Media Coursework Evaluation. Question 4

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

2. Research To research documentaries I used Internet Explorer and websites such as, www.google.co.ukand www.youtube.com

3. Research To get footage off YouTube to be used as archive material, I used Kiss YouTube (www.kissyoutube.com) which allowed me to download clips into mp3 format.

4. Research Other websites I used for research include www.urbanfreeflow.com to research Free Running and I set up a blog using www.blogger.com so I could put my notes for the documentary onto it.

5. Planning During the planning stages, I used Microsoft Word to create a questionnaire to be filled in by our target audience. When we got the results from the questionnaire, we used Microsoft Excel to present them in pie charts so we could accurately see which answer was most popular.I also used Microsoft Word to type up the Running Order, Production Schedule and to type up the Logging Sheets and Edit Decision List.

6. Planning After storyboarding our five minute documentary, we used a Scanner so that we could put the images onto our blogs. I also used a scanner to scan in my brainstorms for the documentary. I used my scanner at home so I saved the images onto my USB Drive so that I was able to put them onto my computer and then onto my blog.

7. Construction To film the documentary, voice over and radio advert we used a Canon XM2 Camera with Mini DV Tapes and a Tripod and Clip Microphone The Clip Microphones were used during interviews so that we could clearly hear what the interviewee was saying. So that we could tell if the Microphone was working, we plugged Headphones into the camera to listen to what was being recorded.We also used the Microphone when recording the voiceover and the first version of our radio advert. For the final recording of the radio advert, we used a programme called Audacity in the college radio room. This gave us a clearer recording than the first time to make it sound more polished.

8. Construction During the filming stages, we took still images of us filming using a Cine Pic Camera so that we could add these images to our blogs in the filming diary.We also used our MobilePhones to take pictures of the editing stages and took print screens of the editing process. To get the images for our print advert, we used the Video Camera and then Exported the frame which we felt was the best.

9. Construction After all of the filming was finished, we began to capture our footage off the Mini DV Tapes using the DV Capture Deck.The DV Capture Deck was linked to the computer using a Fire Wire lead so that we could control the Capture Deck through the computer.The computer we used was a Quad Core PC with a TFT monitor. We did the editing through a software programme called Adobe Premier the CS5 version. We used this programme to cut the footage down and to edit the lighting and the volume of the clips and put it all into the right order on the timeline. Also during the editing stages, we used headphones to listen to the footage and so we were able to cut it down so that there was no unwanted sound.

10. Construction To preview the documentary, we used a Samsung LCD Monitor which allowed us to see if the framing was correct and whether the titles were in the right places. On the same project as the documentary, I added a new sequence so that we could edit the radio trailer.I copied footage from the documentary onto the radio advert timeline and added one of the songs from the documentary. After recording the script for the advert using the Canon XM2 Camera and clip microphone, as mentioned before, I added this to the timeline and cut it down to fit between the soundbytes from our documentary and so that it fit in the 30 second time phrase. I re-edited the radio advert in the same way after the second recording

11. Construction Our other ancillary text, the print advert, was created using Adobe Photoshop CS5 where we took an image from our documentary and edited the lighting on it. I drew a box which I added the title of the documentary, 'On The Edge' and the slogan, 'Do Something Different' and the date and time that it will show. Using a Channel 4 logo off Google Images, we inverted the colours to make the logo black and then cut it away from the background so we just had the outline of the logo. Using different layers on Photoshop, we were able to create the advert with the image as the background, then the box which we coloured blue to relate with the t-shirt that the Free Runner is wearing in the image. Above this layer is the text with the name of the documentary, slogan, date and time and then the Channel 4 logo.We went through the same process to create the final print advert with the wall and the footprints. We cut the footprint away from the rest of the image and used the eraser tool to smooth the edges.We coloured the box which has the title, slogan, date and time in it white to make it stand our against the brick wall.

12. Evaluation For Question 1, I used an iPhone to record my voice and then using Windows Movie Maker I added images of what I was talking about to create a short film.

13. Evaluation For Question 2, I have created a Prezi presentation using www.prezi.com .I have then embedded this onto my blog and created a link to view the presentation on the Prezi website.

14. Evaluation For Question 3, I typed up an answer using Microsoft Word which I then read out, recoding my voice again using an iPhone which has a clear recording.Using Windows Movie Maker, I cut down the recording, removing bits that went wrong.I also added some titles to explain which product I was talking about.

15. Evaluation For Question 4, I have used Microsoft PowerPoint to create a slide show. I have taken screen shots of the work during production stages to include in this PowerPoint and used my phone to take pictures of the evaluation stages.I have uploaded it to my blog using www.slideshare.net