Author Archives: Rusul

Mango Sees All

Combine a cat pic with an appropriate Shakespearean quotation. Based on the work of Laura Gibbs. Link to assignment: https://assignments.ds106.us/assignments/shakespearean-lolcat/

I picked this assignment because I have so many pictures of my cat Mango! Like my other visual assignments, I used Canva to create this. In this photo, I was in the middle of a massive room cleanup and decided to take a break on my bed. Mango, of course, came over to demand attention and got super close to my phone, so I snapped this picture. I paired it with the quote, “Let every eye negotiate for itself and trust no agent,” because his wide, intense eyes make it look like he’s analyzing everything and staring straight into someone’s soul.

Finn’s Walk Home

Take a picture and experiment with the “Halftone Effect” in some photo editing software to create a comic book effect. There are lots of tutorials on Youtube and Google.

Here is the link: https://assignments.ds106.us/assignments/comic-book-effect/

I chose this assignment because I loved the idea of creating a comic using a photo, and I was surprised at how simple it was to do. The image I used is from the perspective of a character I created, Finn Calloway, who lives in NYC. This particular shot represents a POV of his walk back to his penthouse. I took the photo during a trip to NYC on a rainy day. Since most comics I’ve read are set in New York, I thought this image of people walking down a street between tall buildings really captured that classic comic vibe. To create the comic effect, I used Canva. Although I know the halftone effect in Canva’s premium version would be ideal, I used the “Screen” filter as an alternative to give it that comic-like appearance.

Cuteness Overload

It’s simple. Choose your favorite photo you’ve taken and tell everyone why you love it so much.

Here is the Link: https://assignments.ds106.us/assignments/your-favourite-photo/

Image of cat sleeping with tongue slightly out

This assignment was both simple and challenging for me. I have a hard time deleting photos, so it took me a while to choose a favorite. Honestly, it’s tough to pick just one, but I’d say this is probably one of my top photos. I absolutely adore my cat, and she has this funny habit of sleeping with her mouth open with her tongue out, which I find incredibly cute. On this particular day, she was napping like that while keeping an eye on the family in the kitchen. I decided to add a little hair accessory to her body to keep her warm, and it made the moment even sweeter. I love this picture because it captures her personality perfectly plus, it’s rare for me to get such a good photo since she’s always on the move!

For this assignment I used my iPhone cameras to capture this photograph

Behind Graphic Design

I had no idea how much thought goes into graphic design, and honestly, it made me feel a little guilty for not appreciating it before. It’s so much more than making something look nice, it’s about telling a story, using symbolism, and creating something that captures an entire movie or book in just one image. That’s such a hard thing to do, and I never really thought about it until now.

Watching the TED Talk was such a cool experience. I’ve always loved TED Talks because they make me look at things differently, and this was no exception.

I learned how colors in movie posters actually mean something like how action movies and noir films often use dark or blue tones to create a certain mood. It’s funny because I’ve seen so many posters like that, but I never noticed the patterns before.

One of my favorite parts was learning about the Stranger Things logo and how they used old-school techniques to give it that retro vibe. I love how something so simple can feel so iconic and timeless.

Overall, I learned that less is more, colors matter, and design should come from the story itself. Now, I see graphic design in a completely new way and have so much more respect for the thought and effort behind it.

Week 2 Summary

Nervous The Big Bang Theory GIF someone using a paper bag to breath

This week was definitely a lot, and I felt pretty overwhelmed at times. But I got through it!

The Daily Creates were a highlight. They’re a fun and quick way to be creative and see what everyone else is doing. I jumped in on Monday, and the prompt was to create art about coincidences. This one took me a while to get started because, honestly, I see coincidences as random events, and I wasn’t sure how to translate that into art. It was a bit tricky at first!

The Assignment Bank is a cool idea, and I really enjoyed browsing through all the options. Doing the assignments was fun, but I did struggle a bit with the speech for Dr. Oblivion. I noticed he doesn’t always say exactly what I write, which threw me off a little at first. But then I realized he was still getting the point across, so it wasn’t a big deal.

I worked on my blog design this week too. Last week, I customized it pretty quickly, but this time I spent more time on it. I picked a theme I liked and spent some time organizing the menu, picking out colors and images, and playing with the headers and footers. It feels like it’s becoming my space now, which is cool.

Creating my course character was a lot of fun. The whole process was kind of tricky at first, especially figuring out how to introduce my character, but the character creation form really helped me stay on track. It gave me a good structure to follow, which made it easier than I thought.

This week, I also did the reading and wrote a reflection comparing it to The Matrix. That was surprisingly enjoyable, and it helped me improve my film review. I went back, added some images and GIFs, and dove deeper into the cyberpunk/tech-noir themes. It felt like a big improvement, and I’m glad I took the time to revise it.

For participation this week, I commented on some awesome blog posts and interacted with a couple of Daily Creates. Here are the links to my comments and the posts I engaged with:

Also, here are some of the Mastodon posts I interacted with:

Overall, it’s been a busy week, but I’m feeling good about what I’ve done so far!

P.S. I will be updating this weekly summary to include more of my participation!

Living in Our Own Matrix?

Reading Neil Postman’s Technopoly made me think a lot about The Matrix. In Chapter 1, Postman talks about how technology comes with both good and bad sides, which is basically the whole idea of the Matrix. it’s a prison, but it also keeps people comfortable. Honestly, Cypher’s betrayal made a lot more sense to me after reading that.

Postman also talks about how technology can slowly take over culture, and that’s exactly what happens in The Matrix. People don’t even realize they’re being controlled. It made me think about how we rely so much on tech today. Are we already in our own version of the Matrix with social media and AI?

The biggest thing I got from both Postman and the movie is that we need to actually stop and question how much control tech has over our lives. Otherwise, we might just end up stuck, like the people plugged into the Matrix.

Dr. Oblivions Feedback/response

Finn Calloway

Finn Calloway is a 35-year-old CEO who built his data empire from scratch. Born and raised in NYC, Finn runs a super successful tech company that deals with AI and data analytics. He’s the kind of guy who stays low-key but always seems to be ahead of the game. His company is shaking up industries, but it’s not without its costs.

Finn is 6’2” with short dark brown hair and a light scruff. His build is lean but strong, and he has dark brown eyes that often seem lost in thought. He’s got olive skin with a scar on his chin. Finn dresses simple with tailored clothes that look sharp but don’t scream for attention.

He’s not the easiest person to connect with. He’s never been married, and relationships just haven’t worked out. When he’s not working, he enjoys the simple things: a grilled cheese sandwich, driving by the water, or watching John Wick. His favorite book is The Da Vinci Code, probably because he’s always thinking about puzzles and mysteries.

The one thing Finn holds on to is his late mother’s wedding ring. It’s his only real possession with sentimental value.

His motto? “No one else is going to make you happy.” Finn learned that the hard way, and it’s something he keeps in mind every day.

Weekly Summaries

Week 1 Summary

Assignments

Brainwashing 101: Embracing the Tech Noir Life

Nature Always Wins… Or Does It?

Stressing about distressing!?

Tech Noir

The Darker Side of ds106