Since lighting effects the impression of a subject to the viewer so dramatically, the different types and variations of lighting can create different moods for a scene. Different tones, colors, contrasts, intensities, ect, may allow a scene to have it’s own distinct atmosphere. The following involves what moods were intended for each of the three scenes
Late Afternoon
With this seen I attempted to evoke the mood one gets at the end of a day by simulating the light that is cast by the sun towards sunset. To do this I made a spotlight as a Key light to cast a yellow light and positioned it lower and further away from the scene to simulate the suns rays. I used the Fill light to shine normal white light on the scene to simulate the light that bounces around a room. The Back light shines a violet colour to be the contrast of the yellow light. The ambient light of the objects and the scene were also set to this colour.
Ambiance
This scene was lit to give a mood brought about by ambiance in a scene by simulating that kind of lighting that a room would have at night. The Key light was placed at the lamp as a point light to be the light source of the room and set to shine a yellow light. The Fill light was placed higher than the Key light and was set to shine a red color. The backlight was placed the lowest and set to shine a violet color to be the contrast of the Key light. The ambient lights of the objects and scene were also set to a violet colour.
Torches
Though this scene has three lights they are not placed for the three point lighting technique. This is because they have a different purpose rather than lighting the whole scene evenly. Instead they are intended to make the scene appear more eerie by bringing focus to only sections of it and leaving the rest in darkness. The lights themselves represent flashlights that are searching the area.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
3-Point Lighting
3-point lighting is a technique that was originally developed for lighting up subjects and scenes for film. As technology has progressed over time, 3d software has empowered the user with the ability to simulate life and elements in it such as light. 3d Software calculates how light falls onto objects, the colours it forms and the shadows that are caste by it. One also has a control of the aspects of the lighting that is not as easy to set up in real life. How lighting hits a scene or an object can affect ones mood. This is because of how one associates with the different colours, brightness, contrast and tones of light. The following explains how one can set up a 3-point lighting rig.
Types of Lights
Each light of the 3-point lighting technique has it’s own distinct purpose. The Key light is normally the strongest and is placed on the side of a subject, which casts shadows on its opposite side. The Fill light has less strength than the Key light, approximately half, and is placed on the opposite side of the main light. It is used to allow the subject to be more visible and softens the illumination of the subject from the key light. The Back light is placed behind the subject. It normally has less strength than the fill light. It is used to allow the subject to appear more separate from its background and have more form.
3 Point Lighting Technique
Before working with the lighting of a scene one must ensure that there aren't any lights already on it by deleting them. Each new scene usually has a default light, which should be deleted from the explorer. To move the lights one can select the light 'root' which dictates the position of the light. To control the direction of the light one can either use the rotate tool or move its 'effecter'. To create the first light one can create it from selecting the ‘primitives tab’, ‘light’ and selecting a type of light depending on kind and strength one requires using. This is the key light that should be placed higher than the other lights. To create the second, which is the Fill light, one can create it the same way but it should placed lower than the Key light. Lastly the Back light should be placed the lowest of all the lights. There should be a certain lighting rig for each different scene and subject because using the same lighting would not suite scenes such as indoor and outdoor scenes.
An Indoor Scene
http://www.cgarena.com/freestuff/tutorials/homefire/index3.html
This is an example of a scene that doesn't use the 3-point lighting system. Instead it uses lighting called global illumination that lights the whole scene evenly. The lights are placed by the models, which represent light sources. When rendering, Pass of Ambient Occlusion was also used.
References:
http://www.mediacollege.com/lighting/three-point/
http://www.cgarena.com/freestuff/tutorials/homefire/index3.html
Types of Lights
Each light of the 3-point lighting technique has it’s own distinct purpose. The Key light is normally the strongest and is placed on the side of a subject, which casts shadows on its opposite side. The Fill light has less strength than the Key light, approximately half, and is placed on the opposite side of the main light. It is used to allow the subject to be more visible and softens the illumination of the subject from the key light. The Back light is placed behind the subject. It normally has less strength than the fill light. It is used to allow the subject to appear more separate from its background and have more form.
3 Point Lighting Technique
Before working with the lighting of a scene one must ensure that there aren't any lights already on it by deleting them. Each new scene usually has a default light, which should be deleted from the explorer. To move the lights one can select the light 'root' which dictates the position of the light. To control the direction of the light one can either use the rotate tool or move its 'effecter'. To create the first light one can create it from selecting the ‘primitives tab’, ‘light’ and selecting a type of light depending on kind and strength one requires using. This is the key light that should be placed higher than the other lights. To create the second, which is the Fill light, one can create it the same way but it should placed lower than the Key light. Lastly the Back light should be placed the lowest of all the lights. There should be a certain lighting rig for each different scene and subject because using the same lighting would not suite scenes such as indoor and outdoor scenes.
An Indoor Scene
http://www.cgarena.com/freestuff/tutorials/homefire/index3.html
This is an example of a scene that doesn't use the 3-point lighting system. Instead it uses lighting called global illumination that lights the whole scene evenly. The lights are placed by the models, which represent light sources. When rendering, Pass of Ambient Occlusion was also used.
References:
http://www.mediacollege.com/lighting/three-point/
http://www.cgarena.com/freestuff/tutorials/homefire/index3.html
Monday, February 18, 2008
The Key Point’s of Neil Cohn’s “A Visual Lexicon” and “Visual Syntactic Structures”
Neil Cohn is a linguist who attempts to reveal the structure of the language of sequential art. He describes the visual arts as having a grammar of it’s own. He does this by breaking down transitions in sequential art as if to deconstruct sentences to further understand their rules and structure. This to investigate the visual lexicon and syntactic structures. The following are Neil Cohn’s key points from his articles.
"A Visual Lexicon"
Attention Units:
Frame characteristics:
"A Visual Lexicon"
Attention Units:
Frame characteristics:
- Positive - Figures or focal attention that are contained in frames.
- Negative - The background information in frames.
Lexical Representational Matrix:
- Polymorphic - These allow for grammatical structures and event representation to exist within the boundaries of a single frame.
- Macro - Containing more than one entity.
- Mono - Only a single entity.
- Micro - Less than one grammatical entity.
- These all don’t work as syntactic structures alone but are rather ‘Attention units’. They window attention and determine where the focus is desired.
- Unlike words, panels constantly change. Words are consistent in representation while frame are inconsistent with consistant context.
- Visual Morphemes cannot exist on their own, such as speed lines and speed bubbles.
- Yet narratives are free floating morphemes.
Lexical Items:
- Open class - Figures (augmentable)
- Closed class - Hearts, speed lines (fixed)
Constructions:
- These are form-meaning patterns in language that vary in size, and can include lengths longer than individual words.
- Though not much is known about similar patterns in the visual language that does not mean that they don’t exist.
Initial state – Causative [reading of paper section] – Resultant state
- Though strips include text it is still dominated by it’s visual syntax.
- Therefore constructions may be possible.
- Bimodal constructions might also be possible, yet requires further investigation.
Conclusion
- The visual language has a variety of sizes of ‘lexical items’ that combine on several levels to create units and constructions.
- A lexical Item is a meaningful unit or combination of units of form meaning pairing that can be either productive or non-productive. They can also be symbolic, indexical or iconic.
"Visual Syntactic Structures"
Transitional Syntax
- Visual language syntax is the study of the structural organization of a sequence of images.
Results and Revisions
- Temporal transitions.
- Spatial transitions
- Spatio Temporal transitions
- Transitions are measured by the relation of one panel moving into another juxtaposed panel, while identifying individual panels themselves.
Types of transitions:
1.Temporally Progressive.
1.1Moment Transitions - Time dominant factor.
1.2Action Transitions - Action pushes time.
2.Temporally Ambiguous.
2.1 Environmentally Existential transitions –
Based on the relationship around the components of a single scene and environment.
2.1.1 Subject transitions –
Shifts into a panel containing a primary acting agent of the scene.
2.1.2 Aspect transitions –
Shift into a panel containing “non – acting” elements of the scene environment.
2.1.3 View transitions –
Change the perspective of which the elements of the scene are viewed, while not changing temporally.
2.2 Environmentally Co-dependent transitions –
Based on the relations of two environments and their enclosed actions.
2.3 Environmentally Ambiguous transitions –
Including a ‘Cognable Transition’, featuring a transition into a panel devoid of connection to an environment through retaining of semantic connecting.
2.4 McCloudian Non-Sequitur transitions–
Unrelated transitions.
Three previously unmentioned conditions that varied beyond outlined transitions:
1. Inclusionary transitions
Panels within panels or concepts within concepts
2. Embedded transitions:
Contained transitions within the framework of a single image, unbroken by panel borders.
3, Overlays:Where an element of the sequence intersects another in such a way that it affects multiple panels that it touches.
- Mcloud’s equation of the space equals time as a ‘temporal map’ is problematic to the ‘Temporally Ambiguous’ class.
- Mcloud also never elaborates on a methodology.
- Web diagrams – based on transitional taxonomy and can be used to draw transitions such as:
- Parrellel cutting – Two or more environments occurring simultaneously in a single linear stream.
- The mind splits these different environments into separate paths as retained knowledge.
- This dual mental track allows for an enclosed environment’s occurrences to be maintained and connected as a “concurrent streaming environment’.
- This does not fall under the Multi-Engaged transitions such as inclusionary, embedded and overlay transitions.
- Unifier - Method for divisional forms of Aspect transitions which deals with the issues of image consistency.
- The Problem with Web analysis - It does not account for the additive knowledge from frames between transitional frames.
An Alternative Perspective in a Traditional Field
Markov chain:
- This remedies the problems of the web diagram by linking words by their transition between word types. The same diagram may be apllied to the visual language.
- It is expressed through a ‘state diagram’ which contains expressed grammatical constructions up to a certain point.
Syntactic Structures:
- These remedy the problem of sentences of infinite length
Rules:
- Sentence = Noun Phrase + Verb Phrase
- NP = Determiner + Noun
- VP = Verb + NP
- These are represented by a tree diagram and can work for the visual language as well.
- The task is to move from a state-to-state to a generative grammar for visual language syntax.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Texture Assignment: Motivation for the Textured Scene
Though textures are mostly used to allow objects to appear more believable and realistic to the viewer, I attempted to make an interpretation of the subject in an abstract manner. Instead of creating exact representations of how they would appear in reality, I textured the scene to represent how an individual may perceive a room as a memory in their mind. The following covers how I attempted to texture such a scene.
First the objects in the room and the walls were distorted before texturing them. This is to set a feeling of imbalance and discomfort in the scene to suggest that the person remembering the room has had a particular memory of an event that occurred within it. This distortion of objects is influenced by Van Gogh's 'Chambre de van Gogh a Arles' where the furniture in the image are not completely in the correct proportions and perspectives.
The wooden tables and frame have exaggerated textures so that the room appears further distorted. The grain is larger than it could appear in reality because of how it may appear in a memory.
The walls and floor have also been given a texture that they would unlikely have in realty. In this individual’s memory, the hazy texture is what they perceive in a memory of the scene.
Though the scene is not as aesthetically pleasing as it could have been, this textured scene is the attempt to experiment and search for another manner of interpreting a subject and representing it through distortion and abstraction.
First the objects in the room and the walls were distorted before texturing them. This is to set a feeling of imbalance and discomfort in the scene to suggest that the person remembering the room has had a particular memory of an event that occurred within it. This distortion of objects is influenced by Van Gogh's 'Chambre de van Gogh a Arles' where the furniture in the image are not completely in the correct proportions and perspectives.
The wooden tables and frame have exaggerated textures so that the room appears further distorted. The grain is larger than it could appear in reality because of how it may appear in a memory.
The walls and floor have also been given a texture that they would unlikely have in realty. In this individual’s memory, the hazy texture is what they perceive in a memory of the scene.
Though the scene is not as aesthetically pleasing as it could have been, this textured scene is the attempt to experiment and search for another manner of interpreting a subject and representing it through distortion and abstraction.
Image and Procedural Texture Mapping Techniques
No matter how well a surface is modeled, even if its form is an exact copy of the original subject, it will not appear naturalistic and have a bland appearance. By applying textures, objects will have more visual complexity and appear more believable or aesthetically appealing to a viewer. There are two kinds of approaches to texture mapping that are called image and procedural texture mapping. The following discusses these techniques in texturing through XSI.
Image textures
These textures are any image in a picture file that one wishes to use to wrap around the surface of a form. These are particularly useful for forms that require specific images on particular parts or sides of them.
Procedural textures
These textures are generated mathematically and are calculated to simulate natural materials. There are two types of procedural textures that are 2d and 3d. 2d procedural textures only simulate an objects surface appearance while 3d procedural textures are used to simulate a forms internal structure. The software calculates how the surface of the form would appear depending on how it would it be structured internally. For example, the appearance of grain on wood is determined by how the layers of wood would be structured inside it.
Materials and Texture projections
When working with textures one should select the texture view mode from the top corner of the view screen so one can see the textures that one has assigned to their surface. Before a texture can be applied on a surface one has to prepare it. First a material has to be assigned to it. To do this the surface must be selected and a material selected from the materials tab such as a Phong, Lambert or Blinn. A menu will pop up that allows one to determine the aspects of the surface such as its colour, reflection, ambient light, ect.
Another step one has to take before being able to add a texture to a surface is to assign how the texture would be projected over a surface. Depending what shape the object is determines what type of texture projection one is required to use to project the texture on the objects surface. For example if one has a sphere as an object, one should use a spherical texture projection. If wants to place an object onto a flat surface one should select one of the uv, xy, yz, and xz texture projections depending on what axis the surface is positioned. To assign one of these texture projections to a surface one must select the object, click on the property tab, texture projections and then select the texture projection that is suitable for the object. The scaling, sizing and positioning of the texture projection object will determine how an image is projected onto a surface.
Image texture mapping
Finally one can apply an image to the surface of the object. To view the materials and edit them one can open the 'material manger'. In this menu one can view different textures and materials in the 'render tree' as 'nodes' and edit, add or delete them. To add an image texture to a material one has to select the material from the material manager and press enter. This will reveal options to edit the material. To add an image as a texture one can select the plug tab next to the diffuse bars and select 'image'. This will give one the option to load an image from outside of XSI. The image will be wrapped around a forms surface depending on the texture projection. To edit how the texture is projected with more control one can select the Texture editor with Alt+7. This allows one to move vertices that determine how the image is displayed over a surface.
Procedural texture mapping
2d procedural textures can be applied on an objects surface in a similar way as one does with an image texture. By clicking on the plug button, in the material's option window, one can select one of many texture presets. The program will mathematically calculate how the texture will cover the object depending on a certain algorithm. To edit the texture one can access its options by selecting its node from the render tree and pressing enter.
3d procedural textures can be applied by to an object to clicking on the nodes tab above the render tree, selecting texture generators and choosing a texture. This will create a convoluted surface on the surface of a form instead of just being an image on a surface that gives the illusion of textures.
References.
Digital tutors DVD
XSI tutorials
Image textures
These textures are any image in a picture file that one wishes to use to wrap around the surface of a form. These are particularly useful for forms that require specific images on particular parts or sides of them.
Procedural textures
These textures are generated mathematically and are calculated to simulate natural materials. There are two types of procedural textures that are 2d and 3d. 2d procedural textures only simulate an objects surface appearance while 3d procedural textures are used to simulate a forms internal structure. The software calculates how the surface of the form would appear depending on how it would it be structured internally. For example, the appearance of grain on wood is determined by how the layers of wood would be structured inside it.
Materials and Texture projections
When working with textures one should select the texture view mode from the top corner of the view screen so one can see the textures that one has assigned to their surface. Before a texture can be applied on a surface one has to prepare it. First a material has to be assigned to it. To do this the surface must be selected and a material selected from the materials tab such as a Phong, Lambert or Blinn. A menu will pop up that allows one to determine the aspects of the surface such as its colour, reflection, ambient light, ect.
Another step one has to take before being able to add a texture to a surface is to assign how the texture would be projected over a surface. Depending what shape the object is determines what type of texture projection one is required to use to project the texture on the objects surface. For example if one has a sphere as an object, one should use a spherical texture projection. If wants to place an object onto a flat surface one should select one of the uv, xy, yz, and xz texture projections depending on what axis the surface is positioned. To assign one of these texture projections to a surface one must select the object, click on the property tab, texture projections and then select the texture projection that is suitable for the object. The scaling, sizing and positioning of the texture projection object will determine how an image is projected onto a surface.
Image texture mapping
Finally one can apply an image to the surface of the object. To view the materials and edit them one can open the 'material manger'. In this menu one can view different textures and materials in the 'render tree' as 'nodes' and edit, add or delete them. To add an image texture to a material one has to select the material from the material manager and press enter. This will reveal options to edit the material. To add an image as a texture one can select the plug tab next to the diffuse bars and select 'image'. This will give one the option to load an image from outside of XSI. The image will be wrapped around a forms surface depending on the texture projection. To edit how the texture is projected with more control one can select the Texture editor with Alt+7. This allows one to move vertices that determine how the image is displayed over a surface.
Procedural texture mapping
2d procedural textures can be applied on an objects surface in a similar way as one does with an image texture. By clicking on the plug button, in the material's option window, one can select one of many texture presets. The program will mathematically calculate how the texture will cover the object depending on a certain algorithm. To edit the texture one can access its options by selecting its node from the render tree and pressing enter.
3d procedural textures can be applied by to an object to clicking on the nodes tab above the render tree, selecting texture generators and choosing a texture. This will create a convoluted surface on the surface of a form instead of just being an image on a surface that gives the illusion of textures.
References.
Digital tutors DVD
XSI tutorials
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Bones of Contention: Thoughts on the Study of Animation
The writer of this article, Andrew Darley, does not claim to be an animation specialist but rather an individual with film, new media and visual cultural studies interests. In his paper he discusses the prejudices against and claims about the medium of animation. He also suggests solutions for this from a neutral perspective instead of arguing how superior animation is to other mediums.
First he discusses how animation has been undervalued as an art form and compares it to other media such as ‘live action film’. Also that there has been too much claimed about the medium. Instead of finding the most superior form of animation their distinguishing characteristics should be researched. This is so one can ‘diversify’ the field. Animation scholarship has also engaged in the larger questions instead of the immediate required questions such as the animation’s ‘historical, stylistic, aesthetic and cultural’ questions.
Animation has as much depth and history as live action film and therefore should have greater scholarly attention because it is an equally important subject. The ‘distinguishing characteristics and the important areas of commonality’ between live action film and animation should also be determined.
He explains how animation scholars have claimed that animation is superior to other mediums by being more ‘imaginative’ and allowing more ‘control necessary for genuine art making’. Yet other mediums can allow as much control from using certain techniques. The quality of a work should be established from a ‘stylistic, generic and conventional comparison’ coupled with ‘analysis of semantic elements’. This should not be determined from which medium is being used.
The new digital medium has broken down the boundary between animation and live action. Despite a claim that one will not be able to tell the difference between reality and fantasy, Darley writes that live action and animation already both include realistic and fantastical subject matter. Animations can already be realist by depicting iconic or symbolic images.
Darley finds that previous writings on animation have been far too theoretical and ‘futile’. They should involve the real aspects of animation such as it’s ‘practices, forms, techniques, production and reception contexts, let alone films with their possible significance and meanings’. These writings are too interdisciplinary rather than focussing on the important aspects of the animation. They leave one with no knowledge of the real practices for the medium.
According to Darley, how to rate an animation should be from the ideas and processes or practices, which are supplementary to the technique of producing the impression of movement in space and time. These aspects should also be compared to characters, scenarios, stories, styles and meaningful images.
In his conclusion he explains how he perceives animation by not being more superior but rather just another medium that is no more special than any other. Therefore it should be as understood and researched because of its ‘rich history of incongruous practices, forms and styles, of institutional, cultural and national diversity’. Animation should be focussed on as the ‘true object of study’ for its distinct aspects and these in relation to other animation and media.
First he discusses how animation has been undervalued as an art form and compares it to other media such as ‘live action film’. Also that there has been too much claimed about the medium. Instead of finding the most superior form of animation their distinguishing characteristics should be researched. This is so one can ‘diversify’ the field. Animation scholarship has also engaged in the larger questions instead of the immediate required questions such as the animation’s ‘historical, stylistic, aesthetic and cultural’ questions.
Animation has as much depth and history as live action film and therefore should have greater scholarly attention because it is an equally important subject. The ‘distinguishing characteristics and the important areas of commonality’ between live action film and animation should also be determined.
He explains how animation scholars have claimed that animation is superior to other mediums by being more ‘imaginative’ and allowing more ‘control necessary for genuine art making’. Yet other mediums can allow as much control from using certain techniques. The quality of a work should be established from a ‘stylistic, generic and conventional comparison’ coupled with ‘analysis of semantic elements’. This should not be determined from which medium is being used.
The new digital medium has broken down the boundary between animation and live action. Despite a claim that one will not be able to tell the difference between reality and fantasy, Darley writes that live action and animation already both include realistic and fantastical subject matter. Animations can already be realist by depicting iconic or symbolic images.
Darley finds that previous writings on animation have been far too theoretical and ‘futile’. They should involve the real aspects of animation such as it’s ‘practices, forms, techniques, production and reception contexts, let alone films with their possible significance and meanings’. These writings are too interdisciplinary rather than focussing on the important aspects of the animation. They leave one with no knowledge of the real practices for the medium.
According to Darley, how to rate an animation should be from the ideas and processes or practices, which are supplementary to the technique of producing the impression of movement in space and time. These aspects should also be compared to characters, scenarios, stories, styles and meaningful images.
In his conclusion he explains how he perceives animation by not being more superior but rather just another medium that is no more special than any other. Therefore it should be as understood and researched because of its ‘rich history of incongruous practices, forms and styles, of institutional, cultural and national diversity’. Animation should be focussed on as the ‘true object of study’ for its distinct aspects and these in relation to other animation and media.
Monday, February 11, 2008
The Timeline of the Comic Medium
1837
‘The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck’ by Rudolphe Rudolph Töpffer was published in Europe and is considered to be the first comic book. It was released in United States in 1942.
1887
‘The Brownies: Their Book’ by Palmer Cox was considered the first internationally successful North-American comic.
1895
‘Yellow kid’ by Richard Felton Outcault is the first comic to use balloon dialogue or speech bubbles. It was also one of the first continuing and consecutive comic strips to be released into newspapers and was released into the New York World. The main character lived in poverty stricken urban environment called Hogan’s Alley.
1897
The ‘Yellow kid’ newspaper comic strips were published into book form by the Heart Syndicate.
1901
‘The Blackberries’ was the first full colour comic book to be released.
1922
‘Comics Monthly’ was the first monthly comic to be released and included popular comic strip characters from King Features.
1929
‘The Funnies’ was the first comic strip to include original comic strips rather than used reprints from newspapers.
1930-1931
‘Mickey Mouse Book’ created by Walt Disney was first released.
1930
‘Tintin in the Land of the Soviets’ was released by Herge who was Belgian.
Early 1930’s
Because of the depression, free comics were released in the United States and were used for advertising.
1933
‘Detective Dan, Secret Op #48” by Norman Marsh was the first comic of it’s type to have original content in it.
‘Funnies on Parade’ was the first comic to use the format that comics use up to this day. By folding a tabloid comic four times, Harry I. Wildenburg discovered a suitable format for a comic book, which he used for the funnies. Comics that followed were ‘Famous Funnies’.
1934
M. C. Guines proposed an idea to his boss Wildenburg to price and sell comic books that were previously free and included with newspapers. Wildenburg did not believe anybody would pay for comics. Guines put 10 cent price stickers on to each comic and gave them to news stands to sell. By the next Monday they had all sold out.
1936
‘The Clock’ was the first masked character ‘The Phantom’ was the first costumed hero.
1937
‘Detective Comics #1’ was the first DC comic to be released.
1938
‘Action Comics #1’ was the first comic to feature Superman who was also the first character to have such powerful super human abilities. The character was created by Siegal and Shuster.
1939
‘Detective comics #27’ included the first appearance of Batman who was created by Bob Kane.
‘Superman #1’ was the first comic book that involved only the main hero’s stories.
‘Marvel comics #1’ was released.
1940
‘Brenda Starr’ was the first comic strip released that was written by a women.
‘Robin the boy wonder’ was the first sidekick and first appeared in ‘Detective Comics #38’.
‘Justice Society of America’ was the first superhero team to be released in a comic.
1941
‘Peanuts’ by Charles Schultz was first released.
‘All Star Comics #8’ included the first appearance of Wonder Women.
“Captain America #1’ was the first comic to be created for a super hero without first being included in another comic book unlike other super heroes.
‘Pep Comics #22’ included the first appearance of Archie. Later the company that created the comics called MTL Magazines changed its name to Archie Comics.
DC Comics formed a committee to defend their comic industry because of the bad name comics were beginning to gain.
1948
Dr. Frederic Wertham expressed his views in a symposium in New York called “The Psychopathology of Comic Books’. Negative reactions from society towards comic books began almost immediately after this.
Comic books were collected from house to house burned in masses on the streets.
The ‘Association of Comic Magazine Publishers’ was formed. They censored aspects of comics by before they were released by changing and editing the images within them.
1949
The Canadian Government enacted a law against crime comics because how they were believed to instigate actual crime.
1950
‘Cincinnati Parents Committee’ started to rate comic books.
The U.S. Senate’s special committee blamed crime comics for real crimes committed by juvenile delinquents.
1952
‘Mad Magazine’ published by William Gaines, started to be released monthly and was a popular satire despite of all the restrictions for comics at the time.
1953
Companies such as Marvel and DC attempted to bring back old super hero comics.
1954
‘Seduction of the Innocent’ was released by Wertham. This was research on the effects of comic books on the youth. This influenced anti comics campaigns that would cause the comics industry to suffer economically. This not only happened in the United States but also 17 other countries.
The ‘Comic Magazine Association of America’ began and also established the ‘Comics Code Authority (CCA).
1955
The U.S. Senate committee approved the CCA so comic book companies could do independent self-policing.
1958
‘Strange Worlds #1’ was the first comic to be created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby who started working for Marvel.
1961
‘Fantastic Four #1’ was released that involved the first group of super heroes that did not always get along, particularly the character Ben Grim.
‘Asterix the Gaul’ was released by Goscinny and Uderzo who were Belgian.
1963
The ‘Amazing Spider-man #1’ was released and created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. The hero was a character that people could relate to because of his real life challenges that all people faced He also seemed to be more of human being than previous super heroes.
‘X-Men #1’ was released and was created by Jack Kirby and Sol Brodsky. It involved a story where humans were racist to the mutants much like the racism that occurs in real society.
1966
‘Fantastic Four #52’ includes the first black main super hero called the ‘Black Panther.
1968
“Zap #1” and “Zap #0” were created by Robert Crumb and sold on the streets of San Fransisco by Crumb himself.
1970
Jack Kirby who was hired by DC comics from Marvel Comics created ‘New Gods’.
1971
The ‘Amazing Spider-Man #96-98’ was not approved by the CCA because it involved drug abuse. The comic was successful despite this. From then on CCA started to reduce its restrictions.
1973
In ‘Amazing Spider-Man #121’ Spider-man’s girlfriend, Gwen Stacey, was murdered by the Green Goblin. An evil villain has never succeeded before in such a manner.
1973-4
Anti-heroes begin to emerge such as the Punisher in ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ and Wolverine in ‘Incredible Hulk #181’. These heroes had distinct flaws and were not as pure hearted as previous heroes, therefore people could relate to them.
1977
‘Cerebrus’ created by Dave Sim, was the first comic from an independent company that was successful.
1979
Frank Miller pencilled ‘Dare Devil’ # 158 and brought a darker style to comics.
1984
‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1’ was released.
1986
Frank Miller created ‘Batman the Dark Knight Returns’.
The owner of Heroes World sold Marvel Comics to the businessman Ron Perelman. He influenced Marvel to use gimmicks to sell more comics such as twists in stories or stories that would cross over to other comic books so the reader would have to buy more. Other companies also followed this trend.
1989
‘Sandman #1’ was released and involves a super natural being in a dream world instead a super hero unlike most of other comic book characters made by DC comics. This was the first of DC’s Vertigo line of comics.
1992
‘Spawn #1’ is the best selling independent comic up to date.
References:
Bellis, M. “The History of Comic Books”. 2008. http://inventors.about.com/od/cstartinventions/a/comics.htm
Coville, J. “The History of Comic Books”. http://www.collectortimes.com/~comichistory/frames.html (accessed 09 2008)
Hastings, W. “Art Spiegelman (1948- )” 2003. http://lupus.northern.edu/hastingw/maus.htm
McAllister, M.P., Sewell, Jr., E. H., & Gordon. “Comics and Ideology”. 2001. http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/m/p/mpm15/C&IChapter1.pdf
Santos, D. “CBW Comic History”. 2008 http://www.dereksantos.com/comicpage/comicpage.html
Tychinski, S. “A Brief History of the Graphic Novel”. 2004. http://www.graphicnovels.brodart.com/history.htm
Walker, B. D. “The American comic book: A cultural history”. 1998. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/dissertations/AAI9900405/
Wood, “The History of Crumb”. http://www.crumbproducts.com/history/history4.htm (accessed 11 2008)
‘The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck’ by Rudolphe Rudolph Töpffer was published in Europe and is considered to be the first comic book. It was released in United States in 1942.
1887
‘The Brownies: Their Book’ by Palmer Cox was considered the first internationally successful North-American comic.
1895
‘Yellow kid’ by Richard Felton Outcault is the first comic to use balloon dialogue or speech bubbles. It was also one of the first continuing and consecutive comic strips to be released into newspapers and was released into the New York World. The main character lived in poverty stricken urban environment called Hogan’s Alley.
1897
The ‘Yellow kid’ newspaper comic strips were published into book form by the Heart Syndicate.
1901
‘The Blackberries’ was the first full colour comic book to be released.
1922
‘Comics Monthly’ was the first monthly comic to be released and included popular comic strip characters from King Features.
1929
‘The Funnies’ was the first comic strip to include original comic strips rather than used reprints from newspapers.
1930-1931
‘Mickey Mouse Book’ created by Walt Disney was first released.
1930
‘Tintin in the Land of the Soviets’ was released by Herge who was Belgian.
Early 1930’s
Because of the depression, free comics were released in the United States and were used for advertising.
1933
‘Detective Dan, Secret Op #48” by Norman Marsh was the first comic of it’s type to have original content in it.
‘Funnies on Parade’ was the first comic to use the format that comics use up to this day. By folding a tabloid comic four times, Harry I. Wildenburg discovered a suitable format for a comic book, which he used for the funnies. Comics that followed were ‘Famous Funnies’.
1934
M. C. Guines proposed an idea to his boss Wildenburg to price and sell comic books that were previously free and included with newspapers. Wildenburg did not believe anybody would pay for comics. Guines put 10 cent price stickers on to each comic and gave them to news stands to sell. By the next Monday they had all sold out.
1936
‘The Clock’ was the first masked character ‘The Phantom’ was the first costumed hero.
1937
‘Detective Comics #1’ was the first DC comic to be released.
1938
‘Action Comics #1’ was the first comic to feature Superman who was also the first character to have such powerful super human abilities. The character was created by Siegal and Shuster.
1939
‘Detective comics #27’ included the first appearance of Batman who was created by Bob Kane.
‘Superman #1’ was the first comic book that involved only the main hero’s stories.
‘Marvel comics #1’ was released.
1940
‘Brenda Starr’ was the first comic strip released that was written by a women.
‘Robin the boy wonder’ was the first sidekick and first appeared in ‘Detective Comics #38’.
‘Justice Society of America’ was the first superhero team to be released in a comic.
1941
‘Peanuts’ by Charles Schultz was first released.
‘All Star Comics #8’ included the first appearance of Wonder Women.
“Captain America #1’ was the first comic to be created for a super hero without first being included in another comic book unlike other super heroes.
‘Pep Comics #22’ included the first appearance of Archie. Later the company that created the comics called MTL Magazines changed its name to Archie Comics.
DC Comics formed a committee to defend their comic industry because of the bad name comics were beginning to gain.
1948
Dr. Frederic Wertham expressed his views in a symposium in New York called “The Psychopathology of Comic Books’. Negative reactions from society towards comic books began almost immediately after this.
Comic books were collected from house to house burned in masses on the streets.
The ‘Association of Comic Magazine Publishers’ was formed. They censored aspects of comics by before they were released by changing and editing the images within them.
1949
The Canadian Government enacted a law against crime comics because how they were believed to instigate actual crime.
1950
‘Cincinnati Parents Committee’ started to rate comic books.
The U.S. Senate’s special committee blamed crime comics for real crimes committed by juvenile delinquents.
1952
‘Mad Magazine’ published by William Gaines, started to be released monthly and was a popular satire despite of all the restrictions for comics at the time.
1953
Companies such as Marvel and DC attempted to bring back old super hero comics.
1954
‘Seduction of the Innocent’ was released by Wertham. This was research on the effects of comic books on the youth. This influenced anti comics campaigns that would cause the comics industry to suffer economically. This not only happened in the United States but also 17 other countries.
The ‘Comic Magazine Association of America’ began and also established the ‘Comics Code Authority (CCA).
1955
The U.S. Senate committee approved the CCA so comic book companies could do independent self-policing.
1958
‘Strange Worlds #1’ was the first comic to be created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby who started working for Marvel.
1961
‘Fantastic Four #1’ was released that involved the first group of super heroes that did not always get along, particularly the character Ben Grim.
‘Asterix the Gaul’ was released by Goscinny and Uderzo who were Belgian.
1963
The ‘Amazing Spider-man #1’ was released and created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. The hero was a character that people could relate to because of his real life challenges that all people faced He also seemed to be more of human being than previous super heroes.
‘X-Men #1’ was released and was created by Jack Kirby and Sol Brodsky. It involved a story where humans were racist to the mutants much like the racism that occurs in real society.
1966
‘Fantastic Four #52’ includes the first black main super hero called the ‘Black Panther.
1968
“Zap #1” and “Zap #0” were created by Robert Crumb and sold on the streets of San Fransisco by Crumb himself.
1970
Jack Kirby who was hired by DC comics from Marvel Comics created ‘New Gods’.
1971
The ‘Amazing Spider-Man #96-98’ was not approved by the CCA because it involved drug abuse. The comic was successful despite this. From then on CCA started to reduce its restrictions.
1973
In ‘Amazing Spider-Man #121’ Spider-man’s girlfriend, Gwen Stacey, was murdered by the Green Goblin. An evil villain has never succeeded before in such a manner.
1973-4
Anti-heroes begin to emerge such as the Punisher in ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ and Wolverine in ‘Incredible Hulk #181’. These heroes had distinct flaws and were not as pure hearted as previous heroes, therefore people could relate to them.
1977
‘Cerebrus’ created by Dave Sim, was the first comic from an independent company that was successful.
1979
Frank Miller pencilled ‘Dare Devil’ # 158 and brought a darker style to comics.
1984
‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1’ was released.
1986
Frank Miller created ‘Batman the Dark Knight Returns’.
The owner of Heroes World sold Marvel Comics to the businessman Ron Perelman. He influenced Marvel to use gimmicks to sell more comics such as twists in stories or stories that would cross over to other comic books so the reader would have to buy more. Other companies also followed this trend.
1989
‘Sandman #1’ was released and involves a super natural being in a dream world instead a super hero unlike most of other comic book characters made by DC comics. This was the first of DC’s Vertigo line of comics.
1992
‘Spawn #1’ is the best selling independent comic up to date.
References:
Bellis, M. “The History of Comic Books”. 2008. http://inventors.about.com/od/cstartinventions/a/comics.htm
Coville, J. “The History of Comic Books”. http://www.collectortimes.com/~comichistory/frames.html (accessed 09 2008)
Hastings, W. “Art Spiegelman (1948- )” 2003. http://lupus.northern.edu/hastingw/maus.htm
McAllister, M.P., Sewell, Jr., E. H., & Gordon. “Comics and Ideology”. 2001. http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/m/p/mpm15/C&IChapter1.pdf
Santos, D. “CBW Comic History”. 2008 http://www.dereksantos.com/comicpage/comicpage.html
Tychinski, S. “A Brief History of the Graphic Novel”. 2004. http://www.graphicnovels.brodart.com/history.htm
Walker, B. D. “The American comic book: A cultural history”. 1998. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/dissertations/AAI9900405/
Wood, “The History of Crumb”. http://www.crumbproducts.com/history/history4.htm (accessed 11 2008)
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