Illustration & Visual Narrative / Lectures
26/09/2024 - 31/10/2024 (Week 1 - Week 6)
Rachel Ng Jie Ting/ 0378902
Bachelors of design (Honours) in creative media
Illustration & Visual Narrative / Lectures
Table of content
Lectures
Lecture 1 : CHARACTER DESIGN BASICS
Lecture 3 : COMPOSITION THEORY 1 // VISUAL TYPES AND SHOTS
Lecture 4 : COMPOSITION THEORY 2 // PERSPECTIVE
Lecture 5 : COMPOSITION THEORY 3 // FORE, MID, AND BACKGROUND
Lectures
Lecture 1 : CHARACTER DESIGN BASICS
1) Principles of character design
a) Shapes
Shapes design a character's silhouette and adds some weight to their
personality. It is used to identify a character from one another.
b) Colour
Colours plays an important role in determining and separate the basic
characteristics of heroes, villains and even background characters.
Different colours give impressions of different emotions and is easily
relatable by the viewers.
A good character exaggerates on the emphasis and contrasting visual
elements to make the design stand out by using colours and different
shapes.
d) Harmony
Every elements in your design should compliment each other.
All shapes, line, colour, motifs, patterns must be put together in a
tasteful manner, and how it reflects with the narrative of the characters.
e) Expression, Poses
Clear visualization of your characters behaviours, quirks, personalities
make it easier to appeal to your viewers.
Lecture 2 : CHIAROSCURO
CHIAROSCURO
An Italian term which means 'light-dark'.
In paintings the technique refers to clear tonal contrast to suggest
three- dimensional volume and modelling of objects and figures.
The purpose of chiaroscuro is to increase the scene’s dramatic tension by
exaggerating the subject’s importance using color or light contrast.
TENEBRISM
a certain type of painting method in which significant details such as
faces and hands are illuminated by highlights which are contrasted with a
predominantly dark setting.
In other application of chiaroscuro for visual artworks such as comic,
film, digital works - this is an artistic lighting choice which the focus
point or subject of a scene is brightly colored...
... or contrasted with a dark background.
LOW-KEY LIGHTING
A style of lighting for photography, film or television.
It accentuates the contours of the subject by throwing areas into shade
while a fill light or reflector may illuminate the shadow areas to control
contrast.You can see this in screen lighting for movies where they use
lights to create emotional and impactful scenes.
CHIAROSCURO IS USED IN VISUAL NARRATIVE BECAUSE...
This method is an excellent lighting choice to differentiate positive vs
negative spaces
***
POSITVE SPACE
Refers to subject matter or object of interest in a visual.
NEGATIVE SPACE
Refers to the filled space or background that surround subject matter or
object of interest in visual.
a) Increases dramatic tension
Gives thrilling emotive depth on the look and feel in the scene.
b) Create sensational effect
Helps elevate fantastical viewpoints to emphasis on the narrative.
c) Attract attention
Establish visual hierarchy the main point of the scene.
The play on negative VS positive spaces creates attractive scenes.
Lecture 3 : COMPOSITION THEORY 1 // VISUAL TYPES AND SHOTS
Composition in design simply means the arrangement of the elements in your
visual.
Basic composition visual rules
Your visual should capture these rules on...
a) Visual Narrative
The visuals in the scene complements all aspect of the narrative. Your
composition should complement your subject focus and reflect the
narrative. Think of the look and feel of the scene. Get their emotions on
the same page.
b) Visual Flow
The scene has clear flow of visual that directs viewer's eyes. Your
composition also determines the path of a viewer’s eye through the visual.
The visuals in arrange to balance the composition in the scene. Even
though you can’t know the exact path a viewer’s eye is going to take, you
can nudge things one way or another.
d) Visual Hierarchy
The visuals are arrange in such ways that directs viewer's eyes to
specific details first. The way you visualize and focus your subject
matters can have huge effects on the composition the artists make... and
sometimes can even affect the course of history.
Different types of shots
a) Establishing
Wide shots were often used to establish not just the setting, but to
portray spectacle and give audiences the chance to take in all the
splendor and grandeur of a location, while still giving them enough
information to process what's going on.
b) Bird's Eyeview
Also known as overhead shots, is when the POV is placed directly above the
subject. It's somewhere around a 90-degree angle above the scene taking
place.
A well-composed frame within a frame can fracture screen space, add depth,
and create visual interest in your cinematic compositions.
d) Medium shot
The shot is also called a three -quarters shot — which, obviously, frames
three -quarters of the character.
This is one of the standard camera angles used to frame a character. It’s
the shot in - between a close -up and a long shot.
e) Close-up
The close-up is an intimate moment, a look into a character’s mind. It
cause us to “catch” emotions, so as the rest of the scene plays out, we’re
already invested in the characters’ well-being. Therefore, this
type of shots the should emphasize emotions and thoughts within a grander
context.
f) Worm's eye view
The close-up is an intimate moment, a look into a character’s mind. It
cause us to “catch” emotions, so as the rest of the scene plays out, we’re
already invested in the characters’ well-being. Therefore, this type of
shots the should emphasize emotions and thoughts within a grander context.
Lecture 4 : COMPOSITION THEORY 2 // PERSPECTIVE
The art of representing three- dimensional objects on a two- dimensional
surface so as to give the right impression of their height, width, depth,
and position in relation to each other.
Construct perspectives
a) One-point perspective
The most simple method of producing three-dimensional images entails
drawing your objects emerging from a single point on the horizon. As
images get closer to the vanishing point the smaller they become, until
they become so small they actually vanish completely!
b) Two-point perspective
There are vanishing points on either side of the horizon, and the objects
and buildings within the scene are drawn to both of these vanishing
points. This can help create a greater sense of space in a scene and helps
give objects more of a sense of dimension and place.
Place two vanishing points on the horizon and establish two sets of
overlapping perspective lines fanning out from them. This network of lines
allows objects to recede toward two separate points, allowing more dynamic
views than that one point alone.
c) Three-point perspective
Usually consists of two vanishing points on opposite sides of a horizon
(as in two-point perspective), but with the addition of another vanishing
point high above or below the horizon.
This is most useful to achieve a sense of drama and scale, or to show more
objects in a single scene.
If the vanishing point (which is not connected to the horizon) is a great
distance from the horizon, the intensity of the angle will be less than if
it were placed close to the horizon (which creates a more extreme viewing
angle).
A third vanishing point on the vertical axis gives you a far broader range
of angles, and really allows your viewers to “look down” into your city.
For creating detailed concepts of individual buildings, it’s more
beneficial to use a simple isometric view, since it allows you to clearly
present three sides of your design without distorting perspective or
obscuring details.
e) Dynamic application
While perspective is extremely useful and can be applied to almost any
illustration or scene, it doesn’t need to be rigid or boring, and you
don’t need to adhere to the perspective method in a strict way.
Like the example try mixing different perspective methods as visualize by
the crashing spaceship and the ground below.
Lecture 5 : COMPOSITION THEORY 3 // FORE, MID, AND BACKGROUND
Composition essentially refers to how your image is put together, and there are tricks you can keep in mind that, if used in the right way, can take your art to the next level.
Intro
1. Different types of planes
You can arrange the subject matter to be at the foreground.
By using size differences and colour contrast to highlight foreground as main focus.
b) Middle-ground
Or arrange the focus to be in the middle-ground.
By using size differences and light/shadow contrast to highlight the main focus
c) Middle-ground
Or in the furthest view of the visual in the background.
By using shapes and light/shadow contrast to highlight the main focus
Design Flow
Good arrangement of visual focus using foreground, middle-ground and background should also indicate a sense of movement, and rhythm in your design.
This is known to be Design Flow.
Design flow is the way that your eye moves or is led around a composition. A design with good flow will lead the viewers’ eye throughout the layout, moving from element to element with ease.
Your visual should be able to influence the way the viewer will digest your content. This is especially important in interface and information design types where you need to combine type, line, contrast, color, and imageries.
Lecture 6 : 3-ACTS STRUCTURE
Storytelling basics
1. Central theme
The theme is what the story is really about. It’s the main idea or underlying meaning. Often, it’s the storyteller’s personal opinion on the subject matter. A story may have both a major theme and minor themes.
Major Theme: An idea that is intertwined and repeated throughout the whole narrative.
Minor Theme: An idea that appears more subtly, and doesn’t necessarily repeat.
2. Conflict
The conflict is what drives the story. It’s what creates tension and builds suspense, which are the elements that make a story interesting.
If there’s no conflict, not only will the audience not care, but there also won’t be any compelling story to tell.
Conflict is what engages an audience. It’s what keeps them white-knuckled, at the edge of their seats, waiting impatiently to see if the protagonists will overcome their obstacle.
3. Characters
A story usually includes a number of characters, each with a different role or purpose. Regardless of how many characters a story has, however, there is almost always a protagonist and antagonist.
Central Characters: These characters are vital to the development of the story. The plot revolves around them.
Protagonist: The protagonist is the main character of a story. He or she has a clear goal to accomplish or a conflict to overcome. Although protagonists don’t always need to be admirable, they must command an emotional involvement from the audience.
Antagonist: Antagonists oppose protagonists, standing between them and their ultimate goals. The antagonist can be presented in the form of any person, place, thing, or situation that represents a tremendous obstacle to the protagonist.
Lecture 7 : TRANSITION
Scott McLoud's transitions
1) Moment to Moment
2) Action to Action
3)Subject to Subject
4) Scene to Scene
5) Aspect to Aspect
6) Non Sequitur
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