Parkour Film.

Parkour Film

In todays lesson we were sent out to produce a film about what ever we wanted. As a group we decided on humorous parkour, so after setting up the equipment we began to film. We wanted to try and get a variety of shots in our film so we positioned the camera from different angles throughout, in order to get some variety within the film and make it more interesting, whilst still flowing together and giving the desired effect.



 

 In this shot we had him start behind the doors so we couldn't see him, then run towards the camera, this was a good way to start the film because it immediately began the sense of action and 'rush' as by coming towards the camera can make the audience feel more involved.



The next shot is from slightly above and was filmed on the stairs just above where he would be running. He bursts through the doors and down the stairs, however because of the particular angle used we only see him burst through the doors and begin to jump the stairs, putting more emphasis the fact he ran through the doors quickly ( implying he is in a rush and adds to the story...)




This shot is interesting because we lowered the tripod in order to portray the fact he had rolled onto the floor and make it look more effective. By lowering the tripod and having the camera film from a lower position changes the way the audience view the film, it becomes more like an 'action' film as the shots aren't always from the same height and angle.







This third shot in which contains a different angle is from the back, we see him run through two sets of doors then outside the building. By having this shot it gives the audience another perspective on when he bursts through doors, as opposed to the previous shot where it is filmed from slightly above.




This is the final shot and is filmed from the side as opposed to centre, we decided to shoot from this angle because we were then able to get him running from the correct place as well as the action where he runs into the pole. In addition to this it is effective because we can see his facial expression then him falling on the floor which was a good way to end the film in my opinion





   The idea for this film started out that he was late to class, therefore needed to run and 'parkour' his way to lesson in time. If I were to go back and add anything I would like to add shots of a clock (suggesting time is limited etc) and perhaps a shot of him reaching the final destination of a classroom as I believe it would tie the film all together and give it more purpose. From the perspective of an audience member I personally would find it a little bit difficult to understand why he needs to do what he is doing and why he is in such a rush, however taking into consideration that it was just a short film and was supposed to be humorous I think it would fit the brief and initial plan we had given ourselves.
      In addition to this I would also like to move the camera in the next film I will make as there is only one short shot where the camera moves, apart from this it is stationary on the tripod for the rest of the film. I think by moving the camera, it brings the film to life and makes it blend well together, and because the previous film we made was a silent film therefore needed to fill the styles and conventions of a silent film, we needed to keep the camera in one position consequently limiting creativity with shots.


           

Colour Wheel & Harmonies.

Creating A Colour Wheel.

In today's lesson we were sent out to take pictures of anything we could find in which included colours of the colour wheel, later to construct our own wheel consisting of these colours and photos.

 I got this image from google and this is what I based my images off, trying to find objects, signs and products in which where these individual colours, later intending to merge them together to create my own colour wheel. From doing this exercise I realised how often the colours blue and red / pink where used in signs for shops, patterns etc. This was the main colour we came across, and I wanted to get a variety of images for my colour wheel as opposed as going into a supermarket and taking images of different products that had all the colours on. I wanted to do this as it gave me an idea of what kind of colours are popular for certain areas and businesses, which ones are popular and favoured. 

    With this information gathered we continued to search for more green colours and deep purples, however we found this difficult. Here is my own colour wheel that I constructed in today's lesson with the images I had taken.   

Cultural Colour

In the world today there are multiple different cultures and each of these cultures have a different response to colour which is important for any business with other countries or other societies. A few examples of colours and cultures are the colour red can often mean multiple different things, for example danger , love, passion , luck, mourning , sin. All of these emotions differ from culture to culture which is why research for colours and which colours to use is vital as you want to convey specific emotions in work.
 In response to cultural colour there is also universal colours and personal colours. All colours will have a different meaning to different countries and people depending on personal experience or memories with certain colours.

Colour Harmonies 

There are many colours that blend well with each other, the theories behind these colours working together are split into different categories, for example Primary Colours and Secondary Colours. 

Here is my example of a Primary colour wheel using my images from a previous lesson, Red, Blue and Yellow are all the basic colours that are found on screen devices.

These are examples of Secondary colours. If you evenly mix the initial primary colours together (yellow and blue... blue and red etc) you achieve purple, green and orange. Combining these colours for projects can make a lot of contrast.

Tertiary colours are shown in my example to the right, these colours are made when primary colours and mixed with secondary

Complimentary
Colour Wheel

Along with these examples there are also complimentary colours on the colour wheel ( those that are opposite on the wheel)/ Complimentary colour schemes create a high level of contrast, but can create a lot of visible vibration when they are used on full saturation.

Analogous
Colour Wheel

Here is an example of an Analogous colour wheel, these colours are directly next to each other on the wheel, these create sense of variety.

Pures, Tints , Shades & Tones

Pure Colour: Pure colours are colours that are not mixed with any other hues. These are usually mixed into bright designs, typically things intended to be viewed as youthful or summery can benefit from using pure colours.

Tints: These are colours that are mixed with white, they typically convey lighter and more peaceful images, they are also considered to be more feminine compared to pure colours. Companies that want to convey peace (such a spas) would benefit from using these types of colours.

Shades: These are colours that are mixed with black, these are effective at conveying the feeling of mystery, evil. Shades can work well with gradients when mixed with a pure colour or lighter shade.

White Balance

White balance when filming basically means colour balance. It will tell the camera what the colour is and film it correctly, this is important when filming because it allows you to remove any unrealistic colour tones. White balance can be done automatically or manually, most of the time it is best to do is manually to get your desired effect.
    Before adjusting the white balance of your camera you need to firstly set up your lighting for your desired colour temperature (this can vary if you are outside in the sun to inside for example). Secondly you can set your white balance, and according to this alter your lights to be above or below the temperature to add highlights.

Adobe Kuler

Adobe kuler is a piece of software that enables you to find colour combinations in various ways, much like the harmonies explained above ( monochromatic, complementary etc)

Here is an example of using Adobe Kuler for Shades. You can alter the colour using the pointer, therefore getting different shades of what ever colour you want.

Here is an example of complimentary colours in Adobe Kuler, you can alter the wheel to find the colours you desire.

Behind The Scenes.

Photography & Audio Techniques Explored...

StoryBoard

In todays lesson I drew my storyboard for my stop motion video, in it I included details of shots I want to do and where I roughly want it to go. I decided to keep it short as included an animal will have its difficulties so if I did not want to plan it too much in advance.

After doing research I wanted to upload my final video to the platform of Youtube, as well as this I have taken into consideration the type of audio I intend to use, I will be using music and smaller sound effects in the back which I intend to record on my phone and insert in the background of my film.

Overview

In Audio we have been exploring multiple different techniques in order to create good quality audio to mix into films. In the first few lessons we researched platforms for videos to be uploaded and the differences between them that can be found here , in addition to this we went out with an audio recorder and tried to record a conversation in challenging places (outside near traffic, inside with talking and background noise etc). The technique we used for this was to hold the microphone just below our face in the middle of the two people talking, we thought by using this process you would get even audio from both people talking, and it is close enough to hear us as well as some additional background noise to make it interesting. This was proven to work as you could perfectly hear us having a conversation as well as noise in the background, so I knew that if I wanted to add audio to my photomation this is the technique I would use.

     So when it came to creating our photomation film about ourselves, we created the story boards and I then went home and tested out how difficult it may be working with a dog. This was interesting to say the least. So I initially wanted my dog to be in the whole of the film, however I did not take into account how hyper she is, so I adjusted my idea in order for it to still fit what I wanted to do, but just made it a little bit more creative. I played around with 'Burst' on my iPhone as this is the device I decided to film it on, it allowed me to have my dog in the photomation and made the filming process slightly easier, so the scene in which she was in I used that.

  In regards to the device, I initially thought it would be better to film this photomation on my iPhone, however despite this I still wanted to challenge myself so I tried out shooting it on my Canon camera with my tripod, so I took a few test shots with that and reviewed them. Although the quality was undeniably better than on my iPhone, I found that the film flowed better with my phone, so I reverted back to my initial plan.

  After I had taken my test shots with different cameras and angles I went on to film my photomation. The idea of my film was to bring things to life ( shoes, dog lead...) as I found this more interesting than just taking my dog out for a typical walk. As the process went on I tried to film in different camera angles as I knew the film would not necessarily be long so wanted to make what was there, interesting for the audience. After shooting had been completed I put all my photos on google drive and started to edit them on Adobe Premiere. This in itself was a challenge because I had never created a stop motion type video and edited it using this software, only iMovie. So after I copied all the photos into a folder I tried to add edit them together, which is where I discovered those photos that I had deleted in the process of shooting, meant that they were no longer in the correct sequence. So, I decided to open the application Automator in which allows you to change the name of files and make put them into a sequential order. After I had completed this and renamed them all I was able to add them as an image sequence and speed them up to the percent I was happy with.

   Lastly I added audio to my photomation, in the background I found some music on youtube and downloaded that and added it to the background and on top of this I added in my own audio that I recorded on my iPhone using voice memos. I adjusted the audio gain to make them slightly louder at times and visa versa, this then gave me my final video with audio that I was happy with.

   Over all I enjoyed creating this film and the challenged in which came with it, if I were to create another photomation I would want to do a completely different idea with different audio and take the filming/ shooting process outside. As well as this I would like to use different angles and perhaps experiment with using different point of view's, this would make the film more interesting for the audience to view and could also add more texture and interest to the film itself. In addition to these points I believe the brief was to produce a film 20-60 seconds long, however upon editing the images I only had 9 seconds of footage, I knew that I was able to add images in order to make it longer, however it would not have effectively flowed together, so I decided to keep my photomation short and work well, as opposed to longer but not add good quality ( quality over quantity ). This is why next time if I were to make another film that needed to be a certain length, to film more footage or take more images than necessary as I can always edit out scenes if I needed to make it shorter.

             

Mashup Poster Part II : Peer & Self Feedback.

Personal Review

Prior to this blog post I had made an entry regarding the specifics as to how and why I created my mashup poster which included thought processes regarding layout, fonts which can be found here.
   In regards to personal development I have over the past few weeks become more and more comfortable with using Adobe Photoshop to alter images and create new ones. Some tasks seemed to be more difficult than others however by learning photoshop basics and applying this to my creativity it has allowed me to produce my mashup poster in which I am happy about. Before this I had not used Photoshop and only had brief knowledge on things such as layers in order to create an image, I think I picked it up quickly as I am now confident enough to use the software to create a poster and alter images to the way I want them to be seen.

  

     When set this task I liked being able to be creative and pick my own films/ TV series in which I would mashup as it gives you more freedom. I found it difficult to find pictures of the characters with their heads in the right positions, as well as this skin tone was also a difficult thing to match, hence why I needed to in and alter the colour balance (reducing blue tones etc). I also found it challenging to use all of the space on the poster, like the space between the title and where the characters are sat, therefore I decided to add bird silhouettes as I had seen these used in a previous poster and thought it was relevant and took up enough space without taking away from the main aspect of the poster.

    On the contrary to these points I gathered some peer assessment in which told me the poster was humorous, and that the colours blended well together and portrayed the both of the TV series as they are both dark ( dark blue and clouds blended well with this). As well as this they said I had relevant information included in the poster such as the release date and review in the bottom right hand corner. However to improve my poster I could possibly enlarge the title or make it bolder so it is easier to read, both for aesthetics and perhaps those who have reading difficulties etc, by making the title larger and bolder it would also be easier to view from far away. As briefly discussed and as shown as an example in my Part 1 post, I also think it would be an advantage to make the slogan white in colour as currently it seems to blend in slightly with the dark clouds at the top of the poster, by altering this it would also add to the visuals of the poster and how easy it is to read.

     For this task in particular I have learnt to alter the colour balance in faces, allowing me to mix and match heads to different bodies and making it blend as realistically as I could. In addition to this I used the very simple Magic Wand Tool in which I had not previously used, I used this to remove white from the background of the title, making it very sharp and precise compared to if I were to use the lasso tool or quick selection tool.

     Next time if I were to create another mashup poster or poster with similar challenges involved I would like to challenge myself further and perhaps mix more than two series together, and using a different background or main image in the foreground as apposed to the way I created it. As well as this I would like to use the space more effectively, not leaving as much gap between the main title and picture. On the contrary to this point I do however like it not being too 'cluttered' as from an audience perspective I personally don't like it when posters are filled with production details and multiple reviews / quotes from companies as it draws away from the whole point of the poster and can change your opinion on the film.

Types Of Shots.

The different types of shots used in film

In films there are multiple different camera shots and angles used in order to alter the meaning and way in which an audience views a film. Here is a list of the angles used as well as examples.

                                                             

   
 Here is an example of a Wide Shot. This type of shot is used in order to show an entire object / human, it is usually filmed to set the scene and surroundings for a film.

          

This is an example of an Extreme Wide Shot. These types of shots are typically used as establishing shots as they often show buildings and large building exteriors.

Here is an example of a Medium Shot. Typically consisting of a character waist up, these shots are popular as it feels natural and also makes the audience feel like they are talking to the character.

This is an example of a Close Up Shot, these shots tightly frame a character or object, they typically portray a characters emotions while only framing their face, however they are also used for specific actions, like a hand picking up a knife.

 An Extreme Close Up Shot is a view so tight that the audience can only see some features on a character or object, they can be used to create tension, like in this example where the audience are 'involved' in a stand off with three characters. 

       

As shown there are multiple different types of shots, all in which can alter the way the audience view a film and the emotions they experience, it is a way of bringing the film to life and creating texture and depth in the film. Another example of shots used to influence the audience is in horror films when they use panning techniques, it allows the audience to get the full view of the scene but it also builds up the suspense as you don't know what will be shown next.

Mashup Poster Part I : Final Design & Evaluation.

Mashup Poster Design

In todays lesson we had to pick 2 (or more) films or TV shows in which we would merge together to create one poster. I decided to pick The Walking Dead and Pretty Little Liars, both with similar 'scary' themes, just one more than the other. My main part of my poster is based on a Pretty Little Liars poster as I thought it would be more interesting to photoshop the characters from the walking dead (mainly the males) onto female bodies. I also used the font from Pretty Little Liars, however I could not get the exact font so I decided to use the closest one I could find which was 'Bickham Script' and I altered the title to include 'The Walking'. In addition to the font choice, I did try to use other fonts in which are in the 'script' family and section, altering between bold and regular. To insert the text I looked at fonts online and got the similar one that is used in Pretty little liars, I then used the magic wand tool in order to delete the white that was in the background.

      I thought by basing the poster off Pretty Little Liars was interesting because the in my opinion,  The Walking Dead and Pretty Little Liars are almost opposites, on the contrary to this they also have similarities such as The walking dead can be gruesome and leave things a mystery, much like in Pretty Little Liars.

    From the beginning of the task I knew I wanted to have the title at the top of of the poster with the production details / times / reviews situated at the bottom. This being because I wanted the the main focus to be on the characters, so I ensured they took up the majority of the space. After researching the conventions of posters I knew the layout I wanted to have and that I wanted to include production details. When discussing layout I would also next time like to include actors names and featuring people in my next poster as I think this would add more interest to the poster.

         In regards to the specific ways in which this was created I used multiple layers, starting with a background of a deep blue sky found on google images, then adding the 4 girls to the foreground in which I later added to the layers with the individual characters faces from the walking dead.

   Once I had added the individual faces to crop onto the bodies I needed to adjust the colour balance in order that the faces matched the body skin tones, this included removing more blue-tones for certain faces, and adding the burn effect to cast shadow. Once I had matched the correct skin tones I went in with the blur tool as well as the eraser with the opacity turned down in order to effectively blend the hair and face together. After I had blended the images together I went in with extra details such as positioning the title, adding production details to the poster ( release dates ) and an added stars/ reviews at the bottom.

Above is an example of how I blended Glenn's face into the character Emily. I think this is the best example of blending using tools and altering the colour balance, however if I were to create something like this again I could like to duplicate certain bits of hair and layer them on top of the face in order to make it look more realistic.

Here you are able to see the progress I made whilst creating the image, at this point I had not incorporated the title, or the two other characters' faces. The challenge with fitting the faces to the bodies was not particularly the skin tones, but the highlights on the face and the position / angle of the faces. When importing the faces I needed to flip the image to have them facing the correct way.

From the beginning of the task I knew I wanted to have the title at the top of of the poster with the production details / times / reviews situated at the bottom. This being because I wanted the the main focus to be on the characters, so I ensured they took up the majority of the space.


After I had created my final poster I went back in and switched up the title and entire layout ( apart from the girls because I wanted them to be the main focus and in the foreground). In this alternative version I put the return date at the top and changed the line from the top in black font, to the bottom in white font.

  By creating alternate versions to the one I initially created gives you an idea of layout and what works best with certain fonts, colours and images. This can also shift your attention more so to the return date as opposed to the slogan, which in the long term means the audience will view this poster and will be more inclined to remember the return date and time.
   

This is my final poster mashup design, it includes the release date, slogan as well as images layered upon each other to create the final piece in which i'm happy with. To improve on my photoshop skills I would like and try to fit the hair nicer together than how it currently is, this is something for me to work on in my next piece of photoshop work. In addition to this and upon review of my two previous posters I feel as thought I have improved in regards to skills and using the application Photoshop, for a more personal review and peer assessment, see here. 

Early Cinema & Sound.

The Impact Sound Had On Early Cinema

Before the modern cinema, the use of sound in films did no exist, the first real use of sound in early cinema was in 1927 ( Warner Bros) however prior to this there were many other steps to add sound to motion pictures. As time went on and new processes came into the spotlight in films it was a film produced in 1926 that used a method called 'vita phone. It was said that during the transition to sound in cinema, early sound shorts increased in importance and consequently received more and more attention and praise than short films had enjoyed in the late silent era.

   There were problems however as the business of film transitioned from early cinema to the modern cinema we know of now, this being because cinemas whom were built and had the intention for silent films had not bought the suitable sound systems to support sound coming into films, consequently making them go out of business. As well as literal barriers ( incorrect equipment) there was also physical language barriers, this is when the use of subtitles were introduced and have been used in films ever since 1932.

    On the contrary to this adaptation for everyone, difficulties also occurred for the film makers and actors, this being because microphones at the time were insensitive and hard to move and the first microphones were known as 'omnidirectional' meaning they would pick up ANY noise on set making it even more difficult for film makers. In addition to this it was also difficult to dub audio and actors in which were used to silent acting for films struggled to cope with the concept of audio being used.

      By adding audio to films it can also help and create jobs that never used to exist, and the introduction to sound in cinemas gave African Americans a bigger opportunity to work in Hollywood and film making industries, despite that during this time prejudice and racism was still prominent. As we skip forward to 2016 sound is mandatory in films all around the world. Sound is mixed and created for every scene of every film, every little detail makes a noise and we can now refer to particular uses of audio by ' Diegetic and non diegetic'.

    In a previous lesson we went over the terms diegetic and non diegetic, diegetic meaning sounds that characters hear, for example in Jaws , the characters and audience can hear the splashes of water and people talking etc, non diegetic refers to the sounds characters do not hear, but we as the audience do, like the music in Jaws for example. Lastly is internal diegetic sound, meaning inside a characters head (thoughts) in which both the character and audience can hear

Primary vs Secondary.

Primary & Secondary Research

It is important for Media Practitioners to research using both primary and secondary methods. Primary research consists of YOU going out and collecting information, this can be done through surveys for example. Secondary research consists of the collection of already existing research and information that others have done. 

   In the working world today it is crucial that media practitioners are able to use both of these methods of research to integrate them in a cohesive manner and fashion to achieve the most accurate information. Primary research is gathered because it is more specific, authentic and valid, you are able to conduct a survey using questions you specifically wish to ask, for example like the questionnaire I created here I am able to take away specific information I wish to gather for a certain project, where as secondary research can be taken off the internet ( Wikipedia for example). This may not be as reliable for multiple reasons, there are people who can alter the information and the different demographics that have answered the questions, for example location, age, gender, will all alter the information and therefore may not be as relevant to someone who , for example, lives in the UK , as the secondary research may have been carried out in America.
   
   

    When doing a project, for example creating a film poster like I did in Digital Publishing, you need to use both primary and secondary research. For example, my primary research consisted of going out to find existing film posters and comparing their logistics. This was necessary because I could then look at existing poster layouts and what works well, then I can apply this research to my own work. In addition to this you can use secondary research to look on websites in which list the important elements of film posters, what is effective and what is necessary. Then by mixing your primary and secondary together you are able to come up with enough information to produce your own poster in which includes the key elements you looked at as well as the key elements worldwide that make it aesthetically pleasing to audiences.

     

Poster Design.

Second Poster Design

After carrying out primary research on already existing film posters and analysing them, I discovered that the vast majority of them included a powerful image, followed by the title. We then created a poster in a previous lesson using Adobe Photoshop, allowing us to use images off the internet in order to create our poster after we had carried out the primary research. So in this lesson we were set the task to take all of our own images and start the poster from scratch. Picking a different film ( Tree Of Life) I had the idea to have one big tree as the main eye- catching image, followed by a title and production details as my first poster only included the title. I wanted to keep the poster quite dark and mysterious looking being that the film was philosophical and has a sense of mystery to it when I researched the already existing posers.

  In respect to font, I wanted to find a simple font that had little detail to it so it did not distract from the image, I decided on 'Pierpont Bold' for both the title and the director / writer that is situated at the bottom of the poster.
   When analysing my poster I initially wanted to find a tree that was as wide as the one I did find, however slightly taller so that there was not as much blank / empty space, because of time limitations and the fact we were in the middle of Bath I did not find the ideal tree I was searching for, so I had to compromise with what I had. I did this by altering the background so that it was not just plain black, I made it similar to the previous poster I created which was by adding noise and multiple effects ( described in blog linked above).

Poster Comparison.

In these film posters, the colour pallette , text, fonts and layout all relate to the film. For example in The Woman In Black there is a close up of Daniel Radcliffe and behind him we see a dark figure followed by a cross and old house. The colours are very dark, cold and scary because colours such as blue and grey are associated with being cold and scary. In addition to this the title for this film has a slight blurred and smokey effect, this adds to the mystery.

   In relation to layout the main text is at the bottom of the poster, the title of the film, release date and other production details are situated towards the bottom sector of the poster. As well as this, Daniel Radcliffe’s face is only on half of the poster, we only see half of his face, again this could add to the mystery and it also allows other space for the other images in the background that are mentioned previously.

  On the other hand the Maleficent poster is very simple yet effective. It features the main character played by Angelina Jolie, with an off white background. She is dressed in black and is wearing something on her head in which resembles horns.

    This poster is very similar in ways to The Woman In Black poster because the text is situated right at the bottom of the poster, images are very powerful and will draw people in, not only this but they give an idea of what the film will be about (the genre etc). In the Maleficent poster the only bold and bright colour is her red lipstick, apart from this there are very dark colours used, again linking to The Woman In Black poster.

These two posters have in common that there is one main image in which contains the main character for the film, they both use very similar colour palettes, including black, grey and darker colours. As well as this both of the posters also explore what the film will be about, we are able to gather that the two films will be mysterious and perhaps evil and generally scary, we gather this through the use of images, colours and font. The maleficent font differs to The Woman In Black because it has more of a childish twist to it,making perfect sense as the target audience is children. The font looks like twigs, or things that are twisted, this again adding to the mystery. On the other hand The Woman In Black uses a classic bold font with the effect of smoke, drawing in perhaps the older audience.

  To conclude, film posters will use very specific fonts, colours and images in order to give certain effects and draw in their specific target audience. The Woman In Black and Maleficent both have very strong imagery in the foreground which as a result draws your attention, The Woman In Black does however include more images in which describe the film and the genre compared to Disney’s Maleficent.

The Effect Of Audio.

How sound effects a video

    In todays lesson we went out and recorded sounds in which we would include to our silent film, we made a list of sounds we intended to record, these included things such as footsteps, the noise of doors etc.
  We then went out to record these, insuring to get enough sound effects in which we could use in an effective way. After recording all the audio required I uploaded the audio to my computer and began to use Adobe Premiere to edit the audio in. To do this meant I had to alter the level and volume the clips so they did not go over or on top of other clips. Below is the video with the added audio, you can hear the door shutting as well as footsteps.



         



 In relation to audio and films in general, by adding audio and sound effects ( foley) you can change the whole video clip. You can make some sounds harsher than others which can change the meaning and intentions of the film, little details can also be added, for example the sound of walking, doors opening, glass smashing etc. On the contrary to this in larger films and productions sounds like horses running, chains and cars crashing, is all made up of multiple audio clips to add effects such as drama and tension. In relation to this, films in which are the genre of horror can build up tension and worry through sound effects and different audio.
   Foley is when sound effects are created and added to a film post-production in order to enhance the audio quality. By doing this, you add a sense of reality and make the film come to life, which is what we tried to do to our silent films.


   Overall I think we recorded enough audio to cover our film, being that it was only short we didn't have a lot of space for multiple different sound effects, however what we did record produced a short film that now has sound effects. On the other hand, audio that was humorous ( noise of people talking / falling over) could have been downloaded and added in order to add to the humour of the film, despite this I do think the film flows nicely without this added feature because our film wasn't necessarily humorous, nor did it include a lot of visible humour so in a way I think it fits better without it.

Elements Of Photoshop & Manipulation.

Three Elements Of Photoshop & Manipulation

    

Layers

The first element I want to reflect on is Layers. These are used to manipulate images and create backgrounds. You can add multiple images into photoshop and 'merge' them together to effectively in order to make a realistic image and or background. For example, when wanting to create a star like background, you add layers and manipulate the levels, effects etc. 

 To the left you can see a screen shot from the three layers I added in order to make a star, grainy effect for a background. By adding effects such as Noise, Gaussian Blur you can achieve the effect.

       The image to the right shows one example of a finished background created using layers.

Spot Healing Tool

This tool can be used for multiple different things, the main one being to subtly effectively erase blemishes and other unwanted marks, hairs etc. This is a good tool to use because it can effectively get rid of these marks without making it look unrealistic. On the contrary to this it can however be used to manipulate images in other ways to make it look unrealistic. For the majority of the time this is used for magazine covers

Here is an example of what the tool looks like, as well as a few of the other tools in which can alter an image so make it appear smoother.

Lasso V.s Quick Selection

These tools are very similar however one is slightly easier to use than the other. The quick selection tool will easily and quickly select what ever you click on, however the lasso tool is what you will do manually, so you can outline specific things instead of the whole of an object / person. 

    The examples below explain this.

This shows the quick selection tool in the man with the yellow shirt.

 

This example shows the man in the middle in which has been selected using the lasso

Lastly this image shows you what you can do once you've selected the object, this is done using the eraser, as well as this you can get images that you've selected using the lasso and move them from their current position to another. This is a really interesting way to manipulate images in Photoshop.

Manipulation

In regards to manipulation (even though previously and briefly explained ) photoshop can allow you to create existing images into unrealistic images, or into better images. This can be done through blending and adjusting the colours as well as this you can make images look unrealistic, for example by using Disintegration Effect to create an effect in the example below.

From Google Images

An effect like this is achieved by using tools such as water colour brushes, feathers and crows etc.







All of the tools in photoshop have some form of manipulation to them as they all alter the images, either in a big way or a small yet significant way. Something like the spot healing tool as explained above, can manipulate images to how you want them to turn out.

Visualising Data.

Visualising Data

In todays lesson we were given pieces of data in which we were to interpret and create our own idea as to how to represent data. I chose to use figures, one representing a student asking for an early pass, and one being a teacher. For the background I decided to have it look like an outline of a clipboard in order to make it blend in with the classroom idea.
     This was created in Adobe Illustrator, changing the stroke, fill colours etc. With the data I was given I didn't want to create a pie chart I wanted to be creative, as seeing as the data was collected off students and involves leaving lessons early I incorporated the environment of a classroom.

I decided to create an image instead of use a pie chart because it draws your attention in more than a pie chart would, in my opinion. However reflecting on this data I would like to have filled the background more and used the whole A4 size, however I made this smaller than A4 therefore when printed out onto A4 paper it does not have the effect I initially desired.

Primary Research & Poster.

Primary Research

In the lesson we went out and gathered pictures of existing film posters, we then created a table in which contained primary research. This research included going into some depth about two posters of my choice, discussing the fonts, colours, style, constituent elements etc. By doing this primary research it allowed me to think about all the elements that are included in a poster, and if I were to produce a poster what factors I would consider. 

     We were then set the task to produce our own poster however we wanted, being sure to include the elements that were discussed in the table. My poster was 'Star Wars Rouge One' so I researched some existing images that are related to the film to gain inspiration, I consequently came up with my poster. I wanted to include a star-like background so I decided to add some layers and change the levels. To create this effect I added a layer for the background and filled it black, on top of this I added the effect of Noise and changed the amount. Lastly a layer of Blur needed to be added to achieve the more grainy, star effect. On reflection this was something I had not done before so I wanted to try and create my own background instead of drag one from google images, I think it turned out okay, however there was more detail too it than I initially thought.

    

From the primary research table I created I wanted to include the title of the film and have it quite large because when looking at other posters I was more drawn in to those with larger titles and those that aren't as crowded and busy. As well as keeping the poster simple I wanted to also include the blue beam of light/star because this added some colour and made the poster 'pop'.

   In contrast to this I could have included more things on my poster such as production details and other information like in the Blair Witch poster I reviewed (quotes, stars...)

         Reflecting on this research and my poster, for the next one I would like to include things such as the release dates, and perhaps quotes about the films as this will made the target audience more drawn to the poster especially those that are older as they will be interested in the reviews. For the Star Wars poster I decided to use the already existing title / font, although I do think it would be interesting to completely make a new font for the film, on the other hand by using the already existing title and font, the audience are immediately drawn to the poster because of being familiar with the existing title and by changing it, it may not be as easily recognisable.