Scott McCloud Article Blog Post

I am usually bored out by reading posted materials for class because it's five pages packed full of small words and if it doesn't catch me within about 1 minute, I'm over it. However, the Scott McCloud way of introducing an interesting argument in his comic - based article is very interesting and captured my attention immediately.

Anyways, I found this article interesting because of the various options and tips you are given about comic making. One of the most important tips I've found in the article is how to show periods of time. I enjoyed how he talked about various solutions to creating or establishing a span of time, especially expanding the range of an image to make it appear timeless or erasing some of the box or frame that the image is encapsulated in. I also enjoy the elongation of a frame to suggest a pause. I find it interesting to have a comic explaining the perfect balance of comics in general. I didn't realize until it was explained to me that when we read a comic, not everything occurs in one specific moment. It's often like reading a book. We read a book one word at a time on a page and connect these words together, almost as in cause and effect. If we were to read all of the words in a book at once, first it would be physically impossible. But second, it wouldn't make sense. So naturally, we break up a comic into sections of time and comprehension and then go back and look at it as a whole. It is also similar as a factor of photography. To the untrained or simply uninterested eye of some viewers, they look at the picture as a whole and don't take the time to focus on various areas that may be important before they move on to the next picture. However, if you find areas of focus or detail in the picture, it becomes more fluid and you begin to see a dialogue. Then, he breaches the subject of motion. He shows many ways of motion, from the most simplistic, exhibited in artistic works by Duchamp in it's earliest stages, to more detailed and single person experiences in japanese art. I enjoyed the many facets of motion that can be portrayed in comics. I also enjoyed the progression from a more simplistic and immature form of motion in comics to a more complex and knowledgable portion. I find it interesting that first person perspective motion is more individual and causes more interest and imagination for the viewer to grasp on to. Meanwhile, the more simplistic motion or broader third person range can give you a background regarding setting, placement, situation, etc. It gives you more of a theme to work off of. I really enjoyed this article more for its visual knowledge and believe that I have learned more than any other articles assigned.