Account of Music Video Shoot

We were given a task to shoot a music video for the band "Acres of Life" in small groups. In these groups we were each given a small section of the song to shoot.

 In my particular group we were given the last 59 seconds of the song "I Like to Make the Pretty Girls Smile".
  When thinking about shot choices, I researched into similar bands that have done music videos. Some of these were Green Day, Funeral Party, Guns n' Roses and You Me At Six.

A few of them followed similar shot types which was inspiring for our shoot. A lot of wide shots were used of different bands which we thought of using as well because it shows the whole band playing. Other interesting shots were used as well which were also influenced by these videos. Close-up shots were used in a lot of them and focused on each band member, e.g on a guitar chord being played.

   This all counted as preparation for the shoot and began helping us with our timeline of shots. By doing a timeline, it became really helpful as it made me feel prepared. By putting in what shot goes where for each second, it was really helpful as it was a rough idea of what was needed to be done. We also came up with a shot list for each shots such as :
- wide shot
- close up of backing vocalists
- close up of vocalist
- drum close up
- extreme close up - drums
- two shot of singer and bv

   The day itself was intense as our group was last we got to watch the other groups to make sure our shots would fit in. When it came to our shoot we were all given different roles such as director, cameraman and playback. The editing was stressful as we had to rush from the studio up to the edit suite to quickly edit it together. Overall it was really fun.
  We didn't really encounter any problems because of it being controlled and planned before, however I would say that if we had more time to edit and shoot it would have been more relaxed in term of getting it perfect.
   In terms of the setting in the studio, I think it worked well with the genre of music. With a brown backdrop which gave a rough look, it worked well with the look of the band. Using the studio was good because the sound is projective and the equipment is all there. There wasn't much space which at times was challenging, but luckily our group was last and was more spaced out.
   We had lighting set up for the shoot which also fit in with the mise-en-scene and background as it gave it an edgy underground look. It also looked good on the camera and on their faces as it was quite reflective.
   Again wtih the editing process it was quite stressful as we were limited due to time constraints. It was also difficult at times as we had a bigger group and mixed with time constraints it was even more stressful! I think our group worked well with the time constraints as we managed to finish in time for the rest of the video to be put together. We also edited the video fast paced due to the rhythm of the song.
    The role I started off with was being in charge of the playback and playing the music when it was needed. We kind of mixed around as there were 5 of us as well so I wasn't really given a specific role. We all worked really well as a team especially in the ideas process.
   I was really happy with the overall result as it was really interesting and useful for our actual shoot. We mostly stuck to our storyboard and timeline which we previously made and nothing really changed specifically however we added in some basic shots which would of been useful in the editing process.
   Overall the day was really useful as a preliminary task for the actual shoot next term. The band we used were really cooperative and I feel it worked well using an actual band as they were really enthusiastic.
  

Research into Preliminary task

  The band that will be playing in the preliminary shoot are Acres of Life who are a pop/punk band. To help me with the shots I looked at examples of other music videos for shot ideas and directing, mise-en-scene and editing.
 Other bands of a similar genre that I researched into are below:

 A Day to Remember:

Ideas for editing that I liked:
-fast paced at the beginning showing the band names and all of the band members
-post production of the writing and sketches over the top of the video
- cuts back to the band at the chorus
- slow motion at certain parts
- cuts to all different bands

Ideas for camerawork that I liked:
- hand held camera work that makes it shakey and gives it a rough edge
- Close Up shots of all of the band members
- pans across band posters at the beginning
- Wide shot at the beginning allowing the whole band to be seen
- Pans across the band
- Deep focus on the lead singer

 

Ideas for Mise-en-scene that I liked:

- The colour scheme of neutral colours

- messy setting

- posters on the wall

- In a room which allows all of the band to be seen.

 

Me vs Hero

Ideas for editing that I liked:

- fast paced

- cuts to each band member and instruments

- effects put over the top of colours

Ideas for camerawork that I liked:
- Hand held
- Low angle shot of lead singer
- Shots of close up on drummer and guitar chords

Ideas for Mise-en-scene that I liked:

- the setting outside

- the clothes

- bright lighting in the open

- people watching

Research into Star Image

     The music video I have chosen to analyse into star image is When I Look at You by Miley Cyrus. This particular music video sells to its audience ( teenage girls)through a variety of different elements. The song itself is very closely linked to the film The Last Song which also features the characters shown in the video. This then attracts an immediate audience as the fan base for The Last Song will instantly recognise the actors in the video.

   In terms of the camerawork, there is a blurred close up of Miley at the beginning which directly allows us as the audience to distinguish it as being her song. The camera slowly pans across a piano with Miley’s reflection in it. This lets the audience assume she is talented and has a close connection with the melody being played. There are a number of wide shots showing scenery in the background which is significant as it features in the film The Last Song. It also gives an impression of feeling peaceful which conforms to the melody of the song, but contrasts with a lot of Miley’s previous upbeat music videos. This sells to the audience as it allows us to see a variety of music from her. Throughout the music video, Miley is singing into the camera. This allows the audience to feel connected with the song; however it seems to be more about her image rather than a deeper meaning in terms of the song itself. There are wide panning shots of a male actor Liam Hemsworth who stars in the film. This is also a selling point as he is a good looking man and as the song is aimed at teenage girls, it would draw attraction to him. By panning round Miley in a circle, it allows us to fully see her singing which may sell to the audience because of how engaged she looks when she is singing.

   The mise-en-scene plays a main part in selling the song to its audience. The location in which the video is set is peaceful and quite cinematic. It may sell to the audience as it is an isolated and romantic setting and so people may feel they connect with the song. The clothes Miley is wearing are long flowing dresses which would also attract the female audience in which the music video is aimed at. It also conforms to her star image as they are elegant and girly. By using the piano as a prop, it allows the video to sell to the audience by allowing us to think Miley is talented and is singing meaningfully. At one point, the lighting is dark and giving the impression of being on a beach. This immediately attracts the female audience as people connect because of the romantic atmosphere.

    The editing in this video is all quite fast paced as there isn’t much time to fill, however the camera shots are all quite slowly panned. Personally I feel this didn’t work as well because not a lot seemed to happen in the video. On the other hand, it will allow people to enjoy the video as it is quite calm and slow moving which conforms to the romantic lyrics. In some of the edits, there has been a blurred orange transition which allows anyone who has seen The Last Song to appreciate it, as a main part of the film is a huge fire. This gives some of the audience a sense of understanding as they may feel special in knowing what it is about. The cuts from Liam to Miley also sell to the audience. This is because we assume she is singing about him which makes it passionate and fans will be drawn to this. In terms of the perspective, this is coming from within the video, and here is from Miley's point of view. 

  In general, the video sells to its audience through a variety of ways but I think the main one is having The Last Song as a pre-sold element. In terms of the theme, nothing really happened, which conforms to an artist’s music video being all about image. In terms of camerawork, mise-en-scene and editing, I do feel it was done in a way to try and engage the audience, however if the narrative of the video was a bit more exciting, people that hadn’t seen The Last Song could also connect with it.

Advanced Portfolio Brief

A promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music promo video, together with two of the following three options:

-a website homepage for the band;

-a cover for its release as part of a digipak (CD/DVD package).

-a magazine advertisement for the digipak (CD/DVD package).

Out of the three possible tasks, I have chosen to produce the advertisement and a release cover to accompany the music video.

Audience Feedback

After our thriller was put on YouTube, we gathered feedback which was really useful. Some of them are here:

•     "The opening of this sequence it particularly successful in creating suspense. The combination of the overlapping voices and the still shots of the murder scene were simple but effective. Perhaps greater emphasis on her final sentence would have created a more dramatic impact on the audience. But overall, a very good video :)"

•      "The lighting is really good as it to creates spooky atmosphere. It also reminds me of CSI. And it makes the me curious about who the killer is because both of the actors look suspicious."

•      "I love the story of this thriller and the lighting really creates a mysterious effect and the sound is really interesting, good work you guys!"

•      "I liked the opening - seeing the victims while credits are coming up and not using any soundtrack music. The whole sequence reminds me of thrillers such as saw and se7en. But the last sentence of her revealing it was murder should be a bit more in the foreground and emphasized. "

•     "Really nice editing, good shot choices. Sound effects make it seem realistic, overall fantastic piece!"

Overall I found all these comments constructive as it helps us know what other people think about it. It is useful to get another person's perspective. If we were to do it again, we would definitely take this all on board and focus on what people say would improve it.

Task 7 - Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

     It was really useful doing the preliminary task at the beginning because it was a small less complicated practise for the main task. The planning for the main task was a lot more indepth, for example the cast lists, the props and the set. The preliminary task was more of a spontaneous approach and we used anyone that was around for our cast and did it in the nearest room. We also stuck to a simple script which we couldn't alter whereas for the main task we were able to make the plot completely our own.

    I also feel like I have learnt a lot from the progression since doing the preliminary task. By having to do so much work into our main task, it became easier to know what to do and how to set out our thriller. In terms of camera angles and composition, it was really useful to have done the preliminary task and meant I had learnt from it. My knowledge of storyboarding and camera angles has also improved since then. As it was a thriller, we had to think more about shots which created suspense and atmosphere but at the same time being interesting compositions. In the preliminary task, we stuck to a storyboard with dialogue which meant it wasn't as interesting and was a lot more basic. I feel I have definitely progressed since then.

      I think my camerawork has definitely improved because before the preliminary task I was unsure of how to set up the camera and even how to make sure it was on properly. Now I think it is a lot easier having had the practise from it. In our preliminary task we were able to have a lot of practise from shots such as eyeline matches, close ups and keeping to the 180 degree rule. This was also evident in our thriller because of having had practise from it before. We included close ups in our thriller to create suspense and make it more real with the viewer seeing what the detective is doing. We also framed the shots well with eyeline matches for example, Holly looking over to Sam. I feel our skills have improved since the preliminary task in terms of these things.

      In terms of using sound, I feel my experience of using it has definitely improved. For our preliminary task, because it was so basic we didn't use any sound. This was also because our knowledge for using it and editing was not as good as it is now after doing our thriller. My use of using sound has definitely developed as we used all sorts of sound effects in our thriller. We used music to build suspense which shows my development, whereas for the preliminary we didn't use sound effects because it was more simple and I had less knowledge of how to use it.

       Using final cut and after effects was a whole new experience. Before when doing the preliminary task my knowledge was limited in final cut, but now after doing our thriller I feel more comfortable with the program. I am now more comfortable with how we edited our product in terms of using sound and even adding in the credits. This was all quite basic after practising it but had I gone straight into final cut after never using it for the preliminary task I think I may have struggled.

Task 6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Task 5 : How did you attract/address your audience?

This slideshow is to discuss how I addressed the audience of my thriller.

thriller

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Task 4 : Who would be the audience for your media product?

Our film is aimed for young adults aged 15-24, however other people would as well be interested. Our film isn’t exactly aimed for the young generation as it wouldn’t interest them because it is a crime thriller. Our genre of film would normally interest an older audience anyway, because of the mild horror and storyline which the young wouldn’t necessarily understand. Not only this but they may get bored and not like it as our film contains drama, tension, mild horror and suspense. This would interest the older audiences a lot more as they would be able to relate to the drama and the tension wouldn’t frighten them as much.

With the audience we have aimed our film at, they would be able to go to watch it with friends as a pastime whereas older people may not find the time.

Out thriller isn’t gender specific as it would appeal to both however, men and boys may find the thriller and tension side more interesting but women and girls the drama. Our main character is also female, and this may attract a male audience as she would be sophisticated and nice to watch. The certificate of our film would be a 12A or 15 because of the mild horror and scenes younger audiences wouldn’t understand.

Task 3 - What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

We would use a low budget so we could look at Fox Searchlight who distribute low budget films.
They may be interested in distributing our film as alot of their films are thriller/dramas for example the new 127 Hours. This is similar to ours in the way that both create a thriller atmosphere. 
Our film may fit in with the ethos of the institution as some of the films they have made are also fairly low budget, for example Juno which had a budget of $7,500,000. The director of Juno also hadn't done many big films so we would have a chance at making it work.

To make money out of our film they would have access to the other parts of Fox therefore being able to have access to more aspects of making money. They would release DVD sales as it would then make more money after the film is released at the cinema (bringing them in a profit anyway).

The don't specialise in a particular genre of film. I have researched the films they made and as well as doing a lot of dramas and children's films such as Fantastic Mr. Fox, the also do romantic films such as 500 Days of Summer. So they dont generally have a specific genre of film which is where ours would come in useful. They also don't target a particular audience. Their films are all quite different in the sense that some are big dramas , some are big romances and thrillers, but all these genres will appeal to different audiences. 

Task 2 : How does your product represent particular social groups?

My media product represents a particular group of people who are featured in a lot of thrillers nowadays. A lot of crime scene based thrillers have police detectives which look quite similar. Our thriller represents the same type of audience. For example, our male is quite laid back looking which is scene quite commonly in TV dramas and films. I feel he is represented in a positive way because he is casual but smart and has a jokey personality adding humour to the film. The picture below is an accurate representation of the type of police detective we were trying to portray. (taken from Sherlock on BBC)

Our female detective is quite representative of the typical woman police detective. A femme fatale who cares about looks and thinks she is the "bees knees". For example, this can be scene in detective programs such as CSI where we see women characters being portrayed as leading roles. The picture below shows the woman from CSI New York who is in a way similar to the type of character our female detective represents.
 
Our dead bodies in our media product are meant to be young lovers. They aren't really as big of a part and therefore can't be as represented as much as the main characters, but as they are teenagers it gives them a sense of vulnerability. A lot of the time in horrors or thrillers, the young girl will die first.

Task 1 - In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

My first screengrab is with the use of the Lionsgate production company. We used this because Lionsgate is such a well known company for the type of film we made.

  This screengrab to the left is used to show blood and death. This illustrates the original conventions of a Thriller which we have previously looked at.

This is similar to the above, as the prop of a gun shows another convention of a typical thriller.




This shows the setting of our thriller which is clear to be a run down building with papers on the floor. You can also see the dead bodies on the floor which illustrates our thriller.


 
This shows the dark lighting in our thriller and also the actress we used. It fits in with a convention of a thriller having a femme fatale character. 





 
We can see more props which fit in with our forensic crime typed thriller, such as the gloves and bag for evidence.

 This is our thriller name and therefore conforms to the thriller conventions because of being on a bold black background and with eery music.

Again, these are the dead bodies but in a more established shot and therefore easier to see them.

Main task props and costumes for our Thriller

For our thriller as it is a crime scene, we wanted to have generic crime scene props such as police tape. We needed a grimy set so we thought about using dirty dust mats and just making the set quite messy.

As our dead bodies would of been shot, we would also need fake blood to give a more realistic effect. The dead bodies would just be normal young adults, therefore their costumes would be average clothes such as jeans or a casual dress.

Our police investigators would wear costumes to match their characters. For example, the woman would wear sophisticated clothes like a suit or blazer to create her "femme fatale" sort of personality. The male would wear Jonathon Creek style clothes, which suggest he is laid back but still serious about his job.

We would also need a prop gun of some sort as this is how we suggest our bodies were killed. Another key prop for our thriller is the necklace which we will talk about in our dialogue.

In our set we will need  basic props which will be easy to find, e.g. tables, chairs and other similar objects.

Cast for our Thriller

Originally we wanted to have a cast set of a lot of police and forensics with one female young detective. But we figured we could have two dead bodies to create a twist and have two detectives, male and female.

Our detectives are both students but happen to be actors and are perfect for the roles. We wanted a boy and a girl because we wanted to create a sense of romantic tension and also slight humour.

Our dead bodies we used a boy and a girl to create a fake suicide storyline which could be about love.

Main task locations for our thriller

For our thriller we wanted to have a setting which was creepy and empty, to give the effect which a lot of thrillers use which is isolating the victim. We thought about somewhere nearby which would be good and heard about an old house which isn't in use called Leith Hill. Below is a picture of Leith Hill.

 

There may also be a question of permission to gain access so we also thought about using our set in the school studio. This would be ideal for us because of being able to manipulate the set and make it how we wanted. Somewhat a dark room and make it look dingy and empty.

Storyboards

Here are our notes which explain the elements of what is going on in our project. It helped us with lighting, sound and mise-en-scene.

These two pages were just a rough storyboard of our thriller that we did before the production. We did this so we had an idea of what to do when it came to the production.

This last page shows the final scenes and the costume/make up of the characters.

It helped us with lighting and postitioning of the lights.

Account of First Meeting

When in our group we gathered our ideas together and came up with a good bunch of ideas all together.
We thought we would use the idea of an old house where a family were killed, all except one. The girl who survived is then a detective going back to view the case in a house inspired by the one below:



We thought of:

• having newspaper articles, clippings and old photographs etc put up all over a wall and using certain letters and sentances to highlight the credits much arranged like the picture below

• using a pan shot to show the clippings
• maybe having an old photograph of the surviving girl and a close up point of view shot from the picture to the woman present age.
• we could used spooky music and quick cuts back to a flashback if we end up giving ourselves enough time.

Our ideas conform to the genre as it is a detective and includes death, mystery, horror, etc and we were at first inspired by films with a possesive demon or similar such as The Amityville Horror and The Ring.

Analysis of the Opening Sequence of a Thriller - Shutter Island

When looking at different opening sequences of Thrillers, we looked at Snatch, Panic Room and Se7en focusing on sound, mise-en-scene, editing and camerawork. I decided to analyse Shutter Island.



We see immediate elements that make it a thriller. Some of these are:

• Dark colours in the sea and sky
• Stormy sea
• Props such as cigarettes and masculine costumes showing they are important and police officers.
• We then hear big booming non-diegetic sounds when we see an establishing shot of the island. This signifies danger which is an element of a Thriller
• The characters we see on the island are all scary looking and the music helps signify this.

Initial Thriller Ideas

My initial thriller ideas are as follows:

• I like the idea of it being set in an old building or house that isn't in use to create a spooky atmosphere.
• It could maybe be an old Hotel which used to be a house in which was occupied by a family affected by a demon (or something along the lines).
• I thought of the idea of using maybe a young couple to stereotype the horror film victims.
• We could use sound effects much inspired by the clip below. This will create certain effects that will build suspense.
• As we only have a short space of time for our sequence, I thought about the couple coming into the hotel to stay but having it quite slow pace therefore building up tension. Then seeing a face in a window or something similar.

It fits the genre of horror with some of the conventions I have mentioned such as creepy music, slow paced and reflections in the window.
The target audience would be similar to that of alot of modern day horrors such as The Orphan and Drag Me To Hell.

Denotation/Connotation of Horror images

Denotation and Connotation

Image	Denotation	Connotation
Still from Scream	We see a blonde girl on the phone holding a knife. A figure in a scary mask	The girl is the victim and is young. The masked figure is trying to harm her. She is scared and trying to protect herself.
Still from Psycho	Black and white picture. Woman naked in the shower. Scared expression. Shadows on the wall.	Black and white to show the shadows. She is vulnerable and naked shows shes the victim.
Still from Gothika	Red writing on the wall. Girl in clothes (tracksuit). She is facing the wall	Writing may be in blood and it suggests that it is aimed at her to read. She appears quite young
Still from The Ring	Small girl long black hair. Microphone on the floor. White empty room.	White symbolising maybe mentality or illness. White dress and young girl because maybe she is strange. Microphone to show she is being watched.

Conventions of a Horror film

In every horror film there are certain conventions used to build the right atmosphere and suspense.

Conventions of a horror film:

• Creepy music
• Weapons
• Darkness
• Ghosts
• Victim
• Death
• Blood
• Gore
• Zombies
• Masks

We specifically looked at the film Scream and the conventions that are in that. Some I noticed were:

• Empty house in an isolated area
• The victim is a blonde girl who happens to be alone
• The popcorn creating suspense
• It is set at night time
• We hear the doors locking
• We see props like knives

Other ways to build up tension is through the use of sound. The sound in Scream that I noticed involved:

• Creepy music at certain bits to build up tension
• The sounds of the dogs barking
• The doors locking
• The popcorn popping loudly
• Sounds of the wind

Also in scream the character they chose to be the victim was a typical blonde girl who conformed the stereotype. We see she is innocent but also don't really feel much sympathy as she seemed stupid to keep answering the phone.

We see a close up zooming into her which builds up suspense.

Preliminary Task Post-Production

During the editing process in my recent lessons, I have learnt how to access footage from the Final Cut server. This is the process I used:

1. Logging my shots: This step is where we selected the appropriate shots of every take and every angle we shot. By doing this we had to set up a Log Bin which becomes easier for us to access the good shots just by simply cutting and pasting the good ones into here. Selecting the different shot choices is important as we need to make sure there will be a sense of continuity and also so that the shots we want are the good ones and are properly selected. The ones we reject are important as it is important we dont miss out any good ones. During this process we also try and find the shot that is the best fit in our sequence because it isn't always best to chop up every shot.
2. Organising my shots: This is when we had to refer back to our original storyboard. We changed parts of the storyboard at this stage but stuck to the basic structure of it. This is important as this is where the shots are specifically selected to best tell the story.
3. Shot order: This step can also be linked in with the previous step as they are similar. But this is vital as certain shots have to appear in order so that the story will at least make sense and contain a sense of continuity.
4. Editing in Final Cut: In our editing sequence, I particularly like our focus pool which focuses from the door to the phone which then cuts into one of our characters looking worried. This fits in well and works perfectly for our sequence as it creates the right mood and suspense.

Continuity editing is the main type of editing in film and television. Its purpose is to make sure that the shots are combined in a way that is clear and understandable to the audience.
Continuity editing can be placed into two groups, time and space. in both groups, Certain techniques in each of these groups can either make a passage continuous (giving the viewer a structured narration to follow) or discontinuous (causing distraction and disorientation).

• An ellipsis is a break in natural time continuity as it is implied in the film's story.
• Continuous diegetic sound can also help to smooth out of place cuts by overlapping the shots.
• Match on action is when some action occurring before the temporally out of place cut is picked up where the cut left it by the shot immediately following.
• Temporal discontinuity can be expressed by the deliberate use of ellipses. Cutting techniques that are useful in showing the nature of the specific ellipses are the dissolve and the fade. some editing styles can show a change of time. These are also known as the flashback and the montage techniques.
• Flashback is a reversal of time within a story and allows the viewer to see a time before the present moment.
• Montage is achieved with a collection of related images, cut together in a way that suggests maybe a skip in time or place.
• An establishing shot is one that provides a view of all the space in which the scene or action is occurring. The purpose of this is so it is not difficult for the viewer to become disorientated as all of the story space is presented before them.
• Another way of preventing viewer disorientation in editing is to stick to the 180 degree rule. The rule prevents the camera from crossing the imaginary line connecting the subjects of the shot.
•  Another method is the eyeline match. When shooting a person,  he or she can look towards the next subject to be cut to, this uses the former's self as a reference for the viewer to use while locating the new subject within the set.
• Cross-cutting is a technique which conveys an undeniable spatial discontinuity. It can be achieved by cutting back and forth between shots of unrelated places. In these cases, the viewer will understand clearly that the places are supposed to be separate. So the viewer may not become particularly disoriented, but under the principle of spatial continuity editing, crosscutting is considered a technique of spatial discontinuity.
• The jump cut is a cut between two shots that are so similar that a noticeable jump in the image occurs.

It is important to follow a specific film language to ensure that the only relevant points in the story are shown and to manipulate time and space in the narrative. Following a film language also helps force the audience to identify with the right characters and its purpose is also to make sure that the story makes complete sense to the audience which is important otherwise they would be disorientated. 

Camera Operating

The camera functions consist of the timecode, white-balancing, aperture settings, focusing and more.
But the first step of setting up the camera, is positioning the tripod, making sure the legs are locked and firmly in place. The benefit of the tripod is to hold the camera in place and secure it when filming. When placing the camera on the tripod, you need to make sure it is "bubbled". This means making sure the camera is straight and in the right position to film.

When filming, it is important to maintain continuity. For example, the shot must be the same when re-taken and nothing should be moved or out of place to maintain a flow and continuity.
The rule of thirds applies to camera work also. The picture below shows the rule of thirds in the way the it is split into 9 sections, the lines being the focal points. In the shot there will also need to be looking space and head space, which the picture below is also an example of.




The picture above shows the 180 degree rule. This shows that cutting from the green arc, to the red arc, the characters would switch places. There therefore needs to be the 180 degree rule to make sure this doesn't occur.

What is a Thriller?

Thriller is a genre of literature, film and television that uses suspense, tension and excitement as the main elements. They use light, sound and Mise-en-scene to create the right atmosphere and thriller vibe.
Other elements of a thriller include:

• murder/guns
• mystery
• good and evil
• hidden identity
• a twist

 A movie that is a thriller is The Usual Suspects, which I have studied in class. We know it is a thriller from the start with the use of props such as cigarettes and fire to create a sense of danger. The lighting also signifies it is a thriller from dark dingy light at the beginning, as well as the sound which signified it was dramatic and we hear the sounds of fire.
We also looked at the poster and what was denoted and connotated from it. The denotation included:

• 5 men in a line-up (all dressed differently)
• All different heights
• No one is smiling
• Man on the end is holding his arm
• 2nd man from the left has an aggressive stance
• tallest in the middle (like a pyramid)
• Titles in red

The connotation included:

• one is guilty
• all in same situation
• red represents danger
• man holding his arm = disabled, insecure, guilty
• pyramid = hierarchy

Photography and Image Manipulation

Photography brings a visual language that is universal in understanding. We must then understand its vocabulary which consists of shapes, textures, patterns, lines, colours, shade of light to dark and sharp to blurry images. Just as we must learn to arrange words in a coherent order in order to make sense when we write or speak, so too must we put visual elements together in an organized manner if our photographs are to convey their meaning clearly and vividly.

 

Composition means arrangement: the orderly putting together of parts to make a unified whole; composition through a personal, intuitive act. However, there are basic principles that govern the way visual elements behave and interact when you combine them inside the four borders of a photograph. Once we have sharpened our vision and grasped these basic ideas of principles, then we will have the potential for making our photographs more exciting and effective than ever before.

Whilst using Photoshop in the last 2 weeks, I have learnt how to cut and crop an image but also to change and distort an image completely. I also learnt how to alter colours and create shadow/reflective effects in an image using the basic Photoshop tools and Brightness/Contrast levels. I had to cut an image of a woman and put it onto a background from the film Cloverfield. I did this using the Magnetic Lasso tool. I then made her look as though she was coming out of the water with a reflection using the Clone tool and changing the Opacity of the reflection. I also changed the colours of the image to make it work with the background by using Saturation levels.

About Myself

Hi I'm Sarah,



my previous school was Licensed Victuallers in Ascot but i live in Gerrards Cross near High Wycombe. i came here to study Media, Art, Photography and Psychology.



i'm into alot of music mainly post-hardcore and metal/rock but i do have a guilty pleasure for Miley Cyrus.



my favourite films are Superbad and Finding Nemo, but horror movies interest me too.



i'm interested in the media as it runs in my family and two of my relatives work full time at Pinewood Studios.



i also watch alot of TV such as The Inbetweeners, Skins and America's Next Top Model