In the research and planning stages of my project, I relied heavily on the

internet to source videos and images which would go on to influence my design

and filming choices dramatically. I sourced music videos from within the Indie

Pop genre on YouTube.com, helping me to realise conventions of the genre.

As well as this, I was able to research editing tutorials on YouTube to help

me with my print product designs. I watched tutorials on how to create a

levitation effect in Adobe Photoshop CS6, which enabled me to create an

interesting and obscure image for my print advert. YouTube proved to be an

extremely useful and efficient technology which helped me vastly throughout

my project.

The internet also proved vital for helping me in finding excellent fonts to

use for my print work; on DaFont.com, as the standard installed Microsoft and

Adobe fonts lack in variety. DaFont was a good website as it provided me with

variety, however a downfall of this website for me was that some fonts were

inaccessible since you have to pay for them.

I also used the social networking site Facebook to plan dates and times of

filming with those who were involved in the music video. This website was

of great help to me in terms of being able to instantly receive answers on

whether people could attend set filming sessions, and I found no downfalls

when using it.

Some media technologies

that were also very helpful

in my research stages were

websites Prezi.com,

Emaze.com and

Slideshare.net. All three

websites are presentation

sharing software, however

these proved to be excellent

ways for me to document

my research and access it

in a clean-cut, clear format.

Blogger.com has been the website

where I have been documenting my

project. This website has been

extremely useful in ensuring that my

work is secure and accessible from

anywhere with an internet connection.

Everything which I have documented

throughout my project has been

archived in date order, meaning that

when I have needed to check my past

research, I have been able to find it

with ease.

While planning the shot types for my

music video, we trialled a filming

technological equipment piece called a

dolly which is used to track (crab)

alongside a subject as it moves. In the

film industry, top of the range dolly

systems are extremely expensive

pieces of equipment.

However, we were able to get access to

a small dolly intended for home use.

This proved ineffective and unsuitable

for our filming intentions when

trialled outdoors, since its lack of

suspension meant that on gravel, a

shaky image was created.

During the construction stage, we were able to

use a Nikon D3200 to film with. In the

research section of my product, I noted that

depth of field and the area of focus in shots

was a key feature in existing Indie Pop music

videos. Particularly, a macro shot where the

foreground is in sharp focus and the

background is blurred out.

This level of detail in focus is unachievable

with many types of filming cameras, and so we

were able to have access to Georgia’s Nikon

D3200, which was capable of creating the

professional looking shots we wanted.

The only downfall I found with using this

camera was that since it is intended for

professional use, I found it difficult at first to

get used to its functions. However soon after

our first filming session, I was familiar and

comfortable with using it to my advantage.

After having filmed the music video, I used

Sony Vegas Pro 13 to edit it. I was able to put

all the recordings into the correct order, alter

their length so that they were in time with the

beat of the song, as well as edit details such as

slow motion and colour alterations. I found this

program extremely successful in allowing me

to create and refine my music video until I saw

it as being a finished product.

An issue I had using this software was that

because it was new to me, I found it difficult to

use to begin with. However after having

watched video tutorials on YouTube.com, and

trialling different techniques, I got used to the

program quickly and found it easy to achieve

the editing techniques.

The program also took a long time to render

our video every time we saved our progress, as

the file became very large very quickly.

However overall, this wasn’t a big problem.

To edit the photographs taken for my digipak

and print advert, I used Adobe Photoshop CS6.

This program proved in being the most

suitable for the task, and since I had lots of

experience using the software beforehand, I

was comfortable in knowing that I was capable

of creating the type of product which I had

planned.

I found no major issues editing my material in

Photoshop, since once you’re used to its

capabilities and functions, it’s fairly

straightforward to use.

For things which I wanted to do but was

unsure of, with Photoshop being a well-known

and used program, I was able to quickly find

simple tutorials to aid me.

Overall, I feel that I used high-quality equipment for my project, and that certain

technologies were vastly helpful in aiding me to create a professional looking, high

quality set of products. I think that the most useful technologies used throughout my

project were the Nikon D3200 DSLR camera, Sony Vegas Pro 13, and Adobe Photoshop

CS6.

If I were able to get access to more expensive equipment, I think that one which would

have improved my music video would have been a professional style camera dolly. Used

to create smooth tracking shots, a high quality camera dolly with effective suspension

and stabilization would have allowed for me to use a better range of shot types within the

music video. However, by using Sony Vegas Pro 13, I was able to use the stabilization tool

to reduce shakiness in some of my shots.

Some of the technologies I used throughout my project cohere to the theory of

technological determinism. This is the theory that presumes a society’s technology drives

the development of its social structure and cultural values.

I feel that Adobe Photoshop CS6 is the technology which coheres to this theory. I used

this software when editing my print images, and I feel that some of the edits I made to

my photographs are ones which alter society’s perception of idealisms.

I used Photoshop to create an image where Georgia appears to be levitating. This was

done by photographing the background using a tripod, then adding Georgia into the shot,

on a chair. I then erased the chair on Photoshop to show the background layer; showing

her to be floating. I believe this use of manipulating images has sculpted our society to

expect far more extraordinary visuals in images they are exposed to.

I feel that I used media technologies effectively throughout my project. Rather than using

them in a way which let the software decide the outcome of my work, I used it in a way

which allowed me access to different technological platforms, however was completely in

control of how they were effecting my work.

For example, when using the Nikon D3200, I refrained from using the auto-focus setting

on the camera. I set the focus to manual instead, which meant I was in control of where

the focus was at each particular shot, rather than have the camera determine this for

me. This meant that my filmed material was more coherent with the themes and

conventions of indie pop music videos, rather than be controlled by the camera’s

automatic settings.

I think that some technologies which I used allowed me to be extremely creative with my

work. Particularly, the software Adobe Photoshop CS6 was excellent in the way that it

offers vast amounts of options for you to choose from, meaning that I could experiment

easily with colour, layout, size and image manipulation freely. This new technology by far

has created a platform for creative thinkers to trail and let their imaginations create

exciting things which they would not otherwise be capable of.

Conversely, technologies like Prezi.com somewhat hindered my creativity. The

presentation creating software enables you to create dynamic and clear slideshows,

however only offers the option to use pre-made themes for your creations. However, I did

not find this to be a big problem in my project, as Prezi was more of a technology which I

used to record my research and work, rather than to create my work on.