A Diary of an Avatar 02

Here's a quick update on my Second Life Avatar after a busy Christmas day... I've managed to pick up a free Santa hat and finally been able to change my hairstyle (After a long struggle in trying to remove the old one) I've also visited a few new places and found some interesting features -

Below is a screenshot of me in the Nike Store. I used their laptop to send myself a email in the real world!

Here is a screenshot of my received email form Second Life -

Here is another screenshot of me flying over the Eiffel Tower in Paris!

If found that using the build-in Screenshot button is very handy since it saves your screenshots straight to you hard drive.

A Diary of an Avatar 01

After having problems with creating an avatar on http://www.doppelganger.com/index.html I have decided to create an avatar on Second Life, which is a 3-D virtual world created by its Residents.

After spending some time trying to think of a good character name, I managed to log in to the Second Life world and start exploring. The first thing I noticed when flying/walking was how slow it takes for the textures and objects to generated. Regardless of this, the fact that your character can fly around is quiet good fun.

Below is a screenshot of the Nottingham University building in Second Life -

When there are quiet a few characters on the screen, Its very hard to find out who is saying what -

A Diary of an Avatar

Create an avatar in an online 3D environments, such as Second Life, there.com or Virtual Doppelganger and spend some time exploring the virtual environments and think about the role of identity in these virtual worlds, try and talk with the virtual residents. Keep diary of at least four weeks of your Avatar’s experiences and post it to your journal, also take screen shoot of your experiences.

• Second Life - http://secondlife.com/
• http://www.doppelganger.com/index.html
• http://www.metaversum.com/content/view/15/47/

Sock or Sleeve? - Interactive Narrative

Last night was a success! I managed to get all the photos needed and I have now spent all day editing them together to create my interactive narrative project!

Below is a link to the first draft, with no audio as of yet. A version with audio will be uploaded soon.

If you can see it below, click on the Deviantart link on the right hand side of this page.

A Night to Remember by ~TheBigDiscoNinja on deviantART

Sock or Sleeve? - Interactive Narrative

Just had an idea for my Interactive Narrative project! The title will be 'A Night to Remember - Sock or Sleeve?' I'm going to try and get all the images needed for the project tonight! Don't worry if you get the title, I'll explain it later.

Updated Online Portfolio

I've recently updated my online portfolio to include a few more details about my projects. Enjoy!

Dan Ryland - Graphic & Web Designer
http://www.danielryland.co.uk

New Web Design Project

Just got a new web design project today! I'm going to be designing a website for a theatre company called Catalyst. I've been given some rough sketches and I'm going to set three weeks for completion. I'll be blogging the progress of the website as I go along.

Assignment 004

Visit the FIGURING LIGHT, Colour and The Intangible Exhibition at Djanogly Art Gallery, Lakeside. Choose a piece of work and write 200 words about the artist use of colour and light.

When you look at this painting for the first time, you instantly focus on the stronger colours in the centre. This is because the artist uses bold colours and dark shadows which absorb more light that the outer colours. Rebecca Partridge has used many different colours in this painting. Each shape is made up of shades of a colour and the combination of contrasting and complementary colours give the painting depth and create a strong focal point. The first place your eyes focus on is the white shape in the middle of the painting.

When looking deeper into the concept/idea behind this painting, Rebecca Partridge has used a combination colour and light to create intensity and to make you concentrate on the centre of the painting. This intensity towards the centre of the painting, could relate to an explosion or a sound blast of some sort. The fact that the outer colours are brighter show that the further away from the centre you are the less intensive it is.

Take two photographs based on a theme of your choice. Using Photoshop change and replace the colours to express complementary pairs of colours. Explain your choice of colours.

What are complementary pairs of colours? Lets ask the wonderful Wikipedia...

'Complementary colours are pairs of colours that are of 'opposite' hue in some colour model. The exact hue 'complementary' to a given hue depends on the model in question, and perceptually uniform, additive, and subtractive colour models, for example, have differing complements for any given color.

• red complements (blue + yellow) = green
• blue complements (red + yellow) = orange
• yellow complements (red + blue) = purple'

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complementary_color

Above is the original photograph and below are the two photographs with their colour replaced.

New Website Up & Running!

Tom Wright - Photographer & Artist

http://www.tomjwright.co.uk

I've been busy over the past week doing this website for my housemate, Tom. He's a photography student at Trent and has a fantastic collection of photos. If you would like to get prints of any photograph just email him (his email address is on the left hand side of each page). After a few hours messing around with designs we finally came up with something Tom and I really liked. Hope you like the Tom's online portfolio. Enjoy!

SIFE Design Team

'There is a position for a design student who has a good knowledge of multimedia and presentations. This person will work with us to develop our existing website (www.sifentu.co.uk) and produce a presentation that will be shown to a group of judges at the national competition in London in April.'

Looks interesting doesn't it! Well, this is what I've recently got involved with. I have joined a small team of 3 students, all from different areas - Multimedia, Graphic Design and Architecture, and I'm really looking forward to be working with SIFE because I will no doubt gain some good experience from it.

The Meeting - One Shot Short

Pixilated after compression

One Shot Short - Filming Complete!

Today, throught the rain and wind, we managed to film our one shot short 'The Meeting.' Here is the post production version of our one shot short.

One Shot Short - Ideas... ...again

The camera has to stay still but we could try putting it in a car. Idea -

• Position a camera on a tripod in a car
• Have the camera filming out the passenger window
• Running man being filmed on the side of the road
  
• Man running to a meeting/from a meeting

One Shot Short Film Ideas

I just been searching for 'CCTV Camera Footage' on YouTube and found this. The title 'Face Meets Floor' is perfect for this clip...



Its a funny short clip that's all done from one angle. Maybe we could use something like this in our one shot short. Since the camera has to stay in one place, we could make the camera as a CCTV camera capturing some sort of meeting. When it comes to editing you could make the picture dark and grainy with a dark shadow round the edges to replicate it being a CCTV camera.

One Shot Short - The Meeting - Ideas

The Meeting
Here are some quick ideas that have come from the title 'The Meeting.' These arn't the best of ideas but all have some connection with the title 'The Meeting.'

• A man meeting his death
  
• Two people meeting - being spied on?
  
• Colours meeting
• Two objects - TV and its remote
• Clothing - Socks/Coat meeting man
  

Other ideas/comments for the one shot short that could be looked at -

• Using lighting effects for changes in time (day/night)
• Using objects (walls/trees) as scene breaks

Assignment 003 - The Rule of Thirds

Describe the Rule Of Thirds and make a short, 5 second film that demonstrates this rule visually. Post your Rule Of Thirds description and your video to your online journal.



The Rule of Thirds states that an image can be divided into nine equal parts. This is done by dividing the image with two horizontal lines and two vertical lines. (See 5 second film above) The horizontal and vertical lines can be used to align objects in an image. An example of this is when photographing or filming people. It is common to line up the body with a vertical line, and having the person's eyes in line with a horizontal line. Another example of the Rule of Thirds is when photographing or filming landscapes. It is common to line up the horizon with a horizontal line and objects with vertical lines.

Assignment 002

Think about what goes on in your head when you buy something new, take a photo of your favourite designed object and answer the following questions:

• Why is it that we want our belongings to do more for us than to function well?

• Why are we willing, as soon as we can afford it, to pay extra for things with appealing forms?

When buying something new, the first thing that comes to mind is how good it looks. But the question is – ‘How do designers make objects look good?’ Let’s take Apple’s iPod as an example. Why is it so successful and why do we like them? Personally, I think the reason we like iPods is because their shiny! The objects we find pleasing are the objects that reflect light well. It doesn’t matter what shape or material it is, as long as it reflects light, we love it! A good example of this theory in action is diamonds. Diamonds are rocks that reflect the light well. If diamonds didn’t reflect light well it wouldn’t be as appealing therefore you wouldn’t buy it. However, there are other reasons that we want our belongings to do more than just function well.

If you’re buying anything from the latest mp3 player to a new pair of shoes, we can look at how it could improve our appearance, our social status or how it could make us more appealing to others. These are all factors that play a part in buying something new. A good example of this would be label or logo recognition. With many young people today, labels play a big part in their social status and the way the make themselves more appealing to others. Occasionally when buying a new object we are ashamed to own something which could be considered ugly or unattractive by the people we respect the most. Objects that have labels or logos on them can be expensive and there could be a cheaper alternative but, with the fact that ‘fitting in’ plays a part in our decision making many people would buy the more expensive object.

We are willing to pay extra for things with appealing forms because of two reasons. The first reason is lasting appeal. We all like to buy new object and know that in a few months, if not years time be able to say that the object still appeals to you. The second reason for paying extra for thing is lasting value. Why should people buy a cheap old iPod that only has 1GB of memory when you could buy newer iPod with 16GB of memory? People should be buying the ‘best of the best’ when it comes to certain objects because then it will last longer and you will be able to get more use out of it.

Big Brown - The Final Cut

Here is the long awaited Big Brown Pixilation Animation. Enjoy!

Big Brown Pixilation Animation...Take 2

Here is take 2 of the Big Brown pixilation project. All that needs doing now is soundtrack, opeing teitle and credits the I will have finished my pixilation project! I will hopefully be doing more versions of the Big Brown animation with different styles.

NO AUDIO

The final steps to complete the animation will hopefully be done tomorrow due to the fact that I haven't got Premiere Pro C3S on my laptop.

Pixilation Project - Adapting Images 02

After playing around with Adobe Photoshop CS3 for a few hours, I decided to play around with the lighting effects.

I've always enjoyed watching Top Gear every week and I like it for two reasons - The cars but also the new camera techniques and effects they use in filming. Here's a picture of someone trying to achieve Top Gear effect -

I have also gone for a similar effect like the one above. However, I changed it a little - I've gone for a stronger black circle around the images. By using this effect, I've tried to highlighting and intensify the action in the animation. I have also used a colour tints to create a certain mood and atmosphere. The image below has a blue tint which creates a cold/dark atmosphere. I've tried to use this to describe the relationship between the man and the machine.

Big Brown Pixilation Animation...Take 1

The Big Brown Pixilation Animation has now been uploaded to Youtube for the very first time. As you can tell some scenes need to be ajusted with timing problems but for a first atempt its not too bad...

NO AUDIO AS OF YET

Possible Changes

• Adjust timing of key frames e.e. showing of the I.D. card needs to be slower
  
• Darker tint/colours to the animation
• An older look/More scratches and marks on the animation

First Atempt
File size 12.2MB, Run time 0:50

Pixilation Project - Adapting Images

By using Adobe Photoshop CS3 as a batch processor, I have processed my first batch of photos. Here is an example of a photo after being batch processed -

I like the comic book effect on the image however I think it would look better if it looked older and darker with more scratches and marks on it. Ah well, its only the first go. I'm probably going to make tones of different versions. Lets see how this one pans out!

I am hoping to use a different tint of colour when there is a change of mood like in the Matrix film (Blue for outside the Matrix and green for inside the Matrix) When the killer cardboard box machine is about to kill I will use a red tint. Hopefully it will give a good effect!

Assignment 001 - Mind Control Technology

Write a 300 - 500 word article that tells the audience about a recent multimedia technology that is being or has been developed in the last six months and explain what you think the impact of this technology will have upon society.

I’ve recently been wondering... ‘How cool would it be if I could use my brain to control a game character, like Halo's Master Chief, to throw a grenade into a group of brain eating zombies whilst taking out a large vehicle with a massive bazooka?’ Whilst looking up ‘thought control’, ‘mind control’ and ‘how to take over the world in 80 days’ on Google, I came across an article _[1] that hinted at Nintendo having the same idea as me. What more could you ask for? Well, could movements and emotions be processed through the same character? If so, this would be the very last hurdle in communication via text or messaging – Emotion in context. Your character smiles when you smile.

So where has this mind control technology come from? Mind control has been the next step in interactive technology after touch screen technology. Being able to manipulate objects with multiple fingers was one thing, but being able to manipulate and interact with objects using your mind is another kettle of fish! Today, touch screens can only be developed to be more accurate when pointing on a screen, or more sensitive to pressure being applied. However, by using mind control it opens up a whole new world in the development of interactive technology. Not only would using mind control technology impact society in a positive way, it could also have a negative impact.

With all new technologies questions arise - How expensive will it be? Will it run with Vista? Can I use it as a TV remote too? But these questions are all irrelevant. The real question is – ‘I control it, but can it control me?’ In answer to this question many Police forces and other law-enforcement agencies have shown an interest in using mind reading technology to replace lie-detector tests _[2]. This is proof that mind control technology could be used against its user.

Now let’s look at the brighter side of mind control technology - The positive impact it would have on society. Mind control would be a powerful tool when it comes to certain disabilities. Medical researchers believe that mind control technology could be used by patients to control the next generation of prosthetic limbs _[3], or to give stroke victims new ways to communicate. Patients would be able to use their minds to write sentences, draw pictures or even play games.

Now the conclusion - On one side, mind control technology could help thousands of patients across the world regain independence, bring a more realistic side to gaming and completely change the interactive world. But, there is also a darker side. Mind control technology, if in the wrong hands, could get messy.

I believe in a few years’ time, this technology will have a big impact on society as it will be continually developed and new ideas for its usage come into play. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll be writing this article using mind control technology!

[1] http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/gadgets_and_gaming/article4354041.ece

[2] http://thoughtpolice.wordpress.com/category/mind-control/

[3] http://thefutureofthings.com/articles/1004/mind-controlled-bionic-limbs.html

Dan's Pick of The Web...

Below are a few links to websites I use -

• SpoonGraphics
  http://www.blog.spoongraphics.co.uk/
  
  
• Web Designer Wall
  http://www.webdesignerwall.com/
  
  
• Vectortuts
  http://vectortuts.com/
  
  
• Nettuts
  http://nettuts.com/
  
  
• Psdtuts
  http://psdtuts.com/
  
  
• Free Stock Photos
  http://www.sxc.hu/
  
  
• Free Vector Images
  http://www.vectorportal.com/

Assignment 001

"Write a 300 – 500 word article that tells the audience about a recent multimedia technology that is being or has been developed in the last six months and explain what you think the impact of this technology will have upon society."

So where do I start? Well, the first thing to do is research multimedia technologies!

NTU Paints It...Pink?

The NTU Paints It Blue night out was so successful that they have decided to organise more events but with different colours for example - NTU Paints It Red, NTU Paints It Yellow or even NTU Paints It Rainbow Style.

I have been told the next one will be 'NTU Paints It Pink' and that it will be at Gatecrasher so, the ideas start to flow...

I've spent a few hours on my laptop, and using Gatecrasher's current logo as inspiration, I have come up with the following design -

I have used the Gatecrasher colour scheme and incorporated the dragon shape into the logo. All I need to do now is find out if they like it or not.

NTU Painted it Blue

I've just got back from the NTU Paints it Blue night out. It was really good to so many people wearing my t-shirt design! I was talking to one of the event organisers, and he said that there were roughly 200 people wearing the NTU Paints it Blue t-shirts with my design on it! All I can say is 'I wonder what colour will be next?'

The Best Whiteborad Animation

I've just found this awesome whiteboard animation. I think its one of the best by far!

The style of drawing as each person passes through the whiteboard is brilliant and it's made more enjoyable to watch due to the added humour. Enjoy it for yourself...

Narratives - Pixilation

Today we've received our first Narratives assignment - 'What is it?' I hear you ask, well, let me tell you...

The Brief
'Using the digital still camera (Canon Power Shot S3 iS) capture a sequence of frames that assumes a frame rate of 12 per second for a 30 second piece [360 shots] shoot more for safeties sake.'

So lets get started...

What do I want to get out to the course?

Not only do I want to meet some new people and pass this course (obviously) I want to find out more about animation and game design side of the course but I also want to build on what I already know about web design.

What I did on the first week...

This week has been awesome - I've been out nearly every night, played some laser quest, bowled myself to victory and danced myself to death to the sweet sounds of RnB, Dance and Drum and Bass.

I've also been to a few multimedia induction lectures this week. We made pinhole cameras out of beer cans and created 10 seconds animation using whiteboards. Below is my first attempt at the pinhole camera.

Finally a good template!

I've finally found a good template for my blog!

I'm hoping to design my own template later down the line but for now this will do.

If your interested in getting this template for yourself, download it from this site - www.eblogtemplates.com/grungy

Well, what do you know! Another competition!

The EdCam Campaign

This campaign is to help minority representation groups get involved with the union.

After all, whether a STUDENT parent, mature STUDENT, international STUDENT or post-grad STUDENT - this is Nottingham Trent STUDENTS Union - Whoever you are, we represent you!

Poster design competition, design our campaign poster and win £100 and get your poster printed!

Sounds interesting. Here is one of my ideas for the poster...

The closing date for this competition is 28th November so I'm going to have to wait a while before I get to hear if I've won or not.

I'll keep you posted!

EdCam - www.trentstudents.org

Only 4 Days to go!

I've only got four more days until I'm off to study Multimedia at Nottingham Trent University! I've joined all the facebook groups possible and decided to start a new blog of my time at NTU. So here we go...

Last week I came across a website that had a t-shirt contest going so I thought I'd have a go since the prize was a t-shirt with your design on and 5 free drinks! Yep, 5 free drinks could go a long way! I designed 2 different ideas and emailed them both -

A few days after me emailing my designs in I had an email back saying...

'thanks for the designs, look fab ;), and if your happy to, id love to hire you to do designs for my future events?, and off course paid...'

The first thing that came to my head after reading this was that (possibly) hundreds of freshers could be wearing my design and what a chat up line that could be!

I'm not even at Uni yet but still making my mark!

NTU Paints it Blue - www.ntugoesblue.info