JL MC 342 Final Exam Study Guide Psychology of Vision Sensing selecting and perceiving o What is sensing Letting enough light into your eyes to allow you to notice o What is selecting objects around you No mental processing at this point There s something there kind of feeling Focus on a specific part of a scene Engages higher level of brain functioning Classification of objects begin Is this harmful Known Helpful o What is perceiving Makes sense of what you selected Determining whether your selection fits the context Imparting meaning to what you see o What is seeing Methods of describing color o Methods of distinguishing color SENSING SELECTING PERCIEVING SEEING Our eyes are very sensitive to color Background colors impact our perception of color Objective Method Very Scientific Based off the locations of each color s wavelength on the electromagnetic spectrum Can also be measure by each color s unique temperature Most accurate Subjective Method Based on personal associations and emotion Often Symbolic o White Purity o Green nature o Blue peaceful o Yellow happiness Most common Comparative Method Should only be used to estimate what a color might look like Colors are compared to objects Depth Cues o Depth cues 8 Space Size Relies on each person s perception of a color Least Accurate The amount of space in a scene gives a feeling of depth Knowing the actual size can assist with depth There is no illusion of depth if all objects are viewed as perception the same size Color Lighting Textural gradients the viewer Warm colors appear closer Light tones or dark tones seem closer than neutrals Lighting can separate an object from the background A given texture will change based on its distance from Textures that are further away may appear tighter or lighter giving the impression of distance Interposition Time Perspective Deals with the layering of objects on a page to call attention to the main element The amount of time we spend looking at a particular element helps determine depth Combination of mental processing and learned behavior Geometrical Perspective o Placing the main subject higher and creating it larger to imply that it is in the foreground Conceptual Perspective o Multi view seeing multiple o Social most important aspect of an image is larger centrally located or separated from other elements Visual Theories o Sensory Sensual Theory what something looks like Gestalt Defines the object Constructivism Defines the context What is Constructivism o Gestalt defines the object constructivism defines the context o Area of sharpest focus is very small o Uses points in an image along with short rem memory construct the whole picture o Prior knowledge and experience needed o Dynamic searching Cover both what we notice and what we miss Based on visual stimuli not to be taken literally o Perceptual Theory what something is Semiotics Identifying signs Cognitive applying knowledge and experience to determine meaning Content Driven Stress human uniqueness Mental processing at play Gestalt Principles o Gestalt principles 6 Proximity Objects near each other are related more readily than those that are separated Creates both positive and negative space Visual Depth Cue Objects that look similar will automatically be grouped Similarity together Pragnanz Figure Ground Object forming capability of our senses The simplest and most stable interpretations are favored Symmetry Common Fate Evenly balanced weight Symmetry can be obtained by an equal balance of content and whitespace Refers to visual directional lines within a design or layout both overt and implied Draws attention toward or away from a graphic Variation creates a tension we re not sure what to look element at Continuation Closure Smooth movement across a visual line Mentally continuing a broken or blocked line in order to achieve graphic closure Semiotics o Semiotics The science or study of signs and symbols In order to be a communicated sign the viewer must understand the meaning A sign is anything that stands for something else 3 Stage Perception Manipulation Consummation o Connotation and denotation o Types of signs Iconic Denotative the strict meaning of a word image or idea Connotative emotional implications and associations o Easy to interpret o Closely resemble what they represent o Very literal o This context we are not referring to a famous person we are simply talking about very literal signs Women s restroom sign o Universally recognizable regardless of language o Logical connection to represented object or idea Indexical Symbolic o Abstract no logical connection object or idea o Must be taught o Can be very personalized These are not mutually exclusive categories Combining various ideas and or elements into a single o Coding Chain of Associations Coding concepts Chain of Associations Metonymic Code Leads to assumptions Indexical Perfume Ad buy the perfume get the guy buy her the perfume and get lucky Analogical code Leads to mental comparison Iconic Displaced Code Transfer of meaning Common when dealing with taboo subjects o Death Sex are big examples Condensed Code Combining several signs to create a new composite o Potential issues with semiotics message Signs and symbols may be Misunderstood Misinterpreted Ignored Typography Leading and Kerning look at interactive study guide 2 Legibility and readability look at interactive study guide 2 Visual Identification of typeface families look at interactive study guide 2 o Typeface Families Blackletter Stylized endings based on handwriting Very ornate Thick with diagonals and thinner supporting lines Traditional Conservative Religious Content German Content EX Blackmoor Old English Cloister Black Light Roman First introduced in 1465 Exceedingly legible 3 Original forms o Old Style o Transitional o Modern Ex Goudy Old Style Baskerville Times New Roman Script Designed to mimic handwriting Used official documents Ex Brush Script Edwardian Script Square Serif Designed in 1815 Also known as Slab or Egyptian Bricklike and rigid Ex Clarendon Rockwell Extra Bold Blackoak San Serif No serifs Described as clean and simple Ex Arial Verdana Calibri Miscellaneous Also known as novelty or display type Do not fit easily into other categories Ex Curlz Forte Herculanum Role of typography o Typeface Persona Typography sets visual texture tone and mood Professionalism types Identification of typographic elements typography graphic o Anatomy of type Ascender Baseline the imaginary line the