Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

I think that the purpose of a music video is to represent what the band is like; it is so much more effecting than an interview in a magazine or just the CD cover.  As I decided to do an Indie music video, I knew straight away that I would have a performance based video; this is very common in the Indie rock genre.  I used Andrew Goodwin’s theory of visual relations as the visuals in the video create a completely different mood to a conventional music video, as it is nearly completely red and almost sinister. When shooting my video, I took into account the types of shots that a typically in an indie rock music video. Using the different lenses also had a significant effect on the quality of my music video, as makes it rather unique. The wide angle lens was very impressive when using it for the drumming shots as well as the long shot of the whole stage/band.

My Digipak and magazine advert both conform to forms and conventions of an Indie rock album cover and poster. They both are inspired by existing products. The front cover is inspired by ‘Dear Science’ by TV on the Radio, and the Back cover of the Digipak in inspired by the back of ‘Contra’ Vampire Weekend. Both of these bands an indie rock bands, fans of these bands would also like The Fratellis, the target audience would recognise my cover as an Indie Rock cover, without even knowing the band. I think that looking at real life products and emulating their style is a very effective way to create a Digipak and poster. 

The location of my video was essential in making sure I conform to the conventions of an Indie music video, as well as being aesthetically pleasing. It is on a stage which is a typical venue for an Indie band to play. The location is empty apart from the band, which makes the video seem isolated and lonely.  The target audience will relate the location as they have been t concerts before, as well as maybe playing gigs themselves.  These are the times where the target audience are enjoying themselves, so watching this video will be nostalgic.  It also creates a sense of escapism. The band also consists of people that could easily be part of the target audience that they are trying to attract.

My video is also applicable to Katz and Bulmer's Uses and Gratification theory. The video ensured that my target audience felt a connection and identify with the band. The band are so similar to the target audience and could easily be friends with them 

Question 2

Q2

 

A magazine advert has the primary purpose of promoting the product, in this case it’s a CD/tour for a band.  The magazine also has to emphasize the type of band that ‘Chemical Red’ are. I have done this by having in a picture of the band in the first picture. I also did this with the second picture, by having a lollipop, the target audience knows that they are a young playful band.

I carried on the colour scheme of red to give the band and promotional pieces a house colour to make them more recognisable.  I think the magazine adverts I created were very successful, as they promote the product, as well as highlights to the target audience; what kind of band Chemical Red are, as well as the song they are covering

I carried on the colour scheme of red to give the band and promotional pieces a house colour to make them more recognisable. I also think that this cover works well with the indie/indie rock genre. I picked red as my house colour, because it is not stereotypically a boys or girls' colour, by doing this, I made the target audience for this CD much bigger. The colour will also stand out in a shop or online, as it is very eye-catching.

Like the CD and magazine advert, the music video is there to promote the band and the song. It will be played online, on television and maybe behind the band when they play live. This is makes it very important to make sure the video represents the band in the right way. I think that my music video will be very effective in promoting the band and attracting the target audience by it’s fast paced video and song. 

The attitude and enthusiasm of the musicians in the video will definitely attract my target audience.  Also, the amount of static and moving camera shots make the video very diverse, as well as the types of shots used. Another reason that this video is effective, is the skill of the players. The target audience will be able to tell that they can play the song.  

Question 3

My audience differs from B/C1/E and attracts both genders. The kind of people that will enjoy the song/video that I have chosen would be interested in NME/Empire. They will like Indie music in general. The Fratellis are popular for their fast paced songs and energy; I replicated this in my video to make sure my target audience was satisfied.

I used a variety of ways to make sure the target audience will enjoy my final video. I had focus groups throughout the storyboarding stage, as well as getting constant feedback from my peers who are part of the target audience that I am trying to attract.

Getting feedback from your audience is critical in creating an effective music video that your audience will enjoy. For example, something as simple as colour can have a big effect on the outcome of a video. I asked members of my target audience if they like the idea of having coloured gels on the lights to create a different  colour, they liked this idea but specified that it should not be pink as this isn’t a colour that really interests them, also it is more associated with the pop genre. I decided to go for red, as it matches my CD cover and magazine advert, as well as being a very bold and strong colour.

In conclusion, I believe that getting audience feedback and make a significant impact on your final product. It will give you an insight into the mind of the people you wish to sell your product to, it is a necessity. 

Question 4

I used the Canon 550d for whole of my video shoot. I also used multiple lenses, such as the aperture lens, Wide angle and standard kit lens. I think this camera was really effective as it is simple to use yet can create some stunning shots. I used the Panasonic DMC-FZ48 for my photo shoot, as well as taking stills of the location of my video shoot. Its exceptional zoom and easy to use functions made it ideal for taking quick photos as well as the main photo shoot.

Sony Vegas Pro is a video editing software package for non-linear editing systems (NLE) originally published by Sonic Foundry, now owned and run by Sony Creative Software. This will be my primary software for editing the clips and audio. I prefer it to Premiere Pro as I am more familiar with Vegas. I find cutting and editing the clips much easier in Vegas.

Adobe Premiere Pro is a timeline-based video editing software application. It is part of the Adobe Creative Suite, a suite of graphic design, video editing and web development programs. Premiere Pro supports high resolution video editing at up to 10,240 × 8,192[9] resolution, at up to 32-bits per channel color, in both RGB and YUV. Audio sample-level editing, VST audio plug-in support, and 5.1 surround sound mixing are available. I used Premiere for filters mostly and maybe rendering the clips into different formats.

Photoshop has been a useful tool for graphic designers to create artwork conveniently and aesthetically. For example, design studios can use Photoshop in order to visualize their take on an initial concept and then move onto different media to complete the concept. Photoshop is an image editing software, which is part of the Adobe Creative Suite. It can edit most image files and saves an edited file as a .PSD. I used Photoshop to create my Digipak, magazine advert as well as editing the pictures.

I also used the internet to research for information throughout the course, as well as posting all of my progress on a blog. I also used websites such as Prezi and Scribd to digitally present different blog posts.  I also used YouTube to upload my final video.                                                                                             

Final Video

CD Case

Magazine CD/Tour Poster

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