Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

How are you? I hope you're feeling really good and I'm so pleased that you're here.

My name is Ms. Afzal and I'll be your art teacher for this lesson, which I'm feeling very happy about.

Today we're looking at digital art, which I think is so interesting.

Our lesson is called "Deepening the understanding of the principles of digital art." I hope that sounds interesting to you.

Our lesson comes from the unit of work "Foundation workshops: developing skills." So if you're ready to develop your skills around digital art, if you have some focus, energy, and enthusiasm, we'll begin our lesson now.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can apply principles of composition, layering and contrast to refine and enhance digital artwork.

We have some keywords in our lesson today, let's go through these.

Composition, contrast, layer, opacity and resolution.

So what do these keywords mean? Composition is the arrangement of elements within an artwork.

Contrast, the difference between light and dark, or between elements, to create visual impact.

Layer, this is a separate transparent sheet within a digital canvas used to organize elements of an artwork.

Opacity, the degree to which a layer or brush stroke is see-through.

And resolution, the clarity or detail of an image measured in pixels.

These are our keywords, composition, contrast, layer, opacity and resolution.

Let's look out for them, let's listen out for them.

They'll be coming up in our lesson today.

Our lesson is called "Deepening the understanding of the principles of digital arts." This lesson has two learning cycles, "Composition and contrast" and "Layers and opacity." Let's begin by exploring "Composition and contrast." Let's begin with a question.

How can digital tools and techniques aid the creative process of art, design, and photography? Pause here and share with someone, what do you think? Thanks for sharing.

Let's hear some responses, here's Izzy.

"Digital tools provide more options for experimentation." Aisha, "The ability to undo and save work mid-process allows for more control." And Jacob, "You can use it to create images ready for digital platforms and printing." I wonder if you had some ideas like these or maybe something else.

Digital tools are powerful, but making great art still depends on creative choices.

Strong design thinking beats random use of filters or effects.

You should be in control of your images and the impact they may have.

Pause here and share with someone the impact that the images we can see on the screen are having on you.

Thanks for sharing.

By learning the various techniques available through digital tools, you can change and influence the appearance of digital artworks.

Techniques include composition, how elements are arranged; contrast, the difference between elements such as light and dark.

Let's have a check for understanding.

The arrangement of elements in an image is referred to as.

A, color palette.

B, composition.

C, cropping.

Or D, creativity.

Pause here while you decide what the arrangement of elements in an image is referred to as.

Well done if you selected composition, that's the term for the arrangement of elements in an image.

Composition is how elements are arranged in a picture.

A good composition guides the viewer's eye to what matters most.

It might follow pre-considered guides such as rule of thirds, Fibonacci or golden spiral, diagonal.

Pause here and share with someone, have you come across these composition guides before? Rule of thirds, Fibonacci, or diagonal.

Thanks for sharing.

Let's explore these composition guides a little further.

Which composition type do you think has been used in this photograph? Pause here and share with someone.

Let's hear from Sam.

"There is a clear distinction between the foreground, the middle ground and the background.

I think rule of thirds has been used here." The Fibonacci spiral, or golden spiral, is a composition technique used to add increasing complexity as elements approach the center of the spiral.

Here you can see how there are fewer elements towards the out edge of the image, while at the spiral center there is a house with many details.

In this landscape image, there's a clear diagonal moving across the composition created by a mountain.

There are many more types of composition, including geometric and abstracted ones.

Digital tools allow artists and designers to edit, move, and adjust sections of an image, making them ideal for composition techniques.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which of these images uses a rule of thirds composition? Pause here while you decide.

Well done if you selected image B.

This uses the rule of thirds composition.

Contrast is the difference between visual elements such as light versus dark, bold versus soft, color versus black and white.

Using contrast helps your work stand out.

Pause here and share with someone the impact of the use of contrast in this image that we can see on the screen.

Thanks for sharing.

Contrast can be used during the creation of an artwork through material or color choice, or it can be used when digitally editing an image through the adjustment setting.

Notice how light areas contrast against the dark silhouettes in this image.

High contrast can help make the mood and subject clear.

Think about how you can selectively use contrast to show differences in your artwork.

Overuse or increasing the contrast levels too much can distort the image and make it hard to see.

Subtle use of contrast can also be effective to evoke mood and atmosphere in an image.

Pause here and share with someone.

What do you feel the mood or atmosphere is in this image that we can see on the screen? And how the contrast has helped contribute towards that.

Thanks for sharing.

Contrast and composition techniques are demonstrated in varied ways by different photographers and digital artists.

Hassan Hajjaj creates vibrant photographic portraits with bold digital compositions, blending fashion, advertising, and Moroccan cultural motifs.

Barbara Kruger uses digital collage, photography, and text overlays to question consumerism, gender, and power.

She's influential in creating contrast in her compositions.

Andreas Gursky creates digitally-manipulated photographs to emphasize patterns, repetition, and modern life.

His work often uses extreme detail and scale to show the complexity of globalized spaces.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Why is contrast important in digital art? A, it reduces file size for a digital work.

B, it increases resolution in an artwork.

C, it makes elements stand out against each other.

D, it adds new layers automatically to a digital artwork.

Pause here while you decide, why is contrast important in digital art? Well done if you select answer C.

Indeed, it makes elements stand out against each other.

That's why contrast is important in digital art.

And now it's time for your first task.

I would like you to import a photograph you have taken or from an image gallery you have access to.

Crop or adjust the composition using software to adjust the levels and enhance the contrast.

Compare your photo before and after editing it.

So pause here while you have a go at this task and I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

How did you get on with that task of importing a photograph you've taken or from an image gallery you've access to and then cropping or adjusting the composition using software to adjust the levels and enhance the contrast? You may have made an adjustment like this, as we can see on the screen.

Let's hear from Sofia.

"I cropped half of the composition in this landscape photo and increased the contrast to emphasize the golden sunlight against the trees and water." So really, quite effective.

And now onto our next learning cycle, "Layers and opacity." In digital art, a heightened degree of control is available between each visual element you incorporate by using layers.

Layers are like transparent sheets stacked on top of each other.

Each layer can be moved or edited separately.

Layers let you experiment with confidence.

Using layers allows you to try new things without affecting other areas of your work.

You can always undo edits or additions if you change your mind.

Pause here and share with someone your impressions of this many-layered artwork that we can see on the screen.

Thanks for sharing.

The number of layers you can use depends on the digital tool you're using and the hardware capability.

In some cases, it can reach an extremely high number, making it possible to create layers for each visual element, color, shape, or adjustment that you use.

Resolution in digital art refers to the image's detail and quality, measured by the number of pixels or dots per inch, DPI.

While a higher resolution increases detail, it does not necessarily improve design choices.

It requires more device resources, which limits the number of available layers and can lead to lagging.

As a general rule, 300 DPI is commonly used in digital art and will allow high-quality printing of the artwork later on.

Let's have a check for understanding.

True or false? Higher resolution always makes digital artworks better.

Pause here and decide, is this statement true or false? Well done if you selected false, and now I'd like you to say a little more about your answer.

Pause here while you do this.

Perhaps you said something like this.

Higher resolution increases detail but may not improve design choices.

Strong composition and contrast matter more for impact.

Opacity controls how solid or see-through a layer is.

Opacity can be applied to each line, shape, and color used in a digital artwork or an entire layer.

Lowering the opacity of the layer allows you to softly blend images or visual elements together.

As well as changing the opacity, layers can interact with each other in varied ways to create a range of visual outcomes.

This is done by using blending modes.

The standard blending mode preset will be set to normal.

However, many others can be used by adjusting this setting.

Common blending modes include standard, obscures layers below; darken, emphasizes darker pixels; lighten, emphasizes lighter pixels; multiply, darkens shadows; screen, brightens the image; color, recolors a layer; overlay, adjusts contrast and brightness.

You can experiment with layer opacity and blending modes to create a range of special effects within your digital artwork.

There are many examples of artists who approach digital art making with experimental techniques.

Sin Wai Kin is a multidisciplinary artist using performance, photography, and digital media to explore gender, identity, and representation.

Hito Steyerl is a digital media artist whose video essays and manipulated digital imagery explore technology, politics, and truth in the digital age.

Thomas Ruff combines manipulated photographic portraits, internet-sourced images and digital distortions.

His work questions how digital processes change our understanding of perception.

Let's have a check for understanding.

In digital art, what does opacity control? Is it A, how sharp the image looks; B, how much light is in the photograph; C, how many colors are visible; or D, how transparent a layer appears? Pause here while you decide, in digital art, what does opacity control? Well done if you selected answer D.

Indeed, in digital art, opacity controls how transparent a layer appears.

And now it's time for your next task.

I would like you to create a digital photo montage which combines two to three images into one composition.

You should use at least three separate layers, adjust the opacity and blending modes to create visual harmony.

So pause here while you have a go at this task.

Enjoy your task and I'll see you when you're finished.

It's great to be back with you.

So how did you get on with that task of creating a digital photo montage which combines two to three images into one composition? You might have taken a few images, as we can see on the left, and brought them together in this way, as we can see on the right.

Pause here and share your impressions of this digital photo montage.

How do you think this was created? Thanks for sharing.

And let's hear from Jacob.

"My digital photo montage was created using three landscapes.

I experimented with opacities and blending modes to create a hybrid scene, using a rule of third's composition." A really great job there from Jacob.

And now I'd like you to share your photo montage with somebody and see if they can work out what type of composition you've gone for in your photo montage.

Thanks for sharing.

And now I'd like you to share your digital photo montage with somebody and see if they can work out what were the three images that you incorporated into your final creation.

Take some time to do this.

Thanks for sharing.

In our lesson "Deepening the understanding of the principles of digital arts," we've covered the following.

Digital art is built on key visual principles, including composition, contrast, layering, and resolution.

Understanding how these principles interact strengthens technical and creative outcomes.

Layer control, opacity, and editing decisions affect the mood, clarity, and effectiveness of digital artwork.

Well done, everyone, for joining in with this lesson.

It was great to explore and deepen our understanding of the principles of digital arts.

It was great to see you putting those principles into practice, exploring layers, opacity, composition types, and coming up with something that I hope you're feeling proud of.

I really enjoyed teaching you and I hope you enjoyed this lesson too.

I look forward to seeing you at another art lesson soon.

Until then, stay creative.