Evaluation Question Six

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Production Stages Throughout the whole process of editing and

producing our media product for AS Media, there have been three different stages that we have had to go through to be able to construct the media product to a good standard. These included: Planning and Research, Construction and the Evaluation Process.

Therefore, the use of this presentation is that I am going to address all of the processes individually and point out what I have learnt from these stages and how they were useful.

Research and Planning Throughout the period of time that we spent on research and planning,

we used a wide range of different technologies to be able to access a better understanding of our chosen genre. We used a websites such as IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes which showed us specific information about our genre and examples of films that were included within. IMDb, for example, displayed to me the synopsis of a film, as well as how well it did during it’s time in a cinema and how much gross profit it earnt. The statistical, also known as quantitative data, enabled us to look into our target demographic and see how much we could potentially make from the film and the genre as a whole. We also used websites such as YouTube to be able to watch clips from our genre and therefore gain inspiration from them. We also used YouTube to be able to look at other students work from AS Media Studies, which meant we could analyse them and then improve our work.

The websites that I have used were easy to browse because of previous experience, but the qualitative data that I saw was difficult to analyse due to not having to need to do this prior.

Construction To begin the construction process, we had to learn how to use a range of software

to be able to produce our media product and so we could also improve the quality of our work and attain a higher grade. To do this, we needed to learn how to use a video camera and the boom microphone that would enable us to pick up sound easier. We also had to learn how to use software such as Movie Studio Platinum.

No one within our group had used Movie Studio Platinum before so we were all brand new to the software, but after playing about and watching YouTube tutorials we were able to work it well. The majority of the group were involved heavily in filming but we decided than it would be better if one individual of the group would edit the final footage, but the whole group would have a say in what it was going to look like. This meant that one member had to be coherent in using the software and be able to work sufficiently during the construction process. During the time that we were filming we allocated jobs as it meant that we only had to learn how to use one thing thus making the filming process easier and consistent. I was using the camera myself because I have a greater knowledge than other members in my group and this knowledge will make filming easier. The sound boom that we used was slightly temperamental because sometimes it decided that it wasn’t going to work and didn’t pick up any sound. We then found this was because there was no battery in the microphone, so we put one in and tried again, finding that it worked as it should.

Movie Studio Platinum Movie Studio Platinum was the software that we used to edit our

media product once we had completed the filming process. We had to create a sequence of the film scenes and then cut them down, removing the pieces of footage we did not need within our opening. I also had to add different diegetic and non-diegetic sounds to ensure that our film sounded effective rather than not sounding very good. We also had to create transitions between frames, and these included fades, straight cuts and match cuts. We also had to add effects on top of the footage to ensure that they all matched when transitioning. All this was simple to use and reasonably easy to add to the footage which enabled us to make sure the footage flowed easily and efficiently. Not only did we manage to do this, but we also managed to edit the volumes and contrasts of the sounds as well as include extra non-diegetic sound tracks.

Photoshop We used Photoshop to create our title, studio logo “Watermelon Studios”

and the banners that were put over the news reports. I looked on Google for images of a breaking news bar which I could duplicate. Finding four different ones, I duplicated these in Photoshop using different shapes and text to ensure that they looked realistic. I also used Photoshop to make the studio logo. I found an image of a watermelon on Google Images, making sure that it was a transparent image. I then imported this into Photoshop and added text over the top and added a black background as a separate layer. I made the text standout and then exported the image as a Photoshop file, importing it into Movie Studio Platinum. I found this quite easy because I am skilled in Photoshop as I have used it previously. Regarding the title of the film, I made sure that the background was transparent and then added the text, again making sure it stood out against the white noise background we intended to put it over. Overall, the use of Photoshop was easy for me because I have had previous experience thus I have learnt nothing new.

Evaluation After completing the Research and Planning and the Construction stages I have to

evaluate the finished product. I have used a range of websites again that I have previously used within the Research and Planning stages. examples of these would be Microsoft Word, Prezi, Blogger, YouTube and Emaze. By using these multiple times during the process I was able to gain more knowledge of how they worked, even if I had used them previously. As I knew how to use the different multimedia platforms by the evaluation stage I ensured that I used different forms of the multimedia for each question that I answered. I began by using Prezi, Emaze and Slideshare. All these platforms made the work that I was producing look better and more professional.

I also used YouTube to attain screenshots of our finished media product and other, real life examples to evaluate the use of conventions within “Immunity”, and we also used it to upload the target audience interviews and the pitch so they could be incorporated into our coursework.

I also decided to use Slides and Powerpoint to be able to present my work in a professional fashion. These platforms allowed me to add images and videos to improve the standard of my blog and to provide evidence.

All the websites that I chose to use were very self explanatory and really easy to use. On the other hand, looking for suitable websites to use was difficult and time consuming since many you had to pay for, but the ones that you didn’t I tried out and they allowed me to show that I can successfully use a range of multimedia to evaluate my media product.

Blogger Blogger has been the most important tool that I have used

because without it, I would not have been able to provide updates on my media product. This is a website that I had not previously come across and so had no experience in using it. The process to set up my blog was initially confusing but after a few try outs it was more familiar than I had expected. The layout was simple and understandable, and it also allowed my teacher to add comments on my work so I could improve it and attain the best grade I possibly could. Each individual that took AS Media Studies had a blog on this website, and this meant that I could keep track of what everyone was updating, including the two other individuals within our group. You could also personalise your blogger look which made it easier to identify which blog belonged to each individual member of the class.

Conclusion To conclude, it is important to consider the types of

multimedia that I have used during the period of this coursework. These include: Sony HD Camera Recorder, Boom Microphone, IMBd, Rotten Tomato, YouTube, Blogger, Movie Studio Platinum, Photoshop, Google, Slides, Emaze, Box Office, Prezi and Slideshare.

By using the following multimedia options and technologies I was able to gain the knowledge that I needed to complete the coursework by using such a wide variety of multimedia. By using these several times, I became familiar with the multimedia and the period of time from the beginning of the research and planning right through to the evaluation stages became easier due to the added experience.