BLOG FINISHED

This is the end of my A2 blog. Here I have tracked all my progress from the first plan to the final  products. Thank you for reading.

There is no next time,
                                   Toni

Final Products

The Digipack

 

The Advert

 

The Music Video

Evaluation Question 4 UPDATED

Here is the final instalment of my evaluation. It was created through Prezi. How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?


Until next time,
                         Toni

Evaluation Question 3 UPDATED

Here is the third instalment of my evaluation. It was created through Prezi. What have you learned from audience feedback?

Until next time,
                          Toni

Evaluation Question 2 UPDATED

Here is the second instalment of my evaluation. It was created via Powerpoint. How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

A2 evaluation UPDATED from Toni Hendry

Until next time,
                          Toni

Evaluation Question 1

Here is the first evolution question created through iMovie.
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?   
a2 eval 1 from Toni Hendry on Vimeo.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Sold My Soul Final Cut

This is the eighth and final cut of my music video. Minor tweaks were made to this version such as adding in freeze frames at the end of each cross fade as well tinting some scenes so that it blends well with the scenery.
Enjoy!



Until next time,
                         Toni

Sold My Soul - The Final Cut (hopefully)

Here is, what I hope to be, the final cut for my music. It is titled Rough 7, which sounds like an incredibly lazy cop out for a franchise.


Hopefully the video is working as I was experiencing problems last time. If not, I'll re-upload using a different server.
Until next time,
                          Toni

Final Print Products UPDATED

Here are the final  products for  my print work, including the digpack and the advert.

I added a little bit of extra information into the advert such as streaming platforms it is available on. This shows further use of contemporary media.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Until next time,

                         Toni

Rough Cut 6

Here is another rough cut with ideas taken on board from the previous feedback I've been given. The clips from the last render have been removed and the editing has been slightly tweaked in some places.

Hopefully, I am close to the end now.
Until next time,
                          Toni

First Digipack Template

Here is my first template for my digipack, it includes the front cover, back cover, spine, inside panel and CD.

I've already uploaded templates and mock designs for the front and back cover and these are the final designs I will use. 

The inside panel is an image I took from when I was filming the early scenes of the video last October. The reason why I chose this image was because it was a visual link to the video, however in the bigger picture with the rest of the digipack I don't thing that it fits the design of the template. in my opinion it stands out from the rest of the images and doesn't fit well with the theme of the digipack. I do have the images I can use such as the inside of the living room, which will match the theme more of the digipack. 

I have the same concern for the CD as well. I chose the woodland imagery as it is a code of the folk/indie genre, yet it doesn't match the rest of the theme. If I am to change it then I will most likely match it to the image of the panel behind it, which is of the top corner of the image used on the front cover. 

Changes are most likely to be made and I will put both dig packs towards my target audience to gather their feedback on them both.

All opinions are greatly appreciated!

Until next time,

                         Toni

Rough Cut 5

Here is the latest rough cut for my music video.

In this version the editing has been tightened and there is a little more content and more shots throughout. Enjoy!


Until next time,
                          Toni

Mock Design - Track List

I've attempted my first design of a track list.

Much like the album cover and advert it is a simple design as I want to keep it simple and structured. The image is of the inside living, a close up of the curtain. This design was inspired by Mumford and Sons' Babel as the image they use for their track list is of the inside window of the building seen on the front cover. I liked the design so I decided to develop this and use it for my track list.

I'm still deciding as to how I want the text to be positioned. Here it moves alongside the curtain but I will create another design where the text is straight and put it towards my target audience as to which design they prefer the most. This is just a mock up and I will tweak the text when I decide as to how it should be positioned.
I still need to create the design for the inside panel, CD and spine and then I will go about setting the final design from these mock ups.

Until next time,
                          Toni

More Mock Up Designs - Advert

Here is an updated design for the advert. The text for the band name and title has been moved above the house as there was a lot of blank space to fill there. Here is what my advert currently looks like now:

After showing both this and my previous design to various people in my target audience, all preferred this design as the text was more clearer to read and it didn't distract them from the overall design, unlike the previous one. It is a simple design but displays all the information needed such as the release date and a web address as well as different mediums it's available on and the songs included in the track list.

Until next time, 

                          Toni

Advert Mock Up Design

Over the weekend I took more images for the album cover and advert whilst the lighting was good and created this advert design which is similar to the album cover designs I've also created.

I took inspiration from Florence and the Machine's Lungs as the advert and album cover both contain the same image as well as Mumford and Sons' Babel. My idea is to take the same image and crop it into a square whilst keeping the bright, bold effect as well as the lens flare. I also plan to take more images at different parts of the morning as well as sunrises as well and then showing each design to my target audience and making my final decisions based on their response.

I will be creating an album cover using this same image so that there's a visual link between the two products too. 

Until next time,

                         Toni

Album Covers - More Mockup Designs

Here are some more covers I have designed with the test shots I took the other week.

So the angle of the picture is slightly different but I feel at this angle you can see more of the sky so there's a more balanced ratio than the last mock up I created. 

In these design the font is much bigger and more bold so it is easier to see, even against the light background which was problem in my last design.

I've also added a large box around the text which just adds more aesthetics to the design so that it's not too simple or plain.
The colours have also been tweaked around with so that there's a warmth to the cover, to make it bolder and brighter and more appealing to the audience - the use of the lens flare is also very effective as it gives the sun effect; it looks like the sun has just appeared in the corner of the photo much like it would at sunrise.

There is still more work to do such as take the photo in portrait mode so that the advert and album cover are the same as well as scouting for pictures of sunrise to add to the background - as much as I like the blue sky I also want a variation in each design to show my target audience.
In the next week I hope to have these photos taken (even if it means  extremely early mornings) as well as getting the images from my track list too.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Mock Album Covers - My Original Work

These designs are just some quick mock ups I have been working on for my album cover.

As mentioned in a previous post, the reason why I wanted the front cover to be an image of the house is so that there's a visual link between the video and the print product because the house is the first and last thing we see in the music video. 

These are just mock up designs as I will be re-taking the images because they aren't in line, there is a slight angle. The camera I took the photos on usually have a feature that allows you to take straight photos but I forgot to use it, hence why they are unaligned. 

I also need to retake the photos in portrait rather than landscape mode as this will be easier to determine what the cover will look like in a square ratio as well as the correct ratio for an advert.

I plan to retake the photos tomorrow (the 3rd) at an earlier time to really capture the golden hour of the sunrise as well as tackling the issue of the shadow over the house. I will also be applying filters that increases the vibrancy of the image which will match the video as well. 

The weather is supposedly sunny which will be useful as I like the effect of the blue sky in the background which wasn't edited in, it was a part of the original photo. If I am successful tomorrow in capturing the images I hope to finish the album cover by the end of the week. I also plan to get the rest of my images for the track list and inside panels as well but there will be another detailed post up soon concerning those images.

In my opinion, I feel the white text looks more aesthetically appealing to the eye, however is unreadable when the title is placed over the sky. Yet, I like the look of the final design where the text is together. When I come to edit the final design, I will play around with each composition and put it towards my target audience as to which they prefer and then I will go from there. I hope to have this work completed my next week.

Until next time, 

                         Toni

Rough Cut Number 4

Here is the fourth rough cut of my video which is what I've been working on this past week or two. I've gotten more  footage to fix the problems of night time scenes halfway through the video.
I've chosen a different opening to the video so that it starts in the house instead of in the car, which works better for the narrative as a day in the life always starts off in the house.
I've also re-edited some of the footage in the bridge of the song so that the narrative makes more sense, now the video goes from dawn to dusk instead of random scenes of night time thrown in at different places.
The sequencing is more in time to the music I feel, however upon watching the video once exported, I did realise there were a few more shots which need to be edited to the bars of the music as it still looks a little glitchy and jumpy in some places.

In the next couple of days I will be screening this cut to members of my target audience as it is useful for feedback and I can use it for the final cut, to make any changes that would add more appeal to my target audience.

Now I need to work on my digipack and advert - I already have the majority of the images I plan to use for it as I did a shoot back when I was filming the footage. These will be compiled together for a mock up within the next week.

Until next time,
                          Toni

Digipack Cover Mock Designs

Now that I've finished researching and analysing digipacks and adverts from the indie/folk genre, I have a few ideas in mind as to how I want my products to look.
This past week I've been experimenting with some mock ups for my digipack's front cover and these are the results.

I took inspiration from Mumford and Sons' Babel because in their design for their digipack. The template opens up the reveal more of the scene from the cover and the track list is taken from the interior of the building seen on the front cover. This gave me the idea to have my front cover an image of the house we see throughout the video, and the track list to feature an image from the inside of the house.
With this design, it will help to create a visual link between the digipack and the video as the images used will be of the settings I filmed in. The audience will recognise the house when they see the front cover.

In these designs, I wanted to include an image of the outside of the house so that there is a visual link between the products as we will see the house at the beginning and end of the video. As I haven't had the chance to take my own pictures yet, I've used some I found on Google.
 I also want to use a sunrise in the from cover as this will add an eye-catching detail to the album cover. I hope to get a picture of the house whilst there is a sunrise so that the image fits together as the image of the house below is clearly taken at a point in the day where the sun is high in the sky. I hope to get a picture of the house with a sunrise already in the background, but if not I will just photoshop in my own images of a sun rise. I hope to get these images taken within the next week.

I've stuck with the band name, The Shires, however I've changed the name of the album. 

This is because from all the albums and digipacks I've researched they've all had very simple titles and album names. I've decided to rename my album 'Home' as it is what the whole video is based around. It's a day in the life of a couple and we see elements of their life throughout the video, their home being one of them. The song I've chosen also has a homely element to it. The ultimate meaning behind my video and song choice is that the couple have lived a long life together and would happily do it all again together.

The design works well for the indie/folk genre as there elements of the english countryside in this design with the use of a country house and the elements of the sunrise. In my digipack I will be using images of the local woodland which I filmed in as well as taking the sunrise pictures from the woodland (which is the best seat in the house).  Linking back to my first mockup designs, my audience feedback showed great enthusiasm for the woodland elements so I will be including in the digipack design.

So now I've got to get my own images and create the rough design for digipack as well as taking images for my advert as well which will hopefully be done in the next week.

Until next time,

                          Toni

Sigh No More Advert Analysis

This is another advert analysis, it is for Mumford and Son's Sigh No More and created via Prezi.

Until next time,
                         Toni

The First Days of Spring Advert Analysis

This is another advert analysis for Noah and the Whale's The First Days of Spring.

It was created via. Prezi.



Until next time,
                         Toni

Action Plan

This is my action plan for the upcoming half term. This is so that I know my personal deadlines and I can work towards them at my own pace.

In this upcoming week I hope to finish the research and analysis' of my chosen media texts and then i can focus on planning and creating the ancillary products whilst continuing with my video as well.

 

I will spend lesson time and my own time on the ancillary products whereas only my own time will be spent on my video. This is so that i don't spend all of my own time on the video and leave the digipack and advert until the last minute.

 

 

 

 

 

Until next time,
                         Toni