Running the Risk
This assignment was to create a diptych consisting of scenes from our graphic novel narrative.
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The left side of my diptych shows my protagonist at a computer, browsing the internet, while on the right, he’s running in front of a car making a turn, in an effort to save a neighbor’s dog. The left side is intended to be representative of how easy it is to become absorbed into the internet and the social interaction that takes place there. However, social interaction is much easier when it’s anonymous, and there are two screens between the interactors. You don’t run much risk talking to someone when you know you’ll probably never see or hear from them again. On the right side, his act of running in front of the car to do a good deed is expressive of how face to face communication requires risk taking, and possible consequences. However, in my short story, he manages to save the dog from the car, and becomes friends with the neighbor. Forging real friendships requires not just risk, but personal sacrifice.
The picture was composed using Photoshop CS6. The two photos were taken with a DSLR camera, imported, and then edited. Editing was straightforward, I turned the brightness down on the photo on the left, while the right side was brightened a bit. I also put an orange-yellow filter on it to let it better contrast with the left. I then cropped them to be the same size, doubled the overall canvas size, and put them side by side.
Trying to tell a story in just two pictures was tricky, and I don't really know if I did it in an effective way. To get the true message of my diptych, knowing the story behind it is fairly important. On a technical level, I learned more about filters and color balancing.
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