3. Canon DSLR 65OD EOS
– Strength
– On the camera, the ability to set the focus manually we
were able to get a much clearer shot and adjust the white
balance, exposure etc to suit our opening
– The Canon DSLR had easily accessible settings and menus
which were easy to work, therefore it allowed a better
quality of image with very little work.
– The camera is relatively small therefore it was convenient
to carry around as we moved locations
– Weakness
– The battery life only last around 2-3 hours which put us
under time pressure
4. Camera lens
– Strength
– The camera lens allowed us to create shots with
great detail due to the zoom and focus option,
for example the wounds on the flashback.
– Weakness
– Despite our efforts to focus the lens as much as
possible, some of the shots were still slightly
blurry as the lens wasn’t able to focus any more
5. Lighting (key, fill and
back)
– Strength
– The lighting worked very well as it brought out the
subjects, our actors, and created a very dim but sharp
atmosphere
– The lighting also allowed us to make the antagonist
appear more mysterious and creepy
– The small lights were useful as they weren’t too bright
yet provided the right amount of lighting
– Weakness
– Due to the lighting bringing out the sharpness, it also
brought out shadows which made it difficult in
continuity editing and sometimes the shadows would
alter their position.
6. Microphone
– Strength
– The microphone enabled us to record sound of a
better quality and get rid of most background noise
– Using the microphone has generally improved our
audio for example the sound of water running from
the tap was very clear and therefore we didn’t need
to enhance it
– Weakness
– The microphone did not completely get rid of
prevalent background noises, and this led to us having
to edit it out
7. How we overcame
filming problems:
– One of the problems we experience was during filming an
extreme close up of the eye. When we place the camera on
the tripod the camera wouldn’t zoom in as much as we
wanted to therefore we had to use a hand held camera
and keep steady in order to minimise shaking
– In certain scenes the key lighting was too bright therefore
we had to put a filter over it to make it dimmer. We also
made sure that the lighting in each shot was matching the
lighting in the rest of the shots from that scene
8. What we learnt about
filming technologies
From the use of these technologies, we were able to decipher how to
utilise certain configurations and settings on the cameras to achieve
what we wanted. For example, in order to enhance the natural colours
of our scene we manually set the White Balance through the manual
settings.
We also learned how camera lenses could zoom in, and then focus
which allowed us to take more detailed close-up shots and extreme
close-ups without losing the verisimilitude and quality of the footage.
In addition to this, we learned how a microphone can make all the
difference to the sound quality as it allowed us to remove background
noise while filming.
10. iMac
– Strength
– The iMac has autosave which means that all of our work
wasn’t lost when the computer crashed
– All of us have found the software easy to use and therefore
it allowed us to produce work more successfully
– The iMac has provided us with various programmes and
softwares enabling us not only to edit our opening but also
access your blogs, the Internet and Youtube in HD
– Weakness
– The iMacs would sometimes crash therefore there was a
risk of losing all our work
11. Final Cut Pro
– Strength
– Final Cut Pro allowed us to edit our opening in a professional
way which meant we could reduce and enhance any sound we
had filmed, add credits and add any extra effects
– Every shot could be precisely edited
– Despite some of us not having much experience with the
software, we were still able to quickly learn the necessary
skills to edit our opening
– Weakness
– Within Final Cut Pro, we found out it was difficult to edit or
fade our current soundtrack- meaning we were not able alter
the music to fit in with certain scenes at ease. This led to us
splicing the soundtrack.
12. Firework
– Strength
– The software allowed us to construct our own image for the title
– The software was relatively easy to use yet produces professional work
– Images could be resized without creating a loss of quality, therefore
allowing us to both design a logo and the opening credits.
– Weakness
– The menus are different to Photoshop and so were harder to use, it is not
simple but rather slightly more complex
13. Dream Maker (BYOND)
– Strength
– Easy to use and allows the editing of an image using pixels,
therefore allowing us to edit the title sequence
– Easy access to the image, and tools
– Weakness
– Images could not surpass 256x256 and so we had to resize
the image continuously
– It was hard to maintain the quality within the transfers
between Dream Maker and Fireworks
14. How we overcame editing
problems:
– Edited out any background noise through the editing software
– We were able to adjust the light sources to prevent shadows
from taking over the scene, any shadows still present were
then edited to fit the current scene
– When our iMac deleted some of our raw footage, we used our
backup files and this allowed us to regain the work we had
done
– We had originally created a title using a found image, but after
being told this wasn’t allowed we were able to construct a
new image via the use of Fireworks and Dreamweaver
– One of the shots we used in our opening was very unsteady
which meant that we had to stabilise the shot on the Final Cut
Pro software
15. What we learnt about
editing technologies
During the editing process, one of the key things our group has noticed and
learnt is the effect that post production has on a text. Editing i.e. post
production is essentially where the product in shaped. Our raw footage was
quite different from what the final shots are like. This is because during
editing we were able to change things like saturation and add filters to shot
in order to change the mise-en-scene making the opening appear more dull
and mysterious than it originally was.
Furthermore this process has taught us how to add in the audio line
effectively because we realised that if you just add a soundtrack the rhythm
may not necessarily match the shots. It is important to wait until the tension
builds up before the sound dramatically drops as this will appeal more to the
audience and create the tension expected from a thriller.
We learned that Final Cut Pro is a professional and sophisticated way to
piece together raw footage in order to create a final product.
17. YouTube
– Strength
– Allows you to share any content you have created.
– It is free.
– Useful for receiving feedback and keeping a track on what the audience like.
– You can contact other users easily, for example if you are requesting use of any
found images or media files such as audio effects or soundtracks
– Allows embedding tools
– Weakness
– There are limits for new accounts, for example the limit of length and quality for new
accounts.
– YouTube servers may crash which means videos become unaccessible
18. Blogger
– Strength
– Users are able to change the style and format of their information
– Great for documenting progress throughout the production of a
media text and allows collaboration with other people
– Easy to embed videos, powerpoints, photos and gifs which made
the presentation of information more accessible
– Weakness
– The blogs may crash often, causing scares and perhaps the loss of
data as experienced by us twice.
19. Prezi
– Strength
– Not only is it free but it is a unique way to present information
– Simple to use and movement becomes a part of technology
– It saves backups online and can be embedded anywhere
– Allows you to zoom in and out of information and so makes the format more
accessible
– Offers a more engaging audience experience
– Weakness
– Trying to access it with bad internet is an issue, it does not load properly
– Some data can be lost if it crashes before having been saved
– Audio can not be added easily to a Prezi
– Can cause dizziness if not created carefully, motion sickness has been reported
20. What we learnt about
documenting technologies
As a group, we were able to detail and document all of our pre-
production and research in several different formats. We also
discovered how to use labels and tag our posts, allowing us to make it
more efficient when looking through our posts and seeing who needed
to do what as well as any progress made.
We learned how to use several different documentation tools such as
Powtoons, Slideshare, Prezi, YouTube and many others. This meant that
our work could be both informative and interesting without the two
being mutually exclusive.
