Things to do and not to do in composition

Transcription

1 Things to do and not to do in composition It s always the struggle between static and dynamic! Too balanced, no movement, boring Movement, interesting Too focused, flat Tension rises in the middle, eye will jump around the image Only edges touch, extremely flat (This error is usually a sign of a beginner!) Partly behind each other. 3D feeling Too much tension in the corner No tension in the corner, just focus

2 Straight above, flat Feeling of real space Boring empty space Empty space has a meaning Bad cut, cut from the middle (Never perform cuts from joints or other clear lines. Be cautious of where you place your lines to meet.) Good cut. Remember that lines through the head usually mean death. Flat shadows Shadows show the shape

3 An example from Kimmo Pälikkö Structure: foreground = a gate and tree, middle ground = a path, background = a house and outbuilding. Lines of power: a circle, guiding eyes to a section above the gate. Pictorial description: waiting, the door of the house will soon open, and an expected figure will appear. The Mirror Image The pictorial message changes. The lines of power now guide the viewer s eyes from the bottom to the top and in the direction of the man s eyes, which are directed towards the door. His body and hand bring the viewer s eyes down, and back towards the door. Postcard by Martta Wendelin A Single Rose Grew in a Valley, 1959 The structure of the illustration remains the same in the mirror image but the lines of power have a different meaning. The image portrays the man as having been left at the gate. Disappointment is reflected in his posture. Turned around, the illustration tells of the customs of the community and the morale of the home, which has prevented the youngsters time alone without a chaperon, or, perhaps tells of a proud daughter within the house, who has left a hopeful suitor in the lurch.

4 Comics and composition If you have text in the pic, you have to start by planning where it will be placed. What is the natural order to read the speech balloons? How much text there will be? Are there any captions (normally located in top-left or bottom-right corner) or sound effects? Try to place the balloons so that they vary in size, place, shape, etc. Only after the text is placed you can start composing the pictures in the leftover area. In the mean time... Uh wugga wuh uh wugga wuh uh wugga wugga Stop it! The balloons should convey the story also without the images. Page composition for one page strip The opening scene. Wide pictures depict longer period in time. They are slow paced, so often used for introducing a new scene. The main character What is really happening? Close up. The rhythm of the comic is made by similar rules as in the movies. Close ups tighten, wider views loosen the feeling. The pace quickens! Ta-dah! The climax. The pace is still fast. The most important parts can be highlighted with special shapes, etc. The solution. The ending scene. Narrow pictures mean faster pace. The ending scene is wider again to relax the tension. Comics are stories - they follow the dramatic structure. Good comics need to work also in the script level

5 How to show what is important and in focus? Some examples: Lines in the picture Movement Perspective What people look at Lighting effects With the help of the previous panel Comic novels Page composition in comics that consist of several pages is slightly different from the one-pagewonders. The page needs to function by itself, just like with one page, but there needs to be a cliffhanger in the end of every spreadhead - that makes sure the reader will turn the page. The viewer s gaze needs to be guided through the whole page. The artist needs to make sure the reader will know where to look next. Good cartoon artists place blocks in the end of the lines to prevent the reader s gaze escaping the image. Extremely good artists also point to the climax on the page the whole way.

6 How did Carl Barks do it? From The Seven Cities of Cibola The panels are not even: dynamic instead of static It s clear in what order the story needs to be read Lots of emphasizing in text The gaze enters the page, horizontal positioning forces it forward. Donald s gaze points to the statue, it s looking down and left, the reader follows. There is a block in the right forcing the gaze down again. Movement and silhouette points straight to Huey, he s got something important to say. The wall in the right curves the attention back to the left. After the rapid movement above it s time to relax a bit with wider view, but background pushes the view to the next panel. The position of the statue urges to turn the page. Scrooge has something important to say, his head is highlighted. Pay also attention how all the main lines of the page are pointing towards one particular panel: the one where Scrooge realizes that they are in grave danger. Even if that panel has most text, it s holding the most tension.