Final Skills Audit

AS Media Production: Final Skills Audit Print Production

 

Name: Emma Nesham                           Tutor group:1.16                 Date:17.04.13

 

Photographic Skills

Which of the following photographic features/equipment have you used on a camera before:

 

Feature	Yes	No	Comments if yes – where have you completed this skills and to what level
Manual Focus features	x		I used this when experimenting with aperture as I needed the camera to focus on the right area of the image. This can be seen in my blog post on the 15th January 2013. I think I completed this to a good level as I have effectively shown different depths of field.
Shutter Speed	x		I did this when completing work based around experimenting with shutter speeds to capture movement. This can be seen in my blog post from the 18th October 2012. I chose to capture movement of lights as the imager was very appealing and I successfully altered my shutter speeds to capture different amounts of movement.
Aperture control	x		I completed a blog post based on aperture control on the 15th January 2013. I think this was one of my most successful experiments as it is clear what I was trying to achieve and you can see the difference between the F. Numbers and how they affect an image. I also completed this skill in my photography coursework by focusing on textures which meant I adjusted the aperture to ensure the area I wanted was in focus.
Continuous shoot made	x		I learned this skill when capturing movement. I have completed a blog post on this method on the 17th January 2013. This method is helpful when capturing fast movement as a number of shots are captured quickly so that the entire scene is captured.
A tripod	x		I have used a tripod when taking images which required a fast shutter speed. I have mainly done this when completing my photography coursework and taking panoramic shots. To do this I used a fast shutter speed and turned the camera around while on the tripod. This meant that the camera was kept steady and in the same place to ensure I could put all of my images together to create a panorama.
External flash	x		When completing my photo shoot for my unit 3 product I used an external flash. This is the only time I have used external flash and I was pleased with the effect. Most of my images turned out well and my images can be seen in my unit 3 product.
Self timer facility	x		I have used this setting when taking images that I wanted to include a specific subject at a particular time. This setting is often used when taking portraits or when the photographer wants to be included in the image.
Light meter		x
Composition grids	x		I often use the composition grids on the camera so that my images look attractive to the viewer. Composition grids are especially helpful when taking images using the rule of thirds as they help to ensure the subject is correctly positioned in the image. I completed a blog post focused on photo composition on the 8th October.

 

Photoshop Skills

Which of the following features of Photoshop have you used before:

 

 

Feature	Yes	No	Comments if yes – where have you completed this skills and to what level
Text control	x		Inserting text was very important in creating my unit 3 front cover. I downloaded fonts from the internet and was able to control the spacing between the lines and characters using photo shop. I was also able to control the colour to fit my colour scheme and it was important to choose a font which fitted the style of my magazine.
Filters	x		I experimented with Photoshop filters to see what effects I could create. A lot of the time I felt the image looked more effective without the filters but I have used them and am able to adjust the strength of the filter on the image.
Brushes	x		I used brushes when creating a CD cover which can be seen in a blog post from the 29th October 2012. I think brushes can be very helpful when creating media products and I also used them in my final unit 3 product. You are able to see small flower shapes in the baseline of my front cover which I created using the brush tool.
Layers	x		Creating new layers and being able to use them is very important in Photoshop. On my Unit 3 product each element had its own layer which meant it could be edited individually. I also use layers a lot when completing my photography coursework to manipulate images in different ways.
Opacity control	x		I think that opacity control can look very interesting and I used on my unit 3 product. I slightly adjusted the opacity of my elliptical text boxes so that they fitted the style of product I was trying to produce. I think this looks successful as it creates a softer, more professional effect.
Shape creation	x		I created shapes when completing my Unit 3 product. This was for things such as text boxes was important cell lines are often enclosed in coloured shapes. In my product I think this worked successfully as I made sure that the colours of the shapes matched my colour scheme.
Brightness and contrast control	x		I have used brightness and contrast controls a great deal throughout my media and photography work. This is because when taking photos using a digital camera they often have a slightly grey effect to them. By adjusting the brightness and contrast it gets rid of this grey and makes the colours of the image more accurate and interesting. This skill is evident on most of my photos in my media work and on my blog.
Gradients		x
Load selection features		x
Feathering	x		I used feathering when completing a blog post on vignetting. I set my feather to 60px when using the elliptical marquee tool to ensure that the darker area of the vignette was not too harsh around the inner edge. I think I completed this effectively and it can be seen on my blog.
Colour curves adjustment	x		I have used the colour curves tool for my photography coursework. By using this tool I was able to create many different effects and adjust the colours of my images so that they had a very different effect to the original image.
Resolution setting control		x
Magnetic lasso, polygon lasso tool	x		I used the magnetic lasso tool a great deal in my photography work as for my final responses I focused on having only a small area of the image in colour. I used the lasso tool to select the particular area that I wanted then selected the inverse area and desaturated it. I was then able to change the hue of the image so that only the area in colour changed.
Cropping tool	x		I have used the crop tool a lot in my photos so that the most interesting area of the image is given he most attention. The crop tool helps to do this as you are able to crop out any uninteresting areas of the image which may distract the viewer. I think I have used this skill effectively in order to make my images more appealing.
Clone tool	x		I have used the clone tool to ‘cover up’ areas of images which I did not think looked good. I also used the clone tool to lengthen the image on my DPS so that my model was positioned better on the page. I think this worked effectively as it gave me more blank space to input my article and I think this was important for my DPS to look professional.
Retouch tool	x		The retouch tool was very important in editing images. For example, I used the retouch tool on my Unit 3 product front cover I needed to make sure that the chair my model was sitting on could not be seen. I used the retouch tool to edit the small areas out of my image and I think the end result looked very good.
Other skills Cross Processing         Vignetting               Spot Healing       Vampire Effect           Using the Auto Tone, Contrast and Colour controls	x         x               x       x           x		I created a cross processing effect in Photoshop by following a tutorial. This used the colour curves tool to give the image a vintage effect. This can be seen in a blog post from the 29th October 2012. It took me a while to get the effect right but I think the final result looks very effective and I could easily reproduce this effect on other images   As previously mentioned I created a vignette on an image. I created a new layer then selected the area I wanted the vignette to surround using the ellipse tool. It was then a case of selecting the inverse and adjusting the brightness. It was important to have the feather set to 60px or lower so the inside oval line was not too harsh. I think adding a vignette to the image looks very effective and can make images look more interesting. This can be seen in a blog post from the 19th October 2012.   In a blog post from the 15th November 2012 you are able to see how I used the healing brush tool to remove blemishes and red areas from an image. This was very simple to do and I was able to complete this easily to a good level.   Also in my blog post from the 15th November 2012 you are able to see how I followed an internet tutorial to create a vampire effect on a woman’s face. I did this by using things such as the burn tool to darken areas and was able to subtly adjust the colour o her eyes by changing the opacity of the paint brush. I think I completed this very well and my finished image looks very eye catching.   In my blog post from the 19h October 2012 I have shown how I have experimented with the auto colour tool in Photoshop. In my images in my unit 3 product I have also used auto tone as some of my images looked too orange. I often use these tools to see what effect they each have on the image before editing them manually. Sometimes using these tools adds to the image while other times it is better to use manual tools.

 

In Design Skills

Which of the following features of In Design have you used before:

 

Feature	Yes	No	Comments if yes – where have you completed this skills and to what level
Margin and column guide creation	x		I used the margin and column guide creation tools when setting up the document for my unit 3 DPS. After measuring the magazine I was recreating the style of I was able to input the values of the size of columns and margins that I wanted on my DPS. This tool definitely helped me as it ensured that all of my margins and columns were of equal size.
Inserting an image ID	x		I found it very simple to insert an image into InDesign. It was different to many other software systems in that you have to draw out a frame then select the image from your documents then place it in. This worked well as you could fit your image to the frame and I think this worked well for me. This is shown in my unit 3 DPS.
Resizing images in ID	x		I sometimes found it difficult to resize images in ID as you must resize the image in the frame. However I soon got used to having to do this and I think that my images look good in my unit 3 DPS so resizing my images was successful.
Text manipulation – resizing, rotation	x		I often manipulated my text for my unit 3 DPS in different ways. I had to adjust the size to the amount of space I had to fit my article into. Inputting text and adjusting it was fairly simple in ID and I think I completed this skill effectively.
Text manipulation – controlling kerning and leading		x
Text flow creation	x		Controlling text flow was very important then creating my DPS as I had to ensure that my text flowed between the columns very well. I think I did this effectively as this was a simple tool to use and helped my DPS to look professional.
Using transparent imagery in ID	x		I did this when creating my header for my DPS. I created the header in Photoshop and ensured the background of my document was transparent so that when I inputted it into InDesign the background could not be seen.
Shape/line creation In design	x		The only shapes I created in ID was a circular breakout box and white squares for my Polaroid-style images on my DPS. I was able to add things such as drop shadows to my white squares to make my DPS look as if it was made up of layers and adjusted the type of outline my circular breakout box had to dotted to make it more interesting.
Exporting to PDF from In-design	x		I learnt how to export my ID document to PDF when handing my final unit 3 product in. This was simple to do and I was able to complete this quickly without any problems therefore I completed this skill successfully.
Text Wrap	x		Text wrapping was a skill which I really wanted to learn. This was because many magazines have DPS’ where the text flows around the image closely rather than in simple rectangular columns. This was a very important skill to perfect due to the layout of my DPS and I think the finished result worked out very well and the text wrapping looks as if it has been completed by makes of a popular magazine which is the effect I hoped for.

 

 

 

Number of new skills achieved: 25, I had 10 skills at the beginning of the year

(compare with your initial skills assessment)