Question 4: What have you learned from your audience feedback?
Firstly i would like to say that i personally feel that my group and I have worked our utmost in producing our group video and also our individual ancillary products.
However in retrospect i think that after audience feedback there could have been a few things that i may have included to improve my complete product.
Firstly i think that i should have tried harder to play with the opacity levels of Tyler in 'Fix You'. The reason for this is that it will further helped my audience understand that Tyler was supposed to be an angelic like figure and not an actual human being.
Another thing i might change looking back is the important music element that is Tyler's guitar. I would have loved to include a shot of him playing the guitar. This would have been more entertaining for my audience. It would have also lead audience to think of an acoustic guitar to be synonymous with Tyler and continued the running theme of the guitar along with my digipak and my advert.
Finally i think that In relation to audience feedback i could have tried harder to make the ending of the video clearer for audiences to understand the message as although they understood the narrative they were a little disillusioned by Tyler's character.
Question 3: How did you use media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?
To get clearance before we could begin to film our music videos we had to make an animatic which would give our teachers an idea about what our films will look like and for this we used Final Cut Pro.
We had to take several variations of shot types and edit the final photos in Final Cut Pro. Looking back, i realise that it also helped us to plan our timetable better and see what we could realistically achieve and what may have proved to be difficult to do under the circumstances.
Mid shot of Tyler
During our filming we had the priviledge of using new state of the art camera's to capture all our footage in high definition. They provided us with a better chance of creating believable music videos that would appeal to audiences. We took advantage of this oppurtunity and incorporated a wide range of shot types from the basic to the ridiculous!
Low angle shot of Tyler
Other media technologies that also helped us as i have shown in the clip above were Quark and photoshop. They were essential in producing our ancillary products and although i found photoshop rather difficult to use at first i later understand how it worked and was able to utilise it to my full advantage.
Question 2. How effective is the combination of your main product (video) and ancillary texts (digipak and advertisement)?
To help my audience recognise Keith Tyler and 'Fix You' I have made a significant link between my video and ancillary products.
I have used a running grey colour scheme across all my products; video, digipak and advert. This will allow my audience to have a solidified visual image of Keith Tyler and 'Good Day Mr. Tyler' embedded into their mind.
I have also tried to keep his costume as similar as possible so that audiences can make a visual link. Tyler wears black throughout the three products to meet the conventions of the genre. This also pivotal for my digipak and advert so that my audience can immediately recognise the product when trying to purchase the album.
Another important link i have made which I would have liked to have included in my video but was not able to is the guitar. It can be seen in the digipak and the advert and it is very important because it helps my audience to deduce the genre of music that Tyler classifies in.
I think that my audience will really like my product simply because they can easily link different aspects of my three products together. They will enjoy the way we have adapted the lyrics of the song into an appealing video. They will also be able to appreciate the link between the digipak and advert, how i have continued the the grey scale colour scheme.
They may however have wondered why I didn't have Tyler playing the guitar in the video and this would be something I will have to look back on and change next time.
Question 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
This is the official video for comtemporary rock group 'Coldplay's' 2005 album X&Y called 'Fix You'. This was a very inspirational video for my group because this was the song that we made a cover of.
I was very inspired and moved by the lyrics of the song and and the message it sends across. Visually the video had a very relaxed theme back with its slow tempo. I was very impressed by the use of various location shots and street shots to depict tranquility and a melancholic tone to the video.
As part of our video we imitated some of the scene because we felt that it showed a wide variation of shots and representation of the characters body language for example;
Keith Tyler cover of 'Fix You'
This is the original shot from the 'Fix You' video and it features Martin running as the tempo of the the music increases and the song climaxes.
I personally felt that it was quite significant to the piece because it it symbolises the fact that even after going through challenging and difficult times you can still persevere.
Original video to 'Fix You'
This however is our version of the exact same shot.
We decided to use similarities with the video but to augment the meaning for example how our lights are more visible and brighter than that of the original video.
Another video that influenced me deeply was 'I need an angel' by gospel and soul artist Rueben Studdard. We were really moved by the message of the message.
We played on the idea put across in the video that there are two characters who are going through problems however there is always a way out.
We also loved the idea that one man can change peoples lives and the way the director was able to depict his through their transitions which also influenced us.
We decided that we would adapt the narrative of the male however we would do that of the woman instead and i based Tobi Quadri's character on her as these screen shots show;
This is from the original video and shows the female in distress and i particularly like this shot because i felt her body language worked in correspondence with the song lyrics and it visually tells the audience that she is going through a tough time.
From my depiction
From the original video
I decided that i would use this shot however i am challenging it because our shot was in black and white to add further gloom .
James Blunt's 'You're Beautiful' was another video that influenced our work. He tells the story of a girl he once knew, however what we found interesting was how the director used camera shots to show this.
The close up of James Blunt emotion shot
Close up of Keith Tyler emotion shot
A varied use of close up and mid shots of Blunt depict his melancholy feeling and his disappointment at missing his chance to get the girl. We were able to challenge this because we didn't want to imitate too many shot types from the video because there was not as wide a variation as we had in our video but we did however use the close up.
For my ancillary products i had to look widely to find inspiration for my album cover. A cover that would feature my artist (and debut album) and also represent his genre of music with the over to allow audiences to easily recognise this and i felt james blunts cover of Chasing time: The back to bedlam sessions did this;
James Blunt's cover
My cover of Good Day Mr. Tyler
I was influenced by how the extraction of colour and the use of lighting really clarified Blunts facial features therefore i tried to incorporate that within mine. I also like the way that the guitar was subtly added in the cover to represent the genre of music which he belongs to. I did this myself and felt by including it, it shows my target audience clearly.
However i challenged the conventions of the genre and instead of doing a close up or mid shot, i decided to go a full body shot of Keith Tyler. By doing do my audience can see how Tyler is dressed and his fashion consciousness will appeal to them.
Promotional poster for Good Day Mr. Tyler
Promotional poster for 'History'
For my advert I took inspiration from Michael Jackson album 'History' and I was truly inspired by his body language and how his charisma and character as an artist was represented through his stance.
I was very much influenced by this and I wanted to incorporate this in my advert, but I realised that there were certain flaws in this advert which I made sure to include in mine.
Due to the decade the album was released 'History' was not subject to having several ways to buy the album for example Itunes or Amazon therefore it was only possible to buy in store. However due to the time Tyler's album has been released i made sure to add the different retailers where the album is sold and can be downloaded.
Thinking about the genre of my artist I would have to choose suitable songs titles that would not only represent Keith Tyler's genre of music but also his personality and what he stands for.
This will helps audiences understand my artist better and it will also boost his fan base, therefore I have chosen the following to appear on the back cover;
This is the advert for hip hop artist Tinie Tempa's debut album.
The album uses the same font as in the album cover in order to help audience better remember the album.
It also has the same space theme as the album to further continue and correspond wit the title of the album.
The advert not only advertises the album and its release date (04-10-10) it also uses the opportunity to advertise the latest single from the artist 'Written in the star' and its release. This is effect because they are potentially selling both the single and the album.
The advert also includes the artists official website which gives audiences more information about the artist, the latest single and also the album. Ultimately creating a larger fan base for the artist.
This is the debut album from rapper Tinie Tempah, and from the offset we can tell it is an album from a hip hop artist.
The colour scheme he uses which are fairly dark colours with black and purples along with his black baseball jacket and sunglasses have connotations to rap music.
The artists name and the album name are written with the same font and the connotations of the album name 'Disc-overy' is a pun and corresponds with the background image of stars in space, and the bright light shining on Tinie Tempah symbolises that he is a new artist.
Disc-overy back cover
The cover also features an image of the new york skyline which represents the origins of rap music and also that it is urban music.
The back cover of the album features the the track list along with the copyright information and the record label (Parlophone).
It features the running theme of the stars in space and the triangular lights similar to the front cover.
This is the an advert for RnB artist Rihanna's fifth studio album 'Loud'.
The advert features a recurring red and white colour scheme in correspondence with the album.
The advert displays the artist Rihanna to the left third of the image with the album name in the centre (LOUD), along with the release date. By placing it in the centre of the image it makes it a focal point and tells audiences the name of the album and it is out for release now.
Album cover (image in the advert)
The advert also has a small image of the actual album cover to the right third. This works with the name of the album to allow the image to be embedded into audiences head so when they are going to purchase the album they can easily recognise it because of its similar colour scheme.
To correspond with my digipak i have made an advert that will help sell Keith Tyler as a brand and will help audiences familiarise themselves with my artist;
My mock up advert
The advert features the name of the album in bold at the top with the release date in order for audiences to familiarise themselves with the album name.
5 Star ratings of the album
The album also features star ratings from newspapers and magazine. This helps to promote Keith Tyler and the advert because it shows that it has been reviewed by critics and they have given a positive critique, which could help boost sales.
The album features Keith Tyler in the right hand third of the advert and he is enlarged holding up his guitar to represent his genre of music to his fans. This stance also advertises his fashion sense which is conventional to the genre of rock and appeals to his target audience.
These are my initial ideas for my digipak and features some of the pictures i may very well use;
The front cover of my mock up
The front cover features an image of Tyler sitting embracing his guitar with the album title in large orange font at the bottom and the artist name on the side.
The back of the digipak features a lot more of the important information which includes the conventional track list as well as the record label image at the bottom right corner, the copyright and also the artist website for fans to browse for more info.
The inside panels of the digipak
This is the two inside panels of my mock up digipak. It features multi instrumentalist Keith Tyler playing the keyboard. It also will possible have a silhouette on the C.D circle which i will edit to make completely black using photoshop.
This is the advert for Coldplays' 2005 advert. It follows a familiar pattern of simplicity in their work and features the cover of the album primarily in order for their adopted fans and target audience.
It features the release date of the album and the record company. This relatively plain advertisement without more information and would normally only be adopted by established artist which Coldplay are, however may not be particularly ideal for Keith Tyler who is a new artist.
This is the album cover of of Rihanna's fifth studio album 'Loud'. This is a rather simplistic album cover and see the artist taking on a new look.
The colour scheme she uses which includes red, white and tan. The bright red is in correspondence with he album name because it is very vivid along with her songs and the videos in the album and also it will be easily recognised from afar.
Inside panels of her 6 panel digipak
The internalpanels of the album show how there is a running and recurring theme. The panels maintained the white and red colour scheme and shows her laying on a field of roses.
'Loud' back cover
The back of the album follows the conventions of a digipak with the song list. At the bottom it features the makers of the album and the record label. It also has the record labels website for further information on the album.
Strangely however the back cover has the barcode at the top of the panel which is unlikely not only for a RnB album but a digipak in general.
These are various photos which i took that i feel show great body posture and represent Tyler as a relaxed, cool, trendy individual in order to immediately grab the attention of my target audience. They include the following;
Tyler's stance is very confident and passion which is a representation
oh himself and his guitar raised high in the air shows his love
for the instrument.
Keith facial expressions show his passion for the music and portrays the
deeper level of meaning in his songs.
Tyler grasping on the his guitar, shows his relationship with the instrument.
Side shot of Tyler showing a relaxed pose and also displaying his modern style.
Tyler showing his exuberance conventional of the rock genre.
Keith Tyler is an artist targeted for young fashionable people on the go and my colour scheme will have to represent this.
I have chosen to dress Tyler in all black because it corresponds with the season, it is trendy and also it is conventional to rock.
Due to the colour of his acoustic guitar i decided that i shall use wooden orange as a running theme that runs throughout the panels of my digipak and my advertisement.
I have also chose to use whites with greys which is contrasting to the black. I have deliberately chosen to use these colours because when thinking of the tile of the album -'Good Day Mr. Tyler'- i felt that the contrast of his black attire with the shining white light will show a transition from darkness to day, representing his introduction into the music industry.
After looking back at our mood board and our ideal consumer audience for Keith Tyler, i remembered that he is a new artist that represents modern pop, soft and contemporary rock.
Therefore i would have to leave the conventional brashness behind and look to find a modern take on my font in order to appeal to my audience correctly. The following are potential fonts which i may choose to use;
The following are rules that i should abide by if i want to successfully make a good digipak and advert which ultimately advertises our artist and the brand, they are the following;
Do:
- Use clear font
- Use appropriate sizes for images and font
- Use clear photos that are in focus
- Use photos that are an appropriate shape for the page
- Use a layout that follows the rule of thirds for composition
- Use an appropriate type face that follow genre conventions and house style
- Be careful where you place the font, it must follow genre conventions and be clear from a distance
- Follow the conventions of the 3 colour rule and use colour that is appropriate for images, font and background
- Think carefully about how you use and integrate font, image and text and language (remember that placement of text next to an image will anchor specific meaning)
- Use appropriate industry logos and conventions, properly positioned: Barcode, Date, Copyright, Titles and Artist name
Don't:
- Stretch images, this will make them out of focus
- Use layer styles
- Use unnecessary effects. Any effects used MUST suit the genre
- Place text across the artist's face
- Use a font simply because you 'like it'
- Feel you need a separate photo on every panel - be creative!!
This is an example of a 6 panel digipak, of an rock artist. This is an example of a digipak without an image of the artist at the front. It shows the image of an acoustic guitar co-ordinates with a mellow colour scheme allowing us to deduce that it is an album from a rock artist.
It features a conventional layout for a digipak with the song list on the back but they have also added the track list on the CD itself to constantly remind their listeners of it.
The Beatles greatest hits (1962-1965)
This is the digipak and advert of Iconic 60s-70s rock band The Beatles Greatest Hits. It features a more conventional style of presentation with the four members of the band on the front cover. It is a two disc special and features the record label on both discs.
The Beatles greatest hits volume 1
Another aspect it has is at the bottom of the back near the bar code the section in white features the record label along with the producers and executives as well as The Beatles themselves who are credited for making the album.
Coldplay X&Y (2005)
This is Coldplay's third studio album X and Y. This is an example of a modern take on a digipak. It uses animation rather than images of the the group or relating instruments. It has an 80s to early 90s feel about the digipak and although the the colour scheme does not represent the conventions of a rock group it shows how Coldplay are breaking the mould and possibly trying to reach to other audiences.
Coldplay X&Y Dutch Edition
This version of a digipak without the artist on the front suggests that the artists are already established and that they can afford to have the band name and the title of the to the left in small font, because they know that their audience will be able to familiarise them; this is due to the fact that Coldplay have never put a picture of themselves on a studio album before, which represents a lack of vanity and possibly deeper a more intellectual level of lyrics.
