1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Our product uses the codes and conventions of real media products, it does not develop or challenge them because our aim was to produce a product that could rival a professional product.
· For the interviews we framed our interviewee to the right, using a medium close up with the interviewees eyes roughly one third of the way down. This is conventional of media products.
· For the interviews we framed our interviewee to the right, using a medium close up with the interviewees eyes roughly one third of the way down. This is conventional of media products.
Professional Products:
Shabby Chic:
· We used graphics to anchor who the interviewee is and their relevance to the subject matter.
Shabby Chic:
Professional Products:
· The narrative structure is single strand, so that the audience can follow it easily and it is non linear.
· We used cutaways to vary the shot types, so that the audience are sustained and also to avoid jump cuts where the questions have been edited out.
· We used cutaways to vary the shot types, so that the audience are sustained and also to avoid jump cuts where the questions have been edited out.
· We edited the questions out of the interviews because it is conventional; however we made sure that the voice over in-between answers was relevant and linked the footage together.
· We used a voice over to link everything together because it is conventional of documentaries; the voice over mirrored our target audience; as she was female, in her twenties, and spoke using Standard English.
· We used music that was relevant to the subject matter (Vogue, Filthy Gorgeous and Beautiful) the music anchored what was being shown in the footage and also linked to the sub genre of the person for example rock music was used to show Lisa’s music taste.
· The Narrative raised enigma at the start and also posed questions that would be answered throughout the programme and sometimes direct address was used to make the audience feel more involved in the programme. The narrative is open however our documentary favours the viewpoint that you can look good in charity shop clothes, therefore it is bias.
· The mise-en-scene behind the interviews is relevant to the subject matter for example in the interview with Neil Cooper in that background is clothes that he has made to convey that he is a fashion designer and also there are shops in the background of the interviews with the general public to convey place and the topic of discussion.
· We used a voice over to link everything together because it is conventional of documentaries; the voice over mirrored our target audience; as she was female, in her twenties, and spoke using Standard English.
· We used music that was relevant to the subject matter (Vogue, Filthy Gorgeous and Beautiful) the music anchored what was being shown in the footage and also linked to the sub genre of the person for example rock music was used to show Lisa’s music taste.
· The Narrative raised enigma at the start and also posed questions that would be answered throughout the programme and sometimes direct address was used to make the audience feel more involved in the programme. The narrative is open however our documentary favours the viewpoint that you can look good in charity shop clothes, therefore it is bias.
· The mise-en-scene behind the interviews is relevant to the subject matter for example in the interview with Neil Cooper in that background is clothes that he has made to convey that he is a fashion designer and also there are shops in the background of the interviews with the general public to convey place and the topic of discussion.
Shabby Chic:
Professional Product:
· The title of the programme is unique and creative it also alludes to the questions addressed in the programme.
Professional Products/Shabby Chic:
· Handheld camera work is used for actuality footage- during the tracking shot through Liverpool city centre as it is an eye line match.
Shabby Chic:
· Cut is the most common edit in our documentary, but we also used dissolve and fade to and from black- this is conventionally used to convey the end of a segment and the beginning of the next.
Overall my media product compares favourably to real media products so that it can be recognised as a documentary and could potentially compete with other professional products. Therefore we followed the codes and conventions closely.
9/11: The Falling Man
Channel 4
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/911-the-falling-man/4od#2934914
9/11: The Falling Man
Channel 4
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/911-the-falling-man/4od#2934914
The Mystery of the Nevada Triangle
The Family
Channel 4
Tsunami Caught on Camera
Channel 4
Channel 4
The Half Ton Mum extract from Youtube
Channel 4
For my print advert I also followed the codes and conventions so that it could be recognisable as a print advert if someone saw it in a newspaper or on a bilboard. I used one strong image, the slogan and scheduling are included, words are kept to a minimum and the channel logo is prominent.
I also tried to closely follow the conventions of channel 4 print adverts, for example; the logo is on the right hand side of the page and the scheduling is in the bottom left hand corner with a box around the text so that it stands out.
The Print Adert I produced:
Proffessional Print Adverts from Channel 4:
Similarly I followed the codes and conventions of radio trailers to produce the trailer for our programme; I included a voice over which outlines the narrative and poses questions addressed in the programme, I have included extracts from the programme, I have used music as an aural cue because the title of the song is ‘Filthy Gorgeous’ which gives a hint to the content and tone, and the scheduling and channel are the last thing you hear.
2. How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?
3. What have you learnt from your audience feedback?
For our audience feedback we gave a presentation to our peers showing them our documentary, print advert and radio trailer to see whether our product was successful and could rival professional products. Here are the questions we asked with the responses that they gave:-
· Does the opening of the documentary grab your attention?
For our audience feedback we gave a presentation to our peers showing them our documentary, print advert and radio trailer to see whether our product was successful and could rival professional products. Here are the questions we asked with the responses that they gave:-
· Does the opening of the documentary grab your attention?
100% of the people we asked said yes.
The majority of the people we asked said that the opening does grab their attention. However they also said that the tracking shot in fast motion was too fast and blurred and that due to this they couldn’t focus on the voice over narration.
· What are the strengths and weaknesses of the documentary?
Someone we interviewed commented that the Vox pop was a strength because it was humorous.
They also said that they liked how the music linked with the visuals.
A lot of people commented that the fast motion at the start was a weakness because it was too fast, one person said ‘it hurt my eyes’. They also mentioned how they thought the transition in the music from the opening credits to the tracking shot was too loud when it should have been subtle.
· Does it compare to professional documentaries? Why do you think this?
The majority of the people we asked said that the opening does grab their attention. However they also said that the tracking shot in fast motion was too fast and blurred and that due to this they couldn’t focus on the voice over narration.
· What are the strengths and weaknesses of the documentary?
Someone we interviewed commented that the Vox pop was a strength because it was humorous.
They also said that they liked how the music linked with the visuals.
A lot of people commented that the fast motion at the start was a weakness because it was too fast, one person said ‘it hurt my eyes’. They also mentioned how they thought the transition in the music from the opening credits to the tracking shot was too loud when it should have been subtle.
· Does it compare to professional documentaries? Why do you think this?
90% said yes
Some people thought that it did compare to professional documentaries because the footage linked well together, and the narrative followed a logical order. They thought that it looked good as the camera shots were varied and they thought than the panning down and zooming in and out of the still images looked effective as it grabbed their attention.
· If you saw this print advert would it make you want to watch the programme? Why?
Some people thought that it did compare to professional documentaries because the footage linked well together, and the narrative followed a logical order. They thought that it looked good as the camera shots were varied and they thought than the panning down and zooming in and out of the still images looked effective as it grabbed their attention.
· If you saw this print advert would it make you want to watch the programme? Why?
80% said yes
As soon as the print advert came up on the screen one person shouted ‘Oh my god that looks really good’. They then said that ‘It would make me want to watch the programme because it looks interesting and the title ‘Shabby Chic’ doesn’t reveal much about the programme, so I would want to find out more’. She also noticed that the bag gives hints to the content of the programme, but still doesn’t reveal much; therefore she wanted to find out more.
As soon as the print advert came up on the screen one person shouted ‘Oh my god that looks really good’. They then said that ‘It would make me want to watch the programme because it looks interesting and the title ‘Shabby Chic’ doesn’t reveal much about the programme, so I would want to find out more’. She also noticed that the bag gives hints to the content of the programme, but still doesn’t reveal much; therefore she wanted to find out more.
· Does this Radio Trailer make you want to watch the programme? Why?
70% of the people said yes
Everyone agreed that the radio trailer was very original and that the extracts taken from the documentary were very funny.
One person said that it would make her want to watch the programme because the music was very uplifting and linked well with the subject matter. However in some parts she couldn’t make out what the voice over was saying. Therefore we made amendments to the radio trailer by adjusting the audio gain.
· Would you want to watch the whole programme?
Everyone agreed that the radio trailer was very original and that the extracts taken from the documentary were very funny.
One person said that it would make her want to watch the programme because the music was very uplifting and linked well with the subject matter. However in some parts she couldn’t make out what the voice over was saying. Therefore we made amendments to the radio trailer by adjusting the audio gain.
· Would you want to watch the whole programme?
95% said that they would watch the rest of the programme
We also decided to collate more results on what people thought about our finished product. This video demonstrates the feedback that we received.
The audience feedback highlighted the areas in which we needed to make amendments, for example we needed to change the fast motion shot so that it is slower and lower the volume of the music.
We also decided to collate more results on what people thought about our finished product. This video demonstrates the feedback that we received.
The audience feedback highlighted the areas in which we needed to make amendments, for example we needed to change the fast motion shot so that it is slower and lower the volume of the music.
We have also learnt that our documentary would appeal to our target audience as all of the people we interviewed were female in their teens or early twenties.
We have learnt that the radio trailer and print advert are successful products because people found them interesting to look at and engaging. They fulfilled their purpose of encouraging people to watch the programme.
Most people commented that our product looks proffesional therefore we have been successful and it shows that we have followed the codes and conventions correctly.
Most people commented that our product looks proffesional therefore we have been successful and it shows that we have followed the codes and conventions correctly.
Overall the audience feedback highlighted that our product was successful but it also showed us areas in which we could improve.
4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
4. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
For the research and planning for the content of my documentary and themes I used the internet. I looked on high street and designer websites and websites like ‘ASOS’ were you can shop online. I also researched issues such as size zero models and bullying.
I also used different media technologies for my blog and my evaluation. In my blog I have used Windows movie maker to show my opening credits and the radio trailers that we analysed in class. I have also uploaded print screens of my product and still photographs.
I also used different media technologies for my blog and my evaluation. In my blog I have used Windows movie maker to show my opening credits and the radio trailers that we analysed in class. I have also uploaded print screens of my product and still photographs.
These images represent the media technologies I have used during the construction of my product
In my evaluation I have used Windows Movie maker to produce the video of my audience feedback; to produce this I used a stills camera to take pictures of the interviewees and I recorded their response using a voice recorder. I also used Windows Movie maker to produce the video for question two of my evaluation. For this I recorded myself in the radio studio and edited it on Adobe Audition; I used the zero crossings tool to cut up the audio that I needed. I then imported the audio and relevant images into Windows Movie Maker to illustrate my analysis.
I have used Adobe Photoshop to gather images to show the shot types in both our production and professional productions. I have also used it to create a mood board to illustrate the equipment and programmes I have used.
