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[Concept Visualisation] Lighting

To further understand lighting better, I analysed 3 images based on how the artist had designed the lighting in the image. I was keeping in mind several of the basic rules of lighting including Absorbtion, Refraction and Reflection, but also more advanced ones such as Subsurface Scattering, Ambient Occlusion and Diffused Reflection.




The first image I looked at was by Jason Chan. In the image he makes very good use of cold blues in the background contrasted by the reds on the woman's garment and foreground fauna. The blue from the sky and water is very intense, and is reflecting the nearby trees. There is also some Diffused Reflection toward the viewer, as you can see the panthers paw through the water.




In this image from Dragon Age: Origins you can see the good use of absorbtion of light on the beast's face as it picks up the purple from the orb. There is also some nice ambient occlusion as the shadows cast by the woman's hood fade toward the edge of her face.




This is another very nice image by Jason Chan. The bright orange of the flame is being reflected on to the woman's face, as well as being subsurface scattered through the thin hair around the lion's mane. There is also some very dense fog that is picking up the reds from the bottom of the screen.

[Concept Visualisation] Composition

I have selected 3 images to talk about the artist's composition. While analysing the images, I will be keeping in mind the key elements of focal points, framing, divine proportion and the rule of thirds.

This image by Jason Chan makes very good use of space using divine proportions. The viewer is drawn into the key focal point of the rider in the bottom left, but also to the eel head fighting the angel in the centre of the image. He has also made very good use of the rule of thirds by making sure the action is spread evenly into every third.

Here is another image by Jason Chan that makes good use of changes in the ambient lighting. The leading line across the centre of the images separates the warm orange of the top to the cool blues towards the bottom. It also leads your eye down from the figure on top, toward the girl in the bed, and finally in the direction of the girl beside the bed. I think this the perfect order, as you can see the cause, the result, and the solution.

This in an image by Marco Bucci entitled 'Venice'. When I looked at this image, I was in too minds of the composition, but I believe it is a mix of and L Shape composition and Divine Proportions. The buildings break the image perfectly up into 3 evenly spaced L's which means the artist has thought well about the rule of thirds. There is also a sense of descending through the image, meaning that a Route 3 Rectangle was probably used to get the proportions of the distant canal.

[Contextual Studies] Signifiers and Signified

I looked into several genres to think of recurring signifiers of the series. One of the first that came to mind was Ratchet and Clank, and I decided to do a 5-bullet list for each game. 

With Ratchet and Clank I came up with:

 

- The heroes, Ratchet and Clank ~ The games persistent main characters and the reason for being.

- Nuts/Bolts ~ In all Ratchet and Clank games, bolts have a recurring presence. They are used for currency, weapon upgrades, achievements and other rewards. Destroying crates to get nuts and bolts is one of the core mechanics of the Ratchet and Clank series.

- Voice Acting/Dialog ~ The voice acting in Rachet and Clank is very distinctive. Many characters have very unique voices, and the style of comedy in the dialog is very unique to the series.

- Assortment of Weapons ~ One of Ratchet and Clank's main features are the large variation of weapons available for purchase in the game. Usually with each new release there is an gradual increase in the amount of new weapons.

- The Wrench ~ In every game, Ratchet makes use for his wrench in one way or another. It is used for physic-based puzzles, to unlock doors, to fight enemies and so on. There is never a time Ratchet is without his wrench.

I also looked at games like Sonic having common signifiers with rings which were the genre's equivlent to currency. This made me think that one of the top five signifiers in several games seems to be the currency used in the game. For example, in Spyro, collecting gems from baskets to buy things is one of the most memorable features of the game. I also looked into how game developers exploit this to draw the viewer in. For example, in Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games, the designers used the olympic rings as a signifier of the rings from Sonic's series.