Digital Technlogy: Software AS

AS -
What did the image manipulation program allow you to manipulate?
It was useful to be able to adjust the colour and lighting of the images. This meant that the aesthetic of the photos fit with the edgy style of the rock genre because before before they were manipulated they were slightly too clean cut. I was able to easily crop and resize the images too.

Explain how using layers helped organise your work and construct your front cover.
The layering system on Photoshop meant that I could work on one part of the front cover independently without having to move all the other parts out of the way. It was a very clear way of working and it also meant that after I had edited one part I could show the layers again to see what it would look like as a whole.

Explain how you created your double page spread.
I used a double page spread from Kerrang! as a basis to make sure I had all the conventions I needed. I firstly wrote the article to get a sense of how much space I needed for the writing. Once that was done I opened a new file in Photoshop and put one of the pictures of my model on to the left side of the page. I then edited this picture, added a background and the article. I then made some slight alterations to finish off.

How did you develop an understanding of the conventions of print layout?
I looked at a lot of existing magazines and analysed them to see what conventions there were and if there were any that were particularly used within the rock genre.

How did your blog help in terms of audience feedback?
It enabled both teachers and classmates to comment on anything I posted but most of the feedback I got was actually face to face in the classroom. I don't think the feedback I got given over the blog was as helpful as it could have been.

How did you upload the photographs to the desktop computers?
We used the camera's SD card once we had taken the photographs.

A2 -
Which editing software did you use to edit your music video?
We tried a few programs but settled on Final Cut Pro on the Macs.

You edited footage on a timeline - how did this enhance your knowledge of layering various video footage and audio?
The timeline made it very easy in terms of how long the shots should be and where they should go. It meant that cutting clips and ridding the video of overlap was simple. There were two separate lines, one for audio and one for video and if you wanted to add cut fades in then you could use another separate video line.

Identify a few of the edits you used in your music video.
We used slow motion and we sped up some of the clips to create a certain effect and to make them fit with the music.

How did you ensure the audio matched the video footage?
When filming I sung along to the track and then in editing we cut the sound from the video clips and matched it up to the audio instead.

Did you use any special effects?
We used black and white for the flashback shots.