Poster creation step-by-step

After creating a mockup of the poster for my promotional package, I developed it and improved certain aspects of it, and I think that I now have a completed piece. However it is important that you understand how I created it and each step that I had to make in order to construct it. In this post, I will be presenting you with step-by-step visual evidence. Below is the creation:

 1. First, I acquired an image of an eye from Google that was royalty free and okay to use for media coursework. Originally, I did plan on taking the image myself, however my camera wasn't good enough and I didn't have access to a macro lens, which would have created that very focused effect. The eye that I have used was originally bright blue - this wasn't the colour that I wanted. I therefore used the colour replacement tool to change the colour to a sinister red - the colour of Incubus's eyes. I also used the sharpen brush to make the eyelashes more detailed and defined as they were originally blurry and more "blocky". After making adjustments to the eye, I added a solid black background behind it so that the colour was more vibrant, and there was room for the credits at the bottom of the poster. This step took me around 20 minutes to complete.

 2. I then inserted the credits at the bottom of the poster as my research showed that this is a key part of posters that is conventional and expected. I used the credits from an existing poster, however I chose these colours as I thought that they worked well with the colours of the poster. They stand out, and do not look like they are part of the film. This task only took me around 5 minutes.












3. The next key part to add in was one of the main characters. As this was Incubus's eye, I came up with the idea to make it look like he was watching over and potentially harming someone - Cpt. Baker. I took a still from our trailer and inserted it into the pupil of the eye. I then cut around it and added some effects that made the image look like a reflection. The reason I chose this image was because the character looks innocent and like he is staring death in the eye. This could have a great impact on the person looking at the poster and will make them wonder who's eye this really is. This task took me around 15 minutes to complete.

4. It was then time to add in the main stars name and the movie title. I used the same font that was used on the I Am Legend poster as I think it looks professional yet classic at the same time. In terms of the title of the film, I used DaFont.com to obtain a unique font that wasn't accessible from software such as Photoshop and Microsoft Word. This particular font was under the "bullet" section, which was the style I was looking for - a very military type look that was rugged and destroyed. The original colour of this font was black, so I changed it to white and made it slightly bigger. This task took me around 30 minutes to complete as it took some time to find the correct font to use.

 5. This step was relatively easy as all I had to do was add in the text "This is". Although this isn't part of the title, it acts as a presentation line that will hook the audience when they see the poster. Again the font for this was the same used in the I Am Legend Poster. This task took 5 minutes.

6. This was a very subtle feature to add, however I thought that it was vital to make the title unique and original. As you can see, I added some zombie hands just above the "S" of "SHUTDOWN". The reason I did this was because a lot of film titles are not just text and do usually include some form of iconography. Additionally, the hands look a little like fire - this is also a good look for the title. I managed to find the hands on Google however I took the background away from them so that I could use them on my poster. This task took me around 15 minutes.









7. The final step was more of a change than an addition. As you may have noticed, the poster said that the film was going to be released "this summer". I realised that in the trailer we said that it was going to be released "this October". I quickly made the change to the poster by using another font from DaFont and implementing it into this media piece. This task took around 10 minutes to complete.













Overall, I am very happy with the way that my poster came out and I believe that it follows the conventions of modern film posters. It looks professional, and clearly highlights the type of footage that the audience should expect in the film. I will be evaluating this part of the media promotional package in later posts along with feedback from others.