Assignment 1 - Understand current uses of motion graphics and compositing video by Claire Peak.
What is Motion Graphics?
Motion Graphics are moving illustrations or text.
They are pieces of digital footage or animation which create the illusion of motion or rotation and are usually mixed with audio for use in multimedia projects.
Some examples of motion graphics include the kinetic typography which are moving typography, fonts and text and graphics used in film and television opening sequences.
"This art form has been around for a long time but it has only recently become more technically sophisticated in recent years with the programmes such as Adobe After Effects, Flash and Autodesk Maya which is mainly used for 3D Graphics."(Oak learn, 26th February 2017.)
OakLEARN - The Key to eLearning: Log in to the site. 2017. OakLEARN - The Key to eLearning: Log in to the site. [ONLINE] Available at: http://oaklearn.oaklands.ac.uk/pluginfile.php/136252/mod_resource/content/4/Lesson1.pdf. [Accessed 26 February 2017].
What is Compositing Video?
Compositing Video brings in video images combining different photographs and images and this used to be done by hand.
" Compositing video is the combining of visual elements from separate sources into single images, often to create the illusion that all those elements are part of the same scene." (Oak learn, 26th February 2017.)
OakLEARN - The Key to eLearning: Log in to the site. 2017. OakLEARN - The Key to eLearning: Log in to the site. [ONLINE] Available at: http://oaklearn.oaklands.ac.uk/pluginfile.php/136252/mod_resource/content/4/Lesson1.pdf. [Accessed 26 February 2017].
Give some early examples of motion graphics and compositing film:
An Optical Poem (1938) - Classic Short Film - YouTube
24 Feb 2013 - Uploaded by All Classic Video
The short film An Optical Poem, 1938, by the celebrated German-born abstract film-maker Oskar Fischinger, in ...
YouTube. 2017. An Optical Poem (1938) - Classic Short Film - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=they7m6YePo. [Accessed 26 February 2017].
The second example is by Viking Egging. The website is a youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpCI67GMe7o
YouTube. 2017. Symphonie Diagonale Viking Eggeling - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpCI67GMe7o. [Accessed 26 February 2017].
"Early Pioneers of what was to become known as motion graphics include avant garde dada artists Hans Richter, Viking Eggeling and film maker Oskar Fischinger."(Oak Learn, 26th February 2016.)
OakLEARN - The Key to eLearning: Log in to the site. 2017. OakLEARN - The Key to eLearning: Log in to the site. [ONLINE] Available at: http://oaklearn.oaklands.ac.uk/pluginfile.php/136252/mod_resource/content/4/Lesson1.pdf. [Accessed 26 February 2017].
Give an example of an interactive DVD interface and analyse its objective.
An Interactive DVD interface is made up of text, music, images, sound effects, sound bites, logos, icons/emblems and theme colour which contributes to the experience of the audience.
The film Tron has a good example of an interactive dvd interface:
This interactive dvd interface gives the viewer a choice to choose different icons on its menu and it looks like a one is playing a computer game with the target image in the middle of the screen.
What are the characteristics?
The fonts used for the text for the menu choice is written in a digital type font and then the title is very bold and is displayed in two theme colours of red and blue, making it stand out clearly to its audience. Also, the circular vector shapes around the figure make the dvd interesting to look at visually and the arrows in green fill the space where a black background has been used. It is an interesting interface because it is quite unusual and appealing to its viewers like a computer game.
What are the technological considerations and the advantages and disadvantages?
This type of interactive DVD interface would be most likely found on a Blu-ray dvd cover. Also this menu would probably not be shown on a cinema screen. One would probably watch this dvd on a screen ratio of 16:19 (also known as widescreen.)
Most Dvd players cannot read AVI/RM/RMVB files directly. To be able to watch such videos on the TV, you must first convert them to a format that the dvd player can understand. This format is MPEG-2. MPEG-1 is also readable by DVD players, but they have much lower quality.
Also the frame rate can be an issue, for example if you create the motion graphic in 24fps, but it has to be shown in 25fps for broadcast you might get a different result to what it originally looked like.
Give an example of animated captions and analyse its objective:
The example below is an animated caption from the game show Pointless on the BBC. In this gameshow the players look at a screen and they must answer questions on the board and then once the answer has been selected it turns a different colour on the board. The answer is then transferred to another screen so it moves to where there is a column which tells you if the answer is right or wrong and whether the answer is pointless. If the answer reaches zero the winners receive prize money. It is a very visually exciting quiz show to watch on the TV.
Animated Captions are mostly used on information programmes such as the news, football results on Sky for example, weather, weather forecasts and gameshows. They give us very important information such as breaking news and presenters names.
What are the characteristics?
The bold purple and the yellow text make the board easier to read as yellow is a very bright colour to use.
Most Dvd players cannot read AVI/RM/RMVB files directly. To be able to watch such videos on the TV, you must first convert them to a format that the dvd player can understand. This format is MPEG-2. MPEG-1 is also readable by DVD players, but they have much lower quality.
Also the frame rate can be an issue, for example if you create the motion graphic in 24fps, but it has to be shown in 25fps for broadcast you might get a different result to what it originally looked like.
Give an example of animated captions and analyse its objective:
The example below is an animated caption from the game show Pointless on the BBC. In this gameshow the players look at a screen and they must answer questions on the board and then once the answer has been selected it turns a different colour on the board. The answer is then transferred to another screen so it moves to where there is a column which tells you if the answer is right or wrong and whether the answer is pointless. If the answer reaches zero the winners receive prize money. It is a very visually exciting quiz show to watch on the TV.
Animated Captions are mostly used on information programmes such as the news, football results on Sky for example, weather, weather forecasts and gameshows. They give us very important information such as breaking news and presenters names.
What are the characteristics?
The bold purple and the yellow text make the board easier to read as yellow is a very bright colour to use.
Another constraint are the visual effects because there are many different TVs and some older models may not be able to give an accurate image, therefore colours may be off and the image may be blurred.
Programme Stings:
Programme Stings:
These are a very short section of music or sound with images used to punctuate the programme.
Stings can be often used at the beginning or end of a break during a TV show.
BT TV STINGS on Vimeo
https://vimeo.com/77614482
Vimeo. 2017. BT TV STINGS on Vimeo. [ONLINE] Available at: https://vimeo.com/77614482. [Accessed 26 February 2017].
This video shows at the heart of the package a set of mood based stings that are designed to convey the themes of action, suspense, comedy and drama. They are used across all the programming genres with kids and music stings being created specifically for their own categories.
What are the characteristics?
The bright theme colours of the BT Logo are easily recognisable. The vector shapes used are inventive and creative.
A sting will mainly be found on the television.
A sting will mainly be found on the television.
Give an example of a television channel Ident and analyse its objective.
To view this video go to the link below:
The BBC One television channel shows an ident of hippos swimming in a circle. This ident used to be an ident shown on the BBC in 2006. There have been new idents since then.
Idents are visual images employed between television programmes that work as a logo to locate the viewer to the channel they have chosen to watch. There are idents for all sorts of programmes and even idents for live matches for sport like football.
These idents can be quite powerful because sound and text works together and is edited together and they appeal to creative people who are interested in moving graphics.
As the public funds the BBC it makes sense to show idents of everyday life and nature. These idents are very creative and capture the audiences attention.
Typography can be a problem occurring in Idents as text can become easily pixelated and the meaning will be unclear. Also, when broadcast through a TV signal an ident may not look as effective as it did in post-production.
Another limitation of Idents is the size or resolution of it, the aspect ratio in all TV used to be 4:3 but now is mainly 19:9 and some designers do not consider this when creating their ident. The results are the images may be blurry and does not give a positive outlook on the company.
Give an example of a Web Banner and analyse its objective.
Kids in Australia is a web banner advertisement advertising their website, www.kidsinaustralia.com.au If you visit the website on the web banner it is all about building memories with kids in one of the safest and most beautiful countries in the world. It aims to provide people with relevant information about things to do, recipes, accommodation, shop Australia, eat Australia and visit Australia.
Some people find web banners annoying as they do tend to pop up on websites one is visiting and this can sometimes distract people too much.
A web banner is like an advertising banner found on the world wide web delivered by an Ad server.
Web banners are often made up of photographic images, vector graphics, text and there are sometimes moving ad banners.
Give an example of a film or television programme title sequence and analyse its objective.
Title sequences tend to be more exciting to create the build up to the film or programme. They present the title, key production information and cast members and can be overlaid on top of the programme itself as well as including other graphics.
In the title sequence of this film, we are shown that the text is acting as the movement of the car, it is moving to the sound of the car. We can see that the opening scene fits into the title sequence and it reveals to the audience elements of what the film is going to be about, violence, blood, killing and when the title is shown in red we straight away know the film is going to be a violent one. The text introducing the key production and cast members looks slick in a white font.
What is a Codec?
A Codec is a device or software that is used to compress or decompress a digital media file such as a video or file and the most common codec is Quicktime H.264.
Define Compression with examples.
The definition of compression is: the act of being compressed.
"the effect, result, or consequence of being compressed."
"Also called data compression. Computers. reduction of the storage space required for data by changing its format."(Dictionary.com, 28th February 2017.)
Define Video Format:
A video file format is a type of file format for storing digital video data on a computer system. Video is almost always stored in compressed form to reduce the file size.
Define Frame Rate with examples.
The frame rate is the speed at which images occur.
A frame is a picture or a still image.
Video is simply multiple images (called 'frames') one after the other. Together they create the illusion of movement.
The speed at which these images occur is called 'the frame rate.'
Higher frame rates make the image look smoother.
Different formats have different frame rates for different reasons.
Film is projected at 24fps.
PAL TV (UK TV) is shown at 25fps.
NTSC TV (US TV) is shown at 29.97 fps.
What is PAL video format?
"There are two television display systems in commercial use:
PAL (common in Europe and parts of Asia) delivers a frame rate of 25fps (frames per second) with 625 lines, while NTSC (used in the U.S. and Canada) delivers a frame rate of 30fps using 525 lines."
"NTSC is the video system or standard used in North America and most of South America. In NTSC, 30 frames are transmitted each second. Each frame is made up of 525 individual scan lines. PAL is the predominant video system or standard mostly used overseas." (What is NTSC and PAL?, 28th February 2017.)
What is NTSC and PAL?,DVD format and Regions. 2017. What is NTSC and PAL?,DVD format and Regions. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.sjbproductions.com/web_pages/tip_video/ntsc_pal.htm. [Accessed 28 February 2017].
High Speed Frame Rate and Slow Motion.
Some directors are now shooting in High Frame Rate. For example "The Hobbit HFR 3D" film was the first major motion picture to be filmed and projected using a higher than normal frame rate of 48fps.
Some cameras can shoot at a high frame rate to achieve good quality slow motion. For example the Sony FS700 camera can shoot up to 800 frames per second. When imported into a 25fps project the motion is slowed down considerably. This gives much higher quality slow motion than simply slowing the clip down using a 'plug in' or effect in Premiere.
The Slow Mo Guys YouTube video uses a slow motion technique to film ordinary everyday objects in ultra slow motion. Below is an example that shows you " how insanely quick the inside of a DSLR camera moves when it takes a picture, by filming it at 10,000 frames per second." The video is called "Inside a Camera." (Inside a Camera, 28th February 2017.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmjeCchGRQo
YouTube. 2017. Inside a Camera at 10,000fps - The Slow Mo Guys - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmjeCchGRQo. [Accessed 28 February 2017].
Define Screen Ratios with examples.
Aspect Ratio or Screen Ratio is the ratio showing the height and the width of a video frame.
It is the width and height of the video in the form: WIDTH : HEIGHT. (compares the width to the height.
Some common aspect ratios are 16:19 (also known as widescreen) and 4:3 (used in older TV and video technology and is now almost obsolete.
Define Resolution with examples.
Give an example of a film or television programme title sequence and analyse its objective.
Title sequences tend to be more exciting to create the build up to the film or programme. They present the title, key production information and cast members and can be overlaid on top of the programme itself as well as including other graphics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8pQJOeTkFs
YouTube. 2017. Saul Bass title sequence - Goodfellas (1990) - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8pQJOeTkFs. [Accessed 01 March 2017].
Saul Bass the most inspirational graphic designer of all time designed the title sequence for the film: 'Goodfellas'.
In the title sequence of this film, we are shown that the text is acting as the movement of the car, it is moving to the sound of the car. We can see that the opening scene fits into the title sequence and it reveals to the audience elements of what the film is going to be about, violence, blood, killing and when the title is shown in red we straight away know the film is going to be a violent one. The text introducing the key production and cast members looks slick in a white font.
What is a Codec?
A Codec is a device or software that is used to compress or decompress a digital media file such as a video or file and the most common codec is Quicktime H.264.
"Basically, a codec – which is a combination of the words “compressor/decompressor” (or coder/decoder) is a set of instructions that identifies the method used to compress data into fewer bytes, as well as doing just the opposite when a video file is played back, decompressing it. So, a video codec, is a compression scheme to compress a video stream while an audio codec would be a compression scheme for audio..
Examples of Compression Schemes:
- Video = H.264, H.263, VP6, Sorenson Spark, MPEG-4, MPEG-2, etc…
- Audio = AAC, MP3, Vorbis, etc…
- Metadata = XML, RDF, XMP, etc…
Keep in mind that there are 2 types of codecs – lossy and losseless. These are just what they sound like. Lossy compression (commonly used to compress multimedia for delivery) compresses data in such a way that it looses some of the original data but achieves much smaller file sizes. Lossless compression is just the opposite."(tubular insights.com, 5th March 2017.)
tubularinsights.com. 2017. tubularinsights.com. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.tubularinsights.com/file-formats-containers-compression. [Accessed 5 March 2017].
Define Compression with examples.
The definition of compression is: the act of being compressed.
"the effect, result, or consequence of being compressed."
"Also called data compression. Computers. reduction of the storage space required for data by changing its format."(Dictionary.com, 28th February 2017.)
Dictionary.com. 2017. Compression | Define Compression at Dictionary.com. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.dictionary.com/browse/compression. [Accessed 28 February 2017].
Lossless Compression is a class of data compression algorithms that allow the original data to be perfectly reconstructed from the compressed data.
Lossy Compression permits reconstruction only of an approximation of the original data, though this usually improves compression rates (and therefore reduces file sizes.)
The Pros and Cons of Lossy Compression e.g. The Zip File Format/MP3, JPEG:
The pros are they can be easily shared, they can be used online e.g. on webpages, quicker to download and can be used and stored on portable players and in other cases where storage space is limited or exact replication of the audio is unnecessary.
The cons are there may be loss of quality, they cannot be printed and cannot be reversed.
The Pros and Cons of Lossless Compression e.g. PNG, GIF, Quicktime:
The pros of lossless compression are they can be printed and they have better quality. The cons are they can be hard to share and may take time to load.
Define Video Format:
A video file format is a type of file format for storing digital video data on a computer system. Video is almost always stored in compressed form to reduce the file size.
Define Frame Rate with examples.
The frame rate is the speed at which images occur.
A frame is a picture or a still image.
Video is simply multiple images (called 'frames') one after the other. Together they create the illusion of movement.
The speed at which these images occur is called 'the frame rate.'
Higher frame rates make the image look smoother.
Different formats have different frame rates for different reasons.
Film is projected at 24fps.
PAL TV (UK TV) is shown at 25fps.
NTSC TV (US TV) is shown at 29.97 fps.
What is PAL video format?
"There are two television display systems in commercial use:
PAL (common in Europe and parts of Asia) delivers a frame rate of 25fps (frames per second) with 625 lines, while NTSC (used in the U.S. and Canada) delivers a frame rate of 30fps using 525 lines."
"NTSC is the video system or standard used in North America and most of South America. In NTSC, 30 frames are transmitted each second. Each frame is made up of 525 individual scan lines. PAL is the predominant video system or standard mostly used overseas." (What is NTSC and PAL?, 28th February 2017.)
What is NTSC and PAL?,DVD format and Regions. 2017. What is NTSC and PAL?,DVD format and Regions. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.sjbproductions.com/web_pages/tip_video/ntsc_pal.htm. [Accessed 28 February 2017].
High Speed Frame Rate and Slow Motion.
Some directors are now shooting in High Frame Rate. For example "The Hobbit HFR 3D" film was the first major motion picture to be filmed and projected using a higher than normal frame rate of 48fps.
Some cameras can shoot at a high frame rate to achieve good quality slow motion. For example the Sony FS700 camera can shoot up to 800 frames per second. When imported into a 25fps project the motion is slowed down considerably. This gives much higher quality slow motion than simply slowing the clip down using a 'plug in' or effect in Premiere.
The Slow Mo Guys YouTube video uses a slow motion technique to film ordinary everyday objects in ultra slow motion. Below is an example that shows you " how insanely quick the inside of a DSLR camera moves when it takes a picture, by filming it at 10,000 frames per second." The video is called "Inside a Camera." (Inside a Camera, 28th February 2017.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmjeCchGRQo
YouTube. 2017. Inside a Camera at 10,000fps - The Slow Mo Guys - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmjeCchGRQo. [Accessed 28 February 2017].
Define Screen Ratios with examples.
Aspect Ratio or Screen Ratio is the ratio showing the height and the width of a video frame.
It is the width and height of the video in the form: WIDTH : HEIGHT. (compares the width to the height.
Some common aspect ratios are 16:19 (also known as widescreen) and 4:3 (used in older TV and video technology and is now almost obsolete.
Define Resolution with examples.
Resolution is how detailed the picture is.
High resolution vs low resolution.
High resolution images have better quality and low resolution images have lower quality.
A high resolution image usually has 300 dots per inch and a low resolution image has 72dpi.
The standard resolution for web is 72dpi and for print it is 300dpi, so 300 individual dots of ink.
In digital video resolution it is also known as 'definition' e.g. standard definition (SD) and High Definition (HD.) High Definition is said to look better.
There are other resolutions which are used in digital video which are 2K, 4K and 8K and many films in the cinema now are shown in 4K.
Resolutions:
SD - 720 x 576
720 HD - 1280 x 720
1080 HD - 1920 x 1080
4K Ultra HD - 3840 x 2160.
