Amelia Sims's Blog

Photoshop Tutorials  The first project we did in graphic design was a series of Photoshop tutorials to expand and enhance our knowledge of the Photoshop software. This took about two weeks for us to complete. A challenge I faced during this project was learning the basics of manipulating some of the tools. Most would work fine but some required a few tries before I figured out how to best use them. Throughout these tutorials I learned how to use Photoshop. I learned about tools such as content aware fill, the patch tool, the clone stamp, layer masks, and the spot healing brush. I also learned different skills such as how to effectively use layers, how to use the content aware scale tool, how to use an adjustment layers, how to transform and warp objects, and how to create a shadow. Some feedback I was gives was that the photo on which I used the patch tool did not look realistic. I changed this by going back into Photoshop and fixing it the patch tool again. My overall opinio...

Ice Cream Project  One of my favorite projets that I made was my 3D model of ice cream. Through this project I learned how to use bump making in maya and how to animate in Maya. I also expanded my knowledge of different materials and how the look in Maya. I learned all this expire meting with different textures, materials, and bump maps in maya while following the guidelines set for the project. I picked this project because I am proud of the different features I was able to use and the way it looks. My greatest strengths in this project were using bump was maps and being able to create a good ending animation. My weaknesses were  placing an image as a materials to create a picture and figuring out how to render the scene as an animation that was color managed. Im going to apply what I've learned to future projects. If I redo this project I would make sure I render it out color managed. This project encompasses all the skills I have learned in Maya so far. Pen Proje...

Summary The project I chose was a short animated gif about a character overcoming challenges. The animator did this by using geometric shapes to create an obstacle course for his character, a ball, to get through in different ways. First it has to climb a hill and a little while later it gets other shapes to help it hit a button. Then, it has to practice bouncing on objects to get to another side. Last, it hast to get out of a maze. The animation is called There's Always a Way and you can access it here . Review If this was my project I would take the outlines off of all the shapes to make it look cleaner. However, I think that the rest of the animation is very well done. The ball bounces and spins in a way that looks realistic, and the moving pieces are all moving at the right speed, not to fast or to slow. Also the different movements ease in and ease out well, creating a feel or real movement. The music and sound effects help to accent the animation. The story this told ...

Article Summary  In the article I read the author discussed how Maya 2016 is the easiest version of Maya for students and beginning animators to learn with. He says thanks to the new organization and the simplification of menus maya is easier to work with than ever before. The author is claiming that mayas updates create a more user friendly program. They use examples of simplified menus, such as the fact that all modeling tools are now placed in a single menu. Also discussed more modeling tools which help animators create more lifelike characters without using a different program, such as Mudbox. The author also reviewed the improved hypershade menu, talking about its condensed features and the larger window size. The author concludes by saying that Maya 2016 is much easier to learn than any previous models. The authors strength is using a good tone and using correct industry terminology. The author also uses good visual representations to help emphasize the text. The author...

Overview This tutorial is about how to make wings flap in after effects from a side perspective. This helps make the animation of something flying look more realistic. If the wings don't flap on a flying animal it would just look like the animal was being dragged across the screen. This would be helpful to beginner animators. Steps  The first steep is to create the animal you want to animate, I chose a bee, and create it by drawing it or by vectoring it in illustrator. Next open adobe after effects and make a new composition. Once you do that import all your files one layer at a time (body, top wing, bottom wing) and drag them into the composition. Position everything where you want. Click the arrow by the top wing layer and set key frames for position and rotation. Next move forward 10 frames, set a new key frame for rotation by clicking the 0.0° and type -20 to rotate the wing 20° counter clockwise. The wing should look something like this!!!. Make sur...

Project Overview For the last couple weeks in animation I have been working on a story animation. First I had to make plot line and create a character for my story. I decided to make it about a bee who runs into the window of a flower shop while trying to get to the flowers inside. Next I had to create a storyboard to show how all my shots would go together. Then I had to create sketches of my character and scan them into the computer, the image to the side is my fist sketch of my bee once I scared it into the computer. Once I had the sketches into the computer I used photoshop to make them look cleaner and to add color. Next, I create most of the elements of the backgrounds in photoshop. I made the flowers in illustrator and moved into photoshop, there is an image of the flowers to the side. Last I animated everything in After Effects using my new knowledge of arks and timing, w alk cycles, multilayer, compositions, and ease in/ease out for keyframes. Reflection  During t...

F or the last couple weeks we have been working on photoshop tutorials in class. We were working on getting more comfortable with the software and honing our photoshop skills. We had eight different sections which each focused on an individual skill while still incorporating other aspects of the program. Section One ~ Content Aware Fill  In the first section we focused on using different tools to create a content aware fill. We used the marquee tool and the fill menu to take out unwanted items in the background, of the pictures of the model with the bag and the man with the camera. In the picture with the model we took out a chair and a later. In the picture of the man with the camera we removed stains and metal from the wall. The picture of the man with the surfboard we exchanged the marquee tool for the lasso tool but still used the content aware fill feature. This helped remove the logo from his surfboard without making it look edited.  Section...

This is the website that I started second quarter. I finished it now because I completed my third quarter rotation. I added my favorite graphic design project which is my Captain America shield.  This project is my favorite because it taught me lots of Illustrator skills and I think it looks good. This website helped me because when we made our next website I felt more comfortable and I understood how to work Dreamweaver. This project was cool because I will be able to look back on it and see all the work I have done and how I have improved. This website helped me learn the importances of organized storage of file on the server.

What I Learned This year in e-Comm I learned many valuable skills. I learned about time management as well as teamwork. I also learned about technical skills in graphic design, animation, web design, and video. I learned how to used adobe illustrator and photoshop. I also learned how to use dreamweaver and final cut pro to create website and videos. Especially in the fourth quarter project I learned how valuable communication is in a group and how to use time wisely. I learned the technical skills through tutorials, experimentation, and communication with the teacher, especially for my eMagine project. I learned group management skills through our forth quarter project. I learned how to effectively manage time and how important it is thorough getting behind. I learned the importance of communication through having no communication on our project. I also learned the importance of a good group dynamic since my group had a poor one. Technical skills are important to complete p...

This quarter I worked on a group project to advertise a product. My groups name was JAM and the product we advertised was the trackit, gps stickers and app that let you find everything you lose. My group was good at interacting as friends but the work ethic was nonexistent and there was little to no communication. In the next group project I will make sure that my group communicates, meets group set deadlines, and that each person contributes. I would change the music on our commercial, the work ethic of my group and the amount of time used in class. I have learned the value of time management and communication. Also I have improved my understanding of making websites and using photoshop. The first week of this quarter we worked on graphic design. I made a product logo as well as a mock up of the app and the app on the app store. I also helped work on the web banner and coupon. This part of out project was the most productive for me. I felt like I managed very well. The second ro...

Today in e-Com I made a butterfly. I used the tools to change the shade of each peace of the wings to a different color. Then I used the clone tool to make the wings look like they were beating. I will use this experience to make my next projects better. If I got to do this project again I would keep the colors them same. However I would take more time using the clone tool to make the wings look like they were beating.

This is the third picture of ONW we created. This one we created by using the magnetic lasso to take the ravens head out of its original picture. Then we adjusted the settings and added different pictures around it and adjusted the settings on it too. We also used the clone stamp to take light poles out of the picture. I will use this experience to make photoshop documents with the magnetic lasso and the clone stamps. If I got to do this project again I would take more time using the clone stamp to take out the light poles. I would keep the coloring and effects on the raven and photos of the school the same.

This is the second photoshop document of ONW that we made. This one we made by taking a picture of the school and writing Northwest over it in the type mask tool. Then we added a gradient in the school colors. We edited the photo behind it to make it lighter.  In this project I learned how to use the type mask tool and how to adjust the photos. If I had to do this project again I would keep everything the same, the only thing I would change is the direction of the gradient. I will be able to draw from this tutorial for future photoshop projects.

We made and invasive species website in e-Com this week. We used dreamweaver to create a website from scratch. We put in all the information and coded the website according to some informational videos. We got to chose out color palette and fonts. This website was made to increase invasive species awareness. If I had to do this project again I would keep the colors and fonts the same. I would change the logo background.

This week we made three different pictures of ONW. The first is the one in the right, which says ONW over a picture of the school and the school compass logo. In this project we used photoshop, we extracted the backroad from the compas and made it somewhat transparent. Then we used the type tool to write ONW and made that somewhat translucent. What I learned form this project I show to use the beackground extracting tool and how to use layers in Photoshop. I will apply this knowledge for the next time we use photoshop. If I made this again I would center the compass better.

This week in e-Com we made cubes. In the first cube each side represents a strand of e-Com. The top is graphic design, I made it the color of my logo with the wings the logo on it. The left side stands for animation, I used the smiley face from one of my pervious animations as inspiration. The right represents video, there are six different shades of blue to represent the six shot system. We used a cube to show how all the strands are connected. Making the cube is fairly simple, it is made of lines that are connected and made into squares. During this project I learned how to warp shapes so the look like they are on the sides of the cube. If I had to redo this project I would make the smiley face look more like the original one in my animation. Overall I believe that this project was a success. The second cube is just another patterned cube I created.

This week in e-Com we made personal logos, they represent who we are as a person. In my logo the wings and A represent the cross country flying shoe logo . The blue represents peace and calm and the circle represents wholeness because I am a clam person. First we sketched out an idea for our logo then we created it on the computer. We used illustrator to pull preprogramed shapes into the right shape, my original logo is on the top. Then we critiqued each others logos and made changes with the feedback, my improved logo is on the bottom. I learned how to move points on the shapes to change its appearance and how to critique others logos. If I had to make the logo again I would have added the circle earlier, however I would keep the overall design. I will draw from my knowledge of creating shapes and lines for the next project. I think that this project will help me understand the time it takes to create a good logo.