Design I Like

The National Geographic magazine seeks to communicate the natural beauty and awe of Earth. The most effective way of conveying this is through photography first, and then through journalism that elaborates on the nature of the photograph. National Geographic photographs are renowned for their superb quality and composition, and the magazine places a large focus on the display of their photographs. The covers of the magazines consistently hold priority for the featured photograph, which illustrates the feature story. Here is a link to view several National Geographic magazine covers

http://www.magazine-agent.com/national-geographic-magazine/covers

Every cover includes the well-known yellow rectangle that frames the page. This yellow rectangle is a symbol for the company’s other media outlets, on television and the Internet. The font used for the title “National Geographic” is Times New Roman Condensed, which is also a well -known symbol for the company. This font is a simple design that does not draw attention from the photograph on the cover, emphasizing the number one priority of the photo. The next most prominent feature of the cover, after the photograph, is the title of the featured story. This title upholds a more bold and noticeable appearance, as it is matched with the photograph. While the “National geographic” title remains in the same position month after month, the arrangement of the photo and its title is different every month. Each photograph is different in size, shape, and color, so the corresponding title must fit compatibly with the photograph. There has to be a sense of balance among the separate elements of the page. For example, this cover:

http://blogs.tamtam.nl/paulb/content/binary/natgeo1.jpg

Is set up very differently from this cover for obvious reasons of color, size, and positioning:

http://www.fundacionprincipedeasturias.org/ing/01/fotos/zoom/foto639_2.jpg

Graphic designer Robin Williams suggests that if you squint your eyes and look at the design and see more than 3-5 items on a page, then there are too many separate elements. Trying this on National Geographic magazine, I continuously see 3 separate elements (The National Geographic title, the image, and the image title story). Even though each magazine is different from the last, they all share the same functionality of the design, keeping 3 separate elements. The design of the cover also symbolizes the values that the magazine upholds and the message it is conveying. The lack of flashy and modern font types reinforces their priority of the photographs. Because oftentimes the amazement and awe of the natural world goes unnoticed, they are seeking to communicate this admiration for nature to people all over the world through a focus on photography that captures objects, animals, and nature in a way that is impossible for viewers not to be amazed by. Although there is not one single National geographic cover design for every magazine, each cover upholds the same priorities and sense of balance that revolves around the photographs. 

Trouble the Water

Tia Lessin’s documentary “Trouble the Water” takes you on an extraordinary first-hand journey through the Hurricane Katrina disasters from the incredible experiences of the couple Kimberly and Scott Roberts. Not only does the film do an astounding job of presenting shocking images and footage from the midst of the hurricane, but it also delves into the heavy, emotional aspects as the audience bonds with the courageous Kim and Scott Roberts. Personally, I felt that the disasters and horrible consequences of the physical destructions from Katrina were sufficiently covered in the mainstream media, however Tia Lessin bravely reveals the astonishing lack of aid provided by the government, which was desperately needed, and scarcely covered by the media. The primary evidence is blatantly revealed in the film, where thousands of people unable to evacuate New Orleans were simply abandoned and left to endure. The decision to keep significant military sources overseas fighting in the war against terror while thousands of people were in desperate need of military aid, in need of food, water, and shelter, truly speaks about the corrupt priorities of the Unites States government. The footage shot about a year after the hurricane revealed more disturbing realities about unjust priorities; all of the buildings and property that contributed to tourist profit were sufficiently rebuilt and reopened, while the homes and residential neighborhoods of the lower class citizens of New Orleans were left in their horrific state of rubble. The levees remain to be weak and vulnerable to floods, neighborhoods like the ninth ward where Kim and Scott lived remain devastated, and many people who lost everything remain without government compensation for their losses.

After the screening, Tia Lessin spoke for about an hour about her journey making the film and the intentions she had for the finished project. My initial reaction to the film was that the documentary was an incredible account of the Katrina disaster, filmed first-hand from the perspective of Kim and Scott, giving the film a unique angle that really draws the viewer in. However, I am glad I was able to witness her speech after the screening because her personal account of the experiences she went through making the film truly made the documentary so much more significant. Her intentions were full of integrity and bravery, covering a topic that is extremely controversial. She endured so much initial rejection, and I commend her stubborn nature for persisting to work and complete the film, regardless of the reactions of some. I hope that her film continues to circulate and that more and more people become aware of the corruption Tia Lessin is revealing. 

Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho

In the 1960 film, Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock does a tremendous job of creating an everpresent feeling of suspense. Around every corner seems to be the threat of danger. The shower scene in particular does an excellent job of provoking a foreboding notion of impending danger. The scene lasts for 22 seconds and consists of 28 shots, all contributing to the dangerous atmosphere. Before the scene begins, the camera takes a subjective point of view (that of the murderer), peering through a hole in the wall at Marion Crane, his victim.The camera shots of the murderer looking through the hole switch from close-up to extreme close-up, framing his eyeball intently starring at Marion undress. Marion's normal, everday task of taking a shower is turned into a suspenseful waiting game. Hitchcock emphasized every sound that she made while preparing to shower. When she unwrapps her soap, the extreme crumpling of the paper abruptly breaks the silence. The water from the shower faucet sounds five times louder than usual. All of these heightened sounds of mundane actions causes viewer discomfort, a contribution to the suspence. The notion of Marion's vulnerability reaches its climax while she is in the shower. The camera switches angles several times before it reaches the climatic shot; Marion showering in the right side of the frame while a dark sillouette slowly appears behind the shower curtain in the left side of the frame, and the camera zooms in on the killer lurking just behind the curatin.The chaotic shots during the murder switch back and forth between extreme close-ups of Marion's horrified expression, different parts of her vulnerable body, and the killer's knife raised high. During the 22 second scene, the viewer only sees the knife touch Marion's body for a split second, but the combination of the shots imply that she has been stabbed brutally multiple times. The music plays a key role in the murder, with high pitched violins played backwards to enhance the vulgarity of the murder. The camera then follows Marion as she slowly slides to her death, a drastic contrast to the previous chaotic and fast-pased stabbings. Near the end of the scene the camera shifts from her body to the draining water that is now tinted with her blood. Last, the camera follows the bloody water to an extreme close-up of the drain, which is superimposed into an extreme close-up of Marion's eye as she lays dead over the bathtub, an extremely dramatic effect.

Museum of the Moving Image

The Museum of the Moving Image provided an illuminating glimpse at the movie and television industry. Most interesting, I found, were the demonstrations exploring modern editing. Specifically, the sound editing demonstration revealed how powerful of an impact sound effects and music render for a film. As necessary as the picture itself, the sound of a film creates the appropriate mood and emotion that is to be evoked from the audience. At the demonstration, scenes from the movie The Titanic were shown while manipulating the sound effects using a computer program. One run through of the scene where the Titanic is sinking was shown with only the human dialogue and voice audible, (muting all music or other sound effects) to demonstrate how certain human screams, panting, or thuds were emphasized to evoke panic. Another run through was shown with only the music audible, which revealed that the music is really the main contributor to the emotional aspect of the scene. Further dissection of the sound effects revealed a very interesting component; animal sounds such as lion and elephant roars. The only way to actually pinpoint these animal sound effects was to use the sound-editing program and single them out amongst the chaos of all the other sounds playing simultaneously. Apparently, the editors of the film wanted the ship to appear as a character of the film itself, and therefore appear more alive. The animal sound effects were included to insinuate that the ship was “dying” as if it were actually alive, and therefore provoke emotional feelings from the audience. Each and every sound in the scene was scrutinized over, (what volume to be played at, which thud or bang to emphasize amongst the rest, which splash in the water should be loudest) all for the single purpose of evoking the appropriate emotion from the audience. This demonstration truly enlightened my knowledge of the sound-editing process, and revealed how integral a role the sound effects and music play in the film as a whole.

Welcome to my class blog. My Name is Katie Blauvelt, and I am majoring in media studies at Hunter College. This blog will document the various digital media projects we will be exploring throughout the semester.