Production Section Video Production Within this section you will be guided through the process of producing a video from generating initial ideas to finessing a final cut and sharing your video with others. Generating Ideas Whether creating an excerpt from a television drama, promotional material for a lifestyle show or video content for a website it is best to begin the creative process in the same way. Your ideas, in addition to being a bit whizz-bang should follow a similar structure to the type of show you’re trying to produce. The best place to start therefore is looking at video clips of similar productions. YouTube (www.youtube.com) is a great place to start your search. Here’s an example - Misfits | Dead Man Dance | E4 Misfits is a teen drama broadcast on E4. We are sure you may have watched this programme before, but have you analysed it from the point of view of a filmmaker? Watch the clip and pick out the points that interest you. You may want to think about:

● Camera Shots ● Camera Movements ● Diagetic/Non Diagetic Sounds (Sounds heard by your characters/Sounds heard only by the

audience) ● Props ● Costume ● Character Expression/Movement

Once you’ve analysed a variety of clips you should be able to recognise recurring trends within these clips - these are the generic conventions. Try noting some of them down. It may be things such as high-key lighting, close ups of the leading actors, props, costumes and scenery (This is known as mise-en-scene), it could even be catchy music. Once you have a list of the generic conventions you can then incorporate them into your own production. It is important when coming up with ideas that you create something that is straightforward to produce. It will be more difficult to create a high-concept sci-fi thriller such as 2013’s Oblivion whereas creating a gritty, Shane Meadows’ style independent drama will be easier. You should try to use your surroundings to your advantage - if you live in a rural location it will be difficult to produce something based on inner-city gang culture. Your ideas should be developing well now. You have chosen the type of production you want to make; analysed similar productions; worked out the conventions and applied them to your work. Now you need

to get ready to put this idea into practice. Preparing For The Shoot Here you will be guided through the pre-production stage of your video shoot. Your early ideas will be elaborated on and focused into a final plan that gives you a full understanding of what you’ll need to do to create your video production. In brief 1 and 2 of the specification, within the Broadcast section, you are asked to create either an opening, excerpt or advertising spot of a larger television programme so it is therefore important to begin by plotting the content of this larger production. You can do this by writing down the beginning, middle and end of the production or by using a storyboard This simple storyboard template will allow you to visualise your ideas for the first time. The storyboard is broken up into 6 frames. Within these frames you can sketch out the programme’s key scenes. Be careful not to draw stickmen here, it is important to remember that video allows us to get up close and personal with the talent in front of the camera so make sure you incorporate things such as close ups of facial expressions. Don’t worry if you can’t draw very well, as you can always find screenshots from similar productions online and import them digitally onto the storyboard template. Use the section underneath to add relevant information about what action is taking place and the shot size the action is framed in. Once you have planned your production you can pick which bits you want to use for your coursework. If creating a promotional spot or trailer for a new lifestyle show as in brief 2 then you can choose the best bits from your storyboard to help promote the show - remember the key to advertising is to whet the appetite and not give too many key moments away to the audience. Once you’ve done storyboarding, it’s time to get out and find some good locations. This is one of the parts of pre-production that is most enjoyable. Firstly, you must think of all the imaginary locations that feature within your production - maybe a dungeon, a TV studio or a post-apocalyptic wasteland - and think up real-world locations that can be used instead - such as a mate’s cellar, the canteen or the school field. It’s important to check these locations out for their suitability before you turn up to shoot. You should look out for sources of natural light; places to plug stuff in; exterior noises such as cars; and any permission required for access - the last thing you want is someone chasing you out of your perfect location because you forgot to ask permission. Here are 5 key tips for scouting the best locations: Photographs - take lots. It’s good to see what a location looks like through a lense. It also helps you remember how the natural light interacts with the location. If it casts really harsh shadows then you may not want to use it for a romantic comedy. Character - locations have character too! Pick locations that are visually interesting to look at. This could

range from a gnarly tree to an interesting shop front. The appropriate ‘look’ of a production should never be too far from your creative mind. Mise-en-scene - Good mise-en-scene will make your production more believable and is often overlooked by first-time filmmakers. Think about it, if your scene is supposedly a Hitman’s apartment as he prepares for his final hit, the last thing you’d expect to see is the Hitman open a bedroom door and the walls be covered in One Direction posters!

Ambience - Take note of the sounds you can hear at your location. Trains, planes and automobiles can ruin a shoot due to the excessive sound they make. Likewise be careful of local factories, other schools or busy public places. They can all lead to unwanted noise. Permission - Be bold, ask for permission to film in places you may not expect to gain access. We have witnessed students filming in 5-star hotels, nightclubs (during the daytime) and on top of buildings. Acquiring permission for a location may make the difference between an okay production and an outstanding one. A location ‘reccy’ or scouting form (FOUND HERE) will help you organise your locations so you can make the important decisions before you shoot.

Once you have secured permission to film in each of your locations careful consideration must be given to the health and well-being of yourself, the rest of the crew, your cast and the general public who may or may not have access to your location whilst you film. All locations pose a risk to people and equipment so you must therefore decide the level of risk and the measures you will take to ensure that that risk is minimised. A risk assessment form (FOUND HERE) will show evidence of this preparation. Outside locations may pose traffic, weather or accident risks, whereas inside locations may pose risks of tripping, electrocution or physical injury. It’s worth noting that some locations may ask to see evidence of your school/college’s Public Liability Insurance before granting permission to film in case a member of the public is injured accidentally. You should ask your teacher to find out if your institution has this. The next thing to think about is a script. It’s always worth noting down any dialogue before you begin shooting so that your actors can repeat the same lines over and over again because you won’t just be shooting a scene once from one angle! It also gives you, as the filmmaker, control over the tone of the scene instead of relying on actor or presenter improvisations. There is an industry standard format that all television and film scripts must follow so it’s worth using that format now so you get into the habit. For what it’s worth there are good software packages out there that will format your script for you. An example of scriptwriting software that is both easy to use and free is Adobe Story. Just incase you can’t or simply don’t want to use the software then you can use any word processing application instead. Here are the steps to formatting your script correctly.

1. Use the Courier-New font. 2. Enter the location info in CAPITAL letters 3. Below this enter the action that is taking place 4. When writing a character’s NAME make sure you use CAPITALS again 5. For dialogue tab the cursor over roughly 5 times and write the character’s name 6. Next tab over 4 times to write the dialogue (it’s important not to ‘centre align’) 7. Once the scene is finished hit return twice and begin again.

We’ve attached a sample page of a script here for you to have a look at. If you are working in a group then it makes sense to split some of these jobs up so that everyone feels part of the creative process. It’s also important that everyone understands the importance of making your production authentic and believable. The person responsible for getting hold of props and costumes for example must understand the genre of the production you’re shooting. If you are making an excerpt from a crime drama where a prisoner breaks out of jail then it’s important not to have this ‘prisoner’ running around in jeans and a beanie hat. It’s the time spent on detail like this that will sell your story to its audience. Getting people to act in your production can often become a troublesome task. You may rely on friends or family who are not natural actors and this can lead to awkward scenes or actors not wanting to perform in

locations that are too public. This is understandable and it’s worth remembering that you are not marked on the acting within your production. A word of warning however is that friends can often let you down when it comes to committing to two or three days filming. Check with them - multiple times if necessary - that they can make the dates and times you have planned for. Also make sure they understand that they may have to wear the same clothes for each day of shooting. This is called continuity and is important because there is a good chance that you will not be shooting your production in the same order as the script or storyboard. The editing process allows you to do this so if you have access to a friends’ house to shoot the opening scene and the climatic scene but only have an afternoon to do it in then you would film both scenes in the order that suits you best. Okay, you’re nearly ready to start shooting. You’ve visualised your idea; found suitable locations and sought permission to use them; filled in the risk assessment paperwork; written the script; sourced the right props and costumes before finding some reliable actors to star in your production. You’ve worked hard, but the fun is only just beginning. Before you begin your shoot it is definitely worth borrowing a video camera from your school/college and spending some time with it. Get used to attaching it to the tripod, turning it on and recording some footage. You will be performing these functions again and again throughout the shoot so it’s good if it becomes second nature. The Shoot This section will guide you through the production process giving you straightforward tips on camera, sound and lighting. All video cameras have a method of viewing what you’re recording. It maybe through a viewfinder, which is the eyepiece attached to the camera or the shot may be displayed on an LCD screen. Whichever way you view it, this image is called ‘the shot’. In your role as Camera Operator, or to use the proper title Cinematographer, it is your job to organise each element that makes up the shot. These elements could be actors, lighting, props and set. They are brought to life within the camera’s ‘frame’. If you imagine an orchestral composer waving his baton at each section of the orchestra producing a sound that is beautiful, meaningful and well balanced, the Cinematographer must also compose the elements of each shot to produce the same results. Here’s a guide to basic ‘framing’: These shots are often abbreviated when written down in storyboards or scripts. Wide Shot (WS) - The wide shot is framed so we can see the entirety of a scene. If this includes an actor then the whole length of their body should be visible from head to toe. This particular shot may be called a Long Shot or an Establishing Shot also.

Mid-Shot (MS) - The shot, as the name suggests, frames up the actor from their mid-section - just below to be precise.

Medium Close Up (MCU) - This shot is slightly tighter than the MS, framing from the waist to head.

Close Up (CU) - The close up generally frames the actor from chest to head.

Extreme Close Up (ECU) - This shot really focusses the audience attention. If you want to show a character’s emotion or highlight an important plot point then ECU should be the shot of choice.

Make sure when framing these shots that you allow ample headroom for your actors. In photography they use a simple rule known as the rule of thirds. The rule of thirds breaks up the frame into three horizontal and vertical sections resulting in a grid, not unlike a noughts and crosses board! The idea is to position your subject matter a third of the way along and/or a third of the way across on the points where the lines of the grid meet. In a close up shot you may want to frame the eyes of your leading actor on the upper horizontal line and split their face with the right vertical line. This will give your actors perfect headroom in addition to the benefit of ‘looking space’.

Looking space is also important as it allows the audience to make sense of the location of the actors in relation to each other and the space around them. This is particularly crucial when two people are having a conversation. A good technique for making sure that you establish the position of your actors in relation to one another is the 180° rule.

The idea of this rule is that you draw an imaginary line down the centre of your two actors. Once the line is drawn you choose a side to position your camera and then NEVER cross the line again.. You can move the camera anywhere you want on the side of the line you have chosen but if you cross the line once then this will result in characters looking in the wrong direction once you begin to edit the scene together. 180 DEGREE VIDEO BLOG Another key component of a well composed shot is focus. The lense on your camera, no matter how big or small, will have a focal range - a distance that ensures everything within it remains visually crisp and sharp. This focal range can be changed automatically by the camera or manually by you, its operator. There are pros and cons to using the auto-focus function and manually focussing. Here’s a quick guide to them: AUTO FOCUS

Pros Cons

Keeps subject in focus at all times If it’s dark then auto-focus can get confused.

Your actors can move wherever they want to within the frame

Will focus on foreground props/set instead of actors

Is ultra reliable with simple shots Cannot use storytelling techniques such as ‘rack focus’ (shifting focus from foreground to background).

MANUAL FOCUS

Pros Cons

More control of focal range Limits actor movement toward or away from camera

Pull off more complex shots such as depth of field (Focus on specific object/actor whilst blurring out background).

Can be tricky to adjust on smaller cameras

Is better in lower light scenarios Can ruin a shot if forgotten

If this is your first time operating the camera then it may be best to use the auto-focus function but if you want to experiment or have a specific artistic reason for manually changing the focus then here’s a quick guide to keeping things sharp. CAMERA FOCUS Lenses and focussing can get pretty complex pretty quickly so we’ll keep things simple. Focussing correctly is all about the distance your subject is from the camera. If an actor is running toward or away from the camera quickly then it may take a steady hand to keep them in focus. If your actors are standing still then you may want to have a go at manually focussing.

1. Frame up your actors to the required shot. Once framed, and without moving the camera forward or back, you need to zoom in as close as you can to your actor (if using DSLR cameras then you should use the digital zoom feature instead of the lense zoom).

2. Once zoomed in, manually adjust the focus. All cameras differ slightly but in the main you will use a focus ring to do this.

3. Turn the ring clockwise for closer focus and anticlockwise for distant focus. 4. Once your image is crystal clear you can zoom out and the shot should remain in focus. You can

now reframe if required and be confident that your shot is in perfect focus. 5. It’s worth noting that this sequence must be carried out each time you move your camera.

It’s worth remembering that your camera isn’t the only important piece of equipment needed to produce well framed and focussed shots. If your school or college has cameras then they also have tripods. Tripods are super important! Not only do they keep your camera stable they allow you to produce movements such as tilts (up and down) and pans (side to side) that may help you create meaning within your production, which in turn may mean a better mark for your coursework. We would advise to ALWAYS use a tripod, we’ve seen far too many good ideas let down by shaky footage. So now it’s time to press RECORD…..but just wait a second. Before you do let’s spare a thought for the person who’s going to be editing this production. A mistake often made by first time filmmakers is not allowing a little ‘pre’ and ‘post’ roll. This means allowing the camera to record a little bit before and a little bit after all the acting has taken place. Here’s what to do:

● Set up your shot (Framing, Focus etc) ● Press Record ● Wait for two seconds ● Shout “Action!” ● Scene plays out ● Shout “Cut!” ● Wait for two seconds ● Stop recording

The reason we do this is so we don’t miss any important footage. Although only milliseconds, there is a time delay after pressing the record button, the timecode initiating and footage being written to a memory card or tape. If your actors jump straight into their lines there is a good chance an important word or action could be missed. Add a little pre-roll and post-roll and you’re guaranteed to capture every important detail. Yes it takes a bit longer but hopefully you’ll have given yourself plenty of time to finish the shoot. In fact taking your time is the best tip we can give you. Making sure that your shots are set up correctly and that every action is captured will keep reshoots down to a minimum. Be prepared to shoot the same scene over and over again. This allows your actors the opportunity to get comfortable with their lines and get into character but it also means you can shoot the scene from lots of different angles using lots of different shot sizes. Within the media industry the professionals use a shooting ratio of 10:1. What this means is for every 10 minutes of footage you shoot you will only use 1 minute of good footage in the final edit. This gives you wriggle room with regards making mistakes (even the professionals do this) in addition to giving your editor a huge variety of shots in which to tell the story. It’s understandable that you may not follow this ratio exactly while shooting your coursework but it’s worth considering. You will not produce A-grade coursework with six minutes of raw footage for a five minute edit. The Edit: The production can be tough but the edit is always fun! It’s where you get to build your story piece by piece; shot by shot. Don’t go thinking that the edit isn’t a big job - it’s massive. Too many coursework

projects have come unstuck attempting to edit in a day. You should dedicate the same amount of time to the edit as you do to the production. Here’s our five point plan to a successful edit:

1. Viewing - This is important as it’s a way of sorting the good from the bad. A chance to see which shots work best and weed out the bloopers. It’s also a good time to name clips and organise them into folders related to scenes or sequences.

2. Ingest – You’re basically feeding the clips into your computer. It’s also known as capturing or simply transferring. Depending on the type of video it is - and believe us there are hundreds of different types - may depend on how you ingest your footage.

3. Rough Cut - This is your first piece of actual editing. It may be best to follow a script or storyboard and will usually result in a final piece that is way too long! Don’t worry about adding effects or transitions at this stage, your focus is on the story.

4. Refine - Once you have a rough cut in place it’s time to see how long it is. You may need to cut shots or even entire scenes. You can’t be too precious here, although it’s really difficult, if the scene doesn’t tell the viewer anything new then it probably needs to go.

5. Finesse - Now it’s time to show off. Here’s where you can add tranistions or effects - including sound effects. If creating a music video or advert then it’s fine to go for it a bit here. Keep transitions quick and play with colour. If you’re editing a film/TV programme then less is definitely more - only use transitions between scenes and keep away from the ‘fancy’ ones, dissolves and fades work well here.

Once finished the ‘finesse’ stage you should be the proud owner of a ‘final cut’ - enjoy it. If you’ve managed to do this with time to spare you may want to cast your eye over a few professional editing techniques that may just bump your grade up even further. You could try:

● Cutting on action - Also known as ‘Invisible Editing’, cutting on action is the art of hiding your cuts so that the action flows naturally on screen. You may, for example, choose to cut as your actor picks up an object; fidgets in their chair or begins to exit the frame. The idea is that you fool the audience’s brain as they focus on the movement within the frame and miss the switch of one shot to the other. If the action is static and the only thing that changes is the camera angle then the audience may notice. Here’s an example from a classic movie but watch any film for 10 minutes and you’ll see plenty of these.

● Jump Cut - The jump cut is the polar opposite of cutting on action. It is a cut designed to make itself obvious. A jump cut is a cut between one shot to the exact same shot only at another point in time - usually just a matter of seconds. Keeping with our theme of classic movies the opening 40 seconds of Bonnie & Clyde is a good example of this. This cut is used to reflect the emotion of the character. Bonnie is frustrated and is desperate to break free from the confines of small town life. Of course other times it just looks cool.

● Matched Cut - The matched cut is cutting from one shot to another with shared framing and similar imagery but within a completely different time and space. Used to create continuity and/or metaphor, the matched cut usually focuses on objects rather than people. Here’s probably the most famous example of a matched cut (but not the best, in my honest opinion).

● Cross Cutting - This is where a similar action is taking place but within a different space and time. It’s used a lot in action movies to create intensity. It can also be used to tell parallel stories. This clip from Inception is a good example of this.

Once you have achieved your final cut you need to get it out of the editing software and onto a DVD or better still YouTube. The majority of editing software has presets for exporting video for YouTube. The important thing to beware of is you don’t lose picture quality as you go through the export process. Make sure your resolution (the amount of pixels within the frame) isn’t too small (1920x1080 Full HD or 720x576 Standard definition will do) as well as making sure the file size isn’t too big either. A YouTube preset is the best option but if none exist then to do this requires a little know-how of video formats. As it gets very ‘techy’ very quickly just take our word that you want to make sure your video is exported in the H.264 format

Print Production

Generating Ideas:

Within the assignment briefs you are asked to design a variety of differing pages from leaflets to articles to magazine front covers. Whichever type of print production you choose your first port of call should always be similar types of publication.

If, for example, you chose the front cover and inside pages of a specialist magazine on say...tropical fish, then the first place you might go to is the front cover of Practical Fishkeeping magazine (don’t tell us you’ve never read it!).

Rather than reading the front cover it’s worth analysing it, taking note of important elements such as the main image (aka the Cover Image); the colours that they use and how consistently they use them; the type of letters (Fonts) that are being used and how busy or quiet the page is - this relates to how much text or additional imagery they use.

All these elements will relate to the style and tone of the magazine itself and will be different according to each magazine’s readership. Once you’ve got your style down, then you are ready to beginning designing.

The Design:

Sometimes you just want to jump straight into a project and get started. That’s fine, but with print production things can often become frustrating quickly. You’ll be using lots of different software that you may have to learn from scratch. This can lead to making mistakes that require unpicking hours of detailed work - for example when you are cutting out an image. So first up on the agenda is the old school method of sketching out the layout of your front cover and inside pages.

Grids - Grids can help organise the layout of your magazine. Although it often seems like quite a rigid way of coming up with something creative, grids help keep your early enthusiastic attempts at design focussed. Grids in the long run should help you think about the visuals of something as opposed to the content.

This is an example of a front cover grid but you can also use grids for the inside page layouts. This simple hand drawn front cover will give you an idea of the layout of your front cover. Once this has been decided then you can begin thinking about the imagery you will use. The majority of the images used must be your own so here’s a few tips on taking those cover shots.

Photography:

1. Lighting. Your school or college may have photographic lighting equipment or not. If so then make sure you get the right kind of light for your magazine. For example if you’re magazine is a fun lifestyle magazine then you will need lots of ‘soft’ light or it’s posh title ‘diffused light’. This is indirect light that creates soft shadows and a warm feel. If your magazine is a music mag with a metal band on the cover then you may want to try creating ‘hard’ light. This is direct light that creates harsh shadows and a colder feel. If you don’t have access to a studio then make sure there is enough light if shooting indoors. If you are shooting outdoors be very aware of the sun. Shooting into the sun will create a silhouette so it’s advised you shoot with the sun behind you.

2. Focus. This is critical. You may spend an eternity making sure your lighting is correct and your model has the correct pose only to be thwarted once you get back to the computer as you notice that all your shots are out of focus. A lot of cameras have automatic focus which will assist you with this. If however you want to create a specific looking shot with background elements out of focus then you may need to manual focus for this. Check out this video for tips on how to manually focus.

3. Background. You have a couple of choices here. Firstly if your school/college has a studio then you may want to use this. Shooting against a plain flawless background (usually a roll of paper pulled out in front of the camera) will give you a true studio feel and make your photographs look professional. If you have to shoot elsewhere you must spend time finding the right location. We’ve seen high-end fashion magazines shot in front of school corridors or skater mags inside younger siblings bedrooms! Choose a location that will fit in with the tone of your magazine.

Creating your magazine

Within this section we will help you with the fundamentals of magazine design. We’ll give you tips and advice so that you can make the right decisions.

Front Cover:

Here is a mock up of a front cover we designed. We used the sketch from the design section to help us with this and made amendments as we went. Lets look at the elements that make up the front cover.

Masthead - This is the title of your magazine. The design of this usually stays the same for every publication so that the magazine can build brand consistency. As with ours, the masthead covers the top part of the cover and is made up of text alone - sometimes a magazine may place the text on a block of colour. Notice that our masthead uses colours that compliment the content of the magazine.

Cover Image - This is the main image of the cover. For our magazine it is a relevant image for a travel magazine, however most magazines choose a model for their cover image. It will be up to you to decide whether you shoot your model full body (their head and body in the frame) or full face (only a close up of their face). The cover image usually ‘bleeds’ in from all four sides of the page. This means that the image runs to the very edge without a border. Only on occasion do front covers place a border around their cover image - think TIME magazine.

Top Tip! - It’s worth thinking about how your cover image and masthead will interact. It is popular these days for the cover image to obscure some of the masthead. The magazine makes sure the majority of the masthead is visible but relies on strong brand identity to ensure readers know what it is.

Cover Lines - The Cover Lines are like the sub-headings that appear on the front cover. They inform the reader of the content within and blend with the mast head - usually sharing the same tint of colour. Cover Lines are set in a different typeface to the Masthead which helps distinguish them. They should be placed around the cover image but not obscure it and although they will share a similar tone they will never blend to an extent that they are unreadable. Depending on the type of magazine you are designing will

depend on how ‘busy’ your cover is with Cover Lines.

Flashes & Slashes - These are bands of colour and text, usually associated with a promotion or a marketing campaign. For example a flash in the corner of your publication may inform the reader that the issue is ‘The Best of 2014!’ or ‘The Superhero Edition’. A slash may cut across the corner or lower half of the front cover. Whereas a flash may be a circular ‘sticker’.

Barcode - This may seem like it’s too obvious to mention but you’d be surprised how often it’s forgotten. Remember to receive a good grade you need to follow appropriate conventions. This is one of them. The barcode often sits at the foot of the cover on the right but it’s worth checking other magazines that are similar to yours.

Dateline & Price - Once again this seems like an obvious choice but as a designer you must spend time on the detail. Magazines usually have an issue number in addition to the date of issue and the price. The price may also come in a variety of currencies dependent of reader circulation. The dateline can sit either near the Masthead or with the Barcode.

A Quick Note on Software

There are a variety of software options out there for you to produce your coursework on. If your school or college has the Adobe Creative Suite (aka CS5, 5.5 or 6) then you have a good selection. You can manipulate your images in Photoshop and then use the pre-installed grid templates within In-Design. If you want to work on coursework at home then some good freeware is available to you such as GIMP for image manipulation (GIMP stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program before you ask) and Scribus for all you desktop publishing needs. Your teachers will help you get started with some of this software but there is also a wealth of video tutorials out there on the internet that can help you learn at your own pace.

Inside Pages

So your front cover is looking good. You’ve now got to start thinking about these inside pages. Obviously the big obstacle is that you have to write an article to fill a double page spread. You can do this in your own time and on a simple word processor such as MS Word. You will design your inside pages at the same time and once your article is finished you can copy and paste it into the columns you’ve already designed.

Once again grids are you friend here. You may choose to use a simple 3 column grid. This will create a basic design that you can fill with text and images. If you would like your inside pages to have a bit more ‘life’ and ultimately, receive a better mark then you should choose a grid template with 5 or more columns in it.

Obviously the more columns you have then the more complex your designs can become.

When designing your inside pages these are the elements to include in a double page spread.

Title - The title of your article. This will sit at the top of your first page or may on occasion sit on the right hand side of a double spread. The title will usually be combined with an image and may use the predominant colour within that image for its typeface.

Image - You should use a strong image here to entice your readers to continue and to set up the tone of the article. Your image may take up the majority of the first page and ‘bleed’ in off all four sides of the page.

Footer/Folio - The footer sits at the bottom of the page. It uses a different typeface to the title and the body text (the text your article is written in). The footer contains the page number, magazine name and date.

Dept. Head - The department head sits at the top of your page. This text will continue in the typeface of the footer but may include underlines or strokes that share the colour of the title. The department head text will state the section the reader is viewing for example ‘Travel’.

Strapline - The strapline will put the article in context, a bit like a subheading, it will give a one sentence synopsis. Once again the colour of this may be shared with the title.

Drop Cap - The drop cap works well at the beginning of your article. It frames the body text and draws the reader’s eye. The drop cap is basically a massive capital letter that may fill the space of many lines of

body text. It’s nice if the drop cap shares colours and style with the title also.

Body Text - This is your article that you may have written on word. During the design process you can fill this with random words (I usually choose the imaginative “body text” so that you can get a feel for the design before copy and pasting your actual article in. The body text should be in a different - digestible - typeface to the other elements on the page.

Pull Quote - The pull quote is an actual quote from your article. This can blend nicely on your main image and you can play with the style of the quotation marks. They are usually bigger than the size of the text used within the pull quote.

Text Wrap - In addition to images bleeding in from the edges of pages or images with borders, you may also want to add an image that doesn’t fit into the column system. If so then you may want your body text to bend and ‘wrap’ around this image. This can break up the body text nicely and offers something different.

Top Tip!

When designing a double page spread you should always have an eye on the balance of both pages. For example if using two images that bleed from the edges of the page it would be preferable to sit one at the foot of page 1 and the other at the head of page 2. This would create a nice balance between the two pages and allow the reader’s eyes to flow through the article.

Dingbats - Dingbats are those funny images you can use in MS Word and similar applications without really knowing their real use. A dingbat will sit at the end of your article next to the body text and serves as a visual full stop so that the reader understands that the article has concluded.

Fonts:

It’s worth talking briefly about fonts, which is a shame as we absolutely love them and could talk about them all day.

Fonts are basically the style of a set of letters. Without doubt you will have been writing something on the computer and thought ‘This doesn’t look good, let’s have a look at a different font’. Some fonts have names that easily identify them such as STENCIL, while others are more artistic such as Futura. When choosing a font you may well have noticed words such as ‘Serif’ or ‘Sans Serif’, these words distinguish and divide all fonts into two separate families.

Serif - To put it simply a serif font is a font with additional flourishes or stems. The easiest way to check this out is by looking at the base of the stem of a letter. If it stands on a foot then it is a serif font. Here are some examples of serif fonts, with an honorable mention for one of our favourites Georgia

You will predominantly use a serif font when writing your body text. If you use a serif font for your masthead or title then it’s connotations are that of formality, tradition, consistency etc. Newspapers and their supplements tend to use serif fonts.

Sans-Serif - A sans-serif is simply a font without flourishes or without serifs. Common sans-serif fonts are Helvetica or its twin Ariel. Sans-serif fonts appear more modern, even though some were designed

nearly 100 years ago such as the aforementioned Futura. Design magazines, or magazines aimed at the youth tend to use a nice sans-serif. It’s worth thinking about these things during the design of your coursework.

E-Media

The e-media section of the brief asks you to design web pages or online marketing materials. Designing web pages can be a difficult process. Not only must you consider the important design elements but you must also think about how user friendly the website is. In addition to both these points you need to understand and write the language/code that websites are written in. This can be tricky unless you have previous experience of doing this. To complicate things further, websites are written in, not one, but three different codes - HTML, CSS and JavaScript. It’s worth pointing out now that within this section I will not be teaching you how to code. If coding is your thing or you want to give it a go then there are many video tutorials out there both on YouTube and the wider web that can guide you or your teachers.

If your school has a membership then www.lynda.com is a great place to start.

If code isn’t your thing, or you know some basic code that you would like to experiment with then you can always try using a web template to get you started. Web templates are bare-bones websites but with all the important code already written. You then pick and choose which elements you would like to include for your specific site. You can customise colour, font, pages in addition to including still and moving image elements. Many professional individuals and small businesses use web templates and they can really help you with the design of your site.

There are some great sites out there that offer free templates such as Wordpress, Weebly, Moonfruit or Wix.

Step by Step

Here are 5 steps to a great website:

1. Simple is as simple does...This may sound silly but keeping the layout of your website simple, yet still looking stylish and appropriate for your theme, is the foundation of a successful website. You must be thinking constantly about the purpose of the website and it’s ease of use. Therefore having uniform spacing around elements is important as is placing buttons or crucial information centrally surrounded by nothing but space can help focus the users attention and assist with their navigation.

2. This is a call to action...Your website is a portal to another place - a bit like the Tardis, only your website usually wants to complete an action such as playing a video or helping you buy something as opposed to battling the daleks.. When designing your website you need to make completing this action as simple and obvious as possible. You can do this in a variety of ways such as using contrasting colours, creating space, or placement on the page.

3. Button it, in style...Your website will and should include buttons. As you do this make sure that your buttons looks like buttons. There is nothing worse than landing on a website with buttons disguised as text or images. The opposite is equally as bad when you’re sure you are clicking the

correct button only to realise 30 minutes later that the thing you’ve been clicking on isn’t even a button. Remember to use appropriate colours and fonts with buttons and that the design should be uniform throughout your website.

4. Images, the bigger the better...When designing your website you cannot beat the simplicity of great photography. Go out with your camera and take photographs, all you need is one great image and this can become the centre point of your website. A beautiful image sells your product/information to it’s audience as well as adding authenticity to the website.

5. It’s all about us...It is a convention of all websites to include sections ‘about us’ and ‘contact us’. You therefore need to make sure these conventions are followed. A contact us section can include basic information or can be a separate page on its own. The information needs to be clear and may include a link to a google map. The about us section is important to a lot site owners as it’s their opportunity to tell the user about their products and values.

References

"Misfits | Dead Man Dance | E4 - YouTube." 2010. 12 Feb. 2014 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tCEG72X6a0> "Oblivion - Official Site | Own It NOW on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital ..." 2005. 12 Feb. 2014 <http://www.oblivionmovie.com/> "Welcome to Shane Meadows.co.uk." 2005. 12 Feb. 2014 <http://www.shanemeadows.co.uk/> "Adobe Story | Scriptwriting software." 2011. 4 Mar. 2014 <https://story.adobe.com/en-us/> "Magazine | Practical Fishkeeping." 2005. 10 May. 2014 <http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/magazine.php> "Time.com." 2003. 10 May. 2014 <http://time.com/> "Elle: Fashion Magazine - Beauty Tips, Fashion Trends ..." 10 May. 2014 <http://www.elle.com/> "Website design software, CS6 | Creative Suite 6 ... - Adobe." 2011. 12 May. 2014 <http://www.adobe.com/mena_en/products/creativesuite.html> "GIMP - The GNU Image Manipulation Program." 12 May. 2014 <http://www.gimp.org/> "Scribus." 2004. 12 May. 2014 <http://www.scribus.net/> "Choosing a Font: Serif vs Sans Serif." 2014. 12 May. 2014 <http://writingspaces.org/wwsg/serif-and-sans-serif-fonts>