Carlin, M, (2010), Tips for Making an Awesome Showreel, [Online] Available from
http://www.fuelyourmotionography.com/tips-for-making-an-awesome-showreel/ Accessed on 12.04.2011
Darkin, C, (2010), Stunning Showreels, [oniline], available from http://www.computerarts.co.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/575950/cap84_tut_reel.pdf accessed on 15.04.2011
Eccher, C, Hunley, E and Simmons, E, (2005), Professional Web design:techniques and templates, Cengage Learning
Jorodn, P, (2007), Digital Media, Career FAQ, Australia
Meyer, C and Meyer, T, (2010), Ceatign Motion Graphics with After Effects, 5th Edition: Essential and Advanced Techniques, Focal Press, London
Meyer, C and Meyer, T, (2009), After Effects Apprentice, Focal Press, London
Nicholson, B, (2006), Effective Websites for Artists and Art Groups, Lulu Press
Syed, H, (2004), A Complete Introduction to the World of Web Design: A Visual Approach, Lulu Press Inc, USA
Thompson - Lecky, G, (2007), Video Game Design Revealed, Charles River Media
Vest, J, Crowson, W and Pochran, S, (2004), Exploring Web Design (Design Exploration), Delmar
Williams, R and Tollett, J, (2005), The Non-Designer's Web Book: an easy guide to creating, designing and posting your own website, Peachpit Press
Monday, 9 May 2011
Sunday, 8 May 2011
Feedback
Finally I had finished my website, troubleshot all of the problems and now I wanted to go to all of the websites I had joined to get feedback.
Most of the feedback I got was good so I was very pleased, the ones that weren't that good were even more helpful as they pointed to things I could change such as the font on the profile page, many people thought was too decorative so I changed that to a simpler font, they also thought that I should make the home page graphic larger which I did as well.
Conclusion
Overall this unit has taught me a lot of skills and software that I had little or no knowledge of before such as AfterEffects, iWeb and WebEasy, I really enjoyed using the AfterEffects software and will be incorporating it more into my future work. I'm very pleased with the finished work and can add more to the website as I complete more work.
Most of the feedback I got was good so I was very pleased, the ones that weren't that good were even more helpful as they pointed to things I could change such as the font on the profile page, many people thought was too decorative so I changed that to a simpler font, they also thought that I should make the home page graphic larger which I did as well.
Conclusion
Overall this unit has taught me a lot of skills and software that I had little or no knowledge of before such as AfterEffects, iWeb and WebEasy, I really enjoyed using the AfterEffects software and will be incorporating it more into my future work. I'm very pleased with the finished work and can add more to the website as I complete more work.
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
Final changes
After some advice from my tutors, I removed the showreel page and merged the profile page with the contact page on my website, although reluctant at first as the site was almost done, I think these changes greatly improved the site. The changes also meant there was now room on the website to showcase the graphic novel. I also added the comic version of my graphic novel on the website as I thought this a good example of my work.
Finally I also changed the size of my gallery images and added an easier page navigation.
Finally I also changed the size of my gallery images and added an easier page navigation.
Friday, 29 April 2011
Uploads
Once I felt I had the website and showreel more or less complete, I researched and found a webspace provider and domain name package that suited and began the process of publishing my site to the web.
I bought the domain name http://www.jdohertyart.com/
Originally I wanted to use iWeb to complete and upload the website, however I needed to be able to finish the website shortly and had no access to the programme so I looked around and found a programme called WebEasy which was similiarly intuitive and didn't take too long to learn.
Before long I had uploaded my website and embedded the showreel onto it. I had to embed the showreel in .flv format as for some reason it would not work with .mov or .mp4.
There were a few other issues such as the profile page not scrolling properly and the page resolution being incorrect that it took a while to sort out but eventually it was completed.
Below are the final pages...
I bought the domain name http://www.jdohertyart.com/
Originally I wanted to use iWeb to complete and upload the website, however I needed to be able to finish the website shortly and had no access to the programme so I looked around and found a programme called WebEasy which was similiarly intuitive and didn't take too long to learn.
Before long I had uploaded my website and embedded the showreel onto it. I had to embed the showreel in .flv format as for some reason it would not work with .mov or .mp4.
There were a few other issues such as the profile page not scrolling properly and the page resolution being incorrect that it took a while to sort out but eventually it was completed.
Below are the final pages...
Saturday, 23 April 2011
Music
Once I had the showreel more or less locked down, I needed to start focusing on the music I would use.
I looked at several websites which had royalty free music such as...
http://www.openmusicarchive.org/
http://www.opsound.org.org/
http://www.jamendo.com/
http://www.soundclick.com/
http://www.sounddogs.com/
Many of their samples were 60 secs long at least but there was still a good collection of 30 sec clips.
I wanted the music to compliment the images as best I could and not just be cool music for it's own sake as this would detract from the focus of the images. Many showreels I found on the internet were often overpowered by their soundtrack which was often chosen because of the artists taste in music rather than it's suitability for the piece.
This became tricky as most of the short music clips were either too short or too long and I had to stretch or edit them to make them fit, this often distorted the music too much. It was quite a search until I found a piece of music that I thought worked well, not too fast or too slow and in sync with my showreel.
I looked at several websites which had royalty free music such as...
http://www.openmusicarchive.org/
http://www.opsound.org.org/
http://www.jamendo.com/
http://www.soundclick.com/
http://www.sounddogs.com/
Many of their samples were 60 secs long at least but there was still a good collection of 30 sec clips.
I wanted the music to compliment the images as best I could and not just be cool music for it's own sake as this would detract from the focus of the images. Many showreels I found on the internet were often overpowered by their soundtrack which was often chosen because of the artists taste in music rather than it's suitability for the piece.
This became tricky as most of the short music clips were either too short or too long and I had to stretch or edit them to make them fit, this often distorted the music too much. It was quite a search until I found a piece of music that I thought worked well, not too fast or too slow and in sync with my showreel.
Adjustments
I made a few minor adjustments to the showreel such as the images used. I chose a few images that I didn't originally select and removed some of the ones I did. I did this because I felt that I although I had to be as focussed as I could on the field I wanted to enter, I also had to show a range within that field so that potential employers/clients could see I was adaptable. I paid attention to Lecky-Thompson (2007) who explains that a showreel needs to show a scope of style and images as there is just as broad a range of clients as there are styles of art. (p214).
I also removed the more cartoon like images from my showreel as I thought that even though they showed a range of style, they were not my best work and instead I used them in the gallery on the website where I could showcase more work.
I wanted to include more images but I couldn't enter any more into the 30sec showreel without making the images that are included already go by too quickly. Most showreels lasted around 3-4 minutes but then most professional showreels had far more art to choose from.
I also removed the more cartoon like images from my showreel as I thought that even though they showed a range of style, they were not my best work and instead I used them in the gallery on the website where I could showcase more work.
I wanted to include more images but I couldn't enter any more into the 30sec showreel without making the images that are included already go by too quickly. Most showreels lasted around 3-4 minutes but then most professional showreels had far more art to choose from.
Sunday, 17 April 2011
After Effects
After Effects was something I had used very briefly a long time before and it took a lot of practice to to get to a point where I was happy with the results.
The animations as mentioned in my previous post I wanted to keep simple such as zooms, fades and side scrolls. The more flashy effects I tried with the artwork the more the focus was taken away from them and as Darkin (2010) states "The focus of the showreel must be on the artwork and not on the effects." [online Computer Arts]. I thought this was vital and that anything to visible in the way of effects would detract from the art itself.
For some of the pieces I decided that it would look good in the showreel if the centrepieces of the art appeared before the rest of the piece so I made layers in Photoshop and tested out how that would look before adding the effect to my final showreel.
The animations as mentioned in my previous post I wanted to keep simple such as zooms, fades and side scrolls. The more flashy effects I tried with the artwork the more the focus was taken away from them and as Darkin (2010) states "The focus of the showreel must be on the artwork and not on the effects." [online Computer Arts]. I thought this was vital and that anything to visible in the way of effects would detract from the art itself.
For some of the pieces I decided that it would look good in the showreel if the centrepieces of the art appeared before the rest of the piece so I made layers in Photoshop and tested out how that would look before adding the effect to my final showreel.
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