Project 3 Texture/Value Mashup Sebastian Chapman

            For the Texture Explorations / Value Mashup project we were tasked with investigating texture around us. First, we discussed different materials that might best represent texture and how zooming in can create a more dramatic texture effect and we start noticing that a lot of textures also contain or are made up of patterns. This information was very useful for the stage in the project where I had to draw the textures by hand as it provided me with a better idea of how to use repeating patterns to convey texture on paper. I enjoyed the rubbings a lot since it involved hunting down sturdier objects; I had done fabric and texture rubbings before in Fashion Design class to create a lace shirt for an assignment and I was amazed at the effect that can be achieved by simply laying paper down and running a pencil back and forth. I was unhappy with a couple of rubbings, so I went and collected a couple more so that I had a nice mix. 

            The texture hand drawings were very complicated at first, but I noticed that after laying patterns down the texture started appearing and I was able to organically follow the texture that was appearing. Most of the iterations I went with an idea of what I wanted but for a lot of these, the original idea was never as perfect, but I was able to find a similar texture or an even better idea by looking at them from afar and judging them halfway to make sure my texture was coming through and I had something that was recognizable, even if it was different from the original idea.

            The Photoshop stage of the project was probably the hardest and most time consuming. Finding the objects, taking, and editing the pictures, and then uploading them to be able to be opened in Photoshop took a great amount of time and organization. After the pictures had been taken then it was a much more relaxing and entertaining experience to create the collage. I used lots of layers and grouped them as I went so that I could color correct along the way and adjust the scale to show the values. The value scale was a lot of fun to do and because I have been working with pencils so much lately it came naturally, and it was way easier than the first value scale that I did earlier this semester. It shows that drawing is mostly about practice and making sure to observe things closely and look for things that you recognize: lines, patterns, textures, shapes, value scales, etc.