The document discusses the use of new media technologies in the research, planning, construction, and evaluation stages of an A2 media project. WordPress was used to create a blog to chronologically document research and planning thoughts. Facebook provided information about the band Towns to inform genre research. Prezi created visual mind maps to communicate ideas and examples found during research. A Canon EOS 500D camera was used to film footage and Final Cut Pro organized shots and edited the music video to sync with the song's beats. YouTube provided a platform to upload and receive feedback on the final video. Photoshop created a template for a digipak cover and edited imagery. Slideshare hosted presentation slides that could be embedded in the Word

1. {
A2 Media Evaluation
Q4: How did you use new media technologies in the
construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

2. Research & Planning

3.  My audience, product and ancillary task
research has been collected and presented
using the blog site Wordpress.com. This has
allowed me to map out the stages of my
thought processes chronologically, dating each
of my blog entries. This means I can track the
progress of my plan and make any adjustments
according to my prior research, formatted with
headings for easy navigation. Wordpress also
allows me to embed links from YouTube and
Slideshare, along with my Prezi presentations.
Why Wordpress?

4. Post heading
Automatic
date of entry
Ability to embed photos, screenshots, video and text Customisable
theme

5. Easy to navigate,
laid out in chronological
order
User-friendly, all posts linked

6. Research & Planning

7.  Facebook is a ubiquitous media, allowing users
to instantly display thoughts, interests, photos
and events. This website has been helpful
during my research stage, as I have been able to
access Towns’ band page and find out more
about their genre, brand and ideology. For
example, the frequent posting of candid
diaristic imagery contributed towards my
decision of referencing the direct cinema
movement. Up-to-date tour information also
enabled me to include this on my ancillary
magazine advert.
Why Facebook?

8. ‘Tour Diary’ images
Useful tour information

9. Research & Planning

10.  Prezi has also been a useful technology during
my research and planning, working as a visual
mind-map to communicate ideas, examples
and findings around a particular subject, for
example, the direct cinema movement. Prezi
also allows you to insert images and YouTube
clips to illustrate points, as was helpful to
demonstrate the example of the Rolling Stones
biopic.
Why Prezi?

11. Easy to link ideas
and show thought
process
Embedded YouTube
links

12. Construction &
Evaluation

13.  The Canon EOS 500d allows manual focus to
create pull and drop focus shots. It can also
shoot in 1080p HD for more professional-
looking colour quality.
Why Canon EOS 500d?

14. Construction &
Evaluation

15.  Final Cut Pro has been used to edit my music video
as it displays the detailed sound waves of the song
below where the shots are placed. This has made it
easier to cut my footage to ‘thought beats’, in
relation to Goodwin’s theory, as the beat of the snare
became visible. Final Cut also has features available
that allowed me to organise my shots into folders
(eg. Live, Studio, Candid, etc.), making the editing
process faster and the outcome more refined as I
didn’t have to search through every clip in the
toolbar to find the right one.
Final Cut has also been used to edit my audience
feedback into relevant sections for my evaluation,
allowing me to break down comments and apply
them to relevant sections.
Why Final Cut Pro?

16. Construction &
Evaluation

17.  By uploading my final video to YouTube,
comments from other users have acted as
audience feedback, alongside the thumbs
up/down rating system. Millions of people search
for, comment on and upload videos daily and it is
therefore a hotbed of creative practice, especially
music videos. The other videos featured in my
blog such as storyboard ideas and audience
profile interviews have also been uploaded to
YouTube, meaning they can be embedded into my
research feed and also act as a back up of the
original files.
Why YouTube?

18. Construction &
Evaluation

19.  Photoshop has been used to create a template
for my digipak, allowing me to add layers of
the correct dimensions, meaning each section of
the case will be of standard regulation size. I
also edited my imagery in Photoshop to give a
cohesive ‘dreamy’/vintage colour quality to
relate to the psych/pop genre. This was
achievable through altering the RGB colour
curves.
Why Photoshop?

20. Altered colour curves
Size template

21. Construction &
Evaluation

22.  As you can see through this presentation,
Slideshare is a visually effective way to
communicate relative ideas. Information is
delivered in breathable sections and acts as
more of a visual essay than a lengthy
presentation. My slides have been imported
using Powerpoint, while Slideshare makes
them easily accessible via the internet. This also
means the presentation can be embedded in my
Wordpress blog, which is more aesthetically
pleasing.
Why Slideshare?