LO1 Task 2 : Technological Convergence and production techniques (improve)

The convergence of technologies overtime has allowed media producers to become more efficient in the ways in which they deal with pre production, production and post production of a media product. The developments made have allowed multiple providers of media outlets to become more versatile during these processes making work generally more collaborative and effectively planned. Behind the majority of these advances lies Web 2.0 which essentially allows more user based content onto our screens hence aiding the surge in technology over the recent years. There are numerous pieces of software now available which allow the following stages of producing a media product to be done with ease.

Pre Production:

Pre Production generally orbits around the planning of the proposed media product for example an advertisement, this means there are a multitude of different processes which require collaborative work to be done. Due to web 2.0 and technological convergence this has become all the more easier what with softwares such as Google Docs and MindMup. Google Docs in particular allows more than one user to edit a document or file, allowing the process of planning an AVP to be shared amongst the production team. When planning products of any type, initially there will be a time for all involved in the project to give insight into what they believe the final edit should look like - this can also be known as Blue Sky Thinking. Google Docs in particular allows this to take place without all of the personnel present and can also be edited at any opportunity. The development of Web 2.0 has allowed its next generation of users to become in touch with each other through the interactivity of websites in this way which further impacts positively on the development of media. In addition to this online sites such as MindMup allow users to create maps and brainstorm ideas which could potentially be the making of a media success - Although this software is not as cross compatible with other web users, it offers contingency to other planning materials and allows creators to be more creative with their ideas given the highly interactive interface given by the latest phase of the internet.

Production:

Technological convergence has made significant ground over the past 17 years in the production of media, Web 2.0 has impacted the way we are able to produce products making us the ultimate prosumers. We are now able to collaborate during the production stages of an Audio Visual Product using softwares such as Soundcloud which allow artists from all over the world to work together to create a sound - in previous years this would rely upon all involved being a part of a specialist company however now it has become simplified so that people are able to work online to achieve an end product. The interactive new era of the Web allows all creators to store their content online and specifically with sites such as Soundcloud, then distribute them online using social media links from the interface. Garage band shows how products that stem from black box devices can aid the production of media products, this pre installed software allows its users to compose music through their apple mac which can then be recalled on other apple hardware such as a macbook - This again shows how this convergence has allowed production to become less of a specialised subject.


Post Production:

Prior to having softwares that aid post production, amending raw footage or audio could be a lengthy and unsuccessful process leading to more care and attention being required when capturing the raw imagery. Due to technological advances, producers now have the capability to use powerful editing suites such as Premiere Pro, After Effects and more, to enhance their work further and apply additional effects. These two Adobe softwares enable producers to not only colour grade their raw footage, but challenge the creative industry by optimising the use of post processing techniques. The whole idea behind this is to make the end product suitable for the prosumers at the best quality available, through the use of creative cloud (again  a feature of the recently appointed Web 2.0) producers can have access to these types of industry standard softwares which will be highly recognised amongst the trade and in years to come prosumers when they are able to see clearly the effects of technological convergence.


Technologies in films:

There has been a considerable hike over the years in creative animations which involve the use of motion capture technology and CGI - one of the films which I am familiar with this happening in would be The Life of Pi as to where the production team mapped the movements of a real tiger and then incorporated a computer generated one into the entirety of the film. They did this by placing a real tiger and noting its reactions , movements and muscles it used to navigate around the boat which was then simulated by another actor to help the main character himself develop a sense of what it would be like to have the actual tiger present - this was then brushed over in post production and replaced with the computer generated image of a tiger who's movements were based on that of the real thing.