Category Archives: Tech Noir

Week Three Weekly Summary

Starting off the Week

If I were to be completely honest, at the beginning of the week, I had little to no motivation. But, I saw that some of the tasks was just increasing our participation, as well as voting for our favorite creations in the class so far, so I decided to start working on that. This is one of my favorite things to do, because I like to see what my peers are doing and creating. It is also interesting to see how they interpret the assignments and the daily creates, and how they are all so different and unique. It was hard to pick my favorites for the voting form, since they were so many awesome digital creations to choose from.

Readings

I loved the readings and videos for this week. As mentioned in my blog post about visual design, it was very interesting to hear the thought process behind such iconic movie posters and tv show intros. The color, font, spacing, layout, pretty much everything plays a role in conveying a message that the viewers will engage in. Getting to hear the backstory or reasoning behind movie posters such as Star Wars, as well as the intro for Stranger Things was definitely very cool, and it makes me want to look into more about visual design and how it is used to promote media.

Photoblitz

I found the photoblitz to be fun, as the prompts were pretty random and allowed me to think outside the box a little. The prompts ranged from pretty straight-forward to interpretive, such as “your favorite color” to “what does disappointment look like”. Ideas came to my head quickly, but executing them was the more difficult part, but overall this was a fun, quick activity.

Daily Creates

Daily Create #1

Wednesday’s daily create was to create an Anti-Word-Cloud with a random book, which I chose to do Anna Karenina since I have never read it, but I want to read it!

Daily Create #2

For the second daily create, we had to pick our favorite sandwich, and determine how “woke” it would be. I chose a classic grilled cheese with ham, as it is one of my dad’s favorites to make. If I were to give it a woke rating, it would be a 2 as it is a traditional, American food.

Daily Create #3

For the last daily create for the week, the prompt was to do a photo with bad photoshop. What immediately came to my mind was to badly photoshop two celebrities. So, I decided to do Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, who were the stars of the biggest, pinkest movie of 2023, Barbie!

Assignments

For the first assignment of the week, I decided to do the destress and color assignment, as it was a great way to wind down and take a quick break from all the busy work I have throughout the week. To take a peek at what I colored, as well as my reasoning and thought process behind it, read it here at Destress and Color. For the second assignment, I did a “What’s in my bag?” for my course character, Veronica Malone. This was probably my favorite assignment, as it allowed me to be creative with what Veronica likes or dislikes, as well as what items she would want to have on her at all times. To read more on what Veronica would have in her bag, read What’s in Veronica’s Bag?. Lastly, I wanted to make a graphic for one of my favorite sports teams, the Buffalo Bills. I follow the team page on social media, so it was fun to make my own graphic that looks like it would be on their social media page. To see my beautiful graphic, click here Go Bills! Overall, I enjoyed this round of assignments!

Overall

I enjoyed the lighter workload for this week, as it was easier to manage my time and when to complete each assignment. If I had to pick one of my favorite creations, it would probably be the Bills graphic, as it was so much fun to play with colors and fonts to see what looked good. Overall, this was a good week, and I am ready for next week’s workload as well!

Photoblitz

Take a picture that reminds you of your childhood
A photo of a coloring book and colored pencils.

For something that represents my childhood, I decided to do a coloring book and colored pencils. When I was a kid, I loved to color and draw, which is an activity that I still do to this day.

Your favorite color
A photo of a green towel and a pink scarf.

I thought I would show my two favorite colors (since it switches every day), pink and green. Practically everything I own is in those two colors, so I decided to take a photo of my green tower and my pink scarf (which is very practical right now as it has been freezing outside recently).

Take a photo that includes objects near and far (deep depth of field)
A photo of a field of grass, with buildings surrounding it.

This prompt was hard to decipher, but I thought it would be cool to show Ball Circle, and how the actual field is so close, yet the buildings surrounding it are so far.

Make a photograph with your camera at floor level
A photo of two doors, as well as photos and graphics in between them.

This a a photo from the floor of my dorm room, showing my roommate and I’s closet doors, as well as some of the decoration we have up in our dorm.

A photo with a square aspect ratio
A photo os a dorm room, with a large window in the center of the wall.

For this prompt, I decided to take a 1:1 ratio photo of my perspective from up in my bed in my dorm room. My roommate and I have tried our best to make our dorm as cozy as possible, and it looks especially cozy throughout the rainy day. m

Represent 3 items
A photo of the Summer Friday's lip balm, the elf lip plumping pen, and the rhode beauty lip treatment.

This one I had to think about a little, but then I decided to show my 3 favorite lip products that I use everyday.

What does disappointment look like?
A photo of a trash can.

This one doesn’t really need an explanation, but my first thought when it comes to disappointment was “being thrown away” or “trash”. Especially this one which is dirty and wet from the rain.

Chip Kidd is Awesome

My reflection on this week’s reading, articles, and materials are mainly based on Chip Kidd. He’s a very intelligent and creative individual with a great sense of humor. I loved learning about his background and why he likes to make book jackets. I think he said something like “Idk, I’m just good at it” or something like that in the interview. I thought that was funny. One of the main parts of the conversation between Chip and Kelly that I found interesting was when they were talking about behind the scenes of what both the writer and the designer are going through. The writer and designer both have their own inspirations, visions, and missions for the book. Trying to align and build both of their ideas and creations together is an incredible process that takes a lot of analysis and effort.

I also loved Chipp Kidd’s Ted Talk video. His sense of humor, body language, the way he got the crowd engaged, pure talent! Not only is he great at what he does but he’s a wonderful public speaker/figure.

Deep diving a little more each week into our Cyber and Tech themes and graphic design is interesting. Learning more of the history, inspirations, and effects of the themes futuristic/neon/glitch style made me realize on what I can look forward to in the weeks ahead!

Daily Create Shenanigans Week 3

Me Then and Now Doing Technology

I always loved my Tamagotchi and my ds! Now I rarely play any video games but if I do I play on my iPhone. I made this using Canva. I pasted the pictures in from Google and the only editing I did was to the background colors.

For the second DC, DS106 Design Our Header Image. I created this design using Canva. I looked up Technological Universe in Google and this pic came up. I used it as my background, with no edits made to it. Then I added a text box with the text “DS106 The Daily Create text”.

For the last Daily Create #tdc4767 #ds106 Obviously Photoshopped. I found a pic of Mona Lisa that is CLEARLY already photoshopped. Then I added my own little razzle-dazzle to it with a picture of myself. #MeAndMyBestieMona #WereJustHanging LOL I also made this on canva. Only edit I made was cropping my face to the picture.

I also made more efforts this week to respond to my peers on Mastodon for the Daily Creates. You can see my replies by clicking on the links below:

Mae B: “@creating EXACTLY!!! Thank y…” – ds106 Social

Mae B: “@NairCinders @creating This …” – ds106 Social

Mae B: “@dk @creating This is awesom…” – ds106 Social

Mae B: “@nomadwarmachine @creating @wo…” – ds106 Social

How do you read this?

Learning about design and what goes into it was a lot more than I expected. When I design things like wallpapers and posters I tend to do these things without thinking. I had the opportunity to check out the book by Chip Kidd and learned a lot from his book. I liked how everything was described by using the design or typeface he was writing about.

The part of the book that caught my eye is something that I have never seen before, reading from right to left! Chip points out the cover of this book “Things We Didn’t See Coming” by Steven Amsterdam.

I have never thought about this type of design and it fascinates me. I have no idea what this book is about but I wanna read it.

I learned that design is both straightforward and complex. Design can be exactly what it means or it can be the complete opposite and all of it translates super well depending on how well you designed it! I also learned how to balance designs better. How too much color can be hard to read, or using a certain font will translate differently than another font might. I really liked digging into learning about design and I now have a better eye out for these things as I go through the day!

Capturing Moments

When looking at the prompts, I immediately noticed a theme of the outdoors, but was really excited about the abstract theme and what I could do with that. It was fun being able to walk around and take all of your surroundings in when you’re looking for something specific. It helped me to see everything and think of nature and where I’m walking in a manner different than I usually would.

Lenore’s Lyrics

For my third choice assignment, I felt inspired by the favorite song lyric assignment, especially with my course character, Lenore, in mind. She works in a music based subculture, so music is something holds very dear and close to heart. I went on a deep dive through all my playlists in search of the perfect lyric for her that would work as her favorite. I ended up settling on a ” ‘Come, devil, come’ she sang, ‘Call out my name’ ” from the song “Farewell Wanderlust” by The Amazing Devil. I felt like this lyric symbolized the way she battles and faces her inner demons and her past on a daily basis as it’s something that lives with her and always will, so instead of trying to push it away, she confronts them head on.

The next part of the assignment was to superimpose the lyrics over a background that represents the lyric. I chose a photo I took of the aurora we saw over campus last autumn. On the surface, it may seem like the background has no connection with the lyrics, but I used it very metaphorically. The thought process was that the aurora is something that is always happening somewhere in the world, it doesn’t often happen here, but it is always in existence. Sometimes it lasts in the sky for a long time, sometimes it stays for the blink of an eye. You may not know when you’ll see it again, but you know you probably will in one context or another at some point. I felt like that fit with the idea of Lenore’s inner demons and the confrontation of them. Sometimes the internal struggles lay dormant. They still exist, they just aren’t making an appearance. And sometimes they shine bright at the surface.

With the background and lyrics selected, I hopped onto Canva and put it all together. I chose a font that was sophisticated and elegant, but with a text effect that showed layers to symbolize all the different parts of Lenore under the surface. I also used some little elements like emphasis markers and devil horns to add character to the lyric and to attempt to visualize the way Lenore perceives the lyric in her mind, with extra emphasis on the “Call out my name” to show her unwavering demeanor towards confrontation.

I had fun thinking about all the little details and putting this together. It’s not the most intricate creation, but I think what really rings through is the symbolism and meaning behind each creative choice and how it relates to Lenore.

Design Thoughts

There were a lot of topics regarding design that were covered in these articles and videos, but the elements that stuck with me the most were color and typography. As someone who has done my fair share of graphic design as an event runner and social media manager for all sorts of organizations, color and typography are always something I’m very conscious about, however, I could never synthesize and summarize my thoughts to describe why. These articles and videos really helped me understand my own mind and thoughts, specifically the videos of the movie poster expert and the Stranger Things font, and the article about Chip Kidd’s book.

I’ve always been a bit more in tune with my understanding and perception of colors in my design as I’ve always found that to be one of the key context clues in media to relay messages and tones. In fact, I dove into this in my Corpse Bride color analysis. Despite this being something I consider myself to be pretty in tune with, there were certain themes I had never really thought about. For example, how often blue is used for thriller movie posters or how different uses of negative space can convey entirely different messages.

Typography is the one I’ve always struggled to describe. I’ve always been aware of the influence it can have, I can understand that the tone and mood can change with a font, but up until now I haven’t been able to articulate why. I found the Stranger Things video particularly interesting as I always felt like I recognized the font, but couldn’t place it. It always had a retro feel, but after watching the video and seeing some of the other uses of that font that inspired the creation of the title sequence completely shifted my perspective and provided a much deeper nuance to the whole vibe especially knowing what the show is about.

Your Time Starts Now! – 20 Minute Photoblitz

I started this journey on a rainy Friday morning at 9:13 AM

The items that I was sent to capture were:

  • Fences and walls can divide or demarcate. Make a creative photo of a fence or wall.
  • Make a photograph of a smile, either literal or symbolic
  • Represent or express something loud
  • Gauges, meters, and turn signals are all signs of indicators
  • Make a photograph with your camera at floor level
  • Create a self portrait, without your face, that represents you
  • “Music is what feelings sound like” Make a photo of something musical

For “fences and walls can divide or demarcate” my first thought was the construction fence that blocks people from getting too close to Monroe. This fence was perfect because it splits in the middle, one side is painters tape blue while the other is chain link. I walked over to Monroe and snapped the picture at 9:18.

I figured while I was outside I would get the next picture: “make a photograph of a smile, either literal or figurative.” There are a lot of leaves by Virginia Hall so I used them to assemble two eyes and a smile. The rain was unideal weather for this activity, but for this picture it helped to have something weigh the leaves down to keep them from blowing away. The smile only took me a few seconds to assemble, I took the picture at 9:19 and went on my way.

The next picture I decided to get was “gauges, meters, and turn signals are all indicators.” For this prompt, I was completely stumped because I couldn’t think of any indicators on campus. However, on my way back to my dorm I ran into the poll with different arrows pointed at different places. I figured that was as close as I was going to get to an indicator so I got my shot, and by 9:20, I was moving on to the next prompt.

Once I was back at my dorm, I went into the common room to “make a photograph with your camera at floor level.” I took a picture of my shoes because these are the shoes I wear everywhere and these were the shoes that were protecting my feet from the rain on this fine morning so it was only fitting. I’m sorry if there are any sneaker heads reading this, I know they’re creased, I apologize. For this picture, I set it up against the wall and set the timer, t took me about 10 seconds total. The picture was done and taken by 9:23.

For my next picture, I did “create a self-portrait, without your face, that identifies you” I chose to take a picture of my corner of the room. I live in a dorm with a random roommate, so we each have our own sides of the room decorated. I am obsessed with my corner because I think it perfectly represents me. You can see the stuffed animals I sleep with every night, you can see the decorations I chose to adorn my bookshelf, and you can see my friends in the pictures that are on my wall. This picture reminds me of the song “In My Own Little Corner” from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. The picture was taken at 9:27,

The next prompt I did was “represent or express something loud” so I turned my computer all the way up and started blasting music. On top of that, I chose a Lady Gaga song because her fashion and some of her music is very loud. I had to take a picture a few times because I wanted the volume level to show in the picture but every time I moved my hand to take the picture, it would go back down. Eventually I learned to shutter the camera to get as many pictures as possible and I figured one of them had to be good. By 9:30 I the picture was taken I moved on to my last prompt.

For the last photo, my prompt was “make a photo of something musical.” By this point, I thought I had gotten all my pictures already so when I saw that there was one more, I scrambled to find something. Thankfully my dorm has two pianos so I chose the closest one. I like this picture because you can see the sheet music says “The Office Theme Song” which is great because if you can play the piano, you should absolutely play The Office theme song! What a great use of free will! My last photo was taken at 9:30.

I finished the activity at 9:31 AM

I had fun with this activity, it felt like a scavenger hunt. I think if the weather was nicer I would have enjoyed it even more because I didn’t start getting into the groove of it until I got back inside. My favorite picture I took is the one with my shoes, I think it’s the artiest of all of them and you can see how much my shoes have been through.