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

As would be expected of a project of this nature in the industry, I used a variety of media technologies to primarily subscribe to three basic ideals:

1. To document, present, organise and analyse my own work and ideas, as well existing media products, in the most coherent, logical and creative way possible, as best appropriate for the task in question

2. To allow me to pull together different resources, tools, techniques and ideas, incorporating them into my work and reasoning, making the final products varied, interesting and the highest quality they could possibly be

3. To enable the product to run in an efficient, smooth way

At the beginning of the project I decided that I would use an Apple Mac to complete the portfolio. Apple Macs are standard in the media industry and thus it seemed foolish to not gain further experience in using one. They offer an increased range of software in comparison to a PC, such as Final Cut, and run much faster. I knew that I would be working with a large number of video files and so this strengthened my decision, as did the fact that I would need to multitask between programmes quite a lot. Although petty, they also offer a number of “quirks” such as the ability to screen shot only part of the page without having to later crop the resulting image down. This technique was adopted throughout the project in order to evidence my work, and to document visual references and inspiration from music videos. Furthermore, the fact I have a Mac at home allowed the project run more efficiently as I was able to work in a similar frame of mind and with some of the same software.

Throughout the project I mostly used Google Chrome; from experience I know that this is the fastest and most reliable web browser. This enabled me to watch and upload videos quickly and without interruption. The project was thus not as stressful as it could have otherwise been.

In all stages of the project I have presented my work using blogging site Blogger. This has acted as a hub for all my work, and I love the idea of it all being in one place that is easy to access at college, at home and on the go on the iPhone app. Easy to post work in a variety of formats: either directly, or through embedded videos and documents, I could post updates and draft work which helped to refresh my memory throughout the project.

Although indeed a blogging site, I have utilised it more as a website, with page links separating work according to the relevant stage of the project. Each page contains chronological list of work completed as part of that stage, each item further linking to the work itself. As such, my work is presented in a systematic way that is easy to understand. The minimalistic template that imported from 90four.com and the fact that I decided to remove all of what I perceived to be unnecessary clutter perhaps aids this. It was therefore easy to find a specific piece of work that I as looking for, and view different elements in conjunction with each other in order to gain a greater sense of project development. I also really liked the idea of being able to theme my blog around the project, although I kept this minimal to not overwhelm the both myself and visitors. The brand, or star image I have created is in some ways very hectic and so this might well have happened.

Blogger also allowed me to incorporate images, breaking up text and visualising the point being made. This was useful for showing the aforementioned draft work, particularly in relation to the digipak.

A sizeable number of the images used throughout the project were taken from Google Images. This

is an extensive archive of images that is free to use. It is simple to use. I simply needed to type in subject matter I wanted, select the image I wanted and save it to my machine. This takes a matter of seconds and was an efficient source. I ensured that all the images used were copyright free.

My own images and indeed footage were taken using my own 15MP Canon 500D SLR camera with its standard 18-55mm lens. It was important to use my own imagery in order to make my products original (and viable for marking) but moreover I wanted use this camera as it offers a very high quality picture. I was able to experiment with the focusing, adding visually interesting pull focuses to the video, and shallow depth of fields in the still images. Also the lighting; in the photoshoot I was able to connect the camera to studio flash using a hot shoe adapter. This gave a bright, professional quality of light to the images, making them easy to edit in Photoshop.

Although less so than the main lens, in both the stills and the video footage I utilised my ad-on Tamron 70 -300mm telephoto/macro lens. This was particularly useful for experimenting with focusing and also for close-ups where it was otherwise quite difficult to not inadvertently stand in front of the lights and cast a shadow over the actor.

Additionally for some shots in the photoshoot I tried to use my fish eye lens to simply add visual interest; fish eye photography is not common on digipaks and adverts and as such I felt this would fit with the star image I was trying to create. I do not feel that I was as successful as I could have been, however.

iPhoto, Apple’s own photo manipulation software, was used to import the photos from the memory card used onto the Mac. I wanted to use this programme as it is easy to see the images next to one another; it was therefore easier to determine which could be edited for the digipak and advert. As a photography student, I prefer to do this using A3 contact sheets as it is possible to see more of the photos next to each other. iPhoto can create these with a few clicks of the mouse.

After I encircled and annotated some of the images I then scanned the sheets in using a scanner. The scanner has proved a useful resource during the project, offering an alternative to photographing my own work and elements of analysis, e.g. the storyboard and the Nicki Minaj album advert. Sometimes photographs of these things are not clear and therefore it is better to scan them for means of clarity.

However, my iPhone camera proved a useful resource also. It enabled me to capture things on the go such as things of less importance, for example when I was testing the actor’s costumes and the test footage in the studio. This meant that I didn’t always have to carry the SLR around, which is quite heavy.My iPhone itself featured in the video, which, with reference to question one, was used to add a sense of modernism to the video. Hopefully this will appeal to the artist’s audience.

Further to this, I used my iPhone to book the train tickets to Newcastle, and I used the Maps app to locate the exact position of the bridge used in the video. This made the trips to Newcastle run much more smoothly, ensuring that we did not get lost and booked an appropriate train. I could have booked the tickets on my Mac but it was easier when meeting with the actor and negotiating what time we should go.

Word and PowerPoint were used to present my more detailed work, such as the full music video analysis and the nine-frame analysis. My familiarity with these programmes made them easy to use them and format the documents in a simple but professional way, for example using tables. In doing so the presentation was much neater and easier to understand that it would be if I’d typed directly into Blogger. Additionally, PowerPoint and Prezi allowed a bit more flexibility with the

presentation, separating the microelements out in the two nine-frame analyses. Using the arrow keys to move form pane or frame to frame, they were more interactive and helped to break down information that would be used for inspiration, into manageable chunks.

SlideShare and authorSTREAM were used to neatly embed Word and Powerpoint documents on my blog, whereas Prezi, an online piece of software, automatically provided an embed code. In order to use SlideShare I simply had to create an account and upload the relevant item. It was important to embed all my work in order to document all my progress as mentioned earlier.

SlideShare would have been used to embed all documents but a disadvantage of the website is that it does not support PowerPoints with videos embedded into them.

Lino was used to present my initial ideas in a visually stimulating way, giving the impression of a cork notice board. Embedded from the website itself, I was able to add ideas as they formulated whilst completing other research and planning tasks. By doing this I did not forget any ideas.

GrooveShark was used to stream a copy of Love Kills to my blog and create a fictional playlist for my typical audience. An online archive of music, I used this site because it offered an embed code and by embedding the songs on my blog it allowed me to refresh my memory as ideas were formulating whilst again completing other research and planning tasks.

YouTube was used thoroughly throughout the project in order to gain ideas from other artists’ videos and upload drafts and the final version of my own. Owned by Google, who also own Blogger, I did not need to create an account and thus using the site was quick and simple. It is the largest video website on the web and as such I had a very broad collection of music videos at my fingertips, which could be easily posted on my blog using the embed code. The fact that my videos are online provided scope for views, audience feedback, and the ability to share it across social networks. Moreover in today’s society music videos are primarily consumed on the Internet.

Twitter and Facebook proved invaluable resources during the project. Easily accessible on the go, through Facebook messenger I was able to easily contact my actor to organise meetings, and through both websites I was able to quickly attract a wide audience to complete my audience research survey, and audience feedback on the final products. Microsoft Outlook was used to email people around the college asking if they would be willing to participate in audience feedback and gain permission to use Love Kills.

The audience research survey was created using Google Documents. This was easy do given that the online software package can be accessed using the same account as Blogger. Google Documents allowed me to create a sleek questionnaire that could easily be shared. The questions were based on media theory and my initial ideas and by viewing the results here, I could see how my audience wanted theorists’ ideas to challenged and conformed to. I wanted to try and reflect this in my later planning in order to create a successful product.

Before being imported into Final Cut, MPEG Streamclip was used to convert some of my video files from a .mov to .dv file format. This was because some of the files were so large that frames were dropped; I discovered that this did not happen with the DV clips. By frames not being dropped, I was able to edit my video much more precisely. To use this software I simply had to drag the file here…

Localender was used throughout the project in order to plan what I would be doing each week, ensuring that I managed my time effectively and met the deadlines as best possible although this was difficult and is something I need to improve upon. At the end of each week I also included what I actually did each day so that I knew what work was still outstanding. This was again embedded on my blog for easy reference.

Before being imported into Final Cut, MPEG Streamclip was used in order to convert the file format of some of the video clips from .mov to .dv. I noticed that in Final Cut some of the clips lagged when others weren’t. This did not happen with the .dv format. To convert clips I simply had to drag the relevant file like so. File. Export to DV. 16:9 aspect ratio so that it remains constant with the rest of the video. Better blending, downscaling and deinterlace. Chose where I wanted to save it and wait for it to convert.

However before importing or converting any clips I watched the majority of them beforehand using QuickTime player. This is a fast, quick and reliable video player where files can just be dragged in and watched. I quickly skimmed through the videos in order to assess whether they would be worth using. I narrowed the selection down to make the editing process easier.

Final Cut was used because it is widely regarded as one of the most comprehensive and semi-professional pieces of editing software for Mac. Its interface made the process of editing accurate, precise, quicker and generally much more stressful overall, and the techniques it offered ensured that my video, visually, had a professional quality that also fits in with the pop genre and thequirky star image I was trying to create.

I used two versions of Final Cut to edit the project. The more commonly used version was Final Cut Express, which I used at college. Although I prefer the interface of the edition, the product has been discontinued and thus at home I was limited to Final Cut Pro X that was used for small sections of the video and this evaluation. It was also used for the animatic.

Final Cut Express allowed me to simply drag the clips into this box here. I was then able to arrange them into various bins according to where they were filmed, which prevented me getting confused as to which clip is which and to access what I wanted easily. It was important to be organised. These clips are then dragged to the tracks in the timeline, corresponding to where I want them tobe played in the video. Here there is a gap in the video where a clip needs to be inserted. I know this because I’ve used the marker tool to alert me to the gap. This was handy when I left a part of the sequence and moved on to another, with the intention of coming back to it later.

Final Cut is good as it allows many audio and video tracks. I ended up with 54 of the latter in the end. I liked being able to utlise more than one as it allowed me to experiment by placing clips over clips to experiment with different shot types without having to remove the already synced clip. It also prevented things moving out of sync when I tried to pull things into gaps. I want to insert a studio

clip here and so I find the clip, drag it to the slug and view it to find the part that I want so that it will match up the music in the audio track. The audio is shown in this track here. I marked the part of the clip I wanted to use with the in and out markers. I could then drag this part of the clip alone down into the timeline, which fits perfectly because I’d matched it to the lyrics. After being rendered, the clip then plays and flows nicely. This stopped me from having to drag full clips down to a track and move it around, slice it, and then cut it according to the part I wanted to use, which would have taken much longer and been more confusing.

I used this button throughout which enabled the audio waveforms on the audio track where shown. This helped me gain an idea of where there should be cuts, i.e. in line with the beat kicking in.

After making a good start with the editing, I started to lock most of the tracks using meaning that when I tried to drag a clip down the programme would not allow it. However when I unlocked the layer using the padlock button here I could indeed easily import clips. This was a very useful tool. I only unlocked the layer that I was working on to ensure that I did not accidentally place it on another, moving things out of sync.

Here I have used a blank sequence marked by these tabs here. I used several of these in order to experiment with different techniques and processes throughout the project without messing up the syncing of the main sequence. However this is to demonstrate another reason why I loved Final Cut. When importing clips into the timeline they have audio attached to them – the music which was used on the day of filming to help the actor lip-sync. This is reflected by the green track. Ordinarily, using the snug, the clips would have been imported to sync with the lyrics and thus the clips’s audio is no longer needed. I needed to delete this to prevent it playing along with the song itself and to do this I ensured that this button was “turned off”,

selected the audio and pressed the backspace key on the keyboard.

I also loved Final Cut because I could use the snapping tool to drag clips into the timeline, matching them up to the next clip in the track in question. This prevented gaps and black flashes in the sequence - not what you would see in a professional music video. It stopped me from needing go back through the video and eliminate such gaps at a later stage by tedious editing.

I also really liked Final Cut because I could add text which was useful to mark gaps in the video where I would need to go back and edit, acting as a visual reminder. But a lot of modern music videos feature credits at the beginning and end and Final Cut allowed me to do this. The text at the end of the video reads © 2012 and by clicking on the controls tab it can be modified, as well as the font, size, colour alignment, etc. On the track above the text a transparent image wasplaced, using wireframe tool the text was moved in relation to this in order tocreate a simple yet aesthetically pleasing brand identify for the end of the video.

Removing the text by selecting the clip and pressing the backspace key, I can replace it by clicking on the drop down ‘A’ tool and selecting text. The slug tab then gives a preview of what the text currently looks like. Clicking on the controls tab, I could easily change the properties of the text that could then be dragged to the timeline. In this case I need to use the slice tool to crop it down to match the length that the image stays on screen. The slice tool was also particularly useful if I’d overestimated the length of clip needed with the in andout markers.

Jump cuts where also created using the slice tool, however the zoom in and out buttons were utilised in order to be more precise given the pace of the song and strobe light section, for example.

It was also useful to be able to change the opacity in relation to the credits in order to fade them out in a subtle, professional way at the end of the video as can be seen here. In order to that I selected the clip – the record label logo and then the motion tap. I selected using the cursor and the pin on the timeline where I wanted the fade out to start and clicked the circular button by the opacity frame in my motion tab. I then repeated this for where I wanted the fade out to end, where the screen would be black. I then, in the opacity frame, dragged the green line down at the second point to 0% opacity. Rendered, the clip then fades professionally.

Here, I have two clips that have, in effect, been blended into one; the actor dancing over the traffic. This was achieved by placing the clips on vertically consecutive tracks. By right clicking on the top clips I had the ability to change the composite mode. This menu provides a list of different ways to blend two or more clips together. Throughout the video I frequently used the screen tool to add visual interest and add to the narrative in that of the actor feeling isolated in today’s modern and fast lifestyle. By returning the composite mode we can see that only the top layer can now be seen, which is less exciting for the viewer. Final Cut was crucial here as it questionable as to whether other programmes would offer such exciting visual effects.

In a few instances throughout the video I modified the colours present in the clips, making them stronger and different to add a bit more variety and a wow factor to the video. Here I have two studio shots next to each other in which the actor is illuminated in both by red light. To resolve this issue and differentiate between the two, I selected the second clip and applied the colour corrector filter. I then modified the hue. This was handy because it meant that I did not have to refilm with a different set of lights and therefore sped up the editing stage.

Another reason I used Final Cut was because it allowed me to speed up footage and fill out the video where it was not appropriate for a cut or I had little appropriate remaining footage. I always undertook this process using a new sequence as amongst the main tracks, speeding up footage moved things out of sync. I dragged the relevant clip to the timeline, right clicked, selected speed, estimated how much I wanted it to be sped up, usually around 2,000 – 3,000%. I then dragged the clip back up the box in the top left to avoid rendering twice, and dragged in back down in the main sequence. After rendering, the clip plays at 3,000% - although the video becomes interlaced with lines running across it. To remove this I adopted the deinterlace feature which can be accessed by clicking effects, video filters, video, deinterlace.

Sometimes the clip was too long and I’d have had to use the slice tool to shorten it down.

In Final Cut I was also able to create the split screen that I had planned in my storyboard, illustrating the actor’s character being in state of limbo. Placing two clips over one another, using the earlier wireframe tool I moved them around so that the actor was placed in the middle of both sides of the frame. Each frame was then cropped at either side to create a tight composition with a black line running down the middle. These two clips when then copied and pasted, combining this technique with a jump cut.

GarageBand was used to create the sound of the traffic at the beginning of the video. It was quick and simple to select appropriate sounds and instruments from a whole range of choices, combine them, collectively export them as an MP3 and import into Final Cut.

As well as many of the technologies mentioned throughout this question my iPhone was once again used to record my voice for this answer as it was convenient and quick. Quicktime was used throughout questions 1, 3 and 4 to create a screencasts, in effect a video “print screen” of the page.

I relied on Photoshop to produce the ancillary texts because it is considered to be the best photo manipulation software package; it is industry standard. As a photography student I am very familiar with its inference using it almost on a daily basis and it offered a number of really professional and creative features and tools which allowed me to creatively enhance my imagery whilst easily following design conventions.

However by began the actual creation of the texts I followed a series of online tutorials to develop my photoshop skills and mock-up a digipak as draft work. This allowed me to familiarise myself with some of the tools, think about layout and technique, the results being quite successful.

An abundance of features were used on Photoshop. Therefore it would be impossible to discuss all of them, however I will, in a similar fashion to Final Cut, describe some of the main tools that I adopted.

The Auto Colour, Auto Tone and Auto Contrast tools were used to improve, as one would expect, the colouring, toning and contrast, making the image in question much more striking and bold. Further to this, I manually played around the levels of the image, the contrast and the shadows and highlights, making the image look more professional and high-key with a whiter background, what you’d expect from a professional industry photoshoot. The shadows were more detailed and the lighting much much dispersed.

The saturation was also increased to make the actor’s cheeks appear more rosy red and feminine, and I increased the intensity of the bright colours in the image to make her clothes and makeup stand out more and give the image quite a quirky feel. Furthermore the spot healing tool was used to clean up the actor’s face so to speak, softening it and removing any blemishes and spots.

Additionally in the photo for the digipak the clone stamp tool was used to make the actor’s roots less visible as this would not be seen in these type of products. Although I did want to go against convention and not necessarily be glamorous as most pop stars, it made the image appear less amateurish. The digipak image was also cropped down so it could then be copied into a separate canvas which was the correct digipak size.

In the case of the digipak I downloaded a template from the internet and opened it up in Photoshop. In order to get to this stage, the finished digipak, I simply had to flatten the layers in the digipak PSD and then copy the one compressed layer using the selection tool over into the template and resizing to fit the boxes using the scale tool. This did not distort, pixelate or stretch the picture as I’d measured the correct canvas size before beginning to create the various panes of the digipak.

Because the image used for the advert had been taken in portrait format it was already the correct size and no cropping needed to take place.

The ability to use layers in Photoshop was paramount in both products; by having almost every element on a

different layer I could go back and rectify mistakes and move things around until I got the perfect design / layout. For example, I had the text in one layer, the image in another, and the cracked brushes in another. I could also hide some layers to work more precisely on a specific element without getting confused. At several points I did this and added several further adjustments to the original image of the actor to keep ensuring that it stood out. This is why her face is very bright.

The text was created by simply selecting the text tool marked by the T, selecting a font, chosing the correct size and colour. I could then apply several effects to make it stand out against the background and bring prominence to what it was saying, i.e. drop shadow and colour overlay. This text could then be moved around.

In the digipak the rotate tool was used to rotate text and place it on the spine in the correct direction as convention.

Images already saved on my machine could be imported into the image and would be pasted onto a separate layer, for example the record label logo and the QR code - they could again be resized using the scale tool and moved around to the correct position.

Using the autoshape tool I was able to create the stars which marked the album reviews on the advert. I could then group several of these together into a single layer, making them easier to copy. Furthermore the autoshapes tool was used create a green background on a new layer over which I used the brush tool to paint cracks in varying styles, colours and sizes. I could use the colour pallette in both the advert and digipak to select similar colours using the numbering system ensuring consistency with one another, and also with the video

I’d downloaded theses brushes for Photography last year so I’m unable to remember the website I downloaded them from. This gave quite an urban feel to the image.

This process was repeated but with a purple background on a separate layer and on the image itself. On the purple layer half of the canvas was rubbed out using the rubber as this overwhelmed the image down the left hand side as can be seen from the initial advert before I improved it following audience feedback.

I was then able to play around with the order of the layers, producing different visual effects, by reducing and increasing opacity and changing the blending mode to the likes of Darker Colour to combine the different cracked brushes together. The layers thus became more integrated with one another, the actor appearing in an amongst splashes of colour.

In the case of the disk, I copied the image again using the selection tool and using the magic wand tool, was able to paste it specially into a disk template downloaded from the internet. This image could then be skewed around to ensure that it was presented in an aesthetically pleasing way.

Font site dafont.com was used to download two fonts for use throughout the project. By not sticking to the default fonts offered on a Mac, Harabara and Total 90 helped contribute to a unique star image and style of presentation. I used this site in particular as I could view beforehand what specific text would look like before downloading. Downloading was easy however, simply by clicking download, opening up the file in the Downloads folder and installing. This font could then be accessed in Photoshop and Final Cut. Both fonts can be seen in all three products for consistency.

Will also need to discuss: GLOGSTER