Tracking movement in Processing

I have started experimenting different ways of tracking movement. In the example below have used “opencv.findContours” and then set the contours found, to be drawn as white lines.

This is a really good first step for the project as objects moving are changed and static objects are unchanged. This can reflect the difference between public performance and private performance as people moving through out the space the video captures are outlined distorting their appearance, reflecting that they are in their private space. Whereas, those who are still are not outlined making them easy to recognise and are publicly represented on the screen.

ACCESS – an interactive art installation by Marie Sester

Public Screen – Design iterations

The first steps I have taken to create my camera based interactive are to make the screen look like a CCTV camera recording. The idea of the piece is to make people think they are being watched through the use of a CCTV appearance and when they are singled out on screen, others in the room will see them. I have started with a digital clock in the bottom left of the screen. This clock displays the real time using strings of seconds, minutes and hours. By putting the time onto the screen the piece seems more realistic and similar to real CCTV footage/cameras.

The next step is to add a “REC” with a pulsing red dot, as seen on video camera and CCTV cameras, to emphasise the idea of being watched and recorded in public spaces.

String [] wseconds={“0″,”01”, “02”, “03”, “04”, “05”, “06”, “07”, “08”, “09”, “10”,

“11”, “12”, “13”, “14”, “15”, “16”, “17”, “18”, “19”, “20”,
“21”, “22”, “23”, “24”, “25”, “26”, “27”, “28”, “29”, “30”,
“31”, “32”, “33”, “34”, “35”, “36”, “37”, “38”, “39”, “40”,
“41”, “42”, “43”, “44”, “45”, “46”, “47”, “48”, “49”, “50”,
“51”, “52”, “53”, “54”, “55”, “56”, “57”, “58”, “59”};

String [] wminutes={“0″,”01”, “02”, “03”, “04”, “05”, “06”, “07”, “08”, “09”, “10”,
“11”, “12”, “13”, “14”, “15”, “16”, “17”, “18”, “19”, “20”,
“21”, “22”, “23”, “24”, “25”, “26”, “27”, “28”, “29”, “30”,
“31”, “32”, “33”, “34”, “35”, “36”, “37”, “38”, “39”, “40”,
“41”, “42”, “43”, “44”, “45”, “46”, “47”, “48”, “49”, “50”,
“51”, “52”, “53”, “54”, “55”, “56”, “57”, “58”, “59”};

String [] whours={“0″,”1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, “5”, “6”, “7”, “8”, “9”, “10”,
“11”, “12”, “13”, “14”, “15”, “16”, “17”, “18”, “19”, “20”,
“21”, “22”, “23”, “24”,};

void setup(){
size(700,500);
frameRate(1);
}

void draw(){
background(0);

//set the variables up for the time and date
int h=hour();
int m=minute();
int s=second();
//int y=year();
//int mo=month();
//int d=day();

textSize(20);
fill(255,255,255);
textAlign(CENTER);
stroke(255,255,255);
strokeWeight(3);

//Display Hours
text(whours[h],550,480);
text(“:”,565,480);

//Display Minutes
text(wminutes[m],580,480);
text(“:”,595,480);
//Display Seconds
text(wseconds[s],610,480);

//Display day
//text(d,195,200);
//text(“:”,225,200);

//Display month
//text(mo,width/2,200);

//text(“:”,275,200);

//Display year
//text(y,310,200);
}

Design Iterations

The aim of Design Iterations is to conceptualise and create an interactive instillation which will be situated in the ground floor of Weymouth house (media school building).

My initial idea was to create an image based interaction the screen would begin blank and as audiences pass through the space parts of the image would reveal in relation to the section of the space they were situated. As they move around in the space more of the image would be revealed. However, through an iterative process carried out to find solutions to problems. One problem occurred that highlighted a large hinderance; if there are large groups of people in the space the process will not function correctly as it would be attempting to follow multiple positions at one given time. This would disrupt the creation on the screen.

After realising that groups of people are the problem to the initial idea, I decided to create a completely different interaction that focussed on and responded to large groups of people, rather than an individual. This second idea is a group based instillation focussed around identity and performance. The theory chosen is identity performance – a persons private performance and public performance. The aim of this instillation to highlight the transition between private and public. As well as how a person’s performance changes when they are removed from their private sector and place in a public sector. There is a simplistic but effective way in which this instillation will successfully change peoples performance. Anyone who is moving and therefore unaware of the instillation will be completely pixelated on the screen. The symbolises that they are in their private sector, their private performance. They are pixelated, meaning their identity is private in that public space.

However, if someone is standing still they are in focus and not pixelated. Meaning they can be recognised instantly because most people in that space will be completely pixelated. In this way that particular person has become public, they are in the public eye. Because they are in focus and their identity has become public, they will begin to perform differently as everyone can notice that particular person. In this way, the instillation highlights how people perform differently depending on their situation and when they removed from their private performing space to their public performance.

Processing workshop

Starting with processing

 In the first workshop for my second year we have been taught some of the basics of processing. Learning how to create simple shapes, movements and loops. Learning how to use both ‘void setup’ and ‘void draw’. During this I have learnt how to code animation to respond to mouse movements and rotation movements. Further on I combined both mouse response and rotation together to create all sorts of basic digital art.

Collab Project

Kinetic Typography Finished

Here is my finished kinetic typography I have been creating over the past few days. I have added some colour a small animations to some of the text. I really enjoyed making this and I plan to either re-create this current kinetic typography with more colour and styling as well as more animations. I am also going to make a second typography for The Joker’s part in my favourite scene of The Dark Knight.

First Kinetic Typography – War Never Changes

As one of our mini projects we were told to produce some pieces of kinetic typography. To start this mini project I needed to find some scenes from films and games, scenes with a lot of speech/conversation. After looking through and listening to various amounts of scenes, I decided on the voice over in the introduction to one of my favourite games, Fallout 3. My first aim is to write out all the text and place each word in sync with the audio in a stylish manner.

My next steps would be deciding on colours and animations. At the moment this Fallout project is in black and white as the text is more important at this stage. I will aim to use colours that reflect the tone of the actors words or what those words imply. Something as simple as the word blood being red to symbolise it’s meaning. This idea will also apply to the animations of the text, the text animations will reflect implications of the word.

My steps after this will be to produce another Kinetic Typography that has all the elements I have learnt from this current project and some more sophisticated ideas.