WK4 Reflection: Project Revision

I hope you enjoyed my revised story. In this video I changed the photos that were used to reflect my story better. In both feedback from Ms. Faria and Charlene, they addressed that sometimes it was a bit confusing why I chose the photos that I had. Also as I moved through the class I discovered it is important to make sure that not only with a voice-over but also with my visual elements tell my story. I also changed the voice-over to coincide with the new visuals. In Charlene's critique she mentioned possibly adding music. I chose to do this as well because I believe that it helped make the piece more powerful.

WK4 Reflection: RISE Self-Evaluation

This is my RISE Self Evaluation.  I hope you guys enjoy my take on my experience that I had while in New Media Tools.

WK4 Reflection: RISE Peer Feedback

The following is my RISE Peer Review for Jinnette Reyes:


Reflect
  
Jinnette I enjoyed watching our video.  The photos were very colorful and peaceful.  I really related with the photo of the crossroad.  I believe it was one of the most powerful shots you used.   The reason why I think this photo touched me so much is because I myself came to a crossroad of sorts when I made the decision to return to school and obtain my degree.

Inquire

After viewing your film I wanted to suggest possible using photos that told your specific story.  For example instead of a photo of the “A’s” why not use a photo of you having a conversation with someone pointing to a page or shaking their head at you with disapproval.

 Suggest

After having done our project last week, have you thought of possibly shooting a short film reenacting your story?   If not a short film, possibly using photos of your life with a voice-over the photos of yourself telling your story so that people can relate with your story.  I believe that this could certainly make your video much more powerful.
  
Elevate

Over all your video was very bright and helped me relate to you through your voice over.  I very much enjoyed the photos as well.  I believe that with some revisions your story will be a powerful presentation of yourself.

WK3 Challenge: Digital Storytelling with Mobile Devices

Workflow and App documentation:

Our team communicated via email to collaborate on our project.  Ivan Albino took on the roll of lead to help with ideas and distribution of tasks.  Each of our members took on a separate portion of our script.  We each recorded voice-overs for our respective parts. Also we each created a shot lists for our individual pieces.


I only have a few of the apps that were used.  So based on what was mentioned in emails and what I have been able to find on my teammates posts the list is as follows:

Felisha Hodges- iPhone 5 and utilized Recorder Plus II
Zachary Vernon- i Pad and utilized Hokusai App
Ivan Albino- mobile tablet and utilized Puppet Pals App

Individual Reflection Responses:

• What was your role in the team?  I volunteered early on to be the Strategist who is responsible for promoting and sharing our video to help the video's reach.  Also as a team we decided to split our script up so I was responsible for the first three sentences of our video.
• What did you contribute?  I tried very hard to be communicative with my teammates.  Also I created a shot-list for my specific portion as well as submitted my own voice-over.
• What surprised you about the challenge?  That my team was not very good at remaining in contact with each other.  I have worked with teams in the past and was more satisfied with our final project.
• What are you most proud of?  That our project was successfully completed, in-spite of very little communication.
• Was it indeed a challenge? Why or why not?  Yes it was a challenge. It was a challenge because our team very rarely communicated.  It was radio silence.  There were members who would occasionally email but I was unhappy with it being so very little.  I feel that we could have made a stronger video had the lines of communication been better between us.  

WK3 Analysis: Businesses & Audiovisual Media

            I thoroughly enjoyed all three videos from each of the different entities.   They each had very unique ways of showcasing their information. 

            Full Sail utilized their video to showcase that they were innovative with the way they were presenting information to their students.  They began the video with intriguing images and testimonials.  As a student looking for a college to attend they would be drawn to their campus simply from all of the engaging information.   The video also promoted that Full Sail was technology savvy.  In their video they mentioned all of their different studios for media as well as their LaunchBox program.  In my opinion this video would indeed bring in more students and also exhibited the technology benefits that Full Sail offers very well.

            Dollar Shave Club indirectly plugged their new product with discussing poop in a unique way.  They used clever antic dotes about when someone goes number two.  They utilized interesting scenarios such as Alejandra in the field digging for gold as “nuggets” left behind.  As they are moving through the video they then mention “One Wipe Charlies”.   They keep their audience entertained while allowing them to be introduced to their latest product. But they do not overpower them with an advertisement.  I do not believe there is a story here per say. But I do believe that they elaborated on their very successful first video with a new video to showcase their newest item.

            Science World has a very entertaining what looks like music video.  But in reality they found a creative way of displaying their interactive exhibits while keeping its audience intrigued to watch what will happen next.  Science World showcased patrons and employees having a great time while using the exhibits.  At first glance you do not notice that they are showing you a museum.  But once you really get into the video you cannot help but notice that they are showing you all of the different interactive exhibits.  As I got further into the video I could see patrons at different stations with items in their hands as well as exploring.  Even though there really is not a story here they keep you entertained through the lip sinking.  Also as I watched I wanted to see what else they were going to show.   I believe they had a very good choice of song as well as personality and pizazz that would entertain and intrigue possible guests of the museum.

WK3 Practice: Shot List

        Good evening.  Our group has broken up our script into sections for each individual.  Below you will find the shot list for my personal portion of the script.

Script Elements	Media Needed
Children today are growing up in a society that is filled with technology.	Image of children with hand-held devices Image of children in front of a computer screen
Fewer kids are going outside to play and more are staying on their sofas playing video games.	Image of two kids on an empty playground Image of a group of children in front of a TV with game controllers in their hands
Even adults, prefer to sit on their computers and smartphones than going out for a walk.	Image of group of professionals looking at their smartphones Image of two adults at a restaurant looking at their phones

WK3 Exploration: Mobile App Review

WK3 Practice: Team Organization

The following is a copy of our team's script:

Felisha:

Children today are growing up in a society that is filled with technology. Fewer kids are going outside to play and more are staying on their sofas playing video games. Even adults, prefer to sit on their computers and smartphones than going out for a walk. 

Zachary:

Being active is important in life because it gives you different kinds of benefits like better overall health and positive self-esteem. It also makes you more sociable which helps you make new friends, spend quality time with your family and boost your mood, self-esteem and energy. 

Miranda:

Why would you want to stay inside when you got a whole world to explore and have fun with outside? So motivate yourself, your family, even your neighbors and make a plan to live a more healthy and active life. Creativity has no limits, so go for it and make the most amazing activity you can create to help motivate others to be active. 

Ivan:

As more creative and interesting the activity is, more people would like to join. And the more who joins the more who will help motivate others to do so. So we can help spread the joy of a healthy and fun life though out the world. We can do this, just share this video. Then close your computer, drop your phone and go outside.

It has been broken down so each team member can record a voice over for their respected portion. I have also  volunteered to be our team's strategist. My responsibilities as a strategist are to post and promote our team video. I plan to promote through different media sites as well as sharing links with people via email. 

Thank you,

Felisha Hodges

WK2 Project: My Digital Story

WK2 Analysis: Businesses & The Visual Web

In this assignment I am going to be reviewing three companies and how their different visual sites are utilized for their intended audience.

            Full Sail University shares on their Pinterest page photos of things in and around campus.  They have different posts for interesting events, campus housing, and just about anything that a current or potential student would want to know about their school.  Every post has the Full Sail name attached to it. Several of the different posts are about Full Sail whether current or history.  The have a post labeled Full Sail Swag that showcases their different Full Sail Merchandise.  They intrigue their audience with exciting labels for their posts as well as different photos and images of the particular posts.  Each photo that is posted grabs the users attention so that they will want to click and view the entire post.

            Dollar Shave Club’s Instagram page has posts of its different employees as well as little sayings about razors.   The different images of the staff either at work or at one of the fun events help draw people into view their page.  People feel they are connected to this company on a personal level.  For this company this is what you need when you have large corporations to compete with.  When approaching an audience or customer in this manner will make them feel that you are personable and care about them whereas, a big corporation only views them as another dollar in their pocket.

            Science World’s Facebook page showcases people interacting with exhibits, different scientific projects or elements.  Also they are show casing staff and scientific mentors addressing young children.  They also have some Lego projects.  Having so many different things are good because they offer your audience variety.  But to me if you are a museum that is trying to showcase your unique position as far as learning science then you should showcase some of that in particular.  It is always good to remember that if you give someone too many options that they can get frustrated and just move on instead of viewing your intended ad.  I do believe that with the correct images and layout the customer interest would be much greater.  In this aspect I believe that if they take away some of the pictures of the individuals and left up the pictures of the different people that are learning and or demonstration science they would be more pleasing for their audience.  I believe that the science style pictures help draw in an audience but as a consumer I would be a little confused.  I think that yes they attract people but I do not think they would be attracting the original intended audience.  But most of their marketing is to simply spark an interest in its public.  In that regard I think they have just enough science things in their that it helps some.

WK2 Practice: Voice Over

This is my voice over practice assignment.

WK2 Exploration: Storyboard

I apologize but I was unable to embed my presentation. However please follow this link to view my presentation online.
http://www.slideshare.net/felishahodges/wk2-exploration-storyboard-31147842
Thank you,
Felisha Hodges

WK2 Practice: Visual Communication

I chose this Social as my screen shot.  For this abstract idea I used two copy-right free photos and two of my own personal photos.  The photo of the Arabic ladies I felt showed good collaboration between friends which I feel is a perfect example of people being social.  I chose the waterfall photo because at the base you see a group of individuals who have come together to admire the beauty of the falls.  The photo of my sister, niece and son exploring a museum I felt portrayed social because they are enjoying each others company as well as learning together.  The final picture is of my boyfriend and our close friend at my birthday party, I feel this photo displays people being together in a relaxed environment.  To me being social is immersing yourself with people and enjoying interaction with them.

WK1 Project: My MCBS Story

   Before I started the MCBS Program, I was very unhappy with how my life was turning out.  I had begun to settle for less than what I had always expected to accomplish.  I had always thought I would make a difference and experience new exciting things.  But then I got comfortable with just doing what others expected me to do.   I was doing what people were telling me I should, instead of doing something that made me feel fulfilled in my life.  Because of that I started to become very discouraged with my life and where it was headed.   Because of that a day came where I finally had it with my situation and development of my future.   Because of that I started really thinking about what I had a passion for and where I really wanted to be going with my life.   I came to a conclusion that if I were going to be able to accomplish my dreams and goals I would need a degree in my field of choice.  Once that decision was made I sat down and began to explore the different schools and programs that were available and offered degrees in the field that I chose.   I decided right away I needed to set specific goals, not just for graduating, but for after graduation as well.   I chose my dream job, and I also formulated a plan on how to get there.  I was very meticulous in speaking with and talking to a very select group of peers and close friends to help me take the best path.  When I was making this plan I had a unique circumstance on my hands that I had to also consider.  I am a single mother so every choice I was making had to positively impact my son's life as well.  So once I had all of the proper elements in place to positively achieve my goals I have been in the process of getting all of the fundamentals I will need to become a successful television producer.

The picture I chose is an inspirational poster that has my son in it.  It serves as reminder for me how I should look at situations.  Also it reminds me that it is okay to have dreams and to follow them.

As I read my two classmates original stories I realized that I was missing that personal touch.  I felt like my reasoning in my original post did not represent my own real story.  So with the revised version I really wanted to get my story and where I was at the time I chose to follow my dreams across.   I really connected with each of their story because it felt like a person was telling it where as mine felt more forced.

WK1 Exploration: Tool Review

WK1 Analysis: Businesses & Blogs

When I first approached analyzing the three blogs I felt a little unsure of myself.  I am a completely blank canvas when it comes to blogging, or reading blogs.  So that said here is my analysis of the three blogs.

 At a first glance I noticed that each of the blog is audience focused.  Each post is very direct for their intended viewers.  For example the Full Sail site is focused on topics and events that their students and faculty would have an interest in.  All three seem to have taken every step to keep its viewers coming back.  Also they each have a photo that intrigues a viewer to take a look at each and every post.  This is a great tactic because most of our society is captured by a visual element.

Both the Full Sail and Dollar Shave Club are similar in that they have a little bit of a social media feel.  I feel this way because they both showcase photos of people directly involved in the two enterprises.  They seem to have a more laid back aspect to their blogs.  Where as the Science World blog is more information based. 

The Science World and Full Sail blogs are similar in that they both have menus for upcoming events and dates.  They each allow for additional information to be collected by their viewers.  They also allow their viewers to collect and learn.  They are both sites that are geared on educating their viewers.

The Science World blog is unique because its actual page layout is very soft and welcoming to its viewers.  The different posts flow very well.  The layout encourages its viewers to click the next one to learn about a new and different topic.  Also they put their hours of operation for that day up.  This lets you know someone is keeping the blog up to date.

The Full Sail blog showcases different campus happenings.  It also has a date and calendar box that allows its viewers to see and be able to keep a calendar of current and upcoming events.  It shows items from different site that Full Sail is utilizing.  Also it allows students to generate blog posts.  Full Sail displays that they are very student friendly and allow for some great interaction between students as well as faculty.

The Dollar Shave Club has a fun feeling when you first open it.  It showcases different sales events.  Also the first posts I noticed were sharing gift ideas for its customers.  At a glance as a consumer I get the impression they want me to feel I personally am important and not just a dollar sign.  The site also feels personal because of the pictures of the different staff members.

WK1 Practice: RSS & Industry Blogs

In the screenshot you see my reader feed.  At the top are both of my two classmates' blog pages.  For my online classmate I chose Zachary Vernon. The reason I chose him is because in our previous class he was a teammate on a project with me.  Also in the same class his viral video intrigued me. For my on campus class mate I chose Ivan Albino.  My reasoning behind this is because he had quite a few posts on his blog site.  Since I am new to blogging I thought I could learn a lot from him.  The professional sites I chose to follow are USA Today, Council on Communications and Media Blog, Social Media Today, and there are a couple more I am following.  But these three are the main companies I chose to follow.  My reasons for this is simply I am interested in becoming a news producer someday so a news site is a great blog to learn about current events.  Communications and Media council I believe will showcase the latest news and technologies for the field I am interested in.  The Social media blog will allow me to see what the latest social hot items are.

WK 1 Practice: Start A Blog and Tell A Story

Before I started the MCBS Program, I was very unhappy with how my life was turning out.  I had always thought I wanted to make a difference and experience new and exciting things.  But then I got comfortable with just doing what others expected me to do.   Because of that I started to become very bored with my life and where it was headed.   Because of that a day came where I finally had it with the way things were going.   Because of that I started really thinking about what I had a passion for and where I really wanted to be going with my life.   Until finally I explored the different schools and programs that were available and offered degrees in fields that would interest me. And ever since I decided to pursue my passion for media I have been working toward getting all of the basics and fundamentals I will need to become a successful news producer.