Careers in Digital Graphics

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

What does the person in the career do?
A  graphic designer or graphic artist is a person who conveys information through visual solutions which promote or enhance a service, product, philosophy or entity. They have quite a fascinating job as they help communicate ideas visually as words alone cannot do everything.

For example : A pie chart is able to communicate information like data much better than a 300 word paragraph and it is the job of a Graphic Designer to communicate such ideas.

 

Their job is basically to use visual elements in order to communicate ideas by using things like colours, images, charts & graphs.

2. Where would you see this person’s work (e.g. in the newspaper, in a game shop)?

Graphic Designers work is something that is quite popular and can be found in :

• Newspapers
• Magazines
• Internet
• Logos
• Business Cards
• Billboards
• Posters
• Greeting Cards
• Newspaper Layout
• Logos

Most Graphic Designers take the support of InDesign, Photoshop & Adobe Illustrator in order to establish their work in these various forms.

3. What training is needed for the career?

In order to become a succesful Graphic Designer many skills are required. These include :

• Having excellent perceptive abilities and aesthetics
• Graphic Designers need to be able to visualise their work well.
• They also need a command of tools and materials, this also means that they need to be able use specific and a variety of techniques in their work.
• Despite all this they need to be able to deliver their message they wish to convey quite effectively.
• Not only this but they are also required to know various aspects of their industry such as letter form, typography, information design, publication, print design, computer graphics and advertising design.

4. What kind of software and hardware is used?

Most graphic designers will use double monitors. Some will even use a graphic tablet, such as those by WACOM as they are extremely helpful in their work.

Some graphic designers even use a graphic monitor once again those made by WACOM in which you are allowed to directly draw on your monitor into the software with an electronic "ink pen".

A good graphics card is also necessary for larger projects.

However most Graphic Designers will just stick to using the programs Adobe Illustrator, InDesign and Photoshop. They will also need basic things like scanners & printers.

ANIMATOR

 

What does the person in the career do?
A cartoon animator creates animation for cartoons, aniamted feature films, advertising or video games as there are many different jobs for this profession.

An animation is created by animators through making multiple frames of movement which when combined together will create an illusion of movement also known as animation.

An animator for a web cartoon might be the only person working on that cartoon, while an animator for a big- studio feature might be on of dozens. What a cartoon animator does depends all on the job he or she has.

On the other a cartoon animator who is a lead animator is essentially the project manager for the animation process. This person supervises a team of animators and artists, and makes sure the project is on track and consistent. The lead animator is responsible for making sure the project follows the established storyboard, and might have some say in staging and acting. A large-scale animation project might have several animation units, each led by its own lead animator.

An animator has many roles which they can attain as a career. However the career they choose is what controls what they have to do. Above are just the basics of what animators are able to do.

2. Where would you see this person’s work (e.g. in the newspaper, in a game shop)?

Their work is most popular on TV & Websites. Also with advertisers, web design firms, video game companies or even with animation firms. 

What training is needed for the career?

In order to become an animator a lot of training is required in many areas for example as an animator you:

Are expected to know the BASICS

Individuals who are interesting in a career in this field will need a solid and extensive foundation in basic drawing skills, as well as colour design and computer applications. Having a knowledge of various programs like Adobe Photoshop is helpful as well!

Need to decide and specify education in the TYPE of field you wish to work in on animation.

Animation is no longer soley of cartoons. There are computer animators who use 3D images to create animation, as well as stop-motion animators who use clay or plastic models to create the illusion of movement. Training in either for film or computer generation is useful: training like this can be obtained in schools which are dedicated to animation and graphic design. Computer animation studies are also available in many colleges, as well as specialised technical schools such as Regent University's School of Arts, which offers an in-depth training program in all aspects of animation.

Internship training can usually be under taken at animation studios and while there is no pay involved and the experience gained can be useful later on in a career. In addition, learning to us such computer programs as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and 3D Studio Max will give a solid foundation for animation studies.

AS WELL AS KNOWLEDGE

In addition to basic animation knowledge animator should be able to draw both 2D and 3D animation, a solid background in 3D graphic design is very useful. In addition video and special effects are also relevant areas that should be examined.

In order to become a successful animator many skills and training is required as stated above.  

4. What kind of software and hardware is used?

Lightwave, Softimage, Cinema 4D, Inkscape, Flash & 3D Studio Max.

Graphic Tablets

What is it and how do you use it ?

A graphics tablet is a computer input device. It allows individuals to make good use of it by allowing them to hand draw images and graphics, similiar to the way one draws images with a pencil and paper. These tablets can also be used to capture data or handwritten signatures.

The wireless Tablet:

 This scanner has 512 pressure levels. Pressure levels refer to the sensivity of the pressure on the surface of the tablet itself. This pressure sensitivity controls transperacy, line thickness and/or colour. The higher the pressure sensitivity is available, the more natural and responsive your tablet will feel allowing you to have more control.

The resolution of this tablet is 1280 x 1024. Resolution relates to the number of dots, pixels, used to display an image. Higher resolutions mean that more pixels are used to create the image which results in a crisper, cleaner image. The higher the resolution present means the more detailed and clearer your work will be. On the other hand the lower the resolution the less detail and finer the work will be.

The cost of this wonderful tablet as listed above is $1899.

Image File Types

GIF FILES
What are they used for?
Gif files are considered the most popular form on the internet and in fact and are the most excellent for formatting compressed areas or images with large areas of the same colour. But this type of format is considered the easiest option in order to be able to post animation online.  The Gif89 format is  able to support transparency and interlacing.

The idea behind originally designing GIF files was to create the smallest possible image file for uploading and downloading from electronic Bulletin Board Systems thus producing a highly compressed format that minimises file transfer time over phone lines.

The most common way of reducing the size of GIF files would be to reduce the number of colours on the palette. However it is important to note that GIF already uses the LZW compression scheme internally to make images as small as possible without having to loose any data.

A GIF file is a file format for storing graphical images.

What is their colour depth?
A gif image is able to reach the maximum resolution and bit depth of: 256 colours and 8 bits.
File Size Characteristics?



JPEG FILES
What are they used for?
JPEG stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group.
JPEG files are used in a variety number of image file formats. This type of format is most commonly used by digital cameras and other photographic image capture devices. This type of format is the most common format and is basically used to store and transmit photographic images via the World Wide Web.

Remember a Jpeg photo is always compressed therefore some of the photo's original information will be lost.

Colour Depth?
A JPEG file contains 8 bits of colour for each colour channel.It means that a primary colour ( R G B) can have 256 (28) different intensity values. Mixing of primary colours leads to 16.8 (256x256x256) million different colours.
File Size Characteristics?


Animated GIF files, where are they used?
An animated Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) file is a graphic image on the Web which moves. It is used to create a twirling icon or a banner with a hand that waves or letters that magically get larger. This sort of file is specified as GIF89a that contains a single file with a set of images that are presented in a specified order. An animated GIF can loop endlessly or it can present on or few sequences and then stop the animation.

In order to create this sort of file you need to creat a series of images, each slightly different from the one before. These series of GIFS are then put together in order and are layered one on top of the other in a photo or illustration editing program.They are then layered in reverse order with the last image on top. Finally loop and speed are set to these images to create an animation.

Basically these types of files are established to create an animation through the steps listed above.
Colour Depth
 File Size Characteristics


MPEG Files
What are they used for?
MPEG stands for Moving Picture Experts Group. It is used to refer to the family of digital video compression standards and file formats developed by the group. MPEG generally produces good quality in video format.MPEG algorithms compress data to form small bits that can be easily transimitted and then decompressed. MPEG achieves its high compression rate by storing only the changes from one frame to another, instead of each entire frame. This video information is then encoded using a technique called Discrete Cosine Transform. MPEG uses a type of lossy compression, since some data is removed. However this removal of data is barely noticeable by the naked eye.
Colour Depth?
File Size Characteristics?

What is a Vector Based Map
Unlike the other types of files listed above Vector images are not made of a gride of pixels. Instead Vector Graphics are comprised of paths which are defined by a start and end point, along with other points, curves and angles along the way. A path can be a line, a square, a triangle or even a curvy shape. These paths can be used to create simple drawings or complex diagrams. Paths are even used to define character face types.
Due to vector based images not being made of specific dots, they can be scaled to a larger size without loosing the quality of their image. For example if you were to blow up a raster graphic then it would look pixelated. However if you were to do this to a Vector graphic then the edges of the object within the graphic will stay smooth and clean. Many flash animations also use vector graphics since they scale better and take up less space.
 Vector Based image extablished on inkscape.

 A Gif image.

 JPEG image

 animated gif.

Digital Art... Real art?

To create this wonderful image I have used artpad.com as it is a program which allows you to explore a variety features to create a splendid artwork like this.

The features which I most appreciate on this program are the blotching technique which allows you to create abstract artwork. As well as this the paint brush tool which allows you to determine the size of the tool you wish to use.

However what I don't like about this program is the fact that there isn't many features which an individual can explore.

Is digital art a valid form of art?
Digital art is considered an original form of art as it is created through an individuals mind with originality. If the support of digital art is used it does not mean that the creators ideas presented are not creative enough to be considered as art. Also art does not always involve getting your hands dirty it could simply just mean presenting creative ideas as a different form!

What are some of the advantages that digital paint and draw programs offer over the traditional methods?

• You don't need to get your hands dirty with paint or pastels. \
• You are able to modify an error through digital form as opposed to canvas form.
• Perfection is something which can be obtained at an easier level.
• Getting a variety of options with colour, effects and stamps are also available.

What skills must a digital artist possess to create great digital art?
A digital artist is required to have at least basic knowledge of the program they wish to use.  As well as this they should know the potential of a variety of tools as well some experience in the field.

Digital Media

Digital Data is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital (as opposed to analog) form. If you look at the technical aspect then it can refer to the technical aspect of storage and transmission.


How many forms digital forms surrond us?

• computers
• mobile devices
• vide game consoles
• projectors
• television
• & radio

What number system is digital data based on?
Digital data is based on the binary number system which uses the numbers 0 or 1. Everything in the computer is that used by strings which are made up of these two numbers.


What is a bit?
A bit is a binary digit which is represented by a '0' or a '1'.


What is a byte?
A byte is a sequence of 8 bits ( enough to represent one character of alphanumeric data). These are processed as a single unit of information.


What is a sampling rate?
A sampling rate, sample rate or sampling frequency defines the number of samples per second (or per other unit) taken from a continour signal to make a discrete signal.

How does depth colour affect the appearance of if an image?
Colour depth is a term used to describe the maximum number of colours present in an image.

The chosen colour depth effects the final size of the image as well as deciding the clarity of the image. More colour means makes the image look more realistic and detailed.

As you can see from the image above you can conclude that the more colour depth present in the images the better clarity can be viewed.

A sampling rate effects video but not still media. Why?
A sampling rate only effects video because in this the "samples" are actually moving which means you have something to time for its sample rate because samples are going at a particular speed. Also you can set the samples at a particular speed because something will be moving. However in a still image there is nothing to time or set a speed at because still images dont move.