Camera training: Still Images

High angle - This is where the camera is placed above a character or object which sometimes tends  to make the object look smaller implying vulnerability or insignificance. 

Low angle - This is a shot is taken from below and it often shows how powerful a character is or it can symbolise something dangerous or someone at risk.

Over the shoulder - This shot is taken from the outlook or camera angle from the shoulder of another character. This shot is used to follow a person or place the audience in the position of the person they are focusing on.

Tilt - This where the camera has been tilted and this shot can be used to indicate confusion or sometimes it is used to insinuate a character having a nightmare.

Long shot - This shot is used to show everything that is happening in a scene as it focuses on establishing the whole location, allowing the audience to see all of the action and everything that's surrounding the characters or objects.

Medium close up - This shot makes the audience concentrate on the character or object.

Close up - This shot lets the audience grab attention towards the features of a person and look closely into the characters emotions. It fully focuses on the object or the character and only shows small detail in the background.

Extreme close up - This is used to closely identify with a character or the action taking place. This shot is sometimes used to denote horror in a thriller film.

Birds eye view - This shot is taken from a 'birds view' (high above) which attracts the audience as it is giving them a different observation of the action.

Worms eye view - This shot is taken upwards from the floor, it is mainly used to imply terror or anxiety and allows the audience to view events from a character's vulnerable perspective.

Questionnaire

NAME: Lauren Standley

GCSE’S RESULTS:

English Literature: B

English Language: B

Maths: C

Science: C

Drama: D

I.T: B

History: B

French: C

Enterprise and Culture Studies: C

Hobbies:

My hobbies include - spending quality time with family and friends, watching films, listening to music and reading.

Media interests:

Print Media:

 I enjoy reading magazines that talk about celebrities because I find it interesting to learn about the life styles they have, although sometimes in the media I do not believe that everything that is mentioned about celebrities is true. Also, I like reading TV magazines so I can find information on programmes I like to watch. Sometimes I prefer to access news on the internet because it is quicker and cheaper to find if you want to look into a subject that is happening on the news.

Radio Media:

The radio station I prefer to listen to is radio 1 because it plays a range of different genres of music; therefore it would suit anyone that listens to the station. I like most of the music that is played on radio 1. They also have a section called ‘news beat’ which is very informative as it tells listeners what is happening nationally and internationally. Also, I find the presenters entertaining as they always have something good to discuss and some shows include special features. Furthermore, they sometimes have guess stars on the radio and interview them and this engages me as a listener as it’s fascinating to find out more about these people.

Music Industry:

My favourite genres of music are – pop, rock and drum and bass. I sometimes access my music on the internet via YouTube. However, I mostly listen to music through iTunes.  I disagree with illegally downloading music. I think that if everyone started illegally downloading music it would not be good as artists and companies would miss out on money that they are rightfully owed, so it would be unfair on them. The music industry could influence the way you dress as people have idols and they want to be like them because they see them as role models, therefore they want to dress like them. People see how their inspiration is dressing and what they have, so they may think if they dress in the same way, they might get what their role models have. It could have an influence on people’s attitudes. For instance, if you listen to music that makes you happy, it can give you a positive attitude towards life or if you listened to deep sad songs, it could make you think about how bad you think your life is, resulting in you having a negative attitude.  The music industry could influence people’s aspirations by celebrities telling normal people to chase their dreams and having inspirational lyrics in their songs.

Video Games:

 I don’t really play video games but I know that a lot of them involve concerns in society, such as: violence and racism. For example in a video game called Grand Theft Auto (GTA) – In this game, you steal cars and this could result to violence in the game which they might enjoy doing whilst playing. Furthermore, girls in this game are not fully or appropriately dressed and have slim figures. This could have a negative effect on females because they may think that they need to have that ‘perfect’ body shape; this could lead to girls becoming anorexic due to eating disorders because they think they need to be like this. Also, main characters are usually men which could imply that men are better and accomplishing tasks than women would be.

New Technology:

I think new technologies, especially the internet have increased my understanding of the world because there are a large majority of websites that tell you information. For example, sites such as Wikipedia allow me to research topics in a lot more detail rather than just knowing information from my general knowledge. The internet has been able to educate me more closely about the things I’ve already learned about before. Moreover, social networks such as Twitter and Facebook have been introduced. These sites have changed the way we communicate with others as we can just log onto these sites and chat to people – our family and friends. It is also easier to talk to more than one person on these sites. Also, with smart phones being introduced, we don’t need a laptop or a computer to access these sites because we can do it via our smart phones. Furthermore, new technologies such as mp3 players and mobile phones have made it simpler to access music. Also as smart phones are portable, we are able to watch videos/films/TV wherever we are, even when we are walking. However, now that we have 3D cinemas, it has improved the film industry greatly by making films more exciting.

Television:

My favourite television channels are E4 and MTV because on E4 I watch Hollyoaks – my favourite soap. Also E4 sometimes show interesting films and also it includes several comedy programmes which are entertaining to watch. I like channel 4 because if I miss an episode of Hollyoaks on E4 I can watch it the next day on channel 4. I enjoy watching MTV as I like the reality programme ‘Geordie Shore’ because it’s hilarious and amusing. Also, MTV sometimes have award ceremonies such as the VMA’S and the EMA’s which I like to watch and it plays lots of good music – I often watch music channels if there is nothing I like on the TV. Additionally, I don’t mind BBC 1 or ITV because I like the reality shows on these channels. My favourite television genre is serial drama. Television programmes I consider memorable are Hollyoaks because I’m always intrigued to find out what’s going to happen in the next episode and reality shows such as Britain’s got talent because some of the talent you see is either outstanding, funny or so bad that you can remember how bad it was.

Feature Film:

 My favourite film genre is romantic comedy because I think they are really cute and humorous to watch and they make me happy but sometimes I find them emotional but I like that because I think that some of these films can be touching.  Three films I find outstanding are: ‘LOL’, ‘My sister’s keeper’ and the 'Final Destination' films. I think all of these films have excellent story lines, although they are all very different. In ‘LOL’ I thought that Miley Cyrus and Douglas Booth were both amazing at acting and the way the director filmed them together made me really focus on these characters. The soundtrack is great too, one of the songs on this film is one of my favourite songs ever – ‘Heart on fire’. Furthermore, the story line in My Sister’s Keeper is emotional and touching that it genuinely makes you think about your life and how you should appreciate everything you have and shouldn't take anything for granted. Final Destination is outstanding because it has a very clever story line and creates a lot of suspense when you watch it because you aren't sure how the characters are going to die or whether they will survive. I thought all the Final Destination films were very fascinating to watch. I prefer to watch films on television or on demand because I can be in my own comfort but I don’t mind going to the cinema, especially if I’m desperate to watch something new. My favourite cinema is Odeon because the staffs are friendly and helpful and the seats are comfy because you can lift the arms up. The cinema is also very big so lots of people can watch a film at a time. I like watching films in a group so after, we can all discuss our thoughts but I like watching films on my own because I feel like I can concentrate more on what the film is about.

Are you a media producer?

I have never produced my own media previously, but I think I’d love to be a professional media producer in the future!

Conclusion:

A media text that has changed my attitude towards me, my family and my friends is a book called ‘the fault in our stars’ because it includes many inspirational quotes and makes you think about how lucky you really are and how you shouldn't take life for granted. Life should be appreciated because it only comes around once. This book has taught me to think positively and treat my family and friends with respect all the time because bad things could happen eventually. Things can change quickly and not be what you expected. I learned that the world is an amazing place when you think of the simple things and go on adventures with the people you love.

I chose media studies as an option because the subject seemed interesting to study and I think that it will be exciting to film our own ideas for the thriller and the music video in year 13. In the future, I hope I am able to study media at university because I think I’d like to have a career revolving around media eventually.

Summer task

Introduction

Hey, I'm Lauren. Welcome to my blog.