Diary Entry 31/10/13

I have completed all the tasks that needed to be completing (excluding the current ones). And I am relieved that I have completed it because it was tough coming back and trying to complete everything. I learned that I should carry on with my time management and never mess it up because if I do I will fall behind as I did in the past week.

Diary Entry 27/10/13

I am back from my trip up north to Manchester where I was unable to do any work for my Media Coursework. I will look to complete everything from the previous tasks so it can be checked from my teacher. I need to upload everything to my blog which will take some time but will do so as soon as possible.

Photography Demonstration Tutorial: 22/10/13

Today I attended a demonstration session which taught me how to take the best pictures and what not to do. The session began with teachers explaining where we can take the pictures which is the Art building, but before we can go to the photo studio we were told that we have to confirm with the technicians and our media teachers to when we are booking the room. There are also rules we have to follow the main one is that no food is allowed which is obvious to know. Moving on we were told on how to take the photos and what you shouldn’t do. The teachers and also some former students gave us some advise; the mise-en-scene has to be appropriate, you have to have a minimum of four pictures and you must have high quality pictures preferably SLR cameras are the best to use which are available at college. The former AS students also gave us some considerations on what to do. The lighting must be good and visible because having a really dark background would affect the final image however if you decide to use a dark and abnormal lighting there must be a connotation behind it such as relating to the genre. Mise-en-Scene is important too and that is about the clothing, background and pose. They said it has to be different and effort needs to be put in these images however I’ve decided to go for a casual look and everyday clothing for my ‘models’ this is because it relates to my magazine and genre and I explained this in my pitch. The quality of image was mentioned vastly in the demonstration, they showed us the good and the bad and it has motivated me to have the best quality image I can possibly have.

Diary Entry-21/10/13

Today I have received another weekly task sheet to complete however I haven’t yet finished last week’s tasks as I was away for the weekend for a family occasion so I am a bit behind but I will catch up. In today’s media lesson I was unable to do anything with my blog since there was a power cut in college however that didn’t mean I did nothing in lesson, I used every minute to make sure nothing becomes chaotic with all the tasks I had. I then created a list of tasks to do and what day to do them. I began with the hand drawn drafts and hopefully 1500 word article. Another problem I will encounter on Wednesday (23^rd) is that I am going to meet with family which means I probably won’t be able to complete last week’s and this week’s tasks before then nonetheless half term is next week giving me a lot of time. But I want to complete everything ASAP and in the highest quality (SMART Targets)

Diary Entry-18/10/13

I am currently doing a survey at which font I should use for my 'Undiscovered' Masthead. Once I have made my decision on what typeface to use I am going to then complete my 2nd hand drafts. Also if I have time I will do a pitch for my magazine; still deciding whether to do a Prezi or a Video, a Power Point presentation is out of the question.

Diary Entry 17/10/13

In today's lesson I am looking to make my final decision on what name I should pick for my magazine and band. To do this I used survey monkey to decide the final decision. Then I will decide on a font of the masthead too using a font making website.

Diary Entry-15/10/13

Today I created a survey asking which band name would suit an indie band and a list of names that would be great to use as the name of my indie based magazine. I created a list but was tough to think of but in the end I am happy with my options. When I have access to Facebook and Twitter I am going to share my survey so people can answer it, similar to what I did with my preliminary task. I am going to check tomorrow night to see which option has the most votes and that would be my final choice.

Diary Entry 14/10/13

Today I received my weekly task sheet and have made a great start to it already having completed the first three tasks; Housekeeping, Blog entries and the SMART targets. I will hope to finish everything before the weekend as I am unfortunately away again. Also I have to upload my hand drawn drafts to my blog but I have to scan it first which I will do later today.

 

SMART Targets Update

Looking back at my S.M.A.R.T targets from week 1, the main target I set for myself was to manage my time management as it has been a massive problem for me in the past. This is because I used to leave everything on the last day to finish it which gave me a lot of stress and pressure. However I have followed my S.M.A.R.T targets because so far I have been completing everything set (Weekly task sheets). So whenever I am set the tasks I aimed to finish it as soon as possible so the following week I won’t have the pressure of finishing two weeks tasks in one week. I have been following this principle since the first week and it has worked a treat because now I won’t have the tension of completing the work on the last day till midnight. However there have been times when I’ve been away for the weekends but this time management has motivated me to finish everything ASAP. The smart targets have helped me know what to and how to manage my time but I have to carry on managing my time correctly because if I stop now it will come back to haunt me.

Diary Entry 13/10/13

I have completed all the weekly tasks; survey monkey analysis and hand drawn draft comparison was all completed this morning. This helps me because I won't fall behind and there won't be a lot to do when I get my weekly tasks next week because I don't have the pressure of completing last week's tasks because it's finished!

Diary Entry 11/10/13

I have completely finished with the preliminary task; drafts, Photoshop and evaluation are all complete from the preliminary task. Now before Monday I shall complete the Survey Monkey Analysis and the drafts for my actual music magazine cover, contents and double page spread.

Diary Entry-10/10/13

Yesterday I completed the preliminary front cover and content page tasks using Photoshop. I have a lot to learn yet but overall I am impressed with my efforts. I need to check with my teacher first before I upload it to see if it is valid to be posted onto my Blog.

Diary Entry 08/10/13

Today I uploaded the essay which I spent a very long time on in the research section and I am very proud of my efforts. Also I began my preliminary task of creating a front cover and contents page of my colleges magazine; Pulse. To do this I used the software, Photoshop. I similar software's but not Photoshop so it was fairly new for me. I finally got the hang of most features but practise makes perfect and it has to be once I begin my official and final music magazine cover, contents and article.

Diary Entry 07/10/13

Today I received my weekly task sheet that needs completing before next week. I have to complete a survey on music magazines that would help me produce my own music magazine. And I have to upload my pictures of my preliminary task to my Blog.  I intend to complete everything before the weekend so there’s no stress at the end of the week, starting with the survey.

Diary Entry 06/10/13

Today I have completed all the weeks tasks ahead of tomorrows deadline. On Friday the Go Animate was completed and uploaded the next day. For the podcast I completed it yesterday and uploaded it today and I also completed a draft of my preliminary task magazine cover and contents page but I still need to upload it to my blog and scan it tomorrow. As for the analysis of the two articles I have completed that too but again I still need to scan the Metal Hammer article and will do tomorrow so I can add it to my essay.

Diary Entry 03/10/13

Today I checked the task sheet from last week to see if anything was missing before I proceed. So from that I added an extra paragraph to my Prezi of Music Magazine timeline and also I managed to embed the Prezi onto my Blog with the support of my colleagues in class. Furthermore I created accounts on archive.org, a website where I shall upload my podcast, I have started writing a script already. And a Go Animate account was also created for my animation task. This will save me some time when I work on it tomorrow.

What makes a Level 4 Coursework portfolio?

As part of my coursework it's important that I achieve the highest grade possible so it could give me a real boost going into the exam. To do so I would need to produce work on time in the upmost quality. This would not only increase my grade but will give me a momentum boost ahead of the exam if I am to complete a level 4 piece of coursework. It won't be easy that's for sure but it's definitely possible if I follow this mind map (below). I would then be on track with the coursework and hopefully complete every task expecting a level 4 at the end of it, if not I will be very, very disappointed.

Diary Entry 01/10/13

Today I learnt how to analyse magazine articles which will then help me write up the analysis of two music magazine articles set for coursework. Also I was told that there wasn't much that needed improving on my essay on two magazines that we did two weeks ago so that gave me a boost and also more time to work on the other tasks set.

Diary Entry 30/09/13

I managed to complete the weeks tasks in time and with the lack of time I had I'm satisfied with the work that I've completed. However today I was given another weekly task sheet which I shall begin tomorrow starting with the podcast on the moonboards followed by another essay which has to be completed by next Monday (07/10/13). That's plenty of time and I shall do bit by bit, day by day and will hopefully be done in advance before the deadline.