Class work reflections and notes:

Camera Shots

Medium Shot

A medium shot is a shot where it captures it at a medium distance from the subject. It is mainly shown in dialogue scenes but also captures the body language the characters are using and the setting. It will frame lots of subjects as well as a portion of the background and space in general. They are used to also show visuals that are disarming, comedic and informal or any other examples.

Aerial Shot

An aerial shot is a shot that is taken from an uplifted viewpoint. Aerial shots show the audience a sense of deepness in what is happening. An Aerial shot requires specific camera equipment. Aerial shots are so effective that potentially they may be the reason why movie posters are attracting a lot of people seeing it. 

Eye Level Shot

An eye level shot is when a shot is positioned directly at a characters' eye level. This is used to bring the audience into the story and carries the feeling of reality and and it shows that how we see people when the camera angle is facing close to the person. For example this camera angle shot can also show the sense of sympathy and connection between the viewer and the character.

Dutch Angle

These shots are called a Dutch angle. It's a shot in which the camera has been rotated around the lens in the shot. The primary use of a Dutch angle is to cause a sense of unease or disorientation for the viewer. Dutch angles are often static shots, but in a moving Dutch angle shot.

Low angle shot

This shot is called a low angle shot where it is shot from a camera angle positioned low, anywhere above the eye line, looking up. The effect of the low angle is that it makes the subject look powerful and strong. Sometimes, it is below the subject's feet. This can also increase the height of the object in front of the camera. The low angle shot can even be combined to other shots for an additional effect.

High Angle Shot

In these pictures this shot is High-angle shot where the camera points down on what the camera is facing from a high angle. High-angle shots can make the subject seem vulnerable or powerless when applied with the correct feeling, effects and setting. High angle shots can also add narrative information. High angle shots can be used in battle sequences or when showing a big space that has a lot of visual information. It can give context to a scene, and is usually shot at a shallow angle.

Cameras

Nikon

Nikon is a camera brand that sells cameras. They are really good to use because they are easier to handle. When the dynamic range is used it is definitely better mainly in Nikon. Nikon has a better autofocused system that can work on dimmer situation. If you are ever thinking of using the camera longer the batteries can last way longer and so you can use up much time.

Canon

Canon is another camera brand. They have very good image quality and contrast which can result to getting a good video or photo taken. This camera can also be creative because it has the opportunity to apply photographic effects to your images before and after taking shots. The best thing is that the camera has very good lenses meaning that there are no blurs.

Sound Recording

Sound recording is important in media production because having clear sound recording can affect the quality of the final product. For example, if the sound recording has lots of background noise (such as wind or traffic), it can make it difficult to understand what is being said, and reduce the overall quality of the video/consumer experience of it. It can come across as amateur or unprofessional if the sound quality is not clear.

Things that can affect the quality of sound recordings are:

- The environment ( for example if the weather disturbs the sound or if there are lots of noisy people around)

- The quality of recording equipment (what type of sound recorder you choose, for example budget or premium)

- The placement of the microphone (if it is facing the sound you are trying to record, you should get a better quality sound than if you have the microphone turned the other way.)

- The sound recordist (do they know exactly how to use the equipment properly?)

I'm now going to discuss the different types of sound recorders we have here at college.

Zoom H1N

The Zoom H1N records onto by a micro SD so that it can be uploaded to a file on the computer ready for editing. It has two microphones which can pick up sound and record it onto the micro SD, but you can also plug in an external microphone such as a tie mic to record voices more clearly. Having two different ways of recording is beneficial because it means it is more versatile.

In order to use this sound recorder, it is very simple, you just need to press the red record button once to record, and if you want to stop the recording, press the square button. Make sure you have the micro SD inserted into the H1N to ensure you don't lose your work.

Zoom H4N

The zoom H4N records sound by storing it on a regular sized SD card. Similar to the H1N, it has two integrated mics. However, it uses a standard SD card rather than a micro SD card, which can take longer to load, which can be a problem if you are under time pressure. You can also plug in two external mics (for example, a rifle mic) which could be beneficial.

In order to use the Zoom H4N, press the red record button once to arm the equipment, and twice to begin recording. To stop the recording, press the square button.

The Zoom H4 is very similar to the H4N except that it does not remember any internal settings you may set up, meaning that you have set it up every time you switch it on. This makes it slightly more difficult to use.

This is a tascam recorder which can offer both being a microphone and a recorder. This can be used for dictation, voice recording, musicians, podcasting, and field recording. Another interesting point is that a tascam recorder can record until 192 hours. 

Digital recording task

In class we did a sound recording task, to practice capturing good quality sound. We interviewed each other, and recorded the responses on the H4N. Through this activity, I learned how to use the sound recorder and to record good quality sound, and also how to interview my peers. This task was helpful and will be helpful for the rest of my course because I now know exactly how to use the equipment we have in college and can do this independently for future projects. An added bonus was that I got to know my peers a bit better.

After Effects Superman Task

This task involves making a superman animation and also uploading it to Youtube. Creating the animation involved steps like first confirming how the layout of the editing software should be like in order to create the superman video. What could have been done better if I had increased the size of the superman symbol when making it move just to present the video more. What went well is that I have managed to follow the steps into making the video like pacing, editing when each action starts and editing the images on the software.

Research

Primary research is when you have done research by yourself, this can involve watching a documentary or reading a book. These can be a benefit because when doing them it also means that you are collecting information. For example, there was a 1940 movie and it has been documented by notes that our group has captured and developed. It has showed groups of couples on the dance floor and felt like a musical.

Secondary research is when you have found out that you can put information in your notes . The idea that you have found wouldn't be yours but it has been referenced on by books and the website for e.g. For another example 

Qualititive research is when you have descriptive amount of words telling for example like how the movie went and you can describe and express yourself like for another example writing a review. It mainly relies on the data obtained by the person who has researched from for e.g. Interviews, Questionnaire, Documents and Case Studies. 

Quantitive research is when you are collecting a number of anything for e.g. hearing from a person of how much movies they have watched in a week. It focuses on the collection of analysis of data. The logic does fortunately supports the quantitive research by also giving statistics. And it is recorded by the theory of the Quantitive research.

Classification

Film Classification

Film classification is the process of giving the age ratings based on the concerns of what is going to be in the movie like for example: Bad language, Violence, Drug use and Nudity. It also depends on the context in the movie what is going to give out. The film classification makes sure that the the content given is suitable for the age rating.

What is the BBFC?

The BBFC (British Board Film Classification) is a non-governmental organisation that gives age ratings to TV shows and finds what the film contains. It is responsible for the national classification and censorship of films revealed at cinemas and video works let out on physical media within the United Kingdom.

What are the different age groups of film classification?

There are different age groups to the classification that sort out which movies or tv shows are suitable to different audiences. For example:

U: Suitable to Everyone who will watch the movie.

PG: Parents may have to look after their children while watching the movie.

12A: People under 12 watching the movie should be supervised by an adult who is 18 years and over. People over 12 can watch the movie.

15: Suitable for people that are 15 years and over. May contain inappropriate themes like violence, drug use and bad language. 

18: Suitable for people that are 18 years and over. May contain more uses of inappropriate themes in the movie.

Why do films need to be classified?

Films are classified to give content advice and age ratings to help everyone choose what is right for them and to avoid what is not. Recommendations are made by compliance officers based on the BBFC's published Guidelines.

Lighting

In the lighting, there has been different sorts of how to make the lighting better like adjusting the height of the lighting post so that it is facing correctly. The key is when the primary light source is presenting more light to the scene. It is the most effective light source out of the three. The key is to shed on the actor/subject. Another point is fill which reverses shadows clearly made by the key light. It is less effective than the key light. The fill is positioned oppositely with the key. The last point is the back which gives more light at the back of the actor/subject. The back is positioned taller than the subject. It also keeps the background separate from the foreground.

Mind map

The mind map is for planning my how to video and what is important. On the left side it shows about how I will present the camera angles by explaining the different types of angles.

 The only disadvantage is that I haven't included why they are used and how they are used but I think it should have been a better idea that I should have included it to my mind map. This relates to where I said what cameras are used which is good but I didn't say how and why they are used which I should have added. 

On the right side I should have added more about my Organisation for my how to video but at least I added about which sections of each topic of the subject should go where and talking about the pace of the video but should have added how to check the pace. I should have also added about the mic and how it could to the sound quality by adjustments potentially but at least I said about checking the sound quality so that it suits the video. The best plan I added was about the script and planning it properly so that it suits the video but should have added how.

How to video

How To Video Project Evaluation

For my pre production I have used some tools to plan my video in 5 ways which was: mind map, location recce, storyboard and pre production proposal. In the mind map, I planned out about what camera angles was going to use which is the Aerial shot, Low angle shot, High angle shot, Dutch angle, Medium shot and Eye level shot, and edits for the video which was like checking the pace for the video and Checking the sound quality so that it suits the video. For location recce I said overall that I needed no locations because I wasn't wanting to film but instead grab camera angles from movies on the internet instead. the pre- production proposal was about how I am going to manage making my video. There were questions like what is the theme and more about organisation in the video. The storyboard was to use camera angles that I would use to place in the storyboard and label them. Finally in the script I made questions for each camera angle like what is it, why is it used and how it stands out and i would use it to type my answers and make it form into a definition of the angle, slide when I am talking about the angle.

For my how to video project I have started by getting a white background template which was at 1920p for the background and so it would fit in properly. The title is filled for each slide for what the topic is about. The first slide was the introduction where I had to introduce the audience and doing that by also putting film angle images to make the video look more interesting. The next slide was about explaining camera angles and why they are used followed by me getting camera angle from a film image and an image from google images. Next I showed a montage of film scenes when showing the different types of camera angles. The issue was the sound was too hard to get in the video and sound made the video and also the computer glitch which was frustrating. I covered the dutch angle explaining that it faces diagonally at a character or an object, and used a dutch angle image to show what a dutch angle looked like. I also did a zoom in for the dutch angle just for the feeling of interest for the audience. The next slide was the aerial shot where I explained what it was which is a shot taken from an uplifted view. I also explained why it was used and it was by showing a sense of deepness and I finished the slide by zooming in to the image of an aerial shot. Next slide was the eye level shot where I was talking about how it was positioned and what feeling it gives the audience which is creating sympathy and gives out a deeper connection to the viewer. Also I zoomed in the eye level shot to show a bit of the angle and what it looks like. Next, I discussed about the high angle shot pointing down on a character or object from above. I used examples like using high angle shots in a battle sequence or showing a big space with lots of visual info and also said it can give context to a scene. Next, I talked about the medium shot which captures the subject from a medium distance, from thee knees/waist up. Then I again used the zoom in to present the camera angle more and so it would look engaging to the audience. The last camera angle I used was the low angle shot where it is shot from a camera positioned low. I also explained that this camera angle can make the character or subject look more powerful, strong and dominant. I answered that the low angle shot can be combined with other shots for additional effect. And finally I again zoomed in to the camera angle to make the video feel engaging. Lastly I had showed examples of camera angles i had described and showed many more examples of other camera angles. Lastly in the video, I said thank you and make sure to like, subscribe and comment.

What's good about this video is that it was taken seriously and gave a lot of useful information. They shot the camera angles very precisely. The problem I had with the video is that it felt boring and I didn't have feeling of engagement when watching the video compared to the video below. To improve the video they should add some creativity and more colours to make it more attractive. The voiceover was clear but felt boring at the same time. I would add some precise camera angle examples into my own video, to make it more fun to watch and maybe a bit of better music background could make it more interesting.

What's good about this video is that the way that it has been presented is well by giving good examples to support the information they are giving. I learned a lot from watching the video like when learning about the high angle shot it shows that sometimes that aerial shots can be used in high angle shots and the video has high quality because the way they show the camera angles is informative and the shots used in the video makes it look more creative. The video is aimed at people who are into movies. It would interest because it has been well made and it looks like they put a lot of time when producing it. I like the feel when watching the video because it makes you feel engaged. This is why I would use some of the techniques in this video in my own work.

This video is from 2009, which could be why the video isn't that great in terms of no clear voiceover and bad quality of filming which makes the audience feel bored and confused. The production feels like a high budget video, it just doesn't that effective to watch the video. If I was to do that type of video, I would change the lens of the camera, camera, microphone for a better effective one that could make the audio clear. I could use films clips that are clearer in my how to video so that the audience can see see more clearer maybe become a better experience.