Reflection on Online Immersive Websites Presentation

Online Immersive Websites

On the 27 April 2016 each person in the group was expected to produce a presentation on what they believe to be an immersive website. We had to conduct research to find 5 different websites in which fitted the task. Once all 5 websites were picked we then had to create a visual presentation and deliver a professional standard presentation. I believe that my presentation went extremely well on the day. I felt that I really understand what an immersive experience are now.

Researching I found interesting as you stubble across many weird and wonderful things. It was evident that some people used the same websites as others. For instance, in mine I used the Latvian Holocaust Mueseum and I think a few others did too. I personally don’t feel this was an issue as it must be affective and must showcase that it is a very engaging and immersive website. I wish looking back now, I picked some of the other websites I had seen when conducting research as people may not have come across them before.

I only used my presentation as a visual aid, there was only bullet points to back up what I was talking about. Lots of images where used within the presentation. I really took on board all the information gained in the previous sessions about how important it is to know your content, how to present well and how to create a PowerPoint slide which isn’t to heavy for the audience. This is my presentation. Click on the link if you want to see.

Immersive Online Experiences – Copy

The main thing that I feel stood out on my presentation was the fact I incorporated screen recordings. Each screen recording was done before the presentation. The screen recordings where of each website, I recorded myself moving around the screen, clicking and hovering over key parts of the website. This was done so that I didn’t have to rely on the hyperlinks and the internet connection to load each page. Especially, within the location we were in, is not a reliable space for internet connections and fast broadband. The screenshots allowed me to not have to jump in and out of the presentation, this allowed me to deliver a much smoother presentation with no hassle. There were limitations in doing this. It didn’t capture sound bites when on the website. The sound would have given the moving image more of an impact. This was not the end of the world because it allowed me as the presenter to talk and explain things without getting distracted. I didn’t feel that I needed a script or cue cards as I really planned out in my head what I wanted to say. I feel that it comes much more naturally when not using aids. As I had practiced I didn’t feel as nervous or anxious to do the presentation. Also it was a very fun task which made things easier.

I really enjoyed this task and the overall brief as it allowed me to full understand what immersive means. In the other section of the brief it really allowed us to use content we found interesting and produce an interactive and immersive online presents. This was really enjoyable and stimulating. I feel the research into immersive online websites really helped with this section of the task as it allows us to see first hand what has already been produced and what the most common elements to making an interactive website succeed and draw viewers in, whilst keeping them engaged with the content. Over the next few years I hope to carry on developing a creative flair to my work as it makes the work so much more alive. These skills learned will be evident in my work from now on because I have to consider, who and where I want my content to be seen. If it is done well then it will help me to become trusted and more well known.

 

Reflection on Brief for semester 2

Within this new assignment, I am required to design a document that celebrates and promotes a piece of writing that has been influential within any field of Journalism. This task allows me to be creative and choose a topic of my choice. The content of my document will be used to create typography elements, and generate graphics. Once I have chosen the topic I will have to contextualise the piece of writing and present information surrounding the events that led to the writing itself.

I will be using InDesign in order to produce the document. I am as happy about this as it has so many different features available, and I have also used the software before. In order to refresh my mind on the software, I will spend some time on InDesign. Also I will look at professional documents that have previously been created on the software. This will give me an insight into the different approaches and layouts.

When submitting my work I must:

• Have a body full of experimental studies, tradition design tests and digital design tests
• A final document, with all supporting research materials
• Evaluation document

Reflection on Mobile Journalism

Think 6 ps

• Purpose – What is the story, what is it I want to produce?
• Plan – who to interview what multi media do I need to use. Equipment needed. Wifi and editing tools apps in the field.
• Production – what apps need to be used.
• Publishing – Make sure wifi is available.
• Cross posting – what apps can you duplicate the content over. Getting the news spread
• Position – Maps or geo- tagging could it be useful to project.

To me as a Journalist this is incredibly important to remember as this will help to ensure that I am getting the news out sufficiently, at a fast speed and over many different pieces of multi media. This means the news can be seen or heard by the audience.

Key facts

• Make sure when filming your phone is horizontal (home button should be on the right hand side) This is because a TV screen is this way. People don’t view things up and down but across. This also helps to capture a wide view of the scene.
• Make sure the phone is fully charged and any other equipment. Loss of power means the news can’t be published or captured.
• lens can capture dust and get things on so make sure the lens is cleaned.
• Notifications can be a pain and disrupt filming so put it on areoplane mode.

The Independent Traders Struggles in Hull

On Wednesday the 16th of March, a friend messaged me about a Facebook message that she had seen. the was message was posted on that day by the owners of the Panini shed in Hull

 After, seeing this Facebook message, I thought that it was incredibly important to stand up for those who own independent businesses in Hull. I planned to do this by allowing them to explain how it made them feel, how angry they are and what the public think of the councils decisions.

The next day I prepared the PTC scripts, both intro and outro . I also rang the Council to try and get a quote from the based on the story. This would balance out the story and wouldn’t appear to be as bias. The outcome of the phone call was that the department I needed to talk to was closed and that I need to ring back in the morning. Before the phone call ended the woman on the other end of the line said that it would be doubtful they would want to comment.

Not long after the phone call, I went to spend a bit of time with my family and watched some rubbish on TV. As i got bored I then went onto the Hull daily Mail website and came across an article that they has recently published a few hours ago on the story, I planned to cover.

This was the Hull Daily Mails coverage – click on the web link to go to the article

http://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Shed-takeaways-sad-make-way-new-Caffe-Nero-St/story-28942380-detail/story.html

 

 

Reflection on Adobe Audition

Working with Adobe Audition.

When working with sound it is imperative to listen to what you’re recording If not you won’t notice the problems until you listen and it could be the thing that makes or breaks a product outcome.

When practicing with different mics there were different issues identified when listening to the audio back. The types of problems consisted of holding mic problems like movements, tapping on the mics and in general lack of practice. This can be avoided with more practice. Also noise problems were noticed as noise can be anything from wind, traffic, room noise etc. If an area is busy or noisy it may be best to find somewhere else when filming sound. This will help to create better high standards sounds. However, if this is an issue to find a different area there are noise reduction techniques on different editing software’s. For my project I will be using adobe audition/ Pro tools.

What to do if the interviewer is louder than the interviewee?

Can record separately using this software. Making sure the output that is capturing the interviewee is the most important as I may not get a second chance to record what is needed. Also waste time and could result I a bad product. I can dub myself later on and merge the tracks in editing.

As a journalist there are things I need to consider and look out for. Such as:

• The signal to noise ration – look out for handling noise and background noise.
• Stereo and mono. Need to know the difference. Important to understand the software.
• Find a bit of space (background noise) – highlight, effects – noise reduction – capture noise – print.
• Always wait for 20 secs before beginning to record. This is then your noise print.

Process to cleaning up a file/track

Firstly, open the software and go to file import – then select the files required

When the correct file is selected make sure that both channels on the track are open. To do this go to edit – extract channels – to mono files. Once do manipulate the left channel.

The to start manipulating there are many things you can do to clean up a track’

Highlight the parts of the track that are irrelevant or useless to the final product and delete

If a piece of sound is really loud. Select the track and go to effects and select the option normalise this will make all the track similar in volume

If a file is done by a Fostex mic then it is important to extract channels to mono files.

If a piece of sound is too quiet select the track go to effects and select the option amplitude.

Once the track sounds that of a high standard then it is important that you export the file. Save as a WAV file.

Reflection – Martin Bell

Martin bell OBE was well known for been an independent MP in 1997. He also was a former war reporter and broadcaster. In his career he travelled to over 102 countries and reported in over 80 of them. He is also a British ambassador for UNICEF.

Bells most famous war reporting was in Vietnam, Bosnia and many others. When broadcasting/ reporting he is well known for wearing a white shirt. The white top made him stand out from the soldiers. Bells journalist career became prominent in 1962 when he joined the BBC as a reporter. This was local news. After a few years Bell moved to London.

He challenged the style of embedded journalism. Embedded journalists would have worn the same of the soldiers to blend themselves in. This is dangerous in itself, I believe that Bells technique was really brave as it made him stand out more. This could have made him an easier target. Embedding reporters is really common in conflicts and to break that style can be incredibly powerful and make a name for the reporter. Bell is a great example of that. In order for him to adopt this style of broadcasting he had to have a translator and a camera man. This meant that there were few people involved and so that he could understand the different language barriers.

Martin Bell often revert his reports back to people giving the situation a human outlook on what was happening. This was often what we don’t see back home. For instance, whilst reporting in Bosnia at the village of Ahmici, He shows viewers families, children and friends. This made the reporting much more personal and gave the report a humanised element. This for me provokes emotions in others as that could have been there children or families. It really makes you think about those close to you. As well I think bell touches upon those ideologies of moral panic. This is seen within the reporting as it also showed how many people were affected by conflict, soldiers on battlefields and military forces, people firing weapons and destroyed buildings.

In the session we watched a YouTube video. It was an Interview on Martin Bells career at The Frontline Club, 2011. There where interesting facts and really told the hardworking man’s long career.

Martin Bell revealed that the first story he did wasn’t the best as he didn’t take it serious. He mentioned how he would spend all day writing and working on a 60 second script so he could report back to viewers what was happening. When he was given his first assignment in Vietnam, he stated he didn’t show any Vietnamese civilians and only showed one side to the action. Only the American military were showcased.

Later on in the video he talks about his guilt as he blames himself for one of his translators been killed. He feels the guilt as he got the young man involved in his work. Personally, I wouldn’t blame bell at all the young man knew the harsh and dangerous world he was involved in. it was just a horrific tragedy.

As a practitioner of becoming a journalist, I feel Martin Bell is a good inspiration as he showcases that you can stand out from the crowd and achieve if not more than others. His style is admirable as he pushes the boundaries and takes risks. Bell really gets close to the action on what he is reporting this meant that he could give the latest of what’s happening. He also showcase that you can have a long and successful career if you work hard.

 

Reflection: Grammar Test Results

When doing the grammar test, I got some answers correct and others wrong. For each section completed I got different percentages.

Section 1: The Story of Journalism = 10 out of 10

In this section I found the questions simple and got them correct I guessed the fourth, eighth and the final answer but I just went with the answer I thought was correct and it paid off.

Section 2: How the Newsroom works = 8 out of 10

In this part of the quiz, I thought that it was challenging. It was challenging as some of the sentences in my opinion didn’t make sense. I got question 7 and 9 wrong in this section.

Section 3: Newswriting basics = 8 out of 10

In this section I found the questions simple and got most of them correct. The ones I got wrong was questions 7 and 10.

Section 4: Reporting basics = 7 out of 10

In this section I got three of the questions wrong- for instance; I put affect instead of effect, I put stationary instead of stationery and lay instead of lie. By getting these wrong I realised exactly where I went wrong and what I need to revise when doing a written piece of work.

Section 5: Covering the News = 7 out of 10

In this section I got three of the questions wrong. I feel this was more challenging than the others and got questions 1, 9 and 10 wrong. From going back over the questions I still don’t fully understand the phrasing of the information therefore had to make a response, which I didn’t get correct.

Section 6: Beyond Breaking News = 6 out of 10

In this section I really struggled and it took me a lot longer to answer each question. I feel this was my weakest area as I wasn’t fully sure where the commas needed placing within each sentence. The parts I got wrong where 1, 7, 8 and 9.

Section 7: Law and Ethics = 6 out of 10

In this section I really struggled and it took me a lot longer to answer each question. I feel this was another weak performance of mine. I just don’t fully understand how to word things properly within a sentence. This is something I need to revise and practices.

Section 8: Online Reporting = 8 out of 10

In this section I felt fairly comfortable with when whom and who should be used. I only got 2 wrong which was number 6 and 8. This is definitely something I need to make sure I’m writing correctly within my own practices.

Section 9: Broadcasting Journalism = 6 out of 10

This was challenging to say the least, I got confused over apostrophes and if S’s where needed after some words. As I found this really challenging I will speak to my tutor and see if there are any revision guides for this area of grammar. I got 2, 3, 5 and 6 wrong.

Section 10: Public Relations = 8 out of 10

This was fairly difficult and guessed on most of the questions. Sentence structuring is challenging for me and something I need to work on. I got 1 and 6 incorrect.

Overall I got 74% in the full grammar quiz, which is definitely better than I thought I would get. I wanted to try and make sure I gave every answer a response. Even if it was a guess. I feel that my writing aspect of the course is lacking and I need to keep revising and practicing the basic skills. I need to work on my homophones as I tend to get mix up and struggle getting them down correctly.

VT Package – Statement of Intent

I have finally decided that I am going to focus on the new boxing club opening up in Hull. This is because I feel that it is off local public interest as the sports scene in Hull is so hugely successful and important to people. I also feel that there is so much I could do with the story.

• PTC or Voice overs
• Interviews with trainers and people that attend the club
• General views – foot work, punch shots, slow motion shots etc.
• royalty free music to add emotions/ tension

I also think I could produce a good high quality product. I need to book out equipment in order to get quality sound and footage. I will be using Canon camera from 60D to 1200D. Sound I will be using a zoom Dictaphone, shot gun mic which also requires a XLR cable.

Just after, I picked this story, i got a tip of from a friend that tied in with my other original idea about independent traders struggles on the lead up to the Hull City of Culture. I know that this tip off is very newsworthy and I can cover the story to a high standard

Potential Newsworthy Stories

Before deciding on the topic I am going to do for this task. I brainstormed a few potential stories and who I may want to interview for each one.

Hull City of Culture 2017 

There is a lot of things happening on the build up to the city of culture 2017. This could be an idea as it is informative and very newsworthy for local broadcasts. If I was to do this then I would contact the council to do a sit down interview on what is currently happening and what the expectations are in the next few months. Also Vox pops make the story more humanised as it shows the emotion running through local’s minds. Footage could be of the renovations of the city, blue prints and expected outcomes. Work men on work sites around the city developing what will be a modernised and better design.

Independent shops and business struggles

This was an idea as the independent coffee shop in the town centre has closed down due to lack of business and competition from other big named branded shops. Only a few months after the coffee shop did an interview speaking about the success of the business, it goes complete out of business and shuts down. Interview would be with the owner of the independent cafe and competitors in the market. Vox pops would add public’s views on what their preferences are – whether there more inclined to use branded shop in comparison to independent stores. Why they have this opinion and what they would like to see more of in terms of shops/businesses.

New boxing club opening up

This will be a VT package on a boxing club that has just opened and what they hope to achieve. Interview will be of the coaches speaking about what the club brings to the community and why boxing. Footage will be of the kids training inside and outside of the ring. General views, close ups will be seen within the video. I believe this one will make the best edit as there is so much that I could do with it.

By having options I can make a decision based on everything, I will look at accessibility, impacts, target audiences, what people in the city want to know and which I think I could do the best job at.

Reflection – Interactive Storytelling Software’s

As a part of my current assignment it involves me putting some research to different online sources that can help to create interactive and immersive stories. Some of the different sites I’ve looked at are:

Klynt

My first thoughts when first going onto the http://www.klynt.net/ website were positive. The website looked really clean and of a high professional quality. The navigation was simple and easy to use, the navigation and the content makes it user friendly. However, all isn’t great to use the software it has an expensive price of £370. This website/software rated as a really good website to use and one of the best. Lots of professionals use this.

If I was to get the software I could get the special education Klynt Edition available at a much better rate, it would be a one off payment of £36. This is much more accessible for students who don’t have a lot of money. Before buying the software I have signed up to a free trial to see how I get on with it.

After having a bit of a practice on it, I personally thought it was hard, I watched tutorials from the website and this explained what to do in a fairly simple way.

Storehouse

To be honest when going on the www.storehouse.co. Website I was less than impressed. To be honest I don’t feel this is the right interactive storytelling software for my project. It focuses on the video and photography sides of things to create a story. In order to use this software, you have to download it onto your computer which takes time and is not compatible with all models of computers. There was an issue when using my windows Toshiba laptop. It came up with an alert saying that the software wasn’t available. However when using my apple laptop I was able to download it. Once I had I didn’t think much of it and ruled it out to use for this task.

Racontr

To be honest I was quite impressed with first look. www.racontr.com. It was easy to sign up to and fairly simple to navigate around. I found it very interesting what the software has to offer, on here you can create a variety of things that include long form, web documents, interactive videos and animated data. This software looks like it could be an option for my assignment however, feel that I would have to spend a fair few hours to get to grips with the software.

Interlude –  www.interlude.fm.

This software is limited as it focuses on creating interactive videos. This is not the storytelling software I want to use for my assignment.

Explory- www.explory.com.

This interactive storytelling software is really simple as you can merge the uses of text, music, videos and images. I do think that it is simple and the limitations to using it means that the professional standards are put at risk. This I would use for a much more informal style of work.

Twine – www.twinery.org.

“Twine is an open-source tool for telling interactive, nonlinear stories.” I thought that the level of access was great you could download it, for both Mac and Pc or simply use it online. This was great for accessibility. However, I just didn’t understand the software at all it was confusing and there isn’t much guidance on how to use it. I don’t think I will be using this software for my project.

Line – www.line.do/ww – timelines.

Personally I feel this software will be ideal for my assignment as it focuses on creating timelines. My project focuses on Malala and to truly understand her you have to understand her background and what’s happened in her life since.