Summing up

Summing up

I have summarised my evaluation here: http://prezi.com/wyfh2qiux1f_/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

Evaluation Question 4

How I used media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages? 

Planning Stage 



Over the duration of the course I used a range of different technologies for my project to keep it as interesting as possible and to help me create a realist, professional end product.  These technologies allowed me to be more creative and efficient when planning and presenting research.


I heavily replied upon blogger to store and present all the research I found. I also used it to plan my music video and other media texts. Blogger was very easy to get to grips, however I have used it in past projects so I am Familiar with it. I thought this would be the best technology to publish my work as I could access it from anywhere since it is online based. Its simple layout also means its very easy to post blogs. Blogger was very resourceful as it allowed me to look at past work to give me a heads up.



My experience has not all been positive with blogger however, this was because many images had to be of a certain type so that I could upload them onto my blogs. I also encountered connectivity issues getting onto the website, which meant I couldn't access my work. to get around this I used Microsoft word as a substitute until the site was back up and working. The website also looked very plain and didn't offer many customisation options for my blogs so they looked more appealing.

I used YouTube to have a look at examples of music videos, to help me gain an idea how I should start planning my own. I also did some of my research through informative videos I found on YouTube. This is also where I uploaded my final video so that others could see and review it.











A technology that I found really useful for research and looking at pre-existing albums and digipaks was google images. This provided me with an idea of what stereotypical pop albums and digipaks looked like. This enabled me to plan the types of shots I would need to take for my own media texts.


I used Prezi a few times during my research and planning. This was because it was a change from blogger and made my research very clear and easy to read. It also had more features than blogger and allowed me to easily upload images and change the background of the presentation. I felt this made my research more interesting and indulging to readers.



In the early stages of planning for my video I tested out shots for my video with an iPad. This allowed me to test various angles and plan what I would do for my real music video. I did consider using it for the real video, however it didn't have a tripod and I wasn't satisfied with the video quality.







Production Stage

The images for my digipak and advert were taken on the Canon DSLR. This was because I had experience with using this camera I thought it would be more efficient to use this camera to take these shots. I did encounter a few issues getting the camera to focus, which is why for the filming I decided to use a different camera when recording the real music video.

I used the Sony FDR-AX33 to record my music video, which is a
4K video camera. The footage I captured with this camera was of very high quality, however this did mean the rendering process of the video took a while. This camera came in a small bag and folding tripod which meant I could easily move to different locations with ease. The camera has various different options and effects I could apply to my video, which were very useful.



 I created my media texts using various different software to add various special affects and details to ensure my product looked as realistic as possible.

For the creation of my music video I used Sony Vegas Pro. Before this course I had never used this software, which did mean I had to watch a few tutorials on YouTube to learn the basic. After I
watched a few videos it became much simpler and natural to use. I found it very useful how I could have more than one stage and also have two different previews going on at the same time. This software included lots of special effects such as fades. It also had a tool which could be used to overlap footage appearing as quick cuts. However it did crash a few times while I was editing and while the video was rendering. I had to look into this online and adjusted my setting so that the software was optimized to the footage quality.



I used Adobe Fireworks to edit the text and some of the images for my magazine advert and digipak. I used this software because I am very familiar with it as I have used it in the past. Its large variety of fonts and colours meant I had a large choice and could choice one that I thought would fit well with my music video.








To produce the images for my advert and digipak I also used Photoshop, which is really good for editing images as it has a large library of filters and effects. I had never used this program before, but found it really to understand and use.






I actually put together and created my digipak and magazine advert in Adobe InDesign. I did this because it had templates, which made creating my products much easier as I didn't have to look for these online. In did have some experience with this software form the previous year, although it lacked any effects or font tools. I also didn't find it very easy to navigate through the tools, so I did most of this on Photoshop and Adobe FireWorks which had more options.

Evaluation Stage 

In this stage I have used mostly the same technologies as the research and planning stages such as blogger and Prezi to present them. However I did use one new technology during this stage which was Giphy. This software enabled me to create gifs, which enbled me to create short clips of certain aspects from my video to evaluate and analyse. I had never used this website, but it was very useful and will definitely be using it again in the future.

Evaluation Question 3

What I have learnt from audience feedback

Throughout the development of my video and other ancillary text, I received a lot of feedback on what others thought of my texts and how they could be improved. This ensured I was consistently improving how they looked and were created.

I produced a survey so that I could collect feedback on my product from the audience. I asked various open questions giving people the opportunity to give me as much feedback as possible. I gave the survey predominantly to teenagers as they are my target audience for my video. However  I wanted to see what a wider audience would think of my music video, so I also also asked my peers and teachers. Asking the following questions enabled me to gain feedback on what I would change and how I would improve if I was to do this again in the future.


Who do you think the target audience of my music video is?


Almost all of the responses I received for this question said they thought the target audience was teenagers. I am happy with this response because this was my target audience. The audience thought this because of the young cast involved with the film as well as the relaxed atmosphere the video had. However a few mentioned how the audience was "a wide range 12 to 22". I was surprised at this, because I didn't think the video would appeal to an audience as young as 12. My peer said this because they thought "it has a small and easy story that's not too complicated and easy to understand". The large majority of people I asked thought the music video would appeal to both genders.  Most people said there reason for this due to there being two boys and two girls as characters.

What did you think was good about my music video?

Most people responded to this question saying how they really liked the characters especially one responded who said "I really like the characters with there animal masks, it really helps the video grab your attention". My peer said "its a really relaxing song that many can listen when they ant to chill". Others said they liked how the main artist lip syncs with the song, as well as the constant links with the visuals and lyrics. I was told the use of various different bright colours and lighting really helped the video feel uplifting. One of my peers said "its something different and eye catchy that's what makes it a realistic pop music video.

How do you think my music video could be made better?

There was a range of aspects people suggested my video could have been improved. People mostly mentioned the over use of similar scene location. One of my recipients said "I think you repeat the scene with the artists lying on the bed too much, I would have included more outdoor scenes like the trampoline scene".  I was aware of this when creating the video, however I wanted the visuals to be mainly based indoors as he song is about being lazy. However if I was to do this again I would definitely consider doing a bigger variety of scenes as I understand I did repeat this scenes a few times.

Another recipient said how I used a bigger variety of shots in my video such as a point of view shot or an establishing shot. I heavily focused on the close ups and medium shots because I wanted to focus on the characters emotions and expressions.

 A few people picked up on the fact that the video could have had a story within it to keep the audience more engaged in what was going on. My response to this is that my initial plans and intentions were to have a story, however after reading through the lyrics in more depth I thought a concept type video would go better with the song. However next time I would have more consideration over maybe including a story within the video as in would appeal to a wider audience.

Evaluation Question 2

How effective is the combination of my main product and ancillary texts?

To make my main product and ancillary texts as effective as possible I created a house style for my products. I ensured that I used similar colours, font and design in each product which I created. This way the product looks more professional and also means the audience can clearly link all the products together. The use of a house style has helped to create a brand identity. This  means they are more
likely to be aware of anything produced by the artist thus increasing the products sales.

How I have created a brand identity across my digipak and advert

Across my digipak products I have decided to use a blend between a light pale blue and a dark pale blue. I did this because I thought they complicated each other well. This slightly goes against stereotypes of a pop genre design, which would generally consist of bright colours. However I thought this would help it to stand out to the audience.

I also created a brand identity through including images of the animal characters that feature in the video dotted all over my digipak. this makes it clear to the audience what they expect from the artist, which is the idea of being slightly different and trying something new. This is also shown by the design of the background with the blue paint coming through the title.

I stuck to a similar font throughout to make it clear the kind of style the artist is going for which is to be consistent with their music. As well as this the texts are laid our in a simple way, this shows how the brand is mainly aiming at a younger audience.

How I have created a brand identity in my music video

In my music video it is clear the video is concept based and is trying to be slightly different to other videos through the use of characters with animal heads. The use of the masks represents how we are all equal regardless of how we look.

Similarly to the other texts, the video is trying to connect with a younger audience by acting as a stereotypical teenager. The main artist is presented as very  relaxed, hanging out with friends and having a good time. This helps the video appeal to a younger audience as many teenagers can relate to this. I have ensure the lighting in all my scenes is full of bright to give an emphasis on happyness and positivity, which can also be seen in my other texts.

How I think my digipak design will sell the song/album to the audience

I believe the design of the digipak will spark an interest in the target, increasing their interest in the albums and therefore the amount of sales. I think the use of bright colours and a catchy name 'Lazy Days' , which teenagers can relate to will help capture and gain the audiences attention against other digipak designs. This is also achieved by going against stereotype. I did this by trying something different and including animal masked characters on the front cover of my font cover which gets the audience asking questions. I kept to a clear and simple design so that the digipak was easy to recognise and read to widen my audience. I wanted the digipak to be gender neutral with a mix of female and male characters to ensure the album would interest both genders. The actual design of my inner and outer covers is supposed to be a modern graffiti look, with each of the characters being very distinctive. I thought this would interest a younger audience who would find a pop/modern design appealing.

How I think my advert design will sell the song/album to the audience

My magazine advert is laid out in a very similar way to my digipak, for instance it features an enlarged image of the front cover of the digipak. This is so that it implants its design into the heads of consumers so they recognise the album if they come across it. Again here the design is very simple and information is kept to a minimum. This is stereotypical for pop genre adverts as it keeps the younger audiences attention and focuses on imagery and bright colours.

I have included a review by a well known music magazine, which comments positively on the artists album. This is to increase sales as many consumers trust this organisations opinion, and therefore consider listening and purchasing the album. The poster has a large header featuring the artists name in a large font, which is bigger the name of the album. This is stereotypical for new artists as it is important to get there name noticed by the audience, so they keep interesting in the artists and consider purchasing the artists music in the future. The adverts design also features possible streaming services and online stores where customers can purchase the album. This will particularly interest my target audience as these services are predominantly used by younger audiences.

Overall the ancillary texts I have created for this project have similar designs which link them together very well. Therefore I am confident the texts I have created would be very marketable if put to the test.


 

Evaluation Question 1

Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Throughout the creation of my video, digipack and magazine I have tried to stick to typical convention, but along the way I have also challenged them.

Here are some music video conventions I have learnt and used in my video;

Camera Movement

Tracking shots are used in music videos to follow the movement of the artists, these are mainly used in narratives to portray a story. Below is an example of where Coldplay's The Scientist heavily used tracking shots to follow the lead singer to show a rewind of time.



I also used a tracking shot in my music video to follow the main artists movement. It also helps viewers to feel more immersed into the video.



Camera Shots

Mid-shots are dominantly used within music videos, they are mainly used to get up close to characters of importance. Most of the shots in my music video were close ups, this is because my video was heavily focused on the artist and his facial expressions. However Such a high usage of close ups does go against general music video conventions, to improve I would have used a wider range of shots.


Wide shots are often used in music videos to show the characters and there surroundings and also action that may be occurring. For example below is a wide shot from Shape of You by Ed Sheeran. The use of a wide shot so the audience can see all the characters as well as their location.


I used a wide shot so the audience could clearly see all of the characters were being lazy on a sofa together. I also wanted to show the audience there surroundings so it was clear there were in a lounge.


Establishing shots are generally used at the start of music video to show set the scene and show where the action is taking place. Below is an example where The Chainsmokers used an establishing shot to set the scene of their music video for Closer.


However I went against typical conventions and didn't use an establishing shot in my music video, as I didn't feel one was necessary to my video as it was mainly based indoors. Instead I mainly focused on mid-shots and wide shots.

mise-en-scene

Lighting is an important part of music videos especially when it comes to setting the mood and tone of the video. I had chosen a pop song which are generally happy and cheerful. I wanted to keep to this convention so I tried to consistently have bight lighting to give off a positive feeling to viewers.


Editing


I kept to conventions through the use of fast paced editing, as they are fundamental to quickly changing the scene, allowing the video to flow quicker. I used fast paced editing to go along with the beat of the song so that it feels more natural.


Fades are also used quite a lot in music videos, however this depends on the rhythm and beat. They are generally used to slowly change the time or scene. The clip below is an example of where i used it in my video as a transition to my last scene.



Ariana Grande also uses a fade in her music video of Side to side where it is used to highlight a small scene.



Representation in my video

I supported pop conventions as my video was aimed for teenagers and was very simplistic and comedic.

I also went with typical conventions and portrayed women as slightly inferior to men as they were less important and played smaller roles in my music video. They were portrayed as friends which the main artist found annoying. in one scene one of the women is seen brushing the main artists hair for instance.


Here are some music genre conventions I have learnt and used in my video;

The song I chose for my music video was The Lazy Song which is from the pop and reggae genres.

My video supports pop conventions as the video includes a lot of bright colours and the artists are wearing modern, fashionable clothing. The actors and artist are also of a young age.


However it does slightly go against stereotypes as it is not based around a love or relationships. It also doesn't feature or present females or males as objects, like in other pop videos such as Work by Rihanna in the clip below.


The video I created supports reggae conventions as it cuts to the main artist a lot during the video as you can see below. Its also has a clear link between with the lyrics and the visuals, however it goes against them as its is a concept video rather than being more narrative or performance based.


Here are some digipak conventions I have learnt and used in my digipak;

I went against typical stereotypes by not having a close up of the main artists of my cover. However I thought my front cover looked more catchy with the animal characters on the front cover as well. I thought this would make it stand out against other albums and appeal to a younger audience this way. Below is an example of  Jason Derulo's latest album.

However I kept to conventions by using similar colours throughout my digipak product, I also ensured the video was clearly linked to my album by including a shots from the filming as the image for the front cover.

I kept to conventions by using an imagine of the main characters as the inside cover, however I went against stereotypes when I decided to use a filter. I used it because I thought it went with the chilled and simple vibe of my music video.

For the back cover of my digipak I kept to conventions by keeping the design very simple and easy on the eyes. This was so consumers can focus on the songs in the album, instead of the design.

Although I did go against stereotypes as I used small images of each of the characters around the edge of the cover. I did this as it looked trendy and different, however still kept its simplistic design. Below is an image of Ellie Gouldings album 'Lights'.

The disc I created supported stereotypes with is simple design and not including an image of the characters or main artists. However I went against stereotypes by not including image instead I thought it would be more effective if I used a plain colour.  

Here are some advert conventions I have learnt and used in my advert;

*****Need to add a review to poster - BillBoard- 'simply amazing music'
***** add availible on spotify and itunes icons 
***** 10.01.17

My advert keeps to conventions by having such large font which helps it stand out to the audience. Aswell as having a large image of the characters from the music video. However I went against sterotypes as my image only takes up the middle of my advert and also doesn't consist of my main artist. I also used dark colours, stereotypically adverts use bright colours so it stand out to the crowd more, however I wanted to keep to a consistent colour throughout my digipak t keep consistency. My album also consists of reviews, release date and shows what platforms its availbe to be downloaded, which is very stereotypical.

Music Video

Magazine Advert