Digital Photography and Imaging : Project 2

on

20.9.2021 - 18.10.2021 (Week 5 - Week 9)
Chung Yi Ki / 0345014 / BDCM
Digital Photography and Imaging
Project 2

Quick links

Lecture

Week 5 / Poster Design Development 

We were briefed about our second project which is about creating a PSA poster one week early from the scheduled date. In this lecture, we are introduced to the subject of conceptual poster design, specifically posters designed using photography and text. 

Posters are a medium to convey a message to a target audience, whether it be a brand advertisement or an awareness message. A PSA poster is specifically designed to raise awareness on a certain social issue to the general public. More often than not, creative posters are the most effective way to communicate the intended message as they're straightforward and visually striking. 

There are 4 key features that make up a creative poster: 

1) Title
The title should complement the visuals in the poster, as it is essentially the caption of the graphic elements. It should not exceed two lines of text. 

2) Graphic
Same as title, the graphic should also complement the texts in the poster. It should be exported in a high resolution (300 dpi or higher). 

3) Text
The text should describe the intended message of the poster clearly. There are no limits to how long the text should be but it should not be too overloaded. 

4) White space
White space provides the poster some room to "breathe". A sufficient use of it can avoid audience being overwhelmed with the information presented in the poster. 

In addition to the above, layout, flow and colour are also important consideration in making a poster as it'll affect the order and style of the poster. A graphic-centered layout is suggested for a PSA poster. A good visual hierarchy will create a smooth flow of elements where the audience's eyes can be directed through the poster. Finally, colours can be used to create focal points and divide sections within a poster. 

Week 6 / Poster Design Execution 

When making a PSA poster, once we narrowed down on the topic we want to work on, we can start the design process by first researching about our topic, defining our poster concept and finally developing our design project. 

1. Research about our topic
  • Reflect on the topic through our own experience as well as others' 
  • Study and gather information about the topic and write a summary
  • Highlight the key points of the summary 
  • Define the title, slogan, details and call for action 
2. Define our concept
  • Create a section for each contents in the poster (title, slogan, details, call for action)
  • Sketch a mock up poster
  • Decide on an idea and approach. Think about how emotions are evoked and how a strong impression can be created:
    - Creating a brutal shock value
    - Provocative by making the graphic upsetting
    - Sensitive by being heart warming
    - Artistic by being subtle in the delivery of the message
A PSA poster does not sugar coat the issue it discusses. Though most mental health posters take a gentle approach ad the target audience are already vulnerable. A gentle approach would be empathetical. 

Week 7 / Colour Theory 
Colour theory explains how humans interpret colours and how they are used to communicate a message.

RGB vs CMYK

RGB (Red, Green, Blue) colour system is used for computer screen display. It is an additive color mixing model where colours are created by mixing red, green and blue light of different intensities

CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key) is a colour system used for printing. It is a subtractive colour model where colours are created by the subtraction of light.

Fig 1.1 RGB vs CMYK
Source: https://jameslemingthon.blogspot.com/2019/10/what-does-green-and-red-make.html

Hue, shade, tint and tone
  • Hue: meaning an object's color
  • Shade: a hue when black is added 
  • Tint: a hue when white is added 
  • Tone: a hue when grey is added 
Fig 1.2 Example of hue, shade (shadow), tint and tone
Source: https://twitter.com/thefuturishere/status/1016890351586459648

Colour harmony
Colour harmony explains the most attractive and effective way to arrange colours in a design. 

Fig 1.3 Different types of colour harmonies
Source: https://www.blendspace.com/lessons/tlfeW1rf5CW4dg/color-harmonies

Notes on some colour scheme:

Monochromatic colour scheme
Hard to make a mistake and hard to create a distasteful colour scheme

Complementary colour scheme
Aims to produce high contrast. It can make imageries pop but will be tiring if it's overused 

Triadic colour scheme
Tend to be very bright and dynamic 

The psychology of colour

Colour can provoke specific emotions, attract people's attention and create harmony at the same time. While how colours are perceived are subjective, but some meanings are universal.

Fig 1.4 Meanings of different colours
Source: https://uxplanet.org/10-color-meanings-to-help-you-choose-the-best-colors-for-your-next-design-538991a93fe2?gi=682cfafac378

Warm vs Cool
Warm colours
Evoke happineess, optimism and energy. But red, yellow and orange can have an effect to grab attention which could cause to mean signaling danger.

Cool colours 
Usually used to give a calming and soothing effect but can also express sadness. Purple is often used as a means to spark creativity because it's a mix of blue (calm) and red (intense).

Black
Often used sparingly but it actually works well as a primary colour element in a design composition. It adds an air of sophistication, elegance, mystery and confidence. 

White
White pairs well with almost any colour, so it's a good choice as a secondary colour. But as a primary colour, it gives off a sense of purity, cleanliness and healthiness. 

Tasks

Project 2A

Week 5 (20/9/2021): Digital imaging 

Digital imaging - My reflection

Following the tutorial and practical activity that was given to us in week 5, we are tasked to use the same method we learnt from that tutorial and digitally insert ourselves in a given image of Hearst Mansion. We are required to take a full body photo of ourselves with a right sided lighting so it'll match with the environment in the Hearst Mansion picture. 

Fig 1.1 Given picture of Heart Mansion


Fig 1.2 Picture taken of myself

Fig 1.3 Process of digital imaging

Final digital imaging outcome
Fig 1.4 Final digital imaging outcome - JPG

Fig 1.5 Final digital imaging outcome - PDF

(Yes, that's a mosquito catcher. Thought it'll be funny getting to go to a mansion with a big pool just to catch mosquitoes. Even mansion needs some pest control.) 

Week 7 (4/10/2021): Digital imaging
Digital imaging - Recolouring black and white

Following the practical activity done in week 7, we are tasked to recolour a black and white picture using the technique we learned from the activity. We are given the choice to choose 1 picture from a set of black and white pictures. We also need to find reference image to use in the process of recolouring. 

Fig 2.1 Chosen black and white picture from the set of given pictures

Fig 2.2 Reference image for skin and lip colour
Source: https://images.app.goo.gl/5JYd4vrYUiHubBaT6

Fig 2.3 Reference image for hair colour
Source: https://images.app.goo.gl/FkVSJ2XpjPfTrXBRA

Fig 2.4 Process of recolouring

Final recolouring black and white outcome

Fig 2.5 Final recolouring black and white outcome - JPG

Fig 2.6 Final recolouring black and white outcome - PDF

Project 2B

Week 5 (20/9/2021): PSA poster topic research 

PSA poster topic research 
As a kickstart for our project, ,we are tasked to do some research and thoughts on our PSA poster topic, "Young adult/student's mental heath affected by COVID19". We also need to search for some posters designed with photography and text and compile them with brief explanations on why we like them. 

Personal view on the topic

"How are you, as an individual affected by COVID19? Physically and mentally? Are they related?"

As an individual, physically speaking I tend to be more sedentary and do lesser physical activities during the pandemic. I don’t have to walk to class or go to the supermarket so it has made me to just sit at home for almost all day. Ironically, even though I know I’m lacking exercise and I can feel myself getting physically weak, I don’t have the motivation to actually do them either. As for mentally speaking, to be honest I’m quite fine being by myself as I’m not much of a social butterfly but without all those daily physical social interactions, it has made me loose some confidence in my socialization skills. And it does get a bit tired and lonely at times without seeing friends for months. In the end, I guess both aspects are somewhat related as keeping myself in a pessimistic thought would lower my motivation to do anything else that I deem unimportant for the time being. 

Article research


Summary of article:

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused college student to be unable to participate in their usual social gatherings, which caused an increase in mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and loneliness in the age group, specifically those who are 18-24 years old. While some did physical exercises to combat their negative thoughts and improve their mood, others have suffered in their increase feeling of loneliness by being sedentary, stress eating or having no appetite at all. They also reported to have strained relationships with their families or friends due to the pandemic, and this in turns became a contributing factor to their declining mental health. 


Summary of article: 

College students have reported to experience increased stress and anxiety due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the major worries are health concerns about oneself and also towards families and friends. Though lockdown measures were imposed to help control the spread of the virus, it has in turns caused a limit in any kind of physical social interactions. This has resulted in relationship changes between family and friends. While some students reported on having less academic stress due to schools being more lenient, a majority of them reported to experience depressive and suicidal thoughts. To be more specific, some of the problems mentioned are concentration difficulty and sleeping habits change. Unfortunately, they have also stated about hesitancy in seeking help for their mental health because of lack of trust in counsellors and the stigma surrounding mental health problems. 

Visual research on poster designed with photography and text

Fig 3.1 Lego “Build the Future” Print Advertisement by Ogilvy Bangkok
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401696633/ 

The concept for this poster is brilliantly and creatively shown. It portrays a small boy building a Lego fireman inside the structure, which conveys that he is building his ambition to become a fireman. The lighting is aesthetically pleasing too, going from a warm tone from the left to match with the orange Lego bricks and gradually transition to a cool tone to the right. The lighting also captures the texture of the bricks clearly too. 

Fig 3.2 Natural History Museum poster featuring specimens from the museum's collection
Source: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/7881368075810608/

This poster might be simple but it delivers its message in a smart way. It’s 3 different pictures stacked on top of each other with the first one being what seems like a cracked egg shell, the second one showing a gorilla and the third one are human hands. These pictures are arranged to show forehead, face and body respectively and it brings out the message of evolution, which is suitable for a poster about the natural history museum. The rigid composition also sets a serious and old-fashioned tone to the poster. 

Fig 3.3 Poster for the documentary film "Teenage Paparazzo"
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401695135/

I like the dynamic composition this poster has implemented. Everything is slanted and rotated but each elements work well enough that the poster stays balanced. The dynamism also communicates the vigorous life of a paparazzo. The blue, red and yellow pictures can symbolize the light rays from the camera flash and they show perspective as well. 

Fig 3.4 Advertisement poster for International Saeta Travelling by Ogilvy & Mather Barcelona
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401432381/

I really like the use of gestalt theory through photography in this poster. There’s a strong sense of contrast between the background and the foreground. It’s an eye-catching travel advertisement and what’s fun about this poster is that it can be seen in either an upright or downright position, showing the street of Paris and the Eiffel Tower respectively.

Fig 3.5 Keloptic Print Ad: Van Gogh
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401695377/

A simple concept but the execution is done really well. It shows a self-portrait painting by Vincent Van Gogh in the background but the picture changes to a real life photograph of a person in the lens of the glasses. Much like letting you know with this glasses you can see anything in UHD graphic. The message of the advertisement poster is delivered very directly and so, people can understand what is being advertised in just a second. 

Visual research on PSA posters

Fig 4.1 "SHADOWS" for Project Alert Violence Against Women by Up In The Sky Ltd
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401695383/

I always find posters using shadows to depict a different scenario interesting to look at. In this poster, the first thing you noticed is obviously the boy playing with the doll, but with a closer look the “shadow” of the subjects shows a man who is about to beat up a woman, who can be considered as the boy's parents. This graphic conveys the caption nicely and the backdrop being a plan white colour pulls attention to both of the subjects immediately.

Fig 4.2 Smoking awareness campaign poster by DRAFT FCB + IDB
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401695375/

The dark tone and terrified expression of the boy creates an impactful delivery of this poster about second-hand smoking. Making the smoke to look like a plastic bag covering the boy’s head is a clever representation of suffocating in a smoker’s smoke. The vignette effect helps viewers to instantly look at the focal point of the poster.  

Fig 4.3 Cover for National Geographic magazine. Photograph shot by Jorge Gamboa
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/672232681872891576/

This cover features a strong photograph of a plastic bag submerged in water, with the top part looking like the tip of an iceberg. The usage of the plastic bag to substitute the iceberg creates an impactful message to the audience. It is also a straightforward representation of the sentence “tip of the iceberg” in the caption, which creates an instant and strong relation of the picture to the captions. The photograph also complements the title “Planet or plastic?”.

Fig 4.4 Words kills wars poster by Oglivy & Mather
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/234046511872390905/ 

A simple cut and stitch editing but the delivery of the message is well executed. It shows all the alternatives of each weapon of warfare leaving no room for doubts from the audience. The photos in the right side completing the form of the weapons in the left side creates a seamless transition and further convincing the audience. 

Fig 4.5 Vulnerable and endangered species awareness poster by Andrew Rice
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401696615/

The balloon rhinoceros might suggest a light-hearted visual at first but the hand on top holding a needle directing at the balloon serves as a sudden plot-twist in the poster. The message if delivered creatively and the large heading further emphasize it. The typeface choice for the headings is also suitable and adds to the poster as it is commonly used in graphics relating to forests. 

Week 7 (4/10/2021) - PSA poster planning and digital drafts
In this week, we started our process in forming an idea for our PSA poster and plan to execute it. We are given a template to work on as a start for our PSA poster. Our poster needs to be A4 size in portrait orientation. The maximum size for out final PSA poster file is 2MB. 

We started out by filling in our mood board until our digital poster draft from week 7 to week 8. Since the theme is "stay positive during this pandemic", I wanted my poster to have a light of hope rather than the usual dark and gloomy mental health PSA poster. So, before I finalize my mood board, I filled in my research summary based on the articles I've read in week 5. 

Research template

Summary about my topic with key points highlighted in bold

INTRO

College students have been experiencing stress, anxiety, depression and loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

PARAGRAPH 1

Lack of social interactions has cause college students to have a strained relationship with their friends and families. Worries of their loved ones or themselves contracting the virus adds to their anxiety too. Even though colleges and universities are now more lenient towards the workload of students during the pandemic, but students still find themselves having difficulty in concentrating during online classes and often staying up late, causing a change in sleeping habits. 

PARAGRAPH 2

Some college students turns toward exercising to relieve their stress, but some give in to it by being sedentary or stress eating. This has made them to lose motivation in doing certain things and in turns, causing their mental health to be worse. Some of them are hesitant to seek help from others because of their lack of trust towards counsellors or friends as well as the problem of mental health stigma surrounding this topic. 

SUMMARY

College students are facing mental health problems due to lack of physical social interactions between their friends and families during the pandemic but are hesitant to seek help.


Details to be included in the PSA poster based on the key points taken from the summary
 

TITLE

Take the first step. Ask for help.

SLOGAN

Isolation does not mean you have to suffer alone.

DETAILS

(such as date, link, any related info if applicable)

https://www.aia.com.my/en/what-matters/seetheotherside/mental-health-helpline-resources.html
https://mentalhealth.my/where-to-find-mental-health-help/ 

CALL FOR ACTION

Don’t be afraid to reach out and find the support you need. 




Mood board

After I understood the direction I want to go with, I searched for posters that relates to the idea I have in mind: either a brighter background using objects as subjects or a darker background using people. 

Fig 5.1 Poster reference #1 (bright background using objects and human hand as subject)
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401696615/

Fig 5.2 Poster reference #2 (bright background using objects as subjects)
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401695372/

Fig 5.3 Poster reference #3 (dark background with human hand and related object as subjects)
Source: https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/labrozzicomd3330d230sp19/2019/04/04/2508/

Fig 5.4 Poster reference #4 (the tangled lines are used as an inspiration for sketch #2 in Fig 6.2)
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1115766876401819411/

Then, I proceeded to sketch out my ideas and draft them digitally in Photoshop using a mix of stock images and my own self-taken images. 

Sketches

Fig 6.1 Sketch and font planning for the details in the PSA poster

Fig 6.2 Idea sketches for the PSA poster

Both sketches in Fig 6.2 shows the message of helping someone who is suffering through mental health problems but done in a different way. Either objects or human subjects will be used for sketch #1 and the background will be a white background. Sketch #1 shows a person sitting alone under a mask (to relate to the COVID-19 pandemic) with dark cloud above him while another person is sitting just right outside letting the person under the mask know that he's there for him if he's ready to find help. 

In sketch #2, a dark background will be used and other than the tangled lines, the person and the hand will be human subjects. The depiction of the message in sketch #2 is rather straightforward with the tangled lines representing the thoughts of the person-in-need and the hand represents another person helping him to "untangle his troubles". 

Digital drafts 

Digital drafts for sketch #1

Fig 7.1 Progress #1

Fig 7.2 Progress #2

For the digital drafts of sketch #1, I tried out using both human subjects and Lego figurines to see which might work better. To me, I think that Fig 7.2 would work better for this idea as the proportion is believable and using Lego figurines in a way, makes the poster more interesting to look at than using human subjects. 

Digital drafts for sketch #2

Fig 7.3 Progress #3

Fig 7.4 Progress #4

For the digital drafts of sketch #2, the images used stay the same. Only the words alignments are different as I wanted to test out which would work better. Though the centre alignment of the bottom details in Fig 7.4 seems nicer, the title alignment in Fig 7.3 works better than in Fig 7.4. 

Sources for the photos used in the digital drafts


Fig 7.5 Stock photos used in the digital drafts

Stock photos source

Fig 7.6 Self-taken photo (Progress #1)

Fig 7.7 Self-taken photo (Progress #3 and #4)

Fig 7.8 Self-taken photo (Progress #2)

Week 8 (11/10/2021) - Further development of progress #3

After receiving feedback from Mr. Martin in week 8, I decided to choose progress #3 to further develop as my final poster design. Since the rope stock image I used isn't free, I went to take my own photograph of messy string. I also took another picture of my hand to suit the thinness of the string. 

Fig 7.9 Self-taken photo of hand for further development of poster

Fig 7.10 Self-taken of messy string for further development of poster

Fig 7.11 Development of progress #3

Week 9 (18/10/2021) - Final changes on final PSA poster design 

In week 9, Mr. Martin suggested that I also use my own self-taken photo to replace the stock image of a boy in the poster. So, I went to take some pictures of myself in a similar pose and lighting as the stock image, and then choose the most suitable photograph result to use in my poster. 

Fig 7.12 Self-taken photo of myself for final poster development

I wore a mostly white colour beanie so that it will contrast with the black background in my poster.

Fig 6.3 Process of final development of PSA poster design

Final outcome


Fig 8.1 Final PSA poster design -JPG

Fig 8.2 Final PSA poster design - PDF

Description: 
The message of the poster is to tell people who is suffering with mental health problems to find the help that they need and should not be hesitant to do so. They don’t have to suffer alone even during this pandemic and it’s ok to ask for help. The messy string symbolizes the person’s thoughts (frustration, anxiousness, depressive etc.). The hand taking hold of one end of the string to untangle it symbolize another person helping the one who is sitting on the floor to get through this dark time.

Feedback

Week 6 (27/9/2021) - Digital imaging (My reflection)
The lighting matches the photo of Hearst Mansion and it's a good choice to add noise to the picture of myself too as it makes it not that sharp, which fits the background photo. The final edited outcome is ready for submission. 

Week 8 (14/8/2021) - PSA poster design
Posters are nice, definitely go for progress #3. 

Week 9 (18/8/2021) - PSA poster design 
Good improvement. The composition is good and the elements fit well together. The messy string is better than the rope too. Try and replace the stock photo of the boy with my own self-taken photo. 

Reflection

This project was very fun to work on for me. I always like to play around with Photoshop but this was my first time using my own picture, or picture of a different source to merge with a background. So, it was really enjoyable to learn how to blend two (or more) different photographs together so it looks like it’s one picture. For the recolouring task, I did a similar exercise before but not as effective as this. It was fun to get to learn an effective technique to recolour a black and white picture while keeping the colour realistic. As for the PSA poster, it was also my first time using my own picture to create a photographic poster and I’m glad the final result turned out well, especially with the messy string. Taking my own pictures took some time but sometimes, it definitely is quicker when I can’t find the right photo I want from the Internet. I get to try out creating my own artificial lighting using ring light and the lamps in my house when I’m taking my pictures too since the backgrounds I used are “studio photoshoot” kind of backgrounds. 

Overall, it was really interesting to get to know more about the functions in Photoshop and how to use them to create a photographic poster and carry out digital imaging tasks. I also got to learn about compositional and visual communication skills through looking at other PSA posters too. 

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