Blogger has meant that I can record each of my research and planning tasks and include images, sound clips and videos of various parts of the planning process, to help bring to life the infromation I have put down. It has also helped with my organisation, giving me a structure to follow. I have been able to link certain pages (very useful for my evaluation) and essentially keep a diary of my progress.
Soundcloud was also incredibly useful software as I was able to upload all of my audio files, the raw ones and the edited versions, before embeding the code into blogger so that the audio clips would appear on my blog.
During my research into listening to other existing radio stations, the TuneinRadio app was helpful, as it enabled me to record extracts from shows so that I could carefully re-listen to any stations that weren't available through listen again.
This was helpful when I chose to listen to a number of news bulletins from different radio stations all aired at the same time (to see if the news stories were the same). Recording extracts gave me the opportunity to carefully analyse each clip in terms of conventions used, representations, news values and the running order of stories. This made it so much easier when it came to writing my own script and getting the content of the news and the tone of delivery right.
To record my actors I used the Shure SM58 microphone, which had a pop guard attached, and I used the mixing desk to alter volume levels during both recording and editing. We only had a single microphone, so I had to record each actor individually (even if they were in a clip where they were talking to somebody else).
In some ways this was frustrating, as it hugely extended the recording time. It did, however, mean that i had greater control over every voice, and it made it much easier to edit out mistakes and mix each individual voice before editing it together with the other elements I needed (such as other voices, music and sound effects). During recording I carefully gave each file a label and placed it in a specific folder so that I could access it instantly when I need to edit. I arranged my folders into the separate elements of my show (such as news or jingles) but also created folders where I could put each mixed or finished section.
The software I used to edit and mix my show was called Adobe Audition 1.5, and it enabled me to add a range of effects to certain voices, as well as making it possible to layer sounds on the multi-track so that I could create very complex clips (such as my adverts, jingles and sections of my news bulletins).
When I recorded my actors they inevitably made mistakes, repeating or leaving out words or delivering the script in a tone that wasn't quite right. A feature of the software meant that rather than asking my actors to start again everytime there was a mistake, I could simply edit out any mistakes, gaps of pauses. This significantly reduced the recording time and meant that I had an even greater level of control. Below are clips of Alex who was the voiceover for my Dogs Trust advert. The first clip is of the initial recording of Alex's voice, with mistakes as he stumbles over words, having to start certain sentences again. The clip is also full of many pauses. The second clip is Alex's voiceover after I have edited out all the gaps and the mistakes. This feature of the technology meant that I did not need to ask Alex to keep re-recording.
Another important convention of existing radio that I was able to create, as a result of the technology, can be heard in the two clips below. When listening to the radio I often heard callers (either the audience or a guest giving an interview or soundbite) on the phone, and I wanted to re-create the effect of the Camelot Managing Director phoning in an interview in relation to one of my news stories. I was able to take the recording of Chris' voice and manipulate the settings on the graphic equalizer to authentically create the impression that the character was on the phone. First I highlighted the edited audio (after removing the mistakes and gaps) and opened the filter and graphic equalizer tabs. I lowered the bass and the treble, keeping the mid-range as it was.
Adobe Audition also enabled me to layer a number of different sound clips on the multi-track so that I could mix them together. An excellent example of this in my finished extract is the intro, at the beginning of the show. This intro is made up of a number of different elements mixed together, that went through various stages of editing. Below are the initial recordings of the two show presenters (Me and Niall recorded separately) before the mistakes and pauses were removed, the individual clips of the presenters once I had edited out mistakes and pauses, a clip of the presenters edited together (as if they were in the same room) and the final intro with the music added.
I was able to add effects to almost every separate section of my extract, including the jingles and adverts, and the outside broadcasts and press conferences featured in the news bulletin. Below is the Borough Market outside broadcast featuring the specialist reporter before I added the sound effects, and once I had added crowd noises to make it seem as if it had been recorded in a busy market.
The final way that I used the technology to make my show sound as authentic as real radio was by adding compression to the mixed and edited extract. As I had recorded all of the voices at different times and added music and sound effects at various points throughout my show, the volume levels of each element were often radically different. Adding compression created a consistent volume level across my whole show, so that no one sound sounded dramatically louder than any other. Below is my show both before and after compression was added.
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