Dear Moderator

Dear moderator, welcome to our blog. Please use the labels we have added on the right hand side to navigate through our work. IT is split into these main sections Research, Planning, Work and Evaluations. Also work that has been done by just one member has been tagged with the name of the writer of that blog. I hope you enjoy reading through the work we have produced.

Question 4 Tommy Medland

Dear Moderator.


This video had to be re uploaded after YouTube removed the original for copyright infringement.

Evaluation Question 3 - What have you learn from your audience feedback?

Evaluation Question 2

Evaluation Question 1 - In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Evaluation Question 4 - JG

Question 4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

Technology we used:

Photoshop - Photoshop was a vital element in the production of my digipak and poster as it is where they were created. Using layering and text etc. I was able to make a professional looking piece of work that had a strong sense of branding and fitted the target market and music genre. It was good for the smaller details such as editing the lucky number logo to make it stand out in red. I also used the grid function to keep the majority of my design central to the page.


Digital still camera - This was for planning shots and getting location shots. This wasn't vital for our work and it wouldn't of affected us had we not used it. The main reasons for using the still shots were for getting the frames right before shooting and it was useful to be able to capture the filming process for our blog.




Digital video camera - This was the main technology used when filming the video, we used a HD camera. It caused some problems in the editing process as the clips were filmed in the wrong format and needed to be converted to an editable format such as mp4.


iPhone - I didn't learn a lot when using the iPhone as it is something that I used everyday. It was utilised to allow contact between me and Tommy etc. We also set up a schedule on our phones using timetables and the calendar so that we knew when everything was happening. It was helpful to have a phone in use when communicating with the band as well as it is quicker than emailing and other alternatives.




iPod - For simply playing the song whilst filming and allowing the singer to learn the lyrics before the filming day. Again nothing was new to me about this.

Twitter - I used the social networking site twitter in an attempt to promote 'Odessa Soviet' in a professional manor. I aimed to hit our young target market through the website as it is something that they would use on a regular basis, I feel that this has taught me more about the working of a band etc. I didn't manage to keep on top of the account as well as I should have and didn't use it enough to gain many followers to make it worthwhile.




Blogger - One of the main technologies throughout the projects has to be blogger. Used throughout the process in research, planning, production and evaluation to post the pieces of coursework produced. As well as just posting straight on to blogger it allowed me to link the bands twitter account etc. It also allows for the posting of things such as Scribd documents and you tube video which helped a lot when posting my ancillary texts.




Email - I received some feedback via email which has made the evaluation process a great deal easier.

Youtube - This was a social networking site used when posting our video and draft video live on the internet. It was a simple process but something I hadn't done a lot before. The main thing to learn was how to upload from final cut pro to the site. This site also made researching any existing videos extremely easy.




Lighting - Lighting helped to make the music video we created into a more professional looking piece of work. As we filmed in a drama studio there was a lot of lighting built in at different angles which helped us light up the performing area evenly. we could also dim individual lights to leave the focus on specific band members etc.


Final cut pro - When editing my video and draft I used final cut to make a realistic video that flowed well with a variety of shots. I also dragged in some Photoshop files to supply text to the video at the beginning an also as it faded out. Another feature I utilised was to get a frame at the beginning to make the shot have the effect of being viewing on the camera screen.

Youtube to mp3 - I used this when downloading the song from you tube to make sure we editing in time. The song was from the official Darwin Deez video so we knew it would be ideal with the footage alongside it. 


UK tribes - UK tribes was the main site that I used in order to gain knowledge about my target market and what they liked. It helped me look at who might enjoy our video and therefore who I should to aim it at.

Evaluation Question 3 - JG

http://jackgogerty.wix.com/jackgogerty-eval3

Evaluation Question 4

Evaluation Question 2 - JG

Evaluation Question 1 - JG

EVALUATION 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

USE
For our Radar Detector music video we have used an array of other bands videos to generate ideas and create realistic shots. An example of this is shown in an Oasis video but we have given it a more relaxed feel with a less polished look, this was easier to do due to our budget etc. We also took ideas from the likes of .........

For the 'presents' part of my text I saw a logo that did what I wanted as it came in two parts and stood out well on its background.

My poster and digipak were strongly related to people such as the Arctic Monkeys who have had great success with their music and fit in with the type of band that we have tried to produce. The layout and fonts used are similar. As far as the colours on my digipak and advertisement are concerned we took inspiration from many bands including Pink Floyd, The Black Keys and the Maccabees. These were used because .........

DEVELOP
For my text i took the warping idea from Superman and developed it to be in a more modern style that would fit in with my genre of music. I also took inspiration from an Arctic Monkeys 'Suck it and see' posters main text which also uses a warped effect.

 
CHALLENGE
I challenged the conventions of existing products within my genre by changing the colour scheme. Although there are some with similar colours as shown above it is more light colours that are usually used.

Evaluation Question 2 - First Draft

EVALUATION 2. How Effective is the Combination of Your Main Product and Ancillary Texts?

My digipak and poster advertisement clearly linked through the use of fonts and colours, also the layouts are similar in terms of almost everything being central etc. In terms of links with our video i think they both fit in with the genre and the dark colours tie it in. 

The video links with the use of colour as well, e.g. the drums are a similar blue to the one used in my advertisement. The layout of shots and the way its framed it is simple to show off the band members and the music they produce.

They are different due to the fact that the video is far less polished in terms of its look than the rest of my products. I think that the video looks more like a ........... video than something by the arctic monkeys however my poster etc. are based around existing products that are by the arctic monkeys. 

Final Video

ODESSA SOVIET ~ RADAR DETECTOR

27/11/2013 Final Filming Day

2.30pm: Collected all equipment from various locations

3.10pm: Took equipment into school filming area

3.20pm: Set up set began filming 

6.30pm: Finished filming began packing away and returned home to start editing

Changes to filming techniques etc.

In the draft video we didn't use a wide range of shots or cuts. for example we only had long shots of the whole band or a variety of close ups focusing on just one member, for our final shoot we need to add more mid range shots and pans. Also when editing we need to cut between shots using fades and zooms etc. Other improvements that I think we could make is to have more artificial lighting to make it look a lot more professional. The band members to to be changed and need to actually know how to play the drums/guitar as in the draft it is very obvious that they do not know how to play.

digipak analysis

Velvet Underground and Nico

Minimal cover with a very eye catching design. This was made famous through the use of international artist, Andy Warhol. This produces a link between pop-art and pop music.

suck it and see poster analysis

This advertisement uses two colours and is kept very minimal. this use of colour is very subtle as well as neither of the two are stand out, bright colours that you expect to see as a way of gaining some attention. Also as a well known band the largest text on the page is their name to make them stand out. The next thing is the album name which allows the reader/listener to research into the new album. in small print at the bottom of the page is some advertisement for the record company via their website and logo. I have been inspired by this in terms of the central layout and content. However I have spaced out my page a bit more so the is a bit less empty space.

Final digipak and poster

Final Digipak/Poster

Digipak/Poster Reserch 2

When i was producing my digipak and poster image which i would be using on both to keep continuity throughout i looked into these images below and worked with them all to create something really abstract and different. This is why i have come up with the strange dotted skeleton skull shape on the front of my digipak on poster. I took different parts from each image below and came out tithe the strange abstract dotted skeleton on my digipak and poster. The dotted image with the grey background is from the Killers new single 'Shot at the night'. When i saw this image on the twitter feed i instantly wanted to apply it to my image so this is where the dotted inspiration came from. The skeleton part of my digipak and poster image came from the images below which i research into and tried to give my image the skeleton look as i felt it look good and would suit the indie genre of music. 

Main Inspiration for Digipak/Poster

Simplistic and minimalistic CD covers and posters which all have images to represent the band. This convention in a poster or CD cover i think works really well if the image can get so well known to represent a certain band. The reason i have done my digipak and poster in this simplistic style as i feel it suits my indie band and the image which was created also could become popular enough that no writing on a poster/advertisement/CD cover is necessary. If a simple image is to become so well known and represents a band i think this is a huge achievement for the band and i feel this kind of style on a digipak and poster is more affective than other forms and styles.

Final Video Changes

Location - The location which we used for the draft video was ideal just for the draft and for us to get a bit of experience working with the filming and editing of the video. But for the final video we will be changing the location something more suitable for our indie music video. A possible option for this change of location is Donnington hall which has a number of room which would be mire suited to our style of music and to film our music to Radar Detector in.

Clothing - Some of the feedback which we have received is that we need to change the clothing of band members to be more suited and similar to what a Darwin Deez member would wear. This look is baggy, retro, plain and generally just something different not what you see everyone wearing, indie. A better match of footwear for all band members would also benefit our video and make it more suited to the genre of music. As the main focus of the video is on the guitarist and vocalist in the middle, we need to ensure his clothing is a great representation of his indie style to the target audience.

Drummer - We will also be changing the drummer as we only used this person (Jack) because the original drummer couldn't make the filming day and we didn't have any other option other than to use Jack who unfortunately doesn't know how to play the drums. For the final video we will be finding a person who can actually play the drums and this will improve our video so much and will make it a lot more like a real music video. We haven't yet found a drummer who would suit this role for the final video but will blog a post when this stage is complete.

Digipak/Poster Research

Below is the album cover for Arctic monkeys latest album "AM". As you can instantly tell from the cover it is extremely minimalistic and simplistic which is a factor i have followed with my final digipak. The white lines/image have become famous to Arctic Monkey's that whenever someone sees the cover they can instantly tell that it is an Arctic Monkey's cover. The colour of this cover image is very affective, plain black back ground with white image which makes the cover be bold and stand out. This image which Arctic Monkeys have created can represented as a few different images like sound waves, a pair of glasses, Golden gate bridge in San Francisco  I have followed this convention with my final digipak cover with a plain black background and an unique white dot image in the centre of the cover which i created on photoshop. I feel that my band like Arctic Monkeys could become so well known that the target audience would instantly know when seeing my front cover image who the band is.

Inspiration which i gathered for my poster and digipak was mainly from two bands who are famous for the simplistic look Arctic Monkey's and The XX. The poster below is The XX's for there second album Coexist. As you can see this poster is very simplistic and is literally just an image which represents the band and the name of the band in small font below. The black and white again really allows the poster to stand out and this is a convention which i have followed with my poster and digipak so that i can grab the target audiences attention straight away. Again the same as Arctic Monkeys The XX have this image of an 'X' which represents them as a band so any advertisement or CD cover with the image on it grabs the attention of the target audience and they know straight away who the band is, this is a convention i really like about an album cover/poster just a simple image like these can represent a massive well known band. I have used this convention and made a unique design on photoshop which kind off looks like a a shower head with the white dots as the water falling out of the shower head (Odessa Soviet). Hopefully this image can become so popular and people straight away will associate it with the indie band Odessa Soviet.

Band Member Changes

Due to various reasons we were unable to use the people who we had said we shall be using in a previous blog post. As we couldn't use these people we found alternatives who we used for the draft video which actually worked well. For the final video we will be using these same people excluding the drummer in the draft as we feel that we could achieve a better effective video if the drummer can actually play the instrument and in time the the song. The only change to the two guitarists in the draft video for the final video is we will dress them in something a bit more suited to the style to match the genre of music better.

A2 Media Video (DRAFT) - Radar Detector

Draft Video Day Planning

Draft video Planning- Filming Day:

Wednesday 30th October 2013
8.35am- 12.00pm: Normal school lessons
12.00pm - 1.00pm: Collected all equipment needed, drums, guitars etc.
1.00pm - 1.15pm: en route to location (Leire Village Hall)
1.15pm - 2.00pm: Set up all equipment ready to start filming
2.00pm - 2.15pm: Had lunch on set with all band member discussing filming
2.15pm - 7.15pm: Filmed draft video, occasional breaks
7.15pm - 8.00pm: Finished filming packed away equipment and left location

Editing Day:
Thursday 31st October 2013
8.35am - 3.10pm: All school day spent on editing with occasional breaks for lunch etc.
3.10pm - 3.15pm: Draft video on blog, signed in at English office..

Main inspiration

The Arctic Monkeys album 'suck it and see' has inspired me greatly when creating my own digipak and poster. The minimal layout is striking and makes the viewer notice whats important, the band and their album. Also I like the colour scheme evolving around two main colours instead of three although I have still used the conventional three.

Work for Friday 1st November

• Film and edit draft video
• Begin improving digipak and poster
• Post on digipak/poster feedback
• Test shots post

Digipak and poster feedback

Digipak- 6/10

I need to add the catalogue number and band name to the spine and include a larger track listing. Also the OS panel could be moved to the centre panel to make it stand out more. More research is also needed to get a higher mark.

Poster- 6/10

Just needs a lot more evidence to show that it is a realistic poster that matches my genre. With the added evidence it could easily get a better grade.

Draft digipak

Draft poster

Album cover analysis

Draft Digipak/Poster Feedback

Digipak Feedback:
The feedback which i have been given is very useful and clear to me of what is needed to achieve a better grade on both poster and digipak. Firstly the digipak was scored 6/10 which is a D grade. The feedback that i was given to improve this grade is that i will need to add a record label to the back of the digipak and add more detailed research to make it as realistic as possible. For my final digipak i shall research more into real digipak's similar to my style and genre of music and adapt it to mine which will make it as real as it can be. Also i will add suitable record labels to the back of the cover. Another piece of feedback which i have been given is to change the pattern which is on the inside cover to the front panel. This image could become so recognised by the audience that straight away seeing this image they will know the band. e.g Arctic Monkeys latest album AM artwork is so recognised the target audience all know straight away whose music it is.

Poster Feedback:
The feedback given for my poster is also very clear and easy for my to understand what i need to change for the final poster. I scored 2/10 for my poster which is an E grade. Similar to the digipak i need to apply detailed research to my poster and give evidence that this style matches my genre of music, band and will appeal to the target audience. For my final poster i shall study into real poster for my genre of music and apply this look to my poster. I will also add ratings from well known music company's like NME and Q and dates of album release dates etc.

Draft Digipak/Poster

Instruments

The instruments which we will be using for our draft music video to Radar Detector are: Drums, Bass Guitar and AMP, Guitar and a microphone.

Influence Playlist

Minimal Example Album Cover's

Animatic

Example Album Cover's 3