Media students/12/c 3/2/06 8:37 am Page 384 1 12 ProductionProduction 2 3 4 techniquestechniques 5 6 7 • Technical codes in print products • Technical codes in audio 8 production 9 • Technical codes in video 10 production • References and further reading 11 • ‘Narrative’ codes in film and video 12 production 13 14 15 This chapter is intended both This chapter will help you to make informed choices when you select and 16 as an extension of Chapter 11 use materials and equipment for media projects. It should also help you to 17 ‘Production organisation’ and read other media texts in terms of their technical codes. 18 as a complement to Chapter 1 ‘Interpreting media texts’ and 19 case study and Chapter 2 20 ‘Narratives’. Technical codes 21 22 In Chapter 1 codes are defined as systems of signs. Here technical codes are 23 the choices that can be made in selecting or using materials and equipment on 24 There are several meanings of the basis of the technical qualities of the format or the technical qualities of 25 ‘format’. Here it means a different the sound image or visual image created. For example you can select paper for size of paper or type of recording 26 printing a magazine on the basis of its colour, weight (thickness) and porosity medium, e.g. CD or DVD. But 27 (the extent to which the ink is absorbed). The quality of presentation of see also Chapter 3. 28 the text or photograph printed on the page will depend on the settings 29 of the printer in terms of resolution, number of colours, etc. 30 31 32 You won’t make your production choices in isolation, but in the context 33 of a specific brief and mindful of the cultural codes of the content of your 34 programme. Sometimes, the association of specific technical decisions 35 with particular subjects has become conventionalised so that stylistic or 36 aesthetic decisions have come to signify a certain mood or atmosphere 37 (the low-key lighting of a film noir, the jaunty music of a television quiz 38 show); a particular format or shape may have been adopted for a specific 39 function (the small portrait photo for a passport). The strength of the 40 technical or cultural connection is revealed when conventions are broken – 41 in comedy texts, for example. Technical codes are helpful in providing a 42 384 Media students/12/c 3/2/06 8:37 am Page 385 12: PRODUCTION TECHNIQUES Technical codes in print products 1 convenient shortcut for presenting conventional texts, but they can also A good example of restrictive 2 provide an excuse for not thinking about how to represent something, technology is the development of film and video cameras and 3 so that the technology is allowed to dictate the creative decision and lighting techniques which suit 4 effectively restricts choice. northern European skin tones 5 We’ve also decided to include a section on narrative codes in film and and which are therefore not 6 television in this chapter, linked with the discussion in Chapter 2. ideal for showing darker skin. (See Chapter 5.) 7 Although these are not strictly technical codes, such has been the power 8 and global spread of narrative cinema that they have developed into a Look at some of the issues 9 series of conventions related to shot sizes and camera movements that have in Chapter 4 ‘Institutions’. 10 become formalised as part of ‘film language’, and it makes sense to deal Technology may be ‘value-free’ but it is used in value-laden 11 with them here. Such narrative codes are more difficult to distinguish in institutional contexts, e.g. there 12 print and audio texts, but where possible we have included these in the are relatively few women 13 general discussion. cinematographers or sound editors. 14 This chapter concentrates on the technical decisions which you as 15 producer are going to make, mindful that in your proposal you have 16 identified a purpose, a target audience and a genre or style. 17 18 Technical codes in print products 19 20 A print product requires ink and paper. There are many different kinds 21 of paper and several different ways of getting ink on to them. Try to 22 begin a print production with a sort through paper samples and possibly 23 a discussion with a print professional about what kinds of paper are 24 available. 25 26 Paper 27 28 The paper used in this book is 90 gsm, ‘coated’. This was changed from the Paper is usually purchased by the 29 first edition, in an attempt to make the book lighter and easier to handle. ream – 500 sheets. 30 31 Weight 32 33 Paper is classified in ‘grams per square metre’ or ‘gsm’. Standard 34 photocopying paper is 80 gsm. Glossy brochures may use 120 gsm. Above 35 about 150 gsm, paper becomes more like thin card. Weight is important 36 for a number of reasons. At a very practical level, heavier paper means 37 a heavier product and, if it is going to be mailed out, this could mean 38 greater postal costs (heavier paper is already more expensive to buy). 39 However, heavier paper can feel more luxurious. Thinner paper can suffer 40 from ‘see-through’ or ‘bleed’ – if it is printed on both sides, heavy black 41 text or illustrations will be visible through the paper and perhaps spoil 42 the visual appeal of the page. This is also affected by coatings (see below). 385 Media students/12/c 3/2/06 8:37 am Page 386 Technical codes in print products THE MEDIA STUDENT’S BOOK Coated or uncoated? 1 The cheapest paper (e.g. newsprint) is ‘uncoated’ and porous. This means 2 that it feels a little rough between the fingers (ask a printer about paper 3 and she or he will perhaps rub it between the thumb and first finger). 4 It also means that, when ink is applied, it will tend to spread, because 5 it is absorbed by the fibres. You will see this if you use cheap paper on 6 an inkjet printer – the problem is exacerbated because the ink is very 7 wet. Better-quality papers are coated with a layer of non-porous material 8 (or are treated to have the same qualities). Ink is far less likely to spread 9 and coated papers give much better reproductions of photographs as well 10 as feeling smoother. You can choose between ‘glossy’ or ‘shiny’ and ‘matt’ 11 or ‘velvet’, according to taste (and what you think your readers will like). 12 13 14 Texture, colour and other qualities 15 Some expensive papers have a textured feel, like old parchment or 16 cloth-based paper. These can be absorbent, but can also look stylish. Paper 17 doesn’t have to be white. Different colour ranges are possible, including 18 pastel shades, strong colours and fluorescent colours. If you are a real print 19 fanatic, you may even consider the smell of the paper – it could signify 20 luxury or suggest that it is only a ‘throwaway’ product. Another technical 21 consideration is the form of binding. If pages are glued together along one 22 edge and the publication has a flat spine, it is known as ‘perfect-bound’. 23 Other methods ‘stitch’ or staple groups of double-page spreads along the 24 central fold, and another option is to ‘spiral bind’ with a strip of flexible 25 plastic or coated wire. 26 27 28 Size and shape 29 UK paper sizes are now standardised into the ‘A’ and ‘B’ series. You will 30 Half A4 is A5. Twice A4 is A3. be familiar with the A4 standard for most academic puposes and A5 for 31 Using A4 sheets you can work up leaflets. The equivalents in the ‘B’ series are slightly larger. Books and 32 or down to see what A1, A2, A6 magazines may use older sizes such as ‘quarto’ or ‘royal’. Newspapers are 33 and A7 might look like. usually tabloid (slightly smaller than A3) or broadsheet (slightly smaller 34 than A2). Depending on your computer software, you may be offered 35 templates for American paper sizes, which are noticeably different. 36 Often you will make a decision about size and shape on the basis of 37 purely functional criteria – A5 for a booklet, A4 for a magazine. If you 38 are printing on your school or college inkjet or laser printer, a sheet of 39 A4, or possibly A3, paper can be folded to give four pages of A5 or A4. 40 If you go to a professional printer who uses rolls of paper, there are fewer 41 restrictions, and you can use an ‘odd’ size or shape. This could mean that 42 386 Media students/12/c 3/2/06 8:37 am Page 387 12: PRODUCTION TECHNIQUES Technical codes in print products 1 your product stands out. A4 magazines tend to signify an educational 2 or ‘amateur’ product – a good example of an institutional sign. Most 3 print products are ‘portrait’ (height greater than width), but some are 4 ‘landscape’ (width greater than height). Some are square and others 5 tall and narrow. They don’t have to open as double pages – they can have 6 two or more folds. All of these considerations affect the way the product 7 is ‘read’. 8 9 10 ACTIVITY 12.1 11 12 Decisions on paper types 13 Collect a wide variety of magazines and books and try to distinguish between 14 them in terms of paper size, shape, colour, weight, etc.