evaluation question 4

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

2. Hardware
• Throughout the construction process, I used my own DSLR camera (a Canon
60D) to take photos and video to use later on when editing the trailer,
poster and magazine cover. I also researched various photography
techniques (bokeh) which I practised with the camera. When taking
photos I made sure to take multiple of the same image and from different
angles, to ensure I had enough to choose from after – as I may change my
mind or some may be blurred. I also uploaded these photos onto my blog
to show evidence of my thought processes. The camera also had a screen,
which helped me to view each shot as I went so that I didn't need to
retake any shots, and it was reversible so that the actors could see their
position on screen, which helped make the editing easier.
• I also used a Manfrotto tripod so that all shots were steady and not blurred.
However, I found it sometimes difficult to level the tripod down to the
location I was filming in, so I tried to even this out in the editing.
• Finally, I used a rode microphone to record all the dialogue and voiceovers,
which helped remove most of the background noise, and as I had used it
before I was able to alter the settings to suit each occasion and create a
professional quality sound.
•

3. Other hardware
• Throughout the whole process I used a ‘iiyama pro lite p1904s’ computer to
research, plan and edit my project. My experience with this computer was
good as I have used it before for AS, meaning I was able to easily find different
programmes such as internet explorer and adobe Photoshop.
• During the course of the project, the internet explorer sometimes didn’t work,
which meant I wasn’t able to do the research in school. However, I was able to
use the internet at home, which was faster so I could keep up to date.
• Also, I used a 32gb memory card to store the files on the camera. As this was one
of the larger storage sizes, I was able to take a lot of video and photos without
needing to stop. This meant that the shots I took were consistent from the
same time of day.
• I used a card reader to transfer the files onto the computer. At first, I borrowed
one from the library and soon found that it wasn’t working (the files didn’t
appear), which meant that I had to use another I had at home.
• Another piece of hardware used was my mobile phone, an Iphone 5s, which was
used to communicate with the actors and the chosen band for the soundtrack.
I used Facebook messenger as it was easy to contact the actors at the same
time.
•

4. Software
• The online blog site ‘Blogger’ was used throughout my project to showcase
my research, planning and progress of the construction. As I had use
blogger in the AS project, I was able to easily create pages and change the
layouts to show all information. Blogger also helped me to see audience
feedback as the teacher was able to provide improvements after I
published a page.
• I also used Google a lot in the research and planning stages, such as finding
out information about conventions of films in the same genre as my trailer
and finding a soundtrack to use.
• Another important website was Youtube as I used it primarily to view trailers
from existing films and previous A2 examples, to help gain an
understanding of the conventions. I also used Youtube to view tutorials on
editing techniques in after effects (motion tracking etc...), which helped
make the editing easier and professional.
• Youtube was also used later on to showcase my final trailer to the public.
This allowed me to gain audience feedback from comments and
questionnaires from a test audience.

5. Software
• Adobe premiere pro was used for the majority of the editing for the trailer. Before the main
project I had some experience with this software as I used it to create a film opening in AS.
By doing this I was able to use the same techniques more efficiently, such as cropping clips
and adding overlay effects.
• Another adobe software I used was Photoshop, which was used to create the ancillary tasks
(poster and magazine cover). I also had experience with this software before as I used it in
my AS project to create titles. This helped me create high quality titles, add overlay effects
and position individual layers on top of others. I used DaFont as the source for interesting
fonts for the cover, and downloaded them into Photoshop easily.
• Adobe after effects was another software used to edit parts of the trailer, such as explosions
and adding a gun wall. I found this quite difficult to use at first as I had not used it before,
so it took a long time to edit.
• Slideshare was used to showcase parts of my planning, to make my blog look different and
exciting. This allowed me to embed a PowerPoint onto my blog. I used this website before,
so it was easy to upload and share.
• Audacity was a new programme to me for editing the sound. I found it difficult at first
because there was a lot of settings and I wasn’t sure how to change the tempo or bass.
However, as I went through the project I researched different techniques to help make the
music fit the flow of the trailer (dramatic to start and then more upbeat).
•

6. End of evaluation question 4
By Lewis Tull

7. End of evaluation question 4
By Lewis Tull