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

BLOGGER:

During the whole process of the marketing production task I used a wide range of different media technologies; throughout I have been used 'Blogger' which is an interaction website which enables you to keep a professional and organised Blog of each step of the process, ranging from the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages.


I enjoyed using Blogger because it enabled me to embed HTML codes, therefore adding you-tube videos, Power-Points created on Slideshare.net, as well as adding Photographs, Time lines from TimeToast. All of this was done in an easy, effective way - thus all examples of Web 2.0 technology. 

To show accurately how I was able to include interactive clips from other websites, using media 2.0 technology to push my work in new directions, I have taken a few screen prints, firstly from you-tube, showing how I was able to embed the file, and then on Blogger, showing how I was able to embed the HTML code:



I thought that using Blogger made this process a lot easier for me, as it helped me keep track of my time, making me a lot more organised throughout the process of the marketing package, as well as this I was also able to keep a blog of all of my deadlines, ensuring all work was completed on time. Using Blogger also helped me to present my research and planning in a clear and coherent way.

YOU TUBE:

As previously described, I also used an example of web 2.0 technology, you-tube, quite frequently whilst in my research process, this was because I was able to visit official brand sites, as well as explore new artists that I hadn't previously heard of, whom were in my 'acoustic' genre, therefore giving me a clear idea of different genre conventions. David Buckingham said  "genre is not simply given by the culture, rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change" This was seen numerous times within my research when looking at YouTube, as I was able to see how much the acoustic genre is continuously changing, specifically when looking at how its audience has evolved into a mainstream audience quite rapidly in recent years; therefore this was helpful for me when planning my own media product, as I was able to see that my acoustic product could be done in all sorts of ways, using various conventions. As the internet is global, this meant I was able to access videos from all over the world, which were able to inspire me throughout the process, thus being an excellent website for my research and resources. As I have an account on you-tube, I was also able to upload and stream some of my own videos, such as my finished music video, and clips of it half way through, and therefore this meant my target audience and focus group was able to watch my work and give me valuable feedback.
A print screen of YouTube can be shown:

TIME TOAST:

I used Time Toast throughout my Planning of the marketing package, this allowed me to create an interactive time line to show when I needed each task to be completed by, this made it easy for me to see where I was in the process of creating the DigiPak, Advert and Music Video. This helped me stay on track with each task, and allowed me to reach all of my deadlines. This was another effective way of creating media for other internet uses, as I then embedded this on to my Blog.

EXPERIMENTING WITH ADOBE PREMIER PRO:

During the research and planning stages of the process, we looked at various different special effects which we could add into our Music Video, and then we experimented with these, so we were able to see what would go well in our Music Video, looking specifically at the genre.
We particularly looked at Animation and Chroma Key.
For the Animation, we looked into creating a rapid sequence of images which created an illusion of movement; this can also be known as a motion picture. We accomplished this technique by using a camera and capturing numerous shots, however moving the image slighting each time to create this illusion of movement. For this, we were particularly inspired by J. Stuart Blackton, as he was one of the first film-makers to use similar effects. Our clip can be shown below, which we uplaoded from Adobe Premier Pro in a FLV file, and uploaded to YouTube:



We then looked at Chroma Key, and this can also be known as Green Screen. This is a post production technique which is when two videos or images stream together to create a new background, this is done based on the colour hues, and therefore a particular colour is removed, and a new background replaced. This is generally why it's recorded in front or a large green screen, as this is easier to make transparent. Our experiment of Chroma Key can be shown below:




IPHONE 4S:

My own mobile phone is the Iphone 4S, which is a modern day 32GB Smart Phone, on this I am able to access various different forms of Web 2.0 technology, worldwide, ranging from social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as the Internet, music, You-Tube, iTunes and I am also able to access all of my emails, in particular Google Mail.
Because I was able to access all of this on my portable device, I was able to gain audience feedback from my DigiPak, Advert and Music Video, by uploading them to my social networking sites, as well as emailing my work directly to my focus groups. It also meant that when organising dates and meetings with my actors and my fellow team members I was able to do it very quickly and efficiently. This was done mainly through the use of iMessage and Texting, however I also emailed frequently through the process. Thus, with a mobile, portable device like my own I was able to stay organised and professional throughout the whole process, as I was able to keep active on the go with the communication technology.

PENTAX 645D - 40megapixel Medium Format Digital SLR Camera:

To take the photographs for my DigiPak and Advert, we used a Pentax 645D 40 megapixel Medium Format Digital SLR Camera, we deciding to use this camera instead of a small camera phone because we wanted the best quality photographs; and with this camera we were able to experiment with different shutter speeds and auto-focus, as they were high megapixel shots, they also looked very professional, which were ideal for our print production task. We were able to take a variety of shots, ranging from close ups, extreme close ups and medium shots, however we were focussing on taking close shots so that we could capture the artists emotion within them. We also used tripods, to get the shots as professional as possible, we decided to experiment with LED lights so that we could capture the images effectively, as well as adding some yellow gels to make our artists face more warm to the camera.

ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CS5:

When producing my Print Production task, after taking my photographs, I uploaded them into Adobe Photoshop CS5 and this is where I created both my Digi-Pak and Advert.
I used this because it is professional media technology and so I thought I would get better results, as supposed to working in other programs such as 'Paint.'
For my Advert and Digipak, (as shown in the screen shots) I used a lot of technical features, for example I added a gradient map to add some colour to the black background, I then set the gradate map to 25% opacity, and the layer style was set to darken, so you can still see the artists physique.
Another technique I used to achieve the firework effects around my artists body was the transformation wrap, I did this so that I could shape it around the body better, enhancing the artists image.
Finally, I also experimented with the colours throughout the task, and because I wanted the firework colours to stand out, I used selective colouring, so that it looked very striking to the viewer.


As I haven't previously used Premier Pro CS5 much before, I looked at many tutorial programmes for my research such as the one below, (this was found on you-tube) another example of web 2.0 technology, and I think that this helped a lot with my designs as it allowed me to create a much more professional finish. I think that by using this programme I was able to create a very impressive finish, and I was able to use techniques which weren't accessible to me if I wasn't using a professional media technology. Therefore I think that this programme was very beneficial.


PANASONIC HDV CAMERA:

We decided to use the Panasonic HDV camera to video our music video because it was a good quality video camera, and would give us some high-quality shots for the end piece, Another reason we decided to use this camera was because it was easy to manipulate in post production, this is because unlike using video tapes like some video cameras, this was a modern day kit and so we were able to record straight onto the SD-card, and then put this straight into the computer, and this way it was a very simple and efficient way to transfer all of our data. We also used a camera tripod for parts of our video to create a smooth and professional finish, however as it is a music video, we used many hand held shots to to create an atmospheric atmosphere.

ADOBE PREMIER PRO:
After videoing, we then downloaded the video clips by inserting the SD-Card into the computer, and imported them into Adobe Premier Pro, which is the professional media technology that we created our music video on. In the past, I have used many video programmes such as 'Windows Movie Maker' however this is a much simpler programme, and so by using Adobe Premier Pro it allowed me to get a lot more technical, and professional with your clips. Therefore we experimented with a lot of different aspects of our video.
As shown in the screen prints, we tried out a 'warp' effect on our actress, to create a time laps effect, and although this was very interesting, we decided against using it in our final piece.
Although we didn't use this, we did work on this, as we liked the overlap effect to make it quite smooth, and therefore adding to the conventions of an acoustic genre. To do this, we added various key frames into the music video, and faded a lot of things  in and out of each other, in order to create a very smooth, calm effect throughout, which corresponded with the music.
I really enjoyed using Adobe Premier Pro and I think that there were many useful aspects which made it increasingly effective for our task. As we wanted to create an understandable narrative, the razor tool cut clip was also very effective, and as we were able to zoom into the clips of the music, it was helpful to get the lip sync accurate, thus therefore making it look very professional. Due to all of these features, I think that the programme was very beneficial for making a professional music video.