Extension of Man

One extension of man that may be overlooked is a car. Almost everyone owns a car and uses them daily. They allow for quick travel from point A to point B. Before cars there were horse and buggies and trains. Both methods of travel were timely and not as convenient as cars. Nothing is quite as easy as walking outside, getting into your car, and driving. There are no schedules to deal with and, for the most part, you don't need to worry about weather. Cars have become an extension of man because when you think of going somewhere you immediately think to drive there. You do not need to debate about how you are going to get to the food store; you just know that you will drive there.

Another important extension of man is the cell phone. Everyone has one and everyone using them constantly. The worst feeling in the world is when you realize "I forgot my cell phone at home!" All day you worry about who is trying to contact you and how you cant get in contact with anyone. There used to be a time when cell phones didn't exist and people communicated a lot less. Since the inventions of cell phones people have become infatuated with constant communication. Everyone needs to know exactly what you are doing and where you are. It seems impossible to function a day without a cellphone, which truly makes cell phones and extension of man.

the magic of photoshop

This image I selected is a photoshopped picture of Madonna. Madonna is 52 years old but with the magic of photoshop she looks 20-30 years younger. In the un-touched picture there are many visible wrinkles and imperfections on Madonna's skin. In the photoshopped picture Madonna has flawless airbrushed skin and the image has been brightened and there is more contrast. The tools that would be used for a photoshop job such as this would be the clone tool, the eraser tool, the distort tool, the burn tool, and brighten tool. And thats just naming a few. The clone tool was used to erase the wrinkles and fine lines and to give her skin a smooth and youthful appearance. The hue and saturation, as well as, the contrast have been alternate to make the image look more vibrant. Obviously the image on the right looks for appealing but what kind of example is it setting for the way that normal people are suppose to look. Many women do not look like Madonna at the age of 52 and when they see this image they will not feel very good about themselves. Fine retouching photoshopping is a good way to improve beauty but is it really worth effecting what we see as "beauty."

This photoshopped image is very interesting because it plays with our idea of reality. The woman in this picture appears to be a spider on a web but we know that this is not real. Along with having an extra set of arms, her legs have hands and fingers attached to the ends. There are spider eyes on her head and she appears to be on a spider web. The tools needed to perform this manipulation would be the cut tool, lasso tool, eraser tool, copy and paste, clone tool, blur, smudge, and burn tool. This picture would take great patience while doing because the fingers need to be individually altered so it looks like they are on the background image of the web. There would also need to be alot of playing around with the positioning of the arms and the shading to make them look real. Images like these are very interesting because they attract viewers because they are seeing something it is out of the ordinary.

type & contrast

In this spread "Something to Spray" there are excellent examples of color, type, and contrast. This spread is very legible to read due to the black type on white background in a serif font and proper leading. The color in this spread is mellow yet dramatic. There are blacks, grays, browns, and greens with intense red accents. Although I do not like the type that was chosen for the title, the title is still in correct hierarchy and your eyes know exactly where to start reading from. Despite the busy background on the right page, the white box allows for the text to be easily read. The crooked boxes gives the spread a little extra flare, which I really like. At first glance you are drawn to the big red peace sign on the left page that goes along with the title. Before even reading the article you get an understanding on what is going to be discussed. Overall, this spread has good use of colors, type, and contrast that makes it not only fun to look at but also easy to read.

                                    

This 'Modern Warfare 2' spread is an absolute disaster. The first thing you notice is how ineligible the font is in the middle of the spread. The green font blends in with the picture that is in the background leaving it almost impossible to read. The other thing that adds to the difficultly of reading this is the font that they chose. It appears to be Courier, which when is a small font is hard to read. The hierarchy of this spread is also lost. My eyes don't know where the article starts.. is it in the green boxes or in the middle? The title is noticeable and the pull quote is readable, those are about the only things this spread has going for it. The colors of this article don't really go with anything. They are fighting against a busy background which leaves the eye to see, bold green boxes and something happening in the middle. The background image used isn't even identifiable. It appears to be a solider with a gun but only after really focusing on it, was i finally able to make it out. The viewer should be focusing on the article or spread as a whole, not about staring at a blurry black image that is working against the whole article. This spread is just a mess.

Concept and Manipulation of Theme

warmth

shock value

mischief

human element

obscurity

caprice

nostalgia

practicality

variety

Vector & Bitmap Art

Everyday we see images all around us and to the naked eye they all appear to be the same. This is not true, however, and there are numerous different kinds of image types that are used. In this blog, I will be focusing on vector and bitmap images.

Vector images are created on computer programs by using points, paths, and shapes. Some of the programs used would be Illustrator or Freehand. What makes vector images so easy to work with is their ability to keep proportions and quality when sized up or down.

(wikipedia)

This image is a great example of a vector image because it shows how easily the size can increase yet the image is not distorted. It also shows how the bitmap image is distorted.

Bitmap images consist of pixels. This type of image allows for greater detail and a smoother image. Unfortunately, bitmap images do no resize as easily and often have a distorted look. This is most likely the type of images you are used to seeing.

(google image search)

I chose this image to show how this bitmap image of a soda bottle differs from the vector image. There are more colors and the image looks real.

(google image search)

This image has the bitmap (left)  and vector (right) images side to side. You can really see the difference in quality and color. 

(design was here)

This vector image is very well done, yet still obviously computer created. I think it is almost better to have a vector image because you are able to have more flexibility with the way you use it.

Verdana

"Typography is not a science, typography is an art."

I have always thought that type was a very expressive form of graphic design, possibly even my favorite form. That may be hard for the average person to understand because most people barely even notice type. They look at a sign and read it, I look at a sign and see art. "Type. In your lifetime you've seen billions of letters and millions of words, yet you might never have consciously noticed the typefaces you read" (Daniel Will-Harris). There is so much that can be done with type, so many possibilities. There are so many different fonts and styles, shapes and designs, it just really is a blank canvas. I have never been very good at drawing so typography is an easier way for me to express myself.

Ever since I was little I always had a fascination with handwriting and how everyone would write differently. I had always hated my own handwriting so taught myself to write how I wanted. Over the years I've observed many different handwritings and kind of "stole" what letters were my favorite. For example; if my friend Sarah wrote really nice a's I would teach myself to write my a's like hers. It does sound a bit crazy, but it is almost like I made my own font just for myself.

One font that I find particularly intriguing is Verdana. It is simple yet sophisticated, organized yet wild, it just has so much to offer. My main reason for liking Verdana so much is because it gives of a handwritten feeling without looking sloppy. It is also very easy to read in small sizes on a computer (one of the reasons it was designed). It is a futuristic font that features that is accepted globally.

Verdana has gained a lot of popularity in past years and numerous companies have switched logos. Ikea switched from Futura to Verdana.

Not long after Ikea made the switch Verdana, Apple Inc. also hopped on the Verdana bandwagon.  

Verdana is a type face that is sure to keep its popularity in the future years and it will probably be popping up on more logos too.

Smores Sunday

     Summertime, the warmth of a fire, and hot freshly made smores. Nothing smells better then the scent of burning wood and marshmallows. Every time the scent crosses my way I cant help but think about the many hours of my childhood that were spent creating delicious smores and spending time with family.

    It wasn’t just roasting marshmallows that I think about rather the great times spent with family and friends. Smores night was a big deal for my family. My uncle would bring the chocolate and marshmallows, my mom would get the graham crackers, and the kids were in charge of finding the perfect sticks.

    When the kids would get ready to find sticks we had contests to see who could find the best sticks in the shortest amount of time. While we were running around the backyard of my grandparents’ house looking for sticks the adults got everything ready.

    When we were done collecting sticks we were greeted to a vast variety of chocolates and graham crackers. There was white chocolate, milk chocolate, and (my favorite) dark chocolate and any type of graham cracker you can imagine.

 After everyone roasted a few marshmallows and ate a few smores it was time for charades. The teams were male vs. female and the losers of the game were forced to clean up. All the games were very competitive but usually resulted in a female victory.

    The combination of family, fun, and food is something I will never forget. We stopped the smores tradition when I turned 12 but still to this day the smell of smores brings me back. When I have children I will definitely want to reinstate “Smores Sundays.”