Try your hand at the following two Photoshop Tutorials and post the results to your blog.
http://www.psdvault.com/abstracts/create-sci-fi-style-laser-light-effect-in-photoshop/
http://www.psdvault.com/drawing/create-awesome-abstract-nebula-circle-shape-in-photoshop/
Then look down the following list of additional tutorials and chose at least one more to try out:
http://psd.tutsplus.com/articles/web/dark-futuristic-photoshop-effects/
Graphic Designer Rebecca Lemker has documented the process by which she redesigned a book jacket for a re-issue of the original novel by Orson Scott Card on which the film Ender's Game is based. You can read about her workflow and see images of her work in progress on her blog:
TASK
On your own blog, using screengrabs from Rebecca Lemker's blog outline the different stages she went through in order to complete this brief, from initial research to final product mock-up. Describe in your own words what she did at each stage and consider how you might adapt this way of working to your own design brief. Which stages were most important do you think and why?
Compare and contrast Rebecca Lemker's cover design with that of Emma Alexandra:
Divide each design up into its different areas: Front Cover, Back Cover, Spine, Flaps. How does the Cover Design work across these areas?
Think about the use of Colour, Composition and Typography and how these relate to the overall Concept of the Cover Design
Identify the different elements that make up the design of this Total Film magazine cover:
- MASTHEAD
- TAGLINE
- QUALIFIER
- MAIN COVER LINE
- SECONDARY COVER LINES
- SPLASH
- PULL QUOTES
- INSTITUTIONAL INFORMATION
- PUBLICATION DETAILS
- ADDITIONAL CONTENT/FEATURES
TASK
- Compare the Total Film cover with the cover of the Little White Lies Man of Steel issue.
- What does this cover design say about the type of reader who might be interested in the magazine?
Look at this student blog for examples of well designed poster analysis sheets:
http://patria18.blogspot.co.uk/2010_12_05_archive.html#4957572944061399145
FILM POSTER ANALYSIS
It's important to remember that movie posters are advertisements. The goal of a poster essentially is to "sell" the movie—to make you want to see it. Compare the two posters for the forthcoming movie Ender's Game and for each poster consider the following questions:
1) What is the genre and premise of your film? What in the poster supports a viewer’s understanding the genre and premise even if they knew nothing about the film?
2) What characters if any are featured on the poster? What does the way they are represented on the poster say about the character and/or the actor?3) What can you tell about the tone or mood of the film from the poster? Think about lighting, composition of the items in the poster, and the font of any writing.
4) Is the title large or small? How does the tagline add to the poster and intrigue viewers? Are any actor/actress names in a larger font? What does this say about the main appeal of the film?
5) What in your opinion is the main hook in the poster that would encourage people to see this film? How is the hook highlighted in the poster? Who do you think the target audience for this film might be and why?
Produce two annotated A4 pages discussing each poster and answering all the questions above. Remember that each sheet should be clear and you can use arrows, box-outs, frames and highlights to help illustrate your points. Save both pages as PDFs and upload to your blog.