Question 6: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Question 6: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

At the start of the year I was completely new to Media and didn’t even know how to turn a Mac computer on but throughout the project I have learnt about the technologies. I have developed a variety of skills such as using blogger, using the cameras and using the Macs as well as many more.

From the beginning of the project I began to learn about the different technologies and develop my understanding of Media. Using the Macs I believed was going to be the hardest because I was completely new to it and unsure of how to use them. At first I was slightly confused about how to use them but as we continued the project my confidence grew and I feel I can now use them without worrying. There are still times when I am not one hundred per cent sure of what to do but I ask and then learn.

I had also never used the software Adobe Premiere that we used to edit our sequence. This was very hard to use at first and I was slightly overwhelmed about all the components I needed to learn. I began to explore and learn about ways to cut the footage we filmed as well as add in sound etc. With the help of the teachers and fellow members in the class I soon developed my understanding and felt more confident.

Using this software I was able to cut the footage in our sequence so that it flowed nicely and wasn't jumpy. I had to make sure the cuts were precise in order for the sequence to look effective and professional. This enable us to create more of a meaning in our piece because the shots would flow building up the tension and keeping the audience engaged. It also meant the atmosphere was built because the sequence made sense and the narrative was displayed.

By learning how to edit correctly it also gave us the ability to add in flashbacks of the male character creating the meaning in the piece. I discovered how to change the shot colour to black and white which expresses how it is something that has happened in the past. This allowed us to portray many shots to the audience of the female getting flashbacks of the male and how she is extremely affected by what she has done. It indicates that see is worried and cant get it out of her head. Therefore my editing skills helped to provide something unique to the sequence and make the audience feel a connection with the female because they are beginning to get an insight into what she is seeing.

 

Additionally even though I had previously used a DSLR camera similar to the camera we used it was still a new technology for me to use and develop my skills in. For our opening sequence to be effective we needed precise shots that were creative and help reinforce the story therefore I needed to practice having a steady hand so that the shots were not shaky and being able to use the tripod effectively. I found it very easy to set up the equipment however I had to practice the filming because my shots were sometimes out of focus and shaky meaning they were bad quality. I tried to be more creative when filming and capture the subject better.

Once I was confident in using the camera it meant the sequence would be able to display more of an accurate meaning. It would result in my filming being less shaky meaning it gave a more professional look. To add to this my knowledge of shot types improved meaning I could create more imaginative shots expressing the storyline. This meant my sequence then created a better meaning of the fact that the girl has done something wrong but is trying to hide behind the typical stereotype of a female. This is effective because the shots allow information to be withheld meaning the atmosphere is build in the sequence and the audience ask themselves more questions about who the female is and what has she done.

Blogger also played an important part in helping me to display all of my work. Throughout the project I have had to think of news way to demonstrate my work rather than just having all text. Therefore I went onto different websites that I could use to help me such as prezi and exam time. I had never used either of these before meaning they were completely new to me however I now believe I can confidently use them in an inventive way. Prezi is probably my strength and I feel I can easily add in text and images to analyse my work or highlight different components of a media product. I also have established how to use tube chop which is when you can cut sections of a video to show a particular part. This was especially important when trying to back up the evidence of what I was saying as well as use it to compare two different sequences and look how my opening sequence was different. I had to then use these different elements to make my blog interesting and attractive to the audience and make it visually appealing.

These helped me to create meaning in my work. The reason for this was because I was able to make my work visual so the audience were able to analyse my opening sequence and study how well it went. It allowed me to create something interactive for the audience and something they would enjoy looking at. I also tried to make my blog suitable for my target audience by using sophisticated but interesting designs to grab their attention.

 

 

 

Even though technologies took time to adapt to and learn about, we also had to be careful about using them effectively and making sure we had enough time to create our sequence. We had to be efficient with our time and carefully plan out exactly what we were going to do in order for it to be of a high standard. I believe this is where we went slightly wrong in the project. We decided on times when we were going to film and mostly stuck to these however where we were new with the technology we didn’t focus even though to get the shots precise. I feel we rushed and this resulted in a poor sequence. Therefore we had to continue to re shot to get the sequence right. This meant we wasted time and had less time for editing. However when we slowed down and checked the shots as we were going it resulted in a better opening sequence.

 

To add to this the use of planning our storyboards in our sequence was very important. Once we had our idea we had to produce storyboards displaying all the shots we were going to film. This would enable us to check we had enough shots and that the narrative was clearly shown. At this stage we produced good storyboards however I feel we didn't have enough inventive shots to create meaning in the piece. The shots didn't flow particular well resulting in a lack meaning in our original sequence.  Therefore we should have developed our use of using the storyboards further so that we didn't have to re-shot and change the narrative of our sequence. This would have saved lots of time and a sequence that created an atmosphere would have been displayed.

 

 

Without certain technologies our opening sequence wouldn’t be the same. For example the music is essential to help create an atmosphere in the piece and websites such as Sound cloud and free sound enable us to do this. Music was a key part of our sequence and it helped to create a mood and atmosphere within the sequence. The sound was something that continued to play throughout our sequence and helped demonstrate the genre of the film. Without this our scene would be plain and boring and the audience would not feel anything from the sequence.


 Previously there have not been free resources like this, which would have made it a lot harder for us to find the sound we wanted. If YouTube allows didn’t exist it would not have allowed us to compare and capture screenshots of the videos meaning our work could not be very visual. Therefore these new technologies have provided us with the ability to create a more interesting opening sequence but most importantly a more meaningful sequence.