Group. Shooting Scheudule

Second & Third Media Shoot

After completing our initial shoot in London we have realised that we will need to re-shoot as we believe that the footage we have gathered was not as good as it could be. A main feature which we identified that we needed to improve was our plan of action for the day of our shoot, although we had some shot ideas that we wanted to create in our production it was nowhere near as many as we should have to achieve a high grade in our production. Therefore we returned to our initial research stages of our production looking again at the technical analysis, as through this we could recognise certain shots which work well in coexistence with each other. Furthermore this will help our main cameraman Harry in the direction stages of our production, as we will have a more detailed plan of action for our shoot.

The main characteristic that was lacking from this initial shoot was as follows;

• Camera movement
• Close ups
• Variety of different angles
• Dolly Shots
• Handicam
• And shots with the Cam frame

Realising that we didn't gain the best footage from our initial shoot up London we took this as a learning curve, and were able to plan for our powdered paint shoot more effectively. Once again camera movement was a key feature which we had identified as being a significant factor in our production, to relate to the upbeat style of our chosen track. Additionally we have created a sheet of visual imagery which we could use when shooting which would act as a visual aid in the direction of this sequence in our media production.

 

 

Date of shoots;

 

Paint Fight - Wednesday 12th November 2014

 

London Shoot 2 - Friday 14th November 2014

J.R. Contribution to Shoot

MY CONTRIBUTION

For our first shoot up in London, I have made the following contributions;

• Recording a list of shots that we needed to gain from our research
• Producing the poster prop we are using to anchor our concept
• Applying some camera input to harry the dominant cameraman in our shoot
• As our concept involved two youth characters myself and tom became the narrative's, therefore we were acting in this London shoot.

As far as direction and camera work is concerned I haven't had a large amount on input. This is mainly due to the fact that I will be completing a large amount of the editing within our music video production.

List of shots I made the night before the shoot. I made this on my phone that we were easily able to refer to it throughout the whole day.

J.R. Deconstructing Print Texts

DIGITAL PACKS ANALYSIS
CHOOSEN ARTIST: SKREAM
CHOOSEN ALBUM: SKREAM!

Genre

Initially it can be seen that this album cover conforms to the genre of music through the mise-en scene used. Clothing especially allows us to identify that this digital pack is representing the ‘dance’ genre, due to the youthful representation that is held within this genre being presented through the clothing. Additionally we see that genre is generated through typical features which demonstrate the conventions of this genre, for example the typography used on the cover is bold and vibrant. Furthermore the text itself is also in itself an iconic symbol in connoting the genre of the album, as opposed to a text like ‘Gothic’ which would conform to more negative style of music e.g. heavy metal, the text on this album cover is more smooth and free flowing. Another significant factor which points the album towards fulfilling the genre of dance is the location shown in the album cover. This location seems to be a typical house party setting where the dominant music played is either dance/electronic, therefore representing this album to be in conformity to either one of these genres.

Media Language

• In this album cover scream is positioned slightly right in the image, yet is looking directly at the camera. This produces the idea that he is looking directly at the consumer, making him the central point within this digital pack. His dominance is also shown through the white shirt he is presented as wearing which clashes against the darker background. In terms of colour this enhances the dominance that he has amongst others positioned in this still. A very slight yellow/orange colour wash is placed over the top of the cover, creating this warm sensation which is closely associated with this genre of music.
• As shown in the image Skream is shown making no contact with others around him creating this sense of isolation and his direct contact with the camera challenging the rule of that forth wall. Although this creates a rather dominant impact on his presence in this album cover, his non-verbal language shown in this image presents him as being, normal with no sudden importance. This is mainly presented through the slouched stance he is seen with.
• The self-named title of Skream really represents the artist as it shows he is the only point of importance in this album. As this is the artist’s first album we see that he is more than anything trying to promote himself in the music industry. Therefore by not using any emotive language and quotations, connotes his new individuality within this dance genre.
• As this is quite a plain album cover, there is no real signs of intertextuality, this could be due to the fact that this is the artists first album meaning at this moment in time he didn’t have much of an image to present, furthermore meaning that intertextuality (if any) would be limited.

Representation

Skream is represented as dominant in this album cover; his clothing represents him as being modern and upbeat conforming to the genre of the album.  His dominance could also be shown through the large text which is presented in the centre of this album cover. His placement in the location of a house party however, creates the idea that he has made his way up from a small artist, this relates to Dyers paradox of being  simultaneous ordinary and extraordinary. Moreover, adding to Skream's star persona. 

Institution and Audience

The main purpose for this album cover is to promote the artist on a wide variety of media platforms. Hard copies of this album can be found in various stores like HMV for example. His album was released with Tempa Labels, which is a small record label stationed in east London and run by ammunition promotions. Although this is a preferably small productions company, as it is stationed in London it is able to vertically integrate with surrounding companies, consequentially raising its publicity in the music industry. Through the increase in new media technology and the rise in Skream's image, his album can be found on various different online sites, like iTunes and YouTube amongst many more.

Back of Album 

The most recognizable feature shown in the back of this Album has to be the way in which the bright vibrant colour creates this sense of power and dominance with the artists image. All the text is centered opposed to being listed down the left hand side of this panel meaning that the whole layout of this back cover is more targeted at producing a status for the artists rather than just displaying the relevant information. Furthermore we see that the text is all presented in italic which creates this more unique style to his album, making him more iconic in this specific music industry. Furthermore in small print below the names of the tracks found in this album we see reference to the record label which was used to produce this album, yet it also is center meaning that it does not deter from the layout and style of this album. Additionally we see that no imagery is used in this side of the album creating this idea of the artists being absent yet present in his own work, a paradox Dyer has explicitly said will aid in the success of a artists products in the music industry. 

T.M. Deconstructing Print Texts

Genre

'Ready for your love' by Gorgon City is evidently a track within the dance music genre. This is because of the conventions of dance music shown in the digipak; for example vibrant and bright colours as well as block capital letters accompanied by a conceptual image. Furthermore there is a suggestion of a sunny location connoted by the palm tree's in the background, which is often featured in dance music videos.

Media Language

Bignell states that advertisements "endowed products with social significance so that they can function in our real social world as indexical signs connoting the buyer's good taste, fashion, trendiness or some other ideological valued quality." This idea is evident in this digipak as there is a unique conceptual image which could be considered a trend to consumers.
There is a paradigmatic relation with the palm trees due to its association with sunshine and beaches which are conventional to dance music videos.

Representation

Due to the artists name and the songs name only taking up a small section and not being  the predominant feature to the digipak, this adds to the artists meta-narrative as it suggests Gorgon City are reasonably modest due to their small font on the cover. Furthermore its bright colouring may attract customers and stand out to potential consumers.

Institution and audience 

The primary purpose of the text is to provide a platform for the audience to consume the artists content. This can be achieved in a number of ways; for example Gorgon City belong to the label Virgin EMI Records which is a subsidiary to the conglomerate Virgin. Therefore using horizontal and vertical integration the company can use its subsidiaries in order to sell the track.
Furthermore the song can be advertised as a teaser on adverts for related videos on youtube.
Finally the song can have hard copies in shops as well as be digitally downloaded on sites such as iTunes and Spotify.

H.C. Personal reflection on London shoot

My role on the London shoot was camera and direction. I achieved success in the following ways;

• Following a plan of shots we created in our animatic.
• Experimenting with different camera angles, heights, shot sizes and distances.
• Trying where possible to adhere to the rule of thirds to create visual interesting and impressive shots. 
• Shooting a wide variety of the content of our locations to portray vibrance and represent culture, as well as Jack and Tom interacting witht these features to try and show positive youth culture. 
• Collecting a high number of relevant shots to give us a range of material to use in editing.

There were some difficulties and challenges in the day which may hinder our production;

• On the day, lighting conditions were not ideal to match the summer vibe of our song as some cloud cover is evident adn dulls the shots. We are aiming to correct this using colour grading in after effects in the editing phase. 
• We also had available the school's higher frame rate (50fps) camera, which in the end we did not use. I took the decision not to use it because of the fact that we had not planned shots in our London locations to use it, meaning to come up with these would have eaten into our time schedule, possibly jeopardising our completion of the shoot.

On the whole, I feel the shoot was positive and it has given me a creative boost to take forwards into the editing phase. 

H.C. Deconstructing print texts

Genre:

• The genre of this track is expressed through the visual elements used in the album cover. The artist Calvin Harris is positioned in the foreground of the shot, which establishes genre as the dance/house style is dominated by solo acts like the DJ Harris. Furthermore, the shoot appears to be located in an American style suburb, which is a typical setting for hi fi dance track videos and so provides a direct link to the genre.

Media Language:

• The artist Harris is positioned in the bottom of the right hand third of the frame on the main album cover. This draws the attention of the consumer, promoting Harris as the main focus of the image. The photo has been manipulated to enhance the slightly warmer colours such as the orange of the brickwork as well as casting a more yellow light on the concrete behind. This is typical of the genre, making the style iconic and accessible to the target audience. Extra props are absent from the image, reinforcing Harris as the most important focus in this photo.
• The positioning of the artist Harris in the bottom third of the page leaves him at the end point of the reading path around the page. Furthermore, Harris adheres to the rule of the fourth wall, making no direct address to the camera capturing the still. This creates the paradox of presence and absence as recognised by Dyer. However, the positioning of the artist alone, whilst singling him out as the main focus, also connotes a sense of lonliness and isolation with the use of the fourth wall. This is exaggerated through body language, placing Harris low in the shot. The warmer colours enhanced by colour grading in the image are iconic of the dance genre, as previously mentioned, promoting a positive attitude as apposed to blues which would create a neative light.
• This digipak does not incorporate any emotive language or quotations from the artist or other sources, only the artist's name and the title of the album. The title '18 MONTHS' has several connotations and is very thought provoking. Becasue there is no obvious link between the visuals and the title, it is left to the consumer to construct their own meaning of the title - could it mean the length it took to make the record? How long it has been since a previous relationship? This uncertainty leads to an incomplete star image, which fans of the artist will seek to try and complete by purchasing the record, therefore creating repeatability (Dyer). 
• There is no obvious example of intertextuality in this particular album cover design. Postmodernism may have been demonstrated by the fact that there is no complete link between the visuals and the title of the album, in essence breaking the rules of conventional representation. 

Representation:

• Calvin Harris has a very ordinary appearance in the cover for this album. His costume is made up of relatively lo fi pieces, a t-shirt, jeans and trainers, the kind of outfit that anybody could wear. This ordinariness is also affirmed by the location of the shot. Even though it appears to be abroad to the U.K. the setting of a suburban street is again a concept that everyday consumers are able to relate to. These techniques lead to creating Dyer's second paradox of simultanous ordinariness and extra-ordinariness, making Harris a star of the people.

Institution and Audience: 

• The print text could be consumed in a whole variety of ways, as Harris' album is produced by Sony Music, which owns vast subsidiaries within the music industry. The primary purpose of this text is to provide a platform for the audience to access the artist, which also makes it a prime advertisement. Hard copies can be placed and distributed to Sony stores globally, with the digital image capable of being printed continuously for as many units as is necessary. In terms of viral marketing, this text could be placed on music download sites and services as a form for the target audience to recognise and consume, thanks to the presence of Calvin Harris in the image. 

T.M. Reflection of Shoot

• On Thursday the 30th October, Harry, Jack and I traveled up to London for our first shoot of our music video.
• We had a clear vision of what shots we intended to get and where we were going to shoot these due to our location reccie a few weeks previous. 
• These locations consisted of Southbank, Bricklane and Camden. 
• We were happy with the shots we captured, and  a lot were taken in order to keep our options open for when we get to the editing aspect of the production.  
• However the only problem that we faced during our days filming was the weather wasn't ideal, because it was very overcast and grey but our track has a summer vibe which connotes sunshine and summer. This problem can be resolved through the use of colour grading during editing though. 

Harry filming from behind for a voyeuristic approach 

Shots of the protagonists traveling to different locations 

Establishing shot of the London Eye