visual narratives: Jon McNaught

I'm aware that this project does not call for extensive writing or comic format, but as much as that is something I love about McNaught's work it is also the stories that he tells that are important to me and this project. McNaught often touches on the 'untold' himself. He sees small stories in the mundane and makes them beautiful and touching. I'd like to do this too.

OUIL 405: visual narratives- self evaluation

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? ·         Over the last module I have learnt how to use InDesign to effectively create a book. I also learnt about how to prepare a document for print, but still sometimes struggle with the concept of bleed and how to work it out. ·         Although I consider myself to know the basics of Photoshop, I've not had much experience using it as a tool to correct and prepare images for print, and I've been able to practice and develop this skill this module, e.g. using levels. I think I have been successful with this, as the final images printed how I'd like them (and sometimes even better than how the appeared digitally) ·         This project has been the first time I have really considered using coloured pencils. I've been exploring the use of textures in previous modules and in using pencil found a new way of utilising this. However I think there is definitely room to explore this more!

2. Which approaches to research have you found most valuable during this module. How have you interrogated your research to identify appropriate ideas?

·         This module has really taught me how important and valuable research on location is. I think I did well at recording visual information, both what I observed and thought of my location. However I was not brave enough to talk to people about the places, and I feel that I could probably have gotten a lot more out of my project if I did. ·         Researching two different locations gave me good scope for ideas and allowed me to be selective about what I chose, instead of working with something I didn't feel passionate about (that said, being able to do this successfully is also an important skill!)

3. What strengths can you identify within your submission and how have you capitalised on these?

·         Looking back at Studio Brief 1 I feel that our team's cooperation really shows in the book we made together. It was a new experience to work as part of a group for an artistic project but I felt I was able to act as a good team member. We all responded to each other's ideas and created a book that featured our individual skills as a cooperative product. ·         I feel that my final book was produced to a fairly high standard and I took care with the crafting of the piece, both in the image making and bookbinding. I also feel that the image making took a bit of a departure from what I normally do, both media and style wise, and that was something I had hoped to do since the last module.

4. What areas for further development can you identify within your submission and how will you address these in the future?

·         As mentioned before, I need to work on my research methods. I lacked research from talking to people and factual research too. Next time I make first hand research I will try to work on utilising these methods. ·         Although I feel that the images for the final book were made well enough, there's always room for improvement. I enjoyed the textures I made in the illustrations, but feel they could have been more refined, even if it  was something as simple as using a sharper pencil or spending a little more time on them. And although I feel that this work was different to what I normally do, I think there is still more room for variety. Particularly in regards to tone of voice.

5. How effectively are you making decisions about the development of your work? What informs these decisions? What problems have you identified and how have you solved them? ·         One of the biggest decisions I had to make was the theme/ place of SB2/SB3. I assumed of the two locations that the cave research would prove most fruitful but struggled to form good ideas from it. It meant I had to be open to the idea of using the park as a project theme, despite appearing to be the less exciting idea. ·         For the physical preparation of the book I had to make decisions too! For media use I found that making fairly 'finished' pieces was the best and really only way to tell how the finished product would look, even if those tests were smaller than the proposed final. That said, I dove straight in with the colour choice for the book. Luckily it paid off but it could have gone badly! ·         Deciding on compositions I found I could often get away with making smaller thumbnails and scamps, but had to be careful they were the same proportions as the intended final, as if they weren't the composition inevitably wouldn't balance out. Smaller thumbnails are good for being able to generate ideas quickly but I think I should have made some larger to scale sketches before settling on decisions.

6. How effectively have you managed this project and organised yourself during this module? ·         I found with this project that I was able to manage my time quite well. I worked efficiently and finished my book with a few days to go before the assigned crit, and met other deadlines as well. I felt a little behind with work during the Christmas period due to illness but I feel that with some extra hard work I managed to catch up.

visual narratives: SB3 BOOK- feedback and evaluation

How my book has changed and stayed the same since my project proposal:

• As intended, I explored non-digital and textured mediums further.
• At the point of proposal I had a few different ideas for the book down. I went ahead with the "few individual scenes", although that turned into quite a few! If I was going to create an anthology I might as well create a lot of stories to fill it! Two or three might seem a bit odd.
• I wanted it to be light-hearted and entertaining to read, but I think it sometimes came out quite sad and melancholic. I'd like to think I created a nice balance of  potential emotional responses.
• At the point of project proposal I was worried that my book would be too comic-y for the brief guidelines, but as I was allowed it I dove in.

Strengths

• A lot of people complimented my use of colour, particularly in how it changes through the book. Some people expected the whole book to be monochrome because of the cover, and I wonder that although the colour might be a nice surprise if the simplistic monochrome cover actually makes people not want to read it. Not that monochrome or simple can't be readable, but I feel that the cover maybe doesn't do justice to what is inside, or rather, it doesn't suggest what is there which may dictate readers depending on taste.
• The narrative seemed to work well, though I did wonder if it would be understandable without words! Nonetheless it was commented on- called "wonderful" and "charming", which is what I aimed for! "Simplistic idea made incredibly"
• I put a lot of visual research into the project and I feel this was reflected in the work. I think it makes it feel quite genuine. This was also pointed out.
• I'm pleased with my media choice and how it turned out despite being one of my first proper usages of pencil crayon. As of the last module I'm really enjoying using texture and pencil crayon is a new avenue for this.

Weaknesses

• I'm still not sure if the front cover was the best choice, as mentioned briefly in the strengths. I wanted it to be simple in comparison to the rest of the book, but does this make the whole book look bad?
• Bad sketching and character consistency. I did not notice until I had finished, but sometimes, e.g. in the man and dog spread, the same character could look quite different between panels! I should have taken more care in planning these pages.
• I think there's a lot of room for improvement on the images themselves. I wish I taken more care to play around with perspectives more to create more interesting sequences. The texture use could have been rendered in a more sophisticated way if I had taken more time on it.
• I had some comments on how the book was well constructed, but once I got back to it after the crit it had started to fall apart at the stitches! I fixed this by tying the knot on the outside of the main stitch so it would not fall through next time.

visual narratives: book construction

Update: the images look far better in print than in screen, luckily. The colours came out brighter than expected and not as much detail was lost as expected in the graphite pieces. I chose to print on an off-white stock which makes the book less harsh looking. Although I chose a matte paper I'd have liked it if it was completely matte- there is a slight shine on printed areas but I wonder if that could be to do with the ink.

Before taking a needle to the book I practiced different stitches on some mini books. I'm glad I did because without this testing I would've gone for an unsuitable stitch (and I was also a little rusty on my bookbinding skills).

As well as looking appealing, I thought the middle stitch provided a lot of practical support. The bottom stitch was very supportive but looked messy (to even out the number of stitches at the end you would have to add an extra strange hole).

The final stitch choice. I left a tail end on the middle stitch for a decorative edge, but cut the other two close to the knot as it looked a little messy with all three. The thick yellow thread works well too.

It matches the yellows inside the book so doesn't look too distracting amongst the middle spread. However its contrast to the front cover makes it more eyecatching against the somewhat boring grayscale.

I was hesitant to cut the edge with a scalpel for fear of going wrong but luckily it worked and gave the book a much more professional finish! It probably wouldn't have gone so well if I hadn't used a fresh blade though.

visual narratives: final images

first and last images

middle spread

The last time I scanned in a coloured pencil drawing it ended up looking much better when digitised. However, this time I am not sure if the illustrations have been improved by level adjust. I particularly struggled adjusting the graphite pieces for print as some of the fainter details would become lost very easily. However, all the images maintain a consistency. Personally I feel that regardless of anything it is quite hard to recreate the natural feel of pencil when it has been completely flattened out. It has a slight three dimensional texture that is lost.

visual narratives: front cover conundrums

white looks a bit boring but I will be stitching the book together with a thick, brightly coloured thread which should counteract this.

more colourful but looks a bit flat. concerned some of the detail gets lost.

a cover without a title. considering whether it really needs a title for the front.

finally I think I prefer the title in the top right. it doesn't interrupt the pattern so much and coincidentally feels small and quiet. Again I am hoping that the coloured thread will add a more eyecatching element. I am thinking of using a yellow to match the other yellows in my book.

I've realised that this stitching will show up and go through the middle spread illustration! There are no important elements in the middle of this image so it shouldn't interrupt it too much. I will probably let the thread hang on the outside, as a decorative element and also not to spoil the inner image as much as possible!

visual narratives: scanning images and book design

For some reason when cropping the image down to 18.5 x 23cm Photoshop's idea of that size seemed to be different to the real life equivalent!

Although I never figured out why it was doing this I found that placing the image into a 18.5 x 23cm document seemed to solve the problem.

although I have adjusted the levels (and maybe because I have) I am not sure if the images look as good as they did in person. Perhaps the only way to really tell is to see how they look printed!

I am also concerned about the middle spread. It's colour scheme is similar but not exactly the same as the main bulk of the book. I added more green in an attempt to make it stand out.

visual narratives: more progress

Between the media experiments and the crit I had also begun making thumbnails for the final book. I am finding working fast and small allows me to generate more ideas with more chance of success but I also have to be careful that I am working at the right dimensions- when translating small sketches to larger plans it can become quite difficult!

 I've also been reconsidering the first and last pages of the book. I want to create whole page images that create their own narrative between the first, last and middle pages of the book.

Tone of Voice

• I'm losing track of how I want my book to come across as a whole. There are lots of aspects within the smaller narratives- some are funny, some are sad, some are both etc. 
• I know I want the reader to feel the observations in the book. To feel like it's real but also as a by stander, a little disconnected perhaps. This can be helped by the use of perspective I think.
• I think the use of pencil helps to make it feel real. Loose pencil work is reminiscent and associated with making first hand observations. But as before, there will be a sense of otherworldiness in the use of colour.

Colour Scheme

I will be creating the first and last pages with graphite, and the middle page with full, surreal almost-rainbow colour. I want there to be a narrative through these images (in character and tone) and whilst the drastic colour change might disrupt this I think it could also create a nice pacing through the book.

HOWEVER I am stuck on what colours to use for the rest of the book. I prefer using simple colour schemes of no more than three or four colours, and am struggling to create a selection that will run nicely throughout the book. 

• It has been suggested that I use different colour schemes to suit each shorter comic but I am wary of using many many colours under one project. 
• I am thinking of using a three colour scheme, and alternating which colour is predominant in each story to create more variety but also a consistency throughout.
• One of these colours will probably be pink as that is also the predominant colour in the middle spread, but I will have to think these through.

visual narratives: peer review, group tutorial + progress

On Friday the feedback was mostly positive. People seemed interested in the concept and ideas behind the book, which whilst also being the most important thing to nail at this point is also very valuable to me. At this point I had done no mockups and very little storyboarding and this was picked up on!

I'm keen on using a simple colour palette. I tried experimenting with watercolours but found they weren't ideal for overlapping techniques, and just looked a bit messy.

Once again I was drawn back to pencil work, this time working in more limited palettes.

I am enjoying monochrome schemes

I tried adding colour to the monochrome pencil work digitally but it looked flat and fake and disrupted the feel. It worked much better when I added it with another colour pencil.

Advice from today's tutorial

• First and last pages- they need to pack more of a punch to suit the rest of the book! It was suggested I turn these into single page images that follow the same atmosphere and narrative of the middle spread. 

• Colour palettes. I was imaging a book consisting of entirely the same palette, but am now re-evaluating this. I can imagine the large middle image in the bright rainbow colours I drew it in before. The first and last images I'd like to be coherent, maybe a simple graphite. For the rest of the comics, I'd like a matching colour scheme of only two or three colours. That said, that doesn't mean that the primary focus colour in each one can't be different from the next.

• I was worried that the tree passing over the seasons would be too cliche, but was told not to necessarily avoid the obvious! The obvious can work as a simple and useful recognisable visual device.

• Always push perspectives and pacing to make a book people want to read!