4. HOW DID I USE MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES IN THE CONSTRUCTION, RESEARCH, PLANNING AND EVALUATION STAGES?

Tasha Daldry

SCRIBD
Scribd, I used at all stages of the project as it was a reliable way of uploading posts. I also uploaded information straight onto a normal post, but I found that this wasnt as creative, and made the blog look plain so I decided to use Scribd more often. I found it very useful as well as reliable as it was a digital technology which always worked when I needed to use it. Other technologies such as Slideshare or vuvox either were not compatible or did not always work when I wanted to use them, but Scribd was always accessible.. Scribd being so accessible, enabled me to get my work done to deadlines to a high standard as I was always able to get my work completed and uploaded without a panic as to how I would upload it to my blog. I chose to use Scribd as one of the mains ways I uploaded information to the blog, because I was able to upload any file to scribd to convert it. Such as in the research and planning stages I use Microsoft word and PowerPoint a lot and Scribd converted any of these files, allowing me to upload them to the blog. This links in with how Scribd worked in combination with the other technology I used. Because it was so compatible with other technologies such as Word and PowerPoint, it made it easy for me to carry out my work and then upload it. Scibd was also compatible alongside Slideshare when I uploaded my posts. I found that using these two

technologies, it added more variety to my posts, as well as using Prezi and Premiere elements etc. An example of what I used Scribd for in
my work would be for the uploading of the risk assessments in the research and planning. I feel that Scribd set out the risk assessments making them looking more formal and it also made access to them easier. Scribd also enables you to scroll down the page to look at information when you want to rather than it all being on the screen, bombarding you with text.

PREZI
Prezi I used as another way of presenting my work to make my blog look more interesting and so it appeals to whoever reads it, marks it etc. I found Prezi very useful when writing up presentations. For example; I used Prezi for my Initial ideas and I found it very easy to write what I needed to as it was very quick to load and was therefore very accessible. I could also choose any layout I wanted to make it look creative and attractive on the blog when it was uploaded. Prezi also allowed me to see the flow of ideas therefore it would allow the audience to navigate from my initial idea to see how I had development it. For example on my Initial ideas, there was a post at the start illustrating my initial idea, then the other slides demonstrated how I developed it. In achieving what I needed to, Prezi was very useful. I was able to convert it easily so it would upload onto my blog and it also provided me with another digital way of writing up and loading my work. I used Prezi throughout all the stages of my project because it added variety of technologies spread throughout my work which I feel to be important to make it attractive to someone who may read it. I feel that in combination with the other technologies that Prezi worked well. Alongside Scribd and Slideshare, Prezi helped to make the blog look more presentable and professional with a range of digital technologies used methodically as a way of uploading my work. I choose to use Prezi because I found it easy and simple to use. Technology such as Vuvox I found more complex to use and I found it to be less reliable as it sometimes refused to load on the computer and when it did work, it wouldnt open on the blogs as it wasnt compatible with the software used on the blog. I realised that having technology with a simpler way of being able to use it, enabled me to work efficiently as it meant that I didnt have to learn how to use it before I started my work on it.

HARDWARE
The hardware used, I used throughout the filming stages of my project. I used the video camera and tripod throughout the filming of the music video and I used the camera at a separate occasion for when I took images for my ancillaries. The tripod however, I could only use at some points throughout my music video, for example when I filmed the performance shots I used the tripod as I needed the footage to be still and not shaky which would fault the quality of the video and make the mise-en-scene around the artist look blurred. I went out numerous times with the video camera and the tripod as I felt that I still needed more footage as some of the original I had taken wasnt as good quality that I would have liked. The camera on the other hand I went out with once and took all the photographs that I would need for my advert and digipak. All of this technology was useful as it enabled me to carry out the practical side of the project in the first place, however, the video camera was not brilliant quality and therefore affected the footage throughout the whole editing process causing it to be blurry and not as clear as it should when it came to the finished product. The normal camera however was my own and produced, in my opinion, some excellent quality images for my ancillary tasks. Some of this hardware I chose to use and the rest I didnt really have a choice. The camera I had chosen to use as it was my own and was a very good camera producing very clear images which made my ancillaries look quite professional. The tripod I chose to use throughout my filming as it allowed me to keep some of the footage still without any shaky sections. The video camera however, was provided by the school and I didnt really have a choice but to use it. This camera, I new was compatible with adobe premier element the only editing software we had access to, so I felt that using a different camera would be very risky because if that camera and therefore the footage wasnt compatible with the computer or editing software then it would have been very time consuming as I would have had to go out and film again. With a very tight schedule, I felt this to be very impractical and irresponsible. The technology in combination of each other I feel wasnt as well suited as I would have liked. I have no issue with the tripod, but the quality of the footage from the video camera and the quality of the images from the camera were very different. One was excellent quality the other, the quality was ok and I feel as though this let the project down as to me, there was no continuity throughout the tasks of the same amount of footage quality. However, I feel this is only a minor issue as the music video as a whole I feel to be of a good standard, minus at times the quality of the footage and the ancillary tasks I feel look professional.

MICROSOFT WORD, POWERPOINT ETC

Microsoft PowerPoint, Publisher and Word I used throughout the whole project and I found made the project easier. They were all compatible with Slideshare and Scribd which I used to convert these files so they would upload on the blog via a new post, so they were all very useful in the completion of my coursework. I chose to use these three technologies because I had access to them on my own computer which made it easier to do work at home and they were all compatible with other technologies, such as Scribd, so I felt that it was safer using the technology I new instead of having trouble with something I didnt. For example I had carried out a lot of work on vuvox and then I found out that it wouldnt work on my blog so I had to carry it all out again. I have used lots of different technologies on my blog so there is no doubt of the creativity on there, but I know the ins and outs of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Publisher so it made it slightly easier for me. In combination of each other, they all work well because they all look professional yet creative therefore working well in making the blog look attractive. I used Publishers in the making of my album advert. As I new the software I found it easy to

create the advert and it only took me ten minutes to complete. PowerPoint I used in presentations, for example
in my treatment I used PowerPoint as a way of presenting my ideas, ultimately making it look professional and carefully set out. Lastly Microsoft word I used in normal posts as a way of presenting information, such as for the conventions of the Indie genre etc. Using these three it helped to add variety to my blog to make it look more appealing to those who may come across it.

SLIDESHARE
Slideshare I only used a couple of times throughout the project as I experienced some compatibility issues with it on the blog, so I decided too use Scribd a bit more as I new that it worked better than Slideshare. I really only used Slideshare to add some variety of technologies to my coursework. If it had been compatible and therefore helpful I would have used it more but it caused to many problems for me to rely on enough to use continuously. However, in some cases I persevered as Slideshare was a very professional and creative way of uploading information to the blog and I felt this suited the coursework task especially which wanted the project to be creative yet look professional. In combination with the other technology used, despite the faults, I think slideshare worked well as it helped make the blog look professionally set out and it was easy to use when it worked making the creation of the blog more enjoyable when everything worked in combination of each other.

ADOBE PREMIER ELEMENTS 9

Premier elements I really only used throughout the editing process of my music video. However, I did also use it to make vodcasts, like in the post, progress so far I used elements to edit the video of me talking about the progress I had made so far in the project. I found elements increasingly useful throughout the editing stages of my video. At the start I was unsure as to how to use it as I had only used the basics in my Year 12 task, but as the editing progressed I found it easier to use the software. I found it easier to cut clips at the exact time I

needed to and I learnt how to stabilize clips using the stabilizer tool as some of the footage was slightly shaky. In the end premier elements I
found very useful as it provided me with the software to create the music video exactly as I wanted it. I learnt how to stabilize clips, lighten footage and cut to and from performance shots while keeping the singing in time with the footage. I chose to use elements as it was the only software available to use that was compatible with the video cameras. I already new how to use elements as I had used it for my year 12 project, so I felt that my final product would be far more better quality because I new how to edit using this software. However, premier elements took hours to render all the footage and it took around 10 minutes for it to open. It also crashed on me numerous times and deleted my work. This made editing harder than it needed to be but in the end I persevered, stayed behind after school and completed my

music video. In combination with the other technologies used adobe premier elements worked well on my blog. The footage uploaded from
the video camera onto the computer worked in compatibility with elements. The footage was of good quality when rendered and during the editing process, the music video turned out exactly how I wanted it. Some of the footage is slightly grainy and shaky, but because the technology I had access to wasnt of the highest quality, that cant be helped.

PHOTOSHOP
I used Photoshop in the last stages of my project in the making of my digipak. This technology was very new to me and I had never used it before so I found it quite challenging to actually create the digipak. Unlike the advert which took me ten minutes, it took me numerous hours to complete the digipak as I didnt have a clue as to what to do. All the different tools and effects were completely out of my knowledge as to how to use them, but with the use of YouTube videos teaching me how to use the software, I was able to create, in my opinion, quite a professional piece of work. Photoshop was indeed very useful as it enabled me to make my digipak look exactly how I wanted it. It enabled me to change the colours of the images on the digipak so they fit in well together, looking natural therefore fitting in with the Indie genre. It even enabled me to improve the quality of the images, as the quality faded a little when I uploaded them onto the computer from the camera. This therefore helped me to make my digipak look natural with no over the top effects and professional yet suitable for the indie genre and a indie artist, who would promote themselves as normal and part of the natural, ordinary w orld. I chose to use photoshop because I was aware of the quality of products photoshop can create from when I had a look at previous students digipaks who had also used photoshop. I had also never used it before so I felt that it would benefit me to learn how to use another technology in my project. This links into how it worked in combination with the other tech I had used on my blog. I felt that photoshop fitted in well. Not only did it vary the number of technologies used, but it worked well in combination with Microsoft PowerPoint which I had to use to upload the finished digipak onto, to then finally upload it to my blog.