Tuesday 7 June 2016

Be True To Your School

Photo sources here and here
I think the use of our mascot the "Golden Eagles", as well as our school's logo in my design was an effective way to really represent "Blackville School".  Instead of using a typical mascot costume on the van, I used an actual eagle to appear more professional.
The most challenging part for me was deciding on a van/bus to use for the design.  I did not want to use a plain bus, so it took a lot of time to find one that actually had one of our school colours.
The easiest part for me was deciding what to do with the van.  I have seen many sport/school related buses around, so I had a good idea of what would look most presentable.
I wouldn't say I have a lot of interest in digital art o design, it is not really something I enjoy, or even something I am particularly good at.




Monday 6 June 2016

Before the War



Before:






After:


I chose to restore the portrait of the man because I believed it would be the easiest one.  It didn't have all the scenery that the other photo had, so it seemed like it would be less stressful to complete.
The most challenging part of the photo to restore was the man's hair.  In the original he did not have much of it that was not destroyed by the photo, so using what little remained to create a new head of hair was extremely difficult.  The easiest thing to restore for me was his suit, it had little to no damage so the bit that was was easy to restore.
I have never retouched or restored a photo before, I never had to at any point in my life.
In my opinion, I do not believe I would want to do this for a living.  I am not very good at it, so it would not make me much money, plus I did not find it an exceptionally exciting project.

Friday 3 June 2016

Freak of Nature


I have chosen to combine the body of a seal pup, with the head of a Golden Retriever puppy.  This was my plan because the seal is commonly referred to as the "Sea dog", and I thought it would be interesting to see what an actual dog, mixed with the sea animal characteristics, would look like.
The most challenging part of this project for me was the blending.  It was extremely difficult to attempt and make the head of the puppy appear like it actually belonged on the body of a seal.  Yet, the easiest part for me was the placement of the head, and transferring one image to the next.  Also, I found trimming the outer layer of the puppy head that was left over from it's original picture quite simple.
I do not exactly think my picture looks expertly realistic, but I do believe the colours match very well with each other.  The part for me that appears slightly off, would be the blending of the puppy's head, is seems quite "anti-smooth" in a way.
The only time I can ever remember using picture editing software was when I was in middle school.  It was very common for younger children to take pictures and edit them in extreme ways, that were clearly not actual part of the picture.  For instance, I would place quotes or phrases that I thought were cool in the middle of a normal picture, then add stickers to it.  It was far from a good editing process as it was certainly obvious.

Picture sources can be found here and here.

Sunday 1 May 2016

Automobile Body Styles and Design

Automobile Body Styles:

SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle)-
Designed for on, and off-road use, an SUV is similar to an estate, but usually bigger and with more lift. Also, they usually have four-wheel drive, and some have the towing capacity of a pickup. Passenger carrying capacity is large, similar to that of a minivan or large sedan.


Pickup-
Equipped with a light motor, and an open rear cargo area, a pickup is often available with two or four doors for the passenger compartment. They are typically useful in hauling or carrying large loads.



Sports car-
Designed for high speeds, sports cars are typically low-built. They will seat usually two people, as it is a two door vehicle as well. Body styles may vary, but the appearance of a sports car is quite easily determined.



Coupe-
Coupes are typically a two door car, with a fixed roof. Body style varies depending on the manufacturer. They are often referred to as the sporty variants of saloon cars.



Hatchback-
Different from SUVs, MPVs, or vans because of their compact body style, a hatchback is a car with a sloping rear, with a hinged door that opens upwards. They are usually able to seat for four-five people.


Photos found at http://morguefile.com/


Automobile Design:


Starting with the sketching, or designing phase, it typically will take up to three years to design a car.

Design is called problem solving because as a designer, they must find something that will please everyone, based on a specific criteria. The finished product needs to be flawless, and problem-less, so as a designer, they are the problem solver.

The feasibility stage is when the sketches are negotiated, and decided if they can be done. This is the largest part to designing a car. They match up with the engineers, marketing, and the product planners.

I do think being an automobile designer would interest me. It takes a lot of imagination, and work to design a vehicle that will become useful to others in the future, and I think I would enjoy that. Along with the ability to stay in touch with the needs of others, and what the people want, I think I could be slightly skilled in that area.