Friday, 2 May 2014
Question 4 Evaluation
How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
I used media technologies throughout my construction, research, planning and evaluation. If it were not for the media technologies which I used then our work would not have been possible and it would not have been to the standard that we have achieved. Firstly I used media technology in the researching and construction stage of our project. At the start I mainly used google and youtube as my main sources for research and planning.
We kept a record of everything that we had done on blogger such as music videos we researched, target audience and what exactly is the indie genre and what codes and conventions did we follow. Youtube was the main source for researching other indie bands as well as last.fm.
Through youtube, we were able to embed the link over onto our blogs so it could be viewed there and then under we were able to give a description of the video underneath, codes and conventions, techniques and the target audience for the particular artist in question. This enabled us to have a better idea of what video we were going to produce and how exactly we were to go about doing that. We got a pupil from art to draw up our storyboards, however the next job was to get them into an animatic that was done using final cut pro on a MacBook to string the pictures together into a video with transitions and sounds. Last.fm was very useful for finding the target audience for the indie genre, where they were from and some facts about the people.
We used facebook on our website page to show advertising through social networking and other social media sites such as twitter. Facebook was also beneficial as it resulted in us getting in touch with the native as a friend gave us their contact details via facebook, and this is how we arranged the shooting schedule with them to make sure it suited. We got the native website logo from one that they had already made and we discovered it on the site "reverbnation," and this is where I originally heard stupid girl and once it was discussed within the group we decided that this was the song we were going to choose for our music video.
Google was vital when it came to researching other bands albums and websites, as this specifically gave us an idea of what we had to do to follow the codes and conventions of the indie genre. We also used the internet to create our own website from scratch, where Stuart used coding to get the programming for the site done and to get the website running properly and to install all the different parts of information. When it came to creating the album and digipaks, we used photoshop to customise and edit our pictures using filters and such techniques as double exposure and blur effects to make the images more exciting. Before we made the photo album we had plenty of practice on photoshop and I used youtube tutorials to discover new effects and how to make our editing more sophisticated. Even when it came to adding more light to a picture, photoshop made a lot of difference and helped with representation and what we were trying to say about the music in which the band plays.
When we were writing up our shooting scripts and plan, this was once again done on blogger as it was an organised way to keep record of all the research, planning, shooting schedules and our progression throughout our project. It was also a safe way to protect all our ideas as it meant they were all saved online and it would be easier for us to keep track of notes and not lose them.
When it came to filming we used one of our group member stuart's 1080p video camera's installed in his Samsung Galaxy note 3. This piece of media technology approved to be very effective as the camera was of a very high standard and gave the video a more professional look. After we had filmed our pieces we used a standard USB cable to transfer the shots onto the MacBook. Then we used Final Cut Pro to edit the clips, trim them, cut them and string them together using different trnasitions and double exposure to let the shots run smoothly. We were also able to enhance the quality and brightness of shots where it needed changed by adjusting the brightness and contrast and adding more colours. The quality was improved through motion resulted in a smoother video that was less unsteady.
When it came to editing we had a good range of effects to use and apply to our video, as Stuart used his own Macbook to edit the work. This was because we were using custom made effects which allowed us to implement much more advanced editing techniques than what would have been available to us using stock final cut. This resulted in a much more efficient and effective editing process while maintaining a high quality of production. In the screenshot above, we played with the gradient and the tint of the shot to add a colour which stands out more. The white being used is to specifically brighten up the scene to add more light to the shot as when it was recorded it was dull and it helped make the shot clearer.
Once again, in the evaluation stage, blogger and youtube were used to upload our finished pieces of coursework and also so our music video could be viewed. As well as these two formats I also chose to use slideshare and prezi. I chose to add more types of media technologies to expand my knowledge of them and to make my media product more creative, interesting whilst showing the different ways in which I could produce my final product. I chose prezi as I liked the idea of a mind map and I wished to give my coursework more variety and the idea of following the map appealed to me. It also allowed me to add in videos and pictures of our work and progression throughout our project and this was simply done by just selecting the option to add images/videos. When on my laptop at home I thought it would be a good idea to do some powerpoints which included pictures and answered two of my evaluation questions using slideshare. To do so I had to create the powerpoints using Microsoft powerpoint, which once uploaded to slideshare, automatically kept it in the powerpoint format with a nicer style.
Overall, throughout our media product we have had to use different types of media technology throughout to improve our work and design, and it resulted in a more organised, professional piece of work, which appeared to have pleased the target audience. This also shows how we have stuck to the codes and conventions well whilst in some places adding our own style into the mix. I have enjoyed using different types of media technology to complete my coursework and have discovered many more plug-ins available on final cut pro, as well as photoshop through the use of youtube. I have also learned about the importance of advertising through social networking, I discovered this in my research and we
seem to have executed this strategy through our website which we got much positive feedback about.
I used media technologies throughout my construction, research, planning and evaluation. If it were not for the media technologies which I used then our work would not have been possible and it would not have been to the standard that we have achieved. Firstly I used media technology in the researching and construction stage of our project. At the start I mainly used google and youtube as my main sources for research and planning.
We kept a record of everything that we had done on blogger such as music videos we researched, target audience and what exactly is the indie genre and what codes and conventions did we follow. Youtube was the main source for researching other indie bands as well as last.fm.
Through youtube, we were able to embed the link over onto our blogs so it could be viewed there and then under we were able to give a description of the video underneath, codes and conventions, techniques and the target audience for the particular artist in question. This enabled us to have a better idea of what video we were going to produce and how exactly we were to go about doing that. We got a pupil from art to draw up our storyboards, however the next job was to get them into an animatic that was done using final cut pro on a MacBook to string the pictures together into a video with transitions and sounds. Last.fm was very useful for finding the target audience for the indie genre, where they were from and some facts about the people.
We used facebook on our website page to show advertising through social networking and other social media sites such as twitter. Facebook was also beneficial as it resulted in us getting in touch with the native as a friend gave us their contact details via facebook, and this is how we arranged the shooting schedule with them to make sure it suited. We got the native website logo from one that they had already made and we discovered it on the site "reverbnation," and this is where I originally heard stupid girl and once it was discussed within the group we decided that this was the song we were going to choose for our music video.
Google was vital when it came to researching other bands albums and websites, as this specifically gave us an idea of what we had to do to follow the codes and conventions of the indie genre. We also used the internet to create our own website from scratch, where Stuart used coding to get the programming for the site done and to get the website running properly and to install all the different parts of information. When it came to creating the album and digipaks, we used photoshop to customise and edit our pictures using filters and such techniques as double exposure and blur effects to make the images more exciting. Before we made the photo album we had plenty of practice on photoshop and I used youtube tutorials to discover new effects and how to make our editing more sophisticated. Even when it came to adding more light to a picture, photoshop made a lot of difference and helped with representation and what we were trying to say about the music in which the band plays.
When we were writing up our shooting scripts and plan, this was once again done on blogger as it was an organised way to keep record of all the research, planning, shooting schedules and our progression throughout our project. It was also a safe way to protect all our ideas as it meant they were all saved online and it would be easier for us to keep track of notes and not lose them.
When it came to filming we used one of our group member stuart's 1080p video camera's installed in his Samsung Galaxy note 3. This piece of media technology approved to be very effective as the camera was of a very high standard and gave the video a more professional look. After we had filmed our pieces we used a standard USB cable to transfer the shots onto the MacBook. Then we used Final Cut Pro to edit the clips, trim them, cut them and string them together using different trnasitions and double exposure to let the shots run smoothly. We were also able to enhance the quality and brightness of shots where it needed changed by adjusting the brightness and contrast and adding more colours. The quality was improved through motion resulted in a smoother video that was less unsteady.
When it came to editing we had a good range of effects to use and apply to our video, as Stuart used his own Macbook to edit the work. This was because we were using custom made effects which allowed us to implement much more advanced editing techniques than what would have been available to us using stock final cut. This resulted in a much more efficient and effective editing process while maintaining a high quality of production. In the screenshot above, we played with the gradient and the tint of the shot to add a colour which stands out more. The white being used is to specifically brighten up the scene to add more light to the shot as when it was recorded it was dull and it helped make the shot clearer.
Once again, in the evaluation stage, blogger and youtube were used to upload our finished pieces of coursework and also so our music video could be viewed. As well as these two formats I also chose to use slideshare and prezi. I chose to add more types of media technologies to expand my knowledge of them and to make my media product more creative, interesting whilst showing the different ways in which I could produce my final product. I chose prezi as I liked the idea of a mind map and I wished to give my coursework more variety and the idea of following the map appealed to me. It also allowed me to add in videos and pictures of our work and progression throughout our project and this was simply done by just selecting the option to add images/videos. When on my laptop at home I thought it would be a good idea to do some powerpoints which included pictures and answered two of my evaluation questions using slideshare. To do so I had to create the powerpoints using Microsoft powerpoint, which once uploaded to slideshare, automatically kept it in the powerpoint format with a nicer style.
Overall, throughout our media product we have had to use different types of media technology throughout to improve our work and design, and it resulted in a more organised, professional piece of work, which appeared to have pleased the target audience. This also shows how we have stuck to the codes and conventions well whilst in some places adding our own style into the mix. I have enjoyed using different types of media technology to complete my coursework and have discovered many more plug-ins available on final cut pro, as well as photoshop through the use of youtube. I have also learned about the importance of advertising through social networking, I discovered this in my research and we
seem to have executed this strategy through our website which we got much positive feedback about.
Monday, 28 April 2014
Question 3 evaluation
<iframe src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/34387144" width="476" height="400" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>
http://www.slideshare.net/matthewmcr95/question-3-evaluation-34387144
http://www.slideshare.net/matthewmcr95/question-3-evaluation-34387144
Friday, 25 April 2014
Question 2 evaluation
<iframe src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/34383413" width="476" height="400" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>
http://www.slideshare.net/matthewmcr95/question-2-evaluation-34383413
http://www.slideshare.net/matthewmcr95/question-2-evaluation-34383413
Tuesday, 22 April 2014
Friday, 4 April 2014
Our progression so far..
At this point in time we have everything in place in order for us to begin filming. We started off by doing research on other similar indie bands to get an idea of what theme and concepts will be included in our music video. After we had decided what type of video we wanted to make, the next step was to choose a band suitable. The band we chose are called "The Native" and the reason why we picked this band is because we liked one song in particular (Stupid Girl) and believed that this song was suitable for the video we want to make.
After deciding that this band was the one we wanted to film our music video with, we now had to contact them. Luckily, a good friend of ours actually knew one of the band members very well and was able to contact him to see if the band was willing to film with us. After we got the go ahead, we contacted the band via facebook to discuss video ideas and to make a shot list. After the shot list was made we could now move onto the next step.
Our second action we took to progress closer to filming, was writing out a rough shot list, making storyboards based on these shots and then doing a final draft of an improved, more detailed shot list with better storyboards. After this was completed, the next step was to string together the storyboards to create an animatic. An animatic is basically a breakdown of our storyboards condensed into video format, as this way it is easier for the examiner to view and mark our work.
After we had finished the animatics and storyboards our next step was to get together to write out a shooting schedule, discussing dates and times which were suitable so everybody in the group could attend.
Connor carson and bronagh walsh are two of our actors. the two performers are friends of chris' and have experience singing and acting and we are confident that they will be able to act and perform at the level required of them. They are willing to travel with us to the destinations we need to go to. We have chosen a boy and a girl to act for us because the song represents a girl who doesnt listen and keeps making the same mistakes over again and we want to show the contrast of how things can go good and then in an instant go back to her stupid ways, hence the name of the song "stupid girl".
We want to have the band performing live in an amateur venue such as a garage to show that the band are quite indie and have their own style and do their own thing. This is an amateur set which means that the props involved are going to be amateur or even a little messy. The props are a big part of the video because attention to detail and continuity.
On the 18th march we started to film the narrative story for our music video, we filmed in such locations such as lady dixon park and queens university belfast in the centre of town. We used stuarts full HD camera on his samsung smart. In lady dixon we were attempting to shoot and capture more scenic shots to use in between the storyline and the band playing to spice the video up a bit. We also went to queen's university belfast to film part of the narrative. While we were out we got a chance to get to know the actors better and had finally filmed with them, establishing a better working relationship.
We aim to have the filming done with the band by the end of march. We are planning to film in one of the band members garages as we want to give an original, authentic look to the film. by doing so, the story and the band playing will switch more smoothly as the video is all in amateur locations and no professional stages etc.
When filming the shots we decided that we would need to have plenty of shots to break up the narrative so it felt more like a music video and less like a short film. To do this we decided to go to lady dixon and get a lot of scenic shots, and we also plan to record the band playing live out of their garage to break up the narrative more.
We changed the idea of filming in a garage to filming in a room in the house that the band use to chill out. We decided to make this change as the lighting was better and more suitable in the room and also it was easier for the band to set up in this room which was better for time efficiency.
Now we have reached the editing process, things have begun to really start looking well. Stuart is doing the editing process through using final cut pro and we have all been helping arrange the order of the shots and also what effects need used. Stuart created the website and it was myself, ciaran and chris' role to add the content onto the page and to take the pictures that would be going onto the site. We also have Chris working on the album cover whilst myself and ciaran have been covering the research concerning indie music videos and how we can add effects and the same style to make the video appeal to the target audience we are aiming for.
Our next step is to get all the individual pieces of research each of us has done and put it onto the group blog. After this is done one will be able to see where we have got the ideas for our music video and who inspired us. We also hope to get feedback from an indie lover to find their opinion on the song, video, website and album covers.
After deciding that this band was the one we wanted to film our music video with, we now had to contact them. Luckily, a good friend of ours actually knew one of the band members very well and was able to contact him to see if the band was willing to film with us. After we got the go ahead, we contacted the band via facebook to discuss video ideas and to make a shot list. After the shot list was made we could now move onto the next step.
Our second action we took to progress closer to filming, was writing out a rough shot list, making storyboards based on these shots and then doing a final draft of an improved, more detailed shot list with better storyboards. After this was completed, the next step was to string together the storyboards to create an animatic. An animatic is basically a breakdown of our storyboards condensed into video format, as this way it is easier for the examiner to view and mark our work.
After we had finished the animatics and storyboards our next step was to get together to write out a shooting schedule, discussing dates and times which were suitable so everybody in the group could attend.
Connor carson and bronagh walsh are two of our actors. the two performers are friends of chris' and have experience singing and acting and we are confident that they will be able to act and perform at the level required of them. They are willing to travel with us to the destinations we need to go to. We have chosen a boy and a girl to act for us because the song represents a girl who doesnt listen and keeps making the same mistakes over again and we want to show the contrast of how things can go good and then in an instant go back to her stupid ways, hence the name of the song "stupid girl".
We want to have the band performing live in an amateur venue such as a garage to show that the band are quite indie and have their own style and do their own thing. This is an amateur set which means that the props involved are going to be amateur or even a little messy. The props are a big part of the video because attention to detail and continuity.
On the 18th march we started to film the narrative story for our music video, we filmed in such locations such as lady dixon park and queens university belfast in the centre of town. We used stuarts full HD camera on his samsung smart. In lady dixon we were attempting to shoot and capture more scenic shots to use in between the storyline and the band playing to spice the video up a bit. We also went to queen's university belfast to film part of the narrative. While we were out we got a chance to get to know the actors better and had finally filmed with them, establishing a better working relationship.
We aim to have the filming done with the band by the end of march. We are planning to film in one of the band members garages as we want to give an original, authentic look to the film. by doing so, the story and the band playing will switch more smoothly as the video is all in amateur locations and no professional stages etc.
When filming the shots we decided that we would need to have plenty of shots to break up the narrative so it felt more like a music video and less like a short film. To do this we decided to go to lady dixon and get a lot of scenic shots, and we also plan to record the band playing live out of their garage to break up the narrative more.
We changed the idea of filming in a garage to filming in a room in the house that the band use to chill out. We decided to make this change as the lighting was better and more suitable in the room and also it was easier for the band to set up in this room which was better for time efficiency.
Now we have reached the editing process, things have begun to really start looking well. Stuart is doing the editing process through using final cut pro and we have all been helping arrange the order of the shots and also what effects need used. Stuart created the website and it was myself, ciaran and chris' role to add the content onto the page and to take the pictures that would be going onto the site. We also have Chris working on the album cover whilst myself and ciaran have been covering the research concerning indie music videos and how we can add effects and the same style to make the video appeal to the target audience we are aiming for.
Our next step is to get all the individual pieces of research each of us has done and put it onto the group blog. After this is done one will be able to see where we have got the ideas for our music video and who inspired us. We also hope to get feedback from an indie lover to find their opinion on the song, video, website and album covers.
Monday, 3 February 2014
codes and conventions continued
It is very common in indie music videos to include a live performance. This helps focus on them as a performer doing what they love to do. It also helps keep the focus on the actual music itself and the talent that the artists have. This is typical in the indie genre as the genre itself was more about the music and passion rather than about the success of the artist. A good example of this is Ed Sheeran. A modern twist is often put on this with a narrative included to break up the music video. There is also more room to play around with the video if a narrative is included so a lot of artists tend to use a mixture of performance and narrative in the music videos. It also allows Indie artists to compete with artists of other genres who do narrative videos that are heavily based around a story to make it memorable. Live performances promote the artist as the audience will be able to see what the artist is like live and it may make them want to see the artist live.
Narrative in music videos is used to tell a story by using a sequence of imaged and videos to relate to the song. This is done in such a way that it makes sense to the audience so they can follow and link it to the lyrics. This links with Goodwin’s theory of illustration and amplification. Narrative is very popular with all genres of music as it leaves room for the imagination. There are a lot of different variations and there is a lot of room for creativity which can leave the video very memorable to the audience. This is a great way of making a music video stand out and making it popular. This is because there are a lot of different variations so you can make it as different as you like. Also, now due to new technology, new storylines can be created by using special effects and after effects to make the video look a lot more realistic and exciting. Narrative videos also keep peoples attention better in comparison to performance as what you are seeing is always changing and keeps you entertained. Even people who aren’t necessarily a fan of the artist may still enjoy the video so this method could help gain success and status.
Mise en scene plays a large role in music videos and especially in the indie genre. This is because a lot of indie artists often have a retro look and this can be created through the sets they use, props and also their own appearance. Props can change the whole look of the video. A good example of this is Lana Del Rey’s – National Anthem. The audience can see her glamorous and expensive looking house. This suggests to the audience that she is wealthy and well respected. Costumes give people their identity and set them apart from the rest. Makeup is also important as it can give us an indication as to which era the video is set in. For example, Paloma Faith has very subtly makeup in her videos wit a pale face and red lipstick, this suggests that her music and music videos are supposed to be similar to the 50s.
Narrative in music videos is used to tell a story by using a sequence of imaged and videos to relate to the song. This is done in such a way that it makes sense to the audience so they can follow and link it to the lyrics. This links with Goodwin’s theory of illustration and amplification. Narrative is very popular with all genres of music as it leaves room for the imagination. There are a lot of different variations and there is a lot of room for creativity which can leave the video very memorable to the audience. This is a great way of making a music video stand out and making it popular. This is because there are a lot of different variations so you can make it as different as you like. Also, now due to new technology, new storylines can be created by using special effects and after effects to make the video look a lot more realistic and exciting. Narrative videos also keep peoples attention better in comparison to performance as what you are seeing is always changing and keeps you entertained. Even people who aren’t necessarily a fan of the artist may still enjoy the video so this method could help gain success and status.
Mise en scene plays a large role in music videos and especially in the indie genre. This is because a lot of indie artists often have a retro look and this can be created through the sets they use, props and also their own appearance. Props can change the whole look of the video. A good example of this is Lana Del Rey’s – National Anthem. The audience can see her glamorous and expensive looking house. This suggests to the audience that she is wealthy and well respected. Costumes give people their identity and set them apart from the rest. Makeup is also important as it can give us an indication as to which era the video is set in. For example, Paloma Faith has very subtly makeup in her videos wit a pale face and red lipstick, this suggests that her music and music videos are supposed to be similar to the 50s.
Wednesday, 15 January 2014
Web design ideas- Sigur Rós
What I like about the layout of this site is the scenic, artistic approach to it. We have decided to try and make a website with pictures similar to this. We aim to achieve this through such using photo manipulation software such as Photoshop CS6. Digitally, we hope to make the website aesthetically pleasing for the viewer and we wish to follow the same codes and conventions of similar indie bands whilst adding our own twist to the style.
When looking at a website like this, It has a real scenic feel to it and one really feels a connection to the artist as soon as they go on the homepage. I believe this is due to the fact that there is a timeline of pictures throughout the artists' career showing what he has been through and how he progressed. Once again it is the pictures and the layout of the website that really appeal to me and I feel would be very effective.
Friday, 3 January 2014
Kodaline website
The ideas that we got from Kodaline's website include the tour dates and the layout. We liked the idea of having the tour dates at the bottom of the page but also with all the other information. This was because it meant that the viewer would be able to find out more about the band and see the latest song/video uploaded in the process of seeing where the band is playing. It means while the viewer is looking to buy tickets, we are also able to promote the band in the process. We also like the idea of having pictures of the band members throughout the page. Kodaline have inspired us on many aspects of our video, particularly with the shooting and the idea of telling a story in the music video.
I loved the idea that Kodaline uploaded new videos to their website and I think that this would be very effective for our site as it increases popularity through advertising via the internet. I also like the idea of having the "Album Scrapbook." After seeing this on their page I believe that it is essential that our digipaks are displayed well on the site as it makes the page look more aesthetically pleasing rather than just all words.
The idea of the blog is interesting as it would allow the fans to feel more connected to the band itself and it also helps the fans have a better understanding of what the members in the band are like how they started off and where they are now. Due to seeing this I think it would be very effective if we wrote some information about some of the band members to let the audience feel closer to the band and to establish a strong bond to the fans as they would briefly know their story.
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