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1. Q4. HOW DID YOU USE MEDIA
TECHNOLOGIES IN THE
CONSTRUCTION, RESEARCH
AND PLANNING AND
EVALUATION STAGES?

2. Research and planning.
In order to create an informative and interesting documentary it was
important for us to find out as much information regarding our topic of
social stereotypes. To conduct our research we used the internet a lot
as it gave us quick access to useful statistics and newspapers with
relating articles. To keep the research as reliable as possible we decided
to stick to reliable sources such as the BBC and the telegraph.

3. Research and planning.
In order to find appropriate archive footage we decided to use Youtube
as it gave us the opportunity to highlight specific scenes which related
to our topic, for example the St. Trinians make over scene and the
Mean Girls cafeteria scene.

4. Research and planning.
Another source we used in order to conduct our research was 4OD as
we used it to watch existing documentary, 'Sexting teacher' in order to
find conventions in which we could either challenge or conform to. It
also helped us to understand how to write up a script for our voiceover
as we could see how the existing documentaries are set out.

5. Research and planning.
Although we did use some technologies during the research and
planning stages it was best for our group to use non- technological
methods in order to plan our documentary. For example we drew up
story boards in order to plan out our initial thoughts for the
documentary.

6. Research and planning.
In order to keep on top of our research we used programmes such as
Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp as it meant we could contact each
other outside of college and arrange times in which we could all work
together. Using these simple technologies meant that we could all work
together in a group and make important technical decisions regarding
the production of the documentary together.

7. Construction.
One of the main technologies used during the construction stages was
the Canon HD camera as it gave us the professional clear footage that
we needed to create an authentic documentary. Also, we used a tripod
throughout to enable us to create clear and steady shots however for
faster paced shots we felt that a handheld camera was more effective.
We also used a clip on mic during our voxpop and expert interviews as
it gave us the best sound quality however occasionally it caused for a
rustling sound which we generally could easily edit out with ease.

8. Construction.
In order to edit we used Adobe Premier Pro on an iMac. Firstly we
logged each and every clip onto the computer and then watched them
to find the clips with the highest quality. When we had finished this
Premier Pro helped us to edit each clip by precisely cutting them,
adding transitions and editing sound levels which was crucial for our
different voxpop interviews due to the background noise in the
background.

9. Construction.
In order to create specific scenes it was important to use the clip and
the cut tool to create an effective image. One example of this is the
makeup transformation of Beth in which we placed two images side to
side to clearly highlight the different stereotypes and the simple steps
you take in order to change what stereotypical group you belong to.
Also we had to use the 'video effects' tool as the background of the two
images were different and we edited them in order to make the two
images look as though it is one.

10. Construction.
During our documentary we wanted to follow the conventions of real
existing media texts by including captions in our expert interviews. To
do this we created an overlay for the interview and added in the name
of our expert over a white background so that it would clearly stand
out to the audience.

11. Construction.
Due to the fact each of our scenes were shot at different times and in
different places each of our sound levels were different and it was vital
that we edited each of our clips in order to even out the sound levels to
keep our documentary as professional as possible. Sound levels were
the longest and hardest thing to perfect as even a slight difference
between the clips could easily be heard and so it made it even more
important that we got the levels completely correct.

12. Construction.
As an ancillary media product we created a double page spread to advertise our
documentary. To create this we used Photoshop and Indesign, programmes
which we had used last year during our AS foundation portfolio. In order to
promote the documentary we used screenshots from the documentary as the
main and secondary images within the article and edited them using photoshop.
Again, due to using this programme during our foundation portfolio it was simple
to edit these photographs effectively.

13. Construction.
Text wrapping was important for us as part of the double page spread
as the secondary images needed to fit within the article, however the
article still needed to flow as professionally as possible. We also
needed to make use of this tool when we placed a pull quote within
the article so that the text within the columns still read correctly.

14. Construction.
Although the article was written on Microsoft word the actual article
was put together on Indesign as we split the pages up into the
conventional 3 column layout and then used the column tool to create
the space for the article to fit into. We also featured a drop cap and
colour accents using the different tools on Indesign to create the most
realistic double page spread possible. Using this programme was simple
as we had experience with it from last year, however the end result
from our advanced portfolio was much more professional than that of
the AS portfolio.

15. Construction.
To create our radio trailer we had to use garage band and Premier Pro
and although we had experience with Premier it was hard at first to get
used to Garage Band due to the different technologies that we were
not used to. However, throughout the production of the radio trailer
Garage Band was useful because it helped us to conform to the
convention of having SFX at the start and finish of our trailer and also
to keep with the same backing track as the documentary. Premier Pro
helped us in gaining archive footage to use as clips for the radio trailer
such as the voiceover and some voxpop clips.

16. Throughout the entire process technologies such as Blogger, Infogram,
Prezi, Powerpoint and word have been extremely useful as they have
helped us to record our progress in an organised and professional way
as everything is recorded onto our blog. Other sources such as
Powtoon have been beneficial in keeping our blog fun and entertaining
to read, which was important to us as we felt as though our
documentary and our ancillary texts are all fun and upbeat and we
wanted to convey a similar message within our blog.