Week 1 - Module Overview and Introduction to Photoshop

The first week started off by introducing us to the module and getting us accustomed to using Photoshop. We were introduced to using the basic day-to-day tools, such as the text and selection tools. Below are some images we were given, and were tasked with using the techniqued and tools we were taught to complete the task. One involved changing the colour of an ice lolly, and another involved changing the colour of some grass and the sky.

 Week 2 - Design Principles & Photoshop Selection Tools

This week we were taught about design principles, more specifically the CRAP and KISS principles. These two principles are very important to refer back to when it comes to 2D design. 

CRAP means:

Contrast

Repetition 

Alignment

Proximity 

and KISS means:

Keep 

It 

Simple 

Stupid

We were also tasked with using the selection tools we'd learned to remove the backgrounds of 4 images and combining them into one image. Here's how mine ended up looking:

Week 3 - More Design Principles & Introduction to Vectors

This week, we learnt about more design principles, like Gestalt, negative space, and focused on other design elements like shape, size, and colour, and what kind of effect they can have on an image. We also learned about bitmap and vector images, and the differences between them. Bitmaps tend to lose quality when scaled, enlarged or edited, whereas vectors never lose their quality no matter how much they're sized up or edited.

One task I attempted was making some logos as vector images. I started off by giving myself two themes: "Wizard", and "Clown". For the wizard logo I tried to make it look as if it was a logo belonging to a supervillain. The clown logo on the other hand was made with an optical illusion in mind. If you look carefully, it may look like the head of a clown, and may also look like a smiling face with a big red nose. I gave it a border with the idea that viewers can focus more easily on the center of the logo.

By doing those logos it helped give me some inspiration as to how to approach my logo for the assignment. I aim to go for the "Hidden" theme for my logo, with possibly a treasure chest being the centrepiece for the logo.

After finishing these logos, I was set a challenging task of creating an isometric vector of my Game Boy Color. This was quite a fun task as it let me further expand upon the skills I already knew in Adobe Illustrator as well as learn some new ones. At first I gave the system's screen a reflective look using shapes, but then decided to use the Gradient tool to expand upon the idea of the screen being reflective. I think both look good but I suppose it depends on what kind of style you're going for. 

Below is a comparison of the design I made, with the screen being reflective using shapes (left) and the other using a gradient (middle). Next to them is an image of a real Game Boy Color that I used as a reference.

Week 4 - Composition and working with grids

This week we learned about new design principles with composition and aspect ratios, as well as layouts and their significance when it comes to 2d design. Learning about the perspective tool was also very useful, and I plan on using it for some of my projects for this assignment. It allows you to manipulate the edges of an image to create the illusion of perspective that make the image look as if one area is far away and another area look as if it's up close. It's also great for manipulating the edges of a shape if you're doing an isometric drawing.

In regards to my projects I've been considering whether or not I should have an isometric style to my logo. I'm going to go for the "Hidden" theme and I feel like it would be a good idea to make the logo in that style, but I also enjoy the simplistic style of having a flat 2D vector, in the same way that I made those 2 logos last week. I'll experiment and see how things go.

Week 5 - Interface design and more Illustrator

This week we learned about interface design, and how it is used in various forms of media, as well as learning more about the strengths and variety of uses for Adobe Illustrator. The interface allows the user to control an object or software application through either input or controls. It's important to have an easily accessible and well-designed interface, as this makes for great user interaction. Interface design comes in many forms. You're even interacting with an interface when you're pressing buttons on your washing machine.

With this in mind, the practical we did this week involved making glossy-looking buttons in Adobe Illustrator that could be used for a potential user interface. Illustrator is perfect for this, as its a great way for making precise, sharp, and resolution independent design. In other words Illustrator is great for making vector-style images, because you can make simple designs that don't have to lose any of their quality. I found this practical very useful, and I plan on using buttons similar to these ones I've made when it comes to my making my own user interface.

Below are the buttons I made, the top row is the original buttons and the bottom row is how the buttons would look if you interacted with them:

I spent a lot of this week making my user interface and I think it came out well. I wanted to make the interface with the idea of it being for a mobile app that would act as an encyclopedia for secrets, cheats and cheat codes in video games.

Week 6 - Logos, Icons & Working Smart

This week we were given some helpful tips about how to go about creating and submitting our designs efficiently and we learned about logos and how already existing logos manage to stay recognisable. A lot of this can come down to their choice of colour, as well as using design principles when it comes to shape placement. 

This week I finished working on my logo and went for a pictoral styled logo. I like the simplicity of it and wanted to make the logo look like a treasure chest to go with the Hidden theme. Next week I'll show my tutors and get some feedback on it:

Week 7 - Concept Art & Environments

This week we learned about the importance of concept art and various methods of how to create them. Learning about perspective and scale was very useful, it has a very big impact on the overall atmosphere of the environment. For the practical this week, we were tasked with choosing from one of many photos of environments and then creating art from them, in a process called photobashing. I also extracted some of the strongest colours from the image and made a colour palette from them.

I also got some feedback about my logo and was told that it didn't look enough like a treasure chest, which i completely agree with. In all honesty I didn't realise how little it looked like a treasure chest until my tutor told me, which only goes to show how useful feedback is. As a result I remade the logo and think it looks a lot better now. I wanted to add a keyhole to the chest but at the same time I thought it would add too much detail unnecessarily. Here's how the new logo turned out:

Week 8 - Designing Characters

This week we looked into character designs and how to make rationales that help give you an idea of what character you aim to make. I also made a moodboard for the character I want to make. I aim for a pirate character with body proportions similar to that of Wario from the Super Mario franchise. I think it goes with the Hidden theme quite well because pirates are well known for hunting for hidden treasure.

I also made a moodboard for the environment I want to make. I aim to go for a coastal vibe with a pretty sunset, to give a cosy yet interpretive look for my environment. 

I also made a draft of my character this week. In all honesty, with the way it looks now, I'm really not pleased with how it looks. It feels very generic in terms of design and so do the colours. If anything, it looks like Clip Art right now. I'll give an update once I've chipped away at this design and improved it somehow. Below is how the character looks so far.

Week 9 - Colour

This week we were given a lecture on colours and how to effectively use them in 2D design. I found learning about complementary colours interesting and I aim to use some in in my character design.

I managed to finish my environment this week too. I photobashed a photo of the pier from my hometown and then expanded upon the image by obscuring parts of the image with bushes. I really liked the end result and used the same technique that I used before, where I extracted the colours from the image and then used them for my environment design. 

Below is the piece I made and the photo I took that I used as a reference. What I enjoyed most about making this was I actually used a portrait photo instead of a landscape photo, and it allowed me to leave the surrounding areas of the image up to my imagination. Having a building overlooking the pier helps it feel very cosy, while having parts of the environment be hidden away by shrubbery not only emphasises the theme of Hidden, but also manages to make the pier the focal point.

Week 10 - Assignment Workshop

This week we didn't have a lecture based around any specific topics and instead got given advice on our submissions and got some feedback on our work. After some feedback from my tutors and putting more thought into how I can help my character stand out, I managed to finish my pirate character. 

Giving my character a background was a really good idea, I like being able to use a background to give viewers an idea of the environment you'd see my character in. In terms of inspiration, I took inspiration from the art style of Rakuga Kids, a fighting game from the Nintendo 64 console. I like the idea of a simplistic artstyle that looks like it was drawn in crayons. Below is the final version of my character.

Overall, I feel quite optimistic about submiting these designs. I had a few moments where I doubted my design choices, but after continuing to press on and work more on the designs I only managed to improve them more and more. It was a very satisfying process. As usual I feel my only weakness is time management as I tend to procrastinate a lot, but I think if I make earlier starts on my work it'll allow me to work more efficiently in future. But all in all I'm very proud of what I've accomplished with this assessment, I already had a bit of experience in Photoshop and Illustrator but being able to learn more techniques I hadn't known about was really refreshing for me.