Functionality of Digipak

Using Photoshop, I used a template I found of a digipak online, in order to see what my digipak would look like if it were to be sold. Here is the version I created in order to assess the functionality of my digipak:

I found a template of a digipak online that I thought would be relatively simple to be able to use to manipulate my design over it to create a mock-up version of it. I used the selection tool to individually cut out each panel of the digipak that I needed to include, and then chose to duplicate the layer into the document with the image of the digipak template. I used the transformation tool to re-size and rotate the the panel to fit the size of the panels on the template. I then used the warp tool to manipulate the panel layers to fit onto the template. I found this to be a tricky task, and had to practice this technique multiple times on the first panel that I edited, until I found that I could perform this action effectively. 

Overall, I am very pleased with my digipak and I think that it is fit for purpose. I like the contrasting moods created on the outside and inside of the digipak, and I think that the contrasting use of colours makes its appearance very interesting to the eye. I think that I have demonstrated my ability to use Photoshop well, and I particularly like the layering and opacity I have used on the panel that focuses on Hannah and Josh, and I like the effect created by blurring out the background of the Winter Wonderland panels. I believe I have included all the essential conventions of a digipak, which means that my product would be functional.

Digipak Final Draft

Here is the final draft of my digipak:

However, if the digipak was to be printed to be functional, it would need to be presented like this:

What has changed since the draft?

After reviewing the draft myself, and receiving feedback, I altered it and created the final draft that can be seen above. 

When looking at the draft of my digipak, I thought that the images on the outside were not very defined, and I thought they looked quite washed out. To improve this, I increased the contrast across the whole digipak, which make the darker colours more defined, and gave the digipak a better look overall. Increasing the contrast, also made the colour in the Winter Wonderland images pop, and made them a lot more eye-catching. 

When comparing the digipak I had created to the existing, official digipak for this album, I saw that they had included a parental advisory label. This is an important convention of digipaks, and one that I had overlooked when planning and creating my draft. Therefore, I decided to include one in the bottom right-hand corner of the front cover of my final draft.

When I received feedback on the the first draft of my digipak, my classmates pointed out two things that I had not included on my first draft. The first thing that was brought to my attention, was that I had not included any sort of social media names/website links on the digipak anywhere. I decided that I would include this on the back cover, as this was where most of the detail was included. I thought that, as this was where people would expect most text, this would mean that the link would be most likely to be read. I decided to include the URL of a website on the back cover, rather than any social media links, as people would be able to access the social media of the band via the website. The other convention that I had not included in my first draft were the icons/logos of the record label. To find out this information, I reviewed the official digipak of the album, and then searched for the logos online so that I could include them.

On the spine of the digipak, I had included the the artist name and the album name. However, on review, I did not like the way I had presented this. Upon looking at already existing digipaks, I found that though they included the names of the album and artist, they did not include 'by' in between them. I chose to remove this, however, I needed to find a way to differentiate the album name and the artist name. I did not want to alter the font/typography used that is a common feature on digipaks, so I chose to use the technique I had used on the cover to do the same thing. I used a thin straight black line to separate them, which maintained the typography features throughout the cover, which made it a lot more sleek.

Feedback that I received from my teacher outlined how the relationship between Josh and Hannah's characters is not particularly obvious from the image that I have included. I agreed with what was said when I reviewed my piece, though I wanted to keep the image that I had initially included, so I decided I would use layering to add another image. To make the relationship more clear, I used the magic wand tool to cut out Josh and Hannah's arms and hands from the close up shot of them holding hands, as I thought this made the relationship obvious to anyone who was viewing the digipak. I positioned the layer in the 'empty' space of the image, and altered the opacity of the layer. This made sure that it did not take the focus of the piece entirely off the original image, and as it blended into the image quite well, it simply just enhanced the narrative. I thought the positioning and opacity of the layer I added, made this panel of the digipak very visually impressive, particularly because the colours of the layer I added, blended with those in the original image.

I kept both the left-hand and right-hand panels of the inside of the digipak the same as on the draft, as I thought these images were effective, which was confirmed to me with the feedback I received. I also kept the centre panel the same apart from one element. My teacher pointed out that I had not included any copyright information on the CD itself. Upon reviewing existing digipaks, I found that this is a common convention, and so I made sure to include it in my final draft. In order to make the copyright information fit well on the CD, I made sure to transform the text, so that it curved around in the shape of the CD.

Digipak Draft

Here is the draft version of my digipak that I created:

My draft both coincides with and differs from my original drawn plan for my digipak in a few ways.

The 3 panels that will form the outer-side of my digipak are all fitting with my plan, as I have included the images that I said that I would. On the front cover, I have included the artist name and the album title, which fits with conventions of a digipak. I have made sure to centre Hannah in the middle of the frame, as this signifies her importance, and it draws your eye to focus on her. I have made sure that the artist name is bigger than that of the name of the album, as the artist is the selling point. It is important to make sure that this is the most prominent feature, so that the eye is drawn to it. Different to my original plan, I have separated the artist and album name's by using a thin black line. I liked the use of the line on Eminem's cover for his album 'Brainless' underneath the artist and album name, however, I thought I would use it to separate both of those things as I thought that it helped you to differentiate clearly between the two names. I selected a colour from a section of the sky in the image on the front of the digipak, using the colour selection tool, to use as the 'theme' colour on for the borders of the images and the spine, as I felt this co-ordinated the digipak very well.

On the panel that would be the back cover, I framed the picture so that Hannah's reflection was on the right hand side. This was appropriate framing, as it did not confused the focal points of the cover. It allowed the track list to not cover Hannah's reflection, which meant that it was more easily readable, and that it did not take away from the image I used. Additionally, the text did not disappear into the image. On the back cover, I made sure to include the copyright details and the barcode, as these are important conventions of a digipak.

I made sure to include the name of the album and the artist on the spine on the digipak, as this is what would be visible to people in shops, when the album is on the shelf. This allows people to identify the album if they are searching for it, and it also means that people will be able to easily see who's album it is, before picking it off the shelf.

The images that I used on the inside of the digipak differ from those I used in my original plan. In my plan I said that on the left-hand panel I would use the two shot of Hannah and Jade in Winter Wonderland and on the right-hand panel I would use the medium two shot of Hannah and Jade's. I also said that, on the CD, I would use the close up shot of Hannah and Josh's hands whilst they are holding hands, and on this panel, I would use an image of bokeh effect lights at Winter Wonderland that we had in spare footage from filming there. However, when creating the piece, I thought that it would be visually impressive to split the two shot of Hannah looking at Jade in Winter Wonderland and use the halves on two separate panels, which I thought looked very effective. To highlight Hannah and Jade in these shots, I blurred the backgrounds to give them a dreamy feel, and to draw your eye to focus on the characters. On the CD, I decided that I would use a a section of one of the beach shots, which just showed the pebbles, sand and the sea. Whilst producing my draft I decided that I needed to include the album and artist name on the disk, like I have on the album cover, but this could not be seen effectively over the close up shot of Hannah and Josh holding hands, due to lots of detail of pebbles interfering with the relatively thin typography. Using an image of the beach meant that the titles could easily be seen, and it also provided a nice contrast to the Winter Wonderland images on the panels either side. Behind the CD, I chose to use a shot from the beach which is a close up of Hannah and Jade holding hands, instead of the bokeh light shots that I had planned to use. I thought the close up shot was better suiting, as it came together nicely with the beach scenery that I chose to use on the CD. When I chose the close up shot, I made the framing shot that the CD covered the hands of the girls. I thought hiding this behind the CD kept the narrative hidden at first glance, and then when the CD was taken out, the image would be revealed properly.

In my design, I wanted the the outside and inside of the digipak to be representative of the contrasting moods in our video. I wanted the the front and back covers to represent Hannah's characters loneliness and isolation. Therefore, both of the images I used were of Hannah alone, is empty places. On the panel revealed when you open the digipak, I wanted to present the relationship of the characters played by Josh and Hannah, so I used a long shot of them standing close to each other at the beach. This kept with the natural mise-en-scene that I had been using for the outside of the digipak. I wanted the inside of the digipak to provide a contrast to the isolation/misery of Hannah's character that was displayed on the outside. Therefore, I chose to use images that represent the relationship between Hannah and Jade's characters. The colourful aspect of these images made them very eye-catching, and the contrast to the semi-bland colours on the outside made the digipak more interesting. I included some beach imagery on the inside of the digipak, to provide a connection to the outside, as I thought it was important to make it feel visually fluid, at the same time as contrasting.