Lui Hsiao Hui (Tressa) / 0342003
Digital Photography and Imaging / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
Project 2A: Digital Imaging Exercises
Digital Photography and Imaging / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
Project 2A: Digital Imaging Exercises
Project 2B: Poster Design
PROJECT 2A: EXERCISES
Exercise 1: Photo Manipulation
Part 1: Hearst Mansion and Shazam Digital Collage
Fig. 1.1 Hearst Mansion digital collage tutorial by Mr. Martin
In week 4, we are given a task to create a digital collage following this
YouTube tutorial by Mr. Martin. We are given two images to combine, which
are shown below.
Fig. 1.2 & 1.3 Hearst Mansion and Shazam poster
Fig. 1.4 Final Hearst Mansion and Shazam digital collage, Week 4 (21/4/2021)
Part 2: "My Reflection" Digital Collage
Fig. 2.1 & 2.2 Full-body self-portrait and masking
Our second task for this exercise was to take a full-body self-portrait from eye level and edit our image into the Hearst Mansion photo, with the same steps we did for the Shazam collage. I stood in front of a white curtain so it would be easier to mask out in Photoshop.
Fig. 2.3 Final "My Reflection" digital collage, Week 5 (28/5/2021)
The scale of my photo is smaller than Shazam because he is taller.
Exercise 2: Recolouring Black & White
Part 1: Recolouring with brush tool
Fig. 3.1 Recolouring black and white photo tutorial by Mr. Martin
In week 6, we are to recolour a black and white image following this YouTube tutorial by Mr. Martin.
Fig. 3.2 Black & white portrait
Fig. 3.3 & 3.4 Recolouring progress and final recoloured photo, Week 6 (6/5/2021)
I used the "overlay" blending mode because "soft light" was too subtle. I also added shadows to the face to make it less flat-looking.
Part 2: Recolouring with layer masks (Advanced Recolouring)
Fig. 4.1 Recolouring black and white photo tutorial by Mr. Martin
For part 2 of Exercise 2, we are to follow along with this demo of advanced recolouring.
Fig. 4.2 Black & white portrait along with skin and hair colour reference images
Fig. 4.3 & 4.4 Masking progress and layer masks, Week 7 (14/5/2021)
Fig. 4.5 Final recoloured demo portrait - Version #1, Week 7 (14/5/2021)
Fig. 4.6 Final recoloured demo portrait - Version #2, Week 7 (14/5/2021)
Fig. 4.7 Layered colours
To achieve this greyish blonde hair colour, I layered 5 different colours - warm and cool colours to achieve a balanced/natural-looking hair colour - just like how hair dyes work.
Fig. 4.8 Before and after
After completing the demo image, we have to select one black & white image from the Google Drive provided. I chose a portrait of Willow Smith.
Fig. 4.9 Willow Smith and reference image
Fig. 4.10 & 4.11 Masking progress and layer masks, Week 7 (14/5/2021)
Fig. 4.12 Final recoloured portrait #2, Week 7 (14/5/2021)
Fig. 4.13 Willow Smith portrait before and after, Week 7 (14/5/2021)
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Research
- Study and gather all related information about your topic.
- Write a summary of your topic (500 words)
- Highlight the key points of your summary
- Define the Title
- Define the Slogan
- Define the Details
- Define the Call For Action
2. Concept
- Create a section for each content (Title, Slogan, Details & Call
for Action)
- Sketch your mockup poster
- Fill in with details
3. Developing the design
- Draft the digital poster based on your sketch
- Develop the composition techniques using Digital Photography and Graphic Design.
- Apply colour, typography, textures and effects
- Finalize your design with colour correction
PROJECT 2B: POSTER DESIGN
1. Research
Key points:
- Rohingya crisis in Myanmar - Genocide and ethnic cleansing: extrajudicial killings; executions; gang rapes; arson and infanticides.
- The Rohingya have been denied Burmese citizenship since 1982 because they are a Muslim ethnic minority living in a predominantly Buddhist country (Myanmar).
- Refugees fled to other countries by sea, with makeshift rafts and boats, sourcing human traffickers to get them out of the country.
- Inhumane treatment aboard the boats: cramped spaces, disease-infested boats, beatings, starvation and killings by the traffickers.
- Refugees are classified as illegal immigrants in Malaysia, as Malaysia is not a signatory to the UN refugee convention.
- Malaysia conducts immigration arrests/raids, along with increasing xenophobia and online hate speech.
- Refugees work in low-paying jobs, leading them to be exploited.
- Education they receive is in 120 informal learning centers throughout Malaysia, run by the refugee community or faith-based organisations, with support from UNHCR. Because they are not legal, they can't attend government schools.
References
Fig. 5.1 Asylum seekers poster - ecre (European Council on Refugees and Exiles)
Asylum seeker: A person who has left their home country as a political refugee and is seeking asylum in another.
This is a rather simple yet strong and impactful image used to depict the violence, brutality and terror refugees face when they are sent back to their country. The symbolism here is the red carpet that is often for celebrities or officials but it's painted in the manner of blood, indicating death and violence. This poster does not outright show the audience what exactly the refugees face but rather places the morbid imagery into their heads with the symbolic red carpet representing blood. This makes it scarier because viewers will have to rely on their imaginations, and it is unknown what the result of being sent back is - would it be death, more violence and torture based on the image? Upon first look at the poster, some might not see the correlation between an aeroplane with a red carpet to refugees/asylum seekers. Viewers would look from the door of the aeroplane then follow the leading line down to the caption directing the question, only then it will dawn on them how terrifying must it be for the refugees/asylum seekers.
Fig. 5.2 "Refugee Go Home" - UNHCR
The focal point of this poster is the title "Refugee Go Home" at the top half of the composition. It is accentuated in the colour red and written in all caps. The below caption is short and simple, but very effective in evoking feelings and making people realise how it isn't as easy as it seems and not what they think. Many people look at things on a surface level and this poster would help educate and give a new perspective for people to reflect on. I quite like these types of bold statements to make people realise things, and also the minimalistic poster style.
Fig. 5.3 and 5.4 Posters for people in Moria (Refugee camp in Moria)
Bold statements and the use of images showing the conditions refugee children are in. These two posters are also of minimalist style and show visual hierarchy. The titles of these two posters are questions directed at the viewers. Once again, making them aware of the situation in Moria. The empty space in the photos of the children evokes feelings of loneliness, emptiness and hopelessness. Below the poster is the call for action - QR code scan and details about what the poster is about.
2. Concept
Title: Refugees in Malaysia
Slogan ideas:
"This is not how we want to travel the world" - Photo of refugees walking/on a crowded boat
"My home does not want me" / "My home is not my home" - Photo of destroyed refugee homes
"You are killing us / You are no different from Hitler" - Photo of refugees being detained/beaten
"Why detain us like your animals?" - Photo of refugees being detained behind bars
"You are breathing, we are drowning" - Photo of refugees at sea
"You have a roof, we have the sun" - Photo of refugees at sea
"Don't send us back to no man's land"
"Are we not humans too?"
Details:
- ALL WE ASK FOR IS SAFETY AND SHELTER, ARE WE NOT HUMANS DESERVING OF THOSE BASIC NEEDS?
- Refugee boats are being denied entry to Malaysia, resulting in increasing deaths of innocents.
- They are forced to flee their country in order to save their own lives, who are we to deny them human rights? / They are robbed of their homeland and killed. Who are we to deny them safety and shelter?
Call For Action: END THIS GENOCIDE. Visit donate.unhcr.org.my to DONATE. To get more information on the refugees in Malaysia, visit refugeemalaysia.org.
Sketches
Fig. 6.1 Refugee poster sketches, Week 7 (9/5/2021)
Rough sketches done in Photoshop. I decided to try out 2 slogan ideas - Version #1: "You are breathing, we are drowning", Version #2: "Why detain us like your animals?".
Mockups
Fig. 6.2 Version #1 base progress, Week 7 (9/5/2021)
Fig. 6.3 Version #1.1 (mockup), Week 7 (9/5/2021)
Mockup of Version #1. The arrangement of text/layout will be explored more later and I think I may want to enlarge "drowning" for emphasis. I chose red for the slogan because it represents the violence and pain the refugees face. It is also a striking colour that easily grabs people's attention.
Fig. 6.5 Version #2.1 (mockup), Week 7 (9/5/2021)
Mockup of Version #2 is more simplistic but straightforward, easy to understand. Whereby people will have to understand the context behind "You are breathing, we are drowning".
3. Developing the design
VERSION 1: "YOU ARE BREATHING, WE ARE DROWNING"
Fig. 7.1 Version #1 progress, Week 8 (17/5/2021)
1.1: First mockup. I like the typography but the placement of the details and call for action are bothering me. Overall balance feels slightly off, perhaps it's the weird negative space in the middle.
1.2: I decided to try out a grungy look with red and black as the colour scheme. As mentioned before, I chose red because it represents the brutality, violence, death and pain the refugees face. For this layout, I moved the slogan down and placed "drowning" behind the refugees/boat to create a sense of depth. I also added a grainy texture for that grunge poster look. However, I think this poster is not striking enough compared to the others because the red is darker than white. It has weak contrast which is not ideal for an important PSA poster.
1.5: I don't really like this layout. I think there's awkward negative space in the poster. It's distracting and messes up the focal point of the poster.
Version #1 Favourites
Fig. 7.2.1 Version #1.3, Week 8 (17/5/2021)
One of my favourite layout. I like the minimalistic look and the negative space because it creates focus. Having all the text in the center creates a leading line straight down to the boat - movement and visual hierarchy in the poster. However, I think the body text stands out more than the title because white is brighter than red. I also added a paper texture and grain to the poster for the grungy look. I think this looks more like a poster for a documentary than a PSA poster.
The slogan, "You are breathing" is in a serif font, while "We are drowning" is in a sans serif font. This is due to contrast purposes and also symbolism: I chose serif for "You are breathing" to symbolise the privilege we have, and how we live a luxurious life compared to the refugees. Serif fonts look sophisticated and 'pretty', which suits the first half of the slogan addressing the viewers, while sans serif looks 'generic' and plain which represents the refugees and their miserable lives.
Fig. 7.2.2 Version #1.3 grids
Fig. 7.3.1 Version #1.4, Week 8 (17/5/2021)
I really like this layout and how the slogan is framing the boat. Although it covers it slightly at the edges I still think it looks alright. Placing the slogan on the bottom half of the poster allows me to have negative space at the top half, so it create a focal point to the details, as well as it being easier to read. However, from far the slogan is not that visible.
Fig. 7.3.2 Version #1.4 progress
Some adjustments and details. Originally I applied the texture to all the words in the slogan but I decided to remove the texture for "We are drowning" for the purpose of contrast, and also to make it stand out more.
Fig. 7.3.4 Adding texture to the slogan using displace
VERSION 2: "Why detain us like your animals?"
Fig. 8 Version #2 progress, Week 8 (17/5/2021)
I ended up just shifting the details and resizing the slogan to see which looks better. Because of the image's crop, it only looks good if it's kept at the bottom so there weren't many layout ideas I had for this version. I already liked the mockup layout either way.
Final Posters
Fig. 9.1 Version #1 final - "YOU ARE BREATHING, WE ARE DROWNING", Week 8 (17/5/2021)
Design Approach: Direct (but not very straightforward from far)
This poster shows the refugees’ escaping journey at sea, presenting a shock value to the audience because most people don’t know what refugees go through in escaping. It shows reality with the image of a sinking boat. The way it's edited in a dark style, as well as the colour scheme of red and black evokes feelings and reflects the harsh and unforgiving conditions refugees face. The striking red is provoking which enhances the slogan.
Symbolism
Red: Pain, suffering, brutalism, violence, death, harsh reality.
Paper texture: The tatteredness of the paper represents the challenges and unforgiving conditions refugees face.
“YOU ARE BREATHING”
- Serif font: Symbolises the privilege we have, and how we live a luxurious life compared to the refugees. Serif fonts look sophisticated and 'pretty', which suits the first half of the slogan addressing the viewers.
- Texture: Represent wind/air and waves, to show the weather and condition at sea. The texture is a way of type expression.
“WE ARE DROWNING”
- Sans serif font: Looks 'generic' and plain which represents the refugees and their miserable lives.
- Contrasts “YOU ARE BREATHING” (serif font).
Fig. 9.2 Version #2 final - "Why detain us like your animals?", Week 8 (17/5/2021)
Design Approach: Direct
This second poster presents the refugees in Malaysia issue in a minimalistic and straightforward way, making it easily understandable. The use of black indicates the seriousness of the poster, along with an impactful slogan directing the question at the audience. It is provoking and makes people think. The image used shows the reality of how Malaysia treats its refugees. Unlike the first poster, the details in this differ slightly to suit the context of the image and poster. Furthermore, while the first poster’s slogan is a bold statement, this second poster imposes a question.
FEEDBACK
Week 6: Good research and detailed analysis of the references.
Week 7: Good progress. Imagery and slogan are strong. Suggestion to emphasize the "drowning" and/or "breathing" maybe with a different typeface. May submit two poster versions.
REFLECTION
This project was a good learning experience because not only did we learn about poster design, we were exposed to the refugee crisis around the world, and also how Malaysia treats its refugees. During the progress of creating the poster, I enjoyed portraying the mood of the poster with typography and editing style, the most fun bit has got to be the texturing with the displacement map. I also enjoyed the recolouring black & white images exercise, it took a while since we have to be precise with the masking but watching the monochrome image turn into colour was incredibly satisfying.
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be nice