnt stand out enough to highlight my name. So, da ta! Made it lighter (in contrast with the other colors in the picture and made them glow brighter!

Assignment 5 - Infographic

Tata! My first submission for the assignment after much research and multiple attempts. It shows the amount of CO2 emission from different sectors in US and the smaller text shows more detail on the statistic and what the people can do to help.

Tried a few designs which I just feel dissatisfied with. Hence, adjusted along the way before getting this

Following refinement to be done:
- It looks like a plane crash on first sight. So I gonna change the color of the smoke perhaps.
- With feedback from last tutorial, I shall make the smaller-to-larger perspective more significant.
- Gonna change the design for electric pole as it is not easily recognisable.

Assignment 5 - Infographic Research

I was really fascinated by this infographic while doing my research. Even though there is abundant (even excessive) information clumped into one, I like how the reader is able to "read" the danger and graveness of the information presented through the "skull"

I like this simplistic yet pretty design. I enjoy the comfortable composition and the good use of contrasting colors - black and red. More importantly, it brings across the impact and grave danger of the issue at hand very effectively through its simply presentation and strong words.

Assignment 4 - Initial Choice

Assignment 4 - Color Coliation Exploration

Was having fun exploring colors and finding colors to suit the mood and theme I would like to bring across :))

Am contemplating between the 1st and the 2nd design. The 1st design works more on harmony - I like the slight pastel feel that is really comfortable and its ability to blend and create depth for the drums. On the other hand, I like the strong contrast in the 2nd picture :))

Assignment 3 - Angle and Shot Exploration

One of the parts which i spent most time developing and experimenting is the slamming of the book. Tried various shots and positions to find out how to best suggest movement in action.

Assignment 3 - U C What I C

Assignment 2 - Less is More

PROCESS OF ABSTRACTION
Worked on the idea on of cow milking at an animal farm. Tried out several ways to abstract an idea/design :))

Photo-->Pic1

Pic1-->Pic2 -Took off the 3D effect by removing the shadow. Made the cow spots less defined. Removed the head of the man to bring focus on the act of milking instead.

Pic2-->Pic3 - Reduced it complexity. Removed Black. Removed 1 hand.

Pic3-->Pic4 - Less direct representation of the cow at this stage. To fit the idea of a fun animal farm, have made the cow look more "cartoon-like". Exaggerated certain porportions of the cow to bring emphasis.

Pic4-->Pic5 - Zoomed in on the action of cow milking.

Assignment 1 - Final

Tada! Final work for Assignment 1 - Me, myself and I! Finally managed to persuade myself to pick this idea out of the two as I thought I like the use of porportion for emphasis and the fun element here.

Further developed the monster to slight 3D to give a sense of depth and changed the look of the worm. Now, it looks so innocently cute! (or as i thought) More importantly, I have tried to give the worm more attention through exaggeration so as to bring focus to what is meant to be my letter M.

Added more details. Changed the color scheme too! Decided to go with cooler colors after experimenting. It better reflects my querky, mysterious nature :))

From the feedback last week, I decided to make the hook and the worm glow so as to bring focus to my name, MJ.

Assignment 1 - More Exploration

Further exploration after 1st critique lesson. Here, i am trying out the idea of "craft work" working on the same idea of worm and hook :))

Assignment 1 - Roughs

After picking the idea of Worm and Hook, i developed these 2 roughs with rather different concepts.

Monster and Worm: Play around with proportion. Bright colours to establish my cheery and fun nature. Simple doodle style.

Craft, Fish and Worm: Got my inspiration from a recent H1N1 ad by Health Promotion Board. The subjects (eg.fish, worm, hook) in the graphic appears to be popping out like those of a craft work. Graphic composition works more on balance. Colors are less bright compared to the first, but help the subjects to stand out. Like the first, it works on the fun element :))

Assignment 1 - Preliminary Sketches

These are some sketches which i further developed from my thumbnail doodling. I have fished these ideas out from the thumbnails as I see them as more interesting and having greater potential to be developed. Moreover, I think they say more of me.

Try spotting my name: MJ/MINJIA among the works! :)


Theatre: I used to study theatre, and I still think theatre is an interesting field to explore in the Arts.
Playground: Reflects my playful and fun-loving nature :)


Music: I enjoy listening to music! Made this design more dynamic.
Forest: I love trees. Quite an environmentalist. Advocates recycling and against wasting of paper. While everyone is trying to put their names into objects, i decided to try the reverse - create my name through the absence of objects.


Food: I enjoy food! Who doesn't!
Fish & Worm: I like the querky and fun nature of this design, which reflects my character.

Assignment 1 Research

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zeusmb/
http://crymz.deviantart.com/art/Experimental-Typography-Candy-142091911
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/inspiration-book-typography-084930

While i was searching for more ideas and inspiration for "Me, Myself and I". I came across these interesting designs online.

I like particularly the last one, which hides the message " A Shut Book is Just a Block" by the clever use of colors.

Employed some of these ideas in my brainstorming thumbnails as well :))