Frequently Asked Questions

Why the name "imagen8?"
Of all the physical equipment and software tools available to me, my greatest asset has always been my imagination and my tenacity in expressing it in physical, or simply visible form (visible to others). This asset would therefore take center stage to any creative and/or business venture I partake in, and therefore be a part or theme of the business in name and nature. Names like “Imagine” or “Imagination” had long been taken-up by many other businesses, so I manipulated the words image, imagine, and imaginate, and eventually settled on “imagen8.” The name “imagen8” is an intentional misspelling of the word imaginate. Rather than use the wording “imagin-8,” I wanted to use the word “image” in its title, as “image” is the main theme of my art. Hence the company name "imagen8."

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What is the significance of the imagen8 logo?
The logo is more my branding that originated back in 1997 when I was working on a stained glass feature while I was in the Swansea Art College (UK). The actual outline has remained faithful (12 pieces of triangular glass with 30/60/90 degree angles) each with extending lengths and separated by leading. The actual colors and shades of grey I developed in 1999, when I adapted the design to my commercial photography business (Mk.1photo). I wanted a logo that exemplified photography at its base (traditional film photography). So I took six of the seven colors of the visible spectrum for one side of the design (depicting color photography), and then six equal shades of monochrome, from black to white (depicting black and white photography), and formed them as a sensitometric step-wedge (the type used in photographic densitometry). These aspects formed my branding logo, and while photography is no longer my main form of media, the design does relate to any form of media I work on in my position as an interactive designer, along with any other form of multimedia experience.logo

Sensitometry is the science of measuring the sensitivity of photographic materials. As a photographer, graphic arts, cameraman, cinematographer, or other user of photographic materials, you will use sensitometry in the control of operations involving exposing and processing photographic materials. Photographic manufacturers also use sensitometric methods in the control of manufacturing process.

What is multimedia?
Multimedia is really a word we use to describe any communication media that allows the user to participate in the presentation. It is interactive by nature—the user is involved, often leading the process. Some people incorrectly think of multimedia as a type of communication graphic that involves video or animation. While it is true that many multimedia pieces contain these elements, a movie or animation alone is not a multimedia piece. Why? Because the key to this media is its reliance on user interaction and input. Multimedia does not have viewers, it has users.

There are four characteristics of multimedia that set it apart from other media: it is interactive, it is personal, it is digital, and it utilizes a computer. These characteristics cause the process of design and development to be very different from and far more complex than the process for most other media.


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How do you approach a multimedia project?
As a designer I am just as comfortable in undertaking the whole design process from idea conception to the finished product, as I am in contributing towards one specific task within the design process. This includes one or all of the following tasks:
Mouse-click on any of the above links for an example of projects fully undertaken by imagen8.