Week 4 - online learning material

After doing this task I feel like I haven’t learnt anything new, but rather I refreshed my memory over the last couple of week’s lectures and labs. Despite this I found the task quite tedious and slightly irritating. This was because of the task itself, it felt like I was being forced into reading it which put me off quite a bit. If it was an optional choice similar to being allowed to download and view lecture and lab presentations, I probably would of liked it more since I would of went out of my own way to find the notes to revise and learn.

However I did like the layout and the choice of notes written down. For example, the use of the same images when the same subject is brought back up from past presentations will help me refresh my memory of that specific presentation. I also like the fact that an hour+ lectures can be summed up in a few, memorable notes.

I think the task information could be improved if it had some sort of emphasis or colour coding of the main points to help me remember the different subjects in each presentation. I think to further improve the information they could repeat unique events which happened on specific presentation days (jokes, YouTube videos, etc) but overall I think the task has and will continue to be an important asset for me.

A slideshow about an interest....

Team fortress 2

View more presentations from henolishous

Compared to traditional television and cinema culture, is online video a different or novel experience of media in everyday life?

When looking at the different types of media and explaining the experience of the two, there is no solid answer for this. When comparing old media (Television, radio) to new media (YouTube) it all depends on the user. If you ask an active YouTube user the same question he/she would most likely say that online media is the same since he/she uses it very often and they know a lot about it. Whereas if you ask a parent, they would more likely say it was difference since they may not be up to speed in technology and understand the capabilities of the internet.

For my point of view I would say that it is different to traditional media to an extent but also similar. This is because of the capabilities of the internet, these days you can pretty much stream/download everything which airs on TV, meaning almost the same experience can achieved though online video. I can also argue against that because of the effort needed to achieve the “same experience.” Despite being able to view the same materials online, the amount of interactivity needed for this is completely opposite than traditional media. Say you wanted to watch your favourite show, for traditional media you would have to wait a specific day and time to be able to view it whereas online video you could watch it anytime you want, the material may be the same, but the effort the audience puts in is different.

Nokia N8 ‘viral video’ advertising campaign

Nokia has currently released a new advertising campaign to show off the capabilities of the mobile phone, mainly its video camera. They decided to create a viral video of some action movies recorded entirely with the camera. I’ve watched both the videos and I actually think they’re pretty impressive for a standard camera phone. What the campaign is trying to show is that anybody can create good quality video if the user knows what he/she is doing. This type of advertising is taking a different approach than the standard advert shown on television. It gives the audience a bit of freedom, choice and inspiration, for me when I watched it, I thought in my head “I also like filming and video editing, if they can do it with a standard camera phone, why can’t I?” This effect encourages the audience to take part in the creation of viral videos, creating a media culture. Despite drawing the attention of media creation fans, it also shows them the full capabilities which this specific mobile phone can handle, so it also sells itself in the video.  This method of advertising may also be cheaper than the default method of using a television advert, a simple but effective advertising video, can be uploaded for free online (such as YouTube) , it can then get very popular and turn viral, (through the audience sharing it with friends and family)  effectively using the audience to advertise their product for free.

Overall I think it is a very productive, effective and quite a sneaky way marketing a product to an audience.

"Catch instants. Spontaneity, freshness”

This photo was my submission for the SPNP (Street Photography Now Project). My instruction for this task was “#53 Catch instants. Spontaneity, freshness” I thought this picture suited this instruction as it was something that happened as a surprise event at the Republic Club, I’m not exactly sure who he was, but he was a rapper, and his appearance, clothing and style emphasised the whole street culture reminding me of the project, making me jump in and take a picture at the spur of the moment.

I thought this project was a wonderful experience as it allowed normal everyday people with an artistic hobby to get involved and to get their work shown to different people throughout the world. This also works on people’s imagination as the guidelines for each photo are quite vague. This allows every person to capture an image which they can then respond to theme in their own way making potential masterpieces.

Not only that but this project also brings people with similar hobbies closer together, creating a social event worldwide. The project allows anybody involved to view and leave comments behind, giving people inspiration and feedback. It also gives people motivation to go out and capture unique moments which may only happen in their area, allowing them to share their culture and lifestyles of other people.

Overall I think this project is a very fun and interactive learning experience suitable for anybody who may have a slight interest in photography.

First week

First lecture was kind of strange, a little unorganized with the rooms and stuff. But I can kind of see what’s going to happen with each of the different subjects. I just can’t wait for the video production and animation modules. \o/