A2 MEDIA EVALUATION QUESTION 4

1. HOW DID YOU USE NEW
MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES IN
THE CONSTRUCTION AND
RESEARCH, PLANNING
AND EVALUATION
STAGES?
QUESTION 4:

2. USE OF TECHNOLOGY WITHIN THE
PORTFOLIO
Last year I was introduced to professional industry software's like Adobe Photoshop or Final
Cut Pro. That’s when I began to get a slight idea of how the industry works and what is
necessary to know when planning to work in the media field. However, this year I believe I
gained more knowledge of different technologies and developed my understanding. Across
the different production stages I have relied on technology as a tool to complete my work,
whether research, planning or evaluation based. Therefore I was required to learn about
them in order to use it effectively and complete my work to the best standard.

3. RESEARCH AND PLANNING
•BLOGGER
•YOU TUBE
•GOOGLE
•MICROSOFT

4. BLOGGER
I used Blogger throughout all of the production stages.
It was an effective tool which allowed me to record my
research, my planning and progress of the production as
well as evaluate my work.
During the research tasks I was able to explore and record
my findings about popular media theory as well as the
beginnings of music videos. I also looked at the gradual
development of music videos and how they evolved over
time.
In the planning posts I was able to organise my ideas and
record what my peer and I wanted to achieve in our final
product.
Blogger also allowed me to reflect on my work through
the evaluation.
Overall I learnt how to create a blog, post on it and make
it look good for the reader by using options available.

5. YOU TUBE
I used You Tube throughout all of the production
stages in order to find relevant videos to my
production and ones which could enrich my
research.
It was an effective tool which allowed me to research
into different music videos which I could implement
into my blogs during research. I was also able to look
at the different genres of music due to the rich
collection of videos You Tube allowed me to access.
During the planning stages You Tube was a useful
platform which allowed me to look at similar
products and gain inspiration. It was also a good way
to visualise my ideas through previous works and
gather videos together in my posts.

6. GOOGLE
I used Google throughout all of the production stages in
order to research theory, terminologies, images which
accompanied my blog and general information which
were necessary towards my production.
It was an easy and efficient search tool which enabled
me to access reliable information quickly and at any
moment. It was also helpful in terms of researching the
historical context of music industry and allowed me to
find out about the beginnings of music videos which I
recorded on my post.
From this I learnt how to gain credible research and
found trustworthy sources which gave me reliable
information. This allowed me to gain an understanding
of how to process information and what are the common
elements of credible sources which I can use later on in
life.

7. MICROSOFT
I used Microsoft Word in order to create my
questionnaire which allowed me to gain relevant
feedback on my initial idea and a direct response from
my intended target audience. The program, was easy to
use and allowed me to create a proficient questionnaire
quickly which was useful to my planning process. After I
have gathered my questionnaires I began to record the
results using Microsoft Excel which allowed me to
visualise my results in pie charts and bar charts. This was
useful as using this data I could present my opinions to
my peers and both of us got to debate what would work
for our production best.
I learnt how to collect primary data and present them in
a sophisticated manner which is often needed when
working in the industry.

8. CONSTRUCTION
• CAMERA
• TRIPOD
• SD CARD
• FINAL CUT PRO
• PHOTOSHOP
• 1001 FONTS
• YOUTUBE

9. CAMERA
I used a Canon camera which enabled me to film my production
as well as take pictures for the advert as well as the digipak.
Despite using a camera for my thriller opening last year, this
time I was able to use professional settings available on the
camera. For example I was able to change the exposure and
colour efficiency which allowed us to film a good quality
footage. On top of that I also learnt how to ‘pull focus’ and blur
out the background, thus shooting a proficient footage which
was ready for editing. At first I struggled to pull the focus
fluently but after a few tries I was able to do it effectively.
The camera also allowed me to take images for the advert and
digipak which were then manipulated.
From using this camera I learnt how to shoot proficient footage
which would be industry suited and take sophisticated images
using all the settings available in the camera options.

10. TRIPOD
I used a tripod in order to steady the footage
and take fluent shots which wouldn’t be
disturbed. The tripod also allowed me to take
clear panning and tilt shots as well as different
sizes and angles which added a variety to our
product. This was useful and helped to develop
my cinematography knowledge and filming
skills.
This year I learnt that I am much more capable
of using the tripod and I am able to use it
effectively.

11. SD CARD
Despite using an SD card in my last production,
this year I gained more knowledge about the
usage of memory cards and how the memory
can affect the quality of the footage. For the
music video production and the ancillary
products I used the 32GB card which enabled us
to take spare footage and more photos of better
quality than last year.
This knowledge is useful because in the industry
quality of footage is key to create a
sophisticated product therefore I need to know
how to take quality footage.

12. FINAL CUT PRO
I used Final Cut Pro last year, however for this production I was much
more confident when using the program. The footage we shoot was
proficient and easy to edit which allowed the editing process to run
smoothly.
By using the ‘Overlay’ technique and changing the opacity of both
images I was able to place the face of a clock over London Eye which
created a unique effect to our product. I also learnt how to remove
background from a footage to make it transparent and add it on top of
another image which creates a realistic illusion.
Another technique, which I learnt from using Final Cut Pro to edit my
music video, was the rain effect which created a realistic illusion of
rain. This allowed us to add a dramatic effect to the video and followed
the dark and sad themes of our production. Overall during this
production I have developed my basic understanding of editing and
prepared myself for any further work.

13. 1001 FONTS
1001 Fonts is a website which provides different styles of
writing, available to copy or download. There is a wide range
available for any style, genre or occasion. After looking though
many different typographies I have finally settled for a feminine
font which was used consistently when writing Sarsha’s name
which will be recognised as her signature. Another font I have
embedded in the ancillary products was a bolder font which was
used to write information on the advert and track list and quote
on the digipak. The use of these fonts allowed us to fit the genre
of our product and keep a consistent look to our designs. It is an
effective website and has easy options. I was able to access the
fonts whenever I needed to and copy it into other programs
where I could manipulate them more.

14. PHOTOSHOP
We used Adobe Photoshop in order to manipulate the
images which were used for our digipak. The program
allowed me to create a sophisticated design which would
work along my video and advert. Photoshop is a
professional way used to edit images in the industry
therefore I gained crucial experience which I could use
later on. I learnt how to use the ‘Liquify’ technique which
creates a copy of an image and can later be manipulated
to create a smoke effect or other relevant effects. I also
learnt about how to properly layout a digipak in order to
suit it for purpose.
At first I struggled with the options available on Photoshop
but soon I got a good idea of how the options work and
the tools available. The Liquify tool was unavailable at first
but after following some instructions from You Tube
comments I managed to find my way around it and use it.

15. PHOTOSHOP
This is another example
where I used Adobe
Photoshop effectively in
order to create a
sophisticated design for our
advert. I still applied the
smoke effect tutorial but I
used contrast and different
channels in order to add
some colour to the design.

16. YOUTUBE
I used You Tube again during the construction stage. This is because I have found relevant tutorials which enabled me to edit
my pictures in Photoshop. At first I have experimented with the ‘Smoke Effect’. The tutorial I found was clear and taught me
step by step how to create the effect. I learnt about how to use the ‘Liquify’ tool and how brushes can create various effects.

17. YOUTUBE
These are the images I have created after following the tutorial mentioned in the last frame.

18. YOUTUBE
I also looked at the Disintegration Effect tutorial on You Tube which I used when drafting my advert. The effect is fairly similar
to the smoke effect however you are required to sue different brushes to create the ‘shatter’ look. I was able to use more
complex tools in Photoshop and develop my understanding of the program. These are screenshots from the tutorial.

19. YOUTUBE
These are the images I have created after following the tutorial mentioned in the last frame.

20. EVALUATION
• WINDOWS MOVIE
MAKER
• SOCIAL MEDIA
• PREZI
• SOUND CLOUD
• YOU TUBE
• SLIDESHARE

21. WINDOWS MOVIE MAKER
I used Windows Movie Maker in order to present my
work in a more creative way and get an idea of what
working on other technologies feels like. This is
because it is important that I, as a media student, have
a general idea of as many technologies as I can for
future reference.
Last year I was limited by the program and couldn’t
evaluate my work in a presentable enough way.
However this year I have created a PowerPoint slide
show which I was able to transfer into JPEG and save
as pictures which were then placed into movie maker.
From this I learnt how to format slides into pictures
and use as images instead of word documents.

22. SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media was an important platform which allowed me to
monitor the success of my product and gain relevant feedback
from my audience as well as other people. Platforms like
Facebook or Instagram are easy to access and work on a global
scale which allowed me to share my work quickly with people
around the world and ask for feedback.
The feedback was beneficial as my peer and I were able to see
the success of our product and realised that it was appealing and
liked by many. At first I thought that social media was used solely
for entertainment but I was surprised with the amount of
feedback we received and reviews from different viewers.

23. PREZI
I used Prezi in order to discuss the way my
ancillary products and how these developed
over the creative process. Prezi allowed me to
create a sophisticated presentation with
interesting transitions and pretty designs.
I learnt how to set up my account and
personalise it as well as how to create a
professional presentation. I developed my skills
from last year and now created an effective
demonstration about my products.
Screenshot !!

24. SOUND CLOUD
I utilized Sound Cloud in order to record verbal
feedback from my focus group members. The
feedback were both positive and negative which
allowed me to reflect on my production and
overall success.
From this I learnt how to record feedback and
then upload them on my posts. However at first I
struggled to place them on Blogger. I tackled this
issues by looking up at tutorials on You Tube and
at last uploaded the audio feedback.

25. YOU TUBE
I used You Tube again in order to upload
my final music video and the evaluation
question. After uploading the video on
You Tube I was able to see the comments,
views and likes (or dislikes) my video
received. This allowed me to measure
further success and gain more feedback
which was useful and helped me to reflect
on my work.

26. SLIDE SHARE
I utilized Slide Share in order to upload one of my
evaluation questions which looked at the use of
microelements across my production.
This was beneficial as the program allowed me to
analyse my product in depth. The question was
created on Power Point first but then converted
into the Slide Share in order to allow me upload it
on Blogger later. I learnt how to upload my Power
Point presentation on Slide Share and how to
embed a presentation and place it on Blogger.

27. CONCLUSION
Overall I believe that I have gained crucial knowledge about the different technologies used
within the industry. Despite knowing the basics of some of these programs I am now far
more confident when working on them. For example I am ,much better at editing photos on
Photoshop than I was before and have a rough idea of the program which could be useful for
future reference. I am now a lot more confident in using Final Cut Pro which is an industry
software too.
It is important to use various technologies because the industry requires and demands such
skills. I believe that now I am much more prepared for future work.