What have I learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

http://prezi.com/lw2cjux5jtke

To create my final product, I have used Adobe Photoshop. My teacher has guided me on how to use the software, however I have used online tutorials and YouTube videos to assist me when I am struggling without my teacher. Whilst using Adobe Photoshop, I have learnt how to use the Polygon Lasso Tool, the Magic Wand Tool, the Quick Selection Tool, the Brush Tool and many more. I have also used image adjustments such as Levels, Contrast and Brightness to edit the images that I have used, to give them a more professional look. Therefore I have increased my technological knowledge by studying media and using Adobe Photoshop. I have used Adobe Photoshop on my front cover, my contents page and my double page spread, and without it I would have to find a different software, such as Microsoft Publisher, which isn't as professional or or as easy to use as Adobe Photoshop. Therefore my product wouldn't be as high quality, and would look less professional.

www.blogger.com is the website I have used to store all of my planning, final product and evaluation. It is very useful as it can split each piece of work into categories, make it easier to read and make sure that I have done everything. Blogger supports many imbedded file formats, such as video, GIF, Powtoon, Prezi and Go Animate, which are what I choose to use when evaluating my product. Blogger also stores all of my work online, so that if I was to lose my USB stick or my laptop was to break, I could still access my files. Blogger is ran by Google, so is very reliable. Without Blogger, I would have to print my work to get a physical copy, however these could be easily lost.

The camera I used is the one on my phone, which is a Samsung Galaxy S5. The Samsung Galaxy S5 has a 16-megapixel sensor and f/2.2 lens with a equivalent focal length of 31mm, which is very good for a phone camera. The images I have taken with my phone are in full HD, which makes both my college magazine and my music magazine have a professional finish. The images are placed onto a micro SD card in my phone, and then transferred through a Samsung cable onto a computer for editing on Adobe Photoshop. Without my phone, I would borrow a camera from my college, which would take images in the same HD quality.

I have used Microsoft Powerpoint and Word throughout the creation of my work. Such as during the planning, with the music questionnaire which was created on Word, and the results were edited on Powerpoint. In the evaluation, I have used Powerpoint to answer the "In what ways does my media product use, develop, or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?" evaluation question. Without Powerpoint, I would use online presentation sites such as Powtoon and Prezi, which are similar but not as user friendly.

I have used different hardware in order to store my work, such as a 32gb micro SD card (to store the images in my phone) and a 16gb USB stick (in order to transfer files from my home to college and vice versa. A negative to this is that they are easy to lose, and without a back-up, I would have to redo all of the work I have lost. Without these, I would have to use online sites such as Dropbox. These aren't as reliable, as without an internet connection, I wouldn't be able to access my files.

I have made a GIF of my final product so that it shows my work one after the other. A GIF is a collection of images put together to make a video like file, however it does not have sound. GIFs are easy to make, and increase the professionalism of my blog, however they are not essential. Without the use of GIFs, I would put the images on my blog in the correct order.

In my final evaluation question (looking back at my preliminary task, what do I feel I have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?), I have used iMovie to answer it, as well as writing a short essay. iMovie is a very user friendly, video editing software created for Apple, for Apple products. I have used iMovie on my iPad to edit images and voice recordings into a video clip. I then uploaded the video clip onto YouTube, and imbedded it onto Blogger. Without iMovie, I would have to use a different video editing software such as Wondershare, which is not as easy to use, and does not include the more professional options that are available on iMovie.

In conclusion, I have increased my technological knowledge by studying media and constructing my product. This is by using different software to plan, edit, and evaluate.