My 18 Technologic Years!

In one of my earliest Digital Media lectures, my Prof showed us a list of all of the technology she has seen in her lifetime. Inspired by this, I have decided to write a list of some of the technology I've seen over the years (In no specific order):

Vinyl Records. Record Players. Cassettes. Cassette Players. CDs. Walkmans. Rechargeable batteries. Ball point pens. Floppy Disks. Projectors. Boom box. Corded phones. Type Writer. Wireless phones. Cell phones. Computers. Flat screen Monitors. Internet. Television. Black and White Printers. Laser Printer. Flat Screen TV. HD TV. VCR Players. Blu Ray. Smart Boards. USB keys. Dial Up Internet. Solar Pannels. Email. Film Cameras. MP3 Players. iPods. iTunes. File Sharing. Digital Cameras. Scanners. Cell Phone Cameras. Touch Screen Cell Phones. Smart Phones. Laptops. Web cameras. Tablets. Kindle. 3D Movies. Super Nintendo. Wireless Internet. Bluetooth. Xbox. Toaster Oven. Digital Clock. Hybrid Cars. Surround Sound.

Although I'm sure I can add many more to the list, this is what my brain has come up with for now. (I bolded some of my favourites—I still buy CDs & print pictures!)  It's weird to think that kids born in the last couple of years do not know what a cassette or VCR is! What will they invent next? What will your kids know? Will anything on this list still be popular?

Try it out! What have you seen? You'll discover more then you might imagine.

Crap.

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Contrast

Contrast has always been a hard concept for me to grasp. I’ve heard about complementary colours and such, but contrast can be found all over—not just in colours! However, the image below has helped me understand what colours complement one another. Take a look at it! 

Wonder who chose the colours for Christmas, cause they happen to be complementary colours! Green & red however, aren’t solely associated with christmas. They happen to be very common colours for many other things. For example in this image below 

This picture shows red and green—Two completely opposite colours. It shows a good contrast. If these were green and yellow, they would be too similar and wouldn’t create the same effect that the green and red does. If they’re not completely different, they probably shouldn’t go together. If you were going to describe contrast in another way you could say oxymoron. Opposites attract. Horizontal lines love vertical lines. Small type attaches to large type. It sounds simple but it’s quite tricky

________________________________________________Repetition

When some aspect of a design is repeated throughout the page

I believe that this picture does a good job at adding effect with repetition. When someone looks at this picture they do not simply see a person under a tree but instead they see a person under only one of many trees. By having numerous trees, it allows for the single person to stand out. Having a single image among numerous other ones, adds emphasis to the single image. In this particular image, the single person creates an almost eery and frightening effect—This could also be by the images colouring. The repeated trees automatically makes me think that this is a forest, and the colouring suggests night. Therefore, with just one glance, I know (or think) that the woman is alone at night in a forest, surrounded by nothing besides trees. This automatically raises questions in my brain about why she might be there and a whole story is created. If I had seen the same picture, without the repeated trees, I may not have reacted in the same way—If it was just one tree she could be standing outside her house. In conclusion, repetition adds detail and drama to an image.

Generally one might think that if something is repeated multiple times that that is what should stand out in an image. However, often repetition works in just the opposite way. When something is repeated so many times, such as in this photo, it can blend into the background. This may be a bad thing and something that people should remember when designing, but if done correctly—as in this picture, it works. Having the repeated phrase “ What made you think it’s be different this time?” sort of fade into the background it allows for the main message “Different font same old story” stand out. By having the sentence repeated multiple times it creates unison. It also creates a visually interesting background—It is definitely more fun to look at then a solid background!

________________________________________________Alignment

When items on a page are aligned to create visual connection. When pictures aren’t aligned correctly it is hard to find the start of each new word and creates overall confusion. 

This is an example of bad alignment:

In the picture below things are lined up to the right which makes it easier to find the next word on the page & creates better visual interest.

Another example of good alignmnet is a flight time chart. It is organized in a way to make it easy for eyes to read locate times:

________________________________________________Proximity

When one groups related items together. It makes separate items appear to be a cohesive group.

In the image to the left, many different small images are lined up on top of each other. Even though each line of images is completely different, because they are grouped together they become a cohesive group.

This is especially seen in advertisements. For a company it can be hard to sell an item—such as shoes because they are all different. To the right is a picture I found online. By lining the shoes up it shows that they are all a part of the same group—wether or not they are all visually identical or not.

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Overall, These four elements prove that design is a lot of work. For something to look visually interesting and draw in an audience it must embody most, if not all of these 4 elements.

*Please note that none of the pictures above are mine. I do not claim the rights to any of them. They are just pictures I found online and worked well as examples 

These Shoes Were Made For Bloggin'

Another crazy morning! After attending my first ever Toronto Film Festival (TIFF) movie last night—Ten Year— and rolling into bed at the uncanny hour that I did, I once again woke up at 6am to attend my morning lectures. Now I may have been working on 4 hours of sleep, but I didn’t miss a beat of my Digital Media lecture. Today my prof talked all about ones “Digital Footprint.” A digital footprint, by definition, is ones digital trace & memory of their time online. Whenever someone logs into an account, posts a comment and/or picture online, they are leaving their footprint. These footprints are pretty much permanent, because as my prof always says: “Google never forgets.” Does that scare any of you? Does the idea that any small thing that you do online, will never be forgotten? Now I’ve got to admit, the thought is a little eerie—But, should it be?  

Since I can remember—well since Facebook & Twitter and all that got big, people have continuously told me to be careful what I post online. “Remember everyone can see it,” is what I always heard and as a tween I never realized the true meaning of “everyone.” In my mind, whatever I posted online my friends could see, maybe a few people in my family, definitely the website creators & that was about it. I never understood that what I was posting in the moment could potentially be seen by future profs, employers and practically anyone willing to pay enough money to get some dirt on me. It’s such a bizarre thought. It’s wild and exciting, yet slightly intimidating all at once. I mean it would be cool for future employers to see everything I’m interested in & all I've done that could benefit their company, but I don’t really want them reading that silly, unthought, totally pointless comment I posted on my best friend’s Facebook wall.

When I searched myself online, in attempt to discover my digital footprint, I didn’t find a lot. However, what I did find was a little shocking. On google, I found the usual: Twitter, Facebook, The blog I write for and my old MySpace account. On top of that though, I found some odd things such as a few of my old profile pictures from Facebook & some posts I made on Facebook groups in the past. It felt awkward to think that other people, not in the group and possibly not even on Facebook could see these things. What happened to my privacy settings? Searching myself on Google and Spezify really allowed me to play the employer role and discover my true digital footprint.

Your digital identity is one that not only your close friends and family will know. Who you are online reaches beyond anything you can imagine. Anyone, anywhere with a simple internet connection can type your name into a search engine and learn about you. After todays lecture, I have learned how to better my digital Identity—as it is important, because of the generation I was born in, to make sure I am an active part of the online world. With creating a Google Profile (https://profiles.google.com), an online resume (http://www.flavors.me) and buying my own domain name (www.Godaddy.com/canada), I can literally decide what someone will find when searching my name. It is highly beneficial to put myself out there—in a positive, professional way and not simply with Facebook & Twitter. I suggest that all you readers should do the same. Think about it! If you’re sitting in an interview and your (possible) future employer types your name into google, they will see someone who is organized AND tech savvy rather then the typical Facebook & Twitter user. Just remember! As my prof often says: “Google never forgets.” SO KEEP IT CLEAN!

Las Vegas Postcard!

Check out the first thing I did in my Digital Media Lab!

Toto, We're Not in High School Anymore!

As I’m preparing for University, I look at the schedule for my first day of classes. Letters such as BDC, followed by hundreds of numbers, is what I find on my page. Unsure of what these letters and numbers mean, I head over to the Ryerson website. There I learn how to translate these course codes. Tuesday morning at 9 o’clock I will be sitting in my Digital Media lecture. Digital Media? Now, I must translate these terms! Right away, because of the simple word “digital” I think of cameras. Besides hearing the word “digital” combined with the word “camera” it is not often thrown around. Cameras remind me of visuals and therefore I assume that: “digital media” means visual media. Without second guessing this idea, I go into my first digital media lecture (and my second university lecture EVER) ready to learn about the visual aspect of media. 


Okay. I may have had to wake up at the break of dawn—literally, to get there on time, but after my two morning lectures I was in love! My assumptions were not entirely correct. Whereas I assumed “digital media” was merely the visual aspect of media, I learned that it means so much more. Digital media is what is currently, for lack of a better description, attacking our world. Blogging, music, video, file sharing, social networking— It has taken over! Think about it. Is there anyone you know that doesn’t have a Facebook account? Nowadays it’s rare to hear a no in return to that question. Not many hesitate before uploading their newest photos or typing their personal thoughts into the big wide word of the internet and as long as they’re treating they’re accounts properly—keeping everything clean and professional, why not? Digital media is fun! It’s exciting to post pictures of your vacation for family and friends to see! It’s nice to share how great your day has been going, post something cool you found on youtube or even just to talk to an old friend you haven’t seen in forever! It feels good to be able to do so much without having to leave the comfort of your home. Now don’t get me wrong, sitting on a quiet beach reading your favourite book is more then exciting as well— But, you have to admit that going online and discovering how many other people are obsessing over that same chapter and that same character sends excited shivers down your spine. This world has become a digital media frenzy and it’s not stopping here. With all this wild technology, our worlds norms and values are changing fast and one must join in to stay in. 

While learning all about Digital Media, I realized it’s a crucial part of my education as a RTA student. After university I will be thrown into this crazy world. I will have to shape myself in ways that are beneficial for the industry I plan to enter. My four years at Ryerson will allow me to learn about the newest technology and newest trends in media today. With almost everything being done online these days, I must prepare for a world where EVERYTHING is done online. Creating a sophisticated online presence for myself and ensuring that I stay active in both social and digital media is where I shall begin. This Digital Media course will be the start in preparing me for a job that may not even exist yet!