Final Project - Six Ads to Inspirre New York Tourism

Six Ads for New York Tourism

 These advertisements, created with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, are meant to promote tourism in the lesser-known areas of New York. Everyone knows about New York City, and the plethora of cultural experience opportunities, but when most people want to plan a trip to the mountains or the beach New York is not the first place that comes to their minds. These ads are meant to target the average overworked, over-stressed adults who are looking for new and inexpensive vacation ideas. In a poor economy value is key, and areas like upstate New York would benefit from the income tourism would bring. The designs are meant to appeal to people who want to relax as well as those who might be interested in a new adventure, so it should appeal to many.

I used the same font throughout all of them, as well as a similar format. They should be able to be displayed separately, but if more than one is seen by the same person it should be recognizable as an advertising campaign.

This project uses only photographs and artwork that I own or have created, and was done with software I am licensed to use. These aspects address legal and ethical issues. Because these ads promote appreciation for natural settings, they themselves are environmentally conscious. The way I designed them, they can be used in print or electronic media. With today's print media turning to electronic delivery, less paper means more environmental sustainability. This means these ads are environmentally responsible because they do not need to be printed to be distributed. 

Each individual design has its own post with components and description of methods and tools used.  

Some components created with Illustrator

New York State Outlines

 

I created the original outline above by tracing a New York map with the tablet and stylus pen, and then have been using it as the frame for state outlines created with themes that pertain to the artwork they are being used on. 

 

These are some items I have created to add into my designs. The cat was done by a simple trace and fill with the tablet and stylus pen. The window was just two thick rectangles, one inside the other, and then some lines to create the dimension in the corners. The paintbrush uses gradients and multiple shapes to reach the end result. I did it pointing downward to make the gradient fill the right way for it to have highlights and shadows when it is placed in the design at a different angle. 

 

 

Final project preliminary ideas

 Photos of New York Scenery

The above photos are pictures taken by my husband in either upstate New York or down on Long Island. When I was a teenager I lived in Florida for five years, and many people couldn't believe that New York was anything other than congested concrete city living. Other people I have spoken to have had similar experiences when traveling. I thought I would use some of my husband's wonderful nature photography as the basis for a series of tourism ads. Below is just one idea for one ad, using the picture immediately above that was taken at Lake Guilford in Guilford, NY. 

I don't know why this picture keeps uploading with that "echo" at the bottom, but it isn't like this in the file. The idea is to take each photo and give it its own individual treatment(s) with Illustrator and Photoshop, and add the silhouette of the state of New York with a saying that may also fit the individual picture. I have several ideas of what to do with the pictures, and am looking forward to trying to make those ideas come to fruition!

More Sketch Ideas

 These sketches above are ideas I've been working on that go with four out of the six photos at the top. There will be some other photos we have taken that will be added into the smaller frames in some of the pictures, like the surfer and water fowl pictures I sketched into the photo of the boats. I am working on a different approach to each photo, one that works with that photo.

Design Competition Finished Design

Final Design - 10th Annual SWGLFF Poster

Here is the finished design for the SWGLFF poster. I created each component separately, then added them as layers. The wine bottle, glasses, and picnic basket were all done the same way - treating a picture with a cutout layer, and then adding a "divide" layer blending option in Photoshop. 

The blanket, people, and movie screen were all created first in Illustrator, then added with Photoshop. I drew the left person, then used Photoshop to create a mirror image and place them holding hands. Their layer was given an inner glow and inner shadow to make it look like they are sitting in the dark getting hit by artificial light sources. 

The movie screen, which was just a black rectangle with rounded corners, was added to the poster in Photoshop, and then given an inner and outer glow. I added type to the screen, which was given its own outer glow, creating the effect of a glowing movie screen and movie credits. The black was too harsh, so I adjusted the opacity till the screen looked right with its surroundings. Voila!

Components for Design Competition

Wine Bottle in Ice Bucket

Here I took a picture of a wine bottle in an ice bucket (above) and opened it in Photoshop, where I used the selection tools and edge refiner to isolate the wine bottle and bucket. Then I used the filter tool to apply the cutout filter to make it look flat and like a simpler cartoon bottle and bucket. The same is done with the picnic basket below.

Picnic Basket Before and After

Rainbow Blanket

First, I created a blanket in Adobe Illustrator by simply placing six rectangles adjacent to each other, each with a different color of the rainbow. Illustrator makes this easy with the placement markers and "anchor" indicator. 

Next, I attempted to use the perspective tool in Illustrator to make it look proper for laying on the ground, but I couldn't get it to be at the proper angle, so I have some more work to do with the perspective tool. Instead, I opened it up in Photoshop and transformed it. 

 

 

Now I have several parts for my competition entry that I can add layer by layer, piece by piece! 

 

Preliminary Design Competition Sketch

Tenth Annual SWGLFF Poster Sketch

 

For my fourth module assignment, an entry for a design competition, I chose the Tenth Annual SWGLFF (South West Gay Lesbian Film Festival) Poster design competition. Details can be found at http://www.graphiccompetitions.com/multiple-disciplines/tenth-annual-swglff-poster-contest .

My intentions were to show an androgynous couple from behind sitting on a rainbow-striped blanket, enjoying the film festival with some wine and snacks. On the movie screen in the poster will be actual information about the festival, such as dates, time, location, etc. I chose lavender to color the people since it was a mix between blue and pink, so as to show that gender was nonspecific in my poster. My intentions are to create the design with the screen as a separate layer so I can give it a proper glow effect, with the setting being at night. I first thought about trying to make the people more realistic, but realized that they would be hard to make androgynous if they were more realistic. I think a more simplistic approach is better, as it takes the politics out of the equation.

Please ignore the slight hint of a rainbow in the top of the movie screen - that is actually the page underneath in the sketchbook where I tried another concept, but was not happy with it. 

Album Cover

The Good Rats Redesign