Cd cover designs and research for daniel powter

 These 3 pictures are ones i got off the internet and are things that i would like to create when i do the photo shoot for my album cover.

these are some Photoshopped images that i created to see what the image would look like as a Cd Cover.

Taking my own Photo for my Cd Cover has been harder than it should have been because i haven't been able to get out and find some puddles that aren't iced over that i can use.

7th December 2010 last night i went out after college with my mum so that i could take photos for my cover. all the puddles we could find were iced over so we had to break the ice and move it.

in some of the photos there is still some ice visible but i am hoping that i an crop some if it out. i started off by taking the photos in the natural light available but then it became to get a bit dark so i used the flash and used the aperture and shutter speed setting. this made the muddy puddle look really brown and almost like melted chocolate. so we then we to find a puddle that was clear water and we found a little stream, which was completely iced over. we broke it up and tried to move it out of the way for health and safety reasons so we didn't slip over. the photos of the clear water didn't come out as well as the muddy ones but i would rather have clear water as my CD Cover. also in the clear water you are able to see my and mums breath because it was so cold.

These are the photos that I took for the cover for the song Bad Day by Daniel Powter.

these are the two images that i like the best. i am going to crop them so that the main focus is on the splash.  i am going to get a font colour to be some of the colour of the photo. e.g Mums wellies or Jeans.

i loaded them onto photoshop and edited them so they look like Cd Covers.
these are the 2 designs i created:

 i have decided that i am going to use the muddy puddle because it stands out more. also the brown colour contrasts well with the blue wellies.
first of all i cropped the photo so that the ice at the front of the photo was cut out and i cropped the sides so the main focus was on the puddle. i then made the image size 12cm x 12cm which is the size of normal CD Covers/case. i then selected the background darker so that it made the mud stand out. the words 'Bad Day' are the same colour as the wellies so that it entwines.

I then focused on the back of the Cd Cover.To make it look more like a proper CD Cover i added a barcode. i used the same font 'Lucida Handwriting'  throughout it so that it will looks more professional.

these are the stages of making the back cover of my Cd Cover. i have used the same colours throughout and

stage 1

stage 2

stage 3

Capture - Bad Day Music VIdeo

We have been set an assignment to produce a music video and another discipline that we can create promotional material with. 

I am going to create a poster to promote my chosen artist and the music video I am going to create. I am also going to try and create a poster for my artist. 

I am going to create a mind map with all the ideas I could use in my music video, for example I could create a shot of someone writing down the lyrics.

Music Ideas: We have to find a piece of music that isn't well known or doesn't have an image already so that we can make our own interpretation without being lead by the existing image.

I would like the lyrics of the song to have a meaning. The one thing that many people can relate to is social issues such as bullying, family problems or friends so i am hoping to find a song that will relate to this.

A song that has really strong lyrics about friendship is 'Shame' by Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow but because the song is newly out, and involves popular people so they already have an image. The song is about 2 friends who have fallen out many years ago and have forgiven each other and made up. Many people have experienced this or will experience this in their lifetimes.
Lyrics:

Well there's 3 versions of this story mine, 
yours and then the truth 
And we can put it down to circumstance, 
...our childhood, then our youth 
Out of some sentimental gain I wanted you to feel my pain 
but it came back return to sender 
I read your mind and tried to call, 
my tears could fill the Albert Hall, 
is this the sound of sweet surrender? 

What a shame we never listened 
I told you through the television 
And all that went away was the price we paid 
People spend a lifetime this way 
Oh what a shame. 

So I got busy throwing everybody underneath the bus 
And with your poster 30 foot at the back of Toys R Us 
I wrote a letter in my mind, 
but the words were so unkind, 
about a man I can't remember 
I don't recall the reasons why, 
I must have meant them at the time, 
is this the sound of sweet surrender? 

What a shame we never listened 
I told you through the television 
And all that went away was the price we paid 
People spend a lifetime this way 
And that's how they stay 
Oh! what a shame! 

Words come easy, when they're true. 
Words come easy, when they're true. 

So I got busy throwing everybody underneath the bus 
And with your poster 30 foot at the back of Toys R Us 
Now we can put it down to circumstance, 
our childhood then our youth. 

What a shame we never listened, 
I told you through the television 
And all that went away was the price we paid 
People spend a lifetime this way 
And that's how they stay 
Oh! what a shame! 

People spend a lifetime this way 
Oh! what a shame! 
Such a shame, what a shame

The next song I thought of was 'Bad day' by Daniel Powter.

The Lyrics:

Where is the moment we needed the most ?
You kick up the leaves and the magic is lost
You tell me your blue skies fade to grey
You tell me your passion's gone away and I don't need no carryin' on
You stand in the line just to hit a new low
You're faking a smile with the coffee to go
You tell me your life's been way off line
You're falling to pieces every time and I don't need no carryin' on

Because you had a bad day, you're taking one down
You sing a sad song just to turn it around
You say you don't know, you tell me don't lie
You work at a smile and you go for a ride
You had a bad day, the camera don't lie
You're coming back down and you really don't mind
You had a bad day, you had a bad day

Well, you need a blue sky holiday
The point is they laugh at what you say
And I don't need no carryin' on

You had a bad day, you're taking one down
You sing a sad song just to turn it around
You say you don't know, you tell me don't lie
You work at a smile and you go for a ride
You had a bad day, the camera don't lie
You're coming back down and you really don't mind
You had a bad day, oh... Holiday...

Sometimes the system goes on the blink
And the whole thing turns out wrong
You might not make it back and you know
That you could be well oh that strong and I'm not wrong, ahhh...

So where is the passion when you need it the most ?
Oh, you and I, you kick up the leaves and the magic is lost

'Cause you had a bad day, you're taking one down
You sing a sad song just to turn it around
You say you don't know, you tell me don't lie
You work at a smile and you go for a ride
You had a bad day, you've seen what you like
And how does it feel for one more time
You had a bad day, you had a bad day

(Oh, yeah, yeaaah, yeah) Had a bad day
(Oh, had a bad day) Had a bad day
(Oh, yeah, yeah, yeeeeah) Had a bad day
(Oh, had a bad day) Had a bad day, had a bad day...

The meaning of this song can be taken as if you had a bad day, you have to bare with with it and smile and it will all work out in the end even in a way that you don't expect it to. It can also be taken as liking someone who acts like you don't exist and you may actually have more in common than you realise and your probably perfect for each other but they don't notice.

About Daniel Powter
Birth Name: Daniel Richard Powter
Born: 25th February 1971
Origin: Vernon, British Columbria, Canada
Genres: Piano rock, Pop rock
Occupations: Singer-songwriter, Pianist
Years Active: 2000-2009
Labels: Warner Bros, Sony BMG


Official Website for Daniel Powter: http://www.danielpowter.com/ 


Daniel Powter Album Covers

Daniel Powter: Song 6, Free Loop, Bad Day, Suspect, Lie To Me, Jimmy Gets High, Styrofoam, Hollywood, Lost On The Stoop, Get Me Life.

This album cover uses calm colour, mostly yellows and beige's. Also the way he is leaning looks calm and relaxed. The font that has been used has rounded edges and makes it look more comforting. The 'd' and the 'p' look quite effective because it looks like they have been rotated and flipped and also the letter doesn't join itself.

This is the Single Album Cover to Bad Day which is the song that I am going to use for my Music Video.

This album cover looks really well because it is simple. The green in the background contrasts well with his skin colour but t works well with the green hat he's wearing. The white writing also stands out quite well but it looks like its just been placed there without thought.

Under The Radar: Best Of Me, Not Coming Back, Whole World Around, Next Plane Home, Am I Still The One (with Linda Perry), Negative Fashion, Don't Give Up On Me, Fly Away, Beauty Queen, My So Called Life, Love You Lately.










Songs from Under The Radar: Best Of Me, Whole World Around, Next Plane Home, Am I Still The One (with Linda Perry).

Music Video Research:

This album cover has been digitally manipulated. As the people in the bubbles has been put on top of the picture of the city/town. Daniel is centered in the middle and this puts all the attention on him. The writing is positioned high and it plain and simple. The writings a blue colour that goes well with the blue of the album cover.

we looked at several different music video including:

• Black Dog (RSA FIlms) by Dawn Shadforth
• Colenel Blimp
• Dougal Wilson
• Oil Factory (Check Out W.I.Z)

The Music Promo that caught my eye the most and I thought was quite effective was love lost by temper trap. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLTPKKt-pMs

I like this video because its really looks really simple. Also everything that goes on in the video is in time to the beat in the music, for example the splashing in the puddles and the stretches they do. It is quite a simple technique that is used that I could use for my music video as I  could sit in the back of the car and film the people behind.


Music Video Ideas:
This is a mind-map I created with all the first ideas that I might want my music video to contain.

Two Main Ideas
I have two main ideas as the song has two meanings. It depends on what meaning I want to base the video on. 
My first idea is about love. It is about two friends that who have been friends for years, and they like the same person. At the beginning of the video the girls friend flirts with the boy and they start hanging out together and the girl feels invisible and is really unhappy. The boy and the friend then start arguing and fall out and in the end the girl gets the boy and is really happy. The meaning of this video is don't give up even if you do feel invisible because it may turn round in the end. 
My second idea is based on the other meaning of the song. It is about someones day starting really bad. But they don't give up and they put on a smile and it turns around and good things happen. I would like to use effects in this video to make the meaning of the video more evident. 


Final Music Video Idea - Proposal
I have come to a decision for my music video. I wanted something that everyone can relate to and this is something that everyone should be able to relate to. The beginning of the video is going to start off with the character going about their daily lives but everything seems to be going wrong. For example things such as car going through a puddle and the character getting soaked, Being laughed at my a group of people, Tripping up a pavement and looking around to see if anyone saw, walking under a ladder and spilling a drink over themselves.
Then at the end of the song the character puts on a brave face and turns it around and gets on with her day and good things start to happen. For example she starts smiling and laughing with friends, and holding hands. 
Then the character get a message or a text message that can make her day. It could be from her boyfriend or the person she has feelings for. For example she could receive a text saying 'Just Keep Smiling :) I Love You x'. She then thinks yeah the text is right and puts on a brave face.
I want to use effects on the video so that it puts the point of the music video across better, so I am going to make the beginning of the music video in black and white. I want this to represent the dull and miserable things that are happening in the video. 
I would like to repeat some of the shots, for example the character isn't looking where she is going and steps in the puddle but then the second time she sees it and steps around it.
Clothing: At the beginning of the video the character is going to be wearing "comfy" looking clothes such as baggy t-shirts and messy hair. By the end the character is wearing tight jeans and bright t-shirts/jumpers with tidy hair and a pretty necklace.
Target Audience: The Target is for anyone as I want it to be something that everyone can relate to. But the main character is a teenager so perhaps teenagers may be able to relate to it slightly better.Shot Ideas: For the beginning of the music video I am going open the music video with a pitch black and you can hear the alarm clock go off and then when the character turns the light on you are able to see her waking up and getting out of bed to start her day.

History of Photography

Many people use photography whether it being for professional photography as a job or to capture those precious moments in time with special people.

Photography started a long time ago in the 5th century. But the first reports were in ancient times when people used camera obscuras. These formed images on walls in blacked out rooms and the images would be seen on the opposite wall to where the pinhole is made. But the image would be seen upside down.

In 1816 Nicephore Niepce had a break through and introduced photosensitive paper to the camera obscuras. It wasn't until 1826 with many different experiments that he managed to create a permanent image. He did this by using asphaltum on a copper plate which was sensitised with lavender oil but this process needed very long exposure times. Louis Daguerre worked in conjunction with Niepce but before they could find a way to make a shorter exposure times Niepce passed away. Louis Daguerre then carried on on his own and managed to invent the Daguerreotype. The Daguerreotype was usually used for portraits, this was because it had a dark surface which is reflected into a mirrored silver surface and the reproduction is extremely detailed. This was a big step forward at the time and brings us closer to the photography we know today.

Daguerre Vs Talbot

At the same time Louis Daguerre was experimenting with different ideas, William Henry Fox Talbot was as well. Both of them knew that who ever created the idea first and was more effective would revolutionize the industry. While Louis Daguerre was experimenting the the daguerreotype, Talbot was working on his idea, the calotype process which was also named the talbotype. It is done by using paper coated in silver iodine. When it gets exposed to the light the silver iodine decomposes and the excess iodine gets washed away after oxidising. Talbot was a noted photographer who made big contributions to the photographic world.

George Eastman was the next photographer which made the biggest change to the industry. George was born in 1854 and passed away in 1932. It was in 1884 that he discovered the technology of film. He became the founder of Kodak, the company we know today. He named the company 'Kodak' because it was something original and different that didn't have any other meanings. In 1888 the first kodak camera was released. It contained a 20ft roll of paper. This was enough for 100 2.5inch diameter circular images. The year after kodak improved the camera so it used a roll of film instead of paper.

From then on many photographers were adapting and inproving film cameras.

In 1990 Adobe Photoshop was released. This then meant that photographers were able to digitally manipulate their image . This could simply just be editing little glitches which makes the photograph look more perfect or it could make photos look abstract by changing colours etc. 

The first camera phone was introduced in 2000. This made it easier for many people to take photos as it was cheaper than buying a camera and more acessible than carrying a camera around with you all the time.

Four years later after this Kodak ceases the production of film cameras and focused on digital cameras. This is how we know photography today and if we look back at the history, we can see how far photography has come since camera obscuras.

Photographers Mentioned:

• Nicéphore Niépce (Joseph Niépce) - French, Born March 7th 1765 and died on July 5th 1833.

• Louis Daguerre (Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre) - French, Born November 18th 1787 and died on July 10th 1851.

• William Henry Fox Talbot - English, born on February 11th 1800 and died on September 17th 1877.

• George Eastman - American, Born on July 12th 1854 and died on March 14th 1932.

Explore and Experiment - Skills

For my skills unit i am going to create a music video. We have been given 4 music tracks put our music video to. For this I worked with Hayley Greet and we both decided with 'Pack Up' by Eliza Doolitlle. We chose this because it was the most up beat and happy sounding song out of the 4.

Eliza Doolittle

Eliza Sophie Caird was born on 15th April 1988 in Westminster, London, United Kingdom.

She is a singer-songwriter, her genres of music include pop, folk, soul and ska. And she is currently signed to the Parlophone record label.

http://www.elizadoolittle.com/

Lyrics for Pack Up:
I get tired
And upset
And i’m trying to care a little less
When i google i only get depressed
I wast taught to dodge those issues I was told
Don’t worry
There’s no doubt
There’s always something to cry about
When you’re stuck in an angry crowd
They don’t think what they say before they open their mouths
(chorus)
Pack up your troubles in you old kit bag
And bury them beneath the sea
I don’t care what the people may say
What the people may say about me
Pack up your troubles get your old grin back
Don’t worry ’bout the cavalry
I don’t care what the whisperers say
Cos’ they whisper too loud for me.

Hot topic
Maybe I should drop it
It’s a touchy subject
and I like to tiptoe round the tiff goin’ down
You got penny, but no pound
your business is running out
‘not my business to talk about
They don’t think what they say before they open their mouths.
(Chorus)
Tweet tweet
tweet tweet tweet tweet tweet
tweet
(chorus)
Yeahh yeah yeah
yeah yeah
yeah
(dibadabadodooo)

This is a link to the original music video for her song Pack Up:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TsnQya30yo

Ideas
We then listened to the lyrics and tried to understand what the meaning of the song was about and we realised that it is about someone who used to worry about what everyone thought about her but now she doesn't care and she thinks its alright to be herself and different from the crowd.
This is a mind map of our very first ideas and what the song made us think about:

The lyrics that Hayley and I responded to the most were the chorus 'Pack up your troubles in you old kit bag, And bury them beneath the sea' and it made us think of someone digging up the sand with a bucket and spade. This then expanded to a beach theme, we thought about all the possible fun shots that we could create at the beach, an example of this was writing the lyrics of the chorus in the sand, we then developed this idea further and thought about writing it near the sea so that it will come up and wash them away. But then we thought about the seasons and it being october it would be very cold to shoot on the beach and it wouldn't be very sunny so the shots would look rather dull. We could also shoot it as a family video to make it look that bit more fun and relaxed.
Another of our ideas was having the video relate to the lyrics so the first 2 lines are 'I get tired and upset' so the visual is someone waking up and looking really upset. I think this would look effective but there would be a lot of shots to shoot.

Final Idea

The music video is going to be about a girl (who is representing Eliza Doolittle) who used to get bullied and was self-conscious, but she’s turned it around and is now not afraid to be different and stand out from the crowd. To show this we are going have a crowd of ‘Popular/Cool people’ in most of the shots to show that she does stand out but she’s not bothered. This is my interpretation of the meaning of the lyrics.

For the chorus’ we are going to set up a green-screen and get our actor to look as if she’s having fun and laughing and it’s ok to be yourself. This doesn’t link in with the lyrics of the chorus but this is sometimes what other pop music videos do and it is quite effective. We have asked the drama student to act in the music video and they have agreed to do it. It is going to be set around Penwith college because this is the easiest place to do it and where all the equipment we need is. It also is where the storyline is going to happen in real life situations. The costumes are going to be normal clothes as this is what you would wear at college, but the main character is going to wear bright colours and it will contrast well with the other people wearing dull colours and will make it easier to focus on the main character. The target audience is for anyone as the situation can happen anywhere and to anyone, but it is mainly for secondary school and college people as this is where people will get bullied or feel self-conscious about standing out from the crowd.

We are using the camera so that the focus is always on the main character so when the audience watch the music video they will feel like they are going on the journey with the main character. We are only going to use lighting while shooting the green-screening. But in all our other shots we are going to use the natural light that is available to make it look more real.

We are going to use a number of different shots to make the music video more interesting to watch. We are going to use Medium shots, Long shots and an extreme long shot. We aren’t going to use zoom because it’s not needed in these shots.

We aren't able to do the green-screen shots so we are going to have to improvise. So far we have come up with the idea of using photographs we have already taken, as we are both interested in Photography. So far we have photos at home of St. Michael's mount, beaches, flowers etc. On Thursday 21st we are going to try and shoot the rest of the shots that we haven't yet shot and also re-shoot the shoots that didn't work very well. For example the one on the stairs didn't work well because it was overexposed because of all the light coming through the windows.


Health and Safety/ Risk Assessments
When we put together out music video we will need to take into consideration the actors safety. There is a shot where our main character played by Saffron Jones walks along the chair that are in a row. Before she does this we will need to make sure that all the chairs are stable and are in a straight enough row so she cant fall of them as easily. Also we need to ask permission to use the actors in our music video so they aren't doing anything against there own will. We could collect their names on a sheet saying that they have agreed to work in our music video but because they are all doing the performing arts side of the course so we didn't do this.

Equipment needed for our music video

• Film
• Camera
• Hat/Cap
• Table and Chairs (already in the canteen)
• Netball and Hoop etc. (already in Porthcurnow)

Improvement and Development

If we were to do this again i would try and shoot as much footage at once as possible, also it would have helped if we found out the length of the song before we started shooting so that we knew how much footage to get all together. Also i think that it would have looked slightly more professional if we had used a tripod as the video was slightly shaky at times. But the reason we didn't use it at the time was because it was quicker to shoot without it as we didn't have to keep sorting it out for each shot. I think that