Evaluation - Technology (6)

What have you learned about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Throughout this media project we have learned a lot about different technologies and discovered why they are useful for people, especially film makers.

Digital Cameras

Digital cameras are extremely useful. They are capable of taking high quality, high resolution footage on a comparatively low budget. We used DSLRs to film our opening sequence.  Camcorders are better for on-the-spot filming, whereas DSLRs are better for cinematics and other planned filming. There are a variety of advantages to DSLRs, such as the variety of lenses you can get and use for them, the larger sensors that mean they work better in low light, and better shallow depth of field. When you have taken your footage, you can either connect the camera to a computer via USB, or remove the SD card and transfer the footage that way. Learning about digital cameras now will make A2 Level easier and will be useful in later life, since I want to go into a relevant job to Media Studies.Digital cameras are a popular choice for filmmakers and people in general because of the value for money, versatility, and simplicity for professionalism. However, professional filmmakers or institutions with higher budgets will usually use more expensive, higher quality cameras because they will be able to afford them. Digital cameras are more used by independent filmmakers. Sometimes digital cameras and camcorders may just be used for effect, such as in the film Cloverfield (2008, Matt Reeves).

Final Cut Express

This software is a fairly comprehensive editing suite. It gives you the ability to import footage, crop it, move it, add effects, modify audio, and a lot more. We learned how to use all of these features. Since I took the lead role in editing, I learned some more than the rest of my group. I learned about adding text, editing how it appears, transitions, and using video filters. Having good knowledge of editing software will be very beneficial for me later on, since I will be continuing Media Studies at A2 Level and hopefully have a profession in a relevant job. It is a lot more comprehensive than programs such as Windows Movie Maker. It meets all of the requirements for a low budget production. Higher budget projects may want to use more expensive programs with more features such as Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro, or Sony Vegas Pro. Final Cut Express is a popular choice among amateur filmmakers and people in general because it is a fairly comprehensive piece of software for a far more affordable price than full, professional software.

Blogger

Blogger is a very useful service. It allows the user to create a blog for free, to which they can post text and multimedia. People can follow the blog publicly, or you can set it to private so that only specific people can see it. You can see statistics about your audience, such as country, operating system, and browser. We've learned about how to use most aspects of this service. Using blogs as opposed to paper based coursework (used last year) is much better. It's more secure. Papers can be easily lost, whereas blogs are stored online. It also means it's a lot easier for people to access. You can just give people a link and they can view all of your posts. Blogger is a simple to use but effective blogging service. Filmmakers may want to use it to provide their audience and fans with information about the development of their projects. People in general may want to use Blogger because there is a wide variety of blogs to follow and view content from. It's also very simple to use.

YouTube

YouTube is incredibly useful. With an account, you can upload a video up to fifteen minutes in length and share it publicly, keep it restricted to those with a direct link, or have it private to your account. Larger accounts are able to upload longer videos. You can also monetize from your YouTube videos. If you are eligible, adverts will be placed before and around your video and you will earn money from the ad revenue. Many people make a living this way. Some YouTubers comfortably employ multiple people with their revenue. YouTube is also a good way of reaching a large audience. These reasons are why filmmakers like to use YouTube. It also has a massive worldwide community and thousands of active content creators. This makes it an excellent place for people in general to go to find entertainment as well. YouTube is an excellent way to host and share my own coursework and content as well as find other people's content.

Scribd

Scribd is a digital library, featuring an ebook and audiobook subscription service. Users can also upload their documents and books to the site. We learned how to upload documents and embed them in our blog posts. Filmmakers may want to use this site to upload documents to do with their film, such as their script or concept art. Users are also able to charge for their documents on Scribd or link to an external selling site. People in general may be interested in the large library of ebooks and audiobooks. They are also able to upload and embed any documents they may need to for free and with ease. Scribd has allowed me to upload documents and embed them into my blog easily, saving all of my formatting.

SlideShare

SlideShare offers users the ability to upload and share PowerPoint, Word, and PDF documents. We learned how to upload documents and embed them into our blog posts. People in general may want to use this website because it allows them to upload their documents easily. Loads of people have also uploaded presentations and other documents on a variety of topics, many of which are educational. Users may use SlideShare for finding out more information for their education. Jordan has used SlideShare to upload presentations we have done, and one Word document.

By Michael Vodden