Learning Objectives:

Students will demonstrate proficiency with Adobe Illustrator shape modification tools
Students will show understanding of figure/ground relationships

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Notes:

Notan
Japanese design concept that focuses on the harmonious arrangement of light and dark in a composition.

Figures on Ground

This illustration is an example of white figures on a black ground.

The white key figures have the most visual weight in the composition and are not interacting with the ground.

Maintaining a 50/50 visual balance between figure and ground is key to your Notan design.

Notan Square Expansion

In the Notan Square Expansion exercise, the goal is to maintain a “dichotomy of attention,” or a 50/50 balance between the figures and the ground in the design.

This balance is created by cutting shapes from the inside of the the square and reflecting them along the axis of and outside edge. Of the square.

Your design can be symmetrical or asymmetrical.

If you don’t add or take anything away, your result will  always be a 50/50 balance.

Notan Design Rule 1:

You can only use black and white.

Notan Design Rule 2:

You must have a theme. This student’s theme was hockey.

Notan Design Rule 3:

No cut shapes can be deleted or added. Look carefully at this example and notice how every shape is reflected across the design. Your goal is to “destroy” the square and create a “dichotomy of attention” between the white and black shapes.

Notan Design Rule 4:

Every shape that is cut from the interior must be reflected equidistantly across the axis line of the nearest edge from which it was cut.

Notan Design Rule 5:

You must explore 2 levels of expansion outward and/or back inward to increase the complexity and interest of your design. Varying scales of shapes will help you achieve this.

Read more about Notan in composition at artist,
Mitchell Alba’s website.

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Getting started
• Complete Exercise 1 BEFORE starting Project 1 to learn the tools.
• Complete the required sketches before beginning in Illustrator
• Carefully review the project sheet to make sure you fulfill all requirements and read over important project tips.
• Contact Erin at Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu with any questions.

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Project:

Use the skills you learned in Exercise 1 to create a complex square expansion composition that illustrates the Japanese dark-light principle of design, Notan. Through the composition process you will improve your skills with the shape modification tools in Adobe Illustrator. Review the Exercise 1 demo video as needed to complete this project!

The primary rule is to reflect each and every shape you cut on the opposite side of its axis along the square edge. You cannot add or delete any extra shapes to the composition.

Step 1: Project research, sketches, and document set up

Review the Project 1 Presentation on D2L.

Select a theme for Notan design. Something simple—outer space, the ocean, flowers, sports, tools, etc…

Complete 3 different black and white drawings in your sketchbook to generate ideas for possible themed shapes and the overall expanded square layout of your design. Submit jpegs of your sketches to the D2L Dropbox with the project by on due date.

On your computer, create a new Project 1 folder on your computer. Label this folder LastName_FirstName Project 1. (example: Anfinson_Erin Project 1)

Create a new, 300ppi, 11” x 11” document in Illustrator and draw a 6”x6” black filled square in the center of the page (no stroke).

Click Create and immediately save your file in the Project 1 folder as LastName_FirstName Project 1.ai (Example: Anfinson_Erin Project 1.ai).

Step 2: Develop your Digital Notan design from your sketches

Use the pencil, shape and/or pen tools to create united shapes inside the edges of the black square. Use the Divide pathfinder tool and the Reflect tool to reflect your cut-out shapes along the axis line of the edge of your square.

Continue cutting, reflecting, and expanding your square with themed shapes a minimum of 2 levels outward and/or inward until you achieve a “dichotomy of attention” between the  black and white positive and negative spaces. 

TIP: The goal is to “destroy” the dominant shape square. Start with large, bold cutouts first, medium-sized shapes 2^nd, and smaller detailed, descriptive cutouts last in the expansions.

Step 3: Wrap up your design with grouping and a custom border

When you are finished with your design, select all of your shapes and Group the together.

Center your design in the center of your artboard

Look at the overall size in the Transform window (Window > Transform) and write this size down.

Next, Resize your artboard to proportionately fit your design with a 1 1/2” border on all sides. 

Example: if the final grouped design is 8”x4”, add 3” to each side and your artboard should be 11”x7”

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Project Requirements (Assessment Criteria)

Noticeable theme is present in the design

Minimum of 2 levels of shape expansion beyond the original square

Proficiency with shape and pathfinding tools is evident in the complexity of the drawn and cut shapes.

Assignment “Rules” were followed. Any and all cut shapes are reflected across their access lines. No shapes are added or deleted.

Use of black color to fill all shapes (No visible strokes)

Achievement of a balance of “dichotomy of attention” between the black and white space in the design

The original square is successfully destroyed

Final design is grouped and centered on the artboard

Final design is correctly framed with a 1 ½” in border on all four sides

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Exporting and submitting your exercise:

When you have finished Project 1, go to File > Save As…

Next, select Adobe PDF from the format options.

In the next window, make sure “Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities” is checked!

Click Save PDF. Be sure you file is labeled correctly! LastName_FirstName Project 1.pdf (Example: Anfinson_Erin Project 1.pdf)

Don’t forget to also upload a Jpeg of your sketches!

Submit the PDF of your completed Project 1 file in the class D2L Dropbox

Project 3: Dada Digital Collage / MT Engage Signature Assignment

Learning Objectives:

Students will develop a strong collage composition using Photoshop tools that mimics the look of traditional cut-paper collage.
Students will explore contemporary themes through Dadaist absurdity
Students will demonstrate mastery of incorporating scanned images into the Photoshop workspace
Students will show creative use of digital cutting tools and non-destructive editing techniques

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Notes and Examples:

Dada Art Movement

• Founded in 1916 in war-neutral Zurich, Switzerland
• Group of artists, writers, musicians, etc.
• Founded as a reaction to WWI (1914-18).
• Artists demonstrated their revulsion of nationalism and materialistic values. Believed that bourgeois capitalism and materialism had led people to war.
• No coherent style, but works’ aesthetic was marked with a mockery of materialism and nationalism and embraced chaos and irrationality.
• Intended to offend.

Dada artist Hans Richter

“Our provocations… were only a means of arousing the bourgeoisie to rage, and through rage to a shamefaced self-awareness… Dada was a storm that broke over the world of art as the war did over the nations.. it was an artistic revolt against art.”

Collage & Photomontage

• 2 art techniques developed out of Dada
• Used photographic imagery from life
• Used paper ephemera from life
  – Transportation tickets
  – Maps
  – Receipts
  – Etc. Brainstorm contemporary examples…Digital ephemera?

Contemporary Collage Artist Examples

Student Examples

Getting Started

• Complete Exercise 3 BEFORE starting Project 3 to learn the tools.
• Complete the artist research and required sketches before beginning in Photoshop
• Carefully review the project sheet to make sure you fulfill all requirements and  read over important project tips.
• Contact Erin at Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu with any questions.

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Project:

Utilize the tools and techniques you learned in Exercise 3 to create a 8”x10” Dada-inspired digital collage. Think about a contemporary theme (social, environmental, political, etc.) that you feel strongly about to use as your subject matter and explore through the Dadaist lens of absurdity. Look for images and materials to digitally “cut and paste” together in a composition that embodies the Dada movement and mimics the look of cut paper. No translucency or blending is allowed in your collage layers.   

Step 1: Project Research & Sketches

Written research (Prepare in a Word Doc):

Review the Project 3 PowerPoint on D2L and the Dada overview at the Museum of Modern Art’s website.

Research and write about of the work of 3 different Dada or other collage/photomontage artists from the project PP and write a brief reflection about what aspects of each artists’ work you might utilize in your collage. Copy and paste 2 images of each artists’ work along with your written reflections in a Word document.

In the same Word document, write a brief reflection about a contemporary theme you will explore in your project and what subject matter (collaged imagery) you will use to illustrate that theme. Any theme (social, political, environmental, technological, etc.) can be explored through the Dada lens of absurdity! Pick something you are really engaged with!

Sketches:

Prepare 2 different composition sketches (6 ½” x 8” each) in your sketchbook. Portrait or landscape orientation is ok.

Turn in your project research and sketches to the D2L Dropbox by the due date.

Step 2: Digital Collage material requirements

Source your digital collage materials for all collage and background layers from the following:

Public domain online sources. Refer to the in the Project Tips section for guidance.

Scan/Photograph your own collage elements from real life paper ephemera

Other non-public domain sources can be used as long as you consider how transformative the change you are applying to the image are in your final collage. Refer to the Copyright, Image Appropriation and Fair Use presentation on D2L for guidance.

Step 3: Photoshop document set up

Create a new Project 3 folder on your computer. Label this folder LastName_FirstName Project 3. (example: Anfinson_Erin Project 3)

Create a new Photoshop file with the following specifications for your collage:

8”x10” (2400 pixels x 3000 pixels) for Portrait orientation or 10”x 8” (3000 pixels x 2400 pixels) for Landscape orientation

300ppi resolution

Save as LastName_FirstName Project 3.psd (example: Anfinson_Erin Project 3.psd

Step 4: Start your collage!

Following your research and image collection, start creating your Dada digital collage! Be sure to have a first draft ready for the in-progress critique on the D2L Discussion board.

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Project Requirements (Assessment Criteria)

• Evidence of composition theme and it’s relevant connection to Dada movement
• Effective composition. Is the tension and sense of absurdity heightened in your composition through the use of: Repetition, Scale changes, Placement, Proximity, Positive/Negative Space and/or Color choices?
• Use of all required types of collage materials (See requirements above)
• Collage materials are scanned and/or imported at the correct resolution for the final print document (300ppi)
• Follow the assignment “rules”
• No use of Transparency. Mimic the cut-paper look with opaque layers.
• No use of Distortion (stretching) of images
• Images only, no Photoshop Text layers, Use of text is only permitted if it is incidental and inherently part of your found collage materials
• Creative use of digital cutting tools to non-destructively mask scanned digital collage layers to create a complex composition. Are interesting connections forged between combined layers? Are there holes cut to reveal unexpected images or layers below?
• Creative use of Adjustment layers or clipped adjustment layers where needed to harmonize color, brighten/darken, and/or or make the collage elements more effective in the composition.
• Workspace organization: Labeling layers, etc.

Completion of Project 3 Self-Reflection & MT Engage Signature project ePortfolio requirements

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Exporting and submitting your Project:

Export a jpeg

When you have finished Project 3, go to File > Export > Quick Export as JPEG

In the Save As dialogue window, navigate to you Project 3 folder, label your image LastName_FirstName Project 3.jpeg (Example: Anfinson_Erin Project 3.jpeg )

Next, click Save.

Compress your Exercise files and submit via the free file transfer website, WeTransfer.com

Compress or zip your Project 3 folder containing the original Photoshop .psd file & the exported jpeg. On a Mac, select the folder and go to File > Compress “Project 3 Folder.” A .zip file will be created next to the folder

Go to WeTransfer.com, upload the .zip file, type your name and “Project 3” in the Message box, and send it to Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu

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Project Tips & Resources!

Scanning Tips:

TIP: Use this handy online calculator for help with Inches  Pixel calculations when you are evaluating your scanned and downloaded collage materials to determine their 100% scale in your final 8”x10” 300ppi Photoshop file.

For example: If you scan in a 2”x 2” piece of material at 300dpi, you cannot increase the scale of it in your composition without pixilation. Instead, scan the 2”x 2” material at 600dpi and you can scale it up to 4”x4” in your composition.

Redistribute pixels of downloaded digital images:

Open up each of your found/downloaded Public Domain images & your scanned images to redistribute the pixels to a 300ppi resolution BEFORE copying and pasting them into your 8”x10” composition. As soon as you redistribute the pixels, you will know if they are large enough for your purposes in the final collage file.

Public Domain image resources:

Regardless of what source of imagery you use, remember your appropriation images into your own work should be transformative from the original image to justify it as Fair Use.

Walker Library: Click on the Image Sources tab for links to a number of resources!

Smithsonian Open Access Collection

Metropolitan Museum of Art Open Access collection

Pexels.com

Unsplash.com

Pixabay.com

Creative Commons For CC licensed works, be sure to check what KIND of Creative Commons license is assigned to the image.

Description & Objectives:

Photograph a portrait of yourself or someone else (no selfies!) and transform it into a Black & White surrealistic environment by compositing it with found imagery in Photoshop. Use Blending Modes, Layer Masks, Gradient Layer Masks and Adjustment Layers in Photoshop as necessary to create a space that is dream-like and surrealistic. Your goal is to make the compositing as least obvious as you can. It will help to brainstorm a visual story you’d like to tell about your composited portrait, but a specific narrative is not required.

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Artists to Research:

Henry Peach Robinson, Georges Melies (early filmmaker), Jerry Uelsmann, John Brosio (painter), Erik Johannsen, Gregory Crewdson

Notes and Examples:

Early image compositing

• Image compositing and blending began in the mid 1800’s
• An early pioneer was British pictorial photographer, Henry Peach Robinson
• Robinson was best known for mastering the technique of printing multiple negatives into a single image to create a new narrative.
• This technique blurred the boundaries of painting and photography

Contemporary Examples

Practical Uses for Digital Image Compositing

• Sketches for site-specific sculpture or installations
• Visualization for professional creative opportunity proposals like gallery installations,  client proposals, or mural projects. (For example: digitally composite an image of a mural sketch on a photo of the wall where you’re proposing to paint it!)

Student Examples

Getting Started

• Complete Exercise 4 BEFORE starting project 4 to learn the tools.
• Complete the artist research and required sketches before beginning in Photoshop
• Carefully review the project sheet to make sure you fulfill all requirements and  read over important project tips.
• Contact Erin at Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu with any questions.

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Project:

Project Research Requirements (Prepare in a Word Doc)

Watch the required 5-minute video on D2L about Jerry Uelsmann.  Research and write brief reflections about Uelsmann’s work and the work of either 2 additional artists from the list mentioned above or 2 other surrealist photographers whose work you are interested in. In your written response be sure to address what aspects of each artists’ work that you might explore in your own project. Copy and paste 2 images of each artists’ work, along with your reflections, into a Word document.

In the same Word document, write a brief proposal about your idea for the project. Who will be in your portrait? What surrealistic narrative will you tell? What kind of imagery will you blend with your portrait to tell a story?

Create a B&W sketch of your composited photo composition idea in your sketchbook. Take a well-lit photo of your sketch to submit it in the D2L Dropbox with your written research.

Upload your completed research to the class D2L Dropbox by the due date.

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Tips for success:

Plan from your sketch and INTENTIONALLY photograph your portrait with the end result in mind. Use your sketch to plan the portrait pose. Good lighting is extremely important. Have your subject pose near a window, outside, or with good interior lighting.

Structure your process. Begin with the largest blended areas of your composition, and then  move on to smaller blended areas and details/embellishments.

Utilize the power of adjustment layers, to match your varied imagery.

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Project Document Specification Requirements:

Photoshop Document 8″x10,” RGB color space, 300 dpi (Pixel Dimension 2400px x 3000px)

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Project Material Requirements:

You must use the following for your composition:

Photographed portrait of yourself or someone else

Public Domain and/or other personally photographed imagery to composite from one of the sources at library.mtsu.edu/art/images or Unsplash.com

Successful projects will demonstrate and be graded on the following:

Final composited image should be Black & White (Desaturate your source images before pasting into your project)

Effective composition and effort to find interesting visual connections between the blended imagery (Formal elements of art and principles of design)

Creation of a successful surrealistic narrative (Content & Subject Matter)

Technical quality of the work

Photo composite materials are imported at the correct resolution (300ppi)      

Effective image blending through the use of Blending Modes, Layer Masks with Gradients, etc. i.e. How well does your composition fool the eye?

Effective use of Adjustment Layers and Adjustment layer masks to harmonize varied image sources where needed (brightness/contrast, levels, etc.)

Use at least 5 blended images that are from high quality image sources (personal + public domain)

Organization of your Photoshop workspace layers, etc.

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Project Submission Requirements:

Label your file LastName_FirstName_BlendedRealities.psd

Submit your Photoshop file (.psd) via WeTransfer.com to Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu  

D2L ePortfolio Project Self-Reflections

Export a 600pixel-wide Jpeg of your project file and upload it to the Project 3 self-reflection page in the class ePortfolio (Export demo video on our class D2L site in the ePortfolio section)

Complete the written self-reflection exercise in your ePortfolio by the due date. Questions are available on the class D2L site in the Project 4 folder. Copy and paste these questions into the appropriate text box in the ePortfolio template.

Label your file LastName_FirstName_BlendedRealities.psd

Submit your Photoshop file (.psd) via WeTransfer.com to Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu  

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D2L ePortfolio Project Self-Reflections

Export a 600pixel-wide Jpeg of your project file and upload it to the Project 3 self-reflection page in the class ePortfolio (Export demo video on our class D2L site in the ePortfolio section)

Complete the written self-reflection exercise in your ePortfolio by the due date. Questions are available on the class D2L site in the Project 4 folder. Copy and paste these questions into the appropriate text box in the ePortfolio template.

The comic artist, Rube Goldberg, is the only person ever to be listed in the Merriam Webster Dictionary as an adjective. … A Rube Goldberg Machine is “a comically involved, complicated invention, laboriously contrived to perform a simple operation” (Webster’s New World Dictionary).

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Project Description & Objectives

Create a 10 second animation of an Rube Goldberg Machine of your own design with a total of 3 chain reactions. The elements and composition of your machine will be created in Adobe Illustrator using the sketches as a template. All drawn elements of you final machine composition will utilize an analogous color scheme.

Minimum action sequence requirements:

Action 1 causes Action 2 to begin

Action 2 causes Action 3 to begin

Action 3 causes the final result of the machine.

TIP! Design your composition backward. What is the end action? Turning on a light switch? Starting a fan? Etc. Start at the end and use your imagination to work your way 3 ridiculous steps backward.

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Notes

Rube Goldberg:

•RUBE GOLDBERG (1883-1970) was a cartoonist, an inventor, and the only person ever to be listed in Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary as an adjective. •Of the nearly 50,000 cartoons he drew in his lifetime, Rube is best known for the zany contraptions of Professor Butts. These inventions, also known as Rube Goldberg Machines, solved a simple task in the most overcomplicated, inefficient, and hilarious way possible

•Rube Goldberg lives on in pop culture and is referenced daily in both print and digital media. His name is searchable, hash-taggable, and at best viral. But nowhere is his legacy more celebrated than through the competitions that bear his name.

Visit this link to see more examples of comics:

https://www.rubegoldberg.com/image-gallery-licensing/

Contemporary Examples

“The whole idea of a machine is outdated,” Christoph Niemann says about “Coffee Break,” his cover for this week’s issue. “I started drawing beakers and pipes, a cartoon of a machine,” he continues. “But then I decided to update the outdated technology. I put things like a Death Star, a SyQuest drive (it had a translucent case so you actually saw the disk inside, and it always made this very peculiar sound, chk chk chk chk chk), a razr flip phone (I just remember that being the hottest thing), and a ZX81. Starting at the coffee cup, you go up to the round thing, then you go left where there’s a big cog, and to the left of that there’s something that looks a bit like a typewriter–that’s the Sinclair ZX81. That was my first computer, back in maybe 1984 or ’85. It was super lightweight: you could program three lines of code and that was that. It didn’t have a monitor—you used your TV. And when you unplugged it, everything was gone because it didn’t have any way to store anything. I just loved it. I have a romantic attachment to these things—I wanted to anoint them into cartoon heaven.”

*Terry Gilliam was the animator for the Monty Python’s Flying Circus tv series (1969 – 1974). These animations were created with cut paper and stop motion. Not all of the animations are cause and effect but they may give you some inspiration for a collage-based project.

Getting Started

• Complete Exercise 4.1 & 4.2 BEFORE starting Project 4 to learn the tools.
• Complete the artist research and required sketches
• Carefully review the project sheet to make sure you fulfill all requirements and  read over important project tips.
• Contact Erin at Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu with any questions.

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Project:

Step 1: Project Research & Sketches

Review the Project 5 Power Point on D2L

Watch the required 5-minute video on D2L about Rube Goldberg. 

Research and a write brief reflections about Goldberg’s work and 2 contemporary examples of chain reaction videos, illustrations or other artwork you research from the Power Point. In your written response be sure to address what aspects of each artists’ work that you want explore in your own animated project. Copy and paste 2 images of each artists’ work or links to videos, along with your reflections, into a Word document.

In the same Word document, write a brief proposal about your idea for the project. What simple and mundane task will you create a comically complex series of 3 chain reactions to accomplish? Write a list and brief explanation for each reaction in the chain.

Create a sketch of your idea, including directional arrows and notes about the chain reactions you plan. Take a photo of your sketch to submit it in the D2L Dropbox with your written research.

Submit your completed research to the class D2L Dropbox by the due date.

Step 2:  Illustrator document set up

Create a new Project 5 Asset folder on your computer. Label this folder LastName_FirstName Project 5. (example: Anfinson_Erin Project 5)

Create a new Illustrator document with the following size specifications for your collage:

Save as LastName_FirstName Project 5.psd (example: Anfinson_Erin Project 5.psd

RGB Color Space

72ppi resolution (for screens)

Height: must be 1080 pixels

Width: between 1080 pixels – 1920 pixels. Select a size proportionate to your composition sketch. For example: Your sketch on paper is 8 ½” x 11” then Illustrator artboard would be 834 pixels x 1080 pixels. To solve, cross multiply and divide the proportions to solve for the missing pixel width dimension using this online calculator by inchcalculator.com.

Step 3:  Draw your machine in Illustrator

Using your scanned sketch/map as your guide, re-draw your Rube Goldberg machine background and elements in Illustrator.

Remember to carefully label and draw each element on your machine that is to be animated on separate layers!

Draw your machine elements like puppets with separate moving parts, if necessary.

Use an Analogous color harmony for your entire composition. Select 1 key color from the harmony and use the secondary colors as accents. Remember to fully utilize the light/dark values from each color!

Step 4: Import the Illustrator document into After Effects and animate your machine!

Follow the same procedure in Exercise 4.1 to import your Illustrator drawing into an After Effects composition.

Where necessary for animated scale change, motion paths, and/or rotations, remember to move the anchor points using the Anchor Point tool (Y) before you begin animating! 

Animate the cause and effect actions of your machine in a 10 – 15 second animation. To change the duration of your animation on the timeline, go to Composition Settings (Command K) and reset the duration in the dialogue box.

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Project Requirements (Assessment Criteria)

Machine Illustrator drawing and composition:

Overall composition effectiveness. Placement of machine parts, consideration for background elements, etc.

Effectiveness of the applied analogous color harmony

Overall stylistic consistency and approach to the machine drawing. i.e. Are the drawings tied together visually through the use of color, stroke, style, line width variation, etc?

3 total reactions must be animated:

Action 1 causes action 2 to start

Action 2 causes action 3 to start

Action 3 causes the final result of your machine (i.e. the completion of the mundane task)

Required animation techniques:

Anchor points of individual animated layers are moved to more effective placements for animated motion, scale change, and/or rotation

Use of animated motion paths with curved paths where necessary

At least 1 instances of animated rotation

At least 1 instance of animated scale change

1 use of a Parented layer (Can leave another object behind using the Split layer command (review from Exercise 4.2))

Keyframe Easing used to improve the motion on all keyframed layers (easing in/out)

Effort to explore a variety of timing and speed throughout the chain of reactions through the distance of keyframed events as related to the Principles of Animation.

Workspace organization: Labeling layers, etc.

Completion of Project 5 Self-Reflection

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Exporting and submitting your Project:

Export a looping .gif of your animation with Photoshop

Export a high quality .mov file from After Effects

In After Effects, go to Composition > Add to Render Queue

In the Queue window, open the Format dropdown menu and set to Lossless. Click on Lossless.

In Output, click on your file and navigate to your Project 5 Asset folder to save the export.

Click the Render button to render. A .mov version of your animation will be saved.

Use Photoshop to export a looping animated GIF of your animation

Open Photoshop, then open your .mov animation

Go to File>Export>Save for Web (Legacy)…

In the new dialogue box change the Preset to 128 Dither and make sure looping is set to Forever.

Hit Save and save your exported GIF to your Project 5 Asset folder.

Compress your Project 5 Asset folder and submit your project via WeTransfer.com:

Go to your Exercise 4.1 Asset  folder containing all of the following:

Project 5 Illustrator .ai file

Project 5 After Effects .aep file

Exported .mov

Exported animated .gif

Any and all included sound effects files (if used)

Right-click, Control-click, or go to File > Compress to compress or zip the folder

A .zip file will be created next to the folder

Go to WeTransfer.com, upload the .zip file, type your name and “Project 5” in the Message box, and send it to Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu

Required Software

• Adobe After Effects
• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Media Encoder

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Required Demo files (Download from the class D2L site)

• Exercise 8 AE+Photoshop Demo.ai
• 01 Micro Composition A.mp3
• All other sound effect files

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Tools and techniques covered in this demo:

• Importing files
• Navigating and animating to specific audio points on a soundtrack
• Animating to create a cause and effect sequence
• Animating properties of layers with keyframes: Anchor points, position, rotation, and scale
• Using easing keyframes
• Using Effects on single layers
• Adding sound effects
• Exporting a .mp4 movie with Media Encoder

Start by opening both After Effects and Media Encoder. Hint: close all other programs to help with memory!

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Exercise:

Part 1: Organize your files in a dedicated Asset Folder

Download the required demo file and save them in the dedicated folder on your desktop called “Exercise 8 AE+Photoshop Assets” on your desktop. * Any and all related exercise files will be saved in this folder. This is a critical step to keeping your files linked to your After Effects project and to submitting your project later!

Part 2: Set up auto-save preferences, overview of tools, set up the workspace, import asset files, and create a new Composition

Set up the Autosave preferences:

Go to After Effects>Preferences>Autosave… and change the Auto save to every 5 minutes with 10 previous versions. Save these next to your project. Click Ok.

Set up your workspace & import the demo Illustrator file:

Open After Effects and go to Window>Reset Workspace or set workspace to Default

Create a new project by going to File>New>Projectand title it LastName_FirstName_Exercise8_Photoshop+AE.ae (Example: Anfinson_Erin_Exercise8_ Photoshop +AE.ae)

 SAVE this project in the Exercise 8 Asset folder!

Import the Photoshop file into the Project Window by going to: File>Import… Then select the Exercise 8 AE+Photoshop Demo.psd file.

In the dialogue box that pops open, select “Composition-Retain Layer sizes” from the drop down menu and hit Select.

Next make sure Editable Layer Styles is selected, then hit OK.

Back in After Effects, your Photoshop file will be in the Project window. (A composition and a folder of the separate layers will also be there)

Repeat the import process for all .mp3 audio files

Check how the timecode is set. Frames or 00:00:00:00? Command Click the time code in the time line to set it to 00:00:00:00. (Hrs:Minutes:Seconds:Frames)

Set the composition settings and open the Photoshop file on the timeline

Click the composition in the project window to select it

Go to Composition>Composition Settings… and make sure you have 24fps (frames per second) selected and that the duration is 15 (0:00:15:00) seconds long. *Our audio track is 15 seconds long and we want to match that.

Click OK.

Double click the Composition to open it in the timeline.

Lock layers that will not move: Space, Reef Back, Reef Front, and Water

Part 3: Mark key points in the audio soundtrack

Drag the Micro Composition A soundtrack to the bottom layer of the composition and add Markers to the following points on the audio file

Click on the audio layer to activate it.

Twirl down the Audio and then Waveform triangle menus

Move the timeline play head to the 1:07 mark and make a marker at this point by going to Layer>Add Marker or by hitting Control, 8 on your keyboard.

Repeat adding markers to the following three additional points in the audio

3:16, 4:20, 9:15

Part 4: Animate keyframes to marked soundtrack points

Layer Property: Move Anchor points with the Pan Behind Tool

Select each layer individually and use the Pan Behind tool  to move the anchor point for each object to the place where you might want it to pivot or rotate from. HINT: Turn on the Isolation mode for each layer as you work.

Save your work.

Layer Property: Position (P)

Animate the Shell & Woman layers to arrive at the 1:07 & 3:16 marked points in the audio track

Our layers are in the position where we want them to land. Start by creating keyframes for the landing places for each layer at the desired audio track marker.

Next, work backward (earlier) on the time line and create keyframes for the each layer’s entry on to the stage from off camera.

Experiment with varied speed and timing of entry and arrival on the stage by moving the keyframes closer and farther apart.

Save your work.

Parent the Hand and Starfish layers to move into the scene together

If it’s not already, move the Starfish 2 layer directly on top of the Giant Hand layer.

Select the Starfish 2 layer and open the drop down menu under the Parent & Link and select the Giant Hand from the menu.

The layers are now linked together.

Add keyframes to animate the Giant Hand layer’s entry on the stage starting offstage at 4:20 and arriving on stage at 9:00  

Save your work

Leave the Starfish on the stage & remove the Giant Hand with Layer splitting

Keep the Giant Hand layer selected and move the play head to 9:15.

Go to Edit>Split Layer  The Giant hand layer is split and sits immediately above. It is no longer parented to the Starfish layer.

Select the new split layer, Open the Position (P) and delete the unnecessary keyframes by clicking the stopwatch.

Create a new keyframe for the hand’s position at 9:15

Move the play head to 11:00 and then move the hand offstage to create it’s exit keyframe.

Save your work

Layer Property: Rotation

Add Keyframed Rotation to each layer

Work back through the entire animation and add small keyframed rotations to each layer’s entry and/or exit

Save your work

Add Keyframe Easing to make movements more natural

Work back through the entire animation and add Ease In to each layer’s arrival keyframes and arrival Rotation keyframes on stage

Also add an Ease Out to the Giant Hand’s exit at 9:15

Instructions:

Select all layers by hitting Command A, then hit UU on your keyboard to reveal all animated properties

Select the top layer to work with. Click and drag around the end keyframes for all animated properties of that layer (Position, Rotation, and Scale)

Go to Animation > Keyframe Assistant…> Ease In (or Ease Out)  This will add easing and more dynamic movement to your motion paths and rotations.

Save your work.

Layer Property: Scale

Add a Keyframed minor scale change to the Water Layer

Reveal and unlock Water layer and move the play head to the beginning of the timeline

Open the Layer Scale properties (S), keep the scale at 100%, and add a keyframe by clicking the stopwatch

Move the play head to the end of the composition and change the scale to 110% add a keyframe. This will create a slow scale growth change over the course of the entire animation.

Save your work.

Change the color of a layer with an Effect

Click on the starfish layer to select it

Go to Effect>Color Correction and select Hue/Saturation. The effect will be active on the Starfish layer and the Effect Controls will pop up in the Project Window

Click Colorize and change the color of the starfish by changing the colorize Hue and Saturation dials below the button. Notice you can keyframe these changes!

Add at least 2 other effects of your choice on different layers

Save your work.

Part 5: Add sound effects to your animation

Drag the Golf Clap sound effect to the timeline and place the in-point at 9:15

To make the sound fade, open the audio wave form and place a keyframe at 10:15 at 0.0db

Next, go to the end of the animation and place another keyframe and drag the volume level down to -60db.

Repeat, adding at least 2 other sound effects of your choice to different areas on the timeline.

Part 6: Making changes to your Photoshop File

If you need to make masking changes to Photoshop collage, open the demo .psd file in Adobe Photoshop. Make any changes and then Save. The file is dynamically linked to the AE file and will be updated automatically in the AE workspace. This works well for making changes to masking in Photoshop. Keep your effects and colors in AE.

NOTE: This only works for existing elements. New drawn elements will have to be imported into AE individually.

Part 7: Export a .mp4 of your animation with Media Encoder

If Adobe Media Encoder is not opened, open it now. It may take a few minutes to load.

In After Effects, go to Composition>Add to Adobe Media Encoder Queue…

Your After Effects composition will pop up in the Queue window in Media Encoder.

Make sure the following settings are set:

Format: H.264

Preset: Match Source – High bitrate

Output File: Click the link and navigate to your Exercise 8 AE+Photoshop Asset Folder to save the export there

Click the Green Play Arrow in the upper right and wait for your movie to export!

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Exercise requirements & submission guidelines

Successful exercises will demonstrate and be evaluated on the following:

Use of all images from the provided .psd demo file

Anchor points moved on all layers for improved rotation

All required layer properties animated to marked points on the audio soundtrack: Position, Rotation, and Scale

Keyframe easing added to smooth motion

Color effects, or other effects of your choice, added to 3 layers

Sound Effects added to 3 layers

Correctly exported .mp4 movie file

Workspace Organization

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Exercise Output & Submission Requirements:

Send a copy of your Exercise 8 AE + Photoshop Asset Folder with all of the required contents with the free file transfer service, WeTransfer.com, to Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu by the due date.

Asset Folders must contain the following to be graded:

Exercise 8 AE+Photoshop Demo.psd

All sound effects and audio soundtrack .mp3’s

After Effects File: LastName_FirstName_Exercise8_Photoshop+AE.ae

Exported .mp4

Learning Objectives:

In this exercise you will be introduced to the Adobe After Effects workspace and will learn to import and animate drawings from an Illustrator file. Please keep this information for guidance with Project 5

Required Software

• Adobe After Effects,
• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Illustrator

Exercise Files on D2L:

• This handout, demo video, and the Exercise 5.1 AE + Illustrator.ai file

Tools and techniques covered in this demo:

• Workspace setup & overview
• Importing files
• Navigating and animating to specific points on the time line (Shift Left/Right arrows)
• Animating properties of layers with keyframes: Anchor points, position, rotation, and scale
• Using easing keyframes
• Trimming layers with Command [ and Command ]
• Staggering keyframe timing with key commands (Option Left/Right arrows)
• Exporting an animated .gif Photoshop & After Effects

Exercise:

Part 1: Organize your files in a dedicated Asset Folder

1. Create a new asset folder for your Exercise 5.1 files on your computer’s desktop. Label the folder LastName, FirstName Exercise 5.1

2. Download the Exercise 5.1 AE + Illustrator.ai demo file from D2L and save it in this asset folder. IMPORTANT!  Any and all related exercise files will be saved in this folder. This is a critical step to keeping your files linked to your After Effects project and to submitting your project later!

Part 2: Set up auto-save preferences, overview of tools, set up the workspace, import asset files, and create a new Composition

Set up the Autosave preferences:

1. Go to After Effects > Preferences > Autosave… and change the Auto save to every 10 minutes with 10 previous versions. Save these next to your project. Click Ok. After Effects will save backup versions of your project in a folder in your asset folder.

Set up your workspace & import the demo Illustrator file:

1. Open After Effects and go to Window > Reset Workspace or set workspace to Default
2. Create a new project by going to File>New>Projectand title it LastName_FirstName Exercise5.1.aep (Example: Anfinson_Erin Exercise 5.1.aep)
   1. If old project loads, create a new project (File>New>Project)
3. Import your Illustrator file into the Project Window by going to: File>Import… Then select the Exercise 5.1 AE + Illustrator.ai file from your asset folder.
4. In the dialogue box that pops open, select “Composition-Retain Layer sizes” from the drop down menu and click Open.

Back in After Effects, your Illustrator file will be in the Project window. (A composition and a folder of the separate layers will also be there)

1. Check how the timecode is set. Frames or 00:00:00:00? Command Click the time code in the time line to set it to 00:00:00:00. (Hrs:Minutes:Seconds:Frames)
2. Set the composition settings and open your Illustrator composition on the timeline
3. Click the composition in the project window to select it
4. Go to Composition>Composition Settings… and make sure you have 24fps (frames per second) selected and that the duration is (0:00:05:00) 5 seconds long.
5. Click OK.
6. Double click the Composition to open it in the timeline.

Part 3: Animate different layer properties with Keyframes

Keyframes are instructions for the beginning and end of any animated property in your After Effects project. You are telling the software what to do and when.

Turn on Continuously Rasterize for all Layers 

Select all layers by hitting Command A, then check the empty boxes under the Continuously Rasterize symbol to activate. This will scale the vector files smoothly.

Layer Property: Move Anchor points with the Pan Behind Tool 

Select each layer individually and use the Pan Behind tool  to move the anchor point for each object to the place where you want it to pivot or rotate from.

Save your work.

Layer Property: Position

Animate all layers to arrive on stage at you’re the 3 second mark (3:00)

Our layers are in the position where we want them to land. Go to the 3 second mark in the timeline by clicking the time code box and typing in 300. The marker will move to 3:00 on the timeline

Select all layers by hitting Command A, then click the triangle beside Transform on one of the layers to reveal the different properties you can animate (Anchor point, Position, Scale, Rotation, & Opacity).

Keep all layers selected and hit P to isolate the Position property. Now click the Stopwatch icon  by the “Position” properties for one of the layers. This will create keyframes at the 3:00 mark in the timeline.

Deselect all layers by clicking anywhere on the stage or hitting Shift/Command/A and move the marker to the beginning of the timeline manually or by

Click the timecode box and enter 0

Start with the top layer and drag the image completely off of the stage. Notice the motion path that is pulled behind the layer.  Pull on the Bezier curve handles to add curves to the motion path. A new keyframe is created at the beginning of the animation. Press your keyboard spacebar or click Play in the preview window to see the animation.

Keeping the time marker at 0:00:00:00, repeat step 5 for all other image layers.

Save your work.

TIP: You can also easily navigate to the beginning and end of your timeline with the following key commands, depending on your type of keyboard.

Full keyboards: Use the Home & End keys to go to the beginning or end

Laptop keyboards: Press fn + Page Left / Page Right arrows

Layer Property: Rotation

Add Keyframed Rotation to each layer

Go to the 3 second mark in the timeline by clicking the time code box and typing in 300. The marker will move to 3:00 on the timeline

Select all layers by hitting Command A, then click the triangle beside Transform on one of the layers to reveal the different properties you can animate (Anchor point, Position, Scale, Rotation, & Opacity).

Keep all layers selected and hit R to isolate the Rotation property. Now click the Stopwatch icon  by the “Rotation” property for one of the layers. This will create keyframes at the 3:00 mark in the timeline. Keep the rotation settings at 0x+0.0º 

Keep all of the layer selected and move the marker to the beginning of the timeline manually or by

Click the timecode box and enter 0

Hitting Home on your keyboard

Hitting fn + Page Left arrow on a Mac laptop keyboard

Change the rotation settings to 0x+180º and hit Return. Hit the spacebar to see your results.

Save your work.

Layer Property: Scale

Add a Keyframed Scale Change to all layers:

Go to the 3 second mark in the timeline by clicking the time code box and typing in 300. The marker will move to 3:00 on the timeline

Select all layers by hitting Command A, then click the triangle beside Transform on one of the layers to reveal the different properties you can animate (Anchor point, Position, Scale, Rotation, & Opacity).

Keep all layers selected and hit S to isolate the Scale property. Now click the Stopwatch icon  by the “Scale” property for one of the layers. This will create keyframes at the 3:00 mark in the timeline. Keep the Scale settings at 100%.

Keep all of the layers selected and move the marker to the beginning of the timeline manually or by

Click the timecode box and enter 0

Hitting Home on your keyboard

Hitting fn + Page Left arrow on a Mac laptop keyboard

Change the scale to 50% to create a new keyframe. Hit the spacebar to see your results.

Save your work.

Add Keyframe Easing to make movements more natural

Go to the 3 second mark in the timeline by clicking the time code box and typing in 300. The marker will move to 3:00 on the timeline

Select all layers by hitting Command A, then hit UU on your keyboard to reveal all animated properties

Select the top layer to work with. Click and drag around the end keyframes for all animated properties of that layer (Position, Rotation, and Scale)

Go to Animation > Keyframe Assistant…> Ease In  This will add easing and more dynamic movement to your motion paths and rotations.

Play back your results and repeat for all other layers.

Save your work.

Create exits/disappearances by trimming each layer at different points on the timeline.

Go to the 3:12 mark in the timeline by clicking the time code box and typing in 312. The marker will move to 3:12 on the timeline

Select the top layer to work with and use press Command/Right to move the time marker forward 4 frames

Hit Option ] to trim the timeline at this point

Play back your results and repeat trimming on all other layers, but trim them all in a sequence 4 frames after each other. You should end up with the bottom text layer timing out at 4:12. Play back your result and experiment with varying the trim times. You can always re-extend the layer by clicking and dragging it to the right and then re-trimming it with Option ]. Just make sure you keep at least 12 frames of blank background at the end for a looped playback.

Save your work when you are satisfied with the results.

Part 4: Making changes to your Illustrator File

Making changes to existing property

If you’d like to change an existing property of your Illustrator drawing, like the color or line weight, open the demo .ai file in Adobe Illustrator. Make any color fill changes and then Save. The file is dynamically linked to the AE file and will be updated automatically in the AE workspace after a few seconds. Personalize the drawings by making color changes to the existing drawn elements of save for your final animation. NOTE: This only works for existing elements. New drawn elements will have to be imported into AE individually.

Adding new drawn elements

If you’d like to add a new drawn element to your AE animation, add the drawing(s) on a new layer(s) in Illustrator and then save your file and follow these steps:

In After Effects go to File > Import > File…

In the Import pop-up windo, navigate to your Illustrator file, leave Footage selected, and uncheck Create New Composition. Click Import.

In the next pop up window, click Choose Layer and select your new drawing layer from the drop down menu. Click Import.

Your new layer will be added to the Project Window and can be added to the composition timeline.

Part 5: Export a looping .gif of your animation with Photoshop 

Export a high quality .mov file from After Effects

In After Effects, go to Composition>Add to Render Queue

In the Queue window, open the Format dropdown menu and set to Lossless. Click on Lossless.

In Output, click on your file and navigate to your Exercise 5.1 Asset folder to save the export.

Click the Render button to render. A .mov version of your animation will be saved.

Use Photoshop to export a looping animated GIF of your animation

Open Photoshop, then open your .mov animation

Go to File>Export>Save for Web (Legacy)…

In the new dialogue box change the Preset to 128 Dither and make sure looping is set to Forever.

Hit Save and save your exported GIF to your Exercise 5.1 Asset folder and enjoy!

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Exercise Requirements (Assessment criteria)

Use of all images from the provided .ai demo file

Anchor points adjusted on all layers

All required layer properties animated: Position, Rotation, and Scale

Keyframe easing added to smooth motion

Staggering of keyframes to stagger animation timing for each layer

Dynamic linking used to change the color of the .ai file layers to new colors of student’s choice

Correctly exported .mov and animated .gif files

Workspace Organization

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Exporting and submitting your exercise:

When you have completed Exercise 5.1 double check to make sure that you have saved everything to your Exercise 5.1 Asset folder.

Compress your Exercise 5.1 Asset Folder and submit via the free file transfer website, WeTransfer.com

Compress or zip your Exercise 5.1 Asset  folder containing: Exercise 5.1 AE+Illustrator Demo.ai, LastName_FirstName Exercise5.1.aep, Exported .mov, Exported animated .gif

A .zip file will be created next to the folder

Go to WeTransfer.com, upload the .zip file, type your name and “Exercise 5.1” in the Message box, and send it to Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu

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Resources and Tutorials:

For further help with the AE workspace & tools, visit the online user guide at

https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/user-guide.html