Tech 6
- 1. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? QUESTION 6
- 2. Introduction Throughout the process of producing this film opening myself and Joe have learnt how to use a large range of technology in order to create a production that is as industry standard as possible
- 3. Blogger We have used a site called Blogger in order to chronologically showcase our work and update our whole journey of planning and filming and editing on our blogs in different posts We had both never used a blog before so getting into the habit of recording what we were doing was quite challenging at first however we got the hang of it after our first few posts Through this we developed our writing and blogging skills and the technology also helped us as it allowed us to refer back to what we had initially planned for our production in the pre production process. Another way in which blogger benefited our project was by acting as a method of communication for us as it allowed us to upload our progress on the project so the other member of the group could view each others work easier than downloading via email or through a meeting in person Although it took a lot of time to write up on our blog it was convenient for us working as a group as it allowed us to discuss our ideas with each other and continuously develop on our new ideas If I was to start another project again I would use blogger as it was easy to use and had everything we needed for us to successfully blog our ideas for the production through the inclusion of other media e.g. pictures and imbedded clips allowed us to condense our work down and present the planning, production and post production sections of our project
- 4. Facebook We used a Facebook group in order to communicate between myself and Joe Rumford and our two actors, Bradley Hawkes and Chloe O’Neill We thought this would be the most efficient way to communicate with each other outside of school as all of us have a Facebook account that we regularly use and check and Facebook would notify us on our phones when we get a message or one of our members have posted on the group This way of communication is also useful as it gives us the option of keeping the group secret on a privacy setting meaning there is no chance anybody else will see our posts and therefore is very safe for us to use We have used Facebook groups before therefore we knew what we were doing and were able to post work and share ideas easily This method of communicating was very convenient for all of us and allowed us to plan 6 scheduled shooting days. The quick method of communication also allowed us to cancel three of these days on short notice and schedule in further days to film I would use this method of communication if I was to do another project again as I think compared to other methods it was the easiest way to reach our group members
- 5. LiveType We used a software called Live Type in order to produce the credits and titles for our production We had never used this programme before therefore we had to teach ourselves how to use it however it was quite easy to pick up as most of the aspects were labelled out for you. The programme was quite professional and allowed us to position the title wherever we wanted on screen and with what background we chose. It also gave us a large variety of fonts and animations to choose from From using this programme we developed our designing skills as we had to start producing these titles and credits from scratch and chose where we thought they fit best on screen with our narrative At first it was challenging to work the programme but as we got more used to the tools available we found it easier to work The programme ended up being very simple and easy to use and allowed us to create titles and credits that looked professional If I was to create another project I would definitely use Live Type again as it was convenient for us to use and helped our final production look professional
- 6. Apple iMac We used Apples 21.5 inch iMac desktop for our production as it had all of the tools we needed to create a high quality film. The large, high definition screen allowed for close editing of our project and many programmes were available to us including Premiere Pro and LiveType. We also used this software to update our blogs via blogger We worked quite well with these computers as we had previous experience with them through projects over past years. We enjoyed using these computers as they were simple and fast to use therefore we would use them again in future productions
- 7. Premiere Pro For all of our editing we used Adobe Premier Pro CC 2014, this is a professional piece of software (used to make Hollywood films such as the Hobbit). We used this equipment in order to add credits, music and filters etc. It had the tools we needed to edit our film including audio and visual effects and gave us a large range of options in order to create a professional looking production Neither of us had used Premiere pro before so it was a challenge for us to work out how to use all of the possible effects. We found it was quite similar to Final Cut which we had previously used but was more advanced and allowed a more detailed edit of our final film The software was very convenient and we used some of the filters that were made available to us in order to create more of a meaning in our narrative, we also slowed down our production on this programme which helped create more meaning in our narrative. We found the programme was very easy to upload our filming and save the final production One drawback we found from using this software however is we had some trouble exporting our final production as there was a significant difference in the size of the black box around the picture of the two parts of our film. We could not find a solution to this problem therefore we had to work around it Overall, it helped us to develop the skill of editing a film. It was simple to use when we got the hang of what the options were and gave us a final production that looked very professional. If we had to make another production we would use this software again as we now understand how to work it therefore it is a very effective piece of technology to use
- 8. Camera We filmed our production on the Panasonic HDC-SD700 camcorder the camera shoots in HD which gives a high quality picture allowing our film opening to have a professional look about it This was our first time using this technology so we had to get shown the basics on how to work the software. At first we found it was different from other video cameras we had used but after a while we found that it was quite simple to operate and we liked the film that it created The main skill we developed was how to film a production, we took a variety of shots and camera movements that we were able to do with the cameras high quality zoom We would use this camera again for another production as we found it produced good quality footage and was simple for us to use
- 9. Tripod In order to steady our shots on the Panasonic HDC-SD700 camcorder, we used the Velbon CX 88 Tripod We previously had some experience in using tripods however not this specific brand. We enjoyed using this equipment as it gave us a range of options to make our production look professional including high and low angled shots and allowed us to create the panning shots that we used in our final production The tripod allowed us to develop our skills of camera work and as a result of this we would use this equipment in another production
- 10. Dolly We mounted our tripod onto the Velbon DL 11 Dolly in order to have tracking shots in our final production The Dolly was very useful as it extended to the required length we needed and allowed for a smooth movement on a flat service This technology was integral to the advanced transition we used in our production at (0:29) as it allowed us to smoothly move the camera so the long transition worked as effectively as possible
- 11. YouTube In order to upload our videos we used a technology called YouTube. This is a website that allowed us to upload and present productions therefore it was useful for us to use it as a showcase for how far we had gotten in producing our film and testing it to our target audience YouTube is used vastly worldwide therefore Joe and I both had previous experiences in uploading productions onto this website. This allowed us to know what we were doing when using it for the project however the tools it offered were very easy to use as it allowed us to select files from our productions, title it, add a description and then add tags. It also gave us a variety of options on the privacy of our film however we left these open so our productions could be embedded into our blogs YouTube also gave us the option to edit our productions straight on the site therefore for films such as audience testing etc. we were able to cut down the length of these videos and add other footage YouTube was very easy and quick to use therefore speeding up the time it took us to create our production, based on this I think that we would use YouTube again as it had all of the tools we need for our project as was quick and easy to operate and upload our films onto, it also gave us the options to put all of our AS related videos in one playlist making the ordering of our work even easier