After Effects Workshop IV...

Creating text within after effects

- Can create text as you would on illustrator - Character palette

- Double clicking on the text layer selects all of the text

- The first difference of a text layer is the positioning of the anchor point, as it is in the left corner not the middle as it may be expected

- Text layer properties specific to text, as well as usual transform properties

- If you press y you can change the anchor point 

- Source text option allows us to change the content and the formatting of the text over time

- A key frame added with this is square - this means this a hold keyframe each time you change the content not a gradual change

1. Text appearing

- Think of a sentence

- Delete text so that only the first letter shows of your sentence, make a key frame

- Move further along time line and type more of the text in, etc, keep making key frames till you have written the whole sentence

e.g.

- Can also change the formatting, e.g. add a new key frame to make the whole text a different colour, font, size etc

2. 

- Animate options available

- Anything that we alter with position alters the other properties

- Click animate -> chose position = we now have an additional few options

- We are adding an animator which adds range selector and position properties

- To see how this works we will change one of our position values

- Expand options of range selector, change the start to 50%

- Make the end point a key frame

- Range selector helps you to select how much of your word will be changed by the properties

3.

- Creating a mexican wave style movement

- Alter the start and the end

- Then create a start and end key frame for the offset and alter these to create this movement

- Need to play around with setting to understand this!

- If you change to index values over percentage ones (on advanced settings) it makes it easier to edit characters individually, as you can change it by the number of characters and not a percentage, so more specific

- Changed 'based on' settings such as:

- Experiment with how this effects the sequence

- Changing the smoothness changes the interpolation

4.

- This time we are choosing scale as our property

- We can add new key points to edit the scale, and each character will move around its own individual anchor point

- More options -> anchor point grouping -> can change to word 

5. 

- Making a single letter bigger every time, still using scale as our property

- Add -> tracking -> adds new tracking property

- Can add effect so that as the letter increases in size it changes colour

- Can lower the smooth in the advanced options so there is no change in shade when changing colour, just straight to the other colour

- Lots of possibilities:

- Play around with the properties:

6.

- Using the pen tool to create an open ended path, while the text is selected

- Change the path options from none to Mask 1

- The text will now take the shape of the path

- Alter path -> first margin -> then drag text along -> add a keyframe (this is how you animate the text)

- Play around!

- If you're preparing audio, choose aiff or wav files, can convert

Image... Editorial Images... Ideas

Look at:

image as type; branding; putting things in to context; moving image; adding or removing from surfaces; 3d; collage; photography; drawing...

Brief

Our first brief is to create editorial images to accompany three articles we have been given from the guardian newspaper. The images must refer to the article directly and fit into the space given, although they don't have to be in just a square box. Use different media to create varied images, there are no media restrictions. There are ideas for imagery within the texts, but don't just go with the obvious response, go beyond this, be clever and subtle, think visually.

Rationale

Brief: What is the problem you intend to solve?

To create editorial images for the guardian, which relate to the subject of the article and are appropriate to the tone.

Who needs to know? 

The guardian readers. I need to find out what the average reader is like to create images that will appeal to them.

What do they need to know? 

They need to know what the article will be about, by quickly glancing at the image, to decide whether or not they will continue to read on.

Why do they need to know?

You take notice of the image first as it has hierarchy, whereas the text takes a long time to read, and the read might not have time to read every article.

What will they respond to?

The image should be interesting and relevant so that it draws the reader in and they take notice of the article rather than ignoring it.

What research is required?

Primary - Find out what guardian readers are like, by talking to them and seeing what style of image they want or expect.

Secondary - Find out what kinds of images are used in the guardian already.

Initial Ideas

I started by reading the articles and deciding what kind of tone I thought they were written in, so I could decide on image ideas accordingly. 

1. Doctor doctor - serious tone, factual, for a more mature audience

- Old person doing sit ups

- Happy cold/germ with googley eyes

- Photo of person walkings feet

- Photo of young person with cold

- Timeline info graphics pieces of the years made up with cold and flu tablets

2. Relationship maths - jokey, sill, unimportant, mimicking Facebook and those whose life revolve around it

- Facebook person symbol with love hearts - collage

- Info graphics piece on the number of friends a couple has

- Facebook maths equation illustration featuring the logos

- The Facebook f logo in a love heart

3. This article will change your life - about the human confusion with numbers, lots of information and visual ideas, not too serious but not jokey either

- Illustration of one tv and hundreds of lattes

- A £20 note with £10 written on it, and vice versa, to show people don't understand money

- A photograph of a question mark made out of money

- A comic style illustration of money talking to each other

- Type piece featuring millions of numbers

Research

With the time limit on this brief, I won't be doing the kind of extensive research I would normally do with a brief, but I did ask a guardian reader what they would expect, and look at a copy of the guardian to answer the proposed research questions I set in my rationale.

Answer: The images are mainly photographs, but there are also line drawing, cartoons, illustrations, info graphics etc... The images are content specific so it depends on what the article is about. As a reader you see the graphics first, and the style of the image makes you recognise the style of the article, and to get an idea of what it is about, so you can decide whether it is something you want to read, and can lead to continue reading that particular column. The type of image may relate to the person who has written the article.

Initial Drawings

Here are some drawings, featuring some of my initial ideas that I liked the best, to help me get an idea of which idea I should continue with, rather than just rushing on with the first idea I had.

1.

2.

3.

Favourite Ideas

Based on my drawing experiments, the ideas that I have chosen to take forward are:

1. Doctor doctor - Info graphics piece made with photography of pills

2. Relationship maths - Paper cut out collage featuring Facebook icons to make a maths equation

3. This article will change your life - Illustration of £20 notes with £10 written on it, and vice versa.

Development of Ideas

1. Doctor doctor - I have changed this piece to a paper cut, after doing my research on this column of the guardian and finding out that this type of image is regularly used. This timeline is quite simple, and if I had had the time I would have liked to make it more detailed, but when placed in context, I think it does work.

[hand made paper cut scanned in and text and background added in photoshop]

2. Relationship Maths - Here are the symbols from Facebook I have used:

 

(also used the female no profile picture image)

[Using photoshop, I then created the other elements to fit in with the colour scheme, and turned the Facebook logo into a heart to turn this into a maths equation]

3. This column will change your life - This is my original drawing for my idea of showing how people are confused by money. I did think about doing it as an illustration on illustrator, or by manipulating a photograph, but it is impossible to open money in adobe software as they think you are creating fake money! So, to also save time, I have used my initial drawings, which I think look far better now that I have added accurate colours to them. I think the use of colour makes it totally obvious what the notes are supposed to be, and makes my idea clear, where without colour, people may not have understood so easily.

[Hand drawn image - live traced on illustrator - colour added on photoshop with graphics tablet - text removed to make it more subtle]

Image... Drawing as Practice... Briefing

The aims of this module are:  To develop a deeper understanding of drawing/image making as practice in response to contemporary visual language and visual theory. To develop and explore individual approaches to formal language, materials and media in relation to the visual investigation of ideas around drawing and image making as practice To identify and develop specific formal, material and intellectual concerns in relation to visual language and visual research.

Communication Through Image It is important to remember that designers never operate in isolation. However in order to effectively engage with the collaborative and interdisciplinary nature of the design industry we must first understand our individual creative intentions and areas of specialism.. This module focuses on communication through image to develop, extend and maintain an exploratory approach to visual language, visual research and image making across arrange of media. You will be expected to develop a rationale for the independent investigation of visual language as well as identifying appropriate contexts and opportunities for research, development and presentation. You will also establish a growing understanding of the potential uses and applications of image within the broader context of Graphic design.

Brief Part 1 – STUDIO WORKSHOPS Working individually you will focus on the visual response to set problems. Weekly sessions will allow you to develop a more specialist understanding of issues, concerns and possibilities of working with image. You will be expected to demonstrate your technical, practical and theoretical understanding of image through creative response and personal investigation across a range of appropriate media. Part 2 – INDIVDUAL PRACTICE You will produce a body of work that explores your growing understanding of visual language, visual research and visual development and visual communication. By investigating an individually selected range of appropriate media you should aim to identify specific creative concerns based on your own interests, studio workshops and prior experiences. These should be evidenced through notebooks, development sheets, test pieces and clearly identified resolutions.

Indicative Content Building on Level 04 modules, you will be expected to identify specific concerns, issues, subjects and methods in response to briefs relating to visual research and investigation. Where appropriate group and collaborative approaches to the development and presentation of work will be encouraged in order to establish a broader understanding of context and individual practice. This module offers those who are focusing on communication through image to develop, extend and maintain an exploratory approach to visual language, visual research and drawing as practice. You will be expected to propose a rationale and programme of study for the independent investigation of visual language as well as identifying appropriate contexts and opportunities for research, development and presentation. Independent study will be delivered and supported through oral briefings with handouts, group tutorials, progress meetings and interim critiques/presentations. Practical sessions and access to appropriate workshops will be self determined but supported by tutorial contact.

Top 10 Things... TV Intro Design... Starting Point

Where to start?

Starting a storyboard for a 60 second tv intro seems a lot more difficult than creating a 5 second sequence, so I think I need to spend a while working out exactly what my design idea for the introduction is before I start plotting frames on a sequence.

I've started out by just drawing some basic ideas, based on the look I am trying to achieve, as inspired by my research. I think I need to remember my software knowledge limitations and not get too carried away with creating a complicated sequence that I will then not be able to make on after effects!

Title Introduction

How each of the top ten could appear

Effects I want to try

I need to choose an idea that I want to work with, and then the next thing I need to do is fit these ideas to frames, so I can begin thinking about the timing of my intro and where I would plot the frames on a storyboard.

I want to get this done for the group crit next wednesday, so I can know that the direction I want to go in works, before I spend ages creating the sequence in after effects.

My Video Ideas

- Collage, mixed media

- Things appearing from different angles, e.g. from lay down to stood up

- Things flying in and popping up

- A bit crazy, fast paced

- Title could be made out of sprinkles? Photography/ still motion

- Housewife winking with cupcake/ getting cupcake out of oven imagery

- Photographs of cupcakes

- Illustrated cupcakes

Frames & Storyboard

[blog posts]

Top 10 Things... Design Direction Boards

To present our research to everyone else, we need to create 5 design direction boards.

What is design direction?

- Having to pitch your ideas first. With motional graphics, you would have to show your proposed ideas to get funding

- Need to define:

:: Subject / theme - clarify

:: Specific content that you are going to include in your response - facts; figures; statistics; quotes

:: Visual content - images; diagrams; photos; type

:: Visual concept - fonts; colours; textures; tones (think about the reason for making these choices)

- Use:

:: Existing imagery and examples (others visual material to show what you're going for)

:: Your own images and mock up ideas (range of media coming together: photos and illustrations, etc...)

:: Colour swatches

:: Can be inspired by other things not related to motion graphics, such as packaging (this has lead me to think about soap and glory designs)

:: Something that doesn't move can turn into motion, e.g. what would happen if an info graphics piece starting moving?

:: Scan in materials to get textures

:: Look at purely text driven motion graphics

:: Get screen grabs of existing film titles (such as: old dogs; kiss kiss bang bang; married life; curious george)

What goes on the 5 boards?

1. This board clarifies the subject theme and title, and what the show is about

2. This board focuses on the specific content for the programme, such as facts and figures that will be included. Also shows what channel and what time it will be on

3. This board has secondary examples showing things/desings that inspired you

4. This board shows the chosen visual content, with your photos and illustrations

5. This board shows the visual concept, what fonts, textures and colour palettes you will use, can also write about what song you were thinking of

Final Boards

These boards took a long time to make but really helped me to define my concept

Crit Feedback

Strengths

- Well considered appropriate research according to theme

- Style of design is well suited

- Looks good

Areas For Improvement

- Consider music choice, look at soundtracks for relevant films, use video to mp3, maybe use a song without lyrics

- Make each of the top ten flavour cupcakes and photograph and draw from these

- More baking show research, such as ace of cakes

Considerations

- Show the ingredients in either type or illustrative form

- Consider camera panning angles

- Consider people with dietary requirements who will need speciality cupcakes so that your show appeals to a wider audience

Action Plan

- Have to make dvd sleeves for your video so make sure the design can translate to print

- Get someone else to check and read what you make for legibility

- Define your specific target audience, including what ages and what type of person the show is aimed at

Re-formalised Statement of Intent

My TV show is about the top ten cupcake flavours, and is a 5 part 30 minute special, to be shown on bbc 2, at 7pm prime time. The shows style is sophisticated and classy, inspired by vintage 50's style graphic design, with a housewives theme. My show is aimed specifically at middle class women, housewives and career women, around the ages of 20 to 40. The content will include showing the recipes being baked, visiting cupcake shops, and talking to cupcake lovers.

For Next Crit (Wed 18th)

Storyboards; solid ideas; photoshop or illustrator supporting work; preliminary after effects animations

Top 10 Things... Presentation of Research

We need to create a presentation to show what we have found out through our research. I will be keeping the design simple as there will be lots of visual research which needs to be what stands out. I think my idea is a fairly simple one but can hopefully look good visually, by keeping the same colour scheme throughout. I created the design on keynote which proved to be quite annoying so in future I will be sticking to illustrator and just turning the files into pdfs.

Here's the notes to go with each slide

1. The top ten cupcake flavours

2. Primary researched involved baking, decorating and eating cupcakes. I have also included photographs of cupcakes I have previously made. As illustration is one of my key interests, I have also experimented with creating images on illustrator and by hand.

3. Another aspect of primary research was finding an accurate respond to what my top ten cupcake flavours should be, rather than just choosing my own ten favourite flavours. I wasn't surprised to find out that the basic flavours were the favourite, as these appeal to even the fussiest eaters. I also found out that the majority (77%) believed that the flavour is more important than the decoration.

4. These are the top ten cupcake flavours, so I will be showing these in my intro

5. Secondary research involved looking in books and on the internet, to see the photographs of beautiful cupcakes with interesting flavours out there, as well as looking in cooking book. As well as looking at research specific to my subject, I have looked at other designs which inspire the theme I am going for.

6. These are fonts I could possibly work with, inspired by the keywords that I came up with to describe cupcakes and the look I am going for. Included were words such as: girly; elegant; luxury; glamourous and decorative.

7. This is an extensive colour palette complete with RGB codes, as this is design for screen, of suitable cupcake colours. I will need to narrow this selection down eventually.

8. I have looked at different tv show intros to give me some inspiration of what my introduction could be like. These are some screen grabs from the shows that stood out to me, I particularly like the collage mixed-media style, bringing together type, photography, and illustration. I also like the vintage feel of some of these intros and think that is what I will go for.

9. My show will be a 5 part 30 minute per episode series (I have changed this from being a one-off, as I think there would be too much content to fit in at once without viewers getting bored), with a sophisticated and classy vintage inspired style to it. It will appeal to women of all ages that love to bake. The content will consist of the presenter talking about and baking the top 10 cupcake flavours, as well as extra content, such as visiting bakeries and talking to the public.

10. My show would be chosen on bbc 2, at a primetime slot of about 7pm, to get the biggest possible audience. I have chosen this channel as I believe it is more sophisticated and will attract the right viewers, as bbc 2 also shows other cooking and baking programmes. It will match the elegant, luxurious feel of my show.

Top 10 Things... Cupcake Illustrations & Photograph Edits

illustrator 

drawn with graphics tablet

 

vintage filter photo effects

hand drawn with fine writer

paper collage cupcake (relating to mixed media theme)

Digital Design Production... Silent Movie... Final Hand-drawn Storyboards

Here are my final hand drawn storyboards for my silent movie brief. They are quite detailed, with enough annotation to remind me of what I am trying to achieve, and so that my sequence ideas and reasons will make sense to anybody looking at them. I will use these as a starting point for now creating these sequences in after effects. 

The first storyboard is a lot bigger, but I decided that this was not necessary for such a short clip, so for the other storyboards I have used 2 lines of 60cm instead of 5. When I am creating storyboards for my tv intros and idents, as these are longer sequences, I will need to use whole page storyboards which will also be detailed and with annotation.

Digital Design Production... Silent Movie... Digital Experiments

Now that I have hand drawn my ideas for my five short videos for the Silent Movie brief, I thought that it is about time I experimented with creating them digitally, using both illustrator and after effects, so that I can have a bit of a play around with my ideas. There are still more after effects workshops to come, so I am not an expert yet, but I think I will learn as I go by having a play around and I can also put in to practise what I have learnt so far in the workshops.

This seemed like it would be an easy transition to make, as I had already thought a bit about font and colour choices, and because I had hand drawn my ideas out so many times. However, when it came to creating my sequences on after effects, despite using the same colour schemes and fonts, I found the sequences didn't look as good.

The silent movie videos need to be done asap, so that my attention can be spent on the longer video for the 'top 10 things' brief.

Sequence 1 - Expand

When hand drawing my sequences, this one had been my favourite, so I had put a lot of attention in to making sure my plans were right. If I hadn't have made a storyboard for this, I wouldn't have known where to start, and it was so useful to have planned out what happens at what second. I have so far only made an accurate storyboard for this sequence, so I will need to go back and create them for my other sequences, to make it as easy as possible to create.

I'm finding after effects really hard to use at the moment, so I am going to wait until I have more after effects workshops before continuing, to make sure I don't get behind with my work.