Eval q4- r+p
- 1. Evaluation Question 4 Part 1- Research and Planning
- 3. Apple MAC Computer During the research and planning stage of my advanced portfolio I used mainly a Apple Mac computer to do all of my work on such as using the software available and using online tools that I was aware of as means of producing work to post into my portfolio. I chose to use a Mac computer especially due to the high quality reviews on the piece of hardware as it is one of the most efficient computers, also they were very accessible due to having the chance to access them at home as I have one myself and at college therefore software's are similar thus not creating any issues. Having previously used the Mac for last years coursework I was also easily capable at navigating around the computer with ease therefore old skills I had produced from AS were incorporated into A2. It had some disadvantages when using other non apple computers as some elements where different however using the make overall made it simple and better to use than low quality computers.
- 4. SONY N50 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_nYAL3qgeg - This link shows our test shots demonstrating us using the SONY N50 camera for our test shots. We didn’t actually use this particular hardware in the end due to the disadvantages becoming problematic to overcome, the camera itself wasn’t as accessible as the other camera hardware we had a chance to use therefore due to availability we decided against it. However when using it to test in research an planning it did provide some positive elements to my coursework. The camera was of a high quality where it showed a clear image and proved useful at filming from different angles, this particular piece of hardware was used to demonstrate a piece of research which we did as a comparison post to conclude which will be the best piece of equipment for our group. It allowed us to show our decision making which we came across in this particular stage of the portfolio and allowed us to show our development for our plans for when we were going to construct the video.
- 5. Panasonic HC-V250 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxsvEfsSBJE -This is the link to our test shots of the second piece of camera hardware we used during the research and planning period.The Panasonic HC-V250 was used as the comparable camera to the previous SONY N50, which for planning purposed we tested both against each other to determine which would be the best to use in future construction stages.We chose to use this particular camera as they were of easy access to our group in comparison to the Sony, it was easy for us to book and collect the cameras from college which was a big advantage when it came to filming due to time. It was also an advantage to use this type of camera as well due to it refreshing our memories of using the hardware from when it was used in AS work, so our skills will be applicable to the camera.The disadvantages of using this camera however is the camera quality was not as good as the previous one to overcome this we knew we got a lot more benefits to using this one and also with our skills we have gained in the past at construction we could over come this issue. Our research and Planning benefitted massively from this as it showed our journey of our decision making and allowed us to know what hardware we were going to use at the next stage of development.
- 6. Tripod For research and planning we tested cameras and alsoTripods.Testing this hardware allowed us to plan how much time it could take setting up for filming days, also refreshing our memories with how to use and work theTripod from past filming experiences.This benefitted us as it showed our processes we went through to come to these conclusions such as timings and possible positions we could use the tripod in.The only disadvantages of this piece of research is we discovered for some shots we may have to find another way to get shots however due to it only being in the research and planning stage we had time to resolve that in construction.This is shown in my blog through the test shots it is used for on the videos that are embbeded.
- 7. Mobile My mobile was used in my research and planning in several ways. Using my phone to update posts incase we wanted to add another or build upon previous ones and take pictures that is of relevance to the blog such as screenshots of messages and pictures of work.This was a good piece of hardware to use as it was something which allowed on-the-go updates as it is a portable device, allowing ideas we could suddenly have as planning to be blogged straight away by using the internet and apps. Sometimes there was difficulties in connection with the phone and the internet or connecting it to the MACs however we managed to reconnect and transfer our images easily.
- 8. Scanner The college Scanner was a crucial part of the research and planning process, we used the scanner to include work we had hand drafted or drawn out, such as website page plans and shot timelines, into the computer and onto the blog. During research and planning this was a benefit as when we were doing rough ideas or notes we can show our development of planning and ideas by scanning the work and building upon it. Even if it was brief notes of peoples feedback it allowed us to show important marks that effected the direction in which our ideas were heading therefore the scanner was a important piece of hardware. There was drawbacks of the scanner such as the actual scanning process was more slow than a mobile transfer however we used both to demonstrate us using a range of hardware.
- 9. Stills Camera When we were conducting our research and planning posts in our blog we had the opportunity to work with Jake Wynne and Pete Fraser, this was a great opportunity to collect research and plan more through learning and becoming more knowledgeable on different areas, such as timings and setting up filming.This is where the stills camera really became in good use, it allowed me to document me developing my skills and finding out more information on filming a music video as I was able to capture myself talking and working with both Jake and Pete.We managed to get photo evidence of our research which we then uploaded onto the MACs through a SD card.This proved to be an advantage as it allowed me to capture valuable moments which is used as evidence showing me in the stages of doing research, this particular piece of hardware was good to use as it provided good quality images that I was able to get easily transferred onto the computer to insert into my blog.The only drawback from this would be that it is faster to use a mobile when transferring images onto the computer however we overcame this by questioning the standard of picture of the mobile against the camera and decided with using camera images.
- 10. SOFTWARE USED
- 11. Photoshop During research and development not many software’s were actually used as they are more for the construction of products however we did use it in some respects.When researching into the creation of Digipacks we made experimental versions by using specific website links that gave us names, song titles and a background image which we had to work with. Using this I had to ensure Photoshop was set at the right height and width to allow an equal half for the front on back cover, as this was just a time for experimenting with placement on the Digi pack and sizing's I did not include many effects or special effects it was mainly to research into the fonts and movement of writing on the page. I chose to use Photoshop as it a software that is used at a professional level therefore is reliable and offers the tools and options to create high standard products, it saves easily onto theApple computers and when added into a blog post it maintains its standard of quality making it a good option. Some issues found when using this is that I am not as advanced on Photoshop than I am with other software's, therefore I had to ask peers for advice and help whilst I got used to how it worked, this allowed me to get more knowledgeable and familiar with the software allowing me to use it.Once I had got used to the settings it allowed me to use it in further work when creating a mood board as research for costumes for our actors.
- 12. Final Cut Express Final Cut Express is a software I am more experienced with due to first year which is one reason as to why we used it in research and planning. Final Cut allowed videos to be made of our ideas for a video therefore we created it into an animatic, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbQ03eXDmXk Using this to present our work was a good idea as we were able to include the music track with it and it gave us a better perspective for our planning.The use of final cut as a software was an advantage due to our base of skills regarding the software which we could easily apply to the work and advance on, the availability of college having the software for use to use, the opportunity it provides to edit high quality work and the way in which you can export it to a QuickTime movie and upload to YouTube or vimeo making the process of including it into my blog easier and more presentable.There was some problems when using final cut as it is only accessible on college computers however we worked around this by if we needed to use it we would do so in our own time such as a free lesson or at lunch so we completed the task.
- 13. ‘Grab’ Grab is a very useful software that is available on apple computers, I used this frequently throughout my research and planning to allow photo evidence of the work I was conducting.Grab allows you to take screen shots of windows or segments and save them into your work space.When doing research on websites this became a crucial tool as it was quick and simple to use when inserting images.There was some slight issues when not on an apple computer as this choice is not available however we worked around this by using an ordinary screen shot and cropping down the image to the particular part we wanted or using phones to take screenshots however only certain phones do this.
- 15. Blogger For the entirety of the Advanced Portfolio Google Blogger has been a significant online tool that was primarily used, this allows me to broadcast all of my work and findings from the very start to the final pieces showing posts I have created that have bare minimum just idea posts to large in depth analysis posts. I chose to use goggle Blogger as the was in which I present my findings due to the way it allows me to create posts and show them in a chronological way which expresses my decisions and development of work. Due to AS coursework I have experience using blogger so I am able to expand and advance on with these skills to make my presentation an even higher standard. Google blogger allows me to embed and insert images, videos, links, sounds, texts and other forms of media into posts benefiting my research and planning stage as it allows me to improve on my ideas and plans through building up posts. This online tool is also very accessible and you can access it on any computer, mobile or tablet meaning blogs can always be added to which is crucial in research as it can be happening at any one time. Overall it properly allows my journey of ideas to be documented in a professional fashion. The only issues experienced with blogger is if there is connection issues with internet, which is not necessarily a problem with google blogger itself more the hardware therefore it was just something that if you turned the device off then on it generally restored connection.
- 16. Google Google the online provider was a large use to my research and planning stage. Google search engine, google forms and Gmail all were of use in my work due to the opportunity provided.Gmail allowed communication between group members when discussing ideas and also enquiring about locations which we then screenshot as evidence, google search engine allowed me to fully expand my research beyond knowledge as I was able to search and look for examples and different sources which links could easily be inserted into posts and google forms allowed us to conduct target audience research as we were able to create our set questions and invite people to answer them, once they answered results were transferred into a chart which was easily embedded into blogger. The advantages of the google options is that is a internet dominating tool which is used by billions giving unlimited opportunity to find research and inspirations from, also it is accessible from any device that can connect to internet therefore it doesn’t shelter the time you can take to research and plan ideas. Once again the only issue was not with google butWi-Fi connection itself therefore we just had to try to regain connection.
- 17. Prezi Prezi acted as an efficient software to show the developments of ideas and present findings in an interactive interesting way I used it in my coursework to show my ability to use online tools and software's other than the norm such as PowerPoint. Prezi is something I have used many times previous therefore I was able to use it easily with little trouble which is an advantage to me and a reason as to why I used it. Also Prezi is a creative way for me to show a journey of a presentation, it lets me insert images, videos and links with writing in a format of my own choice not limiting me to just presenting through text. It can be easily embedded into blogger and updates if edited even once it has been embedded.The only draw back was on an occasion there was issues uploading gifs to the Prezi and only .jpegs could be inserted therefore to resolve this I had to change the format in which I had saved images.
- 18. Youtube For my research and planning stage Youtube was a key media platform I used due to the vast amount of people that use it and to show their work. It was useful to find inspirational videos and ideas which were simple to put in the blog with the embed code and I was also able to make gifs using youtube to save and put into the blog.There was some issues such as whenYoutube was not loading due to the internet connection, we overcame this with patience and by turning the computers on and off and if that did not work we did other work on software’s rather than online tools, such as Photoshop.