M&S Picnic - Creating the Scene.

Initially we started this process by drawing out accurately on Illustrator the chosen template so we would have something specific to work from. We also picked a colour palette that could remain consistent throughout the design.

Next the characters were added as this was something solid that we had to work with. After this we added aspects of scenery so that the illustrations had something to work with, we included lochs and mountains to emphasise the Scottish highlands. Colour was also experimented with as we felt the green as a block of grass was very garish, but also when it was changed to a darker colour it looked very murky, especially when combined with the turquoise.

To move on from this we decided to alter the colour scheme to make it more bright and playful as we thought this would suit the style of illustrations. By enhancing the turquoise it immediately brought it more to life. As we continued from this point we decided to work on the scenery before adding the characters. Hills were added onto the horizon and also tree's and foliage to add detail and interest. We kept these shapes very in keeping with the people so that they could interact together and look like the same piece. Finally we looked at adding spaces where type could be incorporated.

The next aspect we looked at was type, we drew out a selection of options but this was decided as the most suitable. We likes the fun appearance and also the appeal of a hand rendered type. Although when we began incorporating this into the composition it became clear that it didn't work, the lines were too fine and it was to decorative which meant that it clashed with all of the other items.

To move on we then looked at a new hand rendered typeface, again we loved the style especially with it in red as we felt it really brought the composition to life. Even though we still had a lot of problems as first of all the type was initially on a slant and some of the characters didn't match in terms of letter height etc. To help this we completely re-worked the type so that it fell on a straight base line and everything was consistent, but even after spending all this time it still didn't work as we'd hoped. It was hard to put the lines of text together and get it to fit aesthetically on top and beneath each other.

Because of all the trouble we'd had with hand rendered type we then decided to experiment with digital fonts. This made things a lot easier as we didn't have to worry about composition as everything fit together better as the type was regulated. We decided to use a bold font with a slightly decorative edge as the main title as it was eye-catching and also subtly worked with the theme. To add to the layout and also to add a description we used a much more simple type in a smaller size to create hierarchy. We felt that this layout worked really well when we applied it to the template and also continuing with the red colour definitely enhanced the appearance of the overall composition.

Once type was eventually finalised we could then tie up the loose ends of the illustrative aspect. We wanted to add more recognisable Scottish landmarks so we created images that would represent a Scottish castle and Princes St Gardens. I feel like these are a great addition as they are things that are instantly recognisable to the audience. Finally we just added finishing touches to the water aspect so that the bottom of the composition was as interesting as the top.

We are really pleased with our final design and are happy that we put so much effort into readjusting it to get it just as we wanted. Hopefully once all the boxes are created the scene will be as clear as it is digitally.