Diary Entry: 8th October

In todays lesson I looked at the footage that was filmed on Friday. I was very happy with the shots as it is exactly how I imagined it to be. Once chosing our favourite videos we edited the shot by making them shorter and adding effects in such as dissolves.

However at first we imported the new re-shooted footage from thursday and edited this so that it would look more clearer and flow well. We then edited Fridays shots adding a range of effects and transisitions to make the video more fun and professional. 

The footage that we have currently got is very effective and was exactly how we wanted it. We kept it simple to ensure it would be effective because last year we found that our filming was very complicated and it made the end result very poor.

After school we went to a council home that is currently in progress of decorating, this was the perfect location for our photoshoot as it fitted with the grunge theme we were going for. This property belonged to Lauren's sister and we were pleased that we did not have to worry about having to find a place and have permission which would take a long time.

To make sure our actress we looked the part me and Lauren played the role of stylists, directors and cameraperson. We put a lot of black eye shadow around Grace's eye so that in the pictures it stood out and looked bold. We kept the foundation pale as well as the lips so the eyes were centre of attention. This vision portrayed very well in the pictures capturing everything we wanted. 

The front cover shots were of Grace sitting on the floor. We varied the shots and incorportated cigarettes to symbolise the album title- Light Up. However we took the same photos without the cigaretted incase this prop was not allowed. She wore a black and grey silk dress, ripped tights, high heels and a leather jacket. We wanted this black consistency through the clothes because it had to be relevant to the music genre and we felt this looked good with the scene.

The second set of shots were of Grace cuddling up to herself. For this shot we wanted the shotn to be in the frame of a medium close up, showing a bit of leg but not the shoes-the upper body. This photo would be used for the back cover as it was the perfect positioning for the track list to be written down the sides. Grace wore the same ripped tights and wore an oversized grey jumper.

Finally the third set of shots were of Grace sitting on a run down, tatty arm chair. She sat on the chair in a landscape way with her legs hanging off the arm rest. For these shots she wore a grey slouchy vest with black jeans and high heels. This shot would be used for the magazine cover as the main image. We tried a variety of shots using this prop as it worked well with the background.

All the shots were taken in black and white and some with a tint effect. At first the shots were taken in colour however we felt it did not look as effective therefore we took the images all in black and white. Using this colour correction made the shots better because it fitted with the concept and it fitted with the other albums of The Pretty Reckless.

Author: Kiran Paul

Diary Entry: 5th October

Today after school, Lauren and our two casts went to film one of the long flashbacks. I was not able to attend this filming session due to personal concerns. The filming that was captured was the flashback of the girl and boy having fun and holding the camera as if they were filming themselves. It was hand held on purpose to make the filming looking realistic and to vary the camera shots.

The clothing that was worn was very casual and colourful compared to the other shots, this was also done on purpose because we wanted it to look like a flashback as well as to make it look like the happier times.

Diary Entry: 4th October

To start the lesson off me and my teacher had a one to one discussion about my blog and any improvements that needed to be made. He was very pleased with the progress and said all documents were up to a high standard. This meeting was very brief as all the feedback was written.

After having a meeting with my teacher me and Lauren discussed the photo shoot for all of our print artifacts. We have booked Monday 8th October for the photoshoot and it will be located in an unfurnished flat which implies it is very old. This location was founded by Lauren due to knowing the landlord and he agreed for us to take pictures here. This place was chosen because it fitted with the genre of the music- Grunge. As well as discussing the date and place we spoke about what the main cover girl would wear. Three images would be taken and we wanted to have three different outfits to make the printed artifacts different and appealing because the shots are not the same. This clothing atire was chosen because the colours fit in with the genre of music as well as the main girl Taylor Momsen's personal style, we therefore wanted to recreate this with our own twist.

Front Cover- Black lacey dress, leather jacket, ripped tights and high heels.

Back Cover- Jumper, vest and ripped lights.

Magazine- Black jeans, vest, high heels and maybe leather jacket.

Near the end of the lesson we discussed our previous work and felt we could get better shots therefore on late notice we decided to re-shoot the footage from Friday 28th September. We contacted our casts during the lesson and asked if they could meet us to film, we were fortunate that netiher had nothing to do and happily agreed. Once finishing school we went to reshoot the footage and it was better to do it again because the weather was duller which added to the sadness of the opening as well as we knew exactly what to do to ensure our shots were clear and fitted together.


Author: Kiran Paul

Diary Entry: 3rd October

In today's lesson we did a variety of tasks which helped a lot. At first we discussed as a class the improvements for our blogs and thoroughly went through the mark scheme. This was done to make clear how many marks were available for each section. 

After discussing this we then looked at print artifacts provided by our teacher. As a class we spoke about the pros and cons of each example as well as talking about the codes and conventions of the print artifacts. We found that the font style and colour were the major issue with the printed creations, and made us realise that we had to ensure our colours of the background and text did not clash and could be readable. 

Once discussing our blogs and printed documents we edited the footage that was gained on thursday, we created a project as well as our own folder so all our files would be safely  stored. After setting up we started to edit and import the shots, we changed the contrast and brightness of the shots as well as the speed of the shots so the start with the walking was not long winded and boring. Slow motion and dissolves were used to imply the passing of time. These features were very effective in making the project look professional as well as effective. 

Author: Kiran Paul

Song Analysis

Me and Lauren wanted to make sure we knew what we were going to film for each lyric, therefore we printed the lyrics to the song and analysed it how we would film it. As well as writing what shots were going to be done we sorted the timings to give us a guide on how long the shots should be. Doing this helped filming because it means it was easier to understand how we was going to organise the shots with the song.

Author: Kiran Paul and Lauren Mcmanus

New Production Schedule

The production schedule has changed slightly because we changed our initial idea for the opening. The ideas of each section are still similar for example we was going to have a happy scene as she was thinking about the time they went to a cafe. However this has changed to them filming themselves having fun. We changed this as it made the shot more fun and a moment she would want to remember.

When will you film? Time, date etc.	Where will you first? Locating and setting.	Who will you film? Actors required.	Who will you film? Which aspects/ scenes of your storyboard will you film?	How will you film? What camera angle, shot sequences framing do you require.	Equipment that you will require including video equipment costumes and props.
Friday 28th September 1:20pm	Passage way near the Lady Bridge	Grace Clark and Harry Yendell	Start of the video; walking away down pathway, sits on bench and imagines Harry. He disappears when goes to touch him.	Pans MLS OSS POV Zoom in and outs Match on action	Camera Headphones Black clothing & dark makeup.
Friday 5th October 3:20pm	Castle Grounds	Grace Clark & Harry Yendell	Happy flashback when in park area, taking video of each other.	POV Hand held	Camera Tripod Girly clothes
Monday 8th October 4:00pm	Lauren’s sister home- moving in, needs redecorating.	Grace Clark	Photoshoot- Front, back cover and magazine image.		Camera Black dress Leather jacket Heals Ripped tights Black jeans Vest Dark makeup Heavy jewellery
Thursday 11th October 11:20am	Lauren's second sisters home. Bedroom and Bathroom	Grace Clark	Grace singing whole song. Kills herself in bath- drowns.	Zoom in and out Pans Tilts High angle CU MLS	Camera Tripod Frame with picture Black clothing & dark makeup. Jumper- Crying.
Friday 12th October 1:20pm	Lauren's second sisters home. Bedroom.	Grace Clark and Harry Yedell	Argument flashback	Zoom in and out MLS Two shot Shot reverse shot Pans High and low angle	Dark clothing different to other shots because flashback Camera Tripod
Tuesday 16th October 6:30pm	Castle Grounds Bandstand	Grace Clark and Harry Yendell	Romantic dance	360 Turn High angle Stills Pans Close ups Zoom out	Casual, dressy clothes. Camera Tripod Tea light candles

KEY
POV- Point of View
CU- Close Up
ECU- Extreme Close Up
ELS- Extreme Long Shot
OSS- Over the shoulder shot
MLS- Medium Long Shot


Author: Kiran Paul and Lauren Mcmanus

Diary Entry: 28th September

Today me and Lauren went to film the opening of the product after school. We originally was going to film at The Lady Bridge in town however once we arrived with our main girl for the production another idea sparked. We felt the location was too busy and is a long walk to the restaurant, instead there was a lane next to the bridge which was intimate but had a nice scenery for the walk as it overlooked a lake, we both felt this location would be more appropriate  At this location the protagonist had to walk down the lane and sit on the bench. To do this we used a dolly to track the walk so it flowed well and we would edit the shots to make the walking faster and not long winded. 

We then came up with the idea to have her sit and imagine her lover was beside her. This was done by showing her sitting on her own and  turning to see no-one next to her then as she turns again he is there but disappears as her hand caresses his imaginary figure. A range of shots would be used at this bit which include a shot reverse shot, over the shoulder, and a range of framing's. A shot reverse shot would be used between the two however the images would be superimposed so that the main guy; Harry would dissapear from the shot implying to the audience that he is not really there. Due to this change we quickly informed our antagonist and asked if he could join us today to film, thankfully he agreed and met us soon as possible to shoot the areas that he was in. 

This shooting was done several times in order to have enough footage to edit from. Below is an image of our main protagonist infront of the set that is being used for the opening.

Author: Kiran Paul

Filming Locations

The start of the music video with the bench was locatede on the right- the pathway overlooking the river. Near the Lady Bridge.

Castle grounds where the happy flashback is located.

Tamworth Castle Grounds Bandstand where the evening dance and happy romance memories is located. The bandstand was lit with candles.

This is the location where the argument between the protagonist and antagonist takes place as well as the suicide event.  This place was chosen because it is accessible and it has the perfect space to film the two scenes.

Author: Kiran Paul

Diary Entry: 24th September

In today's lesson we created a production schedule for our filming. Me and Lauren discussed our shots we would need to do and if any combined together. We then went to meet our main artist who would be in the video and discussed the days she and us were free to film. From the brief meeting we started to draw up a schedule which included the days, time, who, where, props and shots that would be needed for the video. The production table is shown in the post below.

After this we then started to talk about ideas for the back cover for the cd cover. We have thought to have another image of Grace but with the text to the side of her.

Author: Kiran Paul

Diary Entry: 20th September

In today's lesson I continued to analyse cd covers, finishing The Pretty Reckless album as well as comparing this album to another of a different genre; Beyonce album which is a pop/ RNB genre. I discussed the appearance of each album then talked about the similarities and differences.

After doing this me and Lauren started to sketch and discuss some ideas for our cd cover but following the codes and conventions of  a grunge genre album as well as the artists' style of album design. Below is an image of the album text that would be placed on the cd cover once the main image is on.

Author: Kiran Paul

CD Cover Analysis

I have decided to analyse some album covers of the artist I have chosen as well as other genres to show the difference between the covers and this will help me to decide what design I would like to do for my own cover.

This is one of the album covers for The Pretty Reckless. It was released in 2010 by Interscope Records. This album does not have a sub title, the only text it has is the band's name and EP which means extended play.

The text on the cover is all white of a bold but gothic font, this suggests that it was done to match the style of music. The bands name is center aligned, between the artists heads and on the door to stand out but is done so that the main image still stand out. This text has been used on all of their album covers which establishes the band and makes it easy to recognise the artist. By creating a music video for this artist we would have to use the same writing so all the albums as well as the one we will create will look consistent. EP at the bottom of the cover is also in the same font colour however a lot smaller and hidden as it is not important.

The main image is in a black and white effect of three men and one woman this implies that they are the members of the band. This effect was done to match its setting, it looks like downtown New York in a rough area where this type of music would be played due to the social class. The positioning of the artists are standing and sitting around the steps which show their slackness and in a way show power by the positioning as it looks intimidating. Their facial expressions are very serious which connotates their meaning behind the songs, the songs are quite depressing and talk about situations which only a certain social group face regularly such as abuse, drugs and death. Perhaps that is why the colouring of the album is black and white because the audience of this music believe they live in a boring world which is dark and dull for them.

The clothing of the artists is also very dark and consists of monochrome colours, all three of the men are dressed in black, whereas the girl is dressed in white with hints of black. This makes her stand out due to being pale skinned, bright haired and dressed in clothes which are also bright. This may be done to be visually appealing to boys and girls.

The image to the left is the back cover of The Pretty Reckless album Light Up ( the album that we will be recreating).

Traditionally on a back cover there is the track list with the barcodes and other information not a main image. However as the time has gone on an images on the back cover is used as well as the front.

Due to The Pretty Reckless being a band the back image is of them; three boys and the main singer Taylor in the middle.  This could suggest domination in this group or the protectivness over the female singer. 

All the band members are dressed in monochrome colours with the female singer wearing white, which makes her stand out from the others. This could have been done on purpose to attract the male target audience as they are more likely to purchase something if there is a female advertised on it.

The colouring of the tracklist is in a red bold colour and a Times Roman font which makes it very difficult to read. It is good to have it at the top of the album because the image then stands out however it is not seperated  which makes it harder for the audience who buy the cd.

The barcode is always located on the bottom right as it is code and convention of cd covers, therefore to make ours look realistic we will place a fake barcode in the position. Around the barcode and bottom off the cover is information about the record label, image, date and studio logo etc. We will also include this into our cover.

In comparison, this is an album cover for the pop/ RNB genre, this is the most recent album cover from Beyonce, created in 2011 by Parkwood Columbia. The album is called '4' this is because it is her fourth studio album and it is her favourite number.

The text on this cover is plain black thin text with the same font and colour used for the subtitle which is located at the bottom of the cover. The size of the text is quite large and stands out but does not over power the image. The text is behind the image but the text is still visible and because of being such a well know artist the image is recognizable without the  text. The number 4 is positioned to the bottom right corner but is large enough to read and understand that it is the album title. 

The image is of the female artist in a medium shot so it is a clear image of what she looks like but does not show the entire body. The image is enlarged so that it covers the middle of the cd cover. The background of the image is a pale yellow so that the black text stands out as well as the image. 

The artist is dressed in just a fur coat, with no under layers, this may be slightly raunchy for a cd case however everything is covered and being such a popular celebrity this image will not effect the sales. Her makeup is very dark and accessories very Caribbean/ African/ tribe style this may be  done to fit with the latest trends or to fit with the meanings of her songs.

Both covers are very effective for the genre they are representing, although they are different genres they follow some of the same codes and conventions of a cd cover.  The titles are both large and bold, and positioned in the center of the case, the album title is located at the bottom of the cover however they are opposite sites. As well as the images is fit to the case so the whole case is covered. The differences between the two is the colours used. The first image uses dark colours to represent the darkness of the songs and genre they sing whereas the Beyonce album is brighter and stands out, the colours used may imply the album track list is fun and the meanings are not depressing.

This is the back cover of the Beyonce album.

It is obvious that the same design is used for the back as it was used for the front. The artist name for the front is used exactly the same however the main image is slightly different.  At the front of the cover the female artist was facing towards us however on the back it is showing her back. This suggests that it is done so that the front shows the front and back shows the back.

The colour scheme is similar and the clothing is still fitting with the tribal theme.

The tracklist is written in black which is clearly visible and is positioned to the right on the clear background so that the image is not overiding the text like the other cover (The Pretty Reckless). 

The barcode as well is positioned to the right at the bottom therefore it is not a genre move, it happens for all cd covers.

The similarities between the two are the both are dressed in short outfits which show a lot of flesh this could have been done to appeal to the audience and make it stand out on the shop shelves. Moreover both covers have a barcode in the right bottom corner, studio logo and all the other information. This may be because of it being a code and convention. The differences is the font colour and style and the image colour. The Beyonce cd is bright in terms of colours used whereas The Pretty Reckless album is very black and white. Therefore when we recreate this we would have to take into consideration the black and white colours used.
 
After analysing both covers, I have developed knowledge of how different genres portray their music through the cd covers. As we are doing a grunge song by the artists of album one we would need to follow these codes and conventions in order to make the album fit with others of this genre. 

Author: Kiran Paul