Creating portrait in Adobe Illustrator

For the latest unit in my BTEC media course, I was given the task to create a portrait of myself using the vector graphics on Adobe illustrator. This task was to help understand the software and the difference between Vector graphics and Raster graphics. Images which are made of multiple pixels are named raster graphics. Vector graphics are made of patterned mathematical equations. While most Adobe softwares can handle Raster and Vector Graphics, it is more reliable if a user were to use Vector graphics on Illustrator because it is a primary function on that software. Raster Graphic are more convent to use in Photoshop because of the large size that a high definition file needs.

In this blog I will discuss and explain the steps taken to create my self portrait onto Adobe Illustrator.

Step 1: The first step was to take a picture of myself using Apple's photo booth program. I saved the image I had taken and opened it onto Adobe Photoshop.

Step 2: The second step was to use the transparent tool and change the transparency up so the photograph of myself fades in, allowing me to have a clear view when I draw and paint over the photograph of myself.

Step 3: I then used the pen tool to select the outline of my face, to do this I dragged the mouse around my face in the photogragh.

Step 4: The forth step of this task was to use the 'Eyedropper tool' which is used to sample the colour of my complextion, this was to make my cartoon self more familer to the skin tone in the photograph.

Step 5: The next thing I did was to fill the area of my pen tool with the couler I had selected with the eyedrop tool.

Step 6: The next step was to draw the other features (eyes, nose, lips and hair) of my face with the pen toll and colour them in.

 Step 7: The final step was to draw my clothes using the pen tool and colour them in using the customised colour tool.

Poster Analyise

For my BTEC level 3 media graphics unit I was given a task to analyse several different film and/or television posters. In this blog I will discuss what each poster represents and what is the posters target audience. I shall also explain why I have chosen these posters and how they will share simulates to my own work.

Boardwalk Empire
This is a wide poster for the HBO period crime drama Boardwalk Empire.  The is covered by the programme's main characters, appearing on the boardwalk, which is used as the shows primary location. The poster has a verity of colour, for instance the charractors on the left side are shown in the light, meanwhile the cast on the right are in the darkness, this could suggest a sepration of good and evil, or this could suggest that the characters behind are predators hunting the prey in front of them; this meaning that life on the boardwalk is so dangerous that it's primal. All the persons shown on the cover are looking in different directions, giving us a brief idea of their motives and intentions. For example, the man on the front is suggested to be the main character, he is shown with his fists clenched and has his partner wrapped around his arm, this shows that the character is protective of whatever he owns, his partner, his money, even his clothes, as they are shown to be immaculate and well presented. The young man behind them stares towards the right side of the poster, which is in the eye line of the middle aged man that walk beside him. The young man appears to be reaching for a weapon, attempting to protect the couple in front from the man walking towards them. Meanwhile in the far right corner we see three men standing in a semi-circle. They appear to be discussing something about the character who is walking in front of them, One of these three man seems to be hiding a gun, perhaps to sell or to use against the man they appear to be after. In the background we see lights that advertise the entertainment on the boardwalk, we see high brow nightlife such as ' The Supperclub' and low brow acts such as 'The Human Cannonball' this show the contrast on life on the boardwalk and can also represent the social standing of the characters present, and is also used as a reference to 1920's America. The title is decorated with the light bulbs that represent the nightlife of the boardwalk, this could suggest that the boardwalk is a fugazi, trying to hide it's true colours just like the programs characters. Because Boardwalk Empire is a television show and not a film the information regarding it's release is more specific, people do not only need the premier date, but also the time and channel, which are both presented on this poster. The target audience for this poster would be adults because of it's dark use of colours and theme, I also think this would attract a young adult audience (15-19) because of the glitz and glamor of it's historical settings.

The Godfather
This is a portrait poster for the 1972 film 'The Godfather'. This film is regarded by critics and audiences alike, as one of the greatest modern cinema has to offer. From the naked eye the outline and design for this poster looks very simple and basic, however the themes and emotions portrayed on the poster alone are complex, which reflex the film perfectly.
The colours used in the poster are dull, and have a rustic feel to them, as if they were referencing classic early 1900's cinema. The contrast between light and dark around the character shown could suggest that he is a good and honest man who is surrounded by evil and horror, or it can also tell the audience that this man is a leader because the spotlight is always on him. If one was to look in more detail, we could see that most of his features are silhouetted by the darkness, half of his face is in the darkness, suggesting he is either a liar, traitor or corrupt (two-faced). The man's eyes are also blacked out, indicating that he is a mysterious person who has concealed himself from others, which evokes the phase 'The more you see, the less there is". This individual clearly has a history and a unconventional lifestyle, and as the audience we are there to observe that. The title of the film is painted in a light bronze colour, implying wealth. Above we see a logo which displays a hand holding a handing which is used to control strings. This insinuates the idea that 'The Godfather' is a puppeteer; pulling on all the stings, controlling peoples movements and decisions to benefit himself. The tag line presented at the bottom of the poster reads, "I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse." Not only is this line a statement used in popular culture, but is also a line that tells us a great deal about the character is a few words, It confirms he is fierce, mighty and deceptive.
I think this poster would attract a mature adult audience (30+) because it's more subtle and dense than most film advertisements.

GoodFellas 
This is a portrait poster of the 1990 film 'GoodFellas'. The majority of the posters background is pitch black with only a V-shaped faded blue shadow, which shows up a street underneath a freeway. This could imply that the urban streets are a 'dark' and dangerous place to be. Appearing from the darkness we see three men who seem to be looking towards the audience., in a confrontational manor. Each actor is stood in the same place as there billing above them. Even though Robert De Niro is not the main character of the film, he is marketed heavily because of his fame which was peeking during the period 'GoodFellas' was released, this makes Robert De Niro the unique selling point. On the lower half of the poster we see a man lying dead in the road, we can see that he is wearing smart attire, this is clearly indicating that this film is part of the gangster genre and the harsh use of the violence throughout the film.
The films target audience for this poster will be aged from 16-50, and a largely male crowd, I believe this because of the violence portrayed in the poster. The films main unique selling points are the director, Martian Scorsese who is well recognised in the film industry and is known for his previous gangster films such as 'Mean Streets'.  Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci are also well known in this genre.

Taxi Driver 

This is a portrait poster for the 1976 film 'Taxi Driver'. The poster of this film has the effect of an caves illustration. The effect of this creates a parallel world in that the protagonist is suck in trying to escape into a purer world. Behind the man we see a taxi cab, I believe that the taxi resembles loneliness in this poster, The character feels need to stand in close proximity to the taxi, this could suggest that the taxi offers comfort and sanctuary to the protagonist. Another form of loneliness shown in the poster is shown by the empty streets and the darkness that surrounds the main character.
The unique selling point of this poster is Robert DeNiro. He is billed above the title, this is to grab the audiences attention, before they know anything about the film. The target audience for this film poster would be aged between 18-45, I think the aged look of the poster would put off a younger audience, however the references to film noir would attract people who are into classic cinema.


In conclusion, all of these posters are within the crime/drama genre which my poster will also fall into. These posters also attract an adult audience, which is the same audience that I want to attract with my poster.

Different Genre Fonts

This font represents the Sci-Fi genre.  This font is well know for appearing in the Sci-fi/horror ‘Alien’ franchise. This font has a cold feel to it, which could represent death. The letting has a modern appeal that gives the audience an idea of the future.  The shapes in the lettering looks like reptile eyes which give the viewer a brief insight into the unknown creature/alien.

This font represents the action genre. The font is bold and is spelled in capitals to give a load shouting effect.  The type of action shown in this font has a military background, this could represent war, which suggests why the ‘action’ takes places.  This type of font is shown in the ‘Expendables’ franchise.

This font is used to represent the horror genre. Although this font is no longer widely used in mainstream media, it is know for it’s historical use. The font was first seen in the ‘Penny Dreadful’ pulp fiction; which was first published in the mid 1800’s. This font was also commonly used in the 1950-1980 ‘B-movie’ horrors. The font itself looks liquidised, with fingerprints spotted across the letters.  As if someone was bleeding against glass.

Proposal For Poster

James Fletcher                      30/09/14

Proposal for Creative Media Production Project:
For my creative media production project I will be creating a film poster for a crime/drama film. 

Format and Medium: My project will be a print movie poster, The main poster will be in a portrait format, while my teaser poster will be in a landscape format, it is important that my poster is in a portrait format because it will later be used on a Blu-ray sleeve which is 135mm wide and 171.5mm high.

Sector: The sector for my film will be film marketing, many techniques that will be used to market a film, a poster is a crucial part of the marketing process, poster my be seen at cinemas, or on buses, billboards and newspapers and magazines.

Working Title: The Inferior.

Genre: Crime/Drama, Similar to GoodFellas, Taxi Driver, Boardwalk Empire and The Godfather.

Intended audience and age: The target audience for this poster would be aged over 16 and would largely be male, because of the crime theme it has more appeal to males because it features the themes of greed and vengeance.

Summary Of Content: When a working man has been laid off, and no one to turn to, he turns to a loan shark, but ends up in dept. He needs to get the money by any means necessary or he will pay with his life.

Summary of Style: The poster for this film will be a cross between the style of 'Taxi Driver',  'Goodfellas', mixed with some imagery from the HBO series 'Boardwalk Empire'.

Legal and ethical considerations: For my poster I will need to follow some legal restrictions so I don't upset or offend the audience. For example the British Board Film Classification (BBFC) restriction will need to be applied, so the audience knows what age the film is appropriate for.

                                           My BBFC Film Rating:

- Strong Violence (if my film would contain graphic or in detail violence frequently then it could only be passed at a '18' rating, however strong violence can be passed at a lower rating if it justified by it's context, E.G, War. because it is not appropriate for younger audiences)

- Very Strong Language (The BBFC will label a rating depending on the language used and the frequency of it. For example if the language is strong but infrequent it may be passed at a '12A' rating. However if the language is strong and frequent then it will be passed at a '15' rating, an infrequent use of very strong language can be passed, if it's justified by it's context. An '18' rating can contain as much strong or very strong language as possible because it's only available for adults)
- Drug Taking (if a film contains drug taking, it can rated depending on the type of drug (recreational or medical) and what happens on screen, for example, if drug taking is only suggested, then it may be given a lower rating then if the drug taking was shown on screen)

Advertising Standard Authority: The ASA is the UK's independent regulator of advertising across film and television advertising. These are the guidelines I have chosen which will be needed to take into consideration into my poster.

04 Harm and offence: Rules to ensure that ads do not cause or serious or widespread offence. Induces rules relating to shock tactics, unsafe practices and photosensitive epilepsy.

- Harm and Offence: My film posters subject may be insensitive towards some viewers, So I will need to make sure the imagery isn't too graphic or offensive. No violence, strong language, nudity or drug taking is allowed in my film poster.

03 Misleading advertising: A key and extensive section of the codes, containing rules such as substantiation (evidence to prove claims): pricing, the use of the word 'free'; availability of products, comparisons, testimonials and more.

- Misleading Advertising: My film poster will need to show that the film is a work of fiction and is not a documentary or any real life story, my poster will also need to make the audience understand the theme of the film, and not uses any bright colours that could attract younger children to the film.

Skin Smoothing On Photoshop

Before                                      

After:

For my graphics unit I was given the task to create a computer altered image on photoshop. These images are a before and after screenshot of the image, this task was to prove how the media will change images to create that "Perfect Image".  The industry will use photoshop to change the way people look, because to sell something, we need to perfect image.

Step 1:
The first step of this task was to remove the spots from the women's face. To do this we used the spot healing tool, and clicked on the area's with spots to remove them.

Step 2:
The second step was to duplicate a new layer, We then used the smart blur.

Step 3:
Our third task was to make the image less blurry from the smart blur. For this task we used the eraser tool.

Step 4:
The final task was to covert this photograph from a photoshop file into a jpeg file, so the photograph can be uploaded onto my blogger account.