Following up from my research on album covers for inspiration for my project, I decided to experiment with different techniques to get an idea of what methods I would like to follow through and adapt for my final album cover piece to go with the rest of my project.
After having a look at different album covers that inspire me, I was aware of elements that I wanted to adapt and use myself, I just was not sure which ones in particular I wanted to use for my final piece, therefore, I took the time to experiment with these different ideas to see what works best for the style I am trying to create.
I have found that I am very interested with the liquify tool at the moment, and I have been experimenting with using it with text. Though, I felt to make my work be at an even higher standard, I should experiment with the use of liquify with objects as well as text, as I feel the outcome could be something very unique.
I have found that I am also inspired by the use of the liquify tool as a pattern, merging colours together. Therefore, I felt that I wanted to experiment with this too.
To create this background, I simply got an image with lots of colours in it, and took it into the liquify tool, to see what I could create. I kept liquifying the photo until I got my desired effect. I kept adding different colours in using a pen tool and the screen setting to create other colours too within the image.
I added this liquified piece into one of my album cover examples. I felt that having the image in contrast to a black background around it was very effective as it brings much more attention to the image. I felt that adding the liquified moon on top was effective as it contrasted against the liquified picture. Even though they present the same colours, the moon stands out more on top of the image.
Experimenting further with liquified objects, I picked a random object in my house and decided to experiment with liquifying it to see what I could create. I decided on a lightbulb. I simply took the lightbulb into the liquify tool and dragged down one side, as I felt that this looked the best. Even though it is not changing much of the state of the lightbulb, even the slightest change is effective.
Regarding the saturated colour of the lightbulb, I used a gradient map to achieve the desired effect. I used this method again with the 'rave is not a crime' example, making sure to mask out the objects first and making a clipping mask so that the background is not saturated, making the objects stand out a lot more and bringing contrast to the images.
I am pleased because I have been struggling with my saturation edits, as I was not sure exactly how they were made, but recently I have been able to figure out a much better method for what I was trying to create, which looks a lot more like the examples I was looking out. I feel much more confident editing saturation edits now and I cannot wait to see what else I can create using it. I also feel much more confident with the liquify tool too, and I understand now more the free movement of the tool, instead of trying to purposely manipulate the images in a certain way. I have found by letting the tool liquify on its own, the results come out a lot better.
Overall, I feel that the 'rave is not a crime' cover has been my favourite that I have completed. This is due to the use of the saturation and liquify tool used successfully and in a unique way, but also the use of a gradient bar presented in the image, which I feel makes the image look a lot more professional and like the examples I was inspired by. I also like the use of colours that I chose, and that the text colours link with the ones in the saturation, bringing the image together.
I have learned a lot fo skills from my experimentation that I am excited to use to bring into my final album cover piece that I will produce.
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