What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?​
Photoshop
Learning to use photoshop effectively and to develop my use of the tools to the point that I can productively and comprehensively utilise them, in order to create my magazine, was essential as IT was the software which was used the most in the production of my product. It was used to create the font page and contents page entirely, and used partially in the creation of the double page spreads, in addition to airbrushing, removing the background, re-shaping, removing blemishes and adding accessories to of the photographs which were used in the final piece. This included the practacing of using the crop tool, the eye-dropper tool (to sample the colours), the spot healing tool, the healing tool, changing colours, the text
tool, the redo tool, the shape tool, the layer masks, bluring images, adding filters, rasterizing layers, the liquify tool, zooming in and out, the undo tool, the brush and eraser tool and adjusting their hardness and opacity, adjusting the layer poacity, adding layers and why this was useful, the quick selection tool, the magic wand tool, the select colour range method of selection, the free transform tool and transform tool (including warping and reflecting the layers horizontally and vertically), the fill tool, the gradient tool and the marquee tool. In addition to using these there were other tools which were used to produce the pieces and to optimise their realistic nature and effectiveness in portraying the genre of the magazine to a standard which I was content with.
Photograph
Regarding photography, the conventions which I needed to fermiliarise myself with were important in establishing the foundations of an effective magazine. Regarding photograph framing, it was fundamental that the subject was centred in the image on the front page, in addition to the photograph for the contents page using lead room to draw the viewer's attention to the contents listing (this means that the subject's eyeline leads the reader to look to the contents). In addition, the mise en scene of the image presents a clear message about the magazine's genre and the icon's persona. The clothing and accessories, in additon to the makeup, helps in relating the magazine to the target audience. In addition, I learnt about the technical
factors of using a camera. This includes the aperture, shutter speed, ISO and colour setting (monochrome and red/blue/green filters), in addition to taking into accout backdrops, lighting (studio and natual lighting) and post shoot manipulation (using photoshop or printing and physically manipulating the photos). These were key aspects of photography that needed to be mastered as the photographs act as the foundation of the final piece, setting a presidence for it's quality.
Mac Computer
Due to my inexperience in using an Apple Mac, it was essential to learn how to use this computer, enabling me to proceed in creating the magazine. This included using the command key as apposed to the control key, enabling me to copy, paste, save and print using keyboard shortcuts. In addition, I learnt that using the control key I could re-size images while keeping its proportions, in addition to highlighting text and documents. Thirdly, I learnt that on a mac, to take screen shots I needed to use the keyboard shortcuts command+shift+4, and then the image would be saved to the desktop as apposed to it being coppied to the clipboard which would be a convention on a PC. Thirdly, I learnt that instead of having 'Windows Explorer', the Macs use a softwear called 'Finder' which is essentially the same thing, with minor differences so this was easy to learn to use. In addition, the Macs offer a feature called 'quick view', enabling the viewer to view the images in order to identify which is which. Lastly, I learnt how to take a screen recording using software which was helpful in the documentation of the construction of my magazine.
InDesign
Using InDesign was a key part of creating the double page spreads, allowing a more efficient and easy way of manipulating the text. I used the tools of selection, importing and exporting conventions of the files (for example, images). In addition, I learnt how to use the text tool, and make customisations (such as the colour, size, font, stroke, bold, etalics, underlining and creating a dropscap), continuing text from one text boz to another, the line and shape tools, resizing images and their frames, as well as using the eyedropper tool to sample colours.
Conventions of a Music Magazine
The conventions of a music magazine are a key factor of the creation of a final piece which is a music magazine. The masthead, coverlines and strapline are key conventions of a magazine's front cover, in addition to the contants page having columns on the contents page, the page listings and a title stating 'Contents'. In addition, the double page spread needs the title/headline, subheading, question and answer segment (optional) and qull quote. Overall, the website and page numbers are also needed. The photographs are clearly a highly important element of the magazines, using a medium shot or closeup on the front page and wider framed images in the double page spread. In addition, language
devices such as pull quotes, alliteration, sybilance, superlatives, promotions and rhetorical questions are used.
Other Software and Websites
Prezzi - Using prezzi was an element which I needed to use in the research of my magazine, using a media form which would present the research in an interesting and interactive format. In this I familiarised myself with using the move and zoom tool, changing the background and lastly, using the text tool.
Youtube - Using youtube, I learnt to upload videos, formatting them to an unlisted setting meaning that the video can only be accessed using the link which is why they are accessable through embedding. Youtube allows user generated content to be shared on the internet which was effective in the documentation of construction in the images, research, planning and evaluation of my final piece.
Adobe Premier Pro - When editing the videos for my planning, construction and evaluation of my piece, I learnt how to speed up videos, cut and piece together clips, add music and mute videos. This allowed me to access the video format of media.
WIX
Using WIX, I was enabled to document my task in the Media Studies corsework. Learning how to embed videos, documents, pinterests, voice clips, soundclouds, Emazes, slide shows, photographs, prezzis and text customisation in order to publish my work and progress.