Problem solving

Problem Solving
ALICJA MORAWSKA

Theoretical Problems
1. Working outside (temperature, light, weather)
2. Unwanted noise (wind, traffic, public, sounds)
3. Actors, extras and models
4. Transport
5. Locations
6. Finance
7. Production Time
8. Job Roles
9. Health & Safety
10. Anything related to production

Working outside (temperature, light, weather) Unwanted noise (wind, traffic, public, sounds)
Knowing that I want to take some location photography for some of my spreads I
know I’m going to have to be weary of the weather especially seeing as this year
we’ve already dealt with three large storms by mid February. I don’t want my models
to be miserable during the shoot or not showing up out of refusal or simply not being
able to get to the location.
With temperature I don’t think there’s much risk of it being too warm for any of my
shoots during the time I’m hoping to take them but in the event of that, I think that a
lighter clothing style for the shoot or trying to find a cooler location that won’t mean
staying in the heat for as long. The bigger concern is cold temperatures making it
difficult for the models to hold their poses, potentially having to implement extra
layers into the outfits, as well as my own ability to keep a camera steady enough to
get a clear photograph.
Unwanted noise for the most part is not something I need to worry about as the
majority of my practical work is going to be based on still photography. However
something I’m going to be looking further into is being able to record a cover or some
kind of audio from an artist to put on to the social media page for my publication.
The potential videos I could be recording are coves of another artists songs, a bands
new music that they want promoting or a video from a live show I attend that I will
be reviewing in an article in the psychical magazine. Each of these three have their
own potential issues with unwanted noise.
If I record a cover it will most likely take place in college, meaning that I will have to
find an available sound proofed studio room for this to take place. However even
with the sound proofing in college there is still noise that can come through from
other classrooms and students in the corridors, the most I think I will be able to do to
I think with light it’s something I could potentially use to my advantage both ways as
bright sunlight means I can get a clear and well lit shot, as well as experimenting with
sharp shadows. Darker lighting will also be really beneficial in some of my
photoshoots as it will suit the subject and overall tone of the product, being able to
use the lighting to emphasise some of the more serious topics in my articles, as well
as just being a good representation of an artists form of expression or latest album.
When it comes to weather I think for the most part I’ll be looking for days that aren’t
raining or snowing, although depending on how I plan out my spreads rain could
potentially be useful in terms of connotations and tone that it would give to the
photograph. Wind is also one that for the most part will be more of a hindrance than
a helping hand but could still potentially be used to my advantage.
Combat this is making sure I do multiple takes I can edit between in the event of
unwanted noise or potentially leave a notice in the corridor outside asking students
to take care of their noise levels as there’s recording taking place.
With the idea of a bands new music it depends on the location, as it might take place
in college or in the bands own practise space which could come with its own
challenges but as neither are outside I think just trying to find a time where any
outside traffic that might make it’s way into the recording space is at a lower level
than usual.
If I attend a gig I want to record I know I’ll have to do some research into how I can
get the clearest sound possible where the music from the speakers isn’t being
distorted by the shape of the venue, as well as trying to avoid peoples voices being
overpowering in the recording.

Actors, extras and models Transport
Having to depend on other people for my modelling is something that has been a big
problem in past projects as they can easily become unreliable for a number of
reasons and it can be very frustrating to plan a photoshoot out perfectly for the day
ahead and then have your model not show up or make themselves unavailable. This
has really caused a lot of problems for me before as I wouldn't be able to start work
on covers or spreads until the end of the project because my models wouldn’t agree
to a time with me until the last second. I know the biggest thing for me is going to
make sure that I am much more persistent with getting my models on location when
I need them, however I also know that trying to work around their schedules where
it’s possible and I can be more lenient is going to make the process much smoother
and allow more time for the shoot.
The other part of people I need to think about is getting people who play music or
In terms of transport I know I will be able to get to anywhere I need to be inside of
York without much of an issue as I have an annual bus ticket for the company with
the most bus routes in York and realistically the most equipment I will have to hand
carry is a tripod which wouldn’t be an issue on public transport. The bigger issue for
myself is when I attend shows that go past about 11:30pm as that’s about the time
when my last bus home from the city centre is, although if really necessary that I stay
past that time I could potentially walk or call a taxi, depending on how much footage
I had already gotten from that event.
In terms of models I think for the most part the people I'm thinking of asking or have
already agreed are either within the limits of York or have to make their way into the
city for other reasons on a regular basis for either work, leisure or college. This
means that for the most part the other people involved in this project will be able to
Are in a band that I would be able to record. I’ve already asked a few people I already
know that might be useful for creating media content, as well as reaching out to
some of the music students who I know perform the appropriate genres who have
expressed their willingness to be included in my project.
As for live performances I could video for the content I do know a few people who
have gigs in local venues that I could go see as well as just looking for upcoming
shows from touring artists that suit the needs for what I want. I think it would be
much easier for me to get up close and higher quality video from the bands I know
personally, but going to other shows will definitely be beneficial in terms of getting
more content for social media.
Make their own way to the locations I have for the photoshoots, whether that’s by
car, bus or train. However if the situation does come up that a model can’t afford
their mode of transport or their usual way of getting into the city is somehow
compromised through weather or cancellations, there will be things I can do to try
and overcome them before having to come to the conclusion of cancelling the shoot
and having to reschedule. In the event of finances being the problem depending on
how high the cost is I could cover it myself if the only purpose of their travel is for my
shoot, or if they need to make their way into the city either way we could come to an
agreement for the money to be repaid at a later time. There are some people I know
with access to their own cars that I could potentially ask if no public transport is
running o in the event of, for example, a train being cancelled, simply agreeing to
meet up an hour later when the next train is running.

Locations Finance
The potential issues that could come with locations is lighting, accessibility, legality
and entry costs, for the most part problems with actually occupying a space.
With the lighting I think the highest chance of it being a problem is if I find an
interesting and suitable location to have a photoshoot, but due to the time or general
lighting in the area it becomes difficult to get the image to look the way I want. I think
the best chance I have of getting around this is to make sure I have some form of
portable lighting I can take to locations to try and combat the natural lighting of the
area.
Accessibility could also be due to a health and safety concern as the area or location
might not be intended for public access and not have a safe way of getting there.
In terms of financing this project there’s actually quite a few things I need to consider
from the potential transport costs, getting the magazine printed and what paper I
want to use, live show entry tickets, figuring out how I could get music onto a
promotional CD, and how I could approach people in terms of advertising and
whether the magazine will be able to be free or what price point I should give it.
I’m going to look at the cost of printing in more depth on another slide in this
presentation to get a better grasp of what the costs might come up to depending on
the amount of copies I do, the amount of pages I’m hoping to reach and what weight
paper I want to use as I want this product to have a professional feel to it, and being
able to find quotes from different printing companies will be really useful for that.
I highly doubt that I will get extremely determined to take one of my models to a
place where we can’t safely get to or are legally not allowed to be, such as an
abandoned building or restricted area. There's definitely places around the city
where I can get the appearance and connotations of a derelict or desolate place. I
have much larger potential consequences than most people and taking the risk of
legal repercussions for a project is not something I can even entertain the idea of.
The last potential issue I have is entry fees into certain locations, which have talked
about in more detail in the finance section. However when I look for my locations it is
something that’s going to have to be taken into consideration, weighing out the costs
against how necessary it is that the photoshoot takes place at that location and what
similar alternative I can find that would be more financially beneficial.
As for creating a CD with a compilation of music from different artists, I don’t know
exactly how dedicated I am to the idea yet as It will require a lot of co-operation from
different people and I don’t know how realistic it is, however I know there's bands I
can contact that might need a CD designing would be willing to have it be paired with
my product. Even if they already had their own album art ready it would still require
being put together with the typography on the back of the case and I would have to
do some research into how to put an album design onto the actual CD.
Although I completely understand that a business might be unwilling to pay for
advertising in a student project, there’s still opportunity for me to be able to gain
some funds that will go towards printing and purchasing of all the materials I need.
I’ve already discussed the costs of transport in it’s own section, and with show entry
there’s definitely some that will be free and hopefully the ones that require paid
entry will be shows I would like to attend anyway.

Production Time Job Roles
I know I've had some problems when it comes to scheduling and layout when I need
to do certain pieces of work and I’m hoping my solution to this is going to make the
process run a lot smoother than it has in previous projects. The biggest issue with
print for me is that a lot of the time I need to have the image ready before I can start
editing the page together, as the image is a visual focal point of the spread ad it can
be really hard to know what direction to go in without it. To try and avoid this I’m
going to start planning my photoshoots to start during the planning stage of this
project, so that when production begins I already have multiple images that I can
start working on creating a page around and don’t have to waste any of my
production time.
During planning I will try to work out an expected page count so I can better plan
how much time I have and where extra work will need to be done outside of the
classroom, being able to know approximately how much time I would have to spend
on each page.
I think that the live performance aspects of it are going to have to be worked around,
as there’s more planning that goes into setting it up for the actual band. I will work
out when and how many live performances I want to attend for this project and
when it would be the smartest time for me to do that.
The social media aspect of this project can be handled by setting up an automatic
posting schedule, meaning that one I have curated content it will be uploaded
without me having to oversee it each time, meaning I can take out the time that it
would take to post individually up to three times a day.

Health & Safety Social Media
I’ve already talked about health and safety when it comes to the locations of
photoshoots in it’s own sections but there's still other factors to take into
consideration.
Traffic whether cars or on foot is something that might interrupt the efficiency and
safety of a shoot, as working near traffic can be dangerous and people could walk
into me and or the model. The best thing I can do to avoid either of these problems is
trying to find a time that still has the right lighting but is further out from peak travel
times in the local area.
Other issues include the weather, the potential for colds and low body temperatures
can be combated with hot drinks, gloves and warm clothing, as well as checking
ahead for the weather. The opposite end of the spectrum is sun burn and heat
stroke, which I can resolve by making sure that I have access to sun cream and plenty
of water to keep myself and any models that are with me hydrated.
The biggest theoretical problem I can think of when it comes to the social media
account is potentially having the account suspended, however I think the chances of
that are quite small unless someone that appears in any of the content chooses that
they do not wish to appear on the site and decides to report the content rather than
contact me about having it removed.
Other than that I think sadly the only other way is that due to this having to be a
public business profile, there won’t be anything I can do to prevent any immature
peers from trying to derail my work.
Besides the small chance of account suspension, something my tutor brought up that
could become an issue is the automatic posting options not wanting to work, as he
mentioned that some of his past students couldn’t set it up so that it would work for
them. Having content lined up to be posted throughout the day without my
supervision would be massively helpful as I wouldn’t have to interrupt my day to
One health and safety issue I might face is during live performances, as the genre I’m
focusing my project on has a reputation for having a rather violent audience and
concerts and shows can get physical. With another concern being the safety of my
equipment I’m going to try and avoid being in the depths of the crowd where I'm
more likely to get myself injured or talk to the band ahead of the show and see if
they would allow me to take their pictures from inside of the barrier or from on
stage, where I would be out of the way of the people attending.
upload every time. I will try to get an understanding of how the system works and set
up a few tester posts to make sure everything is working the way that it should be.
In the event that there is something preventing the system from working I will have
to adapt my posting schedule to make sure that the site is still running as smoothly as
possible without interrupting my production time.

Practical and Technical Problems
1. Equipment
2. Techniques (Research & development)
3. Storage
4. Power
5. Ability
6. Software
7. Backing up (protect your data)

Equipment Techniques (Research & development)
I think I have most of the equipment I’ll need for this project already available, and
will only need a few things to be booked out for college.
I have my phone that has a very clear camera that I can use ISO and shutter speed
settings on that will mean I can take photos if the opportunity arises suddenly and I
don’t have my camera with me.
I recently bought a Canon 700D which I will be using for all of my photography. I
wanted to make sure I have a DLSR of a good quality that would be able to do
everything I needed it to. With this camera I also bought a 18-55mm lens that will be
appropriate for all the shots I think I will need.
Having this camera means I already have one battery, charger and an SD card,
however I think for the days where I have a longer shoot, especially with a group of
people or if I have multiple photoshoots during one day I will try to book out an
Additional battery or SD card to make sure everything will be accommodated and I
don’t run out of space mid shoot.
I think I should be able to find different forms of portable lighting around the house,
as id rather not have to accommodate a studio light, as it would make finding
locations much more difficult.
I know I have a tripod at home that I’ve used for previous projects so I come to find
that I need to use one during a location shoots I will have that at my disposal.

Storage Power
There’s two kinds of storage I'm going to need for this which I have access to
personally but can also book out from the college if I feel it will be needed. I already
have an SD card to store images on before transferring them to the computer, but I
know that there’s chance I will run out of space on it before I get a chance to move
things from one device to the other. In the event of this I will be able to borrow an
addition card from college for a number of days during which I will have scheduled
photo shoots. I will also need to fid additional USB sticks to make sure I have
somewhere to store all of my footage that’s portable between my college and home
computer.
Besides the storage of files and images the only thing I need to concern myself over is
transporting my equipment and any costume or props I might want for my
In terms of power I don’t think I'm going to need a connection to a plug, as the
camera will be battery powered and along having my own I can book additional
batteries out from college when I think they will be necessary. As for lighting I think
for the most part my lighting will be coming from external sources, whether that’s
street lights, ambience lighting or stage lighting, they aren’t reliant on me to power
them. However where those sources aren’t available I know I will at the least have
my phone torch to try out different light intensities and work out which ones would
suit the image I'm trying to get the most. I’m going to experiment with different light
sources that might be more suitable for photoshoots with low level lighting, trying to
find items that give off different tones and temperatures of light. I can assume that
any of these items are likely to be battery powered, which can be something I can
Photoshoots. For the equipment I know I need to get hold of a proper camera bag so
that I can travel with the camera safely and protect it from any weather problems I
might run into. Besides that I can’t really imagine I will need anything that I won’t be
able to fit into my backpack or an additional carrier bag.
Include in my finance section of this PowerPoint.
The only other power I need to think about is making sure my phone battery is
always at a good level, as photography can easily drain a phones battery and leave
me without a way home or a way to contact anyone. The most I can do to make sure
that this doesn’t happen is to make sure that I always bring my charger with me and
take every opportunity to charge my phone, as well as bringing a power pack in the
event of not being able to find a working socket in the area.

Ability Software
When I'm at college I have access to the entire adobe suit and any software that I
could potentially need. The software I think that majority of my work will be done on
is Adobe Photoshop, Premier and InDesign. This may change once all of my
experiments and planning have been completed and I discover another piece of
software that I will require. As for working at home, I have Photoshop available and I
know that is where the majority of my work will take place, so I will be able to
continues production outside of college.

Backing up (protect your data) Access to College
There will be a range of devices that I will be storing my data on and I know already
that I need to improve the amount of back ups I have of my work as currently nearly
everything I have is saved on a singular USB stick.
Looking at images and footage I will need to transfer all of it on to my college mac,
most likely save it onto a USB so that I can have everything backed up at home as
well. Something I might consider with images is using google photos, as it allows me
to have access to them from any device I can log into my email from. Any images I
take on my phone due to not having access to my camera at the time will be
automatically back up onto google drive and available from anywhere. I will need to
check how transferring images onto that drive affects the quality and size of the
photographs but from what I can remember I think the quality stays as a high
standard.
As of last year, the college has begun to require anyone on site to be wearing a York
college lanyard to identify that they are meant to be on site. The regular students
have grey lanyards to make them easily identifiable by security and if someone is
noticed without some form of ID belonging to the college they can be asked to be
removed from the grounds. The issue that this might cause me is if I wanted to bring
in people that don’t attend college to the studio for a photoshoot. In order to avoid
this problem I would have to make sure that everything is going to work smoothly for
the day that I book the studio out for, ensuring that my tutor is aware that I plan on
bringing someone that doesn’t attend college into the building and following up with
them ahead of time to make sure that contact has been made with reception and
they have been informed that this is happening, as I wouldn’t be able to ask the
reception for a guest lanyard myself without some form of approval or prior notice
As for my presentations I think hat using a mixture of my current USB, google drive
and putting an updated copy of my FMP file onto my mac background at the end of
every week is going to ensure that there is no way that I can loose anything or end up
in a situation where I have an entire presentation to completely redo. The best way I
think is to use google drive as it saves automatically every time I make a change and
is accessible from anywhere.
From a member of staff. I would have to meet the model at the entrance to the
building and make sure their access is approved before leading them towards where
the studios are, avoiding any hassle with them not knowing where they are supposed
to be as they likely won’t have any knowledge of the layout of the building.

Problem solving

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