Creating Icons

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"The ultimate goal of an icon is to convey a message- quickly, clearly and in a manner that is aesthetically appropriate for its purpose and target-audience. "  -Krause

I began creating an icon by finding an image of a telephone. I cropped the photo by identifying the most important part of the image. Then I cropped this part in order to simplify the image to make an icon.

I used different basic shapes in order to create my own version of the telephone. I enjoyed this activity because it allowed me to realize how simple it can be to create my own image using everyday shapes. Lastly I put a box around the image I created in order to make the icon complete.

Gestalt Principles

Closure

The purpose of this exercise was to utilize the Gestalt principles. I chose to create an image that represents Closure. The two purple shapes make a square which represents closure. The space that is created between demonstrates openness because there is a long line that looks like an escape. Also the two purple shapes create an allusion of a square in the middle. 

Critical Reflection- CAP

1. Connection

The past activities that we have completed include Horizon Variations, Golden Section, Grouping & Theme, Multi-Image Ad Composition, and Color & Emphasis. The blogs posted on my page are all connected well because you can clearly identify the separation of activities due to the appropriate headings of each blog. Also the images I have under each heading are connected to each other because the images clearly illustrate the representation of the heading.
Each of these activities have resulted in me concentrating on the connections made between each element that I would create in comparison to other elements. The activity, grouping and theme, is where I had most practice making connections between the elements. Looking back and reflecting on my work, I would have to say that I utilized connections of my elements pretty well in order to emphasize the theme that I was trying to create. I think I had a pretty clear idea of where to put each element in order to portray the correct message I was intending, especially for Unity and Celebration. However, I do think that I could have made adjustments to Isolation and Intimidation in order to create a stronger message. For these particular themes I think it is necessary to interrupt the flow of the piece dramatically therefore putting the lonely object for each theme further away from the grouping might have made for a stronger message. The theme Anarchy is very scattered but in this case I don't think any changes need to be made because the elements having a scattered connection emphasizes the theme best.

2. Alignment

For my alignment assignment I think I did a great job. I chose the centered alignment. I put my picture, phrase, and words all aligned the same way to provide consistency. In order to make sure each element was the same I checked the alignment so that I did not overlook anything. I made sure the left side mirrored the right side so that each element was an equal distance from the edge. For my particular work I don't think there are any exceptions to be made because it would just look very unorganized. It is important to keep the elements some what consistent otherwise viewers might get confused where to direct their attention. When I first created this image, I think there might have been areas of trapped space, but I made sure I enlarged the photo that way it remained the focus and eliminated unnecessary space.

3. Priority

After reviewing my visuals I am very happy with all of my blog posts. I think the visuals I created as well as modified clearly demonstrate each concept that I intended. There are clear and appropriate hierarchies between each element in each visual. Beginning with the horizon variations, I think my modifications clearly demonstrate that the emphasis is on the road in one picture and the sky in the other. In the alignment activity the picture of the baby hands in the adult hands is clearly what is intended to be the main focus. If it was made smaller and the words were larger the focus would then be on the verbal message instead of the image. Lastly in the color and emphasis post, it is clear that the yellow bird is the hierarchy because it now stands out against the rest of the picture emphasizing its difference and power. I don't think the eye is pulled in opposite directions because each visual has one distinct message. In the past and present activity the father and children clearly are the attention because they are the only elements that are fully colored while the background is black and white. My images are strongest in displaying priority because I think it is evident that the images are representing a clear and distinct message. My blog itself flows very well because each exercise is vertically constructed and each post is a separate frame which I believe looks very organized. By having good organization this prevents the viewers from getting confused where to look.

Past & Present

In this activity we had to find a picture of a street scene, make it black and white, then choose one item within the image and make it stand out against the rest of the busy picture. The purpose of the activity is to utlize color and emphasis by making a specific element stand out. I chose a picture of a street scene in Barcelona. First, I was trying to complete this activity by making the entire image black and white, then select the image I wanted to alter and change its color. This became too difficult and I soon found a much easier way to accomplish this task. I decided to start with the original photo of the street scene, which was full of color. I then selected the image that I wanted to remain as it was, full of color. I selected it with the magnetic lasso tool and then clicked on select inverse. By doing this I could then choose black and white, which was able to make everything black and white except for what I had my magnetic lasso tool around. My final product looked great in my opinion, because you are able to see what looks like an old picture of a busy street, with a modern and colorful addition of a father and his children.

Color & Emphasis

"Color is an extremely effective tool when it comes to making one element stand out above others" -Krause

For this activity the purpose was to find an image, duplicate it, then make one of the images a different color from the rest. I chose a bird, used the magnetic lasso tool to separate the image from its background, and then copied the bird three times. I decided to make the image in the middle of the other two a different color so that it would stand out. I decided to utlize value (the relative light-to-dark measure) in order to further emphasize the one element above the others. I made the bird in the middle a bright yellow while the other two birds were their original bright blue. After I accomplished this task, I then decided to reduce the opacity of the yellow bird that way it was still noticeable that the image was a bird. The first time I made the image yellow you could only tell it was a bird from the outline, but once I reduced the opacity it became much more clear what the image is because you can now see the details within the image. I think the yellow color was a great color to use because it really displays contrast against the bright blue birds.

Alignment

Alignment

"Alignment between elements can be used to create a sense of agreement, soundness and unity within a piece, regardless of the tone of its overall message." -Krause

"Centered alignment. Image, heading and logo each centered horizontally- a common and conventional approach." - Krause

When choosing to use the centered alignment I made sure I did not do the same mistake that was shown in the Krause text. I made sure if I was going to use center alignment that the text underneath the picture was not aligned flush left.  At first the text was too close to the picture so I had to make sure there was a noticeable amount of space separating them. I made the title at the bottom a decent size yet not too big because I wanted the focus to remain on the picture. Lastly I used a blur around the picture so that the change from background to the picture wasn't too drastic.

Composition-Grouping and Theme

Activity 4


In order to have aesthetic clarity in a visual, it is important to pay attention to the way in which one groups each element- Krause. By grouping certain elements together one can relieve any confusion the viewer may have and also can portray a specific message. 
The purpose of my work was to practice using different shapes, sizes, and colors in order to demonstrate very different messages by the way I grouped each element. The design techniques that we demonstrated included unity, celebration, isolation, escape, intimidation, logic, and anarchy. 


The first design I demonstrated was unity. I decided to take my chosen shape which was hearts and put them in a circle. When thinking of unity what comes to mind is togetherness, which is why I thought a circle would display this best. 

The second design that I demonstrated was celebration. Again using hearts as my shape, I made them each a different color then put them in order according to the rainbow colors. When I think of a celebration I think of happy, cheerful, bright colors. Then I decided to group these hearts in the form of an actual rainbow. Rainbows are unique and when people see them in the sky they always acknowledge them. This is what a celebration is as well. A celebration occurs when something unique and extraordinary happens.

The third design demonstrated was isolation. Isolation refers to something that is excluded from the rest of a group. When something is left alone feeling rejected they are also experiencing isolation. I decided to make an equal group of hearts that all aligned together. In order to emphasis isolation I displayed a different color heart far away from the rest of the group that were all the same.

The fourth design demonstrated was escape. I decided to barricade an area of the background with one opening. This opening represents an escape. I also chose to use more arrows directing the lonely heart to this opening in order for it to escape from all the other arrows. 

The fifth design demonstrated was intimidation. I feel as though it is universal to think something is intimidating that there are multiple of. Also something that is dark, and big resemble something to be intimated of. This is why I used my object of a face to be small and light in one direction, and in the other direction I have numerous big, dark faces. 

The sixth design demonstrated was anarchy. When looking up the definition of anarchy I found that it is chaos, confusion and disorder. I took a simple shape such as a heart and decided to sporadically place each element. This utilizes what we previously learned, The Principle of Unequal Spacing. Each element is not related in spacing to each other or the edges of the background. 

The seventh design demonstrated was logic. Logic is something that makes sense and has a sense of order. Using my heart shapes I decided to display order by decreasing each size of heart. It is logical that after we notice the trend of hearts getting smaller, that this will only continue.