FMX210_Blog1_02/20_SMiller

 Sophie Miller

Weekly Blog Post 1 - 2/3 - 2/7

This week, we continued working in Adobe Illustrator and started on layers and tracing our headshots. We switched back to dropbox, and I ensured all my assignments were properly named and uploaded. One of the biggest exercises we did this week was the Griswold car exercise, where we had to put the National Lampoon's vacation inside the car using envelope distort: make text mesh. At first, this was difficult for me, but after I understood how it worked and how each point can be moved to fit the way you want it, it became easier and quite fun. Adobe Illustrator is a program used to create illustrations, logos, and other designs. This week, I learned how to use different tools to group words, move them around, fit them inside projects, and turn text from text font to an object, these tools gave me better control over how text interacts with different parts of a design. This week, I worked on two major projects. First, I traced headshots for my calligram project, using illustrating and tracing paper to trace four different headshots to choose from and put the shapes inside them to prepare for the final calligram This helped me get better at organizing different parts of my design process and preparing for the text-based artwork. The second project was the Griswold car exercise, where I used Envelope distortion mesh text to fit the National Lampoon’s Vacation title inside the car. At first, it was tricky to make the text fit the shape correctly, but after some trial and error, I figured it out. I explored several new tools this week. Envelope Distort - Make with Mesh was one of the most important, as it allowed me to fit text inside the Griswold car. The Object Selection Tool was useful for quickly selecting different parts of my designs, especially when tracing headshots. Additionally, I changed fonts into warpable objects and grouped different letters. These tools made my work more efficient and gave me a better understanding of how you can manipulate text using Illustrator. This week’s work was easier compared to last week’s Pen Tool exercises. The Pen Tool required precise placement of anchor points, which took more time and focus. Text manipulation was more straightforward to use. Once I learned how to apply the tool correctly, the process became much smoother. I feel like I am making good progress, as I can now complete these exercises with more confidence and efficiency. There were some challenges this week. The Griswold car exercise was frustrating at the beginning because my text didn’t always fit the shape correctly. I had to adjust the points and try different ways to get it right. Despite this, I learned a lot. I now understand how to use text-warping tools, which will be useful for future projects like the calligram. I also realized how important it is to keep layers organized when working on designs. Overall, this week, I improved my skills in text manipulation, completed the Griswold car exercise, and made progress on my calligram project. Illustrator can still be challenging, but I’m becoming more confident in using different tools. I’m excited to keep improving in the coming weeks.