Mary Brown | COMD 1162 - E058 | Fall 2023

14 Discussion

Each week you will need to respond to two questions posted. Your response should be a minimum of 300 words for both questions. You should also include at least one response to your fellow students. The responses are a requirement for participation part of your grade.

Question 01 –

What are the elements of Illustrator and Photoshop will you begin to use in your artwork?

Question 02 –

What was the best part of this class for you?

6 Comments

  1. Alyse B

    Question 01: What are the elements of Illustrator and Photoshop will you begin to use in your artwork?

    1. Elements that I plan on incorporating into my work will be much more usage and mastery of the pathfinder and shape builder tools. The Pathfinder tool enables you to combine, divide, and manipulate shapes. The shape builder tool lets you merge and subtract shapes. Unfortunately, I don’t feel like I got nearly enough practice/usage out of these tools. When I look at work for me earlier in the semester, I feel like if I’d had the knowledge to use that particulate tool in that moment it would’ve been extremely helpful. I also want to learn how to use drop shadows and the gradient tool more. I enjoyed the practice I got with the gradient tool this semester because it’s so cool. During the break, I’m going to watch videos and study the pen tool, pathfinder, gradients and also how to use 3D effects

    Question 2: What was the best part of this class for you?

    1. The best part of this class for me was the hands-on experience sitting down with the software one on one with my undivided attention forced me to learn. At first, I was very intimidated by the idea of working with these softwares with no knowledge and experience with it. I feel like I was thrown directly into the throes of graphic design but I was able to get my head above the water and manage. I feel like the software has hundreds of limitless possibilities at your disposal, you just need an understanding of the basic skill set and using vital tools like the pen, type tool, selection tools and making masks. I am so grateful for this class. It opened my eyes to the creative possibilities of graphic designing and intricate little Easter egg moments when you discover a keyboard shortcut, how to switch foreground colors, remove selection in a clipping mask and so much more.
  2. Salma Sherif

    I learned cool stuff in Illustrator and Photoshop. In Illustrator, I got the hang of using the pen tool and making designs that can be resized without losing quality. Anchor points and pathfinder tricks helped me get things just right. In Photoshop, I found out how to tweak photos with filters, brushes, and layer masks. Learning about layers and blending modes made a big difference. Now, I can blend vector and photo skills for more awesome art. These tools, like the pen in Illustrator and filters in Photoshop, are like secret weapons for making my art look awesome and exactly how I want it. It’s like unlocking a whole new level of creativity!

    The most rewarding aspect of the this class was discovering the graphic design tools. Learning about raster graphics, like photos, and vector graphics, such as logos, provided a comprehensive understanding of design principles. The hands-on projects allowed me to apply techniques and learn more with using different tools, improving my skills in creating visually appealing and professional-looking graphics. The class also emphasized the importance of vector graphics, contributing to my ability to produce high-quality designs for various platforms. Overall, the combination of theoretical knowledge and practical application made the class highly enjoyable and equipped me with valuable skills for graphic design work.

  3. Karen Alarcon

    What are the elements of Illustrator and Photoshop will you begin to use in your artwork?

    For illustrator, using the pen tool to trace and create precise shapes along using gradient to give it better dimension. Using the anchor points and pathfinder helped me adjust, correct mistakes, and get things just right For photoshop, the marquee tool, being able to learn about layers and blending modes that has made a big difference in the way I do digital art, edit, and elevate pictures.

    What was the best part of this class for you?

    The step by step and hands on learning. It was definitely challenging at times but I enjoyed understanding the process and learn to even create a vectorized version of myself. Overall, I enjoyed all the projects we have done so far. Even the challenges I had to face. I believe that’s the path of learning and finding what technique works best for you. This class helped me understand and open my mind to new ideas and being able to see how much work actually goes on every design out there.

  4. Keshawn

    The elements I learned from Illustrator and Photoshop are how to trace over images using the pencil, pen and curvature tools. Moreover, how to manipulate the anchor points that come with tracing so that we can get the designated shape. I learned how to blend shapes and colors, create patterns, how to create gradient for images and so forth. For Photoshop I learned about using filters, making composites and collages.

    The best parts of the class for me was the Disney poster project where we recreated posters of our favorite Disney movies. We learned how to trace over templates and use both the gradient and eyedropper tools to match the color of the poster. Another one was the alter ego project where we incorporated two images of ourselves into one photo. We got to show our creativity in showing our lives. The masking tool was very helpful in created these. Finally, the latest project where we had the opportunity to self rasterize an image of ourselves.

  5. Maria Edna Fernandes

    1- In photoshop, I just used the a little bit of retouching to smooth the face a little. The elements on Illustrator that I’ll be using for my artwork will be tracing a picture that is rasterized and transforming it in a vector. The tool that I used to trace all the picture is the pen tool. I used the gradient line tool and also tried a little bit of the free form tool to make shadows. I used the eye dropper tool to copy the colors from the original picture and have a similar result bon the vector.

    2- The best part of this class for me is that I was able to learn how illustrator and photoshop works. Which this knowledge I am able to create creative projects like turning a raster fire into a vector. I enjoyed photoshop and like all the possibilities that we are able to do in photoshop and on illustrator. It motivated me to be creative and explore all the possibilities of becoming a creative designer.

  6. Fahima

    What are the elements of Illustrator and Photoshop will you begin to use in your artwork?

    In Illustrator and Photoshop, I will be mostly using the fundamental tools like the Pen tool for precise shapes, pencil tool for freehand drawing, brush tool for artistic strokes, and basic shape tools like rectangle, ellipse. I love the gradients, when I learned how to manipulate it. I still have a lot to learn and more practice. I have used the collage and composite method in other class for different project. Which I will be continuing to practice to better myself. 

    Question 02 –

    What was the best part of this class for you?

    This class exceeded my expectations in every way; I had no preconceived thoughts about what to expect. The learning experience was significant. Some of my favorite efforts were making a Disney poster illustrating, combining two images to create my ego image, and vectorizing a raster file. These top three projects will undoubtedly have a major effect on my other classes in the future. In retrospect, despite the 3 hour length class, I am grateful for it since it kept me interested.

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