3D lens and craft final outcome

I asked for help from my flatmate in order to produce a GIF of my final pieces. I wanted to show the power of turning fake items into the real thing with just a touch, and I think this really comes across in the final outcome.

What I liked:

- Fairly choppy effect, think it works by not having too many frames as it adds to the home made feel of the piece

- Like how the different angles on paper/real contrast so strongly to show the loosening up of the natural form

- How simple the forms of the paper items are, as I think the difference between them and the real things draw attention to the magical nature of my 'power' by transforming them to more complex items

What I struggled with:

- Composition of produce, took a long time to produce a composition which allowed each piece to be showcased whilst still having a smooth transition between each touch

- Producing the final thing in one take in order for the items to be in the same place, meaning I had to rehearse the order and compositions beforehand

- Placement of camera before we utilised a tripod

What I have learnt:

- How to translate 3D through lens to a 2D format

- How to create narratives through GIFs

- How to push paper craft to create simplistic but effective forms

- How to plan compositions and orders in advance

3D craft and lens development

For the 3D lens and craft project I struggled initially to come up with a concept based upon 'mutant powers', as I was unable to decide how to use 3D items to depict super powers. I quickly decided I wanted to use paper to construct the items, as I felt I would be able to clearly use bold and strong shapes to create easily recognisable products. After some brief research, I decided that I wanted to focus on 3D vegetables and fruit, as I felt the way I could craft these and strike a comparison between the real and paper versions would offer a refreshing juxtaposition.

What I like:
- Composition of items, think it really shows the best angles of each piece
- How lighting is mirrored in both images
- I like how the final pieces are simple yet show the complexity of their form
- Composition within frame, quite like how it's an informal setting which really links to the context of the pieces

What I don't like:
- Placement of paper to real versions is not very crisp
- Edges of orange are not smooth enough
- Leaves on Carrot could be slightly more complex
- Static image doesn't show process of my 'mutant power'

What I will do next:
- Think about how to show change from paper to real- maybe use a GIF?
- Ensure devices used to maintain the positions are not visible
- Practice putting myself into the photographs
- Make sure placement of items is precise when swapping

3D craft and lens research

For this project we are focusing on the relationship between the figure and hand crafted object. 

"If it's made to answer a brief, it's illustration"

I love Jean Jullien's work, as the bold, scaled up objects offer a huge contrast to the small figures in the foreground, whilst the similar bold colours tie them together still. This is definitely something I would love to explore in my work, as I think these bold paper shapes demand such attention within the frame.

Jean Jullien

The simplicity of Izumi Miyazaki's work is what struck me initially, as her clever use of exquisite craft along side simple photography of the figure make pieces which are surprisingly full of emotion and have a strong narrative. Initially the eye is drawn to the head and tomatoes on the floor, before being led to the shoe of a diverse colour which develops a story of how the head ended up on the floor.

Izumi Miyazaki

Rita Ikonen's work also has a strange juxtaposition between simplicity and emotion, which results in a very humorous outcome. The strong contrast of white on the dark field also ensure the viewer is immediately drawn to her figure. In addition, the strong lighting ensures that the detail of the 3 dimensional costume is captured well by the lens and doesn't turn flat.

Rita Ikonen

Initial ideas for 3D structures:

Evaluation

Leeds College of Art BA (Hons) ILLUSTRATION	Level	04
OUIL405 Visual Narratives	Credits	20
End of Module Self Evaluation

NAME	Megan Ojari

1.  Which practical skills and methodologies have you developed within this module and how effectively do you think you are employing them within your own practice?
Working in a group was something I hadn’t done much of this before, and although at times we disagreed and some parts were quite stressful, I now understand the importance of working with other practitioners. I now feel a lot more confident in this situation, as I am able to present my own ideas whilst still looking at the bigger picture of the project and not be narrow minded about how it should look. Also, based on feedback from the last module I worked a lot more with roughs, to quickly and efficiently put my ideas into a visual format to reference later and develop. I learnt many practical skills like how to use InDesign and how to operate book binding machines such as the folder and guillotine. I also explored the fusion between media, especially collage and flat line, and how digital formats can be used without loosing the hand rendered feel, both important skills to transfer to my future practise.
2. Which approaches to research have you found most valuable during this module. How have you interrogated your research to identify appropriate ideas?
Through going out and meeting people and experiencing my chosen topic I gained a valuable insight into the field. Even though I didn’t use a lot of the data I gathered (Photos, quotes, recordings) In my development, they still helped helped me to develop ideas through being immersed in my topic. I broadly explored many different leads from my research, then with the help of my peers and tutors, I narrowed it down to the most effective and interesting idea. Overall I found the process of using drawings alongside photography helped me to explore the location even after I left, which I think helped my work feel more alive. I also found taking photographs of my friend actually putting on as many coats as we could find very helpful, as drawing from reference with those really helped me to capture the movement of the character.
3. What strengths can you identify within your submission and how have you capitalised on these? What aspects of your submission are you satisfied with?
I have experimented a lot more in my ideas stage through mixing media and rough development, and I think that not worrying about having to have every piece ‘finished’ meant I explored a far wider range of ideas and methods. I was a lot more flexible with where the project was going, and didn’t have an ‘end idea’ so just let my research and experimentation lead my practise. In addition, I also worked hard in my collection and research, as I put myself out there and didn’t settle for easy paths, meaning I got a much more unique response to my chosen topic, such as the fabrics which I collected through photography in two locations. Overall, I feel I created a unique, high quality product which has quite a bit of personality and charm whilst still being a functioning, humorous concertina book which fits the brief, as the question of ‘How many coats are too many?’ really is an untold story.
4. What areas for further development can you identify within your submission and how will you address these in the future?
I could have spent a longer time developing my artwork, as if I had another week some of the compositions would have been crisper, and the layering of the coats would have been more realistic. However, I quite like the simple, quick, quiet drawings I produced for this project, but with more practise with the line work I could have eliminated the use for much digital work and not had to alter the form of my images post production. In the future I will ensure I practise the production of my pieces before I make my final outcomes so that they are more controlled. I will also use media more exhaustively in the roughing stage, like the collage in my Sheffield hot dog book, so that it is easier to see how the final outcome may look. And I will ask for feedback earlier on in my project so that I have some external opinions to reflect on throughout the project.
5. How effectively are you making decisions about the development of your work? What strategies informs this decision making? I found group critiques very helpful, as I found it very useful to voice my concerns over my work and ask specific questions which I had been struggling to answer. I also found it helpful to talk to my tutors about small concerns I had rather than just struggle through by myself. This helped me to make informed decisions based upon more than just my preference, with also the potential and reception of my work considered. I also let my research and development lead my direction, as even if I thought I’d found the visual solution, I pushed myself to come up with more, even taking a few steps back and almost starting again, which lead me to develop ideas which I wouldn’t have pursued initially. I also found the quick bullet pointed reflections I undertook on my blog were very helpful, as this regular consideration of my work helped me to grow and adapt my work once I had had a chance to detach myself and think about it afterwards.
6. How effectively have you managed this project and organised yourself during this module? I organised my time well during the last few weeks of this project, as I stayed late a few evenings and ensured I wasn’t wasting blocks of time, which may have been partly down to the group activity of making a timetable which I could reference to plan my time. I also really discovered the importance of experimentation and play and once I let this dictate what I was doing, and simply blocked out time to see what happens with my work rather than strictly impose a timetable of amount of pages by a certain time, which helped me to really enjoy what I was creating and helped me to explore wide ideas.
7.How would you grade yourself on the following areas: (please indicate using an ‘x’)  5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor
	1	2	3	4	5
Attendance					x
Punctuality				x
Motivation			x
Commitment				x
Quantity of work produced			x
Quality of work produced				x
Contribution to the group				x
The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self-evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.

·       A printed copy of this evaluation should be submitted with your work.

·       A copy of your end of module self evaluation should be posted to your studio practice blog. This should be the last post before the submission of work for this module and will provide the starting point for the assessment process.

·       You should also post a copy of your evaluation to your PPP blog as evidence of your own on going evaluation.

Notes / Comments for the Module Leader

If GIFs don’t play in preview, highlight then press command + I to see animation

Signature Megan Ojari

Final outcome

Overall I'm pleased with how my concertina book has come out, and I think this was reflected in the feedback I received on Tuesday, which was mainly positive, especially about how simple the idea and techniques were, mixed with the busy prints on some of the layers.

Best parts:

- 'charm' of the piece, I like how I seem to have captured quite a bit of personality in my images

- Construction of entire book, and how the simplicity of it's construction mirrors the simplicity of the work

- Fusion between hand rendered and digital to create a fairly analogue looking piece whilst having the benefits of being easily adapted digitally

- Simple text, mirrored my the basic '16' on the back to create just a small context for narrative

Things I would do differently:

- Attachment tabs, I would work on these longer to develop a cleaner shape

- Ink is over the fold on one part, I would make sure that the artwork was comfortably contained in the page size

- Change the first coat so it is the same colour as the cover in order to create a feel of cohesion from the start

- The position of the last figure in order to carry on the movement right until the end

Main things I've learnt:

- To take my time over the simple tasks, such as measuring and sketching in order to get the result I want

- How inDesign works and its importance within print

- The effectiveness of a basic idea explored thoroughly

- The process of making a book

Closed book

Tabs

How the book functions

Page 1

Page 2-3

Page 4-5

Page 6-7

Page 8-9

Page 10-11

Page 12-13

Page 14-15

Page 16

Side view

Concertina book