Week 12: Last Blog!

I really enjoyed Digital Media because it provided me with a good, although basic, technological background on several programs and software widely used on computers! I can now finally use the Photoshop software that has been on my computer for several weeks untouched, because I had no clue how it worked. We never used Photoshop in class but Fireworks is a very similar program. Digital Media is something that has always interested me, not necessarily because this is the path I believe I will take in the future for a career but because it works in close connection with the creative field I want to pursue. Making movies and editing them is something I have been doing for the past two years and have always wanted to learn to create better title sequences for them. Many people around me use both Photoshop and Flash animation to create cool title sequences and I always felt like my work could never be as good as theirs. By combining the basic knowledge what I have learned in Digital Media I feel confident that I am no longer at a disadvantage and can now use these skills to create more compelling pieces of work in the future!
What I believe could be improved for this class is the software we work with. I think we should have started working with Photoshop instead of Fireworks. I know that Fireworks is much easier but it is not as widely used as Photoshop in the industry.
What worked well were the assignments in this class. I enjoyed doing them and they really tested our capability to work the programs we were learning about.

Week 11: Dreamweaver

This week we started to use Dreamweaver. I really like this program, because compared to the week before when we had to use notepad to generate HTML code this seems like an easier, faster, and more reliable way to create a web page. It's great how user friendly this program is, making it possible for anyone to create their own web page! Not only is it user friendly, but it is also very professional looking. Google offers free website software called google page creator. It is very easy to work with but what you can do with the program is limited to a few pre-designed formats, making these types of sites less creative. I've always wanted to build a web page that was a type of portfolio for my creative work, like pictures and films I have created. Learning this software is the perfect opportunity for me to learn the basic skill of creating a professional looking web page.
For week thirteen I will create a portfolio based web page that will include pictures I have taken over the years and if possible, because I have not tried this out yet on Dreamweaver, videos I have made.

Week 10: Web 2.0 Characteristics

1) Dynamic content:
Aggregator- FeedBucket ( www.feedbucket.com/)
Is a way to view RSS feeds. You must be a registered user. You can store up to several RSS feeds.
This program can also generate JavaScript code-that can automatically update headlines to your own blog or website.

2)User contribution: Crackle (www.crackle.com)
This site features user generated value. It allows you to rate videos and leave comments about them. You can create a play list of your favorite videos and share them with your friends . It also knows the most watched videos of the week and features them. This site lets the users decide which videos are the best and this lends a certain notoriety to the creators of the most popular videos.

3)Social Media: hi5 (http://hi5.com/)
This is the same concept as Facebook and Myspace. You register, then create a profile that expresses who you are, or who you want people to believe you are like! You can upload pictures, add friends, find friends, listen to music etc...

4)Online applications: Phixr (www.phixr.com)
Free online photo editor. Easy to use when you're on the go and when there is no photo editing system installed in the computer. No need for flash or java. This application lives entirely on your web browser!

5)Harnessing collective intelligence: YouTube (www.youtube.com)
Tagging.
Tagging makes it easier for people to find things, subjects that they are looking for. When we tag something we have uploaded to youtube we are making it available to a wider range of users. When other people who watch your movie on youtube tag it further more, because they think that it applies to what ever word they are tagging it with, they are making it even more available to the public. The more tags you have on a certain movie the more chances someone will type in that word!

Flash Animation

For my flash animation I decided to create a fictional opening sequence for a snowboard movie. I incorporated both animation that I created and pictures that I cut out with the polygon lasso tool and cropped in Fireworks. The target audience for my project is teenagers and young adult snowboarders. I was inspired by a snowboard movie I watched a few months ago called “From___, With Love”, produced by MACK DAWG PRODUCTIONS. At the beginning of this snowboard movie they present the snowboarders and the places where the movie was filmed with animations and real pictures of the snowboarders. I wanted to give my flash animation almost a kids cartoon look, thus why I kept the animation very basic, but at the same time give it an edgy appeal for younger adults. I really think the way I used the word ‘Featuring” as a rail that the snowboarder then goes on is effective and original. This was my first experience with Flash. I did not know how everything would turn out before hand because my knowledge of this program was very basic, but after a lot of trial and error I was able to master a good portion of this program. My animation only contains one interactive button, but I think it is justified since it is a title sequence. I was able to explore many of the functions in flash while doing this project, although I’m sure I was only able to touch the surface of it’s full potential. I must admit at first I wasn’t a fan of this program, but now I can see why it is such an important skill to have. If I had been able to use flash for all the movies I have created in the past I think they could have been a lot more effective and visually pleasing. I used both Fireworks and Flash to create this animation. Instead of using music from the iTunes play list I decided to create my own music to go with this animation. I used Garage band, which I believe turned out to be much more effective since I was able to create music that really fit with the image I was trying to create. The problems I encountered while doing this animation where things like trying to figure out how to create a specific anchor point and getting all the images to flow nicely on the seen without looking choppy

I believe that this piece is effective in conveying the message that it’s a fun, light movie, most snowboard movies are. The snowboarding laid-back attitude is also represented in this movie, which is why it works well for its target audience.

Week 8

Over the years the cost of creating a music video has become outrageous. I believe this is due to the fact that artists want to stand out from the pack, they want to create an image for themselves that is glamorous. It is no longer about the music, but about who has the most money and who looks the best. Creating an image that we can associate with their music.
Is it just me or these days many bands or artists are very good looking? The thought of showing anyone who doesn't look like a "babe" could possibly bring music sales down?!? Maybe so, but now certain artist seem to be bringing it back to the roots, to the music itself and aren't glorifying themselves. There seems to be a rise in what we could call "homemade" music videos. I think they are doing this to make a comment on how ridiculous it is to spend so much money on something as basic as a music video.
I really believe artists must make it about the music, not what they look like. When they can do that then maybe pre-fabricated pop music will finally come to an end.

Digital Art

When a computer is used in the production of a piece of art it becomes digital artwork. Is digital art really art? If a computer is doing all of the work for you wouldn't it be like cheating on a test? I believe that it depends on the person who is looking at this form of "art", and what that individuals definition of art is. I personally think that digital art is amazing. It's bringing traditional art like painting, for example and new media works created on a computer together. It makes for very interesting visual and sound productions. Another advantage of this medium is that it is opening the doors of art to many more people who can't draw, paint, etc. I am one of those who can not draw no matter how hard I try! As we evolve technology evolves and I think we should use it to our advantage to create bigger, better things! Digital art can reach the masses easily, because with the click of a mouse it's there!

Flash animation

For my flash animation I will be creating a title sequence for a fictional snowboard movie. I really had no clue what to do until a few days ago when I was watching one of the many snowboard movies I own. The title sequence to this particular movie is amazing, very original and creative, and it is done in flash! I have done a few snowboard movies in the past, but having no knowledge or even access to flash I had a very basic title sequence. Flash will allow me to integrate both interactive animation and still images into a title sequence. My idea so far is to have animated snow continuously falling while still photos, that I will have cut up and played around with in Fireworks before hand, of the fictional characters in my snowboard movie come in and out of the frame. There will also be funky, original animated text presenting both the snowboarders feature in this fictional movie and the production company, crew etc....

Very excited to see the final product!!