2. Choosing the image
The first thing we did when making our poster was to choose the image we wanted to use on it. When shooting
the images for our poster and magazine cover we had tried to think about how we wanted the poster to look, this
meant that we focused on the lighting and composition of the photographs so that they would suit our poster
style. We decided that a landscape image would look better for the poster as it would appear she is holding a
camera and filming herself. There was two images from the shoot that we thought would look best so I decided to
experiment with both.
3. The first thing I did to create the poster was
to open the original image in Photoshop. I
then adjusted the brightness and contrast
and added a green tinted photo-filter; these
two layers gave the photograph a more
“horror film” feel by darkening the image
and changing the colours and tones in it
slightly.
4. Next I wanted to add a static effect to the
image as this effect is very commonly used
in found footage film posters and trailers.
To do this I found an image of static from
the internet and opened it as a new layer on
the poster; I then reduced the opacity so
that the background image was still visible
and used the eraser tool to remove the static
from some parts of the image so that it
didn’t distract from the photograph.
5. Part of our design idea for our poster was to have it
as if it was being seen through the camera, to create
this effect I wanted to add some of the things that
appear on a camera screen when it is recording. To do
this I found a basic image of what the screen would
look like on the internet and opened it as a layer on to
the poster, I then deleted the background colour so
that I could see the photograph through it. After that
I used the line tool to trace over the lines on the
screen and then deleted the layer of the image I got
from the internet.
6. Finally I added the title of our film –
“Occult” – on to the poster, we decided
that we wanted the title to replace the
“REC” symbol on the camera screen. I
chose a simple, san serif font that look
realistic for the camera screen and added a
red dot next to it. Although this “REC” is
usually in the top left we decided to
position it in the bottom right hand corner
and it was difficult to see in either of the
others and as it was the title we wanted it
to stand out from the background. This
positioning also fitted the conventions
we’d found for found footage posters.
Finally I added some finishing touches by
darkening the figure in the background
and made a few other minor adjustments
to finish up.
The poster will also have other
information on it when it is completely
finished, such as a rating and some credits,
but we decided to chose which design we
wanted first.
9. For the second poster design I used the same image as I did for the first design.
Similarly to the previous design, I used the camera screen image I found online to
create the look of a camera screen around the original image.
10. On this poster design we decided
to give the character facial cuts to
make the poster seem more suited
for the horror genre. To do this I
used a brush tool from the “dry
media brushes” pallet with a very
low opacity setting on a new layer.
I then drew over the areas that I
wanted the cuts to be. To make the
cuts look realistic I drew over the
centre areas more, to make them
darker, and then the outside areas
less. After I was happy with the
positioning of the cuts I reduced
the opacity of the layer to make
them appear more realistic.
11. Next I added a motion blur effect
to the image, I think that this gives
the image a more “found footage”
and “horror” look and works really
well. To create this I duplicated the
background layer and added a
motion blur filter to it. I then
added a layer mask to this motion
blur layer, I used a black paint
brush on the layer mask to remove
the motion blur from certain parts
of the image, such as the
characters face, to make it more
visible.
12. Finally I made the layers with the camera screen shapes visible again and
made a few finishing touches. For these finishing touches I increased the
contrast on the image and added a green tinted photo-filter; these give the
image a very horror film-like effect. I also created a slight blur on the camera
screen shapes as I think this gives a really good horror style effect.
15. For my third poster design I experimented with using the other photograph
that I liked from the shoot; when capturing this image I used fill in flash on
the camera to reduce the amount of shadow on the characters face.
The first thing I did after opening the image in Photoshop was to add the
camera shapes, similarly as I had on the previous designs.
16. The next thing I did for the poster was
to add in the same cuts and smeared
makeup that I had used on the previous
poster. I chose to use this again on this
poster as I think that it gives a really
good effect by making the character fit
the conventions of the horror genre
better.
17. Similarly to my second poster design I
added a motion blur to this poster
design. I decided to use this motion blur
look as I think that it gives a really good
horror/found footage effect which suits
our film and poster. I also think that it
matches codes and conventions we’ve
seen in found footage posters.
18. I thought that the poster at this point looked
too light in colour and did really look much
like a horror film poster so to try to make it
appear more like one I added some solid
colour layers of dark green and dark blue and
set them to “multiply” and reduced their
opacity. I then duplicated the background layer
over the top and set it to “Soft light”; this
enhanced the shapes in the background but
allowed the colour from the other layers to
show through.
19. Finally I added a bit more detail to the cuts on the characters face and her
makeup; to make it appear more smeared as I think this looks effective and suits
the conventions of a horror film poster.
