My Cartoon Self-Portrait

Recently, I did a vector cartoon in Illustrator CC 2017.

          The strongest part of my project is color and relief. I used colors to match the shades of light. I used flat vectors to express my cartoon in an artistic way.

          I could improve on the glasses. I could have used the pen tool instead of the blob brush tool. The  glasses could be more precise.

          I used the pen tool, blob brush, and gradient tool. I used the pen tool to create flat vectors, I used the blob brush tool to create the glasses, and I used the gradient tool for the background.

          The only difficult part was when I started it, I did not know where to start. I demonstrated the objectives by making this cartoon out of flat vectors.

If I could do this again, I would make a detailed background.

Illustrator Practice

Pokémon Mixed-Media Masterpiece

          Recently, I did a mixed-media project in Photoshop CS6 & CC. I used a photo from the Wachussett Reservoir Dam, a picture of Ho-Oh, Drawings of music notes and a Poké Ball, a painting I made, and a gradient overlap.

           The strongest part of this project is the background. The background is probably the most complex part of this project. I used a painting, a gradient, and a lot of Poké Balls.

          I could improve on the frames. The reason why I think I should improve on this area is that the drop shadow was not used on one of the frames. I could also improve on image placement & follow the rule of thirds better.

          The easiest part of this project was probably laying out all of the mediums/layers. The reason why making out the layout was easy is that I could experiment with different mediums, filters, & adjustments. The layout also is a way to make my ideas a reality.

          The difficult part of this project was probably choosing the photo. It was difficult because I had many photos, and only a few could make the cut. One of the requirements was to have a person in the photo, which is a really rare sight in my photos due to being a nature photographer.

         
          I used my illustrator music notes & Poké Balls in the foreground. I used my photo & Polaroid frames in the mid-ground. I used my painting with a gradient overlay in overlay blending mode with Poké Balls of all different sizes & blending modes for the background. I used my autograph & an inspirational aphorism as typography. I used 6 cutouts & frames.

          If I could do this project again, I'd take more advantage of my filters & adjustments, and make better drop shadows.

Whitnsfalls USA

          On Sunday, I went to Whitinsville, Mass to see 4 waterfalls. I took this magnificent photo at the Whitin Mill.

          The strongest part of this photo is the composition & the depth of field. The reason is that I took this photo from an angle, I made it so the mill was on the edge.

          I think I could improve on the bottom edge & camera/tripod placement. I think it needs  this improvement because the fence appeared on the bottom.

          I used a Digital Single Lens Reflex Camera on a tripod with an IR remote to take this photo. The mode I used was S mode so I could get the blurred effect on the running water.

         I put my camera on a tripod so the photo could be legible. I used the remote to reduce shaking. I used S mode for the effect.

          The easy part was probably everything. The reason being that I do my best when taking photos.