semester performance review (video)

Advanced feature news story
For this project we were supposed to create a feature story, and interview at least one person. We interviewed Vic Kepner about her experience in NAHS, national art honors society.

This project took about a week and a half for planning, filming, and editing. The only struggles I found in the process was getting re familiarized with the editing software and finding where everything was located. Along the way, I learned how to use an actual camera, edit, and plan out interview questions. My biggest feedback came from the fact that I didn't have time to do a voiceover, and that I definitely should make time for it next time. I was quite pleased with my results, especially as it was my first project.

ONW now
This week in video, we had the opportunity to produce ONW NOW, the school news show. Throughout this project, we got to experience the real stress and time limit that the convergence class faces every day. We learned how to effectively, and efficiently, get the required footage and edit in a timely manner. This project took about a week and a half to complete the entire process. My group had a bit of trouble getting the mic to work for the voiceover and ended up spending a lot longer on it then we should have. I learned that it is ok to have a little fun during the process and also to just use the voice memos app if the computer isn't getting our voiceover. I overall really enjoyed this project. It was a great experience for me and I'm glad I got to witness the production of ONW now. 

Time management
I use my time efficiently, making sure to get everything done when It's due, even if it means doing it at home. I have only done two projects, and in both I have finished right at the deadline. But if time were to permit, I would use any extra time to review and make last minute edits and/or changes to ensure perfection. Outside of school, I enjoy recording things and editing them together which helps enhance my sequencing experience.

Strengths/ areas of improvement
I believe I have a good eye for sequencing and what looks good where. I also am good at figuring out what to film that will enhance the overall appeal in our video. Anytime I drive or walk around somewhere, I tend to imagine scenes that could take place which helps with location scouting as well as getting ideas for footage.

ONW sophomore edition
In the making ONW now, I  learned how to effectively, and efficiently, get the required footage and edit in a timely manner. I learned a lot throughout this project as I was still shadowing and it was an awesome experience to have. I was an extra during the filming of the show which was really cool to me as I got to see it all fall into place. My group was in charge of the feature news story and we did ours over United Sound which is a fairly new band program at our school. 

Summary
Even though I was only in this class for a couple months, I enjoyed every minute of it! I found new friendships and learned so much about the production process and everything that people go through to make ONW now how it is. I wouldn't change anything about the semester as it was extremely enjoyable for me! I learned so much, like how to work a camera, how to mic someone for an interview, how to stay on track and focused, and of course, how to overall make an entertaining news story. My only goals are to further my knowledge in the pre, post, and production process

Final thoughts

All in all, I had an amazing time in my first couple months of video. I made new friends and learned so

much about how convergence works and what to expect for next year. I am absolutely excited to learn

about entertainment this coming semester and see what I can make!

performance review blog (graphic)

Panorama 

For this project we were tasked to create a panorama with pictures we have taken. I chose pictures from my trips to Brazil and Paris. This project took a while to complete, about two weeks. I hit a snag about halfway through when I couldn't get the right blending work. Then, I discovered the eraser tool and it fulfilled my blending needs. Throughout this project, I learned how to use the eraser tool to create a natural and effective blend. The biggest feedback I received was regarding my blending. Once I was suggested to use the eraser tool, everything looked much better. I truthfully wasn't sure where I was planning on going in the first place. I knew the pictures I wanted but that's about all. Once I started working, everything began to fall together. I feel like this may have been my strongest graphic. I really loved the outcome and the process was fun as well.

Nature man


In this project, we had to combine nature pictures to create a natural looking nature man. This project took about a week to complete. I had trouble finding colors and images that I liked for this project, but I eventually found some decent ones. I learned all about contrasting images and how to do basic blending. I was told to maybe work on his hair to make it blend better, which I did. I once again didn't really have an original image idea, I just went with the flow. This project was pretty good but it definitely wasn't my best. I feel like if I had had more time then I could have made it better and a more pleasing overall look.




Infographic


For this project, we were supposed to create an infographic about anything we wished. I chose to make mine about the zodiac signs and what they mean. In this project, the only struggles I have come across were which colors would look best. I have learned how to master the art of using the pen tool. I haven't received very much feedback except for toning down three of my colors which I did. Once again, I didn't have an original plan for this project but I am very happy with wherever it is going. I love this project and I'm having a great time doing it.





Time management

I never get finished early in this class because I work until the last minute, perfecting and tweaking my project. I will constantly be adding or changing things. Something can always be better and in my mindset, you should use that time.

Strengths
I think my strengths include my creativity and how I always work to better my project. I am good at taking criticism and using it to make my work better. I always have an idea once given my boundaries and work outside the box. I also am good at communication skills and bouncing ideas off someone else.

Areas of improvement 
I think I could definitely be a little better with time management. I usually am a little carefree and don't work as hard as I should towards the beginning but when the deadline comes around, I get it done. I also could be a little more driven at the beginning to get my work done faster.

Summary
My favorite part about this semester was getting to meet new people in our class and getting to do some fun and collaborative work. The fact that we are aloud to get advice from a friend and have a good time really contributes to the positive environment that our graphic class has. My favorite projects would either be the panorama or infograpahic because we had a lot of freedom and creativity. I personally wasn't a big fan of the pop art project but it was a great learning experience at the same time. I learned a lot this semester, not only how to use adobe photoshop and illustrator but also with colors and advertising. Next semester I hope to better myself even further and become an even more experienced graphic designer.

onw now feature piece

This week in video, we had the opportunity to produce ONW NOW, the school news show. Throughout this project, we got to experience the real stress and time limit that the convergence class faces every day. We learned how to effectively, and efficiently, get the required footage and edit in a timely manner. I learned a lot throughout this project as I was still shadowing, such as there is a time and place for having some fun, not everything has to be serious. I also learned that if the mic in the sound booth isn't catching your voice over, just use voice memos and don't waste everyone else's time.

Our group worked really well together, I think. Two of the members did a lot work outside of class, which I couldn't make it to, but I still got to see the process come together. Our collaboration was good and we got good B-roll which was essential to our feature piece. If I were to do this project again, I probably wouldn't change anything except maybe trying to get a little more involved in the editing process.

Overall, I am extremely happy with the way our piece turned out, we had excellent voice overs and great B-roll, my group worked well together, and it all went smoothly.

Advanced feature news story

 For my first project in video, we did a feature news story. My group chose to do it over NAHS (National Art Honors Society), which is an art club at Olathe Northwest. I have a friend who is in NAHS so that's how I came up with the idea. The scripting and interview questions fell together pretty early on in the production process which was very helpful later on. We filmed my friend, Anna, and then we got another interview, Vic Kepner, which was very fortunate considering nothing we filmed of Anna had actually recorded. As this was my first project, I was more of a shadower and I imputed ideas and things I felt needed to be said. This was a very effective way to do things because I will much more comfortable and confident for the next project. We communicated well and got all filming done inside class and everyone was sort of the leader in our group. We collaborated well and probably could have had better project management on day one but we got our stuff together soon after. Next project, I will probably work to be a little smarter with time, otherwise this went really smoothly. Especially for my first project, I think it turned out really well and I'm happy with the results.

Written News Story

Pop Sensation Justin Bieber Finally Settling Down?

Beliebers all around the globe had been hearing whispers and rumors of pop singer Justin Bieber (24) and model Hailey Baldwin (22) getting married in a quiet wedding but no one was sure. On Thanksgiving, Bieber finally confirmed the rumors with a post on his instagram,  “Happy late thanksgiving to everyone. First thanksgiving as a married man, first time hosting thanksgiving. First time both sides of the family has come together." Fans, naturally, were ecstatic but nothing was more exciting then when several days later, Baldwin changed her instagram to @haileybieber and Bieber posted a picture of the two captioned “My wife is awesome.” It was later released that Bieber had proposed in July and the two had gotten their marriage license in New York in September. It is clear the two are quite happy with the marriage and intend on making it a long one as Bieber talks about being in a “healthy stable marriage” that his little brother and sister get to see. Here’s to a good marriage between the two!

I wrote my news story based of what I personally want to read about which is what the public wants to read. I have been wondering about the relationship status of these two celebrities for a while now and when I saw on Justin Bieber's instagram, that they are in fact married, I was ecstatic, it was the perfect thing to write about. The key in writing anything is to write about what you are passionate about and what you would like to read, because there is someone who wants to read the same thing. When actually writing it, also put the most important details and elements at the top because that's the eye catcher.

I enjoy being able to write about whatever I want to. It's really fun to dig though the internet to find evidence and information, especially when it is something/ someone you WANT to write about. One thing I think I need to work on, but I did a pretty good job of on this one, is to not add "fluff" or pointless information on a news story. I need to just report facts and other information with importance to the story. I feel like I have a fairly credible and believable voice established which is critical in writing anything. I also have good word choice that corresponds well to the story.

Writing this news story I was able to explore my voice and the way I present my information. I believe that it worked and suited me well so I am very happy with it.

Watercolor Transfer Prints

For this project, we started off by choosing two of our favorite previous projects,  cropped them, and then printed them out. Next, we did the most fun part and watercolor painted a rectangle piece of watercolor paper.  Once our paint dried, we began the actual printing process. Cutting our picture, we left a 1/2 to 1 inch border of the white paper around the image. After that, we applied mod podge to to the front side of the paper then placed it face down onto the watercolor paper.

The next step was using the squeegee to smooth out the picture and remove all bubbles and imperfections. This process required us to bevery careful becuase we couldn't get any mod podge on the back of our image. After the mod podge dried, we used water to wet the back of the image and then started rubbing it to move the white paper which left behind the ink on our water color paper. After rubbing off the barest hint of white paper, the transfer print was complete.

This project was a fun and interesting experience for me. For me, the most difficult part was choosing what image to use. I had several pretty good projcts but I ended up settling with the panorama project. I thought I did a very good job with figuring the most effective and efficient way to rub off the paper. All in all, I really enjoyed learning how to use old print making methods to create a cool end result.

Pop art

We began the pop art project by taking pictures of our partner. After choosing an ideal spot in the courtyard, I took several shots of my partner, Ava, and then uploaded the best into photoshop to begin the editing process. After studying the picture, I added a filter over Ava's body. This gave it some cool texture that really contributed to the overall "pop art" look. Next, I colored each individual brick on the brick wall background different colors. This pop of color really spoke for itself when it came to being pop art.  

Going into this project, I didn't have any initial design ideas or color scheme ideas. I liked pink and orange so I did end up incorporating them into my work but that was my only idea. I ended up using many bright colors such as pink, orange, and bright blue. 


My work was probably inspired most by Roy Liechtenstein's work. He used dots and bright colors to show simplicity and yet, also complexity at the same time which was what I was going for. 

This was a very interesting and new type of project. I had to use different techniques then what I enjoy and am used to using. I learned a lot throughout this experience and project. Filters now are easily located when I need one and there are so many different brushes that I can use. This was a very cool project and helped me broaden my comfort zone.