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[threetwo-oneseven]

meet multiply

final project, 111121

Inspiration

The final project's inspiration came mostly from a business idea that a partner and myself had when I was younger—since both of us were already knee-deep in working for others, why not explore trying it out for ourselves with the skills we already have? As university went on, we've continued to do client work on a freelance basis; however, it would be nice if it was represented (and incorporated) as a brand. Thus, Multiply was born—because clients always want to multiply their engagement numbers for every single project we took on.

Logo development

I was heavily inspired by simple, minimal icons to represent something larger (there's a UX term for this which I'm totally forgetting—think of it like how the 'save' icon still remains as a floppy disk). The first thing that came to me was to play with the 'x' symbol, which is something that commonly represents multiplication. Soon after, I did try to see whether there was a way to seamlessly combine a titular 'M' and the multiplication symbol together; after a few hours sketching and toying around with shapes on Illustrator, I finally settled on the current symbol, which mainly forms an M, but also represents an x using the negative space.

Colours

The decision of an appropriate colour palette was arguably the most challenging part of this process. As I aimed for a clean general outlook, I avoided colours that would immediately be stunning (such as those with lighter hues). I wanted some sort of pastel-y feel in the overall palette, however I did know to keep in mind the presence of contrasting and accent colours so that future design elements would not be lost within each other. I eventually settled on working with a green base—a colour proven to be quite easy on the eyes, and individually working the other colours from there using the Adobe Colours website tool.

Typography

The decision for typography, in comparison, was easy. There was no possible way that I would've wanted a serif font as I wanted to portray a more youthful overall outlook. I've taken care to find two sans-serif fonts with at least one distinct quality. For Multiply's case, I judged the selection based on the individual shapes of the lettering. The selection of Poppins and Bio Sans complements each other well here as the former is more circular, while the latter is more boxy, thus avoiding visual fatigue by providing an appropriate contrast.

Collaterals

These were the most fun to do! The first thing I kept in mind when designing these to was—other than following brand guide regulations—understanding how the end-user would see and interact with these collaterals in real life. Here, I prioritised the development of the layout first so that all the information flows in a logical manner, and the info with higher importance gets the appropriate contrast they deserve. For example, readability was definitely an integral part in developing the resume, and I've taken care to put the most important info (experience and education) on the section which takes up the most space in the resume.

[threetwo-oneseven]

over the utown bridge

in-lecture exercise f, 270921

Isn't this sunset beautiful? I've used this photo many-a-times as a backdrop for some inspirational captions whenever I feel the need for self-motivation. Sadly, this isn't the natural photo; I've had to pump up the saturation a little bit to bring out its true colours.

A: This forms the majority of the sky in the photo, and is supposed to represent serenity and peace.

B: This is a transitory colour that forms the contrast between the blue sky and orange sun-tinted clouds.

C: This forms the accent colour and is the most striking amongst all the others in the palette, conveying a feeling of passion.

D: This represents the brightest hue out of all the colours and represents the warmth that comes through from the sun.

E: This (very dark) green colour represents the shadow-tinted foliage in the foreground, and serves to contrast the other four bright hues.

[threetwo-oneseven]

the rundown on eurovision

assignment 3, 141021

For this assignment, I chose to do an infographic on Adobe Illustrator on one of the things that mean the most to me: an annual song contest held on an entirely different continent that's resulted in the likes of Céline Dion and ABBA garnering massive fame. That, my friends, is the Eurovision Song Contest.

Information Breakdown and Organisation

Info-wise, I aimed for this to be a quick rundown of the basic information that someone might need before watching the contest, especially if they are entirely new to it. Certain key associations need to be made, namely:

1) How much impact has Eurovision had on a global audience

2) What are the most famous artists of recently and yesteryear

3) What are the crucial "need-to-knows" before diving right in

It is with these three key associations that I've sectioned off the infographic, ultimately giving each of them the appropriate amount of space that is needed to present these information in a graphic-driven, easy-to-digest manner. These, along with the main title and body copy, are arranged neatly in a way that flows from one section to another, with no sectional overlaps.

Typography and Visual Hierarchy

To accompany the relatively modern feel of the contest today, I have chosen to rely on sans-serif fonts (Bio Sans and Lato), and played with various font weights and sizes in order to achieve visual hierarchy. While this is present throughout each of the sections, it is most evident in the "By The Numbers" section—the incorporation of a variety of font weights and sizes makes for each statistic to stand out on its own whilst providing crucial information.

Art Style and Execution

Building up on the previous Assignment 1 on abstraction, I have chosen to do a similar approach when it comes to presenting real-life elements, such as the map of Europe (and Australia) as well as the figures of certain famous winners. Each of these are shapes that were painstakingly created using the pen tool, and filled in with colours that matched certain reference pictures. The same techniques were also applied to create the icons in the "Five Fast Facts" section. To assist me on this, I've made use of multiple artboards to create these images in a larger scale before finally arranging them on their set positions in the latest prototype.

Responses from Critique

Presenting various numerical facts in the "By The Numbers" section was initially quite tricky, and a rearrangement had to be done for the final prototype submission. The usage of Illustrator's align tools, coupled with the 'Create Outline' tool, helped greatly in this aspect. Furthermore, I have also introduced an interactive element through the form of scannable Spotify codes, allowing readers to listen to the music that has won the song contest in the "Notable Winners" section.

[threetwo-oneseven]

con tact less

assignment 2, 071021

Con tact less is a simple story about a man who has ordered food delivery through his phone, and afterwards proceeded to collect his food from the roadside area. However, it seems that his delivery has been severely delayed. After waiting at the roadside for a long period of time, he goes back home and realises that his food had actually been delivered to his doorstep through contactless delivery—he had been wasting his time by waiting at the roadside.

It was important for me in the development of this storyboard to have each frame contain a main point that continually drives the story. To do this, I've also included a variety of shot angles and framing choices in the storyboarding process in order to convey the main points of each frame. For example, over-the-shoulder shots were used to highlight when specific items were used (e.g. the phone and the watch), close-up shots were used to highlight the character's emotions, and far shots were used to establish a change in setting. Notes on the character's emotions were also highlighted in the storyboarding and were exaggerated when possible, which was a challenge during the actual shoot considering there were scenes when he had to be masked up.

Mise-en-scene plays also very heavily in the development of the shot sequence. The first three frames were set in the character's home setting, the next three at the roadside, and the final three just outside the character's home in the nighttime—showing the significant passage of time that has happened in the midst of the story. Furthermore, I had to make sure to minimise any other items in the each frame's setting that may be considered distracting and could detract one's attention to the main point of each frame (e.g. colourful pillows on the couch, other people waiting by the roadside).

A particular mise-en-scene approach was a consideration that arose during the critique process of this assignment—the time of day of the final three frames. While I did attempt to show the passage of time in the story through the use of Frame 6 (the phone and the watch), it was not entirely obvious that a long time had passed when it came to the setting of the final three frames. As part of the final submission, I had to retake these three photos; by showing that it is now the nighttime, it is more evident that there had been a noticeable time shift in the story between the intended food delivery collection time as well as when the character finally got to the contactless delivery.

I've made use of Adobe Illustrator to piece all of the required items in the brief together, often using the shape tool to create the borders for the storyboard frames. Different artboards were also used to organise each page in order to create a consistent flow in the assignment submission. In addition to Illustrator, I've also made use of Photoshop in order to make slight adjustments to the cropping of images, as well as to do minor editing touches (e.g. lighting, contrast) before compiling these photos in the Illustrator artboards.

[threetwo-oneseven]

mooncake season

assignment 1 , 290921

For this assignment, I have chosen to do an abstraction on the iconic mooncake boxes that are ubiquitous in Singapore during the Mid-Autumn Festival season. As an ultimate goal, I aimed to represent the mooncake boxes in the simplest form possible, whilst keeping their iconic eye-catching design.

In the first round of abstraction, I used the pen tool to painstakingly trace the notable elements of the mooncake box, the bag that it came in, as well as various background elements and shadows. While tracing, I took care not to be too detailed in tracing certain elements (e.g. inner shadows and the intricate mooncake patterns) as the presence of the transparent plastic wrapper proved a heavy challenge to replicate.

The second round of abstraction shows the simplification of irregular elements. For example, among others, flowers and tree branches were abstracted to show a simpler interpretation, such as circles and straight lines respectively. However, one shape that I have chosen not to simplify is the mooncake itself—further simplifying it to be a circle may render it difficult to be recognised as a mooncake in later stages.

In the next round, I've chosen to focus on the mooncake box itself, as well as the elements that comprise it. This involves the removal of background shadows, as well as the removal of elements that do not do a core representation of what the mooncake box represents.

For the second-to-last round, I have chosen to put more focus on the bottom half of the mooncake box (which contains the mooncakes themselves), and did a simplified interpretation through the usage of negative space. To create this, I made use of Illustrator's Perspective tool to manipulate the four mooncake boxes so to create cleaner angles. This is as, if I were to trace the mooncake boxes alone, the perspective will be warped due to how the photo is produced.

In the final abstraction, I have chosen to entirely recreate a top-down view of the mooncake box grid, comprising of two unopened and two opened mooncake boxes. To maintain the integrity and consistency of representing a mooncake box, the shape of the mooncake has remained throughout all abstraction rounds, with the Chinese characters for mooncake (月饼) a representation of the intricate designs found on these mooncakes.

[threetwo-oneseven]

that ubiquitous varsity serif

in-lecture exercise e, 130921

This looks like the blank template for a secondary school class T-shirt; one that I've been quite guilty of similarly designing. Of course, I am here in this class to learn from those mistakes.

What's wrong?

Firstly, there is a minimal attempt in hierarchy and contrast with this piece. The title is distinguished using a bolder weight and wider line spacing from the main body of text; however, beyond that, the main text appears as one huge wall. There is a lack of contrast between the title and body present from the usage of the same font type. Furthermore, the lack of subsequent paragraphing (and font emphasis) makes for a cluttered overall imagery.

Secondly, the usage of the body font type is inappropriate for its context. Its characteristics (serif, all-caps, wide kerning and letter outline style) are more suited for minimal, attention-grabbing titles. Using it as body text makes for challenging initial skim-throughs and slow overall readability as the reader has to individually distinguish each word from the cluttered paragraph.

Thirdly, the usage of center-align is a mismatch with natural English writing conventions of using left-align. The inconsistent starting points of each line break make for harder readability as the reader has to identify a unique starting point with each fresh line.

How can it be improved?

Paragraphing. The body text itself is long enough for key ideas to be split into different paragraphs, allowing for each new paragraph to be centred on a new main idea for easier interpretation of information.

Changing the font type. To establish further contrast from the title, a sans-serif font could be employed, along with having lowercase letters with tighter kerning (and preferably without the letter outline style). Changing the font type distinguishes the information in the body from the title, making for easier readability.

Left-align. For the reader to easily read the paragraph, there needs to be consistent starting points for each line break. Furthermore, this follows the default configuration for most English writing conventions.

[threetwo-oneseven]

say hi to sharky

in-lecture exercise d, 060921

This is Sharky, my stuffed BLÅHAJ toy bought from IKEA roughly five years ago. For the most recent part of my life, he's been here to accompany me through life's best and worst moments—and now he's featured in this composition assignment.

I took a few photos of him in his natural habitat.

This is a shot of Sharky sitting by himself on the UTown suite table. I wanted to compose this in such a way that he stands out evidently alone (and lonely). Here, I used a long shot that shows his surroundings—devoid of other people—and its muted colours also allows Sharky to stand out as a focal point. I've also applied the rule of thirds here so that the viewer will be drawn to the brighter area of the room (where the light is, and thus where Sharky is).

In this photo, I've chosen to put Sharky front and centre and angled the camera to form a low angle shot. Here, I wanted to convey the dominance of something erratic that people won't see everyday: a shark plush toy eating and drinking like a human. The usage of a low angle also indicates a sense of power with Sharky, showing that a toy is able to take on the scenarios of what humans normally do.

Here, I wanted to amplify the cuteness of Sharky by purposefully choosing a low angle shot, giving him a sense of vulnerability from the viewer's perspective. His eye, which is one of the characteristics that makes him have a vacant, blank look, is also framed with the rule of thirds in mind. This, along with the usage of natural side lighting, highlights the adorableness that I aimed to convey to viewers.

I wanted to capture Sharky in a slightly more dramatic, intimidating angle, which is why I've chosen this Dutch angle and close up shot. The tilted angle, that initially aimed to create a sense of unease in the viewer, has allowed Sharky to take on a more vertical position which is akin to how sharks stereotypically jump out of the water when attacking prey—which doubles down on the feeling of unease. The close up also allows the viewer to focus on Sharky's characteristics and nothing else, with him comprising around a third of the entire frame.

[threetwo-oneseven]

that one heinz bottle

in-lecture exercise c, 300821

I mean, they're right. No one does grow ketchup like Heinz.

This is a print advertisement about Heinz Tomato Ketchup—a ubiquitous staple of any American roadside restaurant. In this ad, we see what appears to be fresh tomato slices stacked atop each other, with a noticeably wider base and thinner top; the slices themselves evidently come from a bunch of differently-sized tomatoes. On the side facing the reader, we see the Heinz Tomato Ketchup label pasted, sliced in the same manner as the tomatoes that are behind them.

On a whole, we can see that the main sign is this stack of tomatoes with the awkwardly-sliced label. What it signifies, however, is the form of a glass Heinz ketchup bottle that the stack of tomatoes takes on. The main message of this advertisement is that Heinz uses a multitude of fresh tomatoes (with perhaps no other additives) when they make their ketchup.

[threetwo-oneseven]

critiquing my spotify playlist covers

in-lecture exercise b, 160821

For this exercise, I have chosen the single cover of the song that was playing in the midst of starting this blog post: So Close (feat. Captain Cuts & Georgia Ku) by NOTD and Felix Jaehn.

Description

This single cover is a digital artwork done up in a 1:1 ratio. Conceptually, it consists of a dark, presumably back alley setting in an East Asian country, which is illuminated by neon, cinema board and dot matrix signs. “NOTD” and “Felix Jaehn” are spelled out in the neon lights, atop a cinema board indicating “So Close”, which in itself is atop a red matrix showing “Georgia Ku” and “Captain Cuts”. Off to the left of the foreground, there is a woman barely illuminated by the aforementioned signs, looking up to the signs.

Analysis

On first glance, the main focal point of this single cover is the cinema board sign, which is illuminated in white; this is in stark contrast to the rest of the cover which is presented with a largely black overtone. This draws attention to the name of the single, “So Close”.

A secondarily eye-catching point also lies in the neon lights just above the cinema board, which spells out the two main artists of “NOTD” and “Felix Jaehn”. While their font size remains similar to that of “So Close”, it does not draw immediate attention as the neon highlights barely stand out against the dark pink base of the board.

Presented in an even darker dot matrix design, the featured artists “Georgia Ku” and “Captain Cuts” are less obviously seen. The usage of a subtle red tone almost makes it seamless with the overall dark overtones of the single cover, save for the thin, bright red font of the featured artists.

The background in itself—which includes the woman in the foreground, as well as the back alley setting—does not have any obvious highlights, and serves more to establish and complete the overall context of the single cover.

Interpretation

One of the main goals of single and album covers is to provide information of either the song or the album when presented as part of a playlist (or less commonly, physical discs). By presenting the details of the composition clearly as part of the cover—in this case, by using a visual contrast of light and darkness—listeners can easily identify the song title and artists just from a quick look of the cover.

"So Close” in itself is a tropical house song; contrary to what the name suggests, the tropical house genre has gained stark popularity in clubs, bars and nightlife establishments from around 2014–2018. With the song initially released at the height of tropical house’s popularity, the choice of setting in the single cover is very much apt for the settings that the song would be popular in.

Judgment

While the single artwork, presented alone, conveys the necessary information about the single in a short amount of time, this artwork alone may not be distinctive enough to present the song’s credits—especially if placed among other single covers in a playlist or in a physical shop.

The artwork’s main focal point—the cinema board—takes up roughly a sixth of the available space in the canvas, which may present issues in instant identification due to its small size. Furthermore, single covers are usually presented in a minuscule format when users scroll through playlists; having a focal point this small would render the details in the artwork near impossible to read without any external aids.

[threetwo-oneseven]

the productivity machine

in-lecture exercise a, 090821

It’s tough to be productive look productive to others in today’s world, where productivity is measured by how much quality work one can output in a given amount of time. Of course, with each person handling a different role in society, productivity is subjective and contextual. As a student, our most important measure of productivity is completing our given assignments and tasks within a deadline to the best of our abilities (or rather, to the best of how a lecturer/tutor feels about it). If I were to grow up before the dawn of agriculture, I would probably measure it with the amount of animals I hunt, but I digress.

When coming up with my productivity machine, it’s tough not to look beyond what is already familiar and making slight improvements to facilitate my own productivity. After all, what is the use of coming up with something so dreamy when you’re already productive with what little you have? The main idea of this machine is to condense all of my personal conveniences together: coffee, music, and checking myself out in the mirror. For me, this works, and that’s what counts.

Through this machine, I effectively eliminate my main enemies against productivity, which is essentially any activity that coerces me to leave my desk. Want coffee? There’s always a fresh cup brewing on your side. Need some ambient sounds? There’s a surround sound ensuring that you’re not feeling that loneliness set in. Worried about how you look like (yes, this is a real concern!) when doing work? Just have a cursory glance and you’ll have the answers you need!

The table also comes with a free sketch zone. I wouldn’t consider myself an active doodler; however, I am a visual learner. This zone allows me to lock down ideas and put them into concrete sketches, which I would tend to remember a lot more than just words on a paragraph.

Is this productivity machine basically just a desk? Critics would say yes, of course. However, the main idea of this exercise is to see whether there would be a machine that suits the type of productivity necessary at this current state—and this machine would definitely do a good job at it.