The Feral Child Feature Story Review

Overview:

I read the Pulitzer prize winner feature story The Feral Child and it was about a girl that was neglected and was locked in a room, with only a few things. She was treated badly and the conditions she was in were very bad; the room was infested with cockroaches, and she was surrounded by her own filth. She was also very uneducated and didn't understand things kids her age should have known, and she is what scientists call a feral child. The authors argument was stating that the girl they found was a feral child, and feral children are kids that grow up with little interaction and how that is a wrong way to treat people. The author shows what makes a child become a feral child and he went through the story of the young girl and how far she has come since her abuse. The author also talks about feral children and what they are and how they got to be the way they are, the author uses other sources about feral children and he gets accounts from witnesses who saw the girl. The author also uses this story about the young girl as an example of a feral child.

Strengths and Weakness:

The articles strengths are that it has an example that explains what the story is about and it gives good details. Another strength is that the article has many different sources having definitions dating all the way back to the Holy Roman Empire and the most recent source which was 1970. A weakness in the article is that the feature story jumps around too much, there are sources from long ago and then it jumps right back into the story about the young girl, and because the feature jumps around a lot it gets confusing and hard to understand.

Conclusions:

The author concludes the feature story by going to the present to see how the young girl has developed and changed, it talks in detail about how far she has come and while she isn't where other kids her age are she has learned more than they thought she would. The story also ends with what consequences the mother is facing because of her abuse towards her daughter.

Summary:

The article was a very well written feature story and it supported all the main ideas of defining a feral child and showing the different cases of them and how rare they are. The article follows the story of a young girl who was a feral child and her mental growth was stunted due to her harsh conditions. the points were very significant because it showed what can happen when kids are treated poorly and how they deserve the best treatment. The evidence is very convincing because there are so many different examples and cases that show all the different feral children and they are all spread out through different time periods which shows how the have always existed and there have always been a few cases. As a videographer I will use the strengths that I found in the article and can apply those to my future work if I chose to go into convergence as my main focus. I can use what I learned about the format of feature stories and use that to make my work better. While the feature story is very well written there are terms in the article that are more difficult to understand and some prior knowledge is needed just for the basics or what a feral child is and how they become feral children. Overall the feature story is written extremely well and while it is slightly confusing at times everything is explained well and it has details to help you picture the girl's living conditions.

http://www.pulitzer.org/winners/lane-degregory

Graphic Design Reflection

Overview:

Throughout the semester my skills in graphic design my skills have improved quite a bit. Coming into this class in the beginning of the year I knew very little but now after a short semester I have learned about fonts, color schemes, and how to use Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. Not only have my technical skills improved but my collaboration skills have also improved. My collaboration skills have improved because I got the opportunity to receive feedback from juniors and seniors who are in graphic design and my peers. I have also gotten the chance to work with a partner on a project and run ideas past each other.

Projects:

Photoshop Tutorials:

The first project of the year was Photoshop tutorials, the goal of the videos was to help us get comfortable with the tools in Photoshop and apply them later in graphic design. Each tutorial focused on a certain tool so we could learn in depth what it was for and how to use it. The project took around two weeks to finish completely. While most of the tutorials were short and simple there were a few that were more challenging than others. The one that I struggled with the most was removing certain objects from a picture and while still making it look realistic and not photoshopped. As I was going through all the videos I learned a lot about Photoshop and its tools. I learned how each tool worked and when I should use certain tools over others. Some feedback I received as I went through each tutorial was to take my time and not to rush no matter how simple the tool is. I learned that I need to put forth my best effort for every project even if I don't enjoy it because every project has a lesson about graphic design that is necessary to learn. Overall I think I could have slowed down on the design process because I could have cleaned up each project. Even though I feel like I could have slowed done I am still happy with how they turned out overall.

Fall Raccoon and Postcard:

The next project we did after the Photoshop tutorials was to create a fall raccoon and create a postcard, the project was to help us get to know the tools in Adobe Illustrator. The process for creating everything was to first follow a tutorial to design the raccoon and the fall foliage. Once everything was done we began to rough draft our post cards, I decided I wanted a holiday theme. I began to create the things featured in my postcard including the Christmas tree, the fireplace, the stockings, and the Santa hat for the raccoon. Once I had designed everything and had it laid out I started to work with typography so I could include a handwritten font on my postcard. Just like the Photoshop tutorials the raccoon project took around two to three weeks to get all the way through. Some of the challenges that I faced throughout the entire project was understanding the tutorials.
 Since the tutorials were not videos this time but instead they were step by steps pictures it was harder to understand what tools and where the tool were. Throughout the project I learned how to follow directions a different way than before. I also learned the Adobe Illustrator tools and when to use them. I received a lot of positive feedback during this project, I got comments on my handwritten font and how my raccoon turned out. Overall I am much more happy with the process and outcome much more than my Photoshop tutorials. I stayed after school multiple times to get the project done to the best of my ability and I am very happy with
the way it looks overall. 

Vectored Image:

The next project we did in the graphic design was the hardest project and the one that took the most time. Our assignment was to created a vector of ourselves based off of a head-shot we had taken in class a few days ago. The most used tool on this project was the pen tool to trace the parts of the image and the eye-droppper to match the colors as closely as possible. The hardest part of the project was having the patience to finish it. The other hardest part was to get it done in time, I wanted to get every detail in the vectored image and I wanted it to be perfect. I had to learn how to use my time well and get as much done as possible. Throughout the project I learned how to use the pen tool and use a few of anchor points as possible and I also learned how to use tints and shades of colors to show highlights and shadows in my skin and clothes. I am very happy with how my image turned out and I used my time well and I was able to get everything done on time because I stayed after school multiple times to get everything completed. 

Infographic:

One of the last projects of the semester was to create an infographic about a certain topic. Creating the infographic was my favorite project of the entire year. The process of the project was a lot longer than any other project we had done. On the other projects I was able to just jump in and begin designing but for the infographic we had to do research to know what topics we wanted to show on the poster. The project took the longest, we did research for a week, we planned out the layout, and then we began creating the graphics. The hardest part of the project was figuring out the balance between too much information and not enough information. Once everything was created and laid out we had a critique with the upperclassmen. I got lots of positive feedback and constructive criticism. I was advised to change my font and change the sizes of stuff, but overall they liked where I was going with my infographic. With all the feedback that I received I changed the styles of font numerous times and I also changed the sizes of things. The last thing I changed was the icons of some of the movies I represented. Overall I am extremely happy with how my project turned out and I'm happy that with the time that I had left after I finished I was able to go back and change things so as an end result it looks better than it did. 

Milton Glaser:

The last project of the semester was too create a presentation of a graphic designer who impacted graphic design history. My graphic designer is Milton Glaser, we started off the project by researching our person and then we wrote a two paged paper over them and then we started creating the slides. For our presentation we have to create a minimum of five slides to show information about our person. The slides have to show their style of graphic design and highlight the most important facts about them.

Time Management:

I feel like overall I have used my time very well in class, and when I don't get everything done that I needed done I will stay after school to finish the project so I can turn them in on time. When I finish a project early I will go back and clean it up in any way possible and I also get others to look at it to give me feedback. Outside of class when I'm not working on any of my projects and I'm driving somewhere I will look at other posters that are created by graphic designers and I will notice things about theirs that I like so I can incorporate things like theirs into my work.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Some of my strengths as a graphic designer is time management and putting all my effort into a project to make sure it is my best work. I always try to make sure every project is done to the best of my ability. I also try and make sure that all my projects are done on time even if that means staying after school to get caught up. I maximize my strengths by continuing to think about what can be done better and how can I improve this project. My weakness as a graphic designer is being a perfectionist, I always want every project to be perfect and I will spend too much time working on it if I'm not careful and I always have to make sure that I get my projects turned in on time.

Summary:

Overall I have really enjoyed the semester in graphic design and I feel like I have learned a lot throughout the semester. My favorite part so far has bee creating the infographic because I enjoyed picking my topic and designing it completely from scratch. I wouldn't change anything bout graphic design other than not doing another history of graphic design project. My take away from this semester is learning how to balance my time and manage my perfectionist personality to make sure projects get done on time. My goal for next semester is to have everything turned in on time and put all my effort into every project. 

ONW feature Story 2

Assignment: Our next assignment in Video was to create another feature story. I chose to create a feature story over my dad and my younger sister on how they play the piano on Sunday mornings at Westside Family Church, and how Darren inspired Sara to begin to play the piano and start to play at church.

Pre-Production:

To start the project I researched the topic of playing the piano. I found out statistics and fun facts about pianos and people who played the piano. After researching the topic I wrote out the 21 interview questions for each person and I decided where I wanted to go with the story. I decided that I wanted to show how Darren played the piano for the church and that inspired his youngest daughter Sara to play the piano for the middle school service. 

Production:

Once I finished writing the questions and researching I started to collect B-Roll and interview Darren and Sara. For the B-roll I got a variety of shots with them playing the piano, Darren working with Sara, and them looking at sheet music together. I also went on Wednesday night to go to Darren;s practice to get shots of the band playing together. After I collected all the B-roll and interviews I downloaded all the footage and began to edit it. 

Post-Production:

After everything was filmed and downloaded onto the computer I began getting sound bytes from the interview. I got the sound bytes by taking the pieces of the interview that I needed to put into the feature story. Once that was done I started to write the script for the voice overs, and placed everything together for the final script. Then I went into the studio and recorded the voice overs and then downloaded them onto the computer. The next step was to piece everything together; I started by laying out the voice overs and the sound bytes into the timeline to get a guide of where I wanted everything. Then I started going through the B-roll and choosing which clips I wanted and where they needed to go to make sure that they feature story flowed. Once everything was in place in the timeline I began to adjust the sound levels to get an even sound throughout the entire video. Once the rough draft of the video was done I watched through the video and made sure I had no jump cuts and if I did to make sure B-roll covered them.

Reflection:
Overall I am happy with my project because I had more than enough B-roll and I talked slower while filming my voice overs. If I could change something I would change the variety of the types of shots I had. I would incorporate more of the six shot system, I would et more close-ups, medium shots, and extreme close-ups. I learned how to get more B-roll and edit the sound to make sure the audio levels are even and I also learned how to create a better feature story. For the next project I will use what I learned about B-roll and how I need more than I think I will. 

ONW Feature Story

Assignment: 
The project I have been working on in video was a feature story. We had to find someone to interview and create a story about them, I did my feature story about my friends grandparents Denny and Judy Briley. I interviewed them about a medical mission trip in Guatemala that they participated in.

Pre-Production:
To start off the project I started by writing out my 21 questions to ask them. I decided on asking them things like what is a medical missions trip, what was your role on the trip, what was your favorite part, and why did you want to go. Once all my questions were written out I asked them for any background information that I might need for the project and they gave me the blogs for the trips and I read through both and edited my questions based off the blog. After I had read the blogs I then talked to them about when a good time to interview them was.

Production:
When I started filming the video I started by having them sit in their living room on the couch and I talked them through how the interview was going to happen. When I started the interview I had my mom help me and hold the camera so I could sit to the side and have them watch me instead of the camera. After I asked all my questions I started to brainstorm how to get B-Roll. I decided that I was going to do basic shots like hands of a keyboard, a tack in the location that they went on a map, and a over the shoulder of a Judy sitting at a computer.

Post-Production:
When I got to school on Monday I started the editing process, I downloaded everything and began creating sound bites of the interview. Once I finished that I started to write out my voice overs and then filmed them. Then I started to piece everything together and I used screenshots of the pictures that were taken on the trip and then posted on the blog to put as extra B-Roll on my video.

Reflection:
Overall I think I did okay on this project and if I had more time I would have found more creative ways to get more B-Roll and the other thing I would change is the speed that I talk in during my voice overs. I have learned throughout the last project and this one that I am a very fast talker and that I need to learn how to slow down. The part that I would not change if I went back would be my interview, I really liked how it turned out with the lighting.

Vectored Image

The second project we did in graphic design was to create a vectored image of yourself based off of a headshot we had taken. I used to pen tool to outline and trace most of my face and shirt while I used the brush tool to do my hair. I also used the eyedropper tool to get close to the colors that I would need to have realistic shades of color for my skin, hair, and clothes.

Fall Raccoon and Postcard

The goal of the next graphic design project was to create a raccoon and make both a fall scene and a postcard. I started out by creating the raccoon and placing it onto a solid colored background. The next step in the project was to begin creating leaves and foliage to put into the fall scene. I created different types of leaves, acorns, and branches. Once everything was done I began to add them altogether to make the fall scene. I decided to have the raccoon the main focus point by having him on a pile of leaves with the foliage I created behind it.

Once I finished the fall scene I had to make a postcard and somehow incorporate my raccoon in it. I decided that I wanted the theme of my postcard to be a Christmas card. I started out by creating the tree and ornaments with the presents, then I made the fireplace and stockings, and then I created the santa hat for my raccoon. The last thing I added on the postcard was my handwritten typography, I wrote it out on paper and then scanned it in on the computer. Once the front was done I added the presents and type onto the template of the back of the postcard. 

ONW 1 in 2,000 an Audio Interview

The assignment was to interview someone about something interesting about them, so for my project I interviewed CJ about the high school football team. The project guidelines were that it had to be an audio file, it had to be 60-90 seconds long, and it had to have sound bites and voice overs in it.

Pre- Production:
To start the process to create our interview we started by getting to know them. While getting to know them we had to find out something interesting about them and pick what the focus of our interview was going to be. CJ was my partner and while I was talking to him about what he liked to do I found out that he was on the high school football team and he really enjoyed playing. After we had picked what we were going to interview our partners about we had to write out our 21 questions. The layout of the 21 questions is:

• 1: Asking their name and how to spell it
• 2-4: Background questions
• 5-8: Who, What, Where, and When questions
• 9-18: How and Why questions, asking them to describe and explain things
• 19-20: Greatest hope and fear
• 21: Asking if there is anything they want to add

Production:

After all the questions were written we started production by filming our partner and asking them our questions. We had to take them to a place that is part of their story and since I was interviewing CJ about the football team I took him outside and onto the football field to interview him. Once I had the video I went back inside to start the editing process.

Post- Production:

Once I was inside and had uploaded all my videos I started to edit them. In the video I found the answers to the questions I had asked and I saved them as sound bites to use in the final audio file. After I found and saved my soundbites I started to write my script for the voice overs. When writing my script I kept that we had to do more talking than our partner in the video in my mind. After writing my script I filmed my voice overs and inserted them into my video.

Reflection:
As I made the video I learned about editing audio and how it is harder than it looks. The other thing I learned was how to correctly film a interview and once it was imported only use the sound and not the video part. I also learned collaboration because I had to work with my partner so I could interview him. If I could go back and change some things I would change the speed that I talked at, I talked really fast and that is not good for interviews. The things that I would do the same would be the transitions between voice overs and sound bites. The experiences that I learned this time and that I can use next time is how to set up an interview starting with the 21 questions and then asking them in one long video. Overall I learned a lot about interviewing someone and editing audio that I will use in later video projects.