Final Creative Studies Assignment Part II

As for our CREATIVE MULTIMEDIA ESSAY, I am going to copy and paste it here, as, of course, blogs cannot do pictures of docx files.

"Creative multimedia is about a product of multiple media that is invented with a creative idea. To understand the core meaning of creative multimedia it is important to first break apart the two words, where creativity is the process of introducing or discovering new ideas and concepts for an existing or non-existing product. The concept of creativity includes innovation, invention, novelty, and creativity. For example, the process may involve taking an existing product and redesigning it entirely to improve the following factors such as quality, cost and overall design. It requires the ability to modify the current product into a fresh new creation that the society can accept. Multimedia is about using advanced technology like computer software and its available functions like text, audio, video, animation, interactive features, and still images to portray the content of the information across to the audience. So in essence, by combining the two words together, Creative and Multimedia, it is about providing an innovative idea for a product through the availability of advancing technology to assist and provide a clear channel of communication to a target audience.

Nowadays, many areas surrounding our daily lives are involved with creative multimedia; from educational to the entertainment industry. However, digital arts caught our attention and we would like to further explore the essence of digital arts in creative multimedia.

Photography was one of the very first digital arts. It is a process, activity and art of creating still or moving pictures by recording radiation on a radiation-sensitive medium, such as a photographic film or an electronic sensor. Photography is often used to capture a moment, to present expression from the picture to the viewer. As technology advances, digital photography is now widely used all over the world from commercial to non-commercial use. Some of the famous nature photographers like Frans Lanting and Galen Rowell captures nature events to portray an expression.

Yet, photography was not enough. Photo manipulation was invented, starting from retouching via ink, paint, double-exposure and darkroom manipulation. However as technology runs with photography, it goes the same with photo manipulation technology. This is the application of image editing techniques to photographs in order to create an illusion or deception, in contrast to mere enhancement or correction, through analog or digital means. One of the most popular photo manipulation software is Adobe Photoshop.

Photography is not only still frames, it also includes moving frames. Live-action is one of the moving frames photography. It refers to cinematography that is not produced using animation. However, it includes special effects (SFX) and visual effects (VFX). Special effects are on-set mechanical effects and in-camera optical effects, mostly done on the spot when the film is being shot. Green screens are used in this area of effects. Visual effects are digital post-production. Effects done here are usually those we cannot do physically in reality, for example blowing up a car in the middle of the city. All these effects are done with digital photography and technical skills.

From there, we go on to vector art, a 2-dimensional simplified and stylized image of the original. It is often used in posters, where vector enables it to be able to go through mass production with minimum cost and at the same time visually attractive. And with a little help from typography, the advertising industry began to expand with these digital arts.

After the 2-dimensional era was at its peak, 3-dimensional modeling appeared. Its accuracy in photorealism and flexibility in animation has brought digital art to a higher level. However, 2D still has its stand in the industry, no less than 3D. CAD programs are used to render a 3D model and animations in the form of mesh, whereas 2D in the form of bitmap and vector.

Animation started off with stop-motion. Puppet animation, clay animation, go motion and pixilation were all “cartoons” of those days. You may recognize names like Jan Svankmajer and even Tim Burton! Today, Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studio, as well as Dreamworks, takes over the industry with 2D and 3D animation with examples of animations such as “Up” and “The Incredibles”. One can see how good the quality of the animations.

From what we can conclude from the studies and research we’ve made on creative multimedia and on digital media, we have come to a conclusion that creative multimedia captures and also re-captures moments and events in life through the invention of new technology. With the technology we currently have, we are able to keep memories by taking photographs, and we have seen how the camera has evolved throughout these years. It’s not only the camera that has advanced, other inventions have moved forward too. Today, we’re also able to make motion movies and the process is not as tedious as it used to be. In other sense, everything has been simplified and made easier for us mankind."

Thank you very much!

Final Creative Studies Assignment

For the final Creative Studies assignment, my classmates and I were put in groups. We were to do a poster or a video to express our theme, and it must be understandable without having to read anything, even if there are texts on the poster. My group consists of Charmaine Lau, who is the group leader, Galen Lau, Lai Yee, Erika Chong, and me! On the topic of Creative Multimedia for the project, we kept on brain-storming using the methods we learned and made mindmaps. From Random Words to Juxtaposition, we finally chose the theme 'Capturing Precious Moments'. Shown here are our progresses, from just rough sketches to the essay, mind-maps, and finally the finished poster. We hope it will be able to help spread our message to the masses!

This is the final product

Mind Maps

Sketches

Pick of the Week

Random words. Of all the random words that could be generated, the words 'kitten', 'claws', 'horror', 'abandoned house', and words as such came up. It was cute that at first I imagined kittens, all furry and cuddly, then other words that aren't so...fluffy are attached to it. Well, this one wasn't the one I did in class, but since I seem to have...um...misplaced it, I drew up another one. Hahaha.

Drawn in Photoshop by me!

Week 8

It was somewhat strange learning about random words. At first I did not quite understand it, but then I realized that it was actually something that I encounter almost everyday. Spending my time online, I would visit strange websites for entertainment, and most of those entertainment forms involve random words. They are the ones that would make me imagine them and laugh almost all the time. Even I have made up stuff for my friends' contacts on my phone! Most of the names are food related and...er...somethings-not-so-appropriate related. During the lecture, the example given were the words 'evil' and 'claws' and 'horror', and they are supposed to be put together with the word 'kitten'. From there, new pictures can be imagined, such as a monster cat who waits for you outside your window at night and claws at the glass.

Pick of the Week

Another sketchy mind map for the lesson of the week. It is all about juxtaposition. It is fun to be able to put just random words together and actually come up with something kind of new. A set of words were chosen and what the class had to do was illustrate the words that resulted for them.

Along with this came another concept of juxtaposition, which was love put together with chili, and we were required to make a short poem about it.

Love is like a piece of chili

It is passionate, bright, and fiery

However, you cannot get greedy

You have to be careful lest it gets spicy

It just might burn your heart

And make you have to,

With it,

Temporarily part

Image Courtesy of Google

Week 6: Juxtaposition

As defined and explained by the lecturer, juxtaposition can mean, placing two variable, side by side and their contrast or similarity are shown through comparison. It seems to me that the lesson means, that, by putting two things or two words together, it can make the human brain automatically associate or transfer meaning to it, whether to something familiar or something totally funny or ridiculous. Two words that could mean the opposite of each other, could even be put in one sentence and be made ordinary. The class gave examples according to the TV Series 'Lost', such as one example in which one of the characters die, but another character, who is a pregnant female, gives birth almost at the same time, giving a strong juxtaposition of life and death. Okay, so maybe this example is not so ordinary. In fact, I think it is deep. However, it is still something that everyone of us should know.

Pick of the Week

Managed to make a mind map out of mortar and pestle! Even though it was done in class, I still managed some brainstorming. They are not exactly the brightest of things, but I find some of them quite funny. To me.

Week 5: Mortar and Pestle

Continuing on mindmaps, the class focused on mortar and pestle. It is a set of traditional tools, usually used for medicinal purposes or cooking. It is made of stone, therefore hard enough to mash seeds or herbs together into sauces or pasty medicine.

The idea was, what other functions could it have other than just mashing things? What could people use it for in the future? The difficult part was that, whatever it could be used for, it has to be in a set, and cannot be separated.

From there, the lesson branched from just mortar and pestle, to what other pairings could be compared and what thoughts we would have about it. The main thing was about men and women. What would men write about women, and what would women write about men?

As a female, I think the boys are...okay to live with. Sure, most of them can be sexist and dominant, and most are a bit vulgar, but they are nice and can be real gentlemen in their own ways when they want to be. Everyone is unique, so we also have to look into the women. I think.

Pick of the Week

Considering mindmaps, I tried to make one. It is still simple as I am. However, I had quite some fun with the typography.

Week 4: Logical Mind Maps

This week, we delved deeper into the topic of convergent and divergent thinking and went to the focused discussion of logical mind maps. Mind maps are mostly for the divergent thinkers because they are the ones who like to look for other alternatives to solutions for a problem, and like to experiment or play about. Since the lecturer is teaching a class of Faculty of Creative Multimedia students, most of us would definitely be convergent thinkers and he gave me and my classmates tips on how to do a proper logical mind map. To be honest, I am not a big fan of mind maps, though I know that it would help a scatterbrain like me look up ideas and such. It can make clear the flow of thought and new discoveries and the branching out options would definitely make me think of other things from one subject. Maybe I should start making mind maps a habit...

Pick of the Week

Divergent and convergent thinking. The only thing that I can think of about problem-solving that can involve something so simple looking yet can have so many alternative solutions is a Rubiks cube. Even though people say there are steps to solving this, but when mixed around, it really can be a tough nut to crack. Nowadays, there are a lot of other variations of the Rubiks cube.

Image Courtesy of Wikipedia

Week 3: Convergent and Divergent Thinking. I Suppose, I'm Convergent.

Week three lesson, is the difference about convergent and divergent thinking. To make it simpler, convergent thinking is being able to do things without having to use a lot of creativity (unless, of course, you're bored). This would apply to repetitive activities such as copying notes or following instructions. Meanwhile, being divergent is the opposite. Tasks that would require divergent thinking would be a painting assignment in art class or trying to solve a riddle or a math problem. The lecturer came up with some kind of interesting fact that those whose put the thumbs of their left hands on the top of the right thumb when clasping their hands together, are those who think divergently. While those who put their right over their left, are the convergent thinkers. I found that I was a convergent thinker. But then I thought, I must only be a beginner convergent thinker, because it is hard for me to come up with alternatives solutions that'll work to problems. I really wish I could return my brain back to when I was young, back when it was still 'phresh'.

Pick of the Week

Regarding this week's topic, I suppose, even how insignificant an invention is, it is still an invention. Like this one I found. It is a toothbrush. A type of toothbrush. Sure, everyone knows what a toothbrush is. However, usually, we have to set it down and it gets dirty if we don't take care of it properly, am I right?

Well this one, only catches spores in the air, because it has some kind of balance at the bottom of it to make it stand up. Either way, it's still has a pretty good purpose.

Image Courtesy of Geekologie