Blog Post III

Emphasis

1. Describe where your attention is visually drawn in this text. What strategies does the author use to emphasize this element? Given that this text is essentially a title page for a larger project, does this emphasis seem effective to you? Why or why not?

My attention is initially drawn to DRM but once she crosses out her first line explaining the abbreviation and writes maniacs instead, you can tell it added to the emphasis of the word and increased my curiosity as a viewer. However, unless the first minute of the project is just as interesting, I don’t think this was effective enough to prolong my attention for the entire video.

2. Between composing the two different pages (“Digital Rights Management/Digital Robbing Maniacs” and “Criminal”) the woman disappears from the screen and the jumpy stop-motion effect ceases. Describe how this moment of stillness can be understood as “emphasis” and explain if it seems like an effective strategy? What is emphasized by stopping the movement?

I believe the stillness puts emphasis on her drawing and the word criminal since the majority of the video was so jumpy. It let me focus on the image better since I was trying so hard to pay attention to the jumpy video in the beginning.

3. Consider the role sound plays in emphasis. How does the soundtrack to this clip help to (a) emphasize certain moments in the clip, and (b) place a particular emotional emphasis on the meaning of the clip?

With the sound, the words written become more important from the increasing intensity of the music. The sound brings on a feeling of alertness and therefore causes the viewer to pay attention to the linguistic communication.

Contrast

1. Watch 0:22-0:36 of The JUMP’s “Call for Papers.” Notice the words, the gray box, the cartoon background, and the sound. Do you think any of these elements contrast? If so, which ones and how so (specifically, what makes them different from one another)? What effects do you think this use of contrast has on the audience and the purpose? Consider how the text’s effectiveness might change if these elements did not contrast.

They all contrast and compliment each other because all modes are being used but the colors and placement allows them to work together. The gray box works with the cartoon background due to the similar tones, while the words contrast the images. I think the effects this use of contrast has on the audience and purpose is rather to increase engagement and therefore, interest of the production. While I’d like to watch the video, I’m drawn to the words and the video aids in grabbing my attention because there’s a moving background. It would lose effectiveness without the contrast because the words would blend with the video and it would simply be too hard to read. The gray box does a nice job of breaking up the content so the contrast works together rather than against each other.

2. First, describe what elements are contrasting. Next, explain why you think the cartoon background was deleted from this section. What happens to the contrast now that the background is black? Which element is now the most emphasized, and how do you think this helps convey the purpose of the text?

The text, plain background, the colors and sounds are contrasting. I believe the backgroudn was deleted because this section needs to be read clearly by viewers regarding what the author expects from them once this video is over. It’s the most critical part and therefore, the black background boosts the contrast to make the words stand out strongly so it is emphasized and understood correctly .

3. Imagine you’ve been asked to design a flyer to post around your campus advertising The JUMP. What would the flyer look like? Which element(s) would contrast and to what effect?

The flyer would be similar to the video, with images and the heading, plus a brief explanation of the project. However, the requirements would have a darker background to emphasize the words regarding expectations and what the project has to offer to participants.

Organization

1. Make a note about each of the 5 photos to explain what each one signifies, and how one leads to another. How does your organization convey your purpose?

For me, this sequence starts with a girl looking through a door as her looking into her future. She’s introduced to school and the importance of education. As a teen she experiments with partying and living in an increased social atmosphere. Later on she gets married and perhaps has a family. Lastly, I added the milk and food to represent her becoming the caregiver for her family and supporting her loved ones. I believe this organization conveys my purpose of my personal familiarity with what I’ve experienced and what I expect. Perhaps the traditional process of life for a woman.

2. Are there different arguments that you could have made by organizing your 5 photos in different ways?

By putting the woman looking out the door in the back, she could rather look into her past. By placing the woman painting last, it shows she could have found what she loves doing for herself as a personal hobby or career.

3. Are there other elements you could add to make your argument stronger—for example, playing music with the slide show or adding text?

Adding descriptive text would certainly have allowed the viewer to understand clearly, rather interpret the meaning of the pictures based on the order they are placed in. Upbeat or melancholy music would have made the transition of her life seem as a positive or negative direction as a woman.

Alignment

1. How would you describe alignment of the words “murmuring” and “insects” in the opening scene? How does the unusual alignment (reflected on screen and timed) add to your interpretation of the text?

Murmuring falls and is initially staggered on the left side. However, once it straightens out, the right side is replaced by insects. Then it fades away and repeats. It adds to my interpretation of the text because each word appears separate, yet connected. The falling makes me think of the ground and the transition encourages thoughts of how these two concepts are related to one another.

2. Now watch the “Earth” scene. What other elements are aligned in this scene? How does the consistent alignment of elements across screens (and also across some of the scenes) affect how you read these scenes? What elements do you end up focusing on? Would the scene seem as effective if all of the elements on the page (upside-down moon, contrails, words, background color, etc.) had no shared alignment?

The alignment of “in the weeds” and “murmuring” occurs from the falling, fading and right hand placement. “Insects” then replaces “murmuring” further to the right but the capitalization makes the word stand out regardless. Alignment makes these words easy to follow and I focus on the similar connection these words have to one another. I feel the scene wouldn’t be as effective because the elements would appear disjointed and the words wouldn’t be as powerful or easy to understand.

3. Now watch the “Air” scene, paying attention to the lines of poetry and the audio tracks. The poem doesn’t settle on the same horizontal axis as the other scenes do, and the two phrases in the audio track are aligned (synced) to appear with each line of poetry. Why do you think the alignments of the words are different between the Earth and Air scenes? What is the significance of the audio track’s content in relation to that difference?

They’re different because the author intends to enforce a different meaning for each element. The audio content is significant because it reflects the progression and direction the words lead toward, which are specific to the air element.

4. Now watch the “Water” scene. How does the curvature of the words, aligning with the background image of an eye, relate to what the man in the audio track is saying?

I believe the audio is speaking about the man’s past and he therefore because emotional and begins to tear up at the end. By making the words fall from an eye, it reflects his feels of loss and reflection.

5. Based on the alignment (or lack of alignment) between elements in a scene and across scenes, why are the three menu options (“Air,” “Earth,” and “Water”) on the main screen of this text not aligned? What does this lack of alignment tell you about the emphasis, sequence, and purpose of this text?

They aren’t aligned because they are all different and hold varying meanings within the contents of each element. They are also placed in the area of where each element resides in terms of height. The emphasis expresses each element as equal, while the sequence falls from the top down in regards to when each element is viewed. The purpose is related to the alignment because it allows the audience to choose the element they’d like to view while also reflecting how each element is unique.

–Okay, that was tough. I’m more than open to further thoughts because I’m sure my interpretations were a little off.

Proximity

1. Did you group certain categories of information together? How did you group them—typographically, by placing them closer together, or in some other way?

I chose to group the title and author together and placed them in the top, right side. The flying seagull was placed underneath this and “a novel about flight” beneath that.

2. What do you think is the most important piece of information on your cover? What choices did you make about typeface or size to convey that sense of importance? How does the layout of your book cover reflect your sense of how the information should be organized?

I think the most important piece of information on the cover is the book. I intentionally look for this information when browsing. However, if the author was more famous, I’d make that the center of attention because people know and recognize his work. However, I chose to convey the importance of the title at the top since we read from the top down. I feel the layout reflects how the information should be organized because it groups together topics that relate in terms of importance and also appears pleasing to the eye.

3. What are some limitations you’ve encountered in laying out visual elements in a traditional way? What are some other ways you might want to organize the information on a book cover that might work better in a non-traditional format?

The limitations I encountered in laying out the visual elements in a traditional way was making the cover stand out amidst other books. This reflects the font and sizes offered. As well as a generic seagull against a white background. For a non-traditional format I’d like to add a seagull patterned background that works with large found words. Perhaps the words themselves could form related images to create further interest about what the story within is about.