Audacity tutorial

I have uploaded a full on tutorial on how to use Audacity to record your podcast, which you can find by clicking here.

Unit 20: P5 - post-production and evaluation

P5 is all about the post-production, i.e everything that you do after you have finished putting all your sound files together in a rough and ready way. We're talking transitions such as fades, changing volume, and adding vox pops and musical stings. Really, there's not a whole lot of post-production to be done when making a podcast!

One thing that is really important about P5 are the two evaluations you have to write. These are distinction criteria, and they allow you to demonstrate the things you have learned and the techniques you have used to get there.

aM3D2) Rough cut evaluation

This is where you evaluate the rough cut that you made for P4. You should be really harsh about your rough cut, because you're going to be solving all of these issues! Here are some issues that you may run into:

• The sound quality is poor, and you need to re-record certain bits
• There's not enough background music
• It's too long and a little boring
• It isn't completely clear what the podcast is about
• You need to add an interview or something similar to make it longer

bM3) Feedback from another person

Play your podcast to somebody else. What feedback do they give you? Jot down some bullet point ideas here. 

cM3D2) Effects and transitions

Here you point out all the awesome and cool things that you did making your podcast better. Did you change the volume? Did you add a fade out? Write about it here, and, most importantly, include screenshots!

dM3D2) Evaluation of final production 

Here, you should evaluate your final, absolutely done podcast. Unlike the first evaluation, you should be overwhelmingly positive about your podcast. So why is it so good? Why are people going to want to listen to it? What did you learn? And (keep this bit brief), what would you do differently if you had better resources?

Once more, remember to look at the exemplar powerpoints in the submissions folder. These will give you a really good idea about how to construct your podcast, and how to evaluate it!

Unit 20: P4 - production

P4 is where you place evidence of you producing, i.e making your podcast. It's here where you place a link to your raw audio files, and place screenshots of you working in Audacity or Audition.

My advice is is that if you are dithering over starting your podcast, just give it a go. Your first recording will be terrible anyway and you will almost certainly end up re-recording it, so get the rough draft done and dusted!

Let's go through it step by step:

a) Audio files

On this slide, you place a link to the audio files that you made your podcast out of. You should also include a screen capture of the raw files sitting in your folder, which should look a little bit like this:

This is actually a bunch of songs from a techno album
 but you get the general idea

b) Revised edit decision list

This is where you include a list of the decisions and changes you made after you started to record your podcast. It's completely fine to make changes from your original plan, but just include them of this slide. Below is an example of what this might look like:

 

cM2D1) Account of production techniques

On this slide, describe how you recorded your podcast. For example,

• Where did you put the mic? 
• What room did you record in? 
• Why? 
• How did you prevent any issues from happening? 
• What techniques did you use to get the best sound? 
• Was your sound terrible first time, and did you have to re-record it?

It would be good to have an image here of what your recording situation looked like. Make sure you put lots of detail in to this slide, as it contributes towards Distinction criteria. 

d) Equipment photo

On this slide, include an image of the equipment you used. This will probably involve an image of your phone, microphone, and/or computer.

It's not a very exciting slide.

e/M2D1) Raw files

On this slide, you include a link to your rough cut. Yes, I know it says 'raw files', but it's too late to change that. Maybe you should change this slide to say 'rough cut'

Unit 20: P2 and P3 - paperwork

P2 and P3 for Unit 20 are all about paperwork. You will have done this before at least once for your other units.

You can find all the forms documents you need by clicking here.

However, since you are working in a workbook, you may wish to create your own versions. The easiest way to do this is to click insert, then select table, then select the size of the table you want to create. See below for how to find this option.

Below is a student example (thanks AL!) for a risks and hazards slide. Since you will be working from your own home, there's not likely to be many hazards, so you may need to use your imagination!

Here's a rundown of all the elements of P2 and P3.

Recce

Recce is (sort of) short for 'reconnaissance', a military term involving scouting out a place before you actually go there. For this activity, you will be completing a recce of your home. Please do not leave your home! Podcasts, while important, definitely do not come under essential work...

Risks and hazards

What issues and dangers might there be when making your podcast? Mild risks and hazards include 

• Background noise
• People walking in when you are recording
• Tripping over wires
• Dropping your phone and breaking it
• Spilling coffee on your computer

Solutions to risks and hazards

Here you present solutions to the issues you presented in the last slide. For example, as you can see in the above image, in my office/cupboard under the stairs, I am undertaking the risky behaviour of drinking a coffee and leaving it on my computer. However, I have solved this risk by putting the coffee in a mug with a lid on it.

TOP TIP - you can the risks & hazards and the solutions on the same slide!

Legal and ethical

Legal and ethical is a bit more serious. Again, you've done this before, but as a reminder:

Legal issues break the law. 

They include copyright infringement (using songs without people's permission) and breaking and entering in to a location. Don't do these things!

Ethical issues may offend or upset people

These include subject matter, for example making a show about drugs (please do not do this), or libel, which is making an untrue claim about someone. 

In fact, if taken to court, libel can be a legal issue also!

It is unlikely you will be breaking the law when making this podcast. One thing to remember is that you are legally allowed to use short amounts of copyrighted music under what is known as the fair use policy. But it's even better to use non-copyrighted music

Talent release

If you have someone in your podcast who is not you, you should use a talent release form. You can download an example of one by clicking here. You do not need to print this, but can get the person to 'sign' their name by writing it in block capitals.