End of Module - self evaluation

1. What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?

I have learnt how to use the video editing software 'Final Cut', I was able to edit my footage appropriately, enhancing colours, slowing footage down and reversing it in order to create an effective video.

2. What approaches to/methods of research have you developed and how have they informed your design development process?

Categorising is actually useful when researching, I can focus my research down to specific topics in order to find out what the most important facts/opinions are in order to help develop my research and relivance.

3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?

After showing people my video they seemed to be interested in the footage itself, the close up filming of pupils dilating. I think my topic, in the short term, is found quite intreging, however I think it could be stronger. I think flamboyance is a way to attract viewers with this video.

4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these more fully?

I feel my research could've been bumped up a bit, the initial research regarding the final video was probably appropriate, I didn't want to focus on the depth of eyes, but more of them as complete visuals. Sometimes I think my video lacks professionalism, whether this could've been resolved through more research, or just more testing out or software skills development. Although, I could've researched other video techniques, I only looked at one video specifically, the short footage from the 'Requiem for a Dream' trailer of the pupils dilating.

5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?

Next time I will

• review more films, trailers, short films etc...

I reckon I could get ideas from these, how the video would look like

• experiment with categorising the ways of filming eyes

This way I could explore eyes through a variety of outlooks. I could look at the films becoming a series? And I may find others work better than some.

• Test out more packaging folds

I would then be able to establish which one worked best and which was most effective. The packaging could somehow represent the contents, perhaps lure the viewers in even more?

• Continue designing the packaging itself

Although I am satisfied with the design of my packaging, could more be done? I would've liked to test out designs printing them onto individual discs so I could then see how they would look as a final.

• Box set?
  

I can imagine the short films as being a series, perhaps 'arty' ways of approaching and exploring things like 'eyes' in a creative, interesting way so that everyone can become slightly interested in the topic, even if it's just for one hundred seconds. I could create 10 films, therefore 10 dvds, all individually packaged and then all in another packaging, a box set. It could just be a clean cut way to transport, communiate and contain the 10 dvds?

I have enjoyed this brief. At first things were a little dusty as I wasn't sure what I was going to be doing with my chosen topic, when I first read the brief about having to solve a problem to do with you topic, I seriously considered changing it. I didn't know how I would express 'eyes' in a graphic way, and somehow 'product&package' such an untouchable thing? I always had in mind I wanted it to be photographically based, however I branched out to using video, this way I can focus on the photographic effects but have the stills as moving image. I was also excited to print on discs, this was another technique I learnt and now have knowledge of.
I often forgot how important the research was for the particular brief, and tended to get carried away with the video itself, it feels like I haven't used much of the research I gathered, but I did learn from it that people's main interest with eyes is just how they appear. Their colour seems to be the most attractive part of eyes, whenever the topic was brought up. Being influenced by previous footage, and particular music, I wanted to explore eyes close up and then be able to show this as a video.