HOW DID YOU USE NEW MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND RESEARCH, PLANNING AND EVALUATION?
This is our evaluation question 4. How new media technologies have advanced over the years and therefore has been important to us throughout all stages of creating our teaser trailer, poster and magazine. Media technologies have allowed us to create more advanced and realistic products throughout our A2 year while also allowing us to experiment with conventions. It has allowed us to promote our teaser trailer over different social media apps throughout the stages of construction, making it more visible for the target audience. Digital media now plays a larger role in creating products then ever before, creating a teaser trailer has allowed us experience the effects it has on the product stage first hand. Due to the new media technologies being created, it has allowed people to view media products on a wider range of media platforms.
Research & Planning
Weebly was used throughout the course in order to keep and organise all our coursework. We created an account, and used a previous template to create a layout for the pages so that our work could be categorised. We created menus and created a theme for our blog. Using Weebly helped us, primarily as we were able to easily input text, images, gifs and YouTube videos in order to aid our work. For example, on our home page we embedded our introduction production company video, our magazine and poster and our final trailer. Weebly has a layout that is easy to understand therefore being able to easy drag and drop functions helped us to swiftly input any work from different platforms.
Weebly had easy to use buttons which we dragged over to positions in the page which we wanted to use them at. We was also easily able to input our YouTube videos and any files. Although there were some VIP options which were locked, we found Weebly easy to use and that it did what we needed it to do.
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Using Weebly we were able to:
To conclude we found Weebly easy to manage and aided us in completely work simultaneously and also in its ability to be accessed from any device which had internet.
- Make posts using different devices (such as our computers or phones) at any time
- Upload images we had exported from Photoshop and Adobe In Design
- Keep a track of our groups progress under the page, Team Log
- Embed our final trailer work into a page
- Post any audience research in the form of graphs and pie charts
To conclude we found Weebly easy to manage and aided us in completely work simultaneously and also in its ability to be accessed from any device which had internet.
Google has been important into researching into real media texts which we used as influence and to compare to our final magazine and poster. It was also used to research into different tools we could use to present our work for example, when searching presentation websites we discovered ‘Thinglink’. It also gave us a wide variety of real media texts when choosing 5 magazines and posters to compare and contrast, pull conventions from to influence our work and common house style. We also found it easy to recover previous searches and easily save images rather than having to screenshot each image and crop it.
To conclude, without Google we would be lost as we would have to physically search through and perhaps buy real media texts in order to be able to study them as influences for our final pieces which would be expensive, as we would have to find specific examples. We would then have to take pictures or scan them and crop and upload them to our blog which wastes time.
To conclude, without Google we would be lost as we would have to physically search through and perhaps buy real media texts in order to be able to study them as influences for our final pieces which would be expensive, as we would have to find specific examples. We would then have to take pictures or scan them and crop and upload them to our blog which wastes time.
Prezi was used a presentation tool during the genre research stage. It was as an innovative, new and simple way to present the different genres of horror. It uses motion and zoom to bring to presentations to life, and is easy to share to platforms such as blogs and websites. As it exists online and has an auto save function, work is easily protected and can be accessed from a range of platforms.
Thinglink is also a presentational tool we used during the genre research stage in order to specify the specific conventions of each genre relating to colours, themes, and killer types. It is a very technical website which allows you to edit on top of photos, videos and even VR. However we stuck to editing photos of each genre type. It can easily be saved and embedded or shared to websites, YouTube and blog and is also accessible by mobile, tablet and computer and via an app on the App Store
Using Prezi & Thinglink we was able to:
- Annotate pictures with text and describe them
- Have different methods of presenting information
- Add in pictures, text and videos to aid description
(The Internet Movie Database) we used this throughout the research stage in order to get information when presenting a movie. We were able access information on the production and distribution companies, actors, genre, release date and also a synopsis on the movie which helped us being able to compact the ideas of our trailer into a short description. We were also able to find a list of the top horror movies with ratings and reviews and were then prompted to watch the teaser trailer for each movie on the list to be able to look at horror conventions and audience types.
Using ImDB we were able to:
Using ImDB we were able to:
- Search up any movie
- Read all information relating to each movie
- Look at reviews and comments regarding the movie
- Easily relate the information in our blogs for each movie
Canon 500D – We used this camera throughout the planning stage. After researching into conventional horror shots and standard shots we could use, we compiled a video of examples of these types of shots using a model. We used influence for the horror shots from a variety of genres, for example in the monster genre, a shot of a full moon would be appropriate. For a slasher, a bloody hand wipe or shadow of a weapon would be appropriate. We then edited the footage together using Final Cut Pro X.
Final Cut Pro X – This was useful in the planning stage in order to create the sound design, animatic and horror shots videos. We was easily able to add videos, pictures and sound and overlay each to create professional videos throughout the research and planning stage. It also helped as we were able to compile all our work together into one video which we then uploaded onto Youtube and embedded into our Weebly blog. We also used tools on Final Cut such as text, filters and transitions.
Using Final Cut Pro and a Canon 500D we were able to:
Final Cut Pro X – This was useful in the planning stage in order to create the sound design, animatic and horror shots videos. We was easily able to add videos, pictures and sound and overlay each to create professional videos throughout the research and planning stage. It also helped as we were able to compile all our work together into one video which we then uploaded onto Youtube and embedded into our Weebly blog. We also used tools on Final Cut such as text, filters and transitions.
Using Final Cut Pro and a Canon 500D we were able to:
- Capture and edit footage
- Add title slates, filters and transitions
- Add pictures, video and sound to make a video
When we had compiled a questionnaire for our research audience, we used social media platforms such as Whatsapp and IMessage in order to share our questionnaire to our research group and also provided a platform for them to easily send replies to our questionnaire on. We communicated with a target audience ranging from 16 – 25.
Using Whatsapp and Imessage we were able to:
Using Whatsapp and Imessage we were able to:
- Easily communicate with our target audience
- Screenshot and share pictures of their answers
Quicktime:
This programme was used in order to record the screen, when creating our draft and final magazines and posters. It was very helpful in being able to track the progress of our work.
Using Quicktime we were able to:
Record any activity on our screen
Easily export the file to Final Cut Pro X or Youtube.
This programme was used in order to record the screen, when creating our draft and final magazines and posters. It was very helpful in being able to track the progress of our work.
Using Quicktime we were able to:
Record any activity on our screen
Easily export the file to Final Cut Pro X or Youtube.
Construction
Final Cut Pro was used in order to compile, edit, colour correct and add filters and transitions to our final trailer. Our trailer's sub genre is psychological horror and creating ambiance in the setting was important to get across key conventions that would be recognisable to an audience. This system was very new to us and very technical however search engines on the internet helped us with tutorials. We also were able to use our research of Real Media texts in order to apply genre conventions to our own trailer, for example jump scares are typically place at 20, 30 and 45 seconds in a trailer. With use of the blade tool we were able to cut up our footage to succeed doing this. After a month Final Cut was easier to use and navigate around. To import media we simply had to press a button in order to download photos into the system and they would be there on the screen to easily add and edit. The hardest task was the colour correction in the post production stage of creating our media product. Colour correcting is making sure that each shot in your trailer is the same colour to induce continuity and also allows us to darken or lighten shots according to what our needs are. The difficulty was due to the fact that the colour and tint had to be the exact same colour. We also added a filter to the clips to match the house style of the poster and magazine.
Using Final Cut Pro X we could:
- Input the footage filmed
- cut footage taken to the correct length
- alter sound so it played at the correct times
- colour correct
- add transitions in.
The main piece of editing software used for the construction stage of the poster and magazine used was Adobe in Design and Adobe Photoshop, overall we found this software very easy to use as our experience from our AS work meant we already had an understanding as to how to use the software, further meaning the skills we learnt in AS were easily transferable for example, cropping images and refining and softening the edges so that the image blended into the background better and looks more professional.
Using Photoshop we could:
Using Indesign we could:
- Colour correct
- Crop images
- Add effects such as tv filter.
- Correct mistakes by using the undo/ redo tool
- Refine edges
Using Indesign we could:
- Add graphical elements
- Easily adjust text size and colour
- Do a side by side comparison with a real media text
We used YouTube and a YouTube converter in order to download sounds for our trailer for example the diagetic sound effect of a door slamming. It was vital in order to get these sounds to create dramatic effect and suspense in our trailer and also in helping us shape our soundtrack on Final Cut Pro X.
A camera was very important in our production in order to film the footage for our project. Getting a hang of the settings of the camera was key in order to make sure our footage looked professional and wasn't too dark or too bright to be edited.
The ISO was a helpful tool in aiding us to alter more or less light to enter the camera. The cameras were provided by the college as the footage needed to be captured in a high quality, or the footage would of failed to be realistic and wouldn't of been able to create a hyper reality, and without the camera it would have been impossible to complete the project.
The ISO was a helpful tool in aiding us to alter more or less light to enter the camera. The cameras were provided by the college as the footage needed to be captured in a high quality, or the footage would of failed to be realistic and wouldn't of been able to create a hyper reality, and without the camera it would have been impossible to complete the project.
Using this cannon 500D camera we could:
- Play back the footage we had shoot to see if it was of a high quality.
- Take it to any location as it was small and portable.
- However the battery life was limited so extra batteries were required but they were light and small so it didn’t take up much.
Throughout the production stage of our Media products we used Apple Mac computers provided by the college, it benefited us greatly as programmes such as Photoshop, adobe In-Design and Final Cut were already installed on the Macs. When it came to doing work outside of class this was not possible to do certain tasks for example all of the editing on the trailer could only be done in class this meant that certain tacks had to be prioritised when it came to making the products for example outside of class we sourced the sound clips we wanted from YouTube so we simply had to put the sound in when in lesson. The MAC’s are such high quality that it meant they came fully equipped with the necessary software.
EVALUATION
The stages of construction, design, production and evaluation can have certain aspects which are utilised in all of the stages. Many objectives would not have been completed without the use of the Apple MAC's which hold many programs and shortcuts into creating a clean and aesthetically pleasing piece of work/ pieces of work.
We had taken advantage of all these special components, especially the built in 480p quality face cam, which had given us the ability to record the reaction from our viewers who watched the teaser trailer that we made. This saved a lot of time due to the fact that we did not need to take a camera out and set it up as well as not needing a portable and wireless memory saver (USB/SD).
We had taken advantage of all these special components, especially the built in 480p quality face cam, which had given us the ability to record the reaction from our viewers who watched the teaser trailer that we made. This saved a lot of time due to the fact that we did not need to take a camera out and set it up as well as not needing a portable and wireless memory saver (USB/SD).
YouTube was used to upload the teaser trailer as it is a platform in which our audience would be able to view our media. We saved the file as an MP4 and then uploaded it. Through YouTube we are able to see audience impressions, comments and likes for our media text without having to carry out additional research.
The website 'photofunia.com' was used in order to create banners and billboard concepts to depict what our work would look like on a big screen and whether it would be suitable for advertising.
Evaluation:
Additionally we incorporated many media technologies in every aspect of the evaluation, However the computer helped us to be more efficient and more creative with our style of work. The computer gave us access to many different ways of presenting our pieces as well as many different ways to create plans and do our research. Additionally the computer gave us many tools to broaden the way we answer questions, which can include images and animations.
Overall we made sure to utilise many different media technologies in order to get the best outcome and make it fun and easy to navigate through. With the use of all these technologies we were able to post all of our work online which means we can access it at any time as well as obtain copies just in case we ever need them. In addition 'Google' gave us access to search anything we want which gave us more than enough research for our work and a lot of access when we need images and ideas.
Evaluation:
Additionally we incorporated many media technologies in every aspect of the evaluation, However the computer helped us to be more efficient and more creative with our style of work. The computer gave us access to many different ways of presenting our pieces as well as many different ways to create plans and do our research. Additionally the computer gave us many tools to broaden the way we answer questions, which can include images and animations.
Overall we made sure to utilise many different media technologies in order to get the best outcome and make it fun and easy to navigate through. With the use of all these technologies we were able to post all of our work online which means we can access it at any time as well as obtain copies just in case we ever need them. In addition 'Google' gave us access to search anything we want which gave us more than enough research for our work and a lot of access when we need images and ideas.