Flip Book

This project was probably the most fun. Despite the few limitations, we really had a lot of freedom to experiment with our own ideas. It was the first time I was able to get started right away because I was immediately inspired. When Amy demonstrated in class how to fold the book, she mentioned that when it is opened to the center, the reader will find a treat inside. I then thought, why not put an actual candy treat for people to find at the end?

I was a pirate for Halloween, so the theme was on my mind for the story and any story involving pirates needs treasure. I then realized that there are chocolate coins that are flat and would fit easily into the center of the book and thus began the treasure hunt story.

Because all of the images and text had to be our own, I decided to use my study abroad photos. I had plenty of images from different places around Europe that Captain Jack and his crew could visit. The photos took a long time to edit because I had to cut out all of the details to place the images on a transparent background, but the end result proved to be worthwhile.

No treasure hunt is complete without a treasure map, so I learned how to make an old parchment paper effect using Photoshop filters and then added the lines and x's in InDesign with the pen tool. The result gave the effect of of moving along the map as the crew went from place to place.

The actual story was one of the last things I added to the book. I wrote it in limerick style because when I think of pirate literature, I think of stories that rhyme. Once I got started, it came along fairly easily. The only thing left to add was the piratey font.

Overall, I was happy with the final result and I may even use flip books in the future as gift ideas.