Information Design

26.1.2023 - 23.2.2023 (Week 3 - Week 7)
Tan Yi-Tyng (0353327)
Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
Information Design
Instructable Infographic poster & Motion graphic

INSTRUCTIONS

INSTRUCTABLE POSTER

Requirements

An infographic poster for ONE recipe selected from Pasta Grannies@: https://www.youtube.com/user/pastagrannies/videos
Poster size: 1240 × 1750 pixels or 2048 × 2048 pixels
Transmit a set of instructions and at the same time educate the audience.
For this project, we were assigned to create an instructable infographic based on a video we chose from the Pasta Granny YouTube channel.

We were to study the video, break down and chunk the preparation and cooking process into an instructable poster. And try to capture each Grandma’s personality and unique dish identity in the poster as part of the narrative structure.

Chosen granny: How to Make a Classic Lasagna

After watching several videos, I selected Franca’s video about her lasagna. I liked how the steps to making the dish were detailed and precise but the end result is a simple, delicious home staple food.

https://youtu.be/myxFMY8FqOk

Title: How to Make a Classic Lasagna

Granny Name: Franca

Recipe Name: Lasagna

Information Breakdown

To begin the idea development stage, I first rewatched the video several times and broke down the recipe to write out the instructional steps.

Fig. 1.1 - Recipe Breakdown

Visual Research

Following this, I looked on Pinterest and Google Images for some references and ideas on how to create the layout and illustrate a food infographic. Below are a couple of examples of recipe infographic I found on the internet and took inspiration from. I like both of them have good chunking and flow which inspires me to get started.

Fig. 1.2 - Food Infographic Reference 1

Fig. 1.3 - Food Infographic Reference 2

Fig. 1.4 - Food Infographic Reference 3

Color Palette

I went for a dull blue colour for the background so that my main dish lasagna with a bright colour will stand out more. The font is white as I thought that black would look too harsh. The rectangles behind the section headers are meant to highlight the words against the background and add detail to the overall infographic. I decided to use four different colours for the rectangles as this can be easier to recognize each section of the step. For the title I was inspired by the Italy flag colour: green, white and red and complement the blue so it does not look too flat and monotonous.

After looking at this, I decided to add shadows underneath each element in the middle using a shade of grey in order to add more depth to the overall look.

Fig. 1.5 - Color Palette

Sketches & Idea Exploration

Next, I started with the sketch. Basically, I divided the recipe into 2 big parts:

Ingredient List
The 4 steps in making the Lasagna

Below is the sketch that I roughly drew out the layout, I decided to arrange all the steps of making the lasagna on the right side of the poster. While the ingredient list and the step for assembling the lasagna are placed at the left of the poster. And the layers of the lasagna placed in the middle from top to bottom are the outcome of the Lasagna shown in a visual hierarchy.

Fig. 1.6 - Sketch

Digitization

Next, I begin to prepare the assets that were used for the poster.

Fig. 1.7 - Working on the assets

After creating the assets, I begin working on the poster.

Fig. 1.8 - Process of making the title

Fig.1 9 - Process of creating the poster

I came up with two posters with different layouts, the first poster follows the sketch’s layout. However, I’m not satisfied with the outcome that the arrangement is not symmetrical and I think I can explore more on arranging the layout to make it look symmetrical and balanced.

For the second poster, there is not much different than the first as it is more of an updated and refined version of it. The biggest changes was that I move the ingredient list to the top of the poster and the steps for making the bechamel sauce moved to the left side of the poster to make it look much more balance. So, in the end, I decided to choose the second poster.

Fig. 1.10 - Poster 1

Fig. 1.11 - Poster 2

After getting feedback from Mr Hafiz, I adjusted all the instructional text and images slightly bigger. Also, I feel like there are too many empty spaces beside the title, hence I added some text about introducing the lasagna there.

Final Outcome

Fig1.12 - Final Outcome (JPEG)

Fig1.13 - Final Outcome (PDF)

MOTION GRAPHIC

Requirement

Max 60 seconds infographic video 720p: 1280x720 pixels (H26/mp4) published on YouTube.
Capture the aesthetics and narrative of the poster with movements, SFX, and music.

Continuing the project, we were instructed to create an animated motion graphic video based on the previous project.

It is important for me to seperate the file into individual files before importing them to AE to start on the animation.

From the experience on Final Project, I knew that a well planning was important before animating, so I spent time on revamping the layout for animation frame size and think of how the animation gonna be, organize and simplify the layers and separate them into few files. I would rather spend more time to organize the layers and files on on AI rather than having unknown mistakes on AE later.

Fig. 2.1 - Separating layers in AI

Afterwards I compiled all the exported videos from AE and added songs and sfx in Premiere Pro. I specifically chose an italian old songs to create a homey atmosphere.

This project is pretty self explanatory. I had a lot of helps from YouTube regarding transitions and ideas. The tutorials given from Mr Martin since the previous weeks also helped a lot, especially in animating by using null object.

It took me about 48 hours to finish the whole animation. These are the effects & tools that I used:

Scale
Opacity
Rotation
Position
Null Object
Trim Paths

Fig. 2.2 - Process of animating in AE

Fig. 2.3 - Process of adding sfx in PR

I then rendered and uploaded the video on YouTube.

Fig. 2.4 - Upload on YouTube

Fig. 2.5 - Final Outcome Motion Graphic

FEEDBACK

Week 5 - Instructable Poster (Mr Hafiz)

Visually looks good, but a little small though, written instructions are also quite small, it takes a while to read. There more than enough negative space to work on, perhaps slightly bigger, for everything include instructional text and image.

REFLECTION

In this project, I learned about many things. I've learned to manage my time better so I don't have a hard time approaching the deadline. I also learned to always be patient while working on animations. I learned to always click (Ctrl + s) which is save. It also made me rethink whether I am really going to get into digital animation or not.

I feel patience and perseverance are the main keys to this project. Even though the tasks are tough and the Adobe After Effects software is a bit unreliable, I enjoy doing it. I really enjoyed the process, both pain and pleasure.

TAN YI-TYNG (0353327)