Blog Assignment #1- Deconstructing Characters

The three elements of my character- light, shape, and color- are all quite basic, yet say a lot. My character, Bingley, is made of an analogous color scheme of yellow, green, and blue. All three colors are quite vibrant, yet shading is used to bring attention to certain features of the character. Yellow, which represents fun and energy is the main color of the character. Green and blue compliment yellow as well as add depth. None of those three colors typically accompany any one gender, either, which is why I also chose to use them; I wanted my character to be gender neutral.
I chose a round shape for my Bingley for three reasons; one being that it is natural (being a puffer fish and all...) and because circular shapes do not typically represent strength, but more so fun. The third reason I chose a rounded shape is to compliment their favorite thing to do- play ping pong (ping pong balls are also round.)


I chose this picture of a ball to represent my character for two main reasons. The first being that it represents my character's rounded shape, and the second being that it obviously portrays the color as well. This is obviously a children's play toy, which coincides with my character's genre. It is likely that a child who would play with this ball would also be interested in my character. All in all I would say this is a perfect representation of my character, and would give anybody a pretty good idea of what Bingley is all about.

I chose this picture of colors to accurately represent Bingley's colors. Yellow is on top, which represents the majority of Bingley's coloring. Green is in the middle, which accurately represents the second major color, and blue is on bottom. Since Bingley is a sea creature, I chose not to color it blue, due to it possibly blending it with the ocean background. Yellow is a fun, vibrant color in and of itself, which is why I chose to use it. The yellow tone in this picture, I believe, fairly represents the shade of yellow I chose to use for Bingley. This shade is quite understated, which I purposely did for the sake of originality and attempting to not overdo the whole "bright fun colors" thing.


I chose this ball to represent Bingley's shape. Since Bingley is a fish, I chose a more sluggish shape rather than a stealth arrow type shape. Bingley is not a strong or stealthy; he is more of a rounded, bouncy- type character. Bingley can also be described as a "ball of energy" so I literally chose a ball to represent it. Of course Bingley is not a perfect rounded shape, but I feel that this quite accurately described its overall personality.




My second character, the antagonist, is named Octopong. Octopong is a monotone grey color, with only slight variations in shading. I chose grey for a few reasons- one being that it is an expected octopus color, as well as it being a relatively dark, dreary color. This is the exact opposite of Bingley, who is brightly colored and fun looking. This visual cue lets the viewer know immediately which character is the protagionist as well as the antagonist.
The lighting of Octopong is relatively simple and straightforward. His underside is colored lighter than his upper side for a few reasons. One being that he is more creepy and eerie, so lighting his underside is similar to someone holding a flashlight under their face to make them look creepy, and the other being that it is normally how an octopus looks.
The shape of Octopong is naturally the shape of an octopus, but a little squirmier. I did this because he is a sly, sneaky character, so I wanted to make him look the part. Slimy, squirmy tentacles that move and wiggle are a definite ick factor, so I wanted him to be extra slimy.


The first photo I have chosen to represent Octopong is this sun:
This sun represents Octopong's overall shape. That being his main center and pertruding squiggly arms. Of course, ignoring the coloring and brightness of the photo, I think the overall idea of the shape represents Octopong. This photo represents movement in its shape, and in relation to Octopong implies the movement of his limbs.


The second photo I have chosen to represent Octopong is this snake. This snake is definitely creepy and gross, and his squirmy long body represents Octopong's long, squirmy tentacles. It also somewhat represents the color of Octopong, and his intimidating appearance. Snakes are one of the most feared things in the world, so I thought it was appropriate to compare this snake with Octopong, since he is what Bingley fears.



I chose this last photo to represent Octopong for several reasons. One reason is simply the color scheme-- that being grey. This alien is pretty monotone and grey, as is Octopong. This photo also shows what a grey, monotone color scheme does for a character, and that is to make it cold, creepy and eerie. This brings me to the next reason I chose this photo, and that is to show the eerie-ness I want to convey with Octopong. He is a dark, creepie octopus who lives in the deepest parts of the sea, which I think relates very well with this alien, who lives in the deepest parts of space. Both characters are elusive and both are feared. So overall, I think this is the best photograph to represent Octopong and what he is all about.