Do's & Dont's for photoshop

• Fonts - make sure there are two clear fonts as a a maximum. 
• Colours - make sure there are three colours as a maximum; they need to go well together. 
• Photos - make sure that the photos used are clear and in focus. they need to be the appropiate shot-size.
• need to folow the rule of thirds.
• barcode, date, copyright, title of the album, artist, record company etc all need to included. 

• Effects - there shouldnt be unnecessary effect used.
• Image - do not stretch the image!
• Text - do not place the text across the artists face.
• Fonts - use the appropriate fonts; dont just use them because you like it. 
• Photos - do overdo it with picture. you do not need to have photos on every panel.

Exmaples of Students work

Planning ancillary work - location

For the background of our images we have chosen a blank white wall as this combined with the framing (torso only) means we could replace the background with almost any image in Photoshop.

planning ancillary product - inspiration

Due to my experience with Photoshop and product design i have decided to create a product from scratch in terms of ideas for digital images included in my digipak and advert instead of finding an existing one and attempting to imitate it. Through trail and error as well as feedback i will see what kinds of compositions work aesthetically and which do not, and through this process create a final product.

Planning ancillary product - photos

These images are really well suited for use in a digipak or advert due to their very high quality as a result of good lighting, a high resolution dslr camera and a well focused lens, also the plain background makes them easily editable.

 Due to framing of the images there's a good balance between the visibility of the artists face and the visibility of what he is wearing.

 The images also include the artist's iconic hat in every shot, which is vital for the product.

 The use of technology in them is very welcome as the target audience of the genre is young people who consider technology part of their culture

The use of props makes the images more interesting visually

planning ancillary work - dos and don'ts

do - 

• use two easily legible fonts which compliment each other
• use no more than three colours (unless necessary) which also fit with your music video
• use good quality photos
• follow the rule of thirds
• make sure to include standard digipak markings and logos (barcodes, disclaimers etc.)

don't - 

• do not use too many effects on photos
• do not alter the dimensions of images
• use inappropriate or ugly fonts (comic sans)
• place text over important things (artists face)

Planning ancillary product - design ideas

fonts -

From my research i have decided that the fonts most commonly used in the 'drum and bass' genre will work very well in my product.

colours - 

Within the video the most common colour was an urban grey, however this is not a colour that stands out visually, nor is it eye catching therefore i will slightly desaturate the images in my products and try to keep with black/white, but at the same time i will add bright, eye catching colours to make the digipak stand out on the shelf. 

layout - 

This is an advert i really liked the design of due to its simplicity of layout which presents every bit of information very clearly while looking great at the same time.

Researching ancillary product - analysis of magazine adverts

pop - 

This advertisement is very simplistic and follows the expectations of a pop media product as it focuses primarily on the artist and follows a 'pop culture' theme (here it is the 80's American dream theme). It also features standard information for an album advert; the image of the advert and a "hit single". What this also includes is an image supporting the 'Mulvey's theory of male gaze' as the  female singer has her shirt tied tightly around her exposing her body shape as well as very short shorts exposing her thighs (this is something the target audience of the pop genre looks for in products). 

I will aim to create an advert similar to this one (in terms of lay out) as i think it is clean and aesthetically appealing, however i will try to tailor it more towards the 'drum and bass' audience.

rock - 

This advert differs greatly from the pop one. One of the ways it does is through being A4 sized, which is better suited for this particular genre due to the artist image being more important than an image of the artist when it comes to the target audience, therefore it is better to make the artistic cover of the digipak bigger in order to attract more attention and make any viewer more likely to remember what it looks like, this is due to the orientation of the page being vertical, so the square digipak cover can take up almost the entirety of it and the text can fill up the rest.

I will unlikely use this design as my advert due to my music video being centered mainly on the artist, and changing this would be anti synergy. Furthermore rock is not the dominant genre in my music video therefore the audience is unlikely to have same expectations towards my products as any other rock products.

drum and bass - 

The most iconic feature of this genre is very impressive graphic design which is almost exclusively futuristic. this fits well with the overall sound of Drum and Bass (to to the electronic sounds) and a fan of one tends to also be a fan of the other, and Drum and Bass fans usually expect good modern style in their products. 

Therefore due to my song being a drum and bass remix i will try to use elements seen in this genre.

Analysing Previous Student Work

Example 1 - Eva Ellis

Digipak

Strengths -
The digipak has a strong and consistent colour-scheme which works very well. Very good quality of images and graphics. Consistent font which synergises with the background.

Weaknesses - 

The font is slightly hard to read. The size of the letters on the back looks too large and unprofessional. The background inside the Digipak is underwhelming.

Advertisement

Strengths - 

Very well laid out. Strong image of artist.

Weaknesses - 

Writing is small and the font is inconsistent. The album cover is very small.

Example 2 - YWA

Digipak

Strengths - 

Very strong and consistent colour scheme. Font very suitable to the artist image. Graphics reflecting the artists genre (electronic music).

Weaknesses - 

image on the inside of digipak is low quality. Inconsistent spacing in songlist.

Advertisement

Strengths - 

Very clean colour scheme and background. Clear, large image of the album. Consistent use of fonts.

Weaknesses - 

Could have used a stronger image.

Example 3 - Romy

Digipak 

Strengths - 

Extremely clean and appealing colour scheme which is consistent even with the artist's skin. good background graphics which are also seen on the artist's clothes. generally great layout and graphic design.

Weaknesses - 

Inconsistent editing of artist's image.

Advertisement 

Strengths - 

Very Professional. Good use of editing (artist's name merged into artist's image). Consistent font.

Weaknesses - 

Writing is opaque and hard to read from a distance. Landscape advert looks cluttered.

Researching ancillary product - Detailed analysis of digipaks

due to the music created by the artist we have been looking at being so vague (Pop, Grime, Rap & Hip-Hop, Rock as well as drum and Bass) it is extremely hard to find digipaks from artists who fall into the same categories, therefore i will chose three digipaks from artists that fall into three different genres from above.

Pop -

One of the most stand out features of pop music is the focus on the singer, therefore it is very common for the products related to pop music to be centered around the singer. Furthermore the singer gets the most publicity and recognition, (for example Rihanna gets the credit for songs not a collective band) this is something that the pop audience expects from the genre (an individual to idolize).

The qualities of this genre will relate the most to the digipak as they relate the most to our music video which focuses almost exclusively on the singer.

Rock - 

In contrast to pop music, the rock genre focuses on a 'band' rather than an individual when it comes to marketing and publicity, meaning it is very rare for a rock production to bear the name of a single artist (however it is known to happen with 'Jimmi Hendrix' being an example) instead they have a band name, for example 'My Chemical Romance' and includes images of all band members opposed to a single one. Fans of this genre usually expect to find exposition on individual band members within the digipak and expect for individual band members to visually represent their own independent personalities.

This is a genre i will relate to the least when creating my digipak due to my video possessing a very low number of qualities expected in a rock video, as well as me having a single artist instead of a band.

Drum and Bass -

In contrast to the previous two genres the 'Drum and Bass' genre very rarely include the names or even pictures of the artists. instead what it focuses on mainly is the futuristic style of computer graphics seen on the covers, as well as interesting fonts. the patterns are usually those which resemble modern technology (eg. carbon fiber, steel plates or brick walls) and the fonts are usually digitally created, or resemble urban graffiti. Furthermore it is also common for the colour scheme of these digipaks to be quite dull and desaturated with highlights of fluorescent neon colours. The target audience expects this from this genre as they are rarely interested in the lives and personalities of the artists, and instead are more interested in just the music they produce.

I would like to use the idea of using stylish/modern fonts in my digipak as it will underline the drum and bass undertones of my video.

Digipak - discussion

A summary of a discussion about the importance and function of a digipak within the music industry - 

The main function of a digipak within the industry is to create a physical collectible item for the fans of an artist to buy and own. This is now popular due to the hugely increased popularity of  digital sales of music, which leave fans wanting to own something physical created by the artist, other than just their music on an MP3 player. another function of a digipak is to be aesthetically gorgeous and represent the artists image through graphics and photos on the front cover. 

Ancillary work brief

So we all have finished our music video and we are now moving on to the ancillary work. 

The ancillary work is all individual work where we have to show our skills in making Digipacks and Advertisements for the release of our music video. 

We will be using Photoshop to make our digipack and advertisement. We can also use Quark for the layouts and production as photoshop can be quite a nuisance. 

ANALYSING PERVIOUS STUDENTS ANCILLARY WORK

Example 1: Yasmin Feruz

Strengths: Clear use of cropping. There is lots of consistency with fonts and images. there is a wide range of font sizes which vary in boldness.CD matches background image. There is a clear link between advertisement and the digipak.




















Example 2: Hotel October

Strengths: Stand out font. Advertisement links to the digipak. Theme matches song of early technology at the start of the 2000s eg: graphics in the background.
Title font matches theme. Good variation of fonts, colour of fonts and their sizes.

Weaknesses: Inside cover image could have been cut and stuck better.

















Example 3: The Jewellers

Strengths: Consistent background image and matches theme of diamonds. Advertisement links to digipak. CD image links to images on the front and inside cover. Good variation of font sizes. All factors of digipak and advert are the necessities needed.

ANCILLARY WORK BRIEF

Today we have been given the task of creating a digipak for our music video project. For the next 5 weeks we will be using Photoshop to create individual digipak ideas to help promote our artist and song. This will entail us following the traditional conventions of a digipak such as following reoccurring themes. 

Ancillary Work Brief

We have been asked to start print work which involves the creation a digipak and advert for our brand new music video. These products must all synergise with each other through the colour scheme, theme, font and general artist style. 

Ed Sheeren's original website

THE VIDEO IS FINISHED!

HOOORAAYYYYYY!!

DEDO LIGHTING ISSUE

Unfortunately, in the past some of our previous shots have been too dark to place in the final video. This was a major issue as they were key to the success of our video. To solve this issue, the genius Jakub invented a makeshift Dedo light which we used when filming yesterday evening. This is what it looked like:

FEEDBACK ON ROUGH CUT

ISSUE WITH UPLOADING ROUGH CUT

2ND DECEMBER - FILMING

Tomorrow we shall be filming the final parts to our music video. We will just need shots of Dirty Devon walking around drunk. These shots will then be edited in to the video and then effects will be added to them to help emphasise the fact he is drunk.

A Problem with filming in the past has been the lighting. Due to the fact that it is night time many of our shots have come out too dark. To stick with the night time theme we will have to use a Dedo light. The benefit of using this light means we have a substantial amount of light to film which can be altered. A negative is that the light gains heat very quickly which means it can be held after a certain point. This will mean the light will have to be fixed in on position or that we may need to invest in some gloves.

The final rough cut