Using the images I have made, I am now creating squares/rectangles of elements on photoshop and using the 'define pattern' tool to repeat it. I only have basic skills of pattern on photoshop so I try to balance out the objects as best as I can, trying to imagine in my head what it would look like when repeated. Considering how close each object is to the edge of the square is particularly difficult because this is where most of the spacing mistakes are made.
Ecuador
The initial pattern square I made fro this consists of two copies of each selected image, one slightly smaller than the other. When repeated, the pattern is quite dense and full of colour, I then went back to my pattern square and made each element smaller so there was more white space between each element. When I repeated this I noticed something wasn't quite right about it, the red and yellow plant seemed too horizontal and it emphasised that the pattern was based on a square format. I tilted this and the last below it to alter the flow of the pattern and I think it blends better as a result.
I thought the best way to see whether these designs would truly work would be to put them on to the bottle image that was provided in the project pack. The first bottle is the large pattern and the second one is the pattern with smaller elements. The third one is something I came across by accident when playing around with layers but I like how it shows the transparency of the bottle wrap and how it would look in real life. It is made from the big pattern being full opacity and the smaller pattern being around 30% opacity so it looks like the pattern on the reverse of the bottle can be seen through the front. At the moment I am leaning towards the larger pattern because I think the one with smaller elements looks a bit sparse and has less impact. I will have to see how the other patterns for the other countries work before I make a decision on this though.
I think this pattern for this country works successfully, it is bright and colourful, suggests a tropical climate and shows biodiversity through the unique shapes of the plants shown.
Bolivia
Similar to before, I had some spacing issues with my first attempt so had to slightly shift the lower map down to even out the gaps. It is only a slight change but very noticeable when you see the pattern repeated a lot of times. When I made each element smaller, it all looked evenly spaced on my first try so there was no issues here.
I did my mockups in the same order as previously done with the Ecuador pattern. Repeating the same process for each is working well for me because it means I am staying on track to making them work as a set.
One concern for me with this pattern is that the colours might be a bit pale but I will have to see how they work alongside the other patterns before I make any changes. I need to see whether this stands out as an obvious problem.
Colombia
The large pattern square for this consists of two or three copies of three different emeralds, plus the maps. I found organising these shapes difficult because they are very uniformed so it makes it harder for the pattern to appear randomly scattered but evenly spaced. This is why I had to add in some smaller pieces which hasn't been done with the other designs. When I made the smaller pattern I deleted a couple of the emeralds because there was no need for them now the design was more sparse.
I knew there was something not quite right with this pattern and when I got to the mockup stage I realised that the colours were reminding me of a dollar bill - they were too dull and didn't represent the high shine of a gemstone. I went back to my photoshop file and edited the levels to make the green lighter and brighter. As a result the pattern seems uplifted and I think it fits better against the other designs too.
After this change I felt better about this pattern although it is still probably the one I am least sure about. This might be because I am trying to base these pattern around natural themes and although emeralds are naturally occurring, the state I have shown them in is very structured and angular.
Guyana
When making my first pattern square, I found that the leaf and feather in the top left appeared too parallel when repeated. To change this I rotated the feather in an attempt to break this connection between the two elements and make the pattern seem more balanced and less rigid. I then rotated the whole design to try and lose the formal grid that I was starting to notice when I stared at it for too long. This is something I have been doing when applying my designs to the bottles and it works because there is not clear vertical or horizontal lines to follow with your eyes, the pattern seems more fluid. It was more difficult to evenly space these elements because they are longer and thinner so don't fit together as easily without looking uniformed.
I think the mockups look really good for this pattern, this is definitely my personal favourite, probably because these colours really appeal to me. I have been trying to keep the blue tones in this to represent water and the green to show the thriving life that exists in the rainforest. I had previously said I might need to alter the colours but I actually think they are working well as they are. If they became brighter or darker, they would lose their softness.
Which ones to use?
I have decided to use the pattern with larger components because the design looks more dense and has a stronger visual impact. In my document for submission, these are the patterns I will include but for the mockups, I will use the bottles on the right hand side of these slides to show the transparency of the bottle wrap. I was planning on putting my design onto a full range of their products including the smaller bottles, the can and the packaged set of four bottles but after re-reading the brief, they have specifically asked for the designs to be shown on the 500ml bottle so there is no need for me to do this.
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