second semester video

Happy Campers

This project consisted of writing, casting, and filming our own short film. There was a lot of time and effort put into this project, especially into the script which I spent countless nights working on. This project took about two weeks. It seemed much shorter though due to deadlines and stress to get it done. The biggest challenge was probably the fact that the script was supposed to be crafted by the time we got into groups by the person who's story idea it was. But, none of it was done. So, I spent the entirety of pre production writing the script, which then put a delay to the production schedule and storyboarding. I learned that sometimes, in order to get work done, you need to pick up your group's slack. If they aren't doing their work, sometimes you need to do it for them, in order to get done.This was really valuable for me to learn now, because I know I will experience this again later in life. We ended up not getting about half of our footage so our most critical feedback was that the continuity was off and that it didn't make sense. I think our story had great potential and it was going to be great. I am very disappointed in how it turned out but I learned several lessons.

Love, Simon

Our assignment was to recreate a high school movie trailer with people we know and the technology we were provided, and the movie our group choose was Love, Simon. Our pre-production was the storyboard of the scenes we could do and get some actors. We had a lot of struggles throughout this project, mostly teamwork issues. Despite our issues, we still ended woking together the best we could and finishing the project. Caitlyn was originally the director but eventually, Brooke morphed not more of the director. I was the second lead actor. After tons of time editing, we ended up having a finished product that we liked, even if it wasn't exactly what we were going for. 
What I learned along the way was that it is always best to look at the big picture and most of all, teamwork. You may not always be in a group where the group chemistry is high and you have no drama. We had a TON of drama and almost lost our main actor but in the end, we realized that our grade was more important and we had to finish the project. I also learned that technology is not always cooperative and you have make due with what you have. When some of the most funny clips ended up not recording, we had use extra footage to make it still look finished.  What I would do differently next time is to possibly take on more of a leadership role and step up when the group needs it and speak my mind. If something isn't working, we need to talk to each other about it instead of telling someone else because it will always get back to someone but twisted into a rumor. I liked how my group banded together in the end and worked together despite the drama and that shows maturity. 

Time usage

I have used my time in class very well. I always work until the last minute to make my project as perfect as possible. If one thing is bad, I make sure to fix it and make it look better. I don't ever finish early but if I do, I will keep perfecting the video because it can always be better. I make music videos with my sister for fun to improve my skills and get better. 

Strengths and weaknesses

In Ecomm, I'd say I have a lot of strengths. I love this program so much which I feel really shows up in my work. My passion for the friends I have and these classes and my work helps me to really show my true colors and push through it all. I also think that my enthusiasm for the program helps me to get work done and get it done happily. I think I have a good vision for just about anything of the creative field so I always have a general idea of what I want to do. These characteristics really help me to pump out a good product.

For areas of improvement, there are definitely some areas I could work on. Of all five ecomm guaranteers, I'd say my worst one would be time management. I get all my work done on time, but I do it so close to the deadline that it stresses me out. I could definitely work on that and making sure to work smarter not harder. Especially on a big and stressful project.

Short film experience and summary

I feel like the short film had potential to be great fun and a great experience. But, it ended up being more stressful than I had anticipated. I did most of the work which caused me to stress a lot. But, I feel like overall it was a good experience to deal with the stress and work load. All in all, I had a really good semester. I grew a lot as a person and it was very beneficial to me. I learned how to work through disagreements and still get my work done, despite the conflicts. I would't change anything because all the challenges I faced helped me. I want to increase my knowledge in film and video next year and improve as a person even more. 

 

second semester final

This semester in ecomm, I had a lot of favorite projects. But I have to say, My three favorite were defitinitly the event advertising, vector project, and the personal logo design. All three of these were really fun. For the event advertising project, we were tasked to create a poster, ticket, and postcard for an event at the sprint center. I chose to do mine over a Shawn Mendes concert. This project took around two weeks and I enjoyed every minute of it. I faced few challenges except for coming up with a color scheme which I ended up not following entirely because I didn't want that consistency. I learned more about making clipping make and about type layouts. I recommend sketching out your designs and having a generalized of where you are going with your overall project. I didn't have a

strong original idea. In fact, the little base I did have was 100% changed when I started working. I ended up deleting my photo manipulation and turned the poster into a much more simple and concise design. I really loved my work and I'm very proud of all I did and how it turned out.

I also loved the vector project a lot. We had the choice between organic and geometric. I ended up going with the geometric because it would look better with my image. I did mine over my dog and the geometric design looked really good with it. This took about two weeks to make. I didn't have any challenges on this project actually. It was really relaxing and I came to class ready to work every day. I learned about the pen tool and how to draw. I also learned more about the eye dropper tool. I recommend doing a big chunk of triangles then closing it in, then doing the next chunk and coloring it. That's the method I used and I got mine done quicker and more efficiently than other people. I had no idea how this would turn out when I started. In fact, I had really low expectations because it looked really complex, but I ended up loving it and enjoying it! I loved my work and how much work I put into it. It looks great and I'm very pleased. 

The last and most recent project we did was the personal logo project. We had to create a professional looking logo that we could potentially use for clients. This took about two weeks as well to complete. I had a lot of troubles with coming up with a good design I liked. I had nearly 75 sketches and I disliked so many of them. I ended up settling on several that I had randomly came up and loved. I deepened my knowledge in the pen tool and choosing satisfying color schemes. I would recommend relaxing when it comes to sketching. The perfect sketch WILL come to you, it just takes some time. I didn't make really any changes from my final sketches. Once I was finally happy, I stuck with those sketches until the very end. I really liked this project and was super happy with my overall design and the outcome.

If I ended up finishing early, I would continue to add things to my project or go and help a friend with there's or get inspirtaion from several other classmates. I would occasionally look up new photoshop tricks and hacks to make my projects look better. I most defitinley critique my projects. I will constantly find ways to make it better or find the smallest imperfection that I can fix. I do a little bit of client work for my mom when she makes logos and yearbooks and my sister's cheer gym which I do video work and graphic design work for. 

In Ecomm, I'd say I have a lot of strengths. I love this program so much which I feel really shows up in my work. My passion for the friends I have and these classes and my work helps me to really show my true colors and push through it all. I also think that my enthusiasm for the program helps me to get work done and get it done happily. I think I have a good vision for just about anything of the creative field so I always have a general idea of what I want to do. These characteristics really help me to pump out a good product.

For areas of improvement, there are definitely some areas I could work on. Of all five ecomm guaranteers, I'd say my worst one would be time management. I get all my work done on time, but I do it so close to the deadline that it stresses me out. I could definitely work on that and making sure to work smarter not harder. Especially on a big and stressful project. 

In conclusion, the thing I loved most about graphic design, was probably the bonds and friendships I created through this class. I bonded with now one of my best friends due to our mutual annoyance for a particular fried of ours. The people in Ecomm are some of the most amazing and supportive people I've ever met. Everyone has a tight bond with everyone and there is no leaving anyone out. I also loved the relaxation this class gave me. It served as an outlet when I had a bad day. I really don't have anything to change about this class. I like the relaxed atmosphere, and the teacher who wants to help us. I've nothing but a positive experience in this class. My biggest goal next year is finding MY place in Ecomm. I'm not entirely sure what I want to do and I'm next year will help me with that. I couldn't have asked for a better sixth hour and graphics class and I'm so happy I learned all I did. 

movie trailer

Our assignment was to recreate a high school movie trailer with people we know and the technology we were provided, and the movie our group choose was Love, Simon. Our pre-production was the storyboard of the scenes we could do and get some actors. We had a lot of struggles throughout this project, mostly teamwork issues. Despite our issues, we still ended woking together the best we could and finishing the project. Caitlyn was originally the director but eventually, Brooke morphed not more of the director. I was the second lead actor. After tons of time editing, we ended up having a finished product that we liked, even if it wasn't exactly what we were going for. 
What I learned along the way was that it is always best to look at the big picture and most of all, teamwork. You may not always be in a group where the group chemistry is high and you have no drama. We had a TON of drama and almost lost our main actor but in the end, we realized that our grade was more important and we had to finish the project. I also learned that technology is not always cooperative and you have make due with what you have. When some of the most funny clips ended up not recording, we had use extra footage to make it still look finished.  What I would do differently next time is to possibly take on more of a leadership role and step up when the group needs it and speak my mind. If something isn't working, we need to talk to each other about it instead of telling someone else because it will always get back to someone but twisted into a rumor. I liked how my group banded together in the end and worked together despite the drama and that shows maturity. 

vector project

Pre Production 

To start out with this project, I had to choose a picture to vectorize. I ended up choosing a picture of my grandma's dog. I imported the picture, and took it to Adobe Photoshop. In Photoshop, I used the posterize filter to separate the differences in color clearly. This allowed me to make more specific shapes that would eventually make my portrait look better. Then I imported this updated picture into Adobe Illustrator. When I started in Illustrator, I had to make two art boards, both of which would have my picture on it. One of them would have a decreased opacity, and would be the one I trace over to create my vector. The other picture was simply used for reference, and to grab colors for my vector.

Production

The second I started the project, I jumped right in. I decided to outlined the dog and some of his bigger features such as the nose and eyes. I then started making the triangles. This was time consuming but easy and relaxing. I would do a big chunk of triangles then color them by using the eyedropper tool from the original photo. The triangles couldn't be too big but I also didn't want to go so detailed that it lost it's touch. During the making of this project, I got a lot better with the pen tool. Drawing shapes and tracing is much easier for me and I can use the tool with great accuracy. I also had to use my layers a lot, especially in coloring the triangles. You had to do a lot of searching through the hundreds of them in order to get the shape colored. For my final product, I was hoping for a playful sort of unrealistically realistic. I wanted it to look like the dog, but also be creative, out of the box, and even almost unrecognizable. I think I did a good job accomplishing my goal.

Post production

In the end, I am very pleased with my final product. I put in a lot of time and effort in order to get my project finished, and I think it was definitely worth it. If I were to continue to perfect this piece, I might have gone back and made sure my colors were precise and maybe make the triangles a little smaller. This project was very fun and relaxing for me. I liked being able to come into class and sit and make triangles which helped me clear my mind. 

music video

Pre production 

The second we were assigned this project, and got into groups, Caitlyn said we were doing "Stressed Out". That made pre production definitely easier and it looked like a fun music video to shoot so we were all happy. We worked for the first week in class on getting everything planned out. Completing the beat sheet, etc... Our group was on top of things so it wasn't too hard. We assigned roles based on what we wanted to do, out group was very relaxed with roles because we all had good input and wanted to be heard. One week after the project was assigned, we started filming. We wanted to get our filming done quickly so we could get ahead on the editing because we knew we would need a lot of time. And thank goodness we did! Editing took nearly the entire time, as we had a shots and takes and had to do some effects later down the road. 

Production

When we were filming our music video, we really had no issues. The weather was bad, but our actors toughed it out and were awesome! We only took two days to film. We filmed all the outside scenes after school in our friend, Kenia's, neighborhood. We then shot all the inside scenes at Andrew's house. We took a lot of shots and takes and made sure we had plenty for cutting and trimming which ended up being a good thing. We got all the shots we needed and they were all great quality!

Post production 

The editing process for our video was pretty easy. Almost all of the editing we had to do was just sequencing our shots and making sure they lined up correctly with the audio. This was not a challenge because we had Alex lip syncing to the actual song so everything was already the right tempo and all we had to do was trim a bit. When we were nearly done with basic editing, Andrew got to work making Alex's eyes appear red in the last couple shots. We also had to color correct a bit, for example, making the green screen black. 

Conclusion

As a whole, our entire group did a great job at working together. We communicated a lot with each other in order to be productive and end up with our outcome. We had to have some people take charge to keep our group on track, especially during the dull moments of editing. Overall, if I were to do this project again, I wouldn't change a thing. I think we worked incredibly well together and it was amazing end result. I am ecstatic with our end result. Looking to the future, I will definitely try to keep our group more on task during editing. All in all, this project was incredible and so fun to work on with such an amazing and talented group of people.

typography

 Pre-Production

When deciding what quotes I was going to use, I knew from the beginning I was going to use at least two Shawn Mendes quotes. I ended up using three Shawn Mendes quotes and one Win and Woo (another artist I listen to) quote. Our quotes were supposed to in some way correlate to us and at that point in time, I really could relate to them. I spent a really long time looking for fonts. I went through DaFont.com and downloaded tons of fonts I liked and then later went through and experimented with them. I ended up staying away for the most part from grunge-like fonts because my lyrics had more of a decorative and fun vibe. 

Production

During this project, I definitely improved my illustrator skills. I got way more comfortable with changing the tint and shade of the color. I learned how to warp a shape, which I did so on my Chicago skyline. I learned how to take the creative image in my head and pump out a result, nearly identical, if not, better. I had to experiment with arranging my type. In the beginning, everything was more simple. But as I grew more comfortable, my designs became more complex and unique. On my last one, the Chicago one, I had a curved line of text, and then a line of text seemingly blowing in the wind for the lyrics "to blow this over". I for sure preferred my graphics in black and white. Having to add color was definitely a positive thing though because I had to get out of my comfort zone. But, my black and white graphics seemed more crisp and professional. 

Post-production

I am actually really happy with how my designs ended up. I put a lot of thought and work into these, and while I still like my B&W ones better, I am still proud. I truthfully can't thing of anything big I would change, except next time maybe thinking of graphics I could use with the text so the end result isn't just text. I learned a lot about my personal style and this was a really fun project!

 

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!