Q6

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

Technologies I have learned to use• Photoshop • Quark • Blogger• Slideshare• Prezi

In the making of this music magazine I have learned how to efficiently use Quark and Photoshop and also about the conventions of a music magazine and how to create these using programmes. I used Quark to create my double page spread and contents while using Photoshop to create my cover page. To start with I had very little knowledge on these technologies but I learnt how to create everything I needed through practise on my first attempt of a music magazine until I had excelled enough to create this final piece.

Gaining a good understanding of Photoshop and Quark has had a very positive impact on the process of making and producing my own music magazine. I already had the knowledge of the necessary codes and conventions that I would need to create a good magazine but had very little knowledge of the technologies I could use to create these.

I noticed that within music magazines there was a lot of cutting around the main image on the cover page mainly but also right throughout the magazines and so learning how to do this on Photoshop using the pen tool, the quick selection tool and the magic wand tool all combined with the blur tool was an extremely significant skill to have when I was making and completing my media product. Learning about drop shadows and layers was also very helpful when it came to touching up my magazine as effects like the drop shadow do really contribute to the standard of this kind of work; it is something that makes the final piece seem far more professional.

When using Quark, I found it extremely beneficial having the ability to create my own layout using text boxes and image boxes as this is another factor towards making my magazine seem more professional as otherwise without this ability to create a layout my magazine would look messy and very unprofessional. Having this skill also meant that I could manipulate my contents and double page spread quickly and easily around my changing ideas. However I stand by the fact that the main benefit of this skill is the professional look it gives.

Impact of Knowledge on Media Product

Blogger

Before I started this media product I had absolutely no knowledge of Blogger or its uses but now that I have the ability to create my own blog and update it I have found that it was one of the most useful programmes I have been using. Without it I would not be able to display any of my finished work or add any extra details.

I have learnt how to set up my own Blog using blogger and also how to create new blog entries and to add text, images and titles. I have also learnt how to publish each blog entry onto my own blog which has being extremely useful in presenting my work.

CamerasFor my photo shoots I used a high quality Nikon Bridge Camera which I already had knowledge of and used this knowledge to my advantage to capture clear and high quality images. I did not have very good lighting for my shoot so I had to use the camera’s settings such as exposures and brightness including flash and indoor mode. Having a knowledge of all these adjustments I could make and how to make them really helped me as it gave me the ability to take pictures at the same standard as what is necessary for a music magazine.

However something that I did learn was how to take pictures well the first time around. I did not want to waste any time and so I had to gain the ability to produce a clear set of images at the right quality first time around. This meant having a rather clear idea in my head of the images that I needed and then using every function on my camera such as zooming, camera modes, shutter speeds, shot lengths and exposures so that I could achieve the image that I had in my mind.

I then learnt how to connect my camera to the computers and select the images I wanted to import so that I could make use of them.

PreziPrezi was also something that until the start of this media course I had never seen or heard of. I enjoyed using it as you can select a layout for your Prezi and then also customise it meaning that each Prezi you created was unique and in my opinion an excellent way of displaying your ideas. I learned how to create my own Prezi and add text to create something almost like a PowerPoint slide.

This screen shot shows how the software allows you to insert text into a series of boxes and then takes you from one box to another allowing you to provide a lot of detail in an interesting way.

SlideshareSlideshare is another programme that was new to me and at first I struggled using it because I couldn't seem the get the embedding codes to work but now I have gained experience in using it I can see how useful it is and I am able to embed my work into my blog using it. In the end I found it was easy to use and did the job exactly how I wanted.

On the other hand I found that it was very slow at uploading my work which was a slight issue especially as it came to the end of lessons and I wanted to keep up. I also thought that it could be more useful if it gave you more editing opportunities such as transition speed, sounds, borders etc.