End of Year NEA Task

Since starting the mini-NEA, my skills in photography, directing and modelling have improved greatly. My understanding of lighting and its effects is much greater than before. I have learnt the importance of fluidity in camera movement to capture a variety of shots in terms of angle and framing, as well as in encouraging movement in models in order to achieve photography with models who are confident and at ease, in order to capture emotion. I have also gained understanding of how to model for others so have an appreciation of the difficulty of modelling in order to be a effective director.

At this point of the NEA I have built on my modelling, photography and directing skill and have captured a range of shots that could be used in my NEA. I have completed the cover page for my the first edition of my magazine and through this have established an identity and house style for my magazine. One thing that I would do differently in September would be to allow my models more movement and to deviate from the original idea planned and to capture shots with a range of different framing.

In the future of the NEA, I am planning to continue with my current project, with the same magazine title, house style and models, with shots captured on the studio day to be used on my contents pages and website. I am going to shoot some location shots over the summer, some of which I may use as background shots for my photography. In September I am planning to shoot some cover shots for the second edition of my magazine in the studio.

News Task

Front page

                                                                              Website

Twitter

Facebook

Instagram

1. Explain your role/responsibility within the team and the task. What were you required to do?
I worked in the group working on the paper's front page with Cherish and Oliver. I had to plan the layout of the cover and  and helped with the choice of articles, deciding on the language we choose to use on the front cover, correctly sizing our images before printing and assembling the final piece.

2. For one media form, describe the codes and conventions you chose to follow and explain their intended impact.

On the front page, we created a headline in a large, clear font reading 'diabolical Davis agrees Shoddy Brexit deal', which will immediately catch the reader's eye. The use of alliteration in this headline as well as in secondary story on the 'frozen finger fiasco', is catchy and intriguing and in the second article comedic, which will appeal to the target audiences as it gratifies their need to both be informed and entertained, as well as reflecting their own views on Brexit. The puff showing the availability of a half price voucher for a Christmas pudding from supermarket Tesco, will tempt the reader to buy the paper as they will also benefit from the purchase and will save money, which may be useful to the readers, the majority of whom are of a lower socioeconomic grade. the choice of the article on Meghan and Harry's wedding will appeal to the women of the paper's target audience, due to the focus of celebrity. Appealing to this group is important as the number of women reading is lower than the number of men reading. The language in the caption of the main story 'confused' will appeal to the reader's as it reflects their confusion and their distrust of the politicians handling Brexit.

3. Explain how your choices reflect the real newspaper's values and target audience.

The choice of the Brexit deal as our main story highlights the desire of the target audience to discover more about Brexit as it is very important to their lives. The choice of the image of a confused looking Davis as the splash and alliterative language in 'diabolical Davis' reflects the angle taken by The Daily Mirror as they are very anti-Brexit, as are the majority of their readers. The secondary story on the 'frozen finger fiasco' is relevant to the target audience who are mostly from lower socioeconomic grades and will therefore find an article on supermarket frozen food relevant in their lives.

4. Explain how your team adapted the news across the three different media forms and the reasons behind your decisions. 

Our team adapted the news across the media forms by changing the main story to reflect the users of each platform and allow them to view the stories that would interest them. The main headline of the front page was on Brexit which would appeal to the anti-Brexit readers who read the print, who are often 35+. However, on the website and Facebook the main story was on the terrorist attack in Iraq, which would be a breaking story and would interest the younger readership. On Twitter, the main story was on Trump, who is a very high profile figure on twitter and is also story that can be easily put across using twitter character limit. On Instagram, the main story was Megan and Harry's wedding, which would appeal to the audience who would prefer news of a less serious nature. This topic also allows for plenty of comments and interactivity, engaging the viewer.

5. In hindsight, is there anything about your team's outcomes that you would adapt or improve?

In hindsight, I would ensure that the same font was used across the different platforms to make them more uniform and give a sense of brand identity. I would also try to give articles similar headlines across the platforms to achieve this. I would also be change the sizing slightly to ensure they properly fit within the template on the website and Facebook page.

Minecraft Pocket Edition Gameplay video for Youtube

1. How you did it (for example, what videos did you look at, what technology did you use and how)?

For inspiration for my video, I watched videos by DanTDM and Captain Sparklez, two popular gaming YouTubers, to decide the layout and features of my gameplay video. I also researched the game's terminology to make my video as accurate as possible. I loosely scripted my video, to allow myself to sound natural and as if i was reacting to the events in real time and then filmed myself whilst watching the video with an iPad. I then used iMovie to place myself into the corner of the video and adjust the sound.

2. How your video might attract the attention of Mojang and/or Microsoft, and how it might influence them.

The popularity of gaming videos on YouTube like mine may attract the attention of Mojang and/or Microsoft. It may influence them as it could be used as another platform with which to advertise the game, with the use of links in description beneath the video. It also allows them to create a strong sense of community between Minecraft fans that they are strongly involved in, if they create a bond with the YouTuber. They could also give the companies feedback on how they could improve the game for users.

Video Games and Me

I play video games at home on my own, occasionally on weekends and in the evening, however I play very often in the holidays. I mostly use a Nintendo 3DS, playing games like Supermario, MarioKart, Pokemon and the Lego Games (currently The Lord of the Rings). I occasionally play MarioKart on the Wii if I am with friends. In the past I have played similar games on the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo 64. I play if I am bored and need something to do, as it is fun and engaging.

Minecraft Mission

Minecraft Pocket Edition is an interesting game to play and it is clear why it is so popular, even though I am not a fan myself. The game, which is made to be played alone is engaging and entertaining due to the users ability to create what they want with the resources given, in different randomly generated landscapes. It gives more control to the user as it follows no specific structure.

My Breakfast Show Segment

1. Did you fulfil all the content requirements; both in terms of including all the correct features and as well as the actual choices made.
We fulfilled all the content requirements, by including all of the details involved in the breakfast show, with the Celebrity Gamble being the main focus. We included jingles, talk between the host and phone-in guest and news reporter, the involvement of social media and musical tracks. Our choice of tracks, Taylor Swift- 'Look What You Made Me Do' and Sia- 'Cheap Thrills', reflects the music enjoyed by Radio One listeners.

2. Have you nailed the conventions and style of Nick Grimshaw and the Radio One Breakfast Show?
I believe we have come close to capturing the Breakfast Show's fast-paced and upbeat style. We have done this through our choice of tracks and our creation of piercing jingles, as well as our interactions between the host and phone-in contestant, which had a fun and conversational tone. There was the inclusions of light-hearted banter between the news reporter and the host often seen on the Breakfast Show and the reading of social media responses from the public, an important part of Radio One's Breakfast Show.

3. How well did you manage your running order/timings?
We managed our running order well, due to the use of a clear script, which we created in advance so everyone knew their cues. We also practiced our segment  before recording our final piece to ensure that we all knew what we were doing and how it would work best. We used iPads so that all our songs and jingles were ready before we began recording, which made it easier to record these in our segment.

Continuity task evaluation

1. Explain the story of your video.
In our video, two characters who are walking along two corridors collide at a corner when not paying attention to their surroundings. One of the character's phones is broken causing him to become angry at the other.

2. How did you attempt to create 'narrative flow' (continuity)?
In order to create continuity we attempted to begin each of our new shots from exactly where the last left off, attempting to get a match on action, despite the change in camera position. We also ensured that the characters' appearance and the set remained consistent.

3. Did you achieve full continuity? If not, why not?
Overall we were able to achieve this with our video, creating a continuous narrative flow. The use of a storyboard made it easier to achieve this. Other things that helped us tell the story in our video was a strong ELS establishing shot where our first character walks into frame. We then used cross-cutting to show a MS of the second character and following their movement with the use of tracking. A clear sense of motivation is shown as one character is reading notes and the other is on his phone. A master shot is then shown of the characters walking towards each other, which allows the audience to predict what will happen next. This LS two shot then moves into a MCU, taking the audience into the action. The matched cut and logical shot order used here allowed us to achieve continuity. The cut into the phone shows a clear result, which is further emphasised through the reaction of the character, shown in an OTS shot.

4. In hindsight, what would you do differently to improve the narrative flow of your video and tell your story more effectively?
There are several things we could have done to improve the narrative flow of our video and tell the story more effectively. In the first shot the character could have moved from left to right, in order to allow the audience to predict the next event and to improve continuity as there would be more chance of an impact. In the second shot, the camera could be mounted on a trolley for a steadier track. The fourth and final shots would tell the story better if the acting was improved. There needed to be more believable reactions both during the collision and when one character is angry at the other. There needed to be more anger in the delivery of the dialogue.