Designers
Carter Teal, William Yuan, Jessica Malony, Angela Hinojosa
Role
Developing the structure, layout, assets and user interaction for the photography darkroom.
Description
The evolution of photography is brought to life through an educational virtual environment that focuses on history of cameras- both film and digital, and the process of developing monochromatic film.
Project Proposal
Exploration & Ideation
We started by configuring a layout draft by mapping out the structure of the environment and the distinguished sections that would signify specific time periods of that photographic era. We planned for the user to initially be introduced to a museum full of photographic elements to visually represent the timeline of photography from the inventory stage to present day. We included various camera equipment, certain artists and their compositions, and developed an interactive darkroom, where the user will learn the process of developing monochromatic film and other light-sensitive photographic materials.
We began our ideation process by composing a outline for our museum structure and how the user would navigate each section. We distributed roles, then began to individually gather research to help visually represent the educational background of that that camera and time period topic.
Interactive Objects
Our interactions were educational and simple. We provided individual artifact overviews and directional guidance for our user to engage and navigate their way through the virtual environment. Throughout the museum, our team inserted a total of 8 camera models, visually representing the evolution of photography. Our sequence began with the first camera, the Camera Obscura, followed with three film camera models. Then we designed the first digital camera, signifying a new age in photography, this was then followed by three digital cameras, Nikon and Canon DSLR, and Sony Mirrorless.
Due to technical difficulties, we were unfortunately unable to two showroom files, the darkroom and the museum, as well as making the models/assets interactive, such as the ability to "pick up" the cameras. The user experience in the darkroom was crafted with the intentionality to provide a fully immersive experience; The user would interact with panels around the room and be given a step-by-step overview of processing monochromatic film through displayed canvases. Hovering over certain tools and stations throughout the environment will stimulate instructions for the user to understand and follow as needed.
