Wednesday, 24 October 2012
Rough Cut Video :)
This is our Rough cut video. It's not as good as we had intended for the rough cut, with not all the whole song completed with footage. When we get back after half term we are going to, with the feedback that we have improve it for our final deadline date.
Digital Technologies and Equipment used
Final Cut: We used this programme to compose and edit our final music video by using tools such as crop, to create the split screen affect, colour filters, the pen tool to fade the image, modify the speed of the clip etc.
Advantages: We could edit our footage to how we specifically wanted to, and create various effects through this by using tools such as colour filters etc This would therefore create different atmosphere effects which follows the traditional pop culture conventions.
Disadvantages: Some of the tools we used we had little experience so it was harder to apply them towards the editing. Especially the 'syncing' the footage with the audio and creating the colour filters. As well as split screen because the timing of each clip had to be in sync with each other. This was a set back as the actual footage that we filmed wasn't steady.
Equipment:
Camera: We used this to film our whole project and take photos of every stage
Advantages: As the camera we used was HD the quality was more defined so it could be mistaken for a professional music video camera. We had no problem getting to grips with the controls - easy to use.
Disadvantages: Sometimes the camera went out of focus and this was the only problem we found hard to solve.
Dolly: We only used this piece equipment when filming our test footage. We found out it made the image uneven because the surface was unstable.
Light reflector: This was useful when filming outside at the brick wall when filming the close ups, because it gave the singer a natural glow on her face.
Colour filters: This were very useful when filming in our 2nd location in the house. We used the red one to create the affect of a burning fireplace. It created an interesting, stylistic atmosphere.
Tripod: This was useful as it kept the camera angles stable and made the footage smooth.
Torches: We used the torches when filming inside the house, with the colour filters - shining on the chandelier and the fireplace. We also used them shining on the singers face but it didn't look realistic.
Advantages: We could edit our footage to how we specifically wanted to, and create various effects through this by using tools such as colour filters etc This would therefore create different atmosphere effects which follows the traditional pop culture conventions.
Disadvantages: Some of the tools we used we had little experience so it was harder to apply them towards the editing. Especially the 'syncing' the footage with the audio and creating the colour filters. As well as split screen because the timing of each clip had to be in sync with each other. This was a set back as the actual footage that we filmed wasn't steady.
Equipment:
Camera: We used this to film our whole project and take photos of every stage
Advantages: As the camera we used was HD the quality was more defined so it could be mistaken for a professional music video camera. We had no problem getting to grips with the controls - easy to use.
Disadvantages: Sometimes the camera went out of focus and this was the only problem we found hard to solve.
Dolly: We only used this piece equipment when filming our test footage. We found out it made the image uneven because the surface was unstable.
Light reflector: This was useful when filming outside at the brick wall when filming the close ups, because it gave the singer a natural glow on her face.
Colour filters: This were very useful when filming in our 2nd location in the house. We used the red one to create the affect of a burning fireplace. It created an interesting, stylistic atmosphere.
Tripod: This was useful as it kept the camera angles stable and made the footage smooth.
Torches: We used the torches when filming inside the house, with the colour filters - shining on the chandelier and the fireplace. We also used them shining on the singers face but it didn't look realistic.
Wednesday's Lesson
In today's lesson Grace and myself (Anissia) have sorted out the blog making sure that everything is up to date and completed. While Emma and Palvi started the editing in preparation for our rough cut deadline that is TODAY!
We started to convert our video of what we have so far. We were lucky to be able to find the footage that we lost from Monday's filming at the back of college near the forest area. This is not in our rough cut, but we will be able to add it to our video when we get back after half term.
We started to convert our video of what we have so far. We were lucky to be able to find the footage that we lost from Monday's filming at the back of college near the forest area. This is not in our rough cut, but we will be able to add it to our video when we get back after half term.
Tuesday, 23 October 2012
Mondays Lesson
In today's lesson, we split up in pairs again. Myself and Emma started with the editing of our video going through the song and adding our footage. We went onto YouTube and looked at a video to remind us how to slow down and fasten up footage on final cut. We then got the footage of grace walking with her bike and slowed it down so her footsteps were on the beat of the music.
We then moved onto the blog work. We finished off the Qualitative research task that got different people's opinions on the song that we have chosen.
Palvi and Grace started with the blog work and finished the mood board from the audience research task. They then swapped with us and started editing.
Our teacher Holly looked at the editing we had done so far and gave us some advice in preparation for our rough cut deadline on Wednesday. She said we had a lot of blanks in our timeline on final cut and needed to get all our footage lip-synced onto the timeline. And then add the effects and transitions that we want. We also need to cut more into the long footage that we have to make it more music video style.
We then moved onto the blog work. We finished off the Qualitative research task that got different people's opinions on the song that we have chosen.
Palvi and Grace started with the blog work and finished the mood board from the audience research task. They then swapped with us and started editing.
Our teacher Holly looked at the editing we had done so far and gave us some advice in preparation for our rough cut deadline on Wednesday. She said we had a lot of blanks in our timeline on final cut and needed to get all our footage lip-synced onto the timeline. And then add the effects and transitions that we want. We also need to cut more into the long footage that we have to make it more music video style.
Monday, 22 October 2012
Our Target Audience
- Our target audience is aged from 14-18, we thought of this age as the song lyrics sing about love and 'finding the one'.
- They would typically wear, floral flowery dresses.
- They're typically your girly girl, they are aware of pop culture such as having crushes on famous stars.
- Very colourful and are experimental with colour
- Aware of the fashion, reading magazines such as 'Teen Vogue'
- Radio 1 listeners: you would find them at festivals that included popular pop artists.
Thursday, 18 October 2012
Qualitative research
We had to ask a range of people what they thought of our song, 'Just Live' by Cheryl Cole. Below are the questions that were asked in relation to the song.
1. Did you like the track?
2. What type of person would like this track?
3. Which age range would you typically associate with this song?
4. How would you picture the band/lead?
5. What sort of music video would you expect to accompany this track?
6. If performance, where and what type?
7. If narrative, what sort?
I wanted to ask a range of different people, some who like the music and others that wouldn't listen to this style or artist. Also people of different ages, so the answers were more varied and gave different ideas that we could incororate in our work.
The first person I asked was my sister, Des'ree-Rose who is 13 years old. She does like her music and often listens to music on her iphone on the journey to school. She does watch some music videos, but prefers to just listen.
Me: Do you like the track?
Des: Yes, its really soft and gentle. I really like it!
Me: What type of person would you think would like this track?
Des: I don't know.... somebody who likes that kind of music
Me: What age range would you associate with the song?
Des: Teenagers
Me: Do you think your friends would like it?
Des: Maybe... it would be a contrast to the crazy pop they listen to
Me: How would you picture the lead?
Des: This image is the find of thing I imagine.
Des: A girl walking around singing and every so often swaying with the music.
Me: If there was a performance what would it be like?
Des: The artist would be singing and looking at the camera as if she is singing to the audience.
Me: And if there was a narrative story to company the song, what would it be?
Des: A love story
Overall, Des'ree-Rose liked the song and the ideas she had for what she thought the music video would look like was very much like what we are doing for our video. I think that this has helped us with our research as she is of about the age range that our video is for.
Another person I asked was Emma. She is a friend of the same age as me, and likes music that is in the chart at the time. She mostly listens to music on journeys on the bus.
1. Did you like the track?
-It was okay, bit rubbish though
2. What type of person would like this track?
-Someone who likes Cheryl Cole!
3. Which age range would you typically associate with this song?
-Pre-teens as i doubt anyone my age woud like it.
4. How would you picture the band/lead?
-Someone singing??? Cheryl??
5. What sort of music video would you expect to accompany this track?
-Cheesy pop type video
6. If performance, where and what type?
-Romantic - emotional
7. If narrative, what sort?
-like the music video for Taylor Swifts 'Love Story'
Overall, Emma thought that the track was okay but not anything that she would listen to normally. This view is very different to the one of Des'ree-rose's due to the age range and also the different tastes of music.
From the research that we have found out, we found that both girls and guys had the same idea of the music video. but when it came to if they liked the song or not it was split with girls liking the song and the guys not.
1. Did you like the track?
2. What type of person would like this track?
3. Which age range would you typically associate with this song?
4. How would you picture the band/lead?
5. What sort of music video would you expect to accompany this track?
6. If performance, where and what type?
7. If narrative, what sort?
I wanted to ask a range of different people, some who like the music and others that wouldn't listen to this style or artist. Also people of different ages, so the answers were more varied and gave different ideas that we could incororate in our work.
The first person I asked was my sister, Des'ree-Rose who is 13 years old. She does like her music and often listens to music on her iphone on the journey to school. She does watch some music videos, but prefers to just listen.
Me: Do you like the track?
Des: Yes, its really soft and gentle. I really like it!
Me: What type of person would you think would like this track?
Des: I don't know.... somebody who likes that kind of music
Me: What age range would you associate with the song?
Des: Teenagers
Me: Do you think your friends would like it?
Des: Maybe... it would be a contrast to the crazy pop they listen to
Me: How would you picture the lead?
Des: This image is the find of thing I imagine.
Me: What sort of music video would you expect to accompany the sing? Des: A girl walking around singing and every so often swaying with the music.
Me: If there was a performance what would it be like?
Des: The artist would be singing and looking at the camera as if she is singing to the audience.
Me: And if there was a narrative story to company the song, what would it be?
Des: A love story
 |
| This is Des'ree-Rose listening to the music. |
Another person I asked was Emma. She is a friend of the same age as me, and likes music that is in the chart at the time. She mostly listens to music on journeys on the bus.
1. Did you like the track?
-It was okay, bit rubbish though
2. What type of person would like this track?
-Someone who likes Cheryl Cole!
3. Which age range would you typically associate with this song?
-Pre-teens as i doubt anyone my age woud like it.
4. How would you picture the band/lead?
-Someone singing??? Cheryl??
5. What sort of music video would you expect to accompany this track?
-Cheesy pop type video
6. If performance, where and what type?
-Romantic - emotional
7. If narrative, what sort?
-like the music video for Taylor Swifts 'Love Story'
Overall, Emma thought that the track was okay but not anything that she would listen to normally. This view is very different to the one of Des'ree-rose's due to the age range and also the different tastes of music.
We then asked one of the guys that sits next to us in our media class.
1. Did you like the track?
-Not really, quite boring and the lyrics are cliche
2. What type of person would like this track?
-A confused teenage girl who believes she is in love.
3. Which age range would you typically associate with this song?
-4 to 15 years
4. How would you picture the band/lead?
-Pretty, typical stereotyped pop singer
5. What sort of music video would you expect to accompany this track?
-Clips consistently of the artist with their partner
6. If performance, where and what type?
-location in a public place and in her bedroom, happy with things
7. If narrative, what sort?
-holding on and wanting more of the same with the relationship
This view was completely different to the 2 above from the girls. But the idea for the music video is very much the same as the others.
This view was completely different to the 2 above from the girls. But the idea for the music video is very much the same as the others.
We then asked Grant who is also in our media class.
1. Did you like the track?
-Not really, too slow
2. What type of person would like this track?
-A more mature woman who understands the lyrics
3. Which age range would you typically associate with this song?
-19-35
4. How would you picture the band/lead?
-Attractive, younger woman
5. What sort of music video would you expect to accompany this track?
-Clips that mainly consist of the lead
6. If performance, where and what type?
-Walking through a town, very happy
7. If narrative, what sort?
-Keeping a relationship together
Grant's view for the age range for the song was very different to the what the others said and also the age range we want to watch our music video. This maybe because of the age of grant or the kind of ideas he had when listening to the song. From the research that we have found out, we found that both girls and guys had the same idea of the music video. but when it came to if they liked the song or not it was split with girls liking the song and the guys not.
Theoretical study - Focused and Ambient Audiences
David Buckingham
David Buckingham explains that some audiences are not deliberate or active in their consumption.
He believes it is essential to situate young people's media use within the context of their other social activities and experiences due to the fact that many young people are using the media as a wallpaper: a wall of noise to fill up 'down time' or just to pass the time due to boredom. That many of their interactions with the media are not contrived, committed or concentrated but fleeting, visceral and meaningless.
With this in mind we can have a focused audience:) - deliberately choosing a music video to watch and carefully looking at the contents.
OR an ambient audience - that will have videos on in the background and will take in the content with glances.
Focused audiences can be catered for, with: innovation, strong narrative, clever use of effects, detail, use of symbols for meaning. Content that will reward with multiple viewings.
For our music video, we accommodate for both these types of viewers.
For the people that put it on for the sake of it and don't actually watch it.
He believes it is essential to situate young people's media use within the context of their other social activities and experiences due to the fact that many young people are using the media as a wallpaper: a wall of noise to fill up 'down time' or just to pass the time due to boredom. That many of their interactions with the media are not contrived, committed or concentrated but fleeting, visceral and meaningless.
With this in mind we can have a focused audience:) - deliberately choosing a music video to watch and carefully looking at the contents.
OR an ambient audience - that will have videos on in the background and will take in the content with glances.
Focused audiences can be catered for, with: innovation, strong narrative, clever use of effects, detail, use of symbols for meaning. Content that will reward with multiple viewings.
For our music video, we accommodate for both these types of viewers.
For the people that put it on for the sake of it and don't actually watch it.
Theoretical Study - Uses and Gratifications
Blumer and Katz argued that audiences are ACTIVE not PASSIVE and approached and use media products for the following reasons:
- Diversion = a form of escaping from pressures of everyday life
- Personal relationships = where the viewer gains companionship either with the television characters, or through conversations with others about television
- Personal identity = where the viewer is able to compare their life with the lives of characters and situations on tv, to explore, re-affirm or question their personal identity
- Surveillance = where the media are looked upon for a supply of information about what is happening in the world
Reasons why an audience would approach are music video:
- We don't think that the audience would be entertained by our music video. It won't be entertaining like a music video such as 'Gangam Style' - the video is just people dancing and having a laugh, but it will be entertaining in the sense that it will look aesthetically pleasing to the audience.
- Audiences would approach our video because it conveys personal relationships. This is because the singer is singing to the audience and people can relate to the lyrics. We also use a few close ups in our music video, so the audience can see the emotions in her face, to make the story realistic for people to relate to. If the viewer was experiencing a similar emotional situation they would be able to relate to the artist and feel compassion towards them.
- Our video also shows personal identity because we show the artist in many different costumes and hairstyles and this allows the viewer to identify with the artist in this performance and with these different outfits and hairstyles, she is portrayed as an aspiration in terms of looks/lifestyle/representation.
- Surveillance is also a reason audiences would approach our music video because our audience is mainly girls, and the video will give them inspiration for outfits and the new fashion trends.
Wednesday, 17 October 2012
Digital Technologies and equipment used (so far)
Digital Technologies
Final Cut
We have used final cut to import our footage onto and then start the editing process.
Disadvantage: some of our clips failed and we then had to upload them again.
Advantage: we could put our footage into bins, for example, all the clips for the grass area was in one bin and the house scene in another. So when we are editing it is easier to find the clips that we want to use.
Iphoto
We have used Iphoto to upload images that we took when filming for our digi-pack and magazine advert.
Disadvantage:
Advantage: Easy to upload photos on and takes not much time.
Twitter
We used Twitter to get in touch with our artist through this social media.
Disadvantage: we only had a certain number of characters to write to the artist to tell them that we were going to be using their song for our coursework.
The twitter page that we wrote on on Twitter, we don't know for sure that they are the real Cheryl Cole.
We didn't get a reply from our artist.
Advantage: We are luck to be able to have this social media to be able to get in contact with celebrities.
Mac Computer
We have used Mac computers for all of our work on final cut, photoshop and iphoto
Disadvantage: We have lost some of our footage that we took due to a reason that we don't know.
Another disadvantage is that we only have one computer with all our work on, this means that only a few of us can work on it at one time.
Advantage: Mac is designed and excels in this area of filming and editing:)
Photoshop
Disadvantage: Not all of the group members know how it use it really well and its hard to get to grips with the software.
It takes a lot of time so more time is needed to be spent on the photoshop tasks to get the effect that we want.
Advantage: We have learnt new things and how to use it by watching tutorials and asking questions. This has helped us to advance in our knowledge of the program.
Equipment
Digital camera
We used a HD digital camera to record all our footage on.
Disadvantage:We had to keep a check of the battery like of the camera especially if we were at a location that we couldn't stop and charge it up.
Advantage: We could play back the footage that we had shot when we were still at the location, and if needed we could re-film.
Tripod
We used a tripod to be able to put the camera on a stand.
Disadvantage: The tripod is heavy to take around when moving from one location to the next.
Advantage: It keeps the camera steady when filming.
Dolly
We used the dolly for our outside locations to be able to get a nice pan for our music video.
Disadvantage: If you are not on a smooth ground, the dolly doesn't move smoothly and when you look back at the footage it looks silly and makes you feel sea sick.
Advantage: Its easy to use and clips to the bottom of the tripod easily.
Lights - torches
We used torches instead of big lights as we couldn't use electricity when outside.
Disadvantage: Sometimes the lights didn't give the disired effect that we wanted. We found that the torches when on gave more of a spotlight effect and when we made the background dark and the artist bright and light it looked more like a horror than a music video.
Advantages: We could move the lights around and put them where we wanted them. This gave us more scope and we could try lots of different things until we got the effect and lighting that we wanted.
Gels
We used gels over the torches to create different coloured effects.
Disadvantage: You have to attach the gels with sellotape and they can move out of place if not taped down.
When the gels are on the torches it gives more of a spotlight effect due to the bulb in the torch. This at times wasn't the desired effect we intended.
Advantage: They give nice coloured effects to a scene.
Final Cut
We have used final cut to import our footage onto and then start the editing process.
Disadvantage: some of our clips failed and we then had to upload them again.
Advantage: we could put our footage into bins, for example, all the clips for the grass area was in one bin and the house scene in another. So when we are editing it is easier to find the clips that we want to use.
Iphoto
We have used Iphoto to upload images that we took when filming for our digi-pack and magazine advert.
Disadvantage:
Advantage: Easy to upload photos on and takes not much time.
We used Twitter to get in touch with our artist through this social media.
Disadvantage: we only had a certain number of characters to write to the artist to tell them that we were going to be using their song for our coursework.
The twitter page that we wrote on on Twitter, we don't know for sure that they are the real Cheryl Cole.
We didn't get a reply from our artist.
Advantage: We are luck to be able to have this social media to be able to get in contact with celebrities.
Mac Computer
We have used Mac computers for all of our work on final cut, photoshop and iphoto
Disadvantage: We have lost some of our footage that we took due to a reason that we don't know.
Another disadvantage is that we only have one computer with all our work on, this means that only a few of us can work on it at one time.
Advantage: Mac is designed and excels in this area of filming and editing:)
Photoshop
Disadvantage: Not all of the group members know how it use it really well and its hard to get to grips with the software.
It takes a lot of time so more time is needed to be spent on the photoshop tasks to get the effect that we want.
Advantage: We have learnt new things and how to use it by watching tutorials and asking questions. This has helped us to advance in our knowledge of the program.
Equipment
Digital camera
We used a HD digital camera to record all our footage on.
Disadvantage:We had to keep a check of the battery like of the camera especially if we were at a location that we couldn't stop and charge it up.
Advantage: We could play back the footage that we had shot when we were still at the location, and if needed we could re-film.
Tripod
We used a tripod to be able to put the camera on a stand.
Disadvantage: The tripod is heavy to take around when moving from one location to the next.
Advantage: It keeps the camera steady when filming.
Dolly
We used the dolly for our outside locations to be able to get a nice pan for our music video.
Disadvantage: If you are not on a smooth ground, the dolly doesn't move smoothly and when you look back at the footage it looks silly and makes you feel sea sick.
Advantage: Its easy to use and clips to the bottom of the tripod easily.
Lights - torches
We used torches instead of big lights as we couldn't use electricity when outside.
Disadvantage: Sometimes the lights didn't give the disired effect that we wanted. We found that the torches when on gave more of a spotlight effect and when we made the background dark and the artist bright and light it looked more like a horror than a music video.
Advantages: We could move the lights around and put them where we wanted them. This gave us more scope and we could try lots of different things until we got the effect and lighting that we wanted.
Gels
We used gels over the torches to create different coloured effects.
Disadvantage: You have to attach the gels with sellotape and they can move out of place if not taped down.
When the gels are on the torches it gives more of a spotlight effect due to the bulb in the torch. This at times wasn't the desired effect we intended.
Advantage: They give nice coloured effects to a scene.
Wednesday's Lesson
In today's lesson there was only myself, Emma and Palvi so we spilt the work load so we all had something to do. With Emma and Palvi starting on the blog and then half way through the lesson we swapped.
I was uploading the footage today from what we had done on Monday. This didn't take as long as I had expected it too, so I then started changing the titles of each of the clips to something that would be easier when we are editing.
Whilst Anissia was doing this, myself (Palvi) and Emma were adding to the blog, such as our 'success's, problems we faced and our progress as a whole on the two days of filming' Overall, our success's out weighed our problems. We also came up with solutions for our problems and our progress was pretty good...?
I was uploading the footage today from what we had done on Monday. This didn't take as long as I had expected it too, so I then started changing the titles of each of the clips to something that would be easier when we are editing.
Whilst Anissia was doing this, myself (Palvi) and Emma were adding to the blog, such as our 'success's, problems we faced and our progress as a whole on the two days of filming' Overall, our success's out weighed our problems. We also came up with solutions for our problems and our progress was pretty good...?
Diary of our progress
Successes Day 1:
- Shot at all camera locations
- Filmed in time allotted
- Found a new location (better than our first choice)
- Acting was spot on
Problems Day 1:
- Weather was a minor setback
- Costume changing was difficult as there was no where to change
- People walking past our shots
- Didn't achieve the lighting we wanted
- Couldn't hear the music on the camera
Successes Day 2:
- Lighting (made good use out of all equipment)
- Setting
- Shot all the footage we aimed for
- Costume
- Could hear the music on the camera
Problems Day 2:
- Fire place didn't work
- Location was out of the way
- Fairy light effect didn't work
- Couldn't move about with the camera much (location compactd
Progress:
What we have accomplished since test footage:
Learnt that the red and blue filters work best in a dull background - test footage proves this.
Learnt how to use spot focus on the camera
Learnt that when using split screen each image used has to be similar e.g the distance from the camera to the actor
Learnt how to change the exposure on the camera
Learnt from the test footage using the dolly that this wouldn't be as reliable as it created 'bumpy' scenes so we used handheld instead as it created a better flow
Learnt that for the second day of filming the music needed to be closer to the camera so we would be able to hear it when editing the lip syncing - (image below show mid-shot of actor, you can tell it will be difficult to guess what she's singing)however on the first day of filming we didn't realize this so this will be a set back on our editing as it will take longer to achieve creditable lip syncing
 |
| Add caption |
Number of cuts in a mainstream music video
Florence and The Machine - Spectrum
Number of cuts = 152
We are aiming to achieve a similar amount of cuts in our music video.
Some of the cuts we saw included several camera angels, such as..
Number of cuts = 152
We are aiming to achieve a similar amount of cuts in our music video.
Some of the cuts we saw included several camera angels, such as..
- Low angle
- High angle
- Mid-shot angle
- Long shot
- Close up
- Dutch angle
Monday, 15 October 2012
Monday 15th After thoughts for filming
At about 5pm we started to film the inside scene and we experimented around quite a bit with certain shots and angles. Also experimenting with some tracking shots.
What went wrong?
- Space was an issue when filming around the fireplace, when we wanted to do a tracking shot of the singer we had unmovable objects that obscured the way thus complicated the idea of having a tracking shot at that side of the room.
- The fireplace was a gas that didn't work so we had to come up with other ideas to make it seem alight.
- The fairy lights we intended to use didn't work out as well as we had hoped so we thought to possibly do an overlay with them later in editing or just leave them out completely.
What went well?
- The lighting was excellent we experimented with all sorts of shadowy effects and even used the red filter to give the unlit fireplace some life.
- We spent time going through certain positions of the camera and spaced out the scenes so that when it came to moving on we all felt confident enough that we had wasted all thought on what we could do for that certain bit.
- We created a nice scene using certain lighting and the effects of that in a certain scene.
What we could have improved on?
- We could have improved on the outfit as it was very dull and it slightly blended into the background.
- The space issues should have been established and dealt with so that it hadn't bothered filming.
Here are some images when at location at we were filming.
The overall conclusion was that filming went well and the lighting was much more current in the few scenes that were filmed. Also it was much more enjoyable to film knowing we were in a location where amenities were close by and with easy access.
What went wrong?
- Space was an issue when filming around the fireplace, when we wanted to do a tracking shot of the singer we had unmovable objects that obscured the way thus complicated the idea of having a tracking shot at that side of the room.
- The fireplace was a gas that didn't work so we had to come up with other ideas to make it seem alight.
- The fairy lights we intended to use didn't work out as well as we had hoped so we thought to possibly do an overlay with them later in editing or just leave them out completely.
What went well?
- The lighting was excellent we experimented with all sorts of shadowy effects and even used the red filter to give the unlit fireplace some life.
- We spent time going through certain positions of the camera and spaced out the scenes so that when it came to moving on we all felt confident enough that we had wasted all thought on what we could do for that certain bit.
- We created a nice scene using certain lighting and the effects of that in a certain scene.
What we could have improved on?
- We could have improved on the outfit as it was very dull and it slightly blended into the background.
- The space issues should have been established and dealt with so that it hadn't bothered filming.
Here are some images when at location at we were filming.
The overall conclusion was that filming went well and the lighting was much more current in the few scenes that were filmed. Also it was much more enjoyable to film knowing we were in a location where amenities were close by and with easy access.
Monday's Lesson
In todays lesson I stayed in the room and changed all the names of the footage and started to look through what footage we had and then write down anything that we may need to film tonight. Emma, Grace and Palvi went out to film the footage we needed for the field scene. When they came back with the footage it looked very good and the lighting that was all natural was very well light.
Sunday, 14 October 2012
Monday's weather
The weather for today's filming is raining. This is a small disadvantage due to we need to re-film some footage and also take some photos for our digipack.
Thursday, 11 October 2012
Thursday's Lesson
In today's lesson we wanted to continue with the editing of our music video. However, we hadn't finished all the test footage editing and trying things out on final cut. So we spent the lesson in pairs trying to get it completed. Palvi and Emma started with the editing of the test footage and trying to try things we may use in our final video. And me and Grace went on the blog and sorted out everything, looking for things that needed doing.
We did have a small problem in todays lesson. We hadn't transfered the images we had taken on Monday to the computer for our digipack so we had lost them due to them being deleted off the camera. This has put us back a step and will have to on Monday go back to them locations and take some more photos and also remember to take some at the new locations so we have a nice range of images to choose from. This has taught us that we need to transfer all images and footage on the day we transfer it all so then we don't have this problem again.
In Monday's lesson we will be taking the camera out again and filming the final scenes for our final music video. We will firstly go through the footage on final cut from last Monday to see what we have and if we need to reshoot anything. Once we have done that we will go to the brick wall location at the back of college and film the small scene we need there, and then head off to our location for the fire place scene and back to the centre of cambridge to get some images for our digipack.
We did have a small problem in todays lesson. We hadn't transfered the images we had taken on Monday to the computer for our digipack so we had lost them due to them being deleted off the camera. This has put us back a step and will have to on Monday go back to them locations and take some more photos and also remember to take some at the new locations so we have a nice range of images to choose from. This has taught us that we need to transfer all images and footage on the day we transfer it all so then we don't have this problem again.
In Monday's lesson we will be taking the camera out again and filming the final scenes for our final music video. We will firstly go through the footage on final cut from last Monday to see what we have and if we need to reshoot anything. Once we have done that we will go to the brick wall location at the back of college and film the small scene we need there, and then head off to our location for the fire place scene and back to the centre of cambridge to get some images for our digipack.
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
Uploading the footage to Final cut
In todays lesson we uploaded the footage from the camera onto our final cut project. We had a lot of trouble with this and it took us most of the hour and a half lesson to upload it. this was a disadvantage as we had no time to start any editing which has put us behind in what we want to do.
We did get to look at some of our footage and we started to rename all the clips so it will be easier when we do come to editing.
In the next lesson on Thursday, we hope to get the rest of the renaming of the clips done and then start editing. We then need to go through and write down any footage we need to film on Monday.
We did get to look at some of our footage and we started to rename all the clips so it will be easier when we do come to editing.
In the next lesson on Thursday, we hope to get the rest of the renaming of the clips done and then start editing. We then need to go through and write down any footage we need to film on Monday.
Tuesday, 9 October 2012
How filming went on Monday
We arrived on location at 2:30pm and immediately began to film, starting with the brick wall location. This went successfully and we also ventured into other ideas for that specific scene.
What went wrong?
- Lighting: the torches didn't work as we intended to. We only had one torch with one large bulb which didn't light up as much as we had hoped. So instead we had to work on changing the exposure on the camera and such.
- We often had to pause to let people pass by when we were filming which delayed us in filming.
What we went well?
- We spent time on this specific location and ventured more on specific shots and angles experimenting quiet a bit.
- The natural lighting was on our side of filming, because the location we had chosen looked nice and befitting for that scene.
What we could have improved on?
- Being more aware of the light situation
- The contrast of outfits: having the outfits stand out from the background. However if the lighting would have worked then the contrast of scene and outfit would not have been needed.
Second location was on Midsummer Common at 4:30pm where we filmed the bike by the river scene. This was not as successful as our group had intended.
What went wrong?
- The weather was a major problem at this location as we had no cover i.e. tree's and such.
- Trying to bike whilst filming didn't work so we had to change ways in which we could film the singer and the bike.
What went well?
- We managed to find a solution for our bike scene down by the river.
- Our group persevered with the filming. Even with the terrible weather conditions and all of us being cold, tired and hungry we carried on to get the filming completed as best as we could.
What we could have improved on?
- Our planning for the location was poor, i.e. we didn't test footage the camera with the bike. The weather was not predicted (however not a massive factor).
Third location was at the pathway to the Grafton Centre at 5:30pm. We believe that this scene went well despite interruptions.
What went wrong?
- The general puplic disrupted our filming with childish acts
- We had to wait for the street lighting to come on for the background of this scene.
- The coldness we were not prepared for
What went well?
- The overall footage was good. Shots and angles where experimented with and we spent time on this specific scene.
- The outfit looked well with the set
What we could have improved on?
- Testing the this scene should have been a must as we underestimated the amount of people on set.
- We should of had better torches so that the artist could look more defined in the scene.
Our overall conclusion for Monday's filming was that it was a success coming up with some good footage and was surprised by how well our chosen locations turned out to be. However we did have some disruptions, but we worked through them. Also changing outfits was a major problem as we were good on changing the outfits for the different scenes but where to change them had not occurred to us when planning the filming.
What went wrong?
- Lighting: the torches didn't work as we intended to. We only had one torch with one large bulb which didn't light up as much as we had hoped. So instead we had to work on changing the exposure on the camera and such.
- We often had to pause to let people pass by when we were filming which delayed us in filming.
What we went well?
- We spent time on this specific location and ventured more on specific shots and angles experimenting quiet a bit.
- The natural lighting was on our side of filming, because the location we had chosen looked nice and befitting for that scene.
What we could have improved on?
- Being more aware of the light situation
- The contrast of outfits: having the outfits stand out from the background. However if the lighting would have worked then the contrast of scene and outfit would not have been needed.
Second location was on Midsummer Common at 4:30pm where we filmed the bike by the river scene. This was not as successful as our group had intended.
What went wrong?
- The weather was a major problem at this location as we had no cover i.e. tree's and such.
- Trying to bike whilst filming didn't work so we had to change ways in which we could film the singer and the bike.
What went well?
- We managed to find a solution for our bike scene down by the river.
- Our group persevered with the filming. Even with the terrible weather conditions and all of us being cold, tired and hungry we carried on to get the filming completed as best as we could.
What we could have improved on?
- Our planning for the location was poor, i.e. we didn't test footage the camera with the bike. The weather was not predicted (however not a massive factor).
Third location was at the pathway to the Grafton Centre at 5:30pm. We believe that this scene went well despite interruptions.
What went wrong?
- The general puplic disrupted our filming with childish acts
- We had to wait for the street lighting to come on for the background of this scene.
- The coldness we were not prepared for
What went well?
- The overall footage was good. Shots and angles where experimented with and we spent time on this specific scene.
- The outfit looked well with the set
What we could have improved on?
- Testing the this scene should have been a must as we underestimated the amount of people on set.
- We should of had better torches so that the artist could look more defined in the scene.
Our overall conclusion for Monday's filming was that it was a success coming up with some good footage and was surprised by how well our chosen locations turned out to be. However we did have some disruptions, but we worked through them. Also changing outfits was a major problem as we were good on changing the outfits for the different scenes but where to change them had not occurred to us when planning the filming.
Sunday, 7 October 2012
Weather Forecast
The weather forecast for Monday looks not too bad for when we want to film. We will hopefully get all the footage we need outside in the open done before it starts to rain and then anything else we need to do, do after that.
Thursday, 4 October 2012
Test Footage and Lighting
In today's lesson we took out the camera and done some test footage. We first started with the lighting and tried out different positions and filters for the lights.
We used 3 moveable lights that pluged into the electric socket. We placed one behind the 'artist' and then the other two to the side, and tried to get rid of the shadow that was behind her. We found that this light was very good especially in the room that we were in and the dark intenserity of the room. We then added different coloured filters to the lights. We used red, blue and white filters and moved them around from one light to the next to look for the right style we wanted.
After checking the lighting, we went out and done some test shots and tried things out that we thought might work. We went to the side of the train track and found a wonderful brick wall that we could use. We also can climb the side of the wall and get a birds-eye view of the artist up against the wall.
Shot List
The shot lists again are the same as the storyboards, they're to give ideas and help with the filming. We didn't use the shot list much whilst filming as we were experimenting with ideas and attempting to use different types of shots and camera angels.
Storyboard
The storyboards are a basic outline of what we could do and what shots and scene and actions that we could try in our music video. When filming we used it as a guide to base are main ideas on etc... We also looked to it when we got stuck for an idea on a certain seance, an example of this would be when we filmed the wall scene, we experimented with different angles and such but we kept certain ideas to move the camera around the singer the same.
Wednesday, 3 October 2012
Call Sheet
These are our call sheets. On a call sheet it would be distributed between all the cast members and production team giving all details about what is happening when filming and contact information.
Lighting Tutorials
Here is a lighting tutorial that helped us to be able to position lighting in different places to make different effects.
During this video we made some notes of the things that we liked and the things that we could try ourselves.
- colour corrector - this would be done in the editing process when the footage is in final cut.
- lights behind the artist - putting lights behind the artist which helps the artist to be lit more, gets rid of the shadow and helps them not blend into the background.
- streaking lights - making our own streaking filter to add onto the lights and create an effect depending on how we cut into the filter. The tutorial below, Free Streak Filters is a video that shows us how to make cheap, home-made streak filters.
- use colour filters - these can be added to the lights and come in different colours. This colours include: red, blue, green, etc...
Here is an image of what the guy in the video was doing. With a small diagram of the lights and when we film our fireplace scene, try out try lights and see what looks good.
This is a tutorial on how to make streak filter.
Tuesday, 2 October 2012
Location Reece 3 - 75 High Street, Great Abington
75 High Street, Great Abington
Health & Safety Hazards
1. Getting to the location
2. Fire!
What could cause harm?
1. The journey to and from the location
2. We want a shot with a lit fire in the background, and somebopdy could get burnt
What is the likelihood of this happening?
1. Very unlikely as we will be staying together as a group for the journey to the location
2. A possible risk
Who or what would be harmed?
1. Somebody in the group
2. Somebody in the group
How much harm?
1. Little harm
2. Depending on the burn
What is going to happen to make sure this doesn't happen?
1. Stay together as a group when travelling to the location
2. The fire is a closed fire, and kept closed at all times to stop anyone getting burnt
Photos & Maps
This is the journey that we will as a group be taking to get to the location. This will be done on the bus to Haverhill that goes through Great Abington.
This is the bus timetable for the return journey from Great Abington. We will hopefully depending on how filming goes and the time we get to the location, we will get either of the highlighted buses back to Cambridge and then get our other buses from there.
Sounds
The location of the house is isolated to a degree, with not too much traffic going past. We however won't be filming outside so the traffic will not play a massive part in filming.
Local Locations
Toilet: There is a toilet in the house on location.
Buses: The bus stop is just outside the school in Great Abington, and the bus from college to lcoation is just up Long Road.
Power to charge the camera (if needed): There are power sockets located in the house that we can use if we need to charge the camera.
Health & Safety Hazards
1. Getting to the location
2. Fire!
What could cause harm?
1. The journey to and from the location
2. We want a shot with a lit fire in the background, and somebopdy could get burnt
What is the likelihood of this happening?
1. Very unlikely as we will be staying together as a group for the journey to the location
2. A possible risk
Who or what would be harmed?
1. Somebody in the group
2. Somebody in the group
How much harm?
1. Little harm
2. Depending on the burn
What is going to happen to make sure this doesn't happen?
1. Stay together as a group when travelling to the location
2. The fire is a closed fire, and kept closed at all times to stop anyone getting burnt
Photos & Maps
This is the location of the house from google maps.
This is the bus timetable from Cambridge to Great Abington and the two bus times highlighted are either one of them that we will be taking.
Sounds
The location of the house is isolated to a degree, with not too much traffic going past. We however won't be filming outside so the traffic will not play a massive part in filming.
Local Locations
Toilet: There is a toilet in the house on location.
Buses: The bus stop is just outside the school in Great Abington, and the bus from college to lcoation is just up Long Road.
Power to charge the camera (if needed): There are power sockets located in the house that we can use if we need to charge the camera.
Location Reece 2 - Jesus Green
Jesus Green
Jesus Green is located in Cambridge.
Health & Safety
Hazards
1. The location is near a river, and somebody from the grouo could fall in
1. Losing each other, or getting split up
What could cause harm?
1. The river
2. losing each other
What is the likelihood of this happening?
1.
2. Very low - we will always be together as a group
Who or what would be harmed?
1. Somebody in the group
2. Somebody in the group
How much harm?
1.
2. Not much harm, just a phone call
What is going to happen to make sure this doesn't happen?
1. We will keep a safe distance away from the river, and if we do go near the edge we will take extra care
2. We will stay together as a group, and if we do lose each other or get away from the group we will have each others numbers to get in contact with each other.
Photos & Maps
Sounds
Local Locations
Toilet - The nearest toilet.
Buses -
Power to charge the camera (if needed) -
Jesus Green is located in Cambridge.
Health & Safety
Hazards
1. The location is near a river, and somebody from the grouo could fall in
1. Losing each other, or getting split up
What could cause harm?
1. The river
2. losing each other
What is the likelihood of this happening?
1.
2. Very low - we will always be together as a group
Who or what would be harmed?
1. Somebody in the group
2. Somebody in the group
How much harm?
1.
2. Not much harm, just a phone call
What is going to happen to make sure this doesn't happen?
1. We will keep a safe distance away from the river, and if we do go near the edge we will take extra care
2. We will stay together as a group, and if we do lose each other or get away from the group we will have each others numbers to get in contact with each other.
Photos & Maps
This is a sky view of Jesus Green from google maps.
This is an image of Eden Street, a wonderful location that can be used for the shots that we need a brick wall behind.
Sounds
Local Locations
Toilet - The nearest toilet.
Buses -
Power to charge the camera (if needed) -
Location Reece - Christ's Piece
Christ's Piece
Christ's Piece is located just behind the bus station, Drummer Street. It is a large green space with lots of space to film.
Health & Safety
Hazards
1. The location is near a very busy road with buses that pass very often, also many cyclists and pedestrians also go past.
2. Losing each other at the location
What could case harm?
1. The road, buses, bikes and pedestrians
2. Not staying together as a group
What is the likelihood of this happening?
1. Very unlikely
2. Could happen, but we will make it so it doesn't
Who or What would be harmed?
1. Somebody in the group could be harmed and also others that may be involved (a bus, for example)
2. Someone getting left or lost on their own
How much harm?
1. The harm could be from somthing very small to a serious accident
2. Not much harm, just a phone call
What is going to happen to make sure this doesn't happen?
1. Be sensible when crossing the road
2. Stay together as a group, and if going off make sure everyone has each other's number if contact is needed
Photos & Maps
Here is a more technical map of the green area, with the pathways that are across the area.
Sounds
From Christ's piece there is quiet a lot of ambient sound. This maybe a problem when we film, with lots of people walking past talking and also getting in some of our shots. To stop this happening we will try in the location we want it to be in, and if that seems to be impossible due to the volume of people walking we will find a quietier part of the green.
Local Locations
Toilet - The nearest toilets from the location is across the road and in The Grafton centre and also in the opposite direction in Grand Arcade.
Buses - The nearest bus stop for the guided bus is at New Square and the bus station. And for all other buses at Drummer Street, the bus station.
Power to charge the camera (if needed) - If we need power the nearest plug is in Starbucks!
Christ's Piece is located just behind the bus station, Drummer Street. It is a large green space with lots of space to film.
Health & Safety
Hazards
1. The location is near a very busy road with buses that pass very often, also many cyclists and pedestrians also go past.
2. Losing each other at the location
What could case harm?
1. The road, buses, bikes and pedestrians
2. Not staying together as a group
What is the likelihood of this happening?
1. Very unlikely
2. Could happen, but we will make it so it doesn't
Who or What would be harmed?
1. Somebody in the group could be harmed and also others that may be involved (a bus, for example)
2. Someone getting left or lost on their own
How much harm?
1. The harm could be from somthing very small to a serious accident
2. Not much harm, just a phone call
What is going to happen to make sure this doesn't happen?
1. Be sensible when crossing the road
2. Stay together as a group, and if going off make sure everyone has each other's number if contact is needed
Photos & Maps
This is a sky view from google maps of the locations that we want to use. Christ's piece and the small green area when you are walking towards The Grafton.
Here is one of the paths that is in Christ's piece. This would be a nice place to do some of the filming with the trees and scenary in the background.
 |
| Eden Street - a side road that is towards the Grafton Centre. |
This is a side road called Eden Street that is located towards The Grafton Centre. This would be a wonderful location to film the footage we need with the brick wall behind the artist.
From Christ's piece there is quiet a lot of ambient sound. This maybe a problem when we film, with lots of people walking past talking and also getting in some of our shots. To stop this happening we will try in the location we want it to be in, and if that seems to be impossible due to the volume of people walking we will find a quietier part of the green.
Local Locations
Toilet - The nearest toilets from the location is across the road and in The Grafton centre and also in the opposite direction in Grand Arcade.
Buses - The nearest bus stop for the guided bus is at New Square and the bus station. And for all other buses at Drummer Street, the bus station.
 |
| Drummer Street |
Change of location
We couldn't film at our 3rd location due to another party not being able to lend us the house. So we changed to another location 10 Roman Drift, where we filmed all of the inside footage.
Pros:
- We got to use some light effects for this video.
- We also had a better contrast in colours with the surrounding footage.
Cons:
- We had little room to move about the set
- The fire didn't work so we had to make do using a gel
- It took longer to get to this location that it would have done if we had filmed at the location we had wanted.
Pros:
- We got to use some light effects for this video.
- We also had a better contrast in colours with the surrounding footage.
Cons:
- We had little room to move about the set
- The fire didn't work so we had to make do using a gel
- It took longer to get to this location that it would have done if we had filmed at the location we had wanted.
Monday, 1 October 2012
Time to film!
We have decided to film next week, Monday 8th October and bringing back the camera on Tuesday 9th October.
On Monday we'll film everything we can such as the cycling in Jesus Green, the filming of the artist in Christ's Piece and filming the brick wall scene with her plainly singing the lyrics.
Then Wednesday 3rd October's lesson we're going to check our footage and see what we have got, and if we haven't got the footage that we need we'll film Monday 15th October.
Monday 15th October we'll film the fireplace scene and any other scene that need touching up. We'll get the 13 from Hills Road to 75 High street, Great Abington, Cambs CB21 6AB where the fireplace scene will be filmed.
On Monday we'll film everything we can such as the cycling in Jesus Green, the filming of the artist in Christ's Piece and filming the brick wall scene with her plainly singing the lyrics.
Then Wednesday 3rd October's lesson we're going to check our footage and see what we have got, and if we haven't got the footage that we need we'll film Monday 15th October.
Monday 15th October we'll film the fireplace scene and any other scene that need touching up. We'll get the 13 from Hills Road to 75 High street, Great Abington, Cambs CB21 6AB where the fireplace scene will be filmed.
Plan for our ancillary text ideas
CD Case: Digi Pack
- This is an option for our album cover.
- Head shot, and draws attention
- Focuses on the singer (star persona)
- Use photoshop to create this look
- Most album covers had plain/neutral backgrounds
- But with striking font styles or striking colours
- We will incorporate some of this, possible make the image of the artist striking and then the font neutral (reverse)
- Beyonce's digi pack
- Information about the music, producers etc
- Space for CD's and a picture of the artist behind the CD's
- Instead of a traditional CD case, this one has an extra case for additional information
- For our digi pack, we will follow similar ideas/conventions
- E.g, picture of the artist (screen grab from music video) behind the CD, information about the production, artist, possibly lyrics, info about upcoming albums, bonus tracks (deluxe )
Magazine:
Screen grab showing us research 'Cheryl Cole magazine cover' we found several magazine gener types e.g gossip, glamour, fashion ect.
We found that with a 'gossip magazine' the artist wouldnt be the main focus - therefore hardly any editing of the image.
With the 'fashon magazine' we found that its more focused on her clothing, e.g street style ect.
Overall, we didn't think that these layouts were suitable for our star persona
- Head shot, and draws attention
- Focuses on the singer (star persona)
- Use photoshop to create this look
- When we typed in google 'pop album covers' most of them were close up headshots of the artist.
- So we will follow this convention of close up head shots but play around with photoshop to enhance the images etc
- But with striking font styles or striking colours
- We will incorporate some of this, possible make the image of the artist striking and then the font neutral (reverse)
- Information about the music, producers etc
- Space for CD's and a picture of the artist behind the CD's
- Instead of a traditional CD case, this one has an extra case for additional information
- For our digi pack, we will follow similar ideas/conventions
- E.g, picture of the artist (screen grab from music video) behind the CD, information about the production, artist, possibly lyrics, info about upcoming albums, bonus tracks (deluxe )
Magazine:
Screen grab showing us research 'Cheryl Cole magazine cover' we found several magazine gener types e.g gossip, glamour, fashion ect.
We found that with a 'gossip magazine' the artist wouldnt be the main focus - therefore hardly any editing of the image.
With the 'fashon magazine' we found that its more focused on her clothing, e.g street style ect.
Overall, we didn't think that these layouts were suitable for our star persona
Our attempt to contact the artist
To try and get in contact with the artist, Cheryl Cole and tweeted her for permission. The following image is the tweet that we made.
Final Idea
Location:
- Cambridge - Christ's piece
- Jesus Green - Lake and forest bike scene
- Cambridge - Brick wall
Costume:
- Denim dress - with wellies on the bike
- Scarf (snood), Coat, boots -for when walking down the pathway
- Floral headband
- Handbag
- Sunglasses
- Hat (woolen)
- Leather gloves
- Woolen jumper (any colour) Near fire place
Hair and Make-up:
- Hair down (natural) on the bike and natural make up (maybe eye shadow)
- Hair up at the fireplace wearing the jumper - Natural make - up with lip gloss
- Hair down for the rest of the shots
Lighting:
- Fireplace - warm colours
- Artificial lighting - Lit up pathway
Editing:
- On the beat
- Split screen
- Black and white
- Overlay shots
Moodboard inspiration
Here is a moodboard that Emma and Palvi created to give us some inspiration on the music video we wanted to create. It includes some of the artists that we have taken inspiration from, including Taylor Swift, Katy Perry and Adele.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)