Week 4

Revolution is the name of the South Carolina United Methodist youth conference. I happen to know one of the people who work on organizing it. This year, I was asked to create with a graphic background to use on the screens in the main event area. I did not have a lot of time. So off I went to hunt for some ideas and some foundation images on which to build.

I found some things at psdgraphics.com. The images were large enough so I set about crafting something to use at the event. At this point, the only real requirement I had was to include the logo for Revolution. Of which I had no copy. Luckily it was... well, you'll see.

First up, a couple of rejected ideas.

I started with a carbon fiber texture background. I designed some simple shapes to lay on top. The shapes were deliberately angled to pull the eye up and to the right. (This implies forward motion.) I chose purple because I wanted a color to contrast with the grey of the background and something that would still let the Revolution logo stand out. Also, purple, while often associated with wealth, is also a color that connotes spirituality and things mysterious. In addition it is a color associated with Christ, as a combination of the color red, which represents mankind (blood), and blue, which traditionally (in Christianity) represents God.

I deliberately made this image seem slick and clean. Unfortunately,

that also made the image boring and uninteresting. I tried to punch the image up a bit, but more on that in a later post.

And now, the diamond plate version.

Obviously, this is not clean and slick. While the background is from psdgraphics.com, I created the metal plate on top. The image lacks color, for the most part, but it is more dynamic due to the diagonal criss-cross of the background. Also, in this image, as compared with the previous one, what the viewer is seeing is more obvious. This is a metal surface with a diamond texture and a metal plate. (Well, not really, but you get the idea.)

At first I thought I would use bolt heads or screws to appear to hold the plate in place. But as I thought about it, both of those seemed wrong. One would not use screws for this, and bolt heads seemed too heavy. Still, I needed something to appear to be holding the plate in place. Rivets made more sense. Not large rounded rivets, like one might see on bridge construction, but the smaller, dimpled rivets one might see holding metal signs. And I think it works here. It makes the image seem a bit more realistic.

Next up, the revised versions.