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inotanzen · 3 years ago

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hiii! i really admire your art skills. and the fact that you improved so much in just 6 months is inspiring! do you have any tips on how to improve? i'm 26 and i want to improve but i feel like ive neglected my art for so long and now it's too late. :(

THANK YOU SO SO MUCH OMG ?? oh man i’m so bad with feeling and gratitude but this seriously means more than i can express so i worked really, really hard on narrowing down my best tips! so here’s

Eli’s Top 5 Rules To Be a Totally Cool Awesome Badass Artist In As Long As It’s Going To Take (In Order) :

Most important rule of all is it should be FUN. be disgustingly self indulgent, draw what you want and LOVE, not what you think you should or what everyone else is, or how everyone else is! don’t vibe with doing sketches first? hate lining? despise complicated painting styles? find shortcuts, don’t do them!!! if you’re doing digital maybe draw your sketches traditionally first and scan them/take a photo to draw over, try a lineless style, cel shading, or mixing mediums, the options are endless! this is where your “style” will come from. all “style” is, is an artists shorthand.

You are your only competition. never compare your progress to anyone but your past self, it’s not a race in terms of how good you are at X age after X amount of time spent practicing. i saw it illustrated in this comic a few years ago (that made me cry at the time, because i hadn’t started drawing yet) as seeing your skills as a beautiful potted plant- just because some people are walking around with theirs fully grown and thriving, doesn’t mean your little sprout will stay small forever. just be patient, keep watering it, and eventually, it’ll be a beautiful flower all your own. ❀

Use references Obsessively. this includes tracing! (ethically) there’s a ton of resources out there, redraws of frames from movie or shows are great too! play around with it, try using the perspective but change the style or turn it into a character au for a fandom you love. (this is part of that first tip!) mashing together images past the point of original intelligibility is acceptable as well. the goal isn’t to obsess over accuracy or stop using references altogether though, just to use them differently over time.

Inspiration/motivation won’t be gone forever. don’t force yourself to practice drawing, or you’ll end up resenting it altogether. i’ve had my tablet and pencil since january but i say 6 months bc there were two (almost three) entire months where i had no inspiration and just did Nothing. take time to consume new media for ideas or look at what inspires you instead! keep folders of the things you find most appealing to pull up when you need them. art can be a freeing escape if you allow it to be!

Look at art you admire and think about Why you admire it. why does it look good, what catches your eye most? is it the colors? the lighting? the shapes and perspective? the varied line thicknesses or the overall layout composition? everything can be broken down into components, hone in on the ones you like most and try to emulate them. we’re all just flowing down the stream of shared inspiration together. :)

bonus digital art tip: you will always need more layers than you think you do. give each element its own layer like it’s the most introverted mf you’ve ever met, i swear on everything good in this cursed world you will thank me later. layer/item selection and transform are your best goddamn friends for life.

there’s also a lot of art related posts in this tag and on my art twitter ♡ thank you endlessly again and good luck on your journey!!

#art tips #art advice #anonymous #love me #i just know i'm forgetting sth #and i'll kick myself when i remember later #but i Think that's everything #that's helped me most at least!#i hope it can help you at all #it's never too late ♡

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ardenttheories · 6 years ago

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I think one of the biggest letdowns about the Meat Epilogue for everyone seems to be how much it trashed the development of the characters up to the end of Homestuck.

A lot of people have been pointing this out most fervently with Dirk. He went from someone who was well aware of his flaws, of his obsessions, of his tendency to take over and control, of his capability to hurt the people he cares for most, from someone who genuinely cares about every single person he’s met and tries his best to be a better person for them... to someone who was actively harming them without a fucking care in the world, under some misguided theory that he was doing the right thing.

And yes, I recognise that this is because of the Ultimate Self bullshit. Dirk has become every little splinter of himself that exists across Paradox Space - all the good ones, all the bad ones, all the ones in between. All of that mingles and merges into what we get in the Epilogues, and it, to some degree, makes sense.

But here’s two thoughts for you.

Why did he have to end up like that? If, by the end of Homestuck, he was getting better, and if the chances of there being just as many Emotionally Developed Dirks as Emotionally Stunted Dirks is incredibly high, why does he have to take all those bad qualities and bring them out to the fore of who he is in the Epilogue? Why does that have to be the route he goes down, when he was in such a good position when Earth C was created and when he’s merged with plenty of emotionally capable Dirks as part of becoming his Ultimate Self?

When Homestuck ended, I considered Dirk a Realised Prince of Heart. A Prince of Heart who’d worked through all his shit, opened up to people, recognised that he needed to share his burdens and to let people in - to use his powers for good, not for the harm of the people around him. He was aware of what he could do, and actively choosing to use it in a productive way.

In the Epilogue, he’s a True Prince of Heart. He’s destroying without truly recognising it as destruction. He’s become the epitome of what it means to be a Prince of Heart, without any growth of character or any attempt to use what he can do for the benefit of the people around him. He’s hurting them instead; shaping them into things he thinks they should be, completely disregarding their individuality because of his own thoughts on free will and how illusive it is.

This is the Dirk we had at the beginning of Act 6, merged with the Bro we saw at the beginning of the comic. And sure, from the standpoint of the Ultimate Self, it can make sense - if you disregard the fact that he could as easily become a Good Dirk as a Bad Dirk.

But what makes this suck so much as a fan is that, as people, we fucking hate seeing characters lose their development, and that’s what we see happening to Dirk. He’s regressed back to a point prior to all his development throughout Act 6. Everything that we saw him achieve has been lost, and it feels cheap because it fucking is cheap. It’s a literary constant. It’s one of those things that you don’t do. Destroying a story worth’s of development for no actual reason, or without showing why they’ve regressed, will never come across well. Especially in regards to an idea as abstract as the Ultimate Self - and, again, the very clear knowledge that Dirk, even as an Ultimate Self, didn’t have to end up like this when you consider his position at the end of Act 7.

The development doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t flow. You don’t just go from “emotionally developed individual” straight back to “emotionally distant and morally perverse”, even with an idea like “he’s fused with every other instance of himself” - because logically, if he was in a good position, why wouldn’t he remain in that good position? What about the Ultimate Self ruined his development? Why does merging with every version of himself - the good and the bad - suddenly revert him all the way back to square one?

Which brings me on to thought two. I hope you’ll excuse me for the really dumb choice of fandom to explain this.

Supernatural is notorious for frequently setting its main characters - Sam and Dean - back to square one in terms of emotional development. Inevitably, something that was resolved in series 6 ends up being revisited in series 7 without explanation. Emotional issues that the brothers had resolved almost always become an issue again; relationships that they thought had healed always find a way to come back; issues with their past that they had come to terms with almost inevitably cause them to split up yet again, and become the main issue to be resolved throughout the new series.

This, from what I can tell, is a big reason why a lot of people fell out of the fandom. It’s why I did. You can only watch characters grow, and regress, and grow, and regress again over the same thing so many times before it starts to get disheartening. Just when you think they’re better, that they’ve solved it, that everything’s okay, it’s brought up all over again to make them suffer over and over and over. There’s only so much of this you can take in a character before it becomes dull, or boring, or unrealistic.

And that’s exactly the issue with Dirk’s development in the Epilogue. For a lot of people, it’s unrealistic. Even with the Ultimate Self taken into account, it still seems wrong - because we’re seeing him go through the same mistakes all over again, and when you’ve already seen it once, seen him get through it and grow and progress and and become better, seeing it again but worse does not leave you feeling satisfied. It’s disheartening. It’s narratively a cheap move to try and cause more tension.

The fact of the matter is, whether that’s the point or not, it’s a sign of bad storytelling. There’s no reason for Dirk to have slipped during the Epilogue, other than “because Hussie said so”. Narratively it just didn’t need to happen. Narratively, it’s not what people were expecting, either. And dropping something this huge without providing any hints beforehand just doesn’t work. If you’ve set up a character to get better, to be in the best possible place he could be, or on the road to recovery, suddenly pulling out a regression of character doesn’t work. It won’t feel satisfying because you didn’t imply the possibility - you didn’t build suspense, you didn’t leave the seed for people to think about at the end of Act 7. You just dropped it, at random, and expected people to be prepared for it.

This is like Hussie pulling out a gun and yelling “aha! Look at how wonderfully I have crafted this masterpiece!!” without ever having insinuated that he was going to pull out a gun to begin with.

Compare this, for instance, to the reveal that it’s Adult John who ends up getting sucked into the Ultimate Treasure alongside Teen Jade, Dave, and Rose as part of the Epilogue. This is a good drop. This is a good reveal. We knew this was an event that happened; we knew that it was something an unreliable narrator had said; we knew this was something that never actually ended up happening in the main story of Homestuck. This isn’t a surprise because the foundation of the reveal was all there. We knew it was John, Dave, Rose, and Jade that would end up in there - we just didn’t know which John, Dave, Rose and Jade it would be, or why. Our expectations for that scene are shattered, but because of how it was set up it ends up being more shocking and more exciting because of it. All the pieces were put in place for Hussie to build on.

That’s not what we get with Dirk. The pieces put in place for him were that he was meant to get better, that he was improving, that we’d see him as the best Dirk Strider there could possibly be - a foil to Bro, the abusive dickhead Dave had dealt with his entire young life, someone who would step up and take the shape of a healthy familial figure in Dave’s life. This subversion doesn’t work. Not in a satisfying, enjoyable, or natural way. It’s shocking, yes - but it’s a bitter shock, a shock that no-one saw coming, rather than a shock that suddenly blows your mind.

A Dirk who goes from “I wish I could love Roxy, because (s)he’s the best one out of the lot of us, and (s)he deserves that” to “I’m going to actively misgender my best friend because part of my Ultimate Self was merged with Lord English and I rely heavily of the dichotomy between male and female to understand myself” is interesting, yes, but not the way it’s done. It’s fucking horrific to read Dirk talk about someone he’s meant to love that way, and it’s not a good sort of horrific.

Ultimate Self Dirk being the douchebag he is in Meat can make sense and work, sure. But not in the way Hussie framed the narrative of Act 6-Act 7. When you’ve framed your narrative to make the character grow, reverting everything in some shock twist at the end will never settle well with your fanbase. That’s why Dirk’s role feels weird, and out of place, and overall bad on an emotional level. The jump was too big, too unbelievable - and for the main plot point of your Epilogue, that’s not really what you want to end a series.

#long post//#homestuck epilogues #character analysis

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elizabethcheong · 2 years ago

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NM3217 Assignment 2

Ideation

Assignment 2 required us to tell a story using 6-9 photographs. During my initial brainstorm, I tried to list down the most basic stories I could tell: an adventure, a character-focused story, or a conflict between characters. I also decided that using props and toys to tell the story would make it much simpler to coordinate and revise after the review. Thus, I chose to use some artist mannequins as my characters. However, as these mannequins did not have facial expressions, I decided against any stories that focused on character or relationship development. Thus, I chose to do an Indiana Jones-style adventure, where the characters would go on a journey to uncover a treasure. Then, to add some sense of drama, I added a twist at the end where one character betrays the other.

Storyboarding Process

Given the premise of an adventure, I had the idea to frame the project like a comic book page. Through just the layout, comic books are able to convey tone and pacing that helps the story to flow smoother. Thus, I researched further, and found one article very helpful: “How to layout your comic! Panels, Gutters, and Page Flow” by Steve Ellis, an American comic book writer and illustrator. He explained the importance of structuring the page using different types of dynamic panels, gutters (the spaces between panels) and overall layouts. Below is one example from the article I took reference from for my middle row.

My storyboarding process began with a small thumbnail sketch where I experimented with panel shapes, trying out triangle shapes for more dynamic action before deciding on longer rectangles. I did a rough sketch of the storyboard in pencil to allow for changes, then finalised it using my iPad. Below are the three stages of storyboarding.

My 3 stages of storyboarding: from sketch to final

Going through each stage, iterating and changing things as I went, taught me how important storyboarding was in producing an effective story. If I had dove in without storyboarding first, I would not have had a good direction and may have needed to make more revisions.

First Draft process

Working with the mannequins was both easier and harder than I had envisioned. As I only had scotch tape, I had to reapply tape after every photo, or the mannequin would topple over. I also had to get creative with how I took each photo, making sure to exclude my fingers if they were in the shot. However, the process was very fun, and watching my storyboard come to life was a fascinating experience!

Critique

During the critique, my classmates and tutor helped me to refine my work, and I have summarised their feedback in the graphic above. The comments I found most helpful during the critique were these:

The shot of the “treasure” does not make it clear to the audience that this is the goal of the characters. This made sense to me, so I moved it to the first panel, and made the characters looking at the map the second panel, in the hopes that the audience could connect the ‘X’ on the treasure map to the first panel.

As the characters’ hands are not touching, it is not clear that one character saves the other from falling off the tightrope. The panel after also does not clarify whether both characters made it, or if they fell off the tightrope together and are celebrating their survival. My tutor and classmates suggested removing the panel altogether, turning the story into a betrayal with a second surprise twist at the end, where the character that fell actually survived and returned for revenge.

Lastly, the surprise twist of one character betraying the other was not very effective, as the object in their hand was not recognisable as a weapon. My tutor suggested drawing a knife instead, so I chose to do that in the final draft.

Here is my final draft with those revisions made. I added the title, "One Good Turn..." as a form of foreshadowing, as well as colour grading the last panel for dramatic effect. I also improved the lighting for some of the other panels.

Conclusion

In order to communicate a clear story idea through only visuals, I had to be certain of what I wanted to convey, and experiment with a few different methods to find the most effective one. For this assignment, my biggest takeaway was the importance of critique – the feedback provided by my classmates and tutor allowed me to see my story in a whole new light, and showed me a way of solving problems that I could not find a solution to. With just the removal of one photo, they changed my entire story and made it more compelling and interesting. I was very amazed at the power of critique this week, and how useful it can be to making a product better.

#assignment #assignment 2

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fmpgabby · 6 years ago

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Lorraine Calvert’s designs - Elektra from Daredevil

Lorraine Calvert was the costume designer for the second season of the Daredevil TV series and is responsible for creating some of the characters’ iconic looks, including Elektra. The character started off in comic books, and as a result her comic book outfit is not exactly realistic and does not translate well into an actual outfit - especially considering the role that she plays.

She is designed to be an assassin character which isn’t really indicated by her outfit above - which looks impractical and eye-catching and would probably cause her to trip up every other step. This design simply wouldn’t work if it was translated across to the show without any changes and it would definitely detract from the realism they were trying to achieve. This comic book appearance is explained below (source):

“Elektra’s appearance was originally inspired by the bodybuilder Lisa Lyon. When you look at Elektra’s first costume, you can see a desire to show off her powerful, but womanly frame. This all red, satin costume is a cross between a one piece bathing suit, flowing dress, and tattered fabric. The body fits snugly around her torso and then flows down at the waist, as it splits into two long strips. This allowed the freedom to easily use her legs as a deadly weapon, I am sure exposing her derrière was just an accident. Although the flowing strips of fabric used in the costume appear to be a design flaw, giving enemies something to grab onto, they actually served two purposes; Elektra could use these strands like Jackie Chan and turn them into another weapon in her arsenal and from an artistic point of view, flowing fabric allows for movement on a static drawing (This is why many superheroes are given capes.)”

Despite its impractical appearance, her outfit does make sense on some level and I like how most aspects of it have been considered even though I still don’t think it would really work.

Due to this reason, her look was completely re-imagined by Calvert for her arrival in Daredevil season 2. Her key statement for the new design was “you just want your leading lady to look as beautiful as possible and powerful and sexy, and not in any way awkward.” I really admire this belief and share it myself, and would like to make my own main character dress this way (rather than trying to go down the ‘feminist’ route where she is dressed in armour that doesn’t make her look feminine or sexy because of how unrealistic it would be. ) She also mentioned that most aspects of her new costume were very easy to obtain - which makes sense as she is far more likely to have access to ‘regular’ clothing as opposed to a custom made outfit in her profession. Followed by this, Calvert also notes that: “ she was a free spirit who travelled all over the world with as much money as she possibly could. And then it got a little more spare … She really needs a very simple, elegant line because too much cloth is overwhelming”.

“The small-screen Elektra may only wear hints of red (as opposed to her comic-book counterpart’s completely red costume), but Calvert says they were careful to choose the exact shade. For one thing, the red couldn’t look too similar to what Charlie Cox wears as Daredevil. For another, they needed the shade to match the dark tone of the series” This, as they said, is completely different from her comic appearance which is entirely bright red, definitely giving it more of a cartoon look than they would have wanted.

Overall her realistic, dark and simple outfit is a dramatic improvement to her original design although honestly in some ways I feel that it is a little boring - I far prefer the design from the original film as it still radiates the stylised ‘superhero’ aesthetic and is more visually appealing.

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techgadgets365 · 6 years ago

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What is it?

The X5 was BMW’s first SUV, nee SAV (Sports Activity Vehicle in BMW speak) and it set the tone for models of the type. Genuinely sporty and surprisingly versatile, the X5 has been a favourite for keen drivers and luxury buyers for long. In India too, the X5 has had a good run over the three generations yet. The fourth-gen X5 is out and it marks a slight shift in focus for the model; there’s a greater emphasis on luxury than before. If that’s good news or bad and how the latest X5 fits into the India scheme of things is what we’re going to find out.

What’s it like on the outside?

The new X5 is bigger than you think. Unlike the X3, which looks visually larger than its predecessor, this new ‘G05’ X5, from a distance at least, looks much smaller than the outgoing ‘F15’ X5, despite it being 36mm longer, 19mm taller and a solid 66mm wider. In fact, you might mistake the X5 for an X3 or even an X1, up until the point it pulls up next to you.

This is because of its design, which features sharper lines, tighter skinning and some exaggerated details. The most controversial of these is the enormous chrome-heavy, single-piece kidney grille, which absolutely dominates the front end. From this sprouts a pair of slimmer, more angular headlamps – now with the electric-blue signature of BMW’s Laserlight high-beam system (which gives a throw of 600m) – and, of course, the new-age, C-shaped take on BMW’s LED corona ring DRL signature. The waistline crease flows into a pronounced haunch over the rear wheel, adding some muscle, and this xLine trim looks far more elegant than the M Sport version, which is currently only available with the petrol engine.

Some of us aren’t fans of the way BMW has abandoned the classic L-shaped tail-lamp signature for a more generic, rectangular look, but we like that they’ve stuck with the trademark split tailgate. As for some perspective on just how big this car has gotten, look at the wheels – they have a decent amount of tyre sidewall and don’t look that big, but they’re 20 inches in diameter. A few years ago, this would have been the largest size; now it goes up to 22 inches. And as for the stance, you can go from jacked-up off-roader to hunkered-down M car at the flick of a switch, thanks to the two-axle air suspension new to the X5 (previous cars only had it on the rear axle, so you couldn’t vary the ride height). As ever, you get different-sized front and rear tyres, with the ones at the rear being almost comically wide, with a 305 section – the same as a Lamborghini Huracán!

What’s it like on the inside?

The latest BMW X5’s greater dimensions have, naturally, translated into more interior space. The 42mm increase in the wheelbase to 2,975mm can be easily felt as soon as you slip into the back seat and stretch out, but the even greater sense is of width. The previous X5 was not a narrow car, but in the new one, it feels like there’s a chasm between you and your fellow passenger. It’s a comfortable back seat too, but some might find the backrest a bit too upright, and it’s not adjustable. You can flip it down to free luggage space of course, and if you do, you’ll find the already vast 650-litre space expanding to 1,860 litres, and a really cool motorised luggage cover that whirrs out from its deployed position to under the floor when not needed. What you won’t find anymore are the pair of tiny rear jump seats – they have been left out of the India-spec car this time, likely to differentiate it from the upcoming, three-row X7. What you do get, happily, is a space-saver spare tyre.

Back to the cabin, and more than the outright comfort, it’s the ambience that’s taken a quantum leap. It’s not a stretch to say this xLine variant is approaching 7 Series levels of luxury. Thick bars of dull, unvarnished wood veneer sit on the dashboard, central console and doors, and these are framed in brushed aluminium, which you’ll also find the door handles are fashioned from. The ‘Vernasca’ leather upholstery, available in this cream colour, as well as tan, brown, or black, is wonderfully soft, and there’s even double-stitched leather on the dashboard. The front seats (powered, with a memory function, of course) are big and plush, with a wide array of adjustments, including shoulder support. There are 12 choices of colour combinations for the LED ambient lighting, which even extends to a panoramic sunroof – Sky Lounge, as BMW calls it – and it looks incredible at night.

There are some things that stand out for the wrong reasons in the otherwise high-quality cabin. Those chrome central AC vents, though incredibly well-finished, appear as an uninspired piece of design in this classy BMW cabin. The mode select buttons feel a little flimsy and are tricky to click properly, especially on the move. Then there’s the cut-glass effect on the gear lever, iDrive click-wheel and start button, which has been very polarising. Some find it cool, others find it gaudy, and while on one hand it doesn’t smudge with fingerprints like the standard plastic lever, on the other, in bright sunlight, the reflections off it can hit you right in the eye.

Speaking of points of contention – there’s the new all-digital dial system. While the previous generation of this system (in the 5 Series, for example) mirrored BMW’s classic twin round dials, this new one, which you’ll find on all upcoming Bimmers, adopts a more sci-fi-feeling angular look. This would be fine if it functioned well, but the numbers aren’t as clear to read, the tachometer spins counterclockwise, and when you switch to Sport mode – the tacho needle disappears entirely! Plus, being a screen, they’ve tried to cram it with as much info as possible, which would be helpful, but it’s small and hard to read, which means it’s more distracting to try and find it. The navigation map between the dials, for instance, is monochrome, not full colour, so it blends in rather than standing out. It just seems unintuitive; I wish there was at least the option of returning to the classic dial layout.

We can’t talk tech without mentioning the latest version of BMW’s class-leading iDrive infotainment system, which is presented here on a crisp 12.3-inch touchscreen. Apart from touch, it can be operated by the traditional click-wheel, the touch pad, voice commands and gesture control as well. The tile-based home screen has been replaced with a more tablet-computer-like clustered system, which takes a little getting used to, but ultimately works better at giving you all your vital data at once; and it’s customisable. You also get readouts for real-time power and torque usage, G-force, pitch and yaw angle, and other off-road parameters. There’s also the 360-degree camera with the fun ‘augmented reality’ system that puts a 3D model of the car in a camera-generated depiction of your surroundings. And if you opt for the M Sport trim, you’ll get a head-up display too.

The equipment list on the whole, in fact, is vast and impressive. Apart from what we’ve already discussed already, you’ll find the likes of wireless mobile charging, hands-free parking, four-zone climate control, a 16-speaker Harman Kardon hi-fi, soft-close doors, paddleshifters, adaptive dampers, a powered tailgate with remote opening, auto stop-start, Apple CarPlay (but no Android Auto) and eight airbags. Interestingly, there is only one conventional USB port, but there are three of the new-generation USB-C ports – one at the front, two at the rear – so chances are you’ll have to buy a new cable to make the most of them.

What’s it like to drive?

As we’ve said already, the new X5 is bigger than you think, and while that may apply to its appearance, it isn’t quite as true from behind the wheel, as it was with previous X5s. It’s a trend we’re seeing in most new BMWs – a general ‘softening’ of the driving experience to cater to a wider audience and offer a more luxurious experience, but here, much of the change can be attributed to one mechanical difference – two-axle rear suspension. Previously, X5s only offered air suspension at the rear to aid comfort, but now that it’s at all four wheels, it’s allowed for much more. For one, the ride height can be raised or lowered (in five steps) for varying situations, but the main benefit is a far more luxurious ride. Sure, the massive wheels and tyres can cause a bit of lumpiness over bumps, but overall, the ride is incredibly plush. If you find it too floaty in Comfort mode, switching to Sport gives it a good balance.

Sound insulation, too, is far improved, but again, it’s those big tyres that play spoilsport a bit over expansion joints. The steering has been blunted and softened too, to the point that it is incredibly light at low speeds. It’s almost enough to make you forget this car’s mammoth dimensions; almost.

So it’s great at low speeds, but the contention arises when you’re driving for enjoyment, and here’s where some of the razor-sharp agility of previous X5s is missing. The steering does feel a little mushier, and even in Sport mode there is noticeably more body roll; you really do feel the X5’s size in the corners. But perhaps I’m being a bit harsh because it still handles better than most 2.1-tonne SUVs, with perhaps only a Porsche Cayenne being able to break the laws of physics better. Those massive tyres also afford it prodigious grip, and, despite the AWD, it always has a distinctly rear-biased feel.

Whether you’re barrelling up a mountain road or weaving through traffic, you’ll love the straight-six diesel engine (there’s a straight-six petrol too) and its 8-speed automatic gearbox. With 265hp and 620Nm of torque, it’s got more than enough pulling power to compensate for the X5’s size and weight. It’s not just effortless, it’s downright quick, with 0-100kph coming up in only 6.55sec. And with the quick-acting ZF gearbox (it seems to get better with every new car launched) doing its thing, kickdown acceleration is equally brisk. The good news is the characteristic (and quite thrilling) shove in the guts typical of BMW’s diesel engines is still there. Take it out of Sport mode and – apart from a little bit of hesitation if you catch the gearbox off guard – it is smooth and refined, as is befitting this new, more luxurious X5.

Should I buy one?

The X5 starts at Rs 72.90 lakh (ex-showroom, India). This xLine variant, though, will set you back Rs 82.40 lakh, putting it dangerously close to seven-seat luxury SUVs like the Audi Q7, Volvo XC90 and even the Mercedes-Benz GLS. It stings even more when you realise this isn’t a full CBU import; it’s assembled in India. However, you have to consider a few things, like how much more this car gets you. Not only is it more spacious, it’s more comfortable, thanks to the air suspension, and far better appointed and better equipped now. Then there’s BMW’s updated SU – sorry, SAV – range. The X3 has grown, you also have an X4 now, there will soon be an X7 and below that a new X6; all the models have been moved up the ladder. Sure, it’s not quite the ultimate driving machine that its forebears were, but it’s still pretty damn good to drive – and that can be forgiven for how much better a luxury SUV it is. It’s gotten more expensive, but it’s also a lot more car for the money.

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sarahjart · 6 years ago

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PROJECT// PERSUASIONS- FINAL ANALYSIS AND REFLECTION

The following is my final evaluation and reflection on all major outcomes of the ‘Persuasions’ project.

Manifesto

Overall, the I think the manifesto is successful. Its visual content is consistent and cohesive- working as a single piece instead of a collection of work, which was a pit we fell into with our first draft. Each image had both surface and deeper level interpretation depending on how the viewer looks at it, which adds that important third dimension to the world we had created. Conceptually, the content of the manifesto demonstrates the peaceful, spiritual tone of our society in the relaxed, poetic tone of its delivery of information. In terms of clarity, I think the images are very clear in their communication of a theme, and are backed up by the inclusion of text. However, I think the text is perhaps not as clear as it could be, we lost some of the communication to the poetic style- and I’m not sure if it was worth it. I don’t think the manifesto, as a whole, is very engaging for the reader. The single coloured, single perspective, flat images are not very compelling from a page turning point of view. I don’t think the manifesto is very ‘readable’- although it reflects the tone of our society perfectly, I don’t think its entertaining to look at.

As I’ve said, I think the concept and ethos the group intended is successfully communicated. I think that the intentions of the group (or the two of us who contributed at least) are clear, demonstrated through the cohesive nature of the final product. We decided not to include any of our characters from the creature design section of the project in the manifesto. This was because we thought it would distract from the landscape/environment based, peaceful/mysterious tone we wanted because a lot of them are quite comical looking. In terms of image making, I think the decision to Lino print the designs was a good one- its successfully tied all the different image together. However, the final image are quite boring colour wise and compositionally. I think that if I were to re-do them, I would be more creative. I think a lot of my creative impulse in this department was shut down by the stress of trying to manage the group.

It was said in the feedback that the text could have been better placed, because the border and separation of the text in that way is not the ideal way to view the images. The decision to do this was based in giving the image breathing space- to not pollute it with the addition of text that would distract from the subject. However, at the same time I agree with the feedback- it looks awkward and unprofessional to separate the text like that. During the crit, it was suggested we could have manipulated the text around the images in creative ways that would not interrupt the flow of the original image. I liked this idea and would do something along these lines if we did it again. The printing of the manifesto was very much a last minute affair, so many decisions were made without any real thought. The binding was done by stapling- however if we had had more time, I would have liked to see how it looked with a neatly sewn binding with embroidery thread. The wrap around brown paper with the manifesto’s title was also missing due to printing and timing issues.

Broadcast (Animation)

The broadcast element of this project, for which we had to make an animation, was a complete whirlwind of stress for me, so I'm glad we had something to show at the end of it! Visually, I think the content of the animation was generally successful. The aesthetics are consistent throughout, and the cut paper style allows bright colours to have a reasonable impact on the viewer. Production wise, I don’t think the animation comes across of a work or quality, which makes me sad. The editing is too blunt, the animation too jerky, and the general composition of scenes uninspired. Despite this, I think the animation does have a level of clarity to its communication. It is very clear what the purpose of the film is through the ‘advert’ style and explanation in text form. However, the golden rule of film is ‘show don’t tell’, and without the text, the imagery would seem completely random to a viewer with no context. So in this aspect, we failed.

As said previously, the tone of voice, ethos, concept and type of film are all very clear in our work. The design of the characters are generally interesting, yet really only become successful when all placed together as an assortment. The set designs are effective in communication, and the textures we managed to add are really effective. Given more time and manpower, we could have added a vast amount of different textures and layers that would have drastically improved the look of the film. The filming techniques are consistent, with lighting never being a problem in the digital media suite. The animation techniques are very basic, with quite bland movement in most scenes. However this wasn’t our fault as we couldn't achieve anything much better with our group situation in the time frame in my opinion.

It was mentioned during the crit that the black screen additions off the text between scenes seems to jarring to the viewer. I agreed with this and thought that the biggest improvement would have been a voiceover, however we could also have changed the background to a blue or something less solid to avoid that effect.

Display

The display part of the project was easily the most enjoyable to create due to the level of stress being lower. It was also the best received out of all of our work. During the crit it was said that the level of cohesion, concept and attention to detail in the theming was very successful, which I agree with. I think the idea of a stall was perfect for the tone of the work we had produced, and the way we executed it made it an interesting experience for the viewer. I think the display came across as reasonably professional, and that it communicated the concepts of its existence, as well as the concepts of the rest of the work very well. We worked hard to have multiple dimensions of stimuli- with the sound of the ocean playing over a speaker, the smell of ocean scented air freshener and the taste of sweets shaped like fish, which I think worked very well too.

In the end we had many people join up for the boat trip to the city! If I were to have more time, I think I would have tried to build some type of ship for the viewer to try sitting in for the immersive experience after they had been given a ticket.

Overall Project/ Group Work

Overall, I found this project to be very challenging, both with the workload and timeframe and working in groups. We were put in many, repeated, difficult situations with our group for example:

Continuing to work when other group members were not present and dealing with the difficulties around how much creative control to take and how to communicate the progress we had made for them in their absence.

Dealing with the inclusion of poor quality work from team members who were not participating or communicating with us

Dealing with the delegation of tasks, and then what happens when they are not done

Communicating with people who are not willing to work or pull their weight.

At some points, the group did work together well, and I was really pleased to work with everybody's different approaches, ideas and styles. But for the most part, working in a group throughout this project was very much an up-hill battle. I think I have learnt a lot about people management and communication from this experience. However, overall I am saddened and disappointed by the lack of participation in our group because I would have loved to have a willing, creative, diverse team of people to work on these projects with. As a result, our work was poorer quality than it could have been because of these difficulties.

#unitfour

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