Introduction to Vector Based Graphics
The Long and Winding Road
Digital Arts 118 Fall 2005
Instructor: Jeremy Lundquist
Project Objectives
1. Introduce students to Adobe Illustrator
2. Familiarize students with the pen tool
3. Understand the difference between raster-based and vector-based graphics
4. Hone presentation skills such as printing and mounting
Project Description
Students were instructed to choose a literary segment in which a specific setting was described, and then take photographs that illustrated the piece’s environment. Using Adobe Illustrator, they proceeded to “trace” the raster-based image, transforming it into a vector drawing. The project taught students the difference between raster-based graphics (graphics composed of pixels), and vector-based graphics (graphics composed of paths).
Design Rationale
For my literary segment I chose “The Long and Winding Road,” a song produced by the Beatles in the 1960s. I took a series of digital photographs of a road that runs through Lake Park, a picturesque green space in Milwaukee designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. I then traced one of the images with the pen tool in Adobe Illustrator. For my color scheme, I chose a monochromatic scale of grays. Both the image of the empty road and the color scheme reflect the melancholy tone of the song, a feeling I strove to capture in this piece.
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