The blogger used various media technologies at different stages of their media coursework project. They used Blogger to blog all of their research, construction, and evaluation work so it would be easy to access. They also used Google and YouTube for research and a video camera to film footage. During editing, they used Serif Movie Plus to combine video clips and music. PhotoShop and InDesign were used to edit photos and add text. For evaluations, they created presentations using SlideShare and SlidePoint and made movies using Windows Movie Maker.

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

2. Blogger is the main site that I have used
throughout my media A2 coursework. I have been
able to blog all of my research, construction and
evaluation onto one site so it is easy to access and
many people can see it online.
Having used this site previously for my AS
media, I already knew how to use it therefore, it
was easy to get into. I ensured that throughout my
blogging, I kept labels on each of my posts so that I
could easily access each part of my work. This is
essential in ensuring that none of my work gets lost
in the process.

4. For our research, google and you tube were the main sites we used. Google
allowed us access to images of the internet. This includes:
−Photos of clothing we could use for our video
−Video evidence of different angles
−Examples of CD cases and magazine adverts

6. The most important part of technology that we have used during construction is the
video camera. Without this camera, none of our product would have been created.
At first, it was extremely hard to get used to the camera and what functions to use. A
couple of times, me and the group would accidently not record our scenes due to us
not knowing how to tell if it was recording or not. However, due to our extensive
recording, we worked out how to use it well.

7. In our opinion, just having the videos was not enough evidence to show our
filming. Therefore, each time we filmed we tried to have a ‘Sony DSLR-A290’
camera. This was something I already had at home. It was beneficial for our
project as we were able to capture us filming different angles.

8. At the points where cameras were not available to us, we simply used our phones.
This meant that we could then email these to ourselves. Having smart phones was
very helpful through the process. Me, Jess and Lauren all have IPhones. This meant
that we could have a ‘group message’ throughout the whole of our project. Things
we would message about include:
−Dates and times for filming
−Evaluation – how the filming went/what we could improve
−Discussion about the ancillary tasks – what we like/what we don’t
−Sending evidence to each other

9. The main program, I used in the project was
Serif Movie Plus, an editing site where I was
able to take clips from my filming and music
and put them together in order to create, what I
hope is, a successful music video. This is the
first time I ever experienced working with this
program so at first, it was quite complicated for
me to use. I found it hard especially to get the
music and the video to link.
The main functions I explored were:
• Destroying links between the video and its
sound
•The use of Cross fade
•The use of text on the video
•The use of transition and cuts between shots
•Fade into black
•Linking the music to the shots
•Decreasing the play speed of some clips

10. Another program I used within the construction was photo-shop. This
program was mainly used to edit the photos before using them on the
ancillary tasks. Again, I used this program within my previous work
therefore, it was rather easy to get the hang of. Although, it was difficult to
remember all the functions. Also, in my previous work, I had never had to
make my images black and white. This was something that was new to me.

11. In-Design is another program that I have used previously. This program
was used to add text to our ancillary tasks. Having used it before, I knew
what functions to use on the program. This included the ‘place’ function.
We also did a lot of font research on this site. We were able to place the
image of Adele’s front cover which allowed me to develop our font.

13. For this evaluation question, you can notice that
Slide Share is used. I have used this form of
media before and enjoyed using it. I have always
enjoyed making power points so I like the fact
that I can present this onto my blog.

14. Having made a movie for my coursework, I was still not un-keen to make
more. For my third evaluation, I used windows movie maker. This allowed
me to put all my voice recordings together in one place making them easy
and fun to listen to.
As well as this, I was also able to make a film of all the information I gained
in my questionnaire. It made the results more interesting to look at. I believe
having them all in one movie was great in allowing viewers too see them all
in one place. I was able to take the key information from the questionnaire to
explain what I learnt from my audience feedback.

15. Word it out is another site I have used for my 1st
evaluation question. In this site, I was able to put all of the
words into a cloud which my research brought be to. This
included features such as dark make up etc.

16. For my 2nd evaluation question, I used a slide point. Although I had
already used a slide share within my evaluations, I still wanted to use a
different program (ONE THAT I HAVE NEVER USED BEFORE) allowing
me to develop my learning and try something new. After signing up for a
slide point, it was extremely easy to use as I only had to add a power-point
to the sight. However, you can also create a power point on the sight itself.