Audit of skills• Terminology• Theories• Using software• Photoshop• Blog• PowerPoint• Adobe design• Word• Scanning• Evaluation• Generating ideas

• File organisation (images)• Photography skills• Use of sound• Planning and note taking• Drafting• Research• People skills• Organisation (time management)• What is the most important thing to do next year?

Audit of skills

Terminology

editing

convergence

mise en scene

soundcamera angles

cross media

portabilityproduction

distribution

above/below the line

marketingexhibition

sound bridge

ambient sound

incidental music

cut pace

special effects

long shotmid shotestablishing shotclose-up

costumehair/make-up

lighting

studio/on-location

directorproducerfunding/budget

platforms

Terminology

USP

Using software

The software I have learnt the most in is Photoshop to manipulate images and edit them. Removing backgrounds, smoothing out edges and creating effects have been made easier as I know how to use the tools properly which saves time although I have been using Photoshop since GSCE I was still unsure of some of the features such as the gradient, shadow and removing background tool.I have used Blogger and become more familiar with it as I log my progress like diary entries and keep up to date with my work. I found Blogger very easy to use as it is simply laid out and easy to access. Towards the end of AS I personalised the page layout and added labels to organise my work, showing skills in using new and unfamiliar programs.Presenting my work on Prezi was something completely new to me, I used it to show my evaluation although it would have been better to have a bit more time to become more confident with the program as it was very time consuming learning how it works and completing the work to a deadline.I mostly used PowerPoint to present my planning and research because of the simple features of the program. I already knew how to work PowerPoint too and this is what made it appeal to me more when putting things on my blog through SlideShare, the documents showed up on my blog and were easily readable and accessible to be marked. I didn’t use Word as I found on PowerPoint it is easier to change layouts and add pictures, and because of this I feel I can use PowerPoint very well. Any quick picture touch-ups can be done on PowerPoint and not Word which also saved time rather than transferring files between programs.

Photoshop

Audit of skillsEvaluation My evaluations have changed from GSCE to AS through content and presentation. In year 10 and 11 my presentations were written up on a Word document with few images to demonstrate the points I made. Whereas now my evaluation contains examples of the skills I used during the year, the programs and the planning. The program I used this year to present my evaluation was Prezi and PowerPoint, I found using Prezi made the evaluation more fun and demonstrated the use of different programs well, I used PowerPoint for the shorter answers that had very few images on which also shows variety in program use. My evaluation was less like story telling in how I made my magazine and more how I overcame problems with software and how I planned and organised my time to meet the deadline, this was done by following the 7 questions. I used the questions as a base to my answers but since GSCE I have learnt to expand the content of the answers.

Audit of skillsGenerating ideas

At AS level exploring more in depth in audience and market research helped to get a clearer idea of the type of product I wanted to create. We had longer to find ideas, analyse them and we also learnt about publishing houses and what magazines/products they cater for and what their USP is.

From my market research I decided to create a magazine for both genders but featuring a woman on the cover as I liked the way women were represented in the music industry as independent and with bold personalities rather than just an average pop singer. The use of costume, hair and make-up helped me show a side of femininity and also use bold colours such as greens and blues not stereotypically associated with women. If I used the colours pink and purple I saw that the magazine would become more aimed at girls, demonstrated by the magazine pop girl, even if the artists are male.

Audit of skillsFile organisation

The organisation of my files this year was more complex compared to GSCE, I had my computer memory for market and audience research whereas the storage on my memory card was constantly being updated with new drafts. I used different named folders to know where everything was, this also made it easier to add things to my blog at the right time although some things did get lost and had to be updated later.I had separate folders for edited and original photos so I could use them for evidence

Audit of skillsPhotography skills

Audit of skillsUse of sound

No sound used in product

Planning and note taking

This is evidence of planning a photo-shoot to make an image bank for my magazine, I mostly tried to stick to these ideas although two of the outfits did change. I used this to get a clear idea of what I wanted my magazine to look like and reach the target audience through fashion and music.

Audit of skillsDrafting

I used flat plans as templates for my magazine and built on them by adding images and text, this made it easier to get a clear idea of what the audience wanted my pages to look like too, as I used these plans in audience research. These drafts were helped by researching other magazine pages and from them I chose a selection and got my audience to choose their favourite.

Audit of skillsResearch

Throughout my planning I always asked my audiences opinion and this helped the process of making my magazine as I knew it was following conventions given by the audience. It also saved time for editing at the end, from changing it as I go along rather than when the product was finished and close to marking. I put all the audience research on my blog.

Audit of skillsPeople skills- N/A

Organisation (time management)

Organising dates and outfits for photo shoots helped save time on the actual day and helped things run more smoothly as the outfits were already planned out the day before. I used either PowerPoint or word to quickly create a page of ideas with images and audience feedback which I found very useful in planning and creating my magazine.

Creating a blogger account helped me keep track of what I had done and what needed finishing, I also left notes for myself in blog posts which reminded me what I needed to start or finish. I think this helped with my time management as everything was stored in one place and teachers could leave comments on how to improve my work

Audit of skillsMost important thing for next year