Media Level 3
Dylan Mace
Opening Scene (Interstellar)
Camera Angles
Establishing Shot
An establishing shot is often found at the beginning of a media piece and serves the purpose of introducing the viewer to the environment in which the media piece is set within.
Long Shot
Full Shot
Medium Full Shot
Close-up
Dutch Tilt
Low Angle
High Angle
Sound Recording
To conduct our interview we used a sound recorder which was plugged into a set of headphones. Throughout the interview 5 basic questions were asked about the interviewee to help understand the person being interviewed. After the interview was conducted I began to edit the interview on Adobe Audition. I increased the volume and trimmed out parts of the audio that were just noise. I then added a fade in and a fade out to make the listeners experience better.
Forms of Research
Research is a form of studying and is important to students who are working on a project. For instance, a 'how to' video would require research from the content creator otherwise the facts within the video could be incorrect, therefore lowering the quality and credibility of the video.
Primary Research
Primary Research is research which is conducted practically. The information which is gathered is gained through methods such as interviews, surveys and observations. Primary Research is more costly and time consuming to conduct however the data which is gathered is more credible than that gathered on the internet.
Secondary Research
Secondary Research is research which is conducted through reading up on previously gathered data from other people. It is much cheaper and quicker to conduct however it is not always obtained through credible sources of information.
Qualitative Research
Qualitative Research is research which is taken from the opinions of others. For example, if you were on the Rotten Tomatoes website reading up a review made by a critic about their personal opinion on a film you would be conducting Qualitative Research.
Quantitative Research
Quantitative Research focuses on the facts instead of peoples opinions. For example, on the Rotten Tomatoes website if you were looking to conduct Quantitative Research on a film you would focus on the numbers such as the amount of money the film has raked in or the ratings rather than the reviews.
Market Research
Market Research is a business strategy employed by businesses to gather information on their customers/audience to help businesses understand what their average customer is like and how they need to market their product.
Audience Research
Audience Research is the research into a TV shows/films audience. It is done through methods such as questionnaires and surveys to help media companies understand who their audience is and what they need to do in order to keep their audience interested.
Production Research
Production Research is the research of the production of a businesses product. it looks into how much the project could cost and what content the product would contain and when it will be viable for release.
Production Ethics
Ethics are important within the Media Industry as they are the guidelines by which a production must use in order to avoid offending people. These include use of Profanity and Blasphemy. Films with an age rating of 15 and over often dabble in these however they always keep a warning for the use of Profanity or Blasphemy. Other media such as News Articles however do not use these and stick to these ethics as it could cause hatred towards a News Company or even cause incidents like the Charlie Hebdo Incident in Paris back in 2015.
Representation
Representation in Media is how certain groups of people are presented and portrayed in Media products like TV and film.
Lighting
Why is lighting important in film?
Lighting is a key part of film production. It can be used to set the visual mood of a scene and help build the atmosphere. Lighting is used to make scenes look better and to tell the audience where they are supposed to look and who they are supposed to focus on in a scene.
Three Point Lighting
Three Point Lighting is a technique used in film and photography where 3 different lights are used to light up a person and the background. The 3 lights which are used are the key light, fill light and back light.
Key Light
The Key Light is used by filmmakers to highlight and define on screen objects, allowing cinematographers to have a greater level of control in a scenes visuals.
Fill Light
The Fill Light is a less powerful light that traditionally stands opposite the Key Light and is used to fill in high contrast shadows created by the Key Light.
Back Light
The Back Light places emphasis on a shots depth and is often used in both film and photography to create dramatic effect.
Three Point Lighting Photos
Sound in Media Productions
For this sound project we were tasked with writing up a script about our journey into college and then repeating that script into a microphone. We then proceeded to edit the recording in Adobe Audition.
Video Editing
To tone my skills with Adobe Premiere Pro I created an edit using the Rock Climbing video files which were provided to us. I proceeded to create an edit with background music which depicts a mans day out rock climbing.
'How To' Video
1 - Good Example
This video is a good example of a 'How To' video for Three Point Lighting because it is short and describes how to use Three Point Lighting effectively, along with sharing useful techniques to make the most out of your Three Point Lighting setup. This video uses physical, visual demonstrations to make it clear to the viewer how to use Three Point Lighting right.
2 - Average Example
This video is a mediocre example of a 'How To' video for Three Point Lighting because while it is still short it does not display the same level of quality as the first video. It is much harder to understand the information provided in this video as it is not made as clear as the previous and it is obviously of a lower quality and it does not show the viewer as many useful techniques. However, its short run time still allows for a quick and easy viewing experience.
3 - Bad Example
This video is a bad example of a 'How To' video for Three Point Lighting primarily because of how long the video is. The video is boring and fails to keep you engaged for the whole of its 10 minute runtime. It doesn't describe to the viewer the details of Three Point Lighting as effectively as the other videos and the 10 minute runtime makes it less convenient for people and therefore it is less likely to be clicked on.
The 5 Golden Rules of how to create a 'How To' Tutorial
Stage 1 - Start with a great idea!
Stage 2 - More 'How?'. Less 'Why?'.
Stage 3 - Simplicity goes a long way.
Stage 4 - When in doubt, retrace your steps.
Stage 5 - Don't be afraid to have fun with it!
Pre-Production of 'How To' Video
Proposal for Three Point Lighting How To Video - How To Video Project - Unit 1 Level 3 Media
Prepared by DYLAN J MACE
For PAUL BODDY Of BRACKNELL & WOKINGHAM COLLEGE
Date of proposal: 5/10/2021
·
INTRODUCTION:
Within the first step in making your
proposal, please write down answers to the following: Q)
What have you been asked to do? A) How to Video on Three Point Lighting. Q) Is the product a moving image (video)
/ still image (photo) and what is it suitable for? (Television broadcast /
Internet streaming). A) Moving Image suitable for YouTube. Q) How long do you intend to plan your
project? ( Min 2 minutes Max 4 minutes)A) 4-6 minutes.
- BASIC STORYLINE:
What is happening in your media product? Is there a linear storyline? Who are the characters? Are you making a drama or documentary? Try to be descriptive but brief.
A tutorial video on how to use Three Point Lighting in a Media Production.
- THEMES:
Specific emotions/topics covered within the project that you'd like to cover.
Explain how to use Three Point Lighting in the most clear and simple way possible.
- AUDIENCE:
Who is it going to be made for? (Students, Adults, Elders etc.)
EXAMPLE: "My advert will be aimed at parents of young children, as well as the children. [For a toy advert]. It could be shown on the Disney channel around programmes for children up to 10 years old (give examples).
Media Students aged 16 - 18
- APPEALING
CONTENT:
What content do you have in the product that you know will appeal to the target audience? (TIP! Refer to your choice in costume, lighting, props, text, dialogue, choice of music, location)(If you have a secondary audience in mind, e.g. parents, what content do have that will appeal to them? Why have you chosen it?)
It would be relevant to a media students course.
- LEGAL, ETHICAL AND
MORAL ISSUES:
Could it be banned/copyright claimed for any reason?
Will anything be controversial, is anyone involved using bad language? What rating would you give your video? (Use BBFC ratings)This production won't feature any copyrighted music
·
TALENT/CONTRIBUTORS:
Who will be involved in your production
in front of the camera?
TALENT
is referred to actors playing roles within scripted productions (Drama).
CONTRIBUTORS
are people who are not reading a script and reporting a non-fiction event.
(Documentary)
Dylan
J Mace + 1 assistant
- LOCATION(S):
Where are you planning for filming to take place?
(You will need to complete location recces to include within your pre-production paperwork).
Bracknell & Wokingham College Media Studio
·
BUDGET:
Do you have any idea on what will be
required for the budget?
Budgets don't have to be made up on
money, just resources of what you need at the absolute minimum/maximum for your
project to work successfully.
Camera, Sound Recorder, Tripod, Lights
· PRODUCTION
ROLES:
Who will be responsible for the
production roles within your content? (I.E. Who will take on directing,
editing, camera work, sound recording etc.)
Dylan J Mace (Director)
'How To' video Mind Map
Within the pre-production of our 'How To' video project we created a mind map using a website called MindMup. I believe this mind map successfully displays what I need to create an effective 'How To' video on Three Point Lighting. I created a centre box telling you what the mind map is about and then created multiple offshoots which included: equipment, research, sound, lighting, visuals, location and style. I then gave each offshoot multiple offshoots of its own which were relevant to the offshoots topic.
Storyboard
A storyboard is a basic plan for a media production in how the production will turn out with what shots will be used and what will be happening in each shot. To craft a storyboard for my 'How To' video project I used a program called Canva. To do this I selected a blank template and added my title and name. I then proceeded to make demonstrative pictures displaying the Full shot, Medium shot and Close up along with a description of the specific shot to demonstrate how I would do the actual storyboard.
Planning 'How To' Project
Shot 1 - Still low angle shot of a studio light. Text of video title fades in and fades out. Narration begins.
Shot 2 - A medium shot of me continuing the narration of a brief overview of what Three Point Lighting is. I have the studio lights enacting three point lighting on me as I narrate to demonstrate what it should look like.
Shot 3 - Switch to a high angle of the key light, begin describing the key lights purpose.
Shot 4 - Switch to a high angle of the fill light, begin describing the fill lights purpose.
Shot 5 - Switch to high angle of the back light, begin describing the back lights purpose.
Copyright
Copyright is a method used to protect media industries from having their work stolen or copied by other media productions. If someone who owns a media product finds their product elsewhere they can file a copyright claim and in some cases take legal action.
Star Wars (1977) was a massive financial success and became one of the biggest films of the 20th century. It's success paved the way for modern filmmaking with its ground-breaking special effects and influence on the toy market. The success of Star Wars inspired other existing franchises, notably Star Trek, to move to making big screen movies and inspired other franchises to be created over the following years. One such franchise was Battlestar Galactica which was a space action and adventure TV series. The show was heavily inspired by George Lucas' Star Wars and utilised very similar special effects with some of the people from ILM who worked on Star Wars also working on the show. The show was accused of copying Star Wars by George Lucas who was busy writing the sequel to Star Wars at the time. Battlestar Galactica even utilised similar story beats to Star Wars by following a small group of underdogs running from a powerful regime.
Sound Mix
For this Sound Mix project we were provided with files which we then exported to Adobe Premiere Pro. I then raised the Audio Gain on the voiceover to 15 dB so we could hear the voiceover better and I deleted the music and replaced it with my own track I found on Bensound due to the provided tracks not being long enough to cover the whole video.
Adobe After Effects Animation
In todays lesson we used Adobe After Effects to create a brief animation of the Batman logo. For my animation I changed the scale, rotation and opacity of the logo to create an animated introduction for the logo.
Camera Movements
Boom/Jib - This camera movement is the vertical movement of the camera (up and down).
Truck - This camera movement is the horizontal movement of the camera (left and right).
I was tasked with creating a video edit with fake camera movements including the fake boom/jib and the fake truck. For this edit I chose a video of a Space Shuttle launching from Cape Canaveral.
Location Reconnaissance
'How To' Video Production Schedule
18/10/21 - 11:15am - Computer Room 140 - Complete Production Schedule Template.
19/10/21 - 9:30am - Lighting Studio - Begin filming of lighting demonstrations.
19/10/21 - 1:45pm - Sound Studio - Record voiceovers.
21/10/21 - 1:45pm - Computer Room 140 - Begin editing.
22/10/21 - 11:15am - Computer Room 140 - Editing and Title Screen
Feedback No.1
'How To' Video Final Product
'How To' Video End Evaluation
I decided to make my 'How To' video on Three Point Lighting. I chose this as I found an interest in the use of lighting in film and nobody else from my knowledge in the class had chosen Three Point Lighting, therefore making my video more unique.
During the pre-production stage I did research on many aspects of filming such as camera angles, camera setup and, of course, lighting. I did this as it would be heavily beneficial during the actual filming stage of production.
During the production stage I utilised the skills I had learnt from my pre-production stage and effectively incorporated them into the filming and editing of my project. Overall I believe my filming and cinematography was effective in the way it showed the different effects of the different lights. The voiceover was a bit mundane however and had an echo to it because I didn't record the voiceover in a sound recording studio like originally planned. Next time I would record the sound within a sound recording studio and spend more time on writing the script.
