Dan Watt

Evaluation for IG4 Final Major Project

1. Technical quality of final product (images, footage, use of sound, editing, layout, composition)

For my final major project we were assigned with creating our own compositions, I chose to create an advert based around the K2 Parkstar 2012 snowboard. I started by researching for ideas by looking at adverts for similar products and by looking at snowboarding videos on YouTube. From my research I decided that for my advert I would film the snowboard actually in use on the slopes at the Chill factor. However after some planning I decided that instead of filming the advert in 3rd person, I would film my advert in 1st person instead using my KitVision Rush HD camera as it would be more practical.

This is the Kit vision Rush Action Camera I used for my final major project.

At home I had to assemble a frame for the camera so I could attach it to my helmet properly. When attaching the camera I had to angle it slightly downward so I would record the footage as though it was the snowboarder’s point of view. So I would not just be filming the same footage over and over while at the chill factor I decided to film my advert on a “Free style night”. This allowed me to use the jumps while filming for some interesting action shots. I filmed my advert over 2 hours; however I found that a few shots of my footage were unusable due my camera being slightly off angle. This meant I had to slightly change my advert from the storyboard and use a different sequence of shots. I started editing on Adobe Premier, by cutting down clips of my footage then piecing them into a sequence that I thought flowed well. I made sure I placed all of my more interesting shots throughout my advert so they would not all be concentrated in one part, as this could have led to people losing interest while they were watching. I also had to make sure I left a blank space In my sequence while using Premier so I could edit in text using the Adobe After effects program. When I started editing my advert on After Effects I searched online using websites such as YouTube to find tutorials that would show me how I could input overlays and other effects. I tried to look specifically for tutorials that would make my advert look more visually appealing and professional looking. I then followed a tutorial that showed me how I could manipulate the colour grading of my footage. This was done by first making an adjustment layer, then by applying tints and a curve effect. From that I could manipulate the colour and brightness however I wanted; I chose yellow and red as the colours I would use on the adjustment layer as they were bright and vibrant. The effect worked particularly well as the main colour in my footage is white (From the snow) making the colour transition flow

Dan Watt

smoothly, I also felt that it improved my advert visually. I then researched fonts that I thought would be appropriate for my advert, I looked on the website “1001 Fonts” and then chose a few to pick from. I chose the font “Quick Argarni” as it was bold, easy to read and suited my adverts look. Next I had to animate the text by using key frames and by manipulating the position of the text. I made the key frames start off screen so it looks as though the texts comes from the side, slows in the middle of the screen and then speeds up going off screen on the opposite side it came from. I also played around with the text at the end of my advert, I changed the opacity using key frames to make my advert fade onto the screen stay for a few seconds at 100% opacity and then fade back to 0% opacity gradually. The final part of the editing process was inputting my chosen music with my footage. I chose to use an upbeat remix by “Alok & Icy Sasaki” called “Snoop Sings” as I felt it went well with the fast pace of my video, I also chose this particular song as it fitted the length of my advert well. To put this in my advert I first had to use an online YouTube converter to make the YouTube video a compatible file format I could import into my advert using Premier. Next I imported the audio file and trimmed it down to match the length of my advert. The last finishing touch I made to my advert before it was complete was slightly raising the brightness to give it an overall better look, then my advert was complete and ready to render/export.

2. Production skills you have newly acquired and existing skills you have further developed

In the production of my final major project I developed my skills using editing software (Adobe After effects and Adobe Premier), once I had filmed all my footage. I did this by following more in depth and advanced tutorials in my own time, which gave me insight on how to use more intricate effects and how to apply them to my commercial. The Screen Shot below shows the video tutorial I followed on YouTube.

One example was being able to add multiple layers and then use them all to create an overall effect which I could not gain with just the one singular layer creating a “Cross process”. I first used a “tint” effect to my footage; this effect desaturated my footage by removing some of the colour but not completely. I next inputted a “curve” effect, this is where the “cross process” was created as I used two curves literally crossing them against each other to balance the colours how I wanted. I had to make sure each curve didn’t match as it would just look as though I was adjusting the main RGB line, this wouldn’t give me the abstract look I was trying to achieve. Finally I added another “post tint” effect, this sandwiched the curve effect smoothing over any colour change that I felt was a little too extreme. Another production I acquired was filming my footage hands

Dan Watt

free using the KitVision camera which I attached to my Skiing helmet. This method of filming was much harder than using a typical camera to film, as I couldn’t see the footage while I was filming. This meant I had to judge when to turn my head to start filming a different area of the slope; however I made sure not to turn my head to fast so it wouldn’t blur any of the footage. I also developed my skills in editing sound on premier, by learning how to fade music in and out to a better ability than I had in the previous year at college.

3. How closely your final product matches your original intentions (outlined in your Final Major Project proposal)

Originally I planned on creating three separate parts of my final major project them being an Advert, magazine cover and photography. Each one would have related to the overall theme of snowboarding creating a synergy between the three parts. However once I had completed all my pre-production work and started actual production on my project I realised that I would be unable to create all three parts of this “synergy” to a good standard due to lack of time and other work in my separate classes. From this I decided I would concentrate my focus on my advert as I felt it would take the longest to complete but would have the better end product. So in that aspect my starting intentions are very different to my end product, however my original idea of my advert was very close to the final version. I used the Chill factor like I had intended as my location, but I filmed my advert using the first person method which wasn’t part of my original idea. I changed how I would film my advert as it would have been a massive health and safety risk, attempting to film using a tripod on the slope (this would also have been problematic as the slope is on a slant with little if any flat surfaces). I decided against using a normal camera free hand on the slope, as it would have been impossible to hold the camera steady and there was always the high risk of dropping and breaking the equipment. So to avoid my work looking unprofessional and poorly made I decided to opt for the head camera as in my opinion it was a better choice. These was due to the fact it would be much safer to film, with less risk to the equipment as it was securely fastened to my helmet. I also felt first person shots would be more interesting to watch as it is an unconventional way of filming, but this meant I had to film different shots than I had planned in my story board. Like I originally planned I filmed tricks and jumps being performed and inserted them into my advert to make it more interesting for the audience watching, as one of the main purposes of my advert was to captivate people. I also as I planned I implemented an upbeat song as it went with my footage well and gave the advert the right “mood” I was looking for. I changed the effects I was going to use in my advert, as I improved my skills on after effects and premier. This allowed me to use more advanced effects, however I felt this made my advert much more professional looking than it would have been if I used more basic effects. So I believe my advert is very close to what I had originally imagined, the only major difference being the method it was filmed in.

4. Time management and problem solving (scheduling, practical constraints and strategies you used to overcome constraints)

Time management was not an issue for me while I was working on my commercial, as I followed a schedule each week to ensure I completed all my work on time to a good grade standard. This also prevented me from getting a build-up of work which would

Dan Watt

have delayed me from completing my project before the final deadline. As a precaution I completed smaller tasks such as my story boards outside of class time in case I had problems with production later on which would cause me to fall behind in my schedule. This turned out to help me out later on in the year, as the filming of my advert was delayed by two weeks. This was due to the fact the first head camera I bought was not good enough quality to film on and it was having numerous technical problems. So as a better replacement to ensure my advert would be filmed in good quality I had to order the KitVision Rush HD camera online which took longer than expected to arrive. When creating my schedule I based how much time I gave myself on each task by how long I believed it would take me to complete them. This strategy worked well for me as I gave myself more time for the longer units making sure I completed them to the best of my ability without rushing them. When filming my advert I gave myself a few weeks to do this task as I thought it would take a few trips to the Chill factor to gather all my necessary footage. However I underestimated how little time it would take to film and despite the two week delay at the start of shooting, I managed to film everything in one trip to the chill factor putting me ahead of my schedule by a couple of weeks. This allowed me to concentrate on and improve my editing skills, which I am relieved I got the extra time for as it was the longest and most crucial part in the production of my commercial.

The two screen shots above show the effects I imputed into my video. They also show how I layered my effects into a “Sandwich” specifically so they would with each work with one another in a particular way. This screen shot shows the shape I applied the colour effects too, before overlaying it with my footage. After I created this shape I was a little unsure about the colour brightness and shade so I decided to edit it a little, the screen shot below shows how I could do this on after effects.

Dan Watt

5. Reaching your target audience (audience response, your reactions to positive and negative criticism with reference to audience feedback you have gathered)

I received positive feedback for my commercial with some of the comments from my peers being “Great, well edited”, “It's really good, the music goes well and it's different to anyone else's”

and “Good use of colour effect, also really like the song, fits well with the advert. Only thing I'd say is

more camera angles”. This shows that my commercial was well received and achieved the individuality I wanted. I felt that the music fitted well with my footage, and this has been backed up by multiple comments. However the feedback also shows that I could have implemented more camera angles into my advert, to keep the audience’s attention more. I agree with that feedback, looking back on my filming I should have shot my footage from a few more different angles and positions.

Dan Watt

This comment shows that I picked the appropriate music for my advert, with the upbeat remix appealing to the target audience. This was my initial intention as I wanted to entertain my audience not only visually but aurally. I agreed with the constructive criticism from Olivia about how I should have focussed the camera more on the board. I did not do this enough in my advert due to not adjusting my camera helmet to the exact right angle which would have captured the board in view more. If I would have captured the board more in my footage, it would have drew more attention to the actual product itself throughput my advert. I would definably take this feedback into consideration if I was to do the project again.

This feedback shows I had a degree of professionalism in my advert, which was one of my targets at the start of production as I wanted my advert to look well designed and made. I received more positive comments on the music used in my advert which shows that it was popular with at least the majority of my target audience. I also received praise on my style of filming, I am glad that even though I decided to film my advert freehand without the use of a tripod it still kept its professional integrity.

Dan Watt

I received positive praise for how I displayed the board in detail to the audience by wiping the snow away covering it. I tried to implement footage like this into my advert which would draw the audience’s focus onto the board, as Matt stated “I like how you added focus to the board” this clearly shows that it worked. He also commented on how he liked the board being shown in actual use, I did this to engage the audience more and because I believed it would be the best/most interesting way to advertise the actual product. Snoop Dogg features in the music for my advert, besides the fact I felt the song suited the video I also partly chose it as he fits my target audience. This was proved by Matt’s comment stating as much “The music for your advert also features snoop dogg which I thought was suitable for your target audience”. The only criticism I received from Matt was about the angle of my camera, I completely agree with this feedback and if I was to do the assignment

The graph above shows the number of views I received for my final major project over a period of time. Initially I only started with 8 views for my video, however as the graph shows us the amount of views increased over time to 30 views. This shows that my advert was a success with my target audience as more people were interested in watching my advert and started to share it with their friends. The views are still

Dan Watt

increasing for my advert showing that it still remains popular with the audience demographic.

The graph directly above shows the length that my advert was viewed for on average, with the average being 0.39 seconds. This shows that my advert again was a success with my target audience as they were captivated enough to watch my advert until the last couple of seconds. I would also say that this means I met most if not all of my audiences needs are requirements as they would not have viewed my advert till the end unless it appealed to them. Overall though I am happy that the majority of my feedback was positive, this shows that I hit my brief as my advert was suitable for my target audience and was created to a good enough standard that they were captivated by it.

6. Summary conclusion of how you would respond to your project brief if you were to do it again

In my opinion, I would call my commercial a success from the feedback I had gathered however there are a few slight things I would change. Firstly I would have attempted to film a few more interesting angles while shooting my footage at the chill factor, possibly experimenting with my Rush camera to see if I could attach it to my shoulder or maybe even the snowboard itself. This would possibly make for some interesting footage I could use to make the composition more interesting to keep the audience captivated. Another way I could make it less repetitive is if not every shot was in 1st person, some shots could be actually of the snowboarder not just his line of sight. This would mean if some of my 1st person footage wasn’t good enough for my commercial I could replace it with the other footage, something that I could not do when creating my commercial this time. I would also invest more time in learning editing software properly, as even though I believed while the editing in my commercial was to a good standard, there still is much room for improvement. Learning more complex editing skills would mean if I was to do the project again I could make it look even more professional. In conclusion I am happy with how my final major project turned out, I completed my advert to a standard I was pleased with and I finished the assignment in the allocated time given to me.

The image above is some of the less detailed feedback I received from my Facebook group.

Dan Watt

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