Traveling outside of the country is one of the most rewarding experiences that I got to be a part of after graduating from High School. Two weeks after graduating, I boarded on a plane for a month-long adventure that took me to over thirteen different countries. I was trying food I didn’t know how to pronounce, doing things I didn’t think in a million years I would ever do, and meeting people with the most diverse backgrounds. For my digital comic collage, I wanted to make the viewer feel the feeling of wanderlust as well as the surprise that comes with traveling. I was able to complete my collagewith the help of MacCloud’s definition of comics, John Lovett’s Design Overview concepts, materials I used, and how these materials were used in my collage.

Project One-Comic Collage-By: Grace Kannberg- October 2, 2019

My comic fits into MacCloud’s definition of comics by the way I have sequenced the items to look as if they were falling out of the bag. This imagery conveys the information that I have been traveling and what I have collected on my travels. I deliberate sequenced these imagines falling out of the bag by the order of the places I have gone. Starting with the postcard and Bus from Edinburg, Scotland and ending with the card I got in Greece.

Our readings from John Lovett’s Design Overview helped me think about composition on the page by how each image interacted with each other. For example, I used the element of design in tone when editing the digital scan of my computer. I highlight the stickers that mean the most to me and hide the overwhelming collage that was already there. This contrast between light and dark also affects the surrounding images, allowing them to be more pronounced. Such as the postcard and blue wallet with transit passes. I learned that the composition on a page is affected by all elements. How one image is used (texture, size, color, shape) affects the image next to it.

The materials objects, textures, and images I juxtaposed for my project helped make meaning through the collageprocess because it added a dimensional element for the viewer. Most elements in the collageare from paper materials, but each has unique weremarks and texter elements that make the repetition have variation. A diverse textual element I used is the plastic bag I got from Paris. It is isolated from all the other elements in the collagebecause of its shiny features. It allows the viewer’s eyes to pull to the corner and away from where most of the action takes place. Like my Paris bag, the tan train ticket centers the eye of the viewer and the collagedue to its size and placement.

For the use of linguistic mode in my comic, I made the choice to change the color of the logo on my Hard Rock Café bag to a different color. I was inspired to do this after reading John Lovett’s element of design in color. When choosing a color to pop out the words, I chose to use the tertiary color (a blue/green mix) because of the contrast it had with darker colors around it. Moreover, the blue/green color complements the pops of red I isolated out on my computer. I found that when I did this my collagelooked less flat.

This has been my first time using photoshop. Needless to say, getting started was difficult. The tutorials helped somewhat, but I also found them to be confusing. I am not someone who learns well from videos, I am a more hands-on type of person. It became difficult for me to find the time to watch the videos and follow along on photoshop because I did not have the software on my computer. The time I did have in the computer lab was restricted because of the times it was open, my class schedule, and my workload from other classes. Despite this setback, I think that my project turned out the best with the skills that I have.

The most useful tools and techniques that I took away from the tutorials was how to create layers and masking layers. Creating layers and the significance of layers was unknown to me until watching the tutorials. It allowed me to create an organized collagethat allowed me to focus on one aspect of my collageat a time. Moreover, the masking layers completely changed how I was working at my collage. At first, I would erase the extra pixels from an image to get the small portion that I wanted. This was not the best idea because I was getting rid of pixels that I could have needed later on. After watching the tutorial and getting assistance from the professor, I was able to use a layer mask to hide the pixels I didn’t want. I used this technique for every photo that I added to my college. This gave me the desired effect that I was wanted for the viewer to experience.

After composing in a digital environment, I did find that I liked it. I got to get out the image that I had in my head for what I wanted my project to look like. I am not able to do this with drawing because I am not so good at it. Although, I did find photoshop challenging to use and know that I need to spend more time using the platform to become better skilled at using it.