2. The Brief
• For my Advanced portfolio for my media studies coursework I had a choice of media forms to choose between, I chose to
produce the music video. The brief was to produce a promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music
promo video together with a choice of two of the three below:
• A website homepage for the band or artist - I chose not to do this one
• A cover for the digi-pak
• A Magazine advertisement
I chose to do the digi-pak and magazine advertisement because I thought the skills I had learnt in the foundation portfolio
would be better for this task. For the foundation portfolio I had to produce a magazine front cover, contents page and
double page spread on Photoshop. I thought this would be more suited to these two products as in my time at college I have
not produced a website and the programme used would be new to me.
• To produce my coursework I worked as an individual, I did this because I thought working with a partner could cause
tension if we had opposing ideas for the product. The song I chose was ‘Clocks’ by Coldplay, an alternative rock band,
the song is 5:06 minutes long. There are a few main themes I have taken from the lyrics that I wanted to portray
through the video and these include:
§ Time running out – “The lights go out and I can't be saved”
§ Confusion - “Confusion never stops, closing walls and ticking clocks”
§ The contrast of busyness and freedom- “Tides that I tried to swim against” and “Home, home where I wanted to go,
home”
§ Been stuck in time or situations – “Am I a part of the cure? Or am I part of the disease?”
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4. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
• http://prezi.com/-u_6wrgdbtot/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy
• My Prezi presentation which answers this question can be found by following this link.
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• In relation to the ancillary texts I researched some digi-paks so that I could decide how mine should look in order to stick
to the conventions. I noticed that photography is vital as every digi-pak here uses photos on the design. But it is
important to edit these images rather than leaving them natural as this is always a convention. Alternative rock never
leaves anything natural everything is edited and surreal as if the photo is no longer just a photo and is creating another
image in itself. An example of this in my product is by using a photo duplicated to create the shape of a sand timer.
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I did this to make the images look like a sand timer,
connoting time running out, as this is what a sand
timer does. I used this image on the digipak.
5. 2.How effective is the combination of
your main product and ancillary texts?
• The main product is the music video and alongside that I have created a digi-pak for the CD and DVD as well
as a magazine advertisement. For these three items to work well as a package there must be continuity
between them. This is because they are all linked, if the advertisement doesn’t have any similarities to
the video then the package is not going to make sense to the audience. It is important when producing
these products that themes are continued throughout
• So how have I done this in my product?
As I have discussed in the previous question, Cinematography used in alternative rock music videos tends to be very much based
around close ups. Therefore in my music video part of the product I have used a varied range of close-ups. I have also continued this
into the ancillary texts. The images used on the magazine advertisement are all close-ups that have been layered on top of one
another. I have done this as a way of linking back to the music video, the actress is also wearing the same outfit as she did in parts of
the video to make that link. Also because the outfit is suited to the genre, as she is wearing a dark shirt, this connotes that not
everything is clear and she is in the dark about something. Not only that, but this style of clothing is typically that of an alternative
rock music fan.
To extend this link I have also used the same style of shot in the digi-pak, I have used close-ups again to make a link back to the
video, it gives the audience an idea of what to expect in the video as they will probably see the digi-pak before watching the final
product. The images again are similar. I think if too many different styles are brought into one product then genres and forms styles
get mixed up and the product becomes confusing to understand. This is why I have chosen to use a limited variation of shots.
I have demonstrated this by circling the close ups to show how and where I have used them.
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6. 2.continued
• Another link I have made throughout to create continuity is the idea of time running out.
In the music video it is clearly inferred that a main theme is time, through the use of
clocks, candles burning and different speeds applied to the shots. This is such a major
theme I think it is essential that this is also portrayed in the ancillary texts.
• So how have I done this?
• I have done this throughout both the magazine advertisement and the digi-pak. The
images on the advertisement are placed within a clock. I designed the clock using
Photoshop. The clock connotes time and this is a direct link to the main theme. To
emphasize this I added, on another layer, a design that represents melting, I did this
from the text and the image of the clock as a way of portraying time melting/running
out. Then on the digi-pak I used a clock for the front cover of the album again to
connote time, but I also used a photo I had taken of the actress, and duplicated it, I
then rotated one of them and created a sand timer shape. Again, to connote time
running out as we link a sand timer with the tension of time slipping away.
•
•
7. 2.continued
• What other people think to the effectiveness of the combination of products.
• I decided the best way to find out the answer to this question was by asking other people how they thought the three products work together. Asking people is the best way of
finding this out because they may have never seen the products before and therefore see things differently to me as I look at them on a daily basis.
•
• I asked 3 questions after showing them the products:
1. What would you say is the main theme running through the three products? (can be multiple)
2. What is it about them that make you think this?
3. Do you think it is represented well? If not how could it be improved? If yes why is this?
I have used open questions so people can discuss their answer rather than restricting answers to yes and no. I didn’t use leading questions so the audience aren’t been lead to their
answer by the way the question is worded.
8. Levi Strauss – Representation theory
applied
• Binary opposites – Levi Strauss talks about binary opposites, a contrast
between two things, usually the protagonist (the good guy) and the
antagonist (the bad guy). In my video there is only one character, the
girl, so I was unable to have a protagonist and antagonist. On the other
hand the girl could be seen as the protagonist and time could be the
antagonist. As time is stopping her and she is Stuck with it unable to
escape. Throughout the course of the video she begins to defeat time
(as you would expect the hero in a film to defeat the villain) allowing
her some freedom. In the middle of the song there is a climax and this
begins to happen. For example the clock ticks backwards, the candle
burns upwards and her mood changes as well as the colours that
become brighter and happier.
9. 3. What have you learned from your
audience feedback?
• Throughout the course I have been gathering audience feedback to help me develop my work further. When gathering audience feedback it is important to ask people who are
within the target audience age group of the product. For my video I decided the average age of the audience is older teenagers and young adults between the ages of 16 and
25.
• I collected audience feedback by using questionnaires. I would firstly show the audience the products and then ask for them to feedback by answering a variety of questions.
• It is vital to gain feedback from the audience because it tells me whether or not the product would be successful or not. If throughout the feedback progress I was receiving
negative responses then I would have known my video was not working and was not suitable for the audience, fortunately I received positive feedback with some
constructive criticism meaning my product has been successful and I was able to use the constructive criticisms to further improve my work.
• I linked ‘Jospeh klappers’ theory to how the audience relate to my product:
• Audience theory
• Joseph Klapper (1960) - Selective filter model
Klapper states that the media can only be effective / have an impact on an audience once it has undertaken 3 stages:
Stage 1 - Selective exposure
The audience can choose what media they are exposed to.
Stage 2 - Selective perception
The audience can choose whether they want to accept the message being conveyed.
Stage 3 - Retention
Then the audience has to remember the message, it has to 'stick' in their mind. However research tells us that audiences remember the things that they agree with and are
more interested in.
How can this theory relate to my product?
Because this theory tells us that the audience choose the media they are going to watch or listen therefore my product has to appeal to the target audience to ensure that
they will selectively be exposed to my product.
relating to stage 2 of selective perception, the audience can chose whether to accept the message, therefore the message needs to be clear
and finally stage 3 the audience has to remember the message so I need to make the message something that the audience will agree with and be able to relate to.
•
10. •
• I chose a small sample of answers from the questionnaire I used to gain feedback for the second draft.
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•
•
•
•
•
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•
•
•
•
• The first question asked was ‘did you enjoy watching the music video?’ This is a Closed question but it gave me an idea of whether or not my
video was successfully enjoyed by the audience, everyone that participated in the feedback said ‘yes – a lot’ this is very positive feedback.
And it makes me confident that my product is being enjoyed. The question only allows for yes or no answers and does not give any space for
the audience to give an in depth answer. This is because the other questions are all ‘qualitative’ and therefore they will give me in depth
answers. This question allowed me to collect quantative data about the initial perceptions that people had.
11. One thing I was worried about when planning was keeping the edits to the beat of the music, because without
doing this the video would look out of time. This persons response told me that I had managed to do as I had
planned and it was noticeable .
This answer tells me that my video is enjoyable because of the editing. This is good because I wanted to
portray the abstract themes through the editing, and I used a lot of editing to create a sense of confusion.
This response told me that I had achieved my aim.
Some more positive feedback here. This is very important because
if my video didn’t look abstract then it would show that my video
was not successful because the aim was always for it to be
abstract.
12. I also received criticisms …
This response says ‘there is one section that is repeated too often in the park’. The
criticism is really useful because when I carried on editing in order to finish the final
piece I was able to look over the shots in the park and take some out so that there was
more variation and less repetition.
When I went back to edit I looked at my video again and I could understand this
criticism. It helped me to improve my work and make it more enjoyable for the
audience.
13. Go animate
• I put a variety of questions and answers together into a ’Go Animate’, in order to present some
more feedback that I received from the audience. The questions asked are all based around
how the main themes and ideas have been portrayed. Go animate allowed me to enter text as
a conversation, it would then play it back to me with voices that I had chosen.
• I also posted this to my blog as audience feedback.
•
• http://goanimate.com/videos/0MxLDO0bCCfA?utm_source=linkshare&utm_medium=
•
• This was only short as unfortunately a negative aspect of ‘Go Animate’ is that it restricts how long
the video can be, it does give an insight into some responses I received from my 2nd draft. I have
taken audience feedback very seriously from my previous drafts as I realise that any advice,
criticisms and positive attributes people can inform me of will significantly improve my work.
Especially improving it for the audience that it is aimed at.
•
14. Audience feedback video
I produced a really short video to present some feedback, I
asked a few people of the target audience age to give me a few
words about their favourite part of the music video final piece.
I wrote this feedback onto post-it notes to present.
15. Facebook, audience feedback
I asked people for their feedback in various forms and
Facebook was one were I knew the people giving
feedback would be the correct age for two reasons:
1. Because I chose the people to send the message
to.
3. The majority of people on Facebook are In the
correct age category. According to Facebook
statistics 18 -29 year olds make up 83% of
social media users .
4.
I specifically chose to use few questions so the viewer
doesn’t get bored but I made sure the questions
would answer what I need to know from them. The
people I asked where all people who had not
previously seen other drafts or ideas so the whole
product was new to them. This was because I didn’t
want them to be biased in how they gave feedback
according to what they had already seen previously,
for example other drafts and filming ideas.
Unfortunately the problem with doing this on Facebook means
you aren’t questioning them face to face, they are not obliged to
answer the questions and because of this out of 10 people who
received the message only 6 responded. This meant I needed to
use other ways to gain more feedback.
17. The feedback was positive and
makes me feel more confident in my
product. The themes I was trying to
portray throughout have been picked
up on. I am happy with this feedback
but I realised I need to get some
more. Some of the questions I asked
were leading questions which could
of made my feedback biased
therefore I decided to come up with
some new questions to ask more
people.
18. Further feedback…
I then decided to come up with some new questions that I could give to people so they could answer anonymously. I thought
this would be better because they may have felt they could be more honest with their answers.
•
1. After watching the music video what would you say the main themes are?
2. How do you think the video is made abstract? Or do you not think it is abstract?
3. How would you say the contrast between busyness and freedom is portrayed?
4. What would you say the target audience is? Do you think it is suited to this age?
5. Do you think the main product is well linked with the ancillary texts, how?
6. Do you have any criticisms of the whole product?
I asked 6 people for the feedback in this way, and my results were as follows…
1.
19. • Q1 – After watching the music video what would you say the main themes are?
• 4 - Time was the main theme
• 1 – Been confused, the spinning and overlays
• 1 - Time and confusion
•
• Q2 – How do you think the video is made abstract? Or do you not think it is abstract?
• 2 - said the editing is what made the video abstract
• 2 - said the overlays made it abstract
• 1 - said the fact it doesn’t really tell a story
• 1 - said the unusual editing and the contrast between fast and slow
•
• Q3 – How would you say the contrast between business and freedom is portrayed?
• 3- said busy cars/traffic and the trees
• 1 – said fast and slow bits throughout
• 1- said the fast clock that is then reversed.
• 1 - said the candle that burns down and then back up again.
20. • Q4 – What would you say the target audience age is?
• Teenagers , early 20s
• 16 – 21
• 17 – 25ish
• Young adults
• 16 – 25
• 14 -21
•
• Q5 – Do you think the main product and ancillary texts are well linked, how?
• 2 – yes , clocks are on all of them
• 1 – time is portrayed throughout
• 1 – dark colours as well as clocks and time running out, for example the clock dripping and the sand timer.
• 2 – Time
•
• Q6 – do you have any criticisms of the whole product?
• Bit confusing storyline
• Some of it is hard to see because it so dark
• None
• I don’t have any
• Cant think of any
• N/A
•
21. What do the results tell me?
• The results tell me that my product has been successful as people enjoy
and understand it. They have understood the themes. They understand
why I have put certain features in the video, for example the busy cars,
the candle, the speed alternations and the candle burning down and up. I
am happy people have understood this.
• The criticisms I can understand, for example the confusing storyline as
there is no clear narrative throughout the video. Also the criticism of the
darkness, because it is not sensible to film in the dark as it means the
quality is not as good. Unfortunately because me and the actress both
work at the weekends and the filming period was while the nights got
dark quickly it made it hard to improve on this. To find a time were it
would be more appropriate to film. Also when I did manage to get some
day time filming the footage was corrupt when I tried to upload it,
therefore I had to re-film in the dark.
22. How can I relate this to audience theory?
• The use of symbolic ideas throughout the video, with little clear narrative leaves space for
the audience to interpret the text in different varying ways. Reception theory by Stuart
hall (1980) discusses active audiences. Hall says that audiences become active rather
than been passive as they interpret the texts that they consume. The same message is
never received by everyone because the audience is active, therefore I left space for
interpretation to make my audience more active rather than passive. If the audience
begin thinking deeper into the meaning of the media text then the video will become
more memorable to them.
• Hall tells us how the audience interpret media texts, he says they do this by encoding and
decoding. Media texts are encoded by the producer so in the specific media text I
encoded the video with the ideologies such as time running out, busyness, freedom and
abstract ideas. Then the audience decode the video in different ways. The audience
wont all respond in the same way, and this is proven by my audience feedback . In the
case of my video the audience decoded it as I encoded it but some music videos can be
decoded in a completely different way to how the producer intended it to be encoded.
The way people encode can be dependant on different factors, for example experiences
they have had, their age, beliefs, gender or maybe their mood when watching the
media.
23. 4. How did you use media technologies in the
construction and research, planning and evaluation
stages?
24. Research
• For the research part of the coursework I had to use the internet to look at other examples of music
videos from You Tube such as ‘Reckless’ by ‘You me at Six’, ‘Viva la Vida’ by ‘Coldplay’ and
‘Starlight’ by ‘Muse’, all these videos I then posted onto my blog in order to analyse. I used these
videos to give me an insight into factors such as cinematography, editing, conventions and
connotations as well as meanings of other alternative rock music videos. From this is I could then
start planning my video with these factors in mind. I especially looked at the Coldplay video
because the song I chose is also by Coldplay and therefore I could see if there is anything
particular that Coldplay use throughout their videos. I noted that a lot of the Coldplay music
videos are abstract and this helped me make my decision to create an abstract video myself, in
order to follow Coldplay's conventions.
• I also decided that looking at the history of music videos would be sensible so I could understand
how they have changed and if the conventions have remained the same through history or
whether they have changed according to the era. I began by creating a timeline of different rock
bands and musicians. Then I could pick out some of the artists and bands and research more
about them and their music videos. To do this I used Wikipedia on the internet as well as some
other sites I found when searching through Google. By doing this I found that performance has
always been a convention in rock music videos by looking at music videos produced by The
Beatles, Queen and The Clash, suggesting that the video I have produced breaks the conventions
of music videos from the past as mine includes little performance and is very abstract.
25. Prezi and Microsoft
• Prezi is a site that allows you to present information on the internet, I used Prezi when researching the
codes and conventions of music videos, I used it as a way of presenting my work clearly and precisely, so
that I can understand it as well as anyone else looking at my blog. Prezi is a much more fun and
interesting way of presenting information. I used Prezi again when presenting my hand drawn storyboard,
I was able to upload a power point to Prezi and then present it, an image at a time. Another example of
how multiple media technologies were used to create one outcome. Advantages of using Prezi are that I
can conglomerate information I have researched on the internet, with videos taken from You Tube,
images I have sourced myself and images I have sourced from the internet. Prezi also allowed me to share
the presentation that I made with others by uploading it to my blog allowing my teachers and peers to
view my work my presentation could be shared many times.
•
• Microsoft office is a variety of software that I have been able to use to present and plan my work,
throughout the research and planning process I have mostly used PowerPoint. PowerPoint is a useful tool
because it also allows me to present work in a similar way to Prezi, when researching the history of music
videos I used a separate slide for each artist, once I had completed it I was able to save the slides as
‘JPEGS’ (images) and then upload them to my blog. On my blog they can be viewed as images and the
viewer can scroll through the images to see each one in turn. Throughout the course I have completed
tasks on PowerPoint and then uploaded them. I prefer using PowerPoint to present my work on blogger
because I find it easier to use, I can add images and text more easily and when its on my blog the viewer
can enlarge the image so they can also see it clearly.
•
26. Research continued
• My research then continued to conducting a focus group, where I asked people for their opinions and ideas on the plan that I had
decided on for my video and also new ideas. This was helpful as it clarified ideas I already had and gave me some new ideas.
For the focus group I asked 7 questions:
• 1. Have you ever watched a music video that has made you love the song even more, what is it?, why do you like it?
• 2. Would you say you like Alternative Rock music? Is there any specific artist you like?
• 3. If you were creating an Alternative Rock music video, would it be abstract, performance or have a narrative, why?
• 4. Are there any major features you think should be included in the music video for the song ‘Clocks’ by Coldplay?
• 5. What aspect of a music video do you think is most important? Mise-en-scene, Cinematography, Editing or the music itself and
the sound used.
• 6. What is your favourite genre of music?
• 7. Is there anything you would say is essential in an alternative rock music video?
• The main problem with the focus group was that I didn't get in depth answers I could of improved this by filming one person at a
time. I think this would have been more successful as it would have been more of a conversational environment. The focus
group is also on my blog. The research did help me to understand what the audience would expect, for example they agreed
clocks should be used in my video because of the name of the song.
•
27. Construction of the music video
• To film the music video I used a Sony video camera borrowed from college. The cameras are a good quality. I also used a tripod
taken from college as well for some parts of the filming although occasionally it was too windy for the camera to stay still on
the tripod so I had to hold the camera myself. I had some problems in the construction stage. At one point I had done some
filming with my model but when I tried to upload the files onto the editing suite I found the files were corrupt and therefore
wouldn't work. This meant I had to re shoot that filming. Unfortunately I couldn't do this for another 10 days because my
model was on holiday and I had to go to work. Eventually we managed to re shoot the final bit allowing me to complete the
music video. This allowed me to significantly improve the product from the first draft to the final piece because for the first
draft I had not managed to get all the filming done. Every time I filmed, the footage was then uploaded to the editing suite at
college that I was assigned to, it was uploaded to adobe premier pro, ready for me to begin the editing stage.
• This camera was good because it is small and portable so I could get it home from college and take it to the different destinations
easily, it was a good quality so I was able to get some good filming
• I did the filming over a course of 6 shoots over 6 days in different locations. My model had a different outfit for each shoot to
create variation so the audience doesn’t get bored of seeing the same thing over and over again.
• I had 5 different locations:
§ Inside my house
§ The path to my house
§ The park
§ The street (two different streets are used)
§ Skidby – A village just outside of Hull
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28. Construction continued - editing
• I started to edit once I had done two filming shoots, editing was a long process and has taken many free periods and hours after college.
Editing on premier pro is very efficient and is fairly easy to use once you get the hang of it. I had never used this software before my A2
coursework so it was very new to me. I think my skills have developed significantly in the past few months by doing this coursework.
Premier pro allows you to edit a clip whilst keeping the original. There are a variety of tools and effects to use that provide you with a
variety of outcomes.
•
This is the editing suite that I edited the footage on. It was
very beneficial to use because I could edit the footage on
one screen and watch the footage on the other. This was a
very efficient way of working.
This shows how I could use the ‘cut’ tool to cut the clips
to the length that I needed. This was easy to use and just
involved me dragging the cut tool across the clip until it
was the length that I required.
To create an unrealistic feel to the video I frequently
changed the speed to make it quicker or slower. To do
this all I had to do was increase the number or decrease
the number .
29. Here I overlaid two different shots and in the second image I overlaid the same shot
to create the dreamy effect. I did this my decreasing the opacity levels of the image
on top to make it translucent .
Editing on the editing suite
30. I used a dip to white edit, to the
beat of the music. To give the
effect of time not moving, it just
keeps restarting. As if she is going
over the same feeling again and
again.
I overlaid the same shot
but reversed one of them
as if we are seeing double,
this creates confusion.
31. ‘Additive dissolve’ between
shots. I choose to use this
effect here because the
room is vibrant and the
additive dissolve adds light,
emphasizing that she is
happy here. It also
reinforces that this is an
edit, inferring that time is
ticking and her mood is
changing.
Here I altered the speed of
the traffic to make it
faster, the speeding
connotes busyness and
suggests that people
around her are carrying on
with their lives while she
has stopped. The speed
also infers that time is
moving quickly, linking
back to the shots of the
clock moving quickly, a
32. Construction continued – ancillary texts
• The second part of the product is the digi-pak and magazine advertisement. these are to go alongside the music video. To
advertise it and to sell it. The ancillary texts were both produced on Photoshop. Photoshop is a software that allows you to edit
images. I have used Photoshop throughout my time at secondary school and college, so I am familiar with the software and the
different tools it provides for editing. Photoshop can be harder to use and can become confusing, but it aids in producing a
better quality product.
• Tools and effects I used for my product include:
• The quick selection tool and magic wand tool to cut around images to remove the background, this allows you to place text
around images without having the background in the way.
• The text tool allows you to add text to the image.
• The move tool to move individual features around the page.
• Once I had put everything together and decided that things were placed correctly on the page I began to experiment with
different effects such as the filter effects that include 'cutout' and 'texturiser' this gave the image added texture that made it
seem more rough rather than neat and clean which I think reflects the genre of the music and the abstract features of the
video. Adding the cut-out filter made the images seem brighter and reflected colours from each layer creating a surreal feel
that makes the image of the model seem less natural. These filters were mostly used on the magazine advertisement but I have
reflected them through to the digi-pak to ensure continuity throughout the product.
• Advantages of using Photoshop include the many tools and filters you can use, its reasonably simple and easy to use.
•
33. How blogger was used to present my
work• I used blogger to present all my research and planning. Blogger is a site that allows you to create your own
blog, you can use it to discuss topics, ask questions and give people information.
• Blogger has been really useful for presenting my work as it means I can easily view and present all my work
in one place and in the order of the planning and research process. It is simple and easy to upload to
blogger so my work can easily be put on there.
• Throughout the coursework I have been uploading work onto Blogger. This means I can look back and see
how my work has developed from the planning stage to the final piece. It shows that from my initial idea
the music video has changed significantly as lots of the ideas I had put in my storyboard I have taken out
whilst filming as I decided that they wouldn’t work and I have come up with new ideas. It also shows my
development throughout the course. There are some advantages of blogger. My teachers and other peers
can easily see my work and I can show them my work, therefore I can easily collect feedback from many
different people, for example when I put a questionnaire on my blog I was able to share my blog address
by emailing it to people in my college, they could then answer the questionnaire and I would receive
feedback to help me plan, improve and inspire my work.
•
•
34. If I was to repeat this coursework task
again?
• Although I think my products have been successful if I was to ever repeat the project there are
certain things I would do in order to improve:
1.Planning - I think If I had spent more time and energy in planning the product my end vision
would have been a lot clearer, allowing my time to be more efficient whilst editing. If I had a
more organised plan for the video and ancillary texts I think I could have produced it to a
better standard and used the time more efficiently. I didn't plan as well as I could have done, I
wasted a lot of time deciding what to do next with the products because the plan lacked
clarity.
2.Time management – If I had organised my time better then I could have used the time I had more
efficiently, I am aware that at certain points in the process I didn’t put the time in when I
should have done and therefore when the deadline was getting closer, I began to panic more.
If I had evenly spread my time over the past few months then I wouldn’t have had to rush my
work as much.
3.Experimenting – because the software I used to edit the music video was a new software for me
to use, I feel like I was still learning new things at the end of the course. If I was ever to repeat
the project I would experiment with the software before beginning to work with it properly.
That way I would have a better understanding of the tools effects and ways of using it. I think
this would have been beneficial and would have helped me to use my time better.
•
