How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
1. How did you use new media
technologies in the construction and
research, planning and evaluation
stages?
2. Research and Planning
Through the planning and research of our project we used YouTube for many things.
These include things like uploading video clips and searching for existing ones. We
needed to search for existing horror trailers to compare them, listing the things we
liked and disliked. This helped us when deciding the things we wanted to include in
our own trailer. To ensure that we knew the types of things featured in the horror of
genre we had to create a mood board which again we used YouTube to search for
previous trailers and clips to include. YouTube was also used to upload our audience
research videos that we had created for our research and planning. We created
these mood boards using a website called Prezi. However Prezi was not only used for
this, but one of our group members also used it to present their viral marketing
campaign research. This group member also had a Nexus and so we decided to use
this to make notes for things we needed to do etc. We decided to use this as it was
easily portable and so could be taken around and edited at anytime. All of our
progress was posted onto our college media studies blog. This meant that our
teacher would be able to see the progress we were making but it was also a way that
the group members could communicate with each other with things like suggestions
on things we could include or do next.
3. Research and Planning
Also through the research and planning we used things like Microsoft Word, Google,
ImageShack and a camera. We used Microsoft Word to create call sheets which
featured what we needed to film and the things we needed to bring to the filming
sessions. Not only this but the call sheets included the risks that could occur during
the filming. A risk assessment was completed using an Excel document which
featured all of the risks which may have occurred but it also featured the rating of
the risk, either high (red), medium (amber) or low (green). To ensure that everything
was kept in one place so that all members of the group could access it, as a group we
created a Google account for ‘The Feeling’. We used this Google account for things
like the calendar which we used to plan and take note of the dates and times we
would be filming and the location. To ensure that we knew the places we would be
filming, a member of our group conducted a location scouting which they used the
Google Maps feature for, this also assisted us when creating the risk assessment as
we were able to look at the location and the surrounding areas, looking for the
potential risks. The Google account also enabled us to be able to upload group
discussions that we had made but also check our group emails which may have been
from websites we had joined. ImageShack is a website we uploaded our images to, in
order for us to be able to upload them onto our college media blog. The types of
images we uploaded to this website were things like images to make the storyboard
for the planning and the images taken for the location scouting. The images were
taken using an Olympus bridge camera, held steady with a tri-pod. This camera was
used for filming things like our audience feedback video, which we conducted in
order to get information about the things people liked and disliked about our ideas.
Not only did we use this camera but one of our group members also used the
camera on their phone in order to take some of the images for the location scouting.
4. Construction
In terms of the construction we used both Adobe Premier Elements and Adobe
Photoshop. The Premier elements was used to edit the clips we had previously taken
together. Using this software meant that we had the use of different animation's and
effects etc. that other software couldn’t provide us with. This was also the case with
Photoshop, as this provided us with much more professional effects, especially when
it came to superimposing the image of the girl and her dog into the eye. However it
was not only used for the poster but we also decided to use it for the magazine.
ImageShack was again used to upload images in order for us to be able to then
upload them onto the blog, showing the progress of the products. Featured in the
construction of our viral marketing campaign we created both a Twitter and a
Facebook page, to increase the awareness of our product. When uploading anything
to our Twitter page, the same post would appear onto our Facebook page and so this
saved us time on our viral marketing campaign. Not only did we use the Twitter page
to create awareness but we also used it to post our progress from each product,
every so often giving the audience a tiny amount of information about what was
happening.
5. Construction
To add to the Twitter page we had also created a Facebook page as well. As before,
both of these pages were linked and so when anything was posted on Twitter it
would appear on the Facebook page. Again the Facebook page was used for
uploading the progress we were making in order for us to give the audience little
insights into the progression of the products. The main and very important piece of
equipment that we used in the construction was the Olympus camera and tripod we
had already previously used for the planning and the research. The camera was used
to take the clips featured in the trailer but it was also used to take some of the
images for the poster and the magazine front cover. We not only edited the images
using Adobe Photoshop but we also decided that an online editing website called
‘Ribbet.com’ gave us some really good effects that were not as easy to achieve on
Photoshop. We used ribbet.com to edit the inside eye image of the girl and her dog,
to give it the bright red effect, contrasting against the black and white background
image. However ribbet.com was not only used for the poster but it was also used to
edit the image of the girl and the stalker for the magazine front cover. Not only this
but we also used it to edit an image of the stalker that is featured in the trailer, to
give a surprise to the viewer. Using this online editing website is much easier and
quicker to use but can give the same good effects. Once the trailer had been
completed it was then uploaded to YouTube, this meant that we could then upload it
to the blog and it could then also be viewed by our audience either on YouTube or
once we had uploaded it to Facebook and Twitter.
6. Construction
As Google is one of the main search engines on the internet, this is what we used to
search for things like our social networking sites when constructing our viral
marketing campaign. Not only this but we also used Google to refer back to when
making sure when had included everything we had written down in our discussions.
One of our group members had a Nexus and so this was very useful to us during the
construction of our products. We decided that we would for example, take the Nexus
with us while we were filming so that we could refer back to our notes to ensure
again that nothing had been forgotten. As well as using the same Olympus camera
for filming, we also used on of our group members phone to take the image of the
eye for the poster, as this device gave us a much clearer close-up image which gave a
much nicer and clearer final product.
7. Evaluation
We had four questions in total to answer for the evaluation of our
coursework. We decided to present all four questions in a Prezi. Prezi is a
website that enables people to present their work in a more interesting
way, featuring things like pathways, animations and colourful and
interesting backgrounds etc. All four of our questions had to include lots of
different media and so this is what we aimed to achieve. We also decided to
use Prezi to create a mind map for question 1. This question involved us
looking at the things we used, challenged and developed in our products.
For question two of the evaluation we decided to use Weebly which
enables people to create free online websites. Question 2 involves looking
at the viral marketing side of our coursework, this Weebly website includes
things like print screened images and commentary of the trailer, poster, viral
marketing and the magazine front cover. This PowerPoint presentation is for
Question 4 which has involved looking at all of the different media
technologies we have used. As the evaluation as a whole had to include lots
of different media types, this is why we decided on a PowerPoint
presentation. This presentation was then uploaded to a website called
slideshare which is a website that presentations can be uploaded to. Finally
for question 3 of the evaluation we decided record an audience feedback
video which was filmed using the same Olympus camera.
8. Evaluation
In the production of the evaluation, before we started to construct it we planned
it all using either a Word document or our group members Nexus. This again
meant that when constructing the evaluation we could then refer back to the
notes to ensure that nothing had been forgotten. This planning consisted of
things like deciding which types people we were going to use for which question
and how many groups we were going to use for the audience research video. As
well as referring back to the notes on the Nexus and the Word document, we also
used the notes we had made on our Google account. Finally, once all of the clips
had been filmed for the Question 3 audience feedback video they were then all
put together using Windows Movie Maker, also using voice over which we
recorded to go over the top of the clips.
