The use of media technologies has been vital in the production of both my main and ancillary texts. Throughout production i have used software such as final cut pro and Photoshop to help edit and shape my final product, whilst i have also used things like the internet in order to collect research and aid in the inspiration/planning of my product.
The first piece of technology i used was the website YouTube. By using YouTube i was able to watch music videos from the genre i wanted to portray and this allowed me to see and record the typical conventions used throughout the genre. For example via YouTube i was able to watch several Ed Sheeran videos in which he is pictured singing whilst playing his instrument. This then gave me the idea to include this in my own music video and use it as a recurring convention. I then repeated this process with other videos from the singer-songwriter genre until i was able to to visualise my own idea for a music video and start to plan it via story-boarding. By using YouTube i was also able to look at the comments of these videos in order to gain an understanding of the target audience. This helped me to shape the design of my digipak and magazine advert to then appeal to this audience. The comments on videos of the original song massively helped me with my research as i was able to gather opinions from a range of different people from around the world. This combined with my primary research provided me with the information needed to optimise my products for my target audience. For example, i decided to include the "real" relationship in my video and make it seem more of a personal video because of the comments i had read on the original video.
During the construction of my music video the most integral technology i used was a video camera. Through this i was able to record the various shots and angles used for my music video. By combining this with a tripod i was able to record steady shots and because the camera is handheld i was then able to quickly move and adjust it for any desired shot. By using the pause/record it allowed me to easily record individual segments without having to stop recording entirely. After all the required footage was recorded i could then upload it via a USB cable to an apple computer. From here i was able to edit my footage and audio together using another important program: Final Cut Pro.
Earlier on my blog i explained what i had learnt by completing a preliminary task in final cut pro in which me and 2 others filmed and edited a short segment to the song "3 lions". I used this acquired knowledge and applied it to the editing process of my own music video. After uploading my footage i was able to select various clips and drag them into the view in order for me to cut out the required shot using the "mark in" and "mark out" tool. From here i could then drag the desired cropped clip onto the timeline where i then spent time trying to match the lip-syncing from my video to the actual song lyrics. By having the audio of my song already on the timeline i was then able to determine when to change shots in the video due to hearing the beat of the song. By cutting to the beat i was able to make my video seem more realistic and therefore more effective. The entirety of my video was edited and constructed in final cut pro which shows my reliance on it to deliver a successful product.
For both of my ancillary products i used the program Photoshop. As expressed in an earlier blog post i also performed an ancillary task in order to develop my skills in the program and then translate these skills into the production of my texts. After gathering the various images i wanted to use for both my digipak and magazine advert i was able to do things like cut out the images using the magic wand tool in conjunction with the feather tool to place a smooth looking cut out of the artists head onto each of the products. I also demonstrated earlier on my blog how i came about making an image which breaks the artists head into seperate puzzle pieces by merging the layers of different images. All of this was accomplished in Photoshop and so this and Final Cut Pro proved to be extremely useful in the production of all 3 of my texts.
When it comes to the evaluation i once again turned to Youtube as that is where i uploaded my finished music video in order to showcase it on my blog. From here i received comments on my video about what people liked/disliked about my video. From these comments i was able to gauge the general reaction to my video and whether it was successful or not. Since Youtube is integrated with Google, people who commented/viewed my music video on Youtube was then able to share it through their Google + circles. Another way to judge the success of my music video is through the likes/dislikes it has. I also used social media sites to receive opinions on my finished products. I was able to ask people via Facebook what they thought of the finished product and so on.
For other aspects of my production cycle such as story boarding and primary research, i relied on paper copies so that i could manually draw the shots i wanted/record my results. I did however then take pictures of these on my Iphone and uploaded them to a computer in order for these to be placed on to my blog. I found this to be much quicker than scanning each page in as i could easily line up different pages, take a photo and move on to another page. I was then able to transfer the images in bulk across to a computer where i could then upload them onto my blog.
Another major technology i used during all my stages was the blog itself. The blog made it easy to document the various stages of the production cycle as well as provide a platform to neatly showcase all of my work in an easy user friendly format.
Overall media technology has played an integral part to the overall production cycle of all three of my products. The quality of my finished texts would be no-where near the standard they currently are without the use of said technology.
Sunday 20 April 2014
What have you learned from your audience feedback?
Through the use of things like social networking site and personally speaking to friends and family i have been able to collect many comments both positive and negative regarding my texts.
The majority of feedback on my finished music video was that it was well constructed in that for the most part the artist singing synced well with the music. Also that i cut accurately to the beat so that it represented a real music video. Other comments have also told me that my music video was successful in sharing/using conventions used by other texts which belong to the same genre. When a person was asked to name a similar text to my music video they responded with an artist who acted as an inspiration for my work. This therefore shows a massive success as i set out to recreate the style and look of an Ed Sheeran video and my final product was then compared to one.
People also liked the various effects i had included in my video. For example a transition in which the camera tilts up and back down again and in the time that has happened one of the actors has switched with another actor, was received well among the people i asked. They thought that it was a nice touch to the video and so i have learnt that my camerawork was sufficient enough to please and satisfy my target audience.
Although this technique was received well i did get some constructive criticism in that someone thought that footage did not sync 100% when tilting the camera up and down. I have therefore learnt that if i were to perform this technique again i would make sure to keep the tripod in the exact same position and tilt the camera in a fluid motion up and down allowing myself time to correctly the ending and beginning of both clips so that they match perfectly.
My music video was also praised for including appropriate imagery linked with the lyrics as this is commonly seen in other music videos so it makes my video look authentic as it follows the conventions needed to look real.
Although i received a lot less feedback on my ancillary products due to my focus on the music video i also received praise in that it was said that both my digipak and magazine advert shared the same house style and so a strong link was formed between the texts. Also that the picture of the artist on the front helped to then link it with the music video.
Overall i feel that my audience feedback has confirmed my texts success as it has been able to follow the conventions of other music videos as well as containing neat editing which has accurately matched the lip-syncing with the lyrics as well as different pieces of footage being cut between each other on the beat of the song.
The majority of feedback on my finished music video was that it was well constructed in that for the most part the artist singing synced well with the music. Also that i cut accurately to the beat so that it represented a real music video. Other comments have also told me that my music video was successful in sharing/using conventions used by other texts which belong to the same genre. When a person was asked to name a similar text to my music video they responded with an artist who acted as an inspiration for my work. This therefore shows a massive success as i set out to recreate the style and look of an Ed Sheeran video and my final product was then compared to one.
People also liked the various effects i had included in my video. For example a transition in which the camera tilts up and back down again and in the time that has happened one of the actors has switched with another actor, was received well among the people i asked. They thought that it was a nice touch to the video and so i have learnt that my camerawork was sufficient enough to please and satisfy my target audience.
Although this technique was received well i did get some constructive criticism in that someone thought that footage did not sync 100% when tilting the camera up and down. I have therefore learnt that if i were to perform this technique again i would make sure to keep the tripod in the exact same position and tilt the camera in a fluid motion up and down allowing myself time to correctly the ending and beginning of both clips so that they match perfectly.
My music video was also praised for including appropriate imagery linked with the lyrics as this is commonly seen in other music videos so it makes my video look authentic as it follows the conventions needed to look real.
Although i received a lot less feedback on my ancillary products due to my focus on the music video i also received praise in that it was said that both my digipak and magazine advert shared the same house style and so a strong link was formed between the texts. Also that the picture of the artist on the front helped to then link it with the music video.
Overall i feel that my audience feedback has confirmed my texts success as it has been able to follow the conventions of other music videos as well as containing neat editing which has accurately matched the lip-syncing with the lyrics as well as different pieces of footage being cut between each other on the beat of the song.
In which ways does my media product use, develop, challenges forms and conventions of real media texts.
It was my aim during the production of all three of my texts that they would be seen as realistic pieces that could pass for actual products in real life. It is because of this that i have therefore tried my hardest to adopt and use such conventions so that my texts do not appear as abstract or overly different. Although being unique is important when it comes to producing a piece of work, i factored in the point that my audience is a very mainstream audience and so they would be comfortable with the conventions i have used.
Throughout my analysis of my 3 texts i will be referring to other real life texts such as the song "Lego house" by Ed Sheeran, the song "lightning bolt" by Jake Bugg and various other adverts/digipaks of artists previously mentioned throughout my blog.
When first planning my music video one of the first decisions i made was to have a heavy emphasis on the artist rather than a specific story line. This is because the most common feature of a singer-songwriters music video is that the artist themselves is featured, if not the focal point. Although "Lego House" appears as an exception in that it turns out that the person pictured isn't actually representing Ed Sheeran, the audience is led to believe that it is actually him and the actor portraying him is featured in nearly every shot of the music video. This shows the emphasis on having the artist in the actual video. I therefore ensured that Callum ,the aritst in my music video, was pictured in nearly every shot of the video.
Linked with the artist is the inclusion of an instrument the artist is able to play. This is a common theme found with singer-songwriters as it is often how they started their careers by learning to play an instrument. To maintain this desired image i therefore thought it crucial to have my artist playing the keyboard along with the song.
Although there isnt a live audience my music video can still be considered a performance clip due to the footage of my artist singing the song. This is the most common style of music videos as their purpose is to not only promote the song but the artist as well. This also links with why a picture of my artist is featured on both the digipak and magazine advert.
Most bands base their various album covers around certain images/themes because they collectively have to come up with an idea to represent all of their music in the album. For a solo artist however it is easier to show an image of themselves as that is how they will best promote themselves. This is the reasoning for
including the image of Callums face on both ancillary texts. Imagery is still used on digipaks solo artist or not and this is why i chose to add the multicoloured puzzle piece background. I chose this because like other album art (notably Jason Derulo's "Tattoos") the images on the cover heavily link with the title of the album itself. I thought puzzle pieces provided a strong link with the title "Pieces of Me" which is why i included such a vivid image on/around my digipak.
Throughout my analysis of my 3 texts i will be referring to other real life texts such as the song "Lego house" by Ed Sheeran, the song "lightning bolt" by Jake Bugg and various other adverts/digipaks of artists previously mentioned throughout my blog.
When first planning my music video one of the first decisions i made was to have a heavy emphasis on the artist rather than a specific story line. This is because the most common feature of a singer-songwriters music video is that the artist themselves is featured, if not the focal point. Although "Lego House" appears as an exception in that it turns out that the person pictured isn't actually representing Ed Sheeran, the audience is led to believe that it is actually him and the actor portraying him is featured in nearly every shot of the music video. This shows the emphasis on having the artist in the actual video. I therefore ensured that Callum ,the aritst in my music video, was pictured in nearly every shot of the video.
Linked with the artist is the inclusion of an instrument the artist is able to play. This is a common theme found with singer-songwriters as it is often how they started their careers by learning to play an instrument. To maintain this desired image i therefore thought it crucial to have my artist playing the keyboard along with the song.
Although there isnt a live audience my music video can still be considered a performance clip due to the footage of my artist singing the song. This is the most common style of music videos as their purpose is to not only promote the song but the artist as well. This also links with why a picture of my artist is featured on both the digipak and magazine advert.
Most bands base their various album covers around certain images/themes because they collectively have to come up with an idea to represent all of their music in the album. For a solo artist however it is easier to show an image of themselves as that is how they will best promote themselves. This is the reasoning for
including the image of Callums face on both ancillary texts. Imagery is still used on digipaks solo artist or not and this is why i chose to add the multicoloured puzzle piece background. I chose this because like other album art (notably Jason Derulo's "Tattoos") the images on the cover heavily link with the title of the album itself. I thought puzzle pieces provided a strong link with the title "Pieces of Me" which is why i included such a vivid image on/around my digipak.
The reasoning behind the amateurish style to my digipak design is that i had inspiration from the album "Loose Change" which has the impression that he created and drew the design himself. Although his style is heavily focused around the fact that he started very small and was poor for the majority of the time he was performing before getting "big" i wanted to share this same style and signer-songwriters often focus on how they've "made it" but started with nothing. This is why i further developed this design of being created by the artist as the loose change album was hand drawn whereas i have created my image on a computer using programs like Photoshop.
I have also used the conventions shared between digipak and magazine advert as the magazine advert is usually just a blown up version of the cover art for the album. I replicated this by increasing the size of and extending the multicoloured puzzle pattern on my magazine advert as well as including the same font/image of the artist. To coincide with other magazine advert i also included a release date as well as the logo of the record label my artist is signed to. These are all necessities when regarding a magazine advert as the purpose of it is to advertise a product and you cant do that if you do not know when the product is being released.
Overall i have tried to stick to the tried and tested conventions used by similar artists in order to replicate their own success but with my product. The convention are familiar with my target audience so it appeals to them and my products do not appear to artistic or abstract so that only my target audience may enjoy them. The broadness of my products allowed them to be received by a mass audience even though a small percentage of this is being targeted.
Audience Feedback
*Some feedback was received prior to the publication of my music video. It was shown to family/friends via a video recording of the near completed product during the editing process.
By personally showing my music video to people i was able to receive immediate feedback as well as having the ability to follow up on certain comments to then gain more specific answers regarding things like conventions, camera angles and lip syncing. Although the quality was not up to the standard of the finished final product. By showing people the unfinished version i was then able to adjust and change some of the editing/effects of the footage to further meet their needs and so that it became a more successful product.
The first person i showed my music video to was my sister Emma. I showed it to her first as she also took media studies as an A-level and therefore would be able to comment on things like the camera angles used.
Upon watching it she said that "It matches the style of other music videos in that there's a heavy focus on the artist and its a nice touch to include the flashbacks to make the video appear more like a story with a narrative rather than just general imagery matched with the lyrics."
As a follow up question i then asked what kind of artist did it most remind her off.
She replied with "It reminds me of an artist like Ed Sheeran as he is shown playing his own instrument and the video is personal to him as its pictured as his relationship."
I feel this proves the success of my music video as this was the inspiration/goal for my music video. Therefore to be compared to the style of video i originally based my idea off of is a major positive.
I also received direct feedback in the form of a comment on the video itself.
This comment expresses both a positive and negative with my music video. As this comment was received after the final version of my music video was created i was not able to act upon it and further improve it. I will however be able to take this into account in future projects where i will spend more time in trying to sync my footage with both the lyrics of the song as well as the beat. I will also take more care when trying to match up transitions within my product such as the graphic match.
Another way of gaining audience feedback was by posting the link to my music video on my twitter.
Here people who followed me could then watch it and decide to favourite or re-tweet it. For people who did this i then contacted them through twitter to obtain a follow up response.
One of the people i asked for a response was a friend called Scott. I had noticed that after watching my video he then shared the link on his own twitter page meaning that his followers would be able to watch it too - further expanding my audience and letting my video gain popularity through word of mouth. After asking for an opinion as to why he liked the music video he responded:
This comment shows that my music video is appropriate and matches the style/genre well. A person like Scott was not part of my intended target audience, however this comment shows appreciation for the music video which means it has the potential to appeal to a far wider audience than first expected, even though it was engineered to appeal to a demographic which involves teenage girls.
The only notable criticism is that a certain transition within the video does not sync perfectly between cuts. I will therefore make sure to take this advice in to account and revise my technique when planning to film these sot of shots a swell as making sure i cut at the right time in each piece of footage so that it matches up appropriately.
I received less feedback on my ancillary product as i felt the music video held preference and would be the focal point of my project. I did however ask some people about my ancillary products and they responded with:
By personally showing my music video to people i was able to receive immediate feedback as well as having the ability to follow up on certain comments to then gain more specific answers regarding things like conventions, camera angles and lip syncing. Although the quality was not up to the standard of the finished final product. By showing people the unfinished version i was then able to adjust and change some of the editing/effects of the footage to further meet their needs and so that it became a more successful product.
The first person i showed my music video to was my sister Emma. I showed it to her first as she also took media studies as an A-level and therefore would be able to comment on things like the camera angles used.
Upon watching it she said that "It matches the style of other music videos in that there's a heavy focus on the artist and its a nice touch to include the flashbacks to make the video appear more like a story with a narrative rather than just general imagery matched with the lyrics."
As a follow up question i then asked what kind of artist did it most remind her off.
She replied with "It reminds me of an artist like Ed Sheeran as he is shown playing his own instrument and the video is personal to him as its pictured as his relationship."
I feel this proves the success of my music video as this was the inspiration/goal for my music video. Therefore to be compared to the style of video i originally based my idea off of is a major positive.
I also received direct feedback in the form of a comment on the video itself.
Another way of gaining audience feedback was by posting the link to my music video on my twitter.
Here people who followed me could then watch it and decide to favourite or re-tweet it. For people who did this i then contacted them through twitter to obtain a follow up response.
One of the people i asked for a response was a friend called Scott. I had noticed that after watching my video he then shared the link on his own twitter page meaning that his followers would be able to watch it too - further expanding my audience and letting my video gain popularity through word of mouth. After asking for an opinion as to why he liked the music video he responded:
This comment shows that my music video is appropriate and matches the style/genre well. A person like Scott was not part of my intended target audience, however this comment shows appreciation for the music video which means it has the potential to appeal to a far wider audience than first expected, even though it was engineered to appeal to a demographic which involves teenage girls.
Evidence of Scott sharing the video on his own twitter profile
Other comments i received through twitter. Although mostly positive, attention has once again been raised regarding the transition. I will therefore take extra care in the future when attempting to recreate such effects.
I also looked for opinions on Facebook so that i covered as many social media platforms as possible as that is what is very popular with my target audience and therefore it is where they would be most likely to watch my video. One of the comments from a friend on Facebook was this:
Once again the opinion is positive as with most feedback. From this i can conclude that my music video has been successful in that it has been praised when it comes to the conventions of the singer/songwriter genre. The music video also been described as "genuine" and "realistic" showing that although made by an amateur it appears as a normal music video which is a positive in itself as it proves that there is no dodgy camerawork or not thought through segments to the video.
The only notable criticism is that a certain transition within the video does not sync perfectly between cuts. I will therefore make sure to take this advice in to account and revise my technique when planning to film these sot of shots a swell as making sure i cut at the right time in each piece of footage so that it matches up appropriately.
I received less feedback on my ancillary product as i felt the music video held preference and would be the focal point of my project. I did however ask some people about my ancillary products and they responded with:
This shows that my ancillary products were also successful as they provide a strong link between each other by sharing the same house style and content.
Saturday 19 April 2014
Thursday 10 April 2014
Props/Locations
This is the camera i used to record all of the footage for my music video.
This is the bipod i used when filming in order to steady my shots and make them not have a shaky feel to them. This made the music video seem more professional.
My personal keyboard which was used as the artist's keyboard in the music video. Although never plugged in during filming i made sure not to include the off interface in the finished music video to maintain the illusion that the artist was playing the instrument as well as singing the song.
All filming took place in this house. The living room, kitchen and car port were all used as filming locations. I ensured that the filming was all in the same area so that the link could be made that this was the artist's house, therefore reinforcing the attempted personal feel to the video.
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