Digital technologies were used extensively throughout the research, planning, construction, and evaluation stages of creating a documentary. Internet browsers allowed for researching existing documentaries on YouTube and finding supporting articles and statistics. Communication apps facilitated discussion and planning. A Canon HD camera, tripod, and clip-on mic were used for shooting high quality footage. Adobe Premiere Pro was used to edit footage, add transitions, and adjust sound and color levels. Microsoft Word, InDesign, Photoshop, and GarageBand were used to create ancillary texts like a magazine article and radio trailer linking to the documentary. Blogger, Prezi, and other programs helped record and present the process professionally.

1. Q4. How did you use digital
technologies in the construction,
Research and Planning and
evaluation stages?

2. Research and Planning
In order to recreate a professional documentary that resembles
a true media product, we had to research and fully understand
the conventions of existing documentaries. This was only
accessible through the use of internet explorer or safari (when
using the Mac computers). We used this digital technology in
order to view existing documentaries on YouTube. Just by using
the search bar tool to find documentaries to watch and analyse.

3. Research and Planning
Also with access to internet explorer or safari, depending on
computer type, we were able to research and dig deep into our
topic and find statistics and newspaper articles to support our
polemical documentary. This helped us create a reliable
documentary as we stuck to using articles that came from well
known news reporters such as the BBC and the Telegraph. The
newspaper articles we found were also used in cutaway shots to
help create our authentic, professional documentary.

4. Research and Planning
As well as You Tube, we also used 4OD in order to access existing
documentary; ‘Sexting teacher’. This documentary was crucial in
the making of our documentary as the product had a similar
target audience to us as a group, as they were appealing to a
younger audience but still wanted to attract an older audience
such as parents and teachers concerned with the topic
discussed.

5. Research and Planning
Our Research and Planning relied heavily on the use of
communication. So apps such as ‘Whatsapp’, ‘Facebook’ and
‘Twitter’ saved to our smart phones made it extremely easy to
discuss ideas, meeting times and arranging filming times, as the
conversation was accessible to us all, wherever we were,
through the use of a mobile phone to access these apps and
conversations.

6. Construction
Arguably, the most important digital technology we used was the
Canon HD camera in order to shoot our clear, sharp footage
which helped make our documentary look so professional. The
use of a tripod helped create steady, professional footage and
good balance when filming Vox pops, expert interviews and
archive footage. However, when filming our background footage
such as the students in the canteen we regularly used hand held
filming as it created a more laid back and fun aspect to the
documentary, looking as though the camera was a fly on the wall
in the students friendship group.

7. Construction
We also used a clip on Mic upon filming our expert interviews
and Vox pops as we found that this Mic gave us the most clear
voice recording and sound levels were good when using this Mic.
However we found that when using the clip on Mic it was
sometimes visible in the footage frame and sometimes when
clipped onto the interviewees clothes, there was a ruffling sound
that fortunately was easy to edit out.

8. Construction
In our editing stages we used Adobe Premiere Pro to log and edit
our footage to create smooth transitions and create the basis of
our documentary. The programme allowed us to find the footage
with the highest quality aesthetically and cut them, add
transitions and editing sound levels which was needed when
editing the interview clips and archive footage.

9. Construction
When searching through our footage we found that a lot of our
archive footage and an orangey tint. This orangey tint made the
footage appear unprofessional at times as the image was not
sharp, but saturated. To solve this we added a blue overlay on
Adobe Premiere to the image, to neutralize the image and create
a clear, sharp footage result. This added to professionalism of the
documentary.

10. Construction
The cut tool was extremely effective when creating certain
footage such as the makeover scene. This was effective as the
tool allowed us to crop out any imperfections; for example a
man walking across the scene, and the tripods handle moved
causing the footage to drop down, however by using the cut tool
we were able to crop this out and create still footage.

11. Construction
We also used the ‘video effects’ tool when perfecting the split
screen at the end of the makeover scene in order to correct the
backgrounds and mesh them together to create, what appears to
be one single image rather than it visibly being 2 separate
images put along side each other.

12. Construction
Within the making of our interviews we wanted to create a
professional look by adding in the use of captions, when showing
our expert interviews, to introduce who are interviewee is to the
audience, and follow the conventions of existing documentaries.
In order to do this we created an overlay to form a white
background for our text. We then used the ‘T’ text tool to write
our caption. To improve visibility we made our text black so it
juxtaposed with the background and stood out and was clear.

13. Construction
Sound levels were crucial to perfect and were arguably the
longest and most complex part of the editing process, not so
much through technique, but through the need for perfection in
this area. When editing the sound levels even the slightest
difference could be recognised between clips, as they had been
filmed in different settings and recording different voices.
However, having correct sound levels was crucial in creating a
strong professional product.

14. Construction
Within the construction of the double page spread, we used
programmes such as InDesign and Photoshop to manipulate
images, layout and to create professionalism between the 3
media texts. We had practise and foundation knowledge of using
these programmes and I had a more developed knowledge of
Photoshop through my work in A-Level photography.

15. Construction
In our magazine production we used Photoshop to manipulate
the images we took as screenshots from our documentary
product and manipulated them in order to create a more clear
image through the use of ‘brightness and contrast’ and the
changing of levels and saturation. We did this for our main image
and our subsidiary images.

16. Construction
In the writing of the magazine article we created this on
Microsoft word, however the manipulation of the text was done
on InDesign through the use of the ‘columns’ tool and the ‘place’
tool when copying the text over to InDesign. During this step we
decided to create 3 columns to a page of text and a drop cap
(performed by using the drop cap tool) as this was informed to
us by ‘Radio Times’ magazine, as this was the chosen magazine
we wanted to exhibit our product.

17. Construction
The text wrap tool enabled us to create pull quotes amongst our
text to draw attention from the readers and establish the topic of
the article by just a quick glance at the page. We chose an
emotive quote from the documentary, in order to attract more
attention from the audience.

18. Construction
We only used one different programme in the creation of our
radio trailer; Garage band. It was our first time in using this
particular programme and so our knowledge of the programme
was severely sparse. However, the programme effectively
enabled us to have a regular convention SFX at the start and
finish of our trailer and allowed us to use the same background
music, which helped us to create a more clear link and house
style between the ancillary texts. We also used premiere in order
to take sound from our documentary archive footage and
interviews, again, helping us to create a house style and an
informative documentary radio trailer that included all the
possible information needed, such as airing times of the
documentary, what channel its on and the date of airing.

19. Evaluation
The use of programmes such as blogger, Prezi, PowerPoint,
Infogram and Microsoft word have been extremely effective
amongst the recording of our documentary process as it enabled
us to report all our progress back to blogger and so all our work
was organised and visually pleasing rather than in rough notes
and hard to read. The recording of our work was also presented
professionally and showed clearly how we worked together
sufficiently as a group.