Printing out imagery to play with layout and see what works physically and what doesn't.
I find it much easier to grasp the way a project feels when I get to see if offscreen, it also speeds up the process.
- Full bleed imagery is much more immersive, you feel involved with the content.
- Smaller image to be paired with it works well compositionally, could also have a blank page for when the attention should be solely on that image.
- Pairing full bleed with text works well too, gives both obvious space to be.
- Annotated text for the essay, makes it feel more approachable and a piece of writing. Does it impose too many thoughts to the audience, would rather them interpret it as they wish.
- When pairing pictures together think about the composition as a whole, two images with a focal point might not be the best visually.
-Using text centralised with the image on the right directly relates the two, brings you in closer to the image as you reflect on the story. This is a successful layout, should use this when inserting anecdotes.
- This arrangement is good but not as successful, the smaller image size brings the impact down.
- Playing with the page as a space where you view from, giving it a perspective for the audience to engage with.
- Think this would be a great way to develop more dynamic page layouts and give the audience more to look at that isn't so repetitive.
- Layouts like this could be a great way to introduce text, whether this be on the same page or as a tip-in could be interesting to play with.
- Using a different coloured paper stock brings attention to this element but separates the text from the image, this may be better suited for text that is part of the essay rather than personal stories.
- Comparing the structural photographs with more organic ones, wanting to emphasise a difference/conflict between logic and feeling that is discussed within the essay.
- Not sure if it needs to be so direct on the page, could be from the front it is more nature based and then the back is structural.
These experiments were really helpful to decipher which layouts are more successful than other visually and also as an experience.
- Feeling like the pages could show more, include more imagery on the page:
Thes layouts explore a more sporadic placement but are organised into categories by location. By presenting more images around a location at once you get a stronger sense of place.
- However, the results make the audience feel more like a spectator than engaged in the content. The small images are less impactful and don't allow the audience to be immersed in the content.
- Would be too few pages as well, making the book feel more like a pamphlet (something I want to avoid).
- If I had more imagery it would be great to incorporate spreads like this into the publication, however as Felix is no longer available to take photos I need to work with what I have.
How will this be presented? Thinking back to what book artist Rahel Zoller spoke about in my interview with her she mentioned allowing materiality to further the concept. This is something I love to explore with my publications and will be integral to the experience of this publication.
Presenting to book in different ways:
1. A pack with a collection of books for the audience to experience.
2. Different sized paper bound together to encourage the audience to investigate the content more.
1. A pack with a collection of books for the audience to experience.
2. Different sized paper bound together to encourage the audience to investigate the content more.
Tutorial With Simon:
- Likes the discrepancy between place and space. Place is your mental manifestation of how you connect to spaces rather than what they are physically. Is there more to do with this in terms of paper stock to highlight this contrast.
- Great to hear that Simon is thinking the same as me in terms of materiality and using this to further the project. Need to look a different paperstock to identify what's most appropriate. - Think about the packaging, could be a loose publication that exists inside a box, it's contained and structured but inside it's lose and unstructured.
- Interesting idea of pages being loose, similar to idea I had in sketched about individual books that exists as one unit.
- Think about how this would affect the way pages are constructed, is this the most effective? - Tip-ins is a good idea but does it communicate contrast well enough?
- Would be worth having enough pages to be meaningful as I'm relying on a lot of abstract process to communicate ideas. Worth planning this out in advance (stock and cover considerations).
- Hand written text helps push forward, it's not something that's very structured and rational it has an element of humanness to it.
- Annotations on the essay are not adding, the text speaks for itself. The annotations remove a sense of abstraction. My own stories have colloquialisms that re particular to certain groups would be interesting to document.
- Agree with this, the text should be kept to my own stories I'm telling.
Design Board Advice: - Keep them short and concise
- Tricky but good skill to be able to do, think about if I were to present it verbally, say 1 sentence for each of the design boards then use this to keep writing short.
- For brief page imagine someone else has given you the brief, demonstrate the areas that stood out, areas that were problematic etc, should lead on to initial ideas or research page.
- Stating initial approach to the brief and why you want to take it in that direction.
- Can mention if brief is very broad and so the next stage is to in tailor it down, identify parameters.
- Okay to have no image.
Paperstock:
- Bulky Newsprint, used this before it's very soft and has an open texture, it more human than other paperstock. Not sure how it would fair with the imagery, has a yellow tone so might be worth test printing.
- Own paperstock so would be printed on the studio printers. - Olin, recycled so has a fleck to it, available in 120gsm so not too heavy. Is an off white but not as dark as bulky newsprint.
- Cyclus Recycled, another off white paper, 120gsm and is recycled again.
Get a test print of imagery on all paper stocks to see the effect. SENT
Working with Layout:
Colours between these images are too different one much cooler tones than the other.
Suits this image better.
Thinking about the idea of perspective as a way to drive image placement the base of the pavement should be more aligned.
Scaling down to achieve this effect, not so successful, needs to be leveled out.
Works better here, there is a sense of eye line and base point of the reader looking at the page.
Achieving the same idea here^
However, as these images are of a similar location it isn't as effective, could do with different imagery.
Further development of image pairing.
Using the eye line and base idea consistently throughout the book.
First test:
When printed the pages felt boring and repetitive, should have more pages with interesting layouts, want the audience to actively look through the content not passively flick through.
The most successful layouts were:
More dynamic layouts:
The full bleed spreads were a good way to showcase the images on a large scale, but the disrupted the reading experience which wasn't great. Feel they could still be large but not as big.
Also noticed that the images were all of specific things, would be great to incorporate smaller stuff (like birds flying picture) to give more context to the places in the book. Really push the sense of space with the photography.
Further experimentation:
- Using smaller images in a collection, this feels like its displaying the content in an objective way. I want the audience to feel as though they can really engage with the content and be a part of it.
- Size is too small also, having fewer images on a page prevents it appearing crowded and allows the audience to see every picture.
- Trialled layering the images but this made It feel like one was more dominant or of interest than the other.
- Presents a digital quality to the book, not sure this is something I want to go with.
New layout:
On screen and in print this layout was all over the shop, there is a balance between the two different book layout.
-Could have specific page structures to use for a few pages to guide the audience through, and others that are visually different to engage the audience more.
^ Using the layout of the pervious page to structure the following page.
Provides some consistency and makes it easier for the eye to flow across the pages.
LAyouts like the above have more movement, these are locations where I have memories as a child, and they tend to be in nature. Mirroring the playful nature of being young through the arrangement of these images feels appropriate for the publication as it reflects the words of the essay.
Locations like the above are from memories of when I was older, they are of buildings and structures so having these layouts be more regimented in their organisation reflects the feeling towards places through structural elements.
Whole book layout:
This layout may change when considering tip-ins or alterations to paper size as well as incorporating text but it gives a foundation for the rest of the project to be built on.
When printed the number of pages felt good, it had weight to it but wasn't overwhelming with content.
- May be thicker as potentially using heavier weight paper.
To do:
- Play with paper sizes.
- Think about presentation (loose sheets, bound, how?).
- Introduce text, see how this affects the narrative, if pictures need rearranging.
- Think about the tone of text how to present annecdotes to the audience, how does this affect the tone.
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