Once I had made this decision to use the turntable, I began thinking about how I am going to present the final piece. For the entirety of this project I have had in mind that the Zoetrope is going to sit on this structure that, internally, contains all of the electronic and audio components, including the; light source, Bela, breadboards- with LDRs, power source and audio output (speaker). This would have still been possible using the turntable base, however changing this aspect of the project made me rethink other parts, like this internal section. Thinking how I could involve shadow more, linking the actual movement of the piece to the images inside the zoetrope.
Thus redesigning the middle layer, moving the internal components to the exterior. Cutting 10 inch wide slits, into a 20 inch long piece of cardboard which I then formed into a cylinder shape that has a base circle (also made of cardboard) which is lodged into the cylinder to ensure the cyclical shape remains constant and even, when rotating. I painted this cylinder with a red exterior for visual aesthetic, and a black interior to create the most dense, defined shadow as the light is not reflected. This structure created a very fun effect, causing a second layer of shutters that influence the sonic characteristics through modulation. As the light flutters, at speed, from light to dark on the LDR it creates a modulation of the music, depending on the Pd code.
Example of Middle Structure – Using the LDR ‘handmade electronics’ from week one, plugged into my guitar amp, with my sound piece playing alongside. (The music is not being modulated, yet.)
I think this adaptation gives context to the piece, it plays with manipulation, creating a deeper connection between both the sonic and visual elements.
Due to this design change I had to reorganise the placement of components, moving them externally, which made the piece look less clean as the wires and components are now all visible. However I did not mind this more ‘messy’ design as I actually really like the visual aesthetic of the breadboards, patch cables and the components. They make it much more intriguing to look at.
Having the components on the exterior does also make it simpler for connection and audio output, I am able to use a better quality of speaker, as previously I was going to have to use a wireless speaker which does not have the best audio quality. Now I am able to use the output from the Bela to connect it to a good pair of stereo speakers. This makes a huge difference to how the project is perceived as the whole piece is centred around sound and so it is incredibly important this element is defined.
As this project nears completion, I am now considering how to present the work for the hand in, I need to document it in a way that I can present digitally, however that still captures what the human eye sees. I have a feeling this is going to be a bit of a challenge due to the struggles I have already faced in trying to capture the visuals of the zoetrope. This is due to the difference in frame rates, as well as the poor, up close focus ability of my phones camera. To bypass this issue I am going to record the final video on a more professional camera that has the ability to focus up close and adjust the exposure levels as this will help to show to true effect. Regarding the frame rate, this will still be an issue as the frame rate of cameras are much faster, however the moving image will still be visible, and I will choose the frame rate that best captures the movement.
At this point in time I am happy with where I am in the project, I feel I have made changes that overall better the work, adding deeper layers to the visual and sonic details.