Today we evaluated our desktop wallpapers, stating what we found difficult, what we think we could improve it with, what skills we developed, and the overall process of planning and developing. Evaluation to follow:
After about 6 hours work in Photoshop, I finally finished my wallpaper. Compared to the original idea and draft, I think I improved it dramatically. Below is a comparison:
As you can see, my final design varies slightly from the original idea. I thought the original idea was too easy to do, and that parts of the wallpaper wouldn’t seem to fit in. I also decided that the student charter should become a hiscore, as it would seemingly fit the theme of the wallpaper better, and would just look it was added in because it HAD to be there.
I also re-arranged the layout as I thought that the top half of the desktop was going to look too busy and cluttered, giving the wallpaper an unattractive appeal.
I scanned the original idea into the computer, and then created a rough draft in Photoshop over the original to generate a basic idea of what I was trying to create. I then recreated the image from scratch based on the draft piece, and developed it from there.
I tried to give the wallpaper a clean and professional finish to it. I did so by creating the outlines of the shapes I needed, and then filled them in. I filled them in using the box tool and the grid view; this gave the wallpaper the retro feeling that I was looking for. I then copied and pasted the objects that were needed more than once, to make the wallpaper look professionally done, so the same shapes weren’t different sizes.
I chose this wallpaper other my other 3 idea’s as I thought more people would enjoy it and know what it was. I also thought the idea was original as no one else had come up with an idea close to it.
I based my design off a screenshot of Space Invaders in-game. This was done to get the correct shapes and layouts for my wallpaper, but at the same time I saw where I could develop my own idea’s, which is where the idea of using the icons as the ‘aliens’ came into play. This is the screenshot:
As you can see, I developed on the idea of the score and lives concept. I used a font near enough to the original space invaders font, so it would still fit the theme and still keep that retro feel to it.
Encountering problems
I struggled greatly at the back end of the wallpaper, as I didn’t layer my work properly. Some objects that were meant to be kept separate were done on the same layer, and when moved, both objects moved. Frustrating but I got around the problem. I got around the ‘moving’ problem by using the Rectangular Marquee tool around the area that needed moving. I never really encountered any other problems, except that I struggled to make the shields straight edged. I finally fixed the problem and then developed the idea behind the student charter.
What have I learnt from this project?
I’ve learnt that next time I need to layer my work properly, or it takes a lot longer than it needs to be. I also need to name my layers as well, or you lose track of what layer consists of what. I’ve also learnt and used various tools in Photoshop such as the grid, various brush sizes, the fill effect, colour picking, layering, the text tool, the colour swapping tool, the move tool and the magic wand tool as well as copy and paste. I’ve also learnt that it’s easier to develop off a simple idea, rather than recreate a difficult idea and make it simpler.
What skills have I developed from this project?
In this project I’ve developed my Photoshop skills as well as my thoughts and idea’s. I now know that the simplest idea’s turn out to be the best and the easiest to develop, whereas the most complex ideas have ‘potential’ but aren’t normally executed properly or are too hard to complete and so are simplified. The grid tool in Photoshop was also a big help in my project as I needed to give a blocky and retro feel to the wallpaper, and thus, this created that effect.
Were there any problems with time management?
There were no major time management flaws that affected the final outcome of my work. However, during the planning period I struggled to think of 4 idea’s that all varied from eachother, which started to create problems. I finally came up with an original idea and was clear to move on to producing it. I met the deadline of the project, so there were no problems.
If I were given the chance to do this again, there’d be nothing I’d change to the final design. I felt that the final design came out better than I expected and that there’s nothing I could change that would make a dramatic change to it. Overall I’m happy I chose this idea over the other 3.
As you can see, my final design varies slightly from the original idea. I thought the original idea was too easy to do, and that parts of the wallpaper wouldn’t seem to fit in. I also decided that the student charter should become a hiscore, as it would seemingly fit the theme of the wallpaper better, and would just look it was added in because it HAD to be there.
I also re-arranged the layout as I thought that the top half of the desktop was going to look too busy and cluttered, giving the wallpaper an unattractive appeal.
I scanned the original idea into the computer, and then created a rough draft in Photoshop over the original to generate a basic idea of what I was trying to create. I then recreated the image from scratch based on the draft piece, and developed it from there.
I tried to give the wallpaper a clean and professional finish to it. I did so by creating the outlines of the shapes I needed, and then filled them in. I filled them in using the box tool and the grid view; this gave the wallpaper the retro feeling that I was looking for. I then copied and pasted the objects that were needed more than once, to make the wallpaper look professionally done, so the same shapes weren’t different sizes.
I chose this wallpaper other my other 3 idea’s as I thought more people would enjoy it and know what it was. I also thought the idea was original as no one else had come up with an idea close to it.
I based my design off a screenshot of Space Invaders in-game. This was done to get the correct shapes and layouts for my wallpaper, but at the same time I saw where I could develop my own idea’s, which is where the idea of using the icons as the ‘aliens’ came into play. This is the screenshot:
As you can see, I developed on the idea of the score and lives concept. I used a font near enough to the original space invaders font, so it would still fit the theme and still keep that retro feel to it.
Encountering problems
I struggled greatly at the back end of the wallpaper, as I didn’t layer my work properly. Some objects that were meant to be kept separate were done on the same layer, and when moved, both objects moved. Frustrating but I got around the problem. I got around the ‘moving’ problem by using the Rectangular Marquee tool around the area that needed moving. I never really encountered any other problems, except that I struggled to make the shields straight edged. I finally fixed the problem and then developed the idea behind the student charter.
What have I learnt from this project?
I’ve learnt that next time I need to layer my work properly, or it takes a lot longer than it needs to be. I also need to name my layers as well, or you lose track of what layer consists of what. I’ve also learnt and used various tools in Photoshop such as the grid, various brush sizes, the fill effect, colour picking, layering, the text tool, the colour swapping tool, the move tool and the magic wand tool as well as copy and paste. I’ve also learnt that it’s easier to develop off a simple idea, rather than recreate a difficult idea and make it simpler.
What skills have I developed from this project?
In this project I’ve developed my Photoshop skills as well as my thoughts and idea’s. I now know that the simplest idea’s turn out to be the best and the easiest to develop, whereas the most complex ideas have ‘potential’ but aren’t normally executed properly or are too hard to complete and so are simplified. The grid tool in Photoshop was also a big help in my project as I needed to give a blocky and retro feel to the wallpaper, and thus, this created that effect.
Were there any problems with time management?
There were no major time management flaws that affected the final outcome of my work. However, during the planning period I struggled to think of 4 idea’s that all varied from eachother, which started to create problems. I finally came up with an original idea and was clear to move on to producing it. I met the deadline of the project, so there were no problems.
If I were given the chance to do this again, there’d be nothing I’d change to the final design. I felt that the final design came out better than I expected and that there’s nothing I could change that would make a dramatic change to it. Overall I’m happy I chose this idea over the other 3.
