madisonthom

[madisonthom]

[madisonthom]

Portfolio 1/2

[madisonthom]

Portfolio 1/1

[madisonthom]

[madisonthom]

Week 6*

[madisonthom]

[madisonthom]

[madisonthom]

FMP Evaluation

This project has been to say the least incredibly educating and rewarding. Each moment spent learning about the environment has enlightened me to believe we are truly grateful for having such a beautiful world in our hands. To ensure that the proper actions are taken to preserve the ecology in order to avoid a dystopia like that depicted in the ‘MadAddam Trilogy’ and ‘The Road’. Both feature such heartbreaking endings to the demise of humanity’s own doing. 

At the beginning of my journey, I was hesitant as to whether choosing the concept of Utopia’s was a good choice. I would create boards on Pinterest that featured all the different art forms pertaining to utopia's and would ask my friends about their thoughts on the topic. Until eventually, I stumbled upon the word 'Ecotopia' that described the utopia I dreamed about perfectly. In an ideal world, i wouldn't have to worry about how there will be a world food shortage in 2030, or that the earth's most beautiful creatures will all be extinct before the next generation was ever able to set eyes on them, or even to see beautiful places like the Maldives become inhabitable by 2050 due to rising sea levels. And this is all down to the biggest issue in todays modern world; the global environmental concern. 

While immersing myself in a deeper analysis and research of utopias/dystopias, I was able to gain a thorough understanding of the climate crisis, plastic pollution, and the correct steps a brand should follow in order to succeed while also preserving sleek, beautiful jewellery to wear everyday. As well as being incredibly educated on the environmental concerns, I have also been highly educated on the creative process of creating a first time video advert. From the get go I wanted to create an advert campaign that would differ from my previous adverts, to challenge myself and broaden my knowledge. In the end, despite various obstacles, including not having a CFast memory card reader and not having enough storage on my laptop, to encountering problems when I was shooting because I could not recall how the Blackmagic pocket cinema camera worked, and to losing files constantly while trying to edit on Premiere Pro, I was able to successfully create my own branded ecotopia. The advert has a variety of settings, props, animals, and music that are all beautiful, natural, and raw. The end product of the shoot was dripping with romanticism and ethereal essence to highlight my brand’s identity, which is centred around the beauty of nature. Therefore the utilisation of Holland park’s exquisite gardens highlights the natural world’s beauty. The peacock featured embodies my brand values, I want my customers to feel bold and beautiful, similar to the majestic creature, when wearing my products. Muted Greens and earth tones worn by my model and I to spotlight the jewellery and create an almost fairytale like ethos.

Each component adds to a complex, nuanced ecotopia with the purpose of addressing the environmental catastrophe. I am very pleased with the aesthetic of my brand, and I feel as though other companies should also strive towards the same objective. As a method of expressing gratitude to the ecosystem that sustains you. When it came to designing the brand image, the name couldn't have been more suitable in terms of referring to the business's overall commitment. 

Overall, I found constructing the final piece to be extremely difficult because it required adjusting to a new camera and learning Adobe Premiere Pro from scratch. Nonetheless, as a learning curve, I meant to challenge myself.

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All the footage taken using Blackmagic Pocket Cinema 6k Camera

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Final Piece

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Video Ad Editing step by step process and Evaluation

To begin my editing journey for my FMP video ad I imported the videos into the editing panel and selected the certain parts of the each video that I wanted to include. This meant shortening the videos to a few seconds.

I dragged the clips into the timeline and positioned them where I wanted them to begin. In the timeline panel, I could also shorten them.

Next I encountered an issue when importing my logo as it kept saying “video but depth of this file is unsupported” and “media offline”. This meant I had to select the offline clip in the timeline and select clip then link media, and select the file from finder which premier pro couldn’t find on my laptop. Unfortunately, this was due to me not having enough storage.

After trying to fix the storage issue on my laptop, I imported the logo into the editing panel and followed the steps in the YouTube video ‘How to add a logo in Premier Pro CC’ by Adobe in a minute. The process included dragging the logo on top of the video clip on the timeline. To change the size of the image, I clicked on the image and dragged the edges to extend its length. At first my logo was imported as a white background with a black font, however after removing the white background the logo was hard to see. As a result, I had to change the logo's colour to white so that it could be seen clearer. 

For the clip zoomed in on the jewellery, I wanted the jewellery to stand out more so I watched the YouTube video “How to make your subjects stand out in premier pro” by Jordan Dueck. Following the steps, I right clicked on the project panel and chose an adjustment layer, then I dragged it over the selected clip and clicked on it and clicked effect controls- opacity- create elipse mask. After placing the elipse oval over the right area (the neckline featuring the jewellery), I selected ‘mask feathers’ to increase from 10 to 150.0. This enabled me to select where I wanted the objects to gradually appear more highlighted. After, I then clicked the play button which processed everything and I was able to alter the highlights, shadows, saturation, vibrancy etc of that selected area.

Since my laptop was so lethargic (it's an older one), I found it extremely difficult to operate Premier Pro. To try to address the lagging issue, I had to restart my laptop several times. This was due to the fact that premier pro edits high resolution videos and my laptop doesn’t have the right specs to handle it.

My original notion for the background song was Mac DeMarco's 'My Kind of Woman,' however after playing it back and arranging it in the sequence under my video, I didn't think the lyrics matched anything to do with the advert. The melody was soothing, which is exactly what I wanted since the setting is in nature. Nevertheless, I felt there were certainly better song fits for this sort of atmosphere.

As I was posing for the camera that zoomed in on my face, the clip was out of focus, so I dragged the sharpen effect from the panel onto the clip and unfocused at 50 percent and increased gradually to 150 percent, which was the most effective way to sharpen the video.

To zoom in on the necklaces, I clicked on the clip and chose anchor point, which allowed me to position the anchor point on the specific area I wanted to zoom in on. From there, I could choose when I wanted the zoom to start, which I did at the beginning of the clip as I was shadowing some techniques from the inspiration video. Finally, I set the opacity to 300 to get the perfect zoom in.

After searching through some of my own playlists with a relaxing melody, I came across one of my favourite songs from a few years ago called ‘After the storm’ by Kali Uchis.  After listening to the very beginning I instantly knew it was perfect. As my video is only 27 seconds long, I would need that length in a song to suit the mood. The beginning this song was perfect as it feels as though you’re daydreaming of being in warmer weather. The beginning of the song commences with a thunder storm and then relocates to a sunny atmosphere which I believe perfectly suited the atmosphere of my video. The lyrics contain the phrase ‘whatever goes around, eventually comes back to you’ which can be interpreted as if you ruin the environment it will eventually affect you personally, in terms of the current climate crisis and pollution issues. So look after the environment to be the best possible version of yourself. The start of the song creates a chilled, happy feeling for the listener with the spoken word. Then later, by using a slow tempo as well as reverb on the singing and the synthesiser a dreamy, blissful atmosphere is established which matches the footage perfectly. A shaker can be heard throughout, which I have matched at points to the peacock shaking its feathers. This further connects the soundtrack to the video, and creates a more seamless experience for the viewer. I’ve also timed the advert at the end of the section meaning the advert has ended on the drum fill, with myself looking directly at the camera. 

[madisonthom]

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Final outcome

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WWF x Hireath Campaign advert step by step process and reflection

Firstly I edited the photograph to mask the necklace off of the subject and then selected ‘make selection’  

Add layer mask

Select the layer mask and then using the brush tool to remove the model from the image

I then copied and pasted the group selection of my logo into photoshop and created a slightly see through white box around the logo therefore I can see the logo and wwf logo better

I put a black line in between the logo to show the collab between WWF charity and Hireath 

100 pixels around the boarder 

For the supporting ad campaign, I intended to create a humorous ad utilising the photographs taken during the shoot in Holland Park. I wanted to make the advert feel comforting, ease stress and put a positive light on the product. The jewellery, on the other hand, did not stand out as much as I had planned. I still believe that the message and statistics about endangered peacocks add a wonderful touch by educating the viewer and can feel gratifying, knowing that as a client, you can make a difference when purchasing a piece of jewellery that will benefit not only yourself but also the environment.

[madisonthom]

Creating campaign advert for my brand partnered with WWF