Evaluation Question 4: How did you use media technologies in the construction, research, planning and evaluation stages?

Throughout my coursework I used many different media technologies. I created a film trailer, a poster and a magazine front cover and to achieve this I used a video camera, a computer, a microphone and a digital camera.

The construction of my coursework consisted of me using the video camera (Canon FS200) and microphone in order to create decent footage for my soap opera. To edit the film I used ‘Adobe Premiere Elements 3.0’ software. Using this I made my clips follow on from each other and inserted different effects such as sharpening the images and making it look like night time and transitions such as fading. I found it to be very easy software to use and grasped it fairly quickly. I also found that it gave a very professional look to the trailer and I liked the wide variety of tools and effects available. I used youtube to upload my trailer.

To create both my poster and my magazine front cover I used a digital camera (FUJIFILM). I used these to take photos of my characters and then used the software ‘Adobe Photoshop’ to edit and develop my ancillary tasks further. Photoshop is extremely good in achieving a professional look but I do find it very difficult and confusing to use. These are some examples of the tools I used on photoshop to create and edit my poster and magazine front cover: (lasso tool, magic wand tool and clone stamp tool).

For the research of my soap trailer I used youtube videos of previous soap operas and analysed the shots and sound. For both ancillary tasks I used google images for research and ideas. I then posted all my findings onto my blog.

The planning didn’t require many media technologies. I used my scanner at home to transfer my hand drawn planning onto the computer to post onto my blog. These included my story board and the drafts I had made for my poster and magazine front cover. I used a digital camera in my planning to capture my location shots which was extremely helpful. I also used ‘Microsoft Publisher’ to create my timeline which helped me when making my film as it showed me what should happen when.

Throughout my evaluation I used many different media technologies; I used a scanner to transfer my written feedback on all coursework tasks onto the computer.I used 'Microsoft Powerpoint' to create a presentation to answer the first evaluation question, transforming it into a slideshow for blogger. For the second evaluation question I inserted a voice note of myself. I then answered the third evaluation question in the form of a video.

Throughout construction, research, planning and evaluation stages I used a computer and the internet to access blogger.

I thought blogger was good as it was simple to use and I had no trouble using it. I thought it was extremely useful how it automatically saves posts as you write them and had it not done that I would have lost my work several times. The only problem I had with it was that in order to insert audio I had to transfer it into a video.

Question 3 Continued

Additionally I asked some people to write down their feedback on my trailer and the results are scanned in below.

I uploaded my soap trailer onto youtube in order to collect feedback. However people had trouble trying to post feedback due to youtube having technical difficulties as shown below. (Click on images to enlarge).

This shows how Rachel has tried to post her comment and the server has said "Error. Try Again"


















Rachel sent me an email to my hotmail giving her opinion instead. I appreciated her feedback and thought it was very useful. Two other people did the same as shown below.

This is the only post that worked on youtube and I found it very helpful.

To conclude, from my audience feedback I have learnt that everyone has enjoyed my film trailer and if I could improve my video it would have been to have the arrival of the car arrive in a less busy place to keep with the location of the woods for the rest of the film, although this would have proven to be extremely difficult. Also having a written page at the end of the film displaying the time, date and channel was a good suggestion although I have a voiceover giving these details.

Poster Feedback

Magazine Feedback

Evaluation Question 3: What have you learnt from your audience feedback?

I filmed four people: Sarah, Josie, Rachel and Emma to see what they thought of my film and what they thought could have been improved. The feedback was very helpful, assuring me that they thought my camera angles and lighting were good and that they enjoyed the storyline. The criticism was also helpful.

Evaluation Question 2: How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Evaluation Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Evaluation question 1

View more presentations from alexbiswell.

Feedback on the Magazine Front Cover

Feedback on the Poster

Problems

• Firstly as I have been working alone it has meant I have had twice as much work to do than others. I have also not had another persons opinion to help and I have only had my own ideas.

• Secondly I have had problems with actors being busy when I need to film them which has meant I've had to delay filming a few times.

• There have also been problems with weather. During December there were 2 weeks where it was snowing and as I result of it I could not film. When I did manage to start filming there was still snow on the ground so I had to refilm. Additionally, a few times when it has been my turn to use the camera it has been raining which has meant I have had to delay filming. I cannot film in the rain because the camera equipment would get wet, the quality of the film would be bad and I cannot have parts of my film with my characters with dripping wet hair.

• It has also been difficult as in my media class there are three groups and only one camera so we have had to share and due to us all having jobs we have had to work out fairly when each group can have the camera. This has meant that each group doesnt get to film for a couple of weeks at a time.

• Despite having experience from making a music magazine front cover for my AS coursework, I am not gifted in using the programme Adobe Photoshop so it has taken me longer to create my soap magazine and poster than it should have. Working alone means I haven't had any help or assistance in doing my ancillary tasks and have not been able to share the workload so it has taken me longer than other groups.

• Having my film set at night time proved a problem because despite using lighting sources, the footage came out in very poor quality and it was hard to distinguish the characters and what they were doing.

• The camera quality was also not very good which caused a problem in places.

Final Cut

I was really pleased with my film as working on the project alone had been a struggle and I feel I did a good job with making the trailer as it was to the best of my ability. It came out as I had hoped it would and have taken the feedback on board.

Editing the Film

I have uploaded screenshots to demonstrate how I have edited parts of my film. (Click images to enlarge and read annotations)

Channel Mixer


I inserted a channel mixer to give the impression that the film was in the dark. I decided to edit the footage to make it look dark after filming instead of originally filming in the dark because I discovered filming in the dark reduced the quality and it made it very difficult to see the footage properly. Filming in daylight also made it easier to direct my actors what to do.

Fading

I made each clip fade in and out of darkness to make the clips blend together and help the trailer flow easily. It also gives the impression that something bad is going to happen making it look effective and hopefully leaving the audience in suspense.

Time Stretch

I decided to speed up the time for when I have filmed a 360 degree turn round Sarah. I hope this creates the illusion that she is in trouble. I also did this as the filming is very uneven so speeding it up makes it look more deliberate and effective.

Split Clip

I decided that some parts of the footage were too long and some parts I did not want in it. For example, the first shot of Ellie hammering in the tent peg displayed vividly snow by the tent in the last few seconds so I split the clip to remove this bit. Similarly, in a shot of Sarah walking away from the camera in the last seconds she turns back to look at me filming her making it look unprofessional so I split the clip and removed this part. Because I then had gaps I dragged the clips together so it flowed properly.

Colour Balance

I wanted to edit the clip of Ellie waking up so that it looked darker and appears as if it is orginally filmed in darkness. This was harder to do than the other clips as it was very sunny the day I filmed it and editing it the same way as the previous clips left the clip in a funny colour.

Sharpen

I found that the camera quality wasnt very good so I edited it to try and make it look sharper. I did it in every clip and the difference between the two images on the left shows how effective the effect was.

Freeze Frame

I wanted the footage of Ellie to last longer because in my opinion it was too short. I also wanted a voiceover over the top of this image so needed to extend over the image of Ellie.

Unlinking audio from sound

Volume

Fourth Shoot

I filmed more for my trailer this afternoon and after editing what I had together, I had brought my film to 52 seconds. My trailer must be 1 minute long in total which I have met.

I filmed Ellie getting out the car filming the car wheel to her foot and filming up to her face. I was really pleased with this shot and it only needed one take.

I filmed Ellie and Sarah getting out of the car in the event that the shot of Ellie didn't work. I thought this shot went well overall but am not going to use it because the shot before went well and I can't have Ellie getting out the car twice.

I was pleased with this shot but will edit it to make it shorter and remove the first few seconds.

This shot went well. However I filmed the wheel for too long so will have to edit it to 'plit clip' and removed some of it.

The shot of Ellie opening her eyes and staring took a few takes as she kept laughing and her eyes were watering but I was still pleased as she did it for long enough so that it was decent footage and I can edit and cut off the bits where she has laughed at the end.

The first shot went wrong as Ellie began to laugh but the second came out well.

I took a video of my Dad walking past the tent as if he was the killer. I made him do it in two different directions to see what looked better.

Filming

I think my film is starting to come along, however it wouldn't make much sense to a viewer at the moment as I am missing clips so it is not at all finished. I have also only filmed Sarah and a little of Ellie at the beginning so need to get more filming in. I have not put any sound in yet either. However I have edited the film so that it looks as if it was filmed in the dark. I have made each clip fade in and out of darkness to give it more effect and make the audience think something exciting is going to happen. I slowed the speed down on the footage where Ellie is hammering the tent peg in and I have increased the speed where I have filmed a 360 degree turn around Sarah as I believed this would create suspense and create the illusion that she is vulnerable.

Third Shoot

This time when filming, I filmed in daylight to ensure the quality was a lot better and will be editing the film to make it look as if it was filmed at night time.

I did this shot more than once so that I could decide which shot was best.

..

I wanted to have footage of Sarah acting shocked but the filming didnt come out very convincing and so I decided against using it.

The 360 degree turn of the woods didn't come out very well as in parts I was only getting the sky.

I did a 360 degree turn around my sister but where I couldn't use a tripod to keep the camera still and where the ground was uneven the footage came out very unsteady. I plan to speed the time up so it spins faster as it will bore the viewers watching turn to slowly. Hopefully it will reduce the bad filming quality aswell.

Second Shoot

I decided to re-shoot my filming as there is no longer snow and so it would look extremely odd to have part of the filming with snow on the ground and the rest without. Unfortunately this meant that filming at the same time as last time did not work as this time it was not as clear because the snow was not there to provide additional lighting. I also needed to do more filming as I had not managed to complete it on the previous filming session.

I attempted to re-shoot the 360 degree turn in the woods and moved a lot slower than before. However, the same problem as before occured in that it all started to blurr as I turned. I don't think I could move slower so I may have to abandon this camera shot all together. Additionally, it is too dark depsite the lighting I used.

I filmed from behind Sarah going into the woods and again, I feel it was a bit too dark and therefore reducing the final quality. I was pleased with the shot, however the footage needs to be improved.

I filmed a different angle of Sarah going into the woods (face on this time) however I jogged the camera at the end making it look like she had fallen down a step so I re-shot it.

I re-shot this footage but when I zoomed in on Sarah I missed her face as she walked past.

I filmed this shot for the third time and I feel it would have been a good shot if I had mastered the lighting correctly.

I fimed Sarah standing in the woods looking around her and appearing scared. I feel this shot could have gone a lot better.

I have attempted to edit these clips since filming to make them brighter but the quality is still very poor and it is hard to make out what is happening in the film so I have decided not to use these clips and instead to improve it by re-filming all the clips.

Next time I film I will do it in the day time when it is still daylight and will edit the footage by inserting a blue filter to make it look night time.

First Shoot

I filmed my soap opera in Joydens' Wood. I found that it was still snowy and icy which could be a problem when reshooting other parts if there is no snow. In the event of this, I will unfortunately have to reshoot the parts including snow. However, I am filming in the dark and discovered that the quality of film was better when there was snow as my characters could be seen clearer from the brightness of the snow. It acted as an additonal light.





It took me several attempts to get the 'hammering in the tent peg' scene right because I found it hard trying to make the filming smooth and not shakey. I soon mastered it and used a tripod to keep the camera still and more controlled. My actress was good however. If there is no more snow then I could avoid reshooting this particular clip and still include it in my trailer as the snow is not shown til the end of the footage so I could 'split' the clip and delete that bit.





I filmed a 360 degree shot of the wood which did not come out as clear as I had hoped because I had filmed it too fast so as a result it became blurry.



I also filmed Sarah disappearing into the woods. I felt this shot went well.


I also had a problem with the camera as when I thought it was recording it wasn't and when I thought I'd stopped it it was recording. This meant I had to re-film everything I had just done.

Final magazine front cover

Overall I am pleased with my final poster. The writing and colours are bold and
eye catching, drawing the reader in.

I have made the name of the magazine and the headline of the magazine the brightest as I believe these are two of the main focus points. However, everything is centred around the image of Ellie and Sarah which is the most important feature on the front cover.

I have left the light on Sarah's face to demonstrate her vulnerability a she is the victim.

Making the Magazine Front Cover

1.

These were my favourite photos from the ones I took. However I prefer Ellie in the second one as there isn't any light on her face and I prefer Sarah in the first one. I also prefer the position in which they are standing in the second picture so I decided I would photoshop the image of Sarah in the first photo into the photo of Ellie on the right.

2.

To cut Sarah out from the original photo I traced around the image of her with a 'magnetic lasso tool' and saved her as a separate image.


3.

I placed the image and Sarah over the original photo of Sarah making it look like an original photo. However there was still a line around the edge of Sarah making it look unprofessional and untidy.

4.

I used a 'Clone stamp' to blend Sarah coat to parts of the original image so it looked genuine and not overlapped.

5.

I edited the photo removing the background of the woods and neatly tracing around Ellie and Sarah's heads to ensure there was no evidence of the original background.

6.

I edited the background filling it in a bright blue as the TV magazine I had researched had a blue background. I also chose this colour as it is not too distrasting; the actresses are still the main focus.

7.

I then began to create the name of the magazine. I made it in a red square with a white border. The word 'TV' white to make it appear bold and stand out against the red and blue. I also did this as I had seen it in two different television magazines.

8.

I made the headline of the magazine overlap the photo of Ellie and Sarah and had it in black bold writing. I thought the headline 'Holiday Horror' was a catchy title for a soap. I put it on a yellow background to support my TV magazine research and make it eye catching and stand out. I decided the subtitle 'Could this be the end for Sarah?!' would be in red to make it stand out and to make a link to the fact Sarah dies in the episode.

9.

Next I began to place my supporting images onto my magazine. I began with an image of my friend Annabel hoovering the carpet wearing a dress and heels. It was a photo I already had and had not taken specifically for my magazine but thought it seemed appropriate. I decided to have it supporting a new TV show called 'The Real Housewives'.

10.

I took a photo of Josie and Rachel to put onto the front page of my magazine. I decided I would say there is an exclusive interview from them both inside called "The Only Way is Kent".

I cut them out of the background using the lasso tool.

I then filled in the background grey.

11.

I inserted the picture into the bottom light hand corner of the page. I also changed the background of "The Real Desperate Housewives" so that it is grey. I inserted a yellow star with 'NEW!' inside to draw attention to it and

11.

To support the picture of Josie and Rachel I wrote "Exclusive interview with Josie and Rachel about hit new reality TV show "The Only Way is Kent".

12.

I then inserted a white star similar to the one on my researched magazine with "BRITAIN'S GOT TALENT SECRETS INSIDE!"

13.

The final step was inserted a barcode and the date and price to make it look a professional magazine.