Week 7 Scanograms

A scanogram is the digital method of producing a “contact” image, reminiscent of a photogram. The first photograms were made by photographic pioneers, William Henry Fox Talbot and Anna Atkins in the mid-1800s. Photograms are made by placing objects on sensitized paper, exposing the objects and paper to light, and processing the paper to reveal the print. A camera is not necessary for the production of this type of graphic image; and the result is more like an abstract impression of the object than a highly detailed rendering. Like a photogram, a scanogram is made by placing objects on the “sensitized area,” or the scan bed, where the surface is exposed to the digital capturing devices that generate a file.

 Anna Atkins

William Henry Fox Talbot

Scanograms are a simple and contemporary counterpart to the photogram.  Consider some of the following:

For our scanograms, we will be using the scanners to "capture" our objects, then from there, we will use photoshop to create duplicates, alter, warp, distort, skew, colorize, lower and raise opacities, or us any other effect you like to produce different patterns. 

Using the scanner.

Go to Applications and find the "image capture" application

After you open image capture, if you see a blank gray screen like this,  click on "show details" at the bottom right of the screen.

The scanner will begin by creating an overview "full bed" scan of the object or document you are trying to capture an image of.   At this point, you will also want to select the type of file you wish to create (tif., jpeg, etc.) and also you can tell image capture what to name the file and where to place the file once the scan is complete.   In the example below, the name of the files will be Scan. filetype, Scan1.filetype, Scan2.filetype, Scan3.filetype,  and so forth... also note that these images will be placed in the "Pictures" folder on the computer.   You may prefer to designate them to the desktop while active and working with them, then place them into designated folders afterward

After the "Overview Scan" image is complete, and to capture a specific range of the scanner's surface area, click on the "use custom size" then click and drag a rectangle around the area you wish to scan.

Last, but not least, you need to select a resolution for your image.  If you want to print a 300 dpi image at 8x10 of your document area,  and the cropped document area is 4x5, then you will have to scan at 600 dpi. 

Resolution for printed images

Resolution is measured in dots or pixels per inch (dpi or ppi). The resolution of the scanned image is a necessary factor in the final print or on-screen output. In consumer or prosumer situations, such as personal ink jet printers or laser printers at stores like Kinkos or Costco, the print will look fine at a resolution of 200 to 300 dots per inch. In professional print environments, the rule is simple: ask the printer for the print specifications including file resolution and color space.

Resolution for screen presentations Any image that will be used on-screen, for instance on a website or in a video, will need to be saved only at screen resolution, or 72 dots per inch. The file size is directly connected to the amount of pixels saved in each inch of the bitmap or raster file. Image files saved at screen resolution are much smaller in file size than images that are saved for printing.

To determine the resolution to enter into the scanner software, simply acknowledge the size of the object on the flatbed, then decide how large you want the object to print on the page. If the object is, for example, 4 by 5 inches and the objective is to make a 4 by 5 inch print, scan the object at 200 – 300 dots per inch. If you want to make an 8 by 10 inch print, either scan the object at 300 dpi and increase the scale to 200 percent, or scan the object at 600 dpi at 100 percent scale.   Enough already!!!!

But wait.  One more thing: File formats such as JPEG, PNG, and PDF are used to compress the size of the file, and therefore often result in a loss of digital information. File formats such as TIFF and PSD are less “lossy” (the image does not lose digital information due to compression), and are therefore better format choices if the intent is to manipulate the image in an editing program such as Photoshop.  I will use Tiff.... this makes a larger file size, but after the image is complete in photoshop, then you can save it as a jpeg for printing, or alter the image to 72 dpi for easy publishing on the web. 

SCANOGRAMS!!!

IN CLASS ASSIGNMENT:

Research different types of pattern.  Tesselations, Alternating patterns, flowing patterns, progressive patterns, Radial Patterns, All over patterns, fractal patterns, spiral patterns.    Post at least 8 images of patterns that you find inspiring to your blog under a new post named "Week 7: Scanograms" 

Artists to look at: Victor Vasarly, Bridget Riley

For Friday (after Spring Break) 

Scan one, or several objects to see how they work with the scanners.  Some objects may capture better using the image capture and epson scanners.   Select an object to create your scanograms.  Using the pen tool, cut the object out.   Then, you will create the following 

1. Scanogram-using the initial object to create a complex pattern.  Altering the opacity, applying filters, gradients, and transforming the initial object to create the new pattern.   Create Sketches (either digitally, manually, or by being inspired from an image you found in your research) ....show them to me before you leave class.

2. Scanogram II- use the initial object to create another object.  Rehash the initial object by appropriating it into a representational "new" object.  You may research images online or use your drawing skills to show me the possible final project.  Please show me your ideas before you leave class so I can make comments and suggestions before you begin work.

Previous Student Works: 

Tools you might need!

Introduction to Photoshop

Please watch this quick beginner's overview tutorial before we start working in Photoshop.  It will help you in becoming familiar with the basics of the workspace and the potential functionality of the application.

Week 6_Intro to Photoshop

Image from Adobe Photoshop Classroom in a book. 

The Photoshop work area appears as shown in the following illustration.

A. Menu bar
B. Options bar
C. Tools panel
D. Mini Bridge tab
E. Timeline tab
F. Workspaces menu
G. Panels

The Photoshop user interface is very similar to the one in Adobe Illustrator^®, Adobe InDesign^®, and Adobe Flash^®—so learning how to use the tools and panels in one application means that you’ll be familiar with them when you work in the others.  (Photoshop Classroom CC)  There are a few minor differences between what you have learned in Illustrator and Photoshop.  The selection tool in Illustrator is usually called the move tool in photoshop.  You will be making selections with the Magic Wand tool, and the selection tool in Photoshop. Although the Magic Wand looks exactly the same.   It is much different. 

One of the things to be aware of about composition(especially if you become a photographer) is the rule of thirds.  Consider the following: 

For our first exercise we will be straightening and cropping.  Download the following image to your desktop. 

Before we begin, and to make sure we are all looking at the same version of photoshop.  We will restore settings to the default settings.  Later on, you might want to create custom settings to your liking, but for now.  Let's use the factory default. :) 

To restore preferences quickly using a keyboard shortcut: Press and hold Option+Command+Shift (Mac OS) as you start Photoshop. 

In class exercise.   Straightening and touching up a photo. 

1. In the Tools panel, select the Crop tool 

2. In the options bar, choose W x H x Resolution from the Preset Aspect Ratio menu. (Ratio is its default value.)

3. In the options bar, type 7 in for the width, 7 in for the height, and 200 px/in for the resolution.

4. Click Straighten in the options bar. The pointer changes to the Straighten tool.

5. Click at the top corner of the photo, and drag a straight line across the top edge of the photo.

Adjusting the color and tone

You’ll use Curves and Levels adjustment layers to remove the color cast and adjust the color and tone in the image.

1. Click Curves in the Adjustments panel to add a Curves adjustment layer.

2. Select the White Point tool on the left side of the Properties panel.

Specifying a white point changes all the colors in the image. To set an accurate white point, select a white area in the image.

3. Click a white stripe on the girl’s dress.

The color tone of the image changes dramatically!

4. Click Levels in the Adjustments panel to add a Levels adjustment layer.

The Levels histogram in the Properties panel displays the range of dark and light values in the image. You’ll learn more about working with levels in Lesson 5. Right now, you just need to know that the left triangle represents the black point, the right triangle represents the white point, and the middle triangle represents the midtones.

5. Drag the left triangle (blacks) under the histogram to the right, where the blacks are more pronounced. somewhere around .15? 

6. Drag the middle triangle a little to the right to adjust the midtones. The value should be about .90.

Creating a still life using Photoshop

Assets to create a still life are located on the server in our classroom folder.  using the

images you will create a still life.

Example:

Outside Assignment:

Create your own still life in photoshop.   Format is up to you.  Can be in landscape or portrait mode. 

You must:

- use at least five sources--two of which are "authored" by you--meaning you will use your camera, a friend's camera, or take photos using a good quality cell phone camera (6 megapixels or better is highly recommended) 

- have at least one reflective surface.  Remember using the warp, distort, or skew tools under "edit" and adjusting  opacity of these layers to create a visually convincing reflection. 

You will be turning in your still life from the "In Class" assignment,  your Outside still life, AND the assets (images) you used to composite your final still life.

*pay attention to shadows, light contrast/values, and overall composition. Do you need to repeat objects, colors, shapes to have better unity/harmony? Is there enough variety to keep the composition interesting?  How is the relationship between positive/negative space.  Does the composition seem empty, or is it engaging? 

NOTE:  When downloading images from the internet, look for higher quality, larger pixel dimensions in the photos.    This will prevent any pixellation in your final file. Remember back to week one and two when we discussed how to use "search tools" to find higher resolution images.   See image below. 

SAMPLE STUDENT WORK: