Part I: Hand-made GIF
Do: Make multiple GIFs with Photoshop or other tools.
How: Work with Photoshop to explore the affordances of GIF animation.
Why #1: Motion is a fundamental characteristic of digital materials. If nothing is moving, there is no current, no flow, and hence, nothing. In digital art making, the challenge is to work with the affordances of movement.
Why #2: Making a GIF by hand requires paying attention to a set of instructions while also letting go of those instructions. Stay focused, and unfocused. Wax on wax off.
Why #3: With the GIF, the challenge is to integrate the algorithm deeply enough that it becomes a muscle memory, a gesture. Hold lightly to your preconceptions to find serendipity.
Expectations: Find your focus on the process while making something tangible and cool. Pay attention to the arc of affect — how does the push back? What dimensions of are being revealed or hidden?
Part II: Augmented Reality (AR)
Do: Turn your GIF into a MOV and create an AR experience. Make AR experiences from static overlays, too.
How: Work with the HP Reveal app (iOS or Android) to make an AR experience. Share your “aura” (that’s what HP Reveal calls the AR artifact) and username so friends can find your AR; explore the augmented ecology.
Why: Augmented Reality is a fast growing and popular aspect of our digital ecology (e.g., Pokémon Go, etc). Perhaps counterintuitively, advertisers are slower to get into AR than
educators, which gives teachers a chance to make some WOW in their classrooms. AR knocks student engagement goes through the roof! For art teachers the challenge is to invite students to make meaningful connections between forms and materials, to
tell stories that contextualize their questions, or just simply entertain.
Expectations: This Inquiry requires a split focus on the way several complex tools work in relationship with each other. Consider the different dynamics of the animation and the static trigger. What will move? What will change color? How are the trigger and the overlay related to each other? As you work, pay attention to the arc of affect — how does this complex interwoven artifact move you? What dimensions of lived experience are revealed or hidden? What does AR open?
See Tricia Fugelstad’s post: Robot Paintings with Augmented Reality
https://drydenart.weebly.com/fugleblog/robot-paintings
Above is our assignment from Dr. Sean Justice. Now, for the experience...
Learning all about AR and creating GIF's in photoshop was an exciting experience. I have had a lot of Adobe experience in both Illustrator and Photoshop so I was pretty confident that I could complete my GIF without any trouble. (*insert mild foreshadowing) I went to the lab with Dr. J. to watch the demonstration regardless, because in true overachiever fashion, I didn't want to miss out on anything.
Basic GIF production: Open Photoshop:
Go to Windows: click on timeline and layers to activate windows: add new layer: create circle with shape tool: fill with color of your choice.
Click timeline: create frame animation: click new frame:move ball to opposite corner of screen:click last frame: select tween tool: pull down menu<previous frame: 5 frames in between:play
select everything: deck of cards pull down menu: select all frames: copy: paste directly after<popupmenu: reverse frames.
Simple easy step by step instructions, just remember to create each element in it's own layer so that they can operate individually at the same time.
Now that the GIF is created and the file is animated it has to be exported. This is where it all fell apart for me.
*I would like to preface by sharing that there is always a process differential based on the fact that we use MAC's at school and I use a PC at home.
I followed Dr. J's export instructions verbatim.
File: export: save for web legacy: >pop up dialogue: set pull down menu: set for GIF: colors 256: convert to SRGB:select looping option- forever: save. open in browser to test. I could get my GIF to move online from a browser. It was a proud moment.
I had been getting messages all weekend from the classroom communication app with grave concerns over making the export process happen smoothly. There were a lot of classmates having issues with downloading software, figuring out how to use Photoshop, getting the animation to loop, figuring out how to export the files and files not exporting correctly. I was so happy not to be in that realm of despair. (*cue impending doom)
The exporting of the GIF was the easy part apparently because the next step, converting it to a .MOV file was proving impossible. The instructions from Dr. J said; go to file: export: render video....except that my version of photoshop didn't have the H264 or MP4 option that we were instructed to use.
I couldn't understand why. I had the latest version downloaded from the Adobe website the day before. (Don't laugh, but the previous version of P.S. on my computer was V6!)
I tried everything I could think of on how to save this so that it would play as an animated GIF, it wouldn't work. I went online and searched for tutorials, but they all told me to do exactly as I had been doing. I felt frustrated that the tools would not allow me to do what I knew was possible. I sent a message to the group me and got lots of feedback. Many were just as frustrated, some offered advice, but not of it worked.
Anxiety set in and I was fearful that I would not be able to turn this assignment in complete. That was not an option. Giving up has never been an option for me. I broke. For the first time in a year I cried about a school assignment. I know that may seem really juvenile and desperate, but let's face it. I am a mom of two; one with special needs. I have two part time jobs and go to school full time. I am a powerhouse of strength, discipline and determination. However, I was spent emotionally, physically and mentally. I walked away.
When I was ready to face this assignment again I did what I could. I analyzed it from a different lens. I thought about all the things Dr. Justice has told us;
"It's about process, not outcome."
"Art is about the experience"
"Imagine, the answer is always yes."
At work, when training new employees I always tell them that you need to know what the rules are and why so that you know what has to be followed and what can be bent, it's a fine line when we have a "Just say YES!" policy in place.
I knew how to make the AR work, it didn't have to have a GIF saved as a .mov. I had other technology available to me that would work to give me the same results. I played the GIF on my computer and used my iphone to record a video of the animation.
Now for the AR portion!! I opened HP Reveal app on my phone and clicked on the + in the top right corner. When the capture box opened up I snapped a picture of my trigger image. Next, to choose an overlay I selected device, then upload. I had the option to choose camera or photo album. I knew the video I just took was stored in my photo album so I made that selection. Named my overlay, hit done and changed my selection to my Public Auras so that they could be seen by the rest of my classmates and Dr. J. Before submitting, I named my file and hit submit. At this point I chose to share, because I knew I would need to send Dr. Justice a link to my creation, otherwise, it's not necessary. Here is a tutorial on how to create your own HP Aura. https://aurasma.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/206276195-What-do-I-need-to-make-an-Aura-Is-it-easy-
The good news is, my worked around worked! I was able to complete the material inquiry and set up my Aura with success, albeit a different way. Check it out below!
All in all this Material Inquiry was fun. I really like the idea of augmented reality and using it as an educator with children. I think it could be a fun tool to allow children to explore and layer images and experiences.
Here are two examples of how AR with HP Reveal could be used to expand a classroom;
http://xavierbonghi.com/2372/AR2016-2.m4v
http://xavierbonghi.com/2372/AR2016-3.m4v