Tutorials, Links etc

Teachers

Markup workshop for instructors

Students

Color Theory and Design

Basicshapesswf.html Creating and manipulating basic shapes in Photoshop, streaming video

Drawing and Perspective

Drawing in 2 point perspective 10 min
The sighting technique and still life. 20 min
Basic forms in 3 point perspective. 20 min
Drawing shadows, cube and cylinder. 6 min

Note for the video tutorials:Audio and video controllers are located below the screen. This isn't streaming, it's a progressive load, and there may be delays in loading depending on your connection. If the video hiccups, wait until you see the green line get a little longer before you play, or take a short break and come back - and it will be fully loaded.

Misc

On the topic of the subjective nature of perception, or how cultural context impacts our perceptions, here's a neat article by one of Albers' students that deals with that topic.

http://www.rit.edu/

3 Strategies for compositions

Cluster smaller shapes - this can add an element of emphasis to an area

Asymmetry - delete some shapes from one area, add to another, to add more movement and dynamic thrust to the composition

Reference the frame - you can have shapes go off/beyond the edge, referencing a world beyond the picture plane

Perception http://www.edge.org

http://www.powstock.com/ Free stock photos

Tips on downloading and installing fonts
Pacific beach: critiquing designs
template screenshots - premade templates for u to use in projects from various programs
Why posting requirements?
What is a screenshot?
Compositional balance and weight short video
presentation notes tips on labeling, with examples, PDF
For more tutorials go to digitaltutors.com or Lynda.com

The relationship between MUSIC and DESIGN elements

A drawing is very similar to a musical composition - I often envision a graphic equalizer when looking at work.

Next time you look at your drawing imagine the sliders of an equalizer- does it need more 'bass'? add more darks...does it need more mid-tones? Weave the values through the composition. Does it need more treble? look at the proportion and use of your whites.

A composition or song is held together by the "backbeat" - which can be a number of things, such as repeated lines and shapes. The rhythmic breakup of background shapes or negative space often can be considered the bass and drums of the visual composition. For example, by subdividing the negative space and adding background elements you provide the equivalent of a high hat, a percussive visual element that provides direction for the eye to follow through the composition. Texture does the same thing. And just as many people don't listen for the high hat when listening to a song, so the background might not be the first thing viewers notice when looking at a design.

Scale - Does a lead guitar play all through the song? Usually not. So in the drawing the object to be emphasized can be partially hidden, overlapped, or made smaller (or larger) to emphasize its role in the viewer experience.

The relationship between line quality and tone - a thin contour line is like an acoustic guitar lead, a fat dark line like a backup guitar playing its lo E string with a grungy effects fuzz.

There are a lot of other similarities and comparisons - see if you can use them in the next drawing.