Typography for the DigiPak and Magazine

Typography

Choosing a font for any purpose is integral in shaping a way that the text is received by audiences. So, my font selection for my DigiPak and magazine is no different. Ultimately, I want to sustain the relationship between each and every ancillary product that I produce, but also relate it back to the image of the band. 

Firstly, I took to the Internet and conducted a font search because I was adamant that I want to use the actual font that my band use on each of their products; especially the font used on their album covers.  I found a website called "WhatTheFont.com" and ran an image through their font database. The website then isolated each letter (I filled in the letters that were unable to be recognised) and then I let the search run it's course. After about 30 seconds, I am greeted with a screen that displayed five fonts that were closely matched to the original image that I had uploaded.

Honestly, the five fonts looked exactly the same and didn't really have much difference to them. So, choosing the first font that came up (because naturally, I assumed that the first would be the closest match - I was right!) I then perused the Internet yet again for a source that would help me to download the font - as my Microsoft Office account didn't have the font installed. 

I found a very helpful website that allowed me to download the font for free, and after much reconfiguring with my Microsoft Office account and Word, I finally installed the font 'ITC Mendoza Roman Book SC'. 

After the installation, I then started to play around with the font on Word; changing it from italic, to bold, to a combination of both - all in an effort to see which style of font worked best.

I deduced that the most effective way of utilising the style of font would be to keep it simple: just normal caps. Although, the idea of using the bold caps adds my own style to the DigiPak. In no way am I just being "lazy" and copying the actual style of font used, because as I've said, I want to maintain the band image and that continuity of the relationship between the ancillary products - so having a completely mis-matched font would be inappropriate. Ergo, I am justifying my reason for utilising the same font and same font style. However, in order to continuously develop my products, I will explore the standard font style, as well as the bold font style and decided which one is more effective - who knows, it may turn out that the bold would be the most effective, but for now, I am rigid in my intention of conveying the  continuity between my products and  the image of my band.

Further Inspiration and Exploration

Aside from finding the actual font used, I decided to broaden my options in terms of appropriate font styles. I took to a well known font website called "DaFont.com" and began my search there.

As I am sticking closely to the image and genre of my band,  I only focused on fonts that could potentially add to the "dream-pop" and grungy appeal - for example, Typewriter fonts.

The first font that I found, '1952 Rheinmetall', is a Typewriter font that hones in on the grungy appeal of the band. I did like this font as it is in keeping with a simple Serif style that ties in nicely with the overall aesthetic that I am trying to convey, and I will keep it in mind for the development of my ancillary products - however, I am not entirely sure I am convinced by it because of the minute gaps in the lettering. Although, it's not a huge problem, but when trying to put together a cohesive and professional looking product, you would tend to stray away from any unnecessary gaps such as this.

In keeping with the genre of 'dream-pop', I researched alternative, "groovy" fonts that could potentially be appropriate for the DigiPak and magazine. I found a font called "Neon 80's", a style that has curved and smooth edges and is a Sans-Serif font. Overall, I almost like this look as it fits in well with the surrealist spin on the 'dream-pop' genre, but the font almost echoes a playful and jolly feel - something of which I am not really looking for. The band are known for their brooding tunes and if I were to use this font, I believe that audiences would get the wrong impression of the genre and the music itself. Without the Serifs on the lettering, it takes away from the edgy appeal of the band - again, something that I do not want to happen. However, on a positive, I love the continuity of the font - it is absent of any gaps (as compared to the font above) and offers smooth lines that could be appealing for the audience.

I moved on to explore the different types of font relating to the "Script" and Calligraphy category, in an effort to see the effect that widely alternative fonts could have in adding different meanings to the way in which the ancillary products are received.


Having thought I had found the most appropriate font style in "Bernadette", I quickly discovered that this isn't the look that I am going for at all. The font is too illegible and doesn't offer audiences ease when receiving the product. It doesn't work because the band name needs to be in all caps - this is to again, maintain the grunge-like appeal of the band, lowercase wouldn't necessarily work as it would look "too soft" for the image.

Alternative Typewriter (Inspiration).

As you can see, I was inspired to explore alternative Typewriter fonts to see if this was an angle that I was going to pursue in my development and exploration. Out of the two that I have evidenced, I am leaning more towards the 'Linowrite' font, as the 'Modern Typewriter' has an element of distressing - a feature that I am going to include on both the magazine and DigiPak - ergo, too much of this distressing element could look messy and inappropriate. Overall, I am going to stick with a font that has evidence of Serifs, as this small and subtle feature adds so much dimension to the cover - as my DigiPak and magazine shall not be "flat".

Magazine Advert Exploration

Cigarettes After Sex Magazine Exploration and Influence

As well as the DigiPak, I am required to complete another ancillary product that was either in the form of a homepage for a website, or a magazine advert. I have decided to complete a magazine advert in the chosen aesthetic for the secondary ancillary product.

Considering that Cigarettes After Sex are relatively new, searching for actual magazine adverts was slightly difficult, as they haven't been assigned to a major record label as of yet (they are a self-releasing band). However, I have managed to find posters that detail their Tour Dates that took place around the world last year and upcoming dates in 2017.

Aesthetically, the posters remain monochromatic; continuing on with the image of the band - simple, yet maintaining its "grunge" appeal. The one thing that I am influenced by is the simplicity of the posters, as the band have used continuity in iconography, such as the feather and hand; both of which have been used on album covers. If anything, in my final product for my magazine advertisement I will be keeping it relatively simple - yet captivating and presented in monochrome.

I really like the idea of the border that frames the poster, and I will experiment with and explore this feature as my development progresses. The reason why I am attracted to this feature so much, is that it adds a professional appeal; adding a level of quiet sophistication to the poster. When admiring the text of the poster, again, it is simple and sleek, but the actual band title is still in the same font over each poster evidenced in this post. Because of this, I will endeavour to find the actual font used by the band, or a font similar to it, and use it on my own product. Thus, continuously reflecting a relationship between each product (i.e. the DigiPak, music video and the magazine).

To the right, an element that I find works well is the transparency of the hand, as it acts as part of an overlay. In comparison to the poster above, there is no colour in the text. This is an element that I enjoy, but, for my product I feel like I need to have slight use of colour as this would then tie in the use of colour that I have used in my music video. However, this use of colour isn't going to be extreme, it will most likely be a subdued and dull colour, as not to detract from the image of the band or genre. My final product will take elements from each of these posters, such as the use of coloured text, the font choice, the simple overlay, monochromatic colouring and the border - to name a few!

A feature that must be apparent on my poster is the use of a barcode or a QR code. Using a QR code is a simple way for a modernised audience to connect with the band and/or social media accounts that relate to the band. However, that being said, I still want to bring out the authenticity of the band, and considering that their music isn't necessarily "modern", the QR code doesn't entirely reflect their "grungy" or "gritty" image. But, for the sake of a modernised world, the QR code could work really well. Again, I will obviously test and explore my options and determine which scanning feature would look best. The only issue that I see with using the QR code, is that because it is quite bulky, it could detract from the simplicity that I am trying to convey, but until then, I'm not dismissing the possibility of using it.

Aside from this feature, I will also need to include the publishing information, possibly information pertaining to where the bands music can be found i.e. on Amazon, iTunes etc., songs included in the album, ratings from other magazines (i.e. NME) and the album information and/or name.

Fundamentally, the main feature that is going to reel the audience in would be the title of the band, ergo, the aim is to make the title as obvious as possible, but not garish or inappropriate; because as I said earlier, they're relatively new, so the idea is to get the name out to mass audiences so that a major fan base can be established and fame can be gained.

Through researching alternative bands and their magazine adverts, I came across an advert for the band, 'The Verve'. The band are of similar genre and their music transcends into dream-pop and psychedelic rock. When analysing their magazine advert, it is clear that I can draw similarities between this advert and those for Cigarettes After Sex. 

Firstly, it is clear that they have chosen to go down the simplistic route by using a sepia toned photograph of the sky and just the title of the band and the best single from the album. The choice of different colours for the texts is relevant, as this would have been done so that the audience focus more on the name of the band than the text at the bottom of the advert. Choosing to have the bottom text in white, means that the audience won't be distracted from the bold text situated in the centre of the advert. This advert is evidence of how simplicity is sometimes the better option, in terms of engaging audiences, instead of bombarding them with information that they would more than likely skip over. Placement of the text is also very specific. Having the name of the band in the centre of the poster suggests (although a quite literal interpretation) that they want to be at the centre of attention and the band that you should be paying attention to. It also suggests the quiet and subtle confidence of the band, because by placing the name of the band in the centre, it suggests that they are comfortable with the position that they're in - in terms of fame. They're almost oxymoronically "loud" with their quiet confidence - but that's taking analysis to another level. 

They have strategically used the same font as seen on all of their CD's and the font that is specific and unique to their band. They've almost used the font as the iconography for the band, as this particular style of font is quite recognisable to their fanbase and any other audiences that may not directly engage with the band and their music. 

The choice of image is also very interesting, because if I were to relate it to the genre of music, the clouds and the sky evoke feelings of tranquility and ethereal power, as subconsciously, the audience could be led to assume that they could be the ones to experience these feelings if they were to listen to their music. Compared to Cigarettes After Sex, The Verve's advert includes the record label that the band is assigned to and how the album 'Forth', is available on vinyl. 

Ultimately, I have decided that simplicity is the best way forward and I will draw on elements from previous posters for Cigarettes After Sex, and experiment with different filters, such as the sepia toned photograph as evidenced in the poster for The Verve. However, as I want to create cohesion between all of my ancillary products, I am also going to transfer a distressed and etched look onto the magazine advert, as this is what will be represented on the DigiPak covers. 

DigiPak Exploration, Inspiration and Analysis

DigiPak Exploration, Inspiration and Analysis

Typical Codes and Conventions of a DigiPak

The general codes and conventions of a DigiPak and/or CD cover are as follows:

• Appropriate font and text size
• Correct and accurate register and language
• Barcode, publishing and copyrighting information (noted on the back cover)
• A continuous relationship between the band iconography and their product 
• A track list

Daughter, 'Not To Disappear' (Dream-Pop/Indie)

The album cover for Daughters, 'Not To Disappear' is not limited in its colour palette and features an amalgamation of pastel colours that have been etched and scratched to mimic a distressed look. There is no mention of the bands name on the front of the album cover, however, it is only on the back alongside the track list. The aesthetic of the album continues onto the back side of the CD case, but doesn't flourish with the same amount of colour as it did on the front - the look changes to a more subdued and grungy appeal due to the lack of colour. 

Considering the album name, 'Not To Disappear' and comparing it to the chosen aesthetic of the CD cover, could be connoted with the idea of space and the outer world, as the scratch marks and distressing of the paint morph into surreal shapes and lines, and a continuation of a deep blue follows onto the back cover. A solitary yellow mark could be representative of a planet or a person lost in the external world of space; perhaps mirroring an expanse of a subconscious - ergo, lost in their own mind. Having heard the songs on the album, this isn't a far stretch as the songs speak of identity loss and becoming lost in your own mind. 

The choice not to have the artists name on the front cover leaves a sense of ambiguity and could possibly draw the audience into seeking the artist. Having researched the other album covers for the artist, it is interesting to note that the artist doesn't present herself on any of the covers, but instead uses pictures of children and a swooping piece of fabric. I believe that the choice to do this would stem from the fact that the artist isn't looking for popularity and fame by projecting her image for mass audiences, but instead finds comfort in producing beautiful music.

Font size and choice is an integral part of any CD cover and DigiPak. The choice for a simple and sleek font on this CD cover conforms to what you would see on an album cover concerning an artist within the realm of the dream-pop or indie genre. The smoothness of the font and size is aesthetically pleasing and doesn't detract from the illustration on the cover. Although, the all-caps adds an edge of harshness to the overall look of the cover. Using a barcode in the bottom left-hand corner allows people to purchase the CD and also makes the CD eligible for sale. The CD also features the copyright and publishing information, positioned next to the barcode. This informs people of the producing and recording companies, and suggests that the CD could not be copied and sold for alternative purposes.

I am inspired to use an aesthetic like this as the distressed look of the album covers could translate to the intricate workings of a relationship. Obviously, the colours would change and perhaps lean more towards striking colours such as a deep red or purple, instead of using pastel colours. In relation to my music video, the aesthetic of my footage is gritty and edited with cool coloured hues and this was done to fit the genre of 'dream-pop' and the overall aesthetic of my chosen band.

My Bloody Valentine, 'Loveless'(Dream-Pop & Rock)

This album cover is considerably different to the aforementioned. Compared to Daughters album cover, this cover details more of a psychedelic element to it, reeling the audience in with a vibrant, digitalised magenta colour. It also features a very prominent image of a guitar, following the code and convention of a rock band. The tilt-shifted appeal of the CD cover offers a simplistic yet captivating image for the audience to engage with; with the bright colour being the central focus. 

What is interesting to note is that there is no capitalisation of any word throughout the entirety of this CD package; perhaps offering a cleaner and softer appeal to the look instead of utilising harsh capitalisation. The font is also smoothed and curved, and doesn't resemble any harsh fonts that you would typically find on a rock genre CD cover. Compared to the front, the back of the CD cover is a binary opposite colour; a pastel off-blue, yet. Considering that My Bloody Valentine is a well known rock and dream-pop band, the tilt-shifted glow of the guitar conforms to the genre of dream-pop, whereas they still maintain the iconography of the rock genre by using the electric guitar. Here, we can see a convergence of codes and conventions of two widely different genres. 

It is interesting to note that they haven't mentioned the album name, which is 'Loveless' and haven't included the barcode on the back cover. This could have been done because of a worldwide distribution; thus, the barcode may have been stuck on, instead of being included in the final print. Although, this is highly unusual as every single artist or band when releasing a CD must have the barcode, publishing and copyrighting information on the back cover. 

If I were to take inspiration from this CD cover, it would be the use of the tilt-shift, but no so much the glow of the iconography, as I feel this wouldn't fit in with my overall aesthetic of my music video - it would be too dreamlike and soft. In one of my previous posts, I included potential photographs (my own) that could be included on the DigiPak. These photographs were the hands of my mother and father and showed their wedding rings at the forefront of the image. Perhaps, I could tilt-shift that image and use the inspiration from Daughters album cover (the distressed paint and scratching) to lay over the top of the image. However, I would include the artists name and the album name on the front and the spine of the DigiPak - something that Daughter didn't do.

Still Corners, 'Strange Pleasures' (Dream-Pop & Psychedelic Pop)

This album cover represents both the psychedelic and dream-pop genre of the band, 'Still Corners'. The most notable feature of this album cover is the vibrant, digitalised colouring of the desert which has then had an overlay of wispy clouds added to it. This certainly adds an element of surrealism to the artwork. In keeping with their genre, the scripture that is used for the name of the band and the name of the album, is almost illegible, but is entirely associated with messy, handwritten font, again, adding the appeal of the "carefreeness" that is associated with the two genres. 

Inside the DigiPak, the track list is revealed. The track list is printed using a sans serif font and brings back the "put together" look of the album that was perhaps taken away with the almost illegible writing on the front of the album cover. 

There is a continuation of the psychedelic colour scheme that follows through onto the inside of the DigiPak and onto the back cover. However, on the inside of the DigiPak, it can be noted that the blue hasn't been consistent and has been replaced with a dull, deep red. This was probably done as the constant of blue throughout the entire package would have been overbearing and detracted from the track list that remains on the inside cover. 

The publishing and copyrighting license is noted on the inside cover of the DigiPak and can be seen on the lower left-hand corner of the inside page. To complete the entire packaging, the band have also decorated and illustrated the actual CD, using reference from the original front cover of the album. This is so that there is a continued theme and aesthetic and reinforces the psychedelic genre of the band. 

Although this packaging reflects the vibrancy of the dream-pop and psychedelic genre, I wouldn't include this much colour into my work as this doesn't reflect my own personal interpretation, nor does it reflect the mood that I am trying to convey in the video. The only element that I would consider taking from this DigiPak, would be the overlays. 

M83, 'Hurry Up, We're Dreaming' (Ambient Pop/Dream-Pop)

Upon first glance, this album cover uses dull digitalised colours, such as the magenta, green and cyan in a peculiar setting. Looking closer, you can tell that the colours have been through an overlay process in which the colours start to merge to create a sort of kaleidoscopic mirage, which in turn, reinforces and conforms to the ambient pop genre. The text is bold and obvious, immediately drawing someone to the name of the artist; the same can also be said about the album title. However, it is an interesting choice to take away spaces between the words and condense the title together. I believe this was effective and worked well because of the bold and regular font segregation, otherwise the text would have looked flat and unprofessional. When reading the album title, you are naturally drawn to the "Hurry Up" in bold and personally, I read it with a harsher intonation and emphasise this part of the album title. Subconsciously, this actually makes me want to listen to the album more and it's as if the artist is trying to usher audiences to "hurry up" and listen to the album. I tested this theory of mine on my parents and my sister. I asked them how they would read the title and they all said that they would definitely put more emphasis on the "hurry up" - so it wasn't a total stretch. The album cover in itself if entirely ambiguous and features three enigmatic characters that audiences would struggle to relate to, thus, creating an enigma as we wonder if these characters are prevalent throughout music videos or part of the band and it's image (used as iconography).

Looking at the back and spine of the album cover, the track list is clear and has a clean, professional look to it. The publishing information and copyright information is evident as well, as it is situated next to the barcode. If there was one criticism I could make about this album cover, it would be the confusion about the separation of the songs by the bold numbers in the middle. .

On the inside of the DigiPak, there are photographs that feature the band and their performances, as well as their logo. Since M83 are an ambient-pop group, they are commonly associated with everything to do with space and the outer galaxy and this is reinforced because of their popular surreal and ambient music. There is an image of a galaxy on the far right section of the DigiPak that continues onto the actual CD along with the name of the band. All in all, there is a clear colour aesthetic throughout the entire packaging and the artwork maintains its deep purple and magenta hues.

The only thing that really inspired me about this DigiPak and album cover was the dark colours that contrasted with the digitalised palette. Although, I have to consider my intention and the mood of my music video, and when considering this, I feel as if it would be mismatched if I were to use bright colours such as this. I believe that colours as vibrant and as obvious as these, would only really appeal to an electronic band, purely because of the high digitalisation of the palettes.

Purity Ring, 'Another Eternity' (Dream-Pop/Synth-Pop)

This is yet another album cover that toys with simplicity and pastel colours; both elements work effectively in conveying the genre of the band. The singular woman that is obviously suspended in the air evokes a feeling of the ability to dream, shifting through time and getting lost in the world of music, and upon hearing their music, I definitely agree with the latter. The sounds that Purity Ring focus on is that of an upbeat, yet oddly calming tempo with moments of surreal melodies; allowing your mind to wander. Dressed in a white sheer dress, the suspended woman reinforces the bands image of being "pure" etc. as typically, in Colour Psychology, the colour white is often associated with virgin-like qualities and the art of being "pure". Another notable feature to the front of the album cover is that of the rather obvious pink circle that is detailed with a range of intricate lines and patterns. A rather obvious observation that can be made is the fact that the band haven't included their name anywhere on the album cover and DigiPak - perhaps, as stated before, this was done as they want to keep their image "low-key" but still continue to make their music.

Turning to the back of the album cover, you are instantly drawn to the four symbols at the top of the cover. The only obvious one that I can identify is that of the moth located second to the right, the others are left totally ambiguous and could be considered the emblems that are used as iconography for the band and their fan base.

As always, the track list features on the back in clean, uppercase font; adding to the overall sleek aesthetic of the DigiPak. It includes the licensing agreements but also the location of the producing studio that seems to be in London. Again, the barcode is featured making it eligible for purchase.

In terms of representation of the band, the colour palette seems to relate to their idea of "purity" and the DigiPak is devoid of digitalised colours and features a pastel pink throughout. Looking below, the unfolded card also has the pastel pink colour, but it is obvious that there is a gradient or ombre effect to the colouring.

Personally, I really like this album cover and DigiPak, it remains simple yet I believe it holds deeper connotations that perhaps the avid fan base may understand. However, that being said, I don't think I could take that much influence and inspiration from this cover as is it a total binary opposite to what I actually want to produce for my own packaging.

Throughout the research of different DigiPaks and album art throughout the genre of dream-pop, psychedelic-pop and ambient-pop, I have gained a lot of influence and inspiration that I could include in my final products. 

Call Sheet with Times in M.V.

Call Sheet (with timings incl.)

Here, I have included a table for the 'Call Sheet' detailing the process of filming for my music video. Within this table there is also the information for the timing of the frames and when they are featured within the music video. It also includes the personnel that were involved in the filming, the dates and the specific time, location, the plan,

shot type and shot description.

Comparisons (Post-Edits/Edited)

Comparisons of the editing process 

Here, I have included screenshots of the comparisons of the raw footage and the edited footage to track my exploration through Final Cut. For each frame of footage, I toyed around with the natural shadows and highlights that were apparent and edited them so that it would suit my next step in the editing process: adding a filter.

With the intention of my music video in mind, I applied a colouring filter called ‘Luma Keyer’, that added an element of grittiness to the footage and enhanced the grey within the clips. The filter, in my opinion, made the footage feel surreal and dream like as although it enhanced the natural grey of the footage, it also exaggerated some of the blue and cool hues of the videos. With a lot of consideration, I have decided to stick with the editing choices that I have made, as I believe that the filter alongside the extra focus on the natural shadows and highlights made the intention of my music video clear.  

Aside from the filter, I also added the 'Letterbox' feature that completes the look of my final product and gives it a professional look; as seen on many other professionally made music videos. The ratio I have used for the 'Letterbox' feature is 2.35:1. 

Edit 1

Edit 1.1

Here, you can see that the filter brings out the grittiness of the footage and adds a cool hue to the visuals. The raw footage was too light for what I was trying to achieve, ergo, I sifted through the varying filters until I found Luma Keyer, which was the best filter for what I wanted in my music video. For this scene, I also modified the rate at which the video played, and slowed it down by 75% - this captured the emotion of the character more as it was in slow motion. (See Edits 1 & 1.1)

For the opening scene of my music video, I filmed a collection of old photographs that were of my parents when they were younger. Originally, the footage was incredibly light, especially with the reflection of the fire on the photographs. Adding the filter brought out the blue hue of the photographs and the footage, whilst also darkening it. During the editing process, I actually reversed the footage so that it was panning away from the fire, as originally, I had filmed from the fire and then panned over. Accompanying this, I also modified the speed again, retiming it to a 70% frame rate. (See Edits 2 & 2.2)

Edit 2 

Edit 2.2

For a close up camera shot of my parents, I knew that I wanted to film in a well lit area, preferably in the natural light. Travelling to Spencer's Park just at the top of my street was the prime location for this. We headed out at around 1PM as we were a little pressed for time, as the sun usually sets incredibly early during the winter months! With an initial idea of what I wanted in mind, I got the footage and when it came to editing it, I found that although it came out exactly how I wanted it; the footage wasn't right for the overall  aesthetic of the video. Thus, I took to Final Cut Pro X and added a colour corrector to see if that would change anything significantly - this was to no avail. It only slightly altered the colour balance and actually added to the colour, when I wanted to take the colour away. 

Because of this, I undid the colour correction and ran it through the Luma Keyer filter as well as the Letterbox feature. It looked exactly how I wanted it to, but in comparison to the rest of the video, it was still significantly brighter. I took to my friends and asked them to watch it, and they all said that it worked well because it was, quote: "a significant frame in depicting the raw emotion of the actors". They also said that the brighter colour contributed to the emotion that was being conveyed, and that I should keep it that way. After re-watching it several times, I toyed with the shadows because I still wasn't convinced. Tweaking the shadow balance convinced me and with the filter, the scene fits extremely well with the rest of the video. (See Edit 3 & 3.3)

Edit 3

Overall, I am still continuing to develop my editing skills and technique and it will consequently have a great impact on my final music video. Ultimately, my intention and goal is to evoke an emotional response from the audience - thus, I believe that the editing process is one of the most significant stages of development. 

Edit 3.3

Exploration of Transition Footage

Exploration of Transition Footage

This video documents my transition footage exploration as I play around with depth of field in my garden. The transition footage will be featured in my final product as this breaks up the video and gives the audience alternative frames to look at.

The test footage was incredibly successful and I have improved the way in which I filmed the transitions. I toyed around with the ISO and the Aperture so that I wouldn't have any noise in the clips. The footage came out crisp and sharp, and the blur and depth of field proves incredibly effective. I mentioned before that I would include slow motion editing over the footage, but for the transitions, I won't as this may detract from the clarity of the footage and could affect the effectiveness of the frames.

The first clip of the fence and the tree worked up until the point it reached the leaves - I wanted to see how well it would work if I had a nice depth of field but then blur it out at the end. It didn't prove as effective as I wanted it to be, so I filmed the same area again, but this time, letting the crispness of the leaves and the tree become apparent. The second time I filmed worked extremely well and I will test it out in Final Cut to see how editing the footage in different ways affect the meaning and interpretation. Moving on to the flower transitions, the second time I filmed worked well and the footage retained it's clarity and sharpness. However, the final time I filmed, I wanted to see how well the footage worked with me pushing the swinging flower basket and capturing depth of field. It proved ineffective and the footage looked messy as I was considering many different variables (i.e. the movement of the basket and controlling the focus and depth of field) - and I ultimately neglected the steadiness of the camera. Despite this, it was a useful exploratory risk that I took as I now know which footage and frames work best. 

I also asked friends and family which footage worked better and they all agreed that the second flower footage worked best, as well as the second fence and tree footage. 

First Images for the DigiPak

First ideas and images for the DigiPak

So, why hands?

In keeping with the overall mood of my final product, I decided to set up a photoshoot so that I may take photos of of my parents' hands and edit them using Photoshop.

I personally believe that the hands are the most intimate part of the human body, thus, it would only be natural to photograph them and use them as an exploratory idea for my DigiPak due to the nature of my music video and what it entails. Since these are the hands of my parents, I felt as if I should incorporate them into the DigiPak one way or another in an effort to complete a well-rounded moving image piece and it's additional marketing products - however, this isn't obviously the final decision I will make, I will explore alternative methods and/or images to include on the DigiPak.

Symbolically, hands are part of the human body that instigate the most interaction, they can be the forefront of expression, communication and intimacy. To further reinforce the intimate and romantic, yet brooding (only through the song does this element emerge) mood of my final product, to include the hands on the front and back cover of the DigiPak, seemed relevant and appropriate and ties the product together.

The rings are edited through the Selective Tool on Photoshop and edited through the process of using Levels. Considering the final product is being made with the intention to be a homage to a married couple, the rings are included and highlighted in the images to further reinforce the bond that the two protagonists share.

Editing Process and Image Specifications

F Number: f/5

Exposure: 1/50

Focal Length: 34

Dimensions: 6016 X 4000

TAKEN WITH A NIKON D3200

Editing the images was relatively simple and I already had an idea of what I wanted, as I was already influenced by the overarching mood of my moving image product. 

Opening the images into Photoshop, the first step that I took was Auto Colour, Auto Tone and Auto Enhance - these processes were used to bring the image up to its maximum potential, giving me a clear idea of what I would be working with as I further edit the images. Moving on, I then applied a monochromatic filter over the images, however, the filter was too flat and didn't bring out any of the details of the hands and the shadows weren't intense enough - the image lacked depth. In order to combat this, I opened up the 'Levels' tool and played around with the levels of colour of the images until I found the right balance that I wanted - strong enough to add depth to the image, but weak enough so that the image wouldn't be distorted and lost in the dark areas of the photo.

Once I had completed this step, I then used the sharpening tool to further enhance the details of the hand - this was to be symbolic of the intricacy of the relationship, and the harsher lines shows how "feelings run deep" between the pair. Everything that I did with these images were done with intention, as I felt that this would translate to the audiences receiving and engaging with the product. 

To add more depth to the image, I then chose the selective wand tool to isolate the background and diminish the rather "offensive" fluorescent lighting. After I completed the selection, I then went into Levels (again...!) to alter the highlights and shadows of the image - I completely eradicated all highlights and intensified the shadows so dramatically that in effect, it created a completely black background, ergo... mission accomplished! I achieved what I wanted to and it worked to great effect and fitted well with my original intention. 

Original image

Finally, to complete the editing process, I used the selective wand tool again and highlighted the rings on the fingers of my parents. With these areas selected, I then opened the Levels tool again and elevated the highlighted areas of the rings so that it would become more intense and become symbolic and reflect the intense love and affection felt by both parents. 

Audience Research

Audience Research 

This post will detail the gradual gathering of information starting by analysing the first responses I have collected. 

In order to gather adequate amounts of audience research, I utilised an online survey site to create my questionnaire. I chose the platform of an online survey as during this day and age most of the time spent by teenagers (especially my target audience) is online; thus making the process of collecting data quick and efficient.

My survey consists of 10 questions. The reason I stuck to 10 questions was because I wanted to gather precise and accurate representations/opinions of my intended audience demographic, and by having an overly long questionnaire, I lose the substance and information that I need in order to create a piece of moving image that strongly pertains to the audience demographic. In the first day that I advertised my questionnaire to my audience, I received 8 immediate responses. The minimum responses that I will allow is 15, the maximum is 25.

PIE CHART ANALYSIS - FIRST PHASE OF DATA COLLECTION
                                                                                 
The first question starts off simple by narrowing down which gender is more likely to be interested in listening to and watching an indie/contemporary R&B music video. I didn't send the questionnaire to anyone directly as this wouldn't have been an accurate way to gather my information; I published it on one of my social media accounts and I happened to receive exactly 50% male responses and 50% female responses. Whether this is due to chance or perhaps indicative of the interest of different sexes, is yet to be analysed.

As for the age, again, it is quite clear that my questionnaire has reached a 50/50 percentile as two age ranges are in exact opposition.



This isn't a concern at the moment as I haven't reached the minimum responses that I am aiming for. Again, because my song is a cover of a song by REO Speedwagon, I didn't expect the age demographic to be above the ages of 21, as the band that have done the cover of the song are a more contemporary band and marketed towards a younger demographic.








With my chosen genre already in mind, I gave my questionnaire participants a variety of genres to choose from, ranging from Folk to Heavy Metal in order to establish a real taste for the audience that are more likely to be interested in engaging with a text that is influenced by the Indie genre. Upon first observation, it is evident that my participants are more interested in the Hip-Hop genre with a 25% response rate with Indie/Indie Rock coming in second with a 12.50% response rate. However, as this is early days and I do not have the amount of responses that I wish to have as of yet, I am not worried in being deterred from creating a music video based around the Indie genre.

As I presumed, the majority of the participants are interested in seeing a music video with a clear narrative instead of being of didactic purpose and purely conceptualised. This is a great start as this is what I intended to do with my music video; follow a narrative that conveys the relationship of a married couple and it's gradual progression.

Considering that the original track is influenced by the Indie genre; I asked the participants which R&B artist and Indie artist they are more likely to listen to.

Not noting the genre of which the artist performs under was somewhat deceitful, but I utilised this strategy because I wanted to see what genre (through the artist) the audience would be more attracted to without any external influences of genre; I wanted their honest opinion, and honest research is the best way to get precise data to use to influence your product, which in my case is my music video. It is interesting to note that there is a healthy balance between R&B and Indie responses with The Weeknd being an R&B artist that gained a 25% response rate and The 1975 also gaining a 25% response rate. I don't put these responses down to popularity of the artist as I included artists that are extremely relevant to the 21st Century music industry. The reason why I included R&B artists was because although I am not using an R&B track, I am however utilising some of the codes and conventions found in their music videos. I am drawing most of my inspiration in terms of filming style and editing style from Bryson Tiller's music video for Exchange, where as I mentioned in a previous post, the music video utilises low-key lighting and a host of frames that are shot and edited in slow-motion: a feature that will be included in my final product.

PIE CHART ANALYSIS - PHASE TWO OF DATA COLLECTION (REACHED MINIMUM RESPONSES)

Compared to the first phase of data collection, it has become apparent that the age range has significantly changed as more responses are from a teenage demographic. This is a great response as my intentions are to market my music video at this demographic.

For my gender response, I obviously appeased more to a female demographic, as the response rate for female to male is 60:40. This will be very influential as my music video is intended to suit more to a female audience based purely on the fact that the song is in itself a love song, and the music video shows the progression of a relationship.

However, with this in mind, it has also become apparent that although females are the demographic that are going to influence my music video, I am not dismissing the possibility that a male audience are going to engage with my product, nor an older male demographic - this then fits with my idea that older audiences are going to interact with my product because of the relation to REO Speedwagon and their already established fanbase.

As I reached the minimum responses of 15, it has become apparent that there has been a shift in interest of genre. It is reassuring to see that the genre that has gained the most favouritism is Indie/Indie Rock, as this is the genre of which my chosen song conforms to. Here, I am specifically looking at the segment of the pie chart that relates directly to the responses pertaining to the genre of contemporary R&B and Indie/Indie Rock.

This is because as I previously stated, the song is an Indie Rock song, whereas my music video is going to be influenced by codes and conventions from the R&B genre. There is a response rate of 40% for Indie/Indie Rock and a 16.67% response rate for Contemporary R&B.

At the minimum response mark, audiences, like I wanted, responded to this question by declaring that
they would rather see a clear narrative in a music video, rather than a conceptualised piece or a video with a didactic purpose, however, this follows closely behind.

A clear narrative leads by 6% as a didactic purpose answer sticks at 40%. These responses so far are heading in the direction that I would like them to, as my intention of my music video is to follow a narrative. I believe that as I collect more responses, my audiences will be more inclined to vote for a clear narrative.

The responses that I have accumulated in terms of artists that audiences would rather listen to isn't as surprising as I expected. Considering that I used 21st Century artists to gather my information and all of them are relatively well known, I have concluded that it isn't due to popularity (as I previously thought it could be - further analysis subverts this idea), it is merely due to the audience taste. What is interesting to see is that audiences are more inclined to listen to an Indie/Indie Rock artists than a Hip-Hop artist.

This information will help me when creating my video as I can use this data to influence my final product, in the sense that my video will follow suit to a range of different codes and conventions from the Indie and Contemporary R&B genre. These codes and conventions will be influenced by The Weeknd's brooding videos and The 1975.

Finding out how often my audiences watch music videos will aid me in how to market my final product. Based off the information gathered from the artist that they are more likely to listen to, I will do further research into what music video that particular artist released recently on YouTube, for example. Then, I can gauge which video is the most popular by looking at the total YouTube views.

It is interesting to see that the majority response is that my audiences tend to watch less than 10 music videos a week, nevertheless, this information has a varied range of responses that offer data that can influence my final marketing scheme.





Considering that the 21st Century is ripe with politics and turmoil, I found it only necessary to include a question determining the political stance of my audience demographic. With help from YouGov.co.uk, I was able to see that there is a correlation between the genre of music, the artist and the political views of the audience that determines what music they listen to. The majority of responses gained were from people that live in Ilkley - a town that prides itself on being notoriously left-wing in the younger demographics - I cannot speak for the older generation as I don't wish to falsify findings. Having lived in multiple countries, I have been fortunate to have gathered responses from countries in which I've lived in the past - Bangkok and Dubai. As I can single out responses answered from a single person, it is interesting to note that my friends from Bangkok and Dubai are mostly centre-right and centre, with a few not having any political opinion.

FINAL PHASE OF AUDIENCE RESEARCH ANALYSIS (25 RESPONSES REACHED)

As I reach the final stages of my audience response analysis having gained 25 responses, the responses for the genre of Hip-Hop overtook the responses for Contemporary R&B, however, Indie and Indie Rock still remains as one of the top genres to listen to. With this in mind, I won't tailor the product to suit the codes and conventions of a Hip-Hop video as my intentions are to completely win over the audience that are going to engage with my product through creating a stellar music video for a song that doesn't actually have a music video yet.

My idea still remains the same in the fact that I will utilise codes and conventions from the genre of R&B, even if the song is an Indie Rock song.

As I suspected, my audiences are more inclined to engage with a music video that follows the structure of a clear narrative, rather than seeing a video with a didactic purpose or conceptualised.

However, this doesn't mean that I couldn't explore other alternatives for the narrative of my music video, as I feel that if I limit myself in this way, it would prove for an unsuccessful product - something of which I have no intention of it being.

In a great turn of events, The Weeknd gained more responses as I reached my 25 maximum mark. It leads with a 25% response rate compared to The Wombats and The 1975 both having a 20% response rate. I am pleased with how this question was answered as this is what I wanted to happen, now I am positive in how I am going to market and direct my final product as to satisfy my audience demographic demands.

Using influences from two genres will allow for more scope when exploring the effect of certain elements in my video, I can then evaluate these features in the video through the filming and editing process. As for the other artists, they were merely there to 'test the waters' for other potential influences - however, they didn't gain enough response rate to be a dramatic influence on my final product - hence, I shall still with the three artists that have been most engaged with.

As my responses progressed, there seemed to be a lull in female responses, however, this isn't a major problem, it does however slightly alter how I market my DigiPack and the overall layout and corresponding themes. This will be done to tailor more to a male demographic, whereas the video is mainly directed at a female demographic, the DigiPack design will be a compensation for the potential lack of interest in the music video from the male audience.

These results don't worry me in the slightest and I'm confident that I will try and reel in a male demographic with the alterations to the DigiPack design.

Gathering responses concerning the political stance of my audience have changed, as although a left-wing demographic still takes the lead, centre-right and right-wing caught up just barely. It is interesting to see that the majority of my audience are left-wing, this correlates well with the genres that were chosen - Indie/Indie Rock, Hip-Hop and Contemporary R&B. These genres are typically associated with lyrics that speak of drugs, sex and misbehaviour, topics of which aren't usually recognised by right-wing political parties, as they tend to promote more "familial values". Left-wing politics and music correlate well as artists that perform under this political stance are more likely to have a creative outlet and speak freely through their songs and lyrics.

This accumulation of research has been imperative as it has aided the direction of which I will market, produce and complete my final product, based off audience demographic research. Overall, I have determined that my target audience based off this research will be:

- Targeted at 17-20 year olds, whilst also trying to target older audiences that may engage with a cover of the song, originally performed by REO Speedwagon
- Targeted at both male and females, but altering the DigiPack design to reel in more of a male demographic

Video Production:

- Influenced by codes and conventions that conform to the genre of Dream-Pop/Indie
- Follow a strong, clear and concise narrative to meet the demands of the audience