Throughout
making my AS media coursework I have used a range of programs to help make my
work as varied as possible and bring it to a high standard The programs I used
were:
Adobe Photoshop CS6
I used this program to create all of my products (Cover, Contents and Double Page Spread) which offered a variety of techniques which helped with creativity and help make everything that was needed to help create each product.The preliminary project taught me the basic skills of Photoshop of which I had no understanding of before beginning the course. The main task helped me to use more of the functions in Photoshop and put the basic skills I learnt into good practice. The "Image>Adjustments" enabled me to create different effects with my images, mainly relating to color and contrast. I also learnt how to use "Rulers" effectively to format pages which was especially useful when formatting my double page spread to help with placing of images and text. One of the most vital aspects i learnt when using Photoshop was how to use the layers. This was essential, especially in the editing process as if the layers are used effectively it makes editing individual features easier. I still feel I have more to learn about Photoshop as there is no limit to the different effects that can be created, however I feel my understanding of Photoshop's tools is now adequate to do similar tasks again.
Photoshop tools
Advantages
The program is available at the college, and is regarded as the most advanced and best photo editing software. Adobe also offer a 30 day trial period which could be downloaded so made working at home available if it was needed. It covers everything option needed regarding editing photos and creating products. It gives the option to save your work in a variety of formats which made it easy to use on other programs.
Disadvantages
As I have no previous experience of using Photoshop it was quite daunting trying to figure out what exactly it did and how to use it. Although there are online examples and help, it can be fairly hard to follow due to the complicity of some tasks. Adobe continue to publish more editions meaning that tutorials might be outdated meaning they're even harder to follow. For people using it at home, it is a very expensive piece of kit, costing around £160.
The program is available at the college, and is regarded as the most advanced and best photo editing software. Adobe also offer a 30 day trial period which could be downloaded so made working at home available if it was needed. It covers everything option needed regarding editing photos and creating products. It gives the option to save your work in a variety of formats which made it easy to use on other programs.
Disadvantages
As I have no previous experience of using Photoshop it was quite daunting trying to figure out what exactly it did and how to use it. Although there are online examples and help, it can be fairly hard to follow due to the complicity of some tasks. Adobe continue to publish more editions meaning that tutorials might be outdated meaning they're even harder to follow. For people using it at home, it is a very expensive piece of kit, costing around £160.
Flickr
This web program allowed me to post annotations on my magazine pages, so when evaluating a piece of work it was very easy. The site was also linked to blogger meaning I could post my work straight onto my blog when finished.
Advantages
The program has a wide range of options to annotate your images. It is free and a reliable website for posting your portfolios of work. As I have a Google account I didn't have to register and it also offers other log ins such as yahoo.
Disadvantages
The site isn't very easy to navigate around if you have no previous use. If you do not have one of the log ins you need to register which may be a hassle. It is located online which meant that it was not always accessible.
Personal useFlikr was one of the first programmes I was introduced to to present my work. At first I found it made analysing magazine covers and pictures easy to do and read but found that it was quite boring when using other programmes such as Prezi. For the course I found it useful to begin with but found myself using it less when introduced to the other programmes. I am not sure how I would be able to use it in the future other than analysing images.
BloggerI used Blogger as it is a free blogging program, allowing me to cover all the aspects of my coursework and write explanations for different aspects of the course.
Advantages
The website is free and fairly simple to use. It allows any format to be put onto the blog as you can upload pictures which made it more appealing to use. I also learnt that you can also upload videos using the HTML code which made it interesting to experiment with the blog. Blogger also allowed me to update my work when needed with ease and it would automatically update itself if work on other linked websites were updated.
Personal useFor myself personally I found that blogger helped with organisation of my work as it is all on one place. For the this course I found it ideal but I'm not sure how I would use it in the future other than for personal use such as blogging about my life.
Disadvantages
I found myself using Word when writing up evaluations or questions and the having to copy and paste them into the blog writing area. I found the blog writing system different to what I am use to which made long writing more difficult. A big disadvantage i found was that it was online and not always accessable. For example, I went away in the half term and found it very difficult to find internet connection to make adjustments to my blog.
Prezi
Prezi is an online presntation programme which allows different function in order to help create and exciting prestnation.
AdvantagesI found Prezi to help make my work much more exciting to do and to read back. It offered loads of functions which allowed creativity to my work which otherwise would have been in an essay type style or a prowerpoint presenation which I find boring.
Disadvantages
I did not find many problems when using Prezi apart from the fact that it was online and sometimes I could not access it. Occasionally it ran slow but this was not a major issue as it was still functioning when there were lots of images on it.
Personl use
I found Prezi a very useful programme that helped me make my work presentation more fun. I can see myself using this much more in the future when having to make presentations.
Survey Monkey
Survey monkey is a website which allows you to make a survey on any topic you need and then distribute it.
AdvantagesI found survey monkey a very useful way of making a survey and distributing it in a easy and quick manner. It allows you to make a survey on pretty much anything you want and gives you categories to put your survey in so people can search that category and do your survey which I thought was a good idea.
DisadvantagesI found the layout of the survey could be quite boring although there were other templates I could have chosen from. Also you had to make an account with survey monkey in order to access the site which wasn't a major issue although I did have to reset my password on one occasion.
Personal useI found survey monkey a very useful website and does the job it sets out to do. They easy to use format makes it quick to use and I can see myself using this website again if needing to gain information from an audience.
Da Font
Da Font is a website which offers different fonts and designs which can be downloaded onto your computer for free as long as the product isn't being sold.
Advantages
Da Font has a largen amount of fonts to chose from being but into categories such as sans serif etc. You can even search for a font, for example if you want a scary font, your search scary and the fonts which it thinks it suitable will come up. Also, it allows you to type the word in your looking to use the font for and test it in that font before downloading it. Also, you don't need to sign up to use the website like many of the others I used.
Disadvantages
The main disadvantage in Da Font is that at college I couldn't just download the font but had to ask for it to be downloaded for me which sometimes meant I could not use the font straight away. Although this is the case if it was only a few words you could print screen the text and use it from there by cropping it.
Personal useI found Da Font a really good website as it offered me a wider range of fonts than photoshop and also fonts that I felt would appeal to my audience. I can see myself using this website in the future for similar tasks.
The website is free and fairly simple to use. It allows any format to be put onto the blog as you can upload pictures which made it more appealing to use. I also learnt that you can also upload videos using the HTML code which made it interesting to experiment with the blog. Blogger also allowed me to update my work when needed with ease and it would automatically update itself if work on other linked websites were updated.
Personal useFor myself personally I found that blogger helped with organisation of my work as it is all on one place. For the this course I found it ideal but I'm not sure how I would use it in the future other than for personal use such as blogging about my life.
Disadvantages
I found myself using Word when writing up evaluations or questions and the having to copy and paste them into the blog writing area. I found the blog writing system different to what I am use to which made long writing more difficult. A big disadvantage i found was that it was online and not always accessable. For example, I went away in the half term and found it very difficult to find internet connection to make adjustments to my blog.
Prezi
Prezi is an online presntation programme which allows different function in order to help create and exciting prestnation.
AdvantagesI found Prezi to help make my work much more exciting to do and to read back. It offered loads of functions which allowed creativity to my work which otherwise would have been in an essay type style or a prowerpoint presenation which I find boring.Disadvantages
I did not find many problems when using Prezi apart from the fact that it was online and sometimes I could not access it. Occasionally it ran slow but this was not a major issue as it was still functioning when there were lots of images on it.
Personl use
I found Prezi a very useful programme that helped me make my work presentation more fun. I can see myself using this much more in the future when having to make presentations.
Survey Monkey
Survey monkey is a website which allows you to make a survey on any topic you need and then distribute it.
AdvantagesI found survey monkey a very useful way of making a survey and distributing it in a easy and quick manner. It allows you to make a survey on pretty much anything you want and gives you categories to put your survey in so people can search that category and do your survey which I thought was a good idea.
DisadvantagesI found the layout of the survey could be quite boring although there were other templates I could have chosen from. Also you had to make an account with survey monkey in order to access the site which wasn't a major issue although I did have to reset my password on one occasion.
Personal useI found survey monkey a very useful website and does the job it sets out to do. They easy to use format makes it quick to use and I can see myself using this website again if needing to gain information from an audience.
Da Font
Da Font is a website which offers different fonts and designs which can be downloaded onto your computer for free as long as the product isn't being sold.
Advantages
Da Font has a largen amount of fonts to chose from being but into categories such as sans serif etc. You can even search for a font, for example if you want a scary font, your search scary and the fonts which it thinks it suitable will come up. Also, it allows you to type the word in your looking to use the font for and test it in that font before downloading it. Also, you don't need to sign up to use the website like many of the others I used.
Disadvantages
The main disadvantage in Da Font is that at college I couldn't just download the font but had to ask for it to be downloaded for me which sometimes meant I could not use the font straight away. Although this is the case if it was only a few words you could print screen the text and use it from there by cropping it.
Personal useI found Da Font a really good website as it offered me a wider range of fonts than photoshop and also fonts that I felt would appeal to my audience. I can see myself using this website in the future for similar tasks.
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