Introduction to Photoshop

The initial Photoshop tasks are essential in building a foundation of knowledge for what will become one of your most useful tools whilst completing your Media Studies GCSE.

Every single task that you complete in today's lesson should be uploaded to your Blog under the heading 'Introduction to Photoshop'

Colour Tasks:

1. Firstly, you need to select a colour palette that you wish to replicate throughout your task. Some recommended options include:

    - Urban            - Fashionable            - Expensive            - Skin-tone            - Pastel            - Vibrant

    - Fresh             - Youthful                  - Earth                    - Autumn               - Winter          - Fruity

Example: Urban

2. Secondly, you need to create a blank A4 page on Photoshop where you will copy your chosen image on to. Once you have done this, use the blank space below your image to create a colour palette based on your image. To do this, you will use the 'eyedropper' tool to grab a colour from your image, and the 'brush' tool to spread it across your page.

Example Palette:

3. Once you have created your palette, you should then create another A4 photoshop page and copy the blank parrot image onto it. You will then once again use the 'eyedropper' tool to select colours from your palette, followed by the 'paint bucket' tool to drop those colours into your parrot image. You should place a smaller version of your original image in the corner of your parrot image so that we can see the reference for your colour selections.

Example Finished Parrot:

Layer Tasks:

1. Firstly, open up the Photoshop file 'Layer Test' that has been posted onto GC and save a copy of it into your own MediaShare folder.

2. Secondly, look across at the layers that exist in the document. These all contain rectangles of increasing size. Your task is to reorder the layers so that I can see part of all of the rectangles in the document. You should not need to move any shapes out of the way, this is simply about reordering the layers to allow visibility.

Layer Section: 

Transform Tasks:

1. Firstly, open up the Photoshop file 'Transform Test' that has been posted onto GC and save a copy of it into your own MediaShare folder.

2. Find an image on Google Images that you want to use for this task. Use Ctrl+T to enter 'Transform' mode which will allow you to both move and resize the image that you have selected.

3. Once happy with the size of your original image, right click the layer that your image is in and click the 'duplicate layer' option to create a copy. Once you have done this twice, use Ctrl+T to change the size of your two copies to make them different from the original.

Example:

Text Tasks:

1. Firstly, open up the Photoshop file 'Text Test' that has been posted onto GC and save a copy of it into your own MediaShare folder.

2. Click the 'T' icon on the left hand sidebar to access the text tool. To create a text box, you should click and drag to make a box the size that you wish for it to be.

3. You are then going to create 3 text boxes all containing the phrase 'Media Studies' with the following requirements

    a. Birch Std Regular - Yellow - Size 32

    b. Snap ITC Regular - Purple - Size 48

    c. Forte Regular - Red - Size 72

Again, every single task that you complete in today's lesson should be uploaded to your Blog under the heading 'Introduction to Photoshop' - If you're unsure of how to do this, then please ask!

Denotation and Connotation

Understanding denotation and connotation is the starting point for all Media Studies analysis.

Remember the definitions:

Denotation: the literal meaning of something
E.g. A rose is a garden plant

Connotation: the suggestion behind this literal meaning (reading between the lines)
E.g .The rose suggests romance and love.

When writing media analysis, you need to consider the following questions:

Denotation: what do you see?

Connotation: what is suggested? What does it mean?

Analysis: what is the effect on the audience? How is this effect created?


Example: Skittles

Denotation: There is some text with colourful streams behind each letter set around a pack shot of the product itself. The background appears to be sky.

Connotation: The advert builds on the slogan for Skittles ‘Taste the rainbow’. The connotation of the colour suggests that Skittles are joyful, fun and will provide a positive experience for the audience. The colours are vibrant and the sky in the background creates connotations of flying – this suggests to the audience that this is an exciting product. 

Analysis: The advert helps the audience understand the product as the colours reflect the actual Skittles themselves. In addition, the text across the top of the advert (referring to a ‘punch in the mouth’) uses humour to connect with the audience and suggests the brand doesn’t take itself too seriously. This adds to the positive, happy brand values that are suggested by the construction of the advert.

Denotation & Connotation blog tasks: Advert Analysis

Create a new blogpost in your GCSE Media blog called 'Denotation and connotation'.

1) Write an analysis of the WaterAid advert above using denotation, connotation and analysis. What can you see? What are the deeper meanings in the advert? What does the advert communicate to the audience? How might an audience react after seeing the advert?

2) Now choose your own choice of advert from Google images. Save it to your documents, insert it into your blogpost and write an analysis using denotation and connotation, explaining what the advert is communicating to the audience.

Extension: Print advert research

Read this design blog on some of the best print adverts of all time. Choose one advert that you feel is particularly powerful in terms of its use of connotations and analyse why it is so successful

Finish this for homework if you don't complete it in the lesson - due date on Google Classroom.

Welcome to GCSE Media!

Welcome to GCSE Media Studies - We have a brilliant two-year journey ahead of us and can't wait to get started! 

Over the next two years you will create some amazing production work, learn a huge amount about analysing the media and end up with an excellent GCSE grade. All you need to do is work hard and be creative! 

Your first job is to start your GCSE Media blog and sign up to Google Classroom. 

You can find step-by-step text instructions to starting your blog here. 

Once you have your blog URL, email it to your teacher. The URL is the address on the browser that ends with .blogspot.co.uk or similar. For example:

Mr Pall's blog: http://mediamacguffingcse.blogspot.co.uk/ 

You will need to click the 'View blog' button in the bottom left in order to see your blog on the internet and copy the URL.

IMPORTANT: It is absolutely essential you remember your log-in details for this blog - it is your Media work book for next two years. The easiest way to do this is to use your school Google account to create your blog on blogger.com. 

First blog task

When you have set up your blog, it's time for your first blog post! Click on 'New Post' and put the title as 'First 10 questions'. You need to answer the following questions (detailed answers in full sentences please) as your first post:

1) Which part of Media are you looking forward to the most?

2) What knowledge and skills do you hope to learn in Media?

3) What grade are you realistically hoping to achieve in Media?

4) What device do you use most to access the media? (The media = news, TV, music, film, social media etc.) 

5) What is your average 'screen time' (or equivalent) on your phone each day. Is this about right, too little or too much? Why? 

6) What was the last TV programme or film you watched?

7) What device or subscription do you use to listen to music?

8) Do you play videogames? If so, what do you play games on and what is your favourite game?

9) Are you on social media? If so, what social media do you have and why do you like it? 

10) Finally, do you think the media is a positive or negative thing for young people? Why?

Extension tasks

Watch this clip from acclaimed BBC drama series Doctor Who - recently revamped in conjunction with Disney:

Why was the casting of Ncuti Gatwa a significant moment in the history of Doctor Who?

What aspects of this scene do you think an audience might enjoy? List at least three things and explain why the audience would enjoy each aspect. 

How is this scene constructed to tell the audience the history of Doctor Who? Think about the script, camerawork and acting.

What can you spot in Doctor Who that you will find in most television dramas? (E.g. characters, dramatic music etc.) These are called key conventions - list as many as you can think of. 

What would a Doctor Who fan ('Whovian') like or dislike about this scene?

Note: If the YouTube clip isn't working please let your Media teacher know.

Finish these questions for homework if you don't manage to get through them in the lesson - due date on Google Classroom.

If you DO finish everything - well done! Spend some time looking through our Media blog, particularly at last year's Media student blogs. This will give you an idea of the fantastic work you will be producing over the next two years.