MODULE SEVEN: TELLING A STORY II – MINI DOC (PRODUCTION AND POST)

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Reading & Writing:

The final words were, well…final words. If there was a takeaway form any of it, it was that there is merit in sticking to the basics before getting too crazy. This was something I remember from my very first digital photo class. I was eager as hell to make things look “cool” in photoshop when I should have concentrated on composing a decent picture first. Honestly, there will be portions of the book that I revisit now that the pressure is off. I never felt like I really got a chance to absorb anything in the text because there was so much to do and it was all just a means to completing the module. I needed to extract the important points quickly and then put them to work.

Where did your skillset start and where are you now? When I started this class, I had almost zero knowledge of recording video and audio. I had done a few little projects for my own entertainment, but feel more confident to include these elements into projects. I still feel like I don’t have an amazing handle on my DLSRs ability to record motion to its best capability, but that is something that I can finagle later.

In terms of usefulness, I think that the podcast recording and the motion editing techniques were the things that I’m going to remember the most. A friend of mine is interested in starting a podcast, and since I’m kinda set up to do it now, I feel much more confident that I could record and edit it for her. On the flip side, audio was still a major challenge for me this semester. I never felt like anything sounded as full or rich as I wanted it to…it may have been acceptable, but I never felt like I could push it to be exceptional.  I’m definitely interested in digging in Premiere Pro a lot more…my brother-in-law works as an editor on a couple of popular documentary television series so I hope to hook up with him soon to get some hands-on learning in soon.

In the future, I think I’m going to try making a few more of these short “In the Studio” documentaries. The artist really loved it and I’ve had a few other people offer their time to get a similar clip made. It seems like working on little projects like this would be good practice to keep things fresh.

Research to Inform:

Gimme Danger:

J-Cut example – I chose a clip from this particular cause ‘Gimme Danger’ was (in a way) the inspiration for my documentary video. I think the cuts made between the dialogue and the video are great and really express the ‘feeling’ of the concert that is being recounted.

 

L-Cut Example: I chose this scene because it was a memorable clip that used audio from the dream sequence carried over into the next scene to connect the two.

Create:

Project Note:

I’m gonna start by saying that I took some small creative liberties here that deviate from the outlined assignment. As a true believer that some rules are meant to be broken, I went way over the five-minute limit and I opted to not use any voice-over narration. Inspired in part by the Iggy Pop documentary, “Gimme Danger”, I went into this project with a very distinct “feel” that I was going for, and it certainly would not have been possible to achieve it by cramming a man’s life story into five minutes or having to listen to myself talk about him when I was certain he would do a much better job of it. I had pre-recorded some voice over bits prior to filming that I felt could be used to fulfill that requirement, but ultimately scrapped them because it cheapened the piece. Now, having critically watched this piece many, many times, – I’m confident that these were the right choices for this project.

Lighting:

After lugging a massive bucket of lights, soft boxes, stands and cords up three flights of stairs in a sweltering industrial warehouse, mid-way through the insanely hot heat wave, I was informed that the electricity to the building had been cut due to ongoing upgrades and renovations. Therefore, I didn’t use the required 3-point light setup that was required for this piece. I did, however, get creative with a few reflectors and the natural light that came through the only massive window in this wing of the building. I feel that the light is still soft and balanced and honestly, it’s the best that could be achieved under the circumstances.

Filming:

To film the sit-down portion of the interview, I set up two cameras: a Nikon D810 with a 2.8f 24-70mm lens and a Nikon D7100 with a 1.8f 35mm lens (with the 1.3x crop enabled in order to record at a higher fps). Each were outfitted with a shotgun mic (one RODE and another off-brand mic). I spent a few hours the day prior to shooting, researching the absolute best settings for recording with each camera…I set them appropriately, tossed each on a tripod, and let them roll; stepping off the far side of the narrow room to make sure that Don wouldn’t be looking directly into the lenses. I probably should have checked them sooner than I had because the autofocus kept re-adjusting wildly because Don doesn’t sit still…I should have known this and taken it into consideration. After reviewing all of the footage, this is my biggest filming regret and something I will likely remember to triple-check for the rest of my life.

Audio:

I got crap audio from the RODE mic, and better quality from my other off-brand shotgun mic, but the battery died shortly into filming and foolishly, forgot by batteries at home so I didn’t get anything off of it. The room was large and vacant, so there was a decent echo which I had to get rid of. I took a few passes at fixing it in both Adobe Audition as well as Audacity and this, while SOOOO much better than the original, is still pretty mediocre at best. I don’t own a lav mic or a separate audio recording device, but after working so hard to get sub-par audio it is an investment I will consider. And yes, I used copyrighted music…it felt appropriate and royalty free stuff would not have fit my vision.

Editing:

Honestly, this was the easiest part of the process. I made mental notes on the placement of footage and dialogue as Don talked because I could “see” it all coming together before me. We met at 11am Wednesday morning and I literally edited for 12 hours straight (with minimal breaks) and when I was done, it was done. It all sort of just clicked in a way that felt natural, yet purposeful.

 

So….here it is! (Just be sure that YouTube is set to play it in full HD)

 

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TELLING A STORY I – MINI-DOC​ (PRE-PRODUCTION)

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READING & WRITING:

DSC_4475Chapter Seven – Lighting: This chapter covered the basics of light setup for filming in multiple conditions. As a photographer, light can be a huge struggle depending on location and elements. For example, I shot an event in the middle of a golf course last week which took place directly in the mid-day sun. I took a fill-flash with me, but under the circumstances, there wasn’t much to be done for the sun-produced shadows that lined peoples faces. This is all much easier to accomplish when you can control your environment through lighting and reflectors. Between taking professional headshots and creating more artistic headshots (as demonstrated to the left) I feel pretty confident in how I can manipulate light in most situations.

Chapter Nine – Doing It: It was amusing and coincidental to have this chapter discuss using a slate (and/or shot log) early on because I learned my lesson regarding this two weeks ago. I recorded a LOAD of footage from an outdoor arts festival that I co-produced and wanted to get some video that could later be edited to use in fundraising efforts next year. Excited to have spent the day bouncing around the city, trying to capture as much as I could from all the acts and venues, I didn’t think about the moment when I’d have to dump all of that footage into a folder and actually deal with it. Certain shots that I was excited to see on the screen were difficult to locate and in fact, I still haven’t had the time or energy to figure out whats-what.

This chapter also discussed how to shoot a series of shots that bookend by shooting out of sequence. By filming the opening and closing shots at the same time, you same time and energy moving everything back into place as you would if you shot it sequentially.  I guess this is kind of obvious, but wished I had been reminded of this in certain recent filming situations. It has certainly been put on a checklist I’ve got going for the final project of things to remember while I’m “in the moment” and perhaps, not thinking clearly.

 

RESEARCH TO INFORM:

I got really into these ’60 Second Docs’ while trying to find inspiration for this project. I particularly like how the video matches the narration beat-for-beat while describing the activity of chase tag.

 

If you haven’t caught an episode of ‘Documentary Now!’ you should, because they are really amusing faux documentaries that follow an appropriate style for their context. I chose this one for the great visuals at the beginning of the episode that creates a wonderful foundation for the rest of the piece.

 

I know that Vimeo has labeled this a ‘staff pick’ and it a beautifully composed piece, but the audio is really annoying because it sounds as if the narration was recorded in an empty room and is full of faint echoes.

 

CREATE:

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Basically, due to crappy schedules, we will be shooting this entirely on Wednesday morning. I’ve already had to take a lot of time off from work for this class and I’m trying to avoid having to take more since I’m falling behind a bit at work. So, not much to report on progress…I’ve got much of the incidentals out of the way such as having recorded some narration, got some music picked out, intro titles and end credits are all sorted but will likely need a bit of tweaking. I’m trying to line everything up so I’m just left with lining up the video and audio the way I need it.

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MODULE FIVE: CONTINUITY – HOW-TO VIDEO

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Reading & Writing:

51Y6-pyafRL._SX410_BO1,204,203,200_Chapter Three – Basic Sequence: This chapter explains and outlines the process of sequencing your shots so that your video remains visually interesting, even if the location of the scene hasn’t changed. I struggled with this while editing my montage in the last module because I wasn’t sure how long a certain clip should be visible prior to transitioning to another one. I tried to find a natural balance, but just the simple suggestion presented here of counting ‘one-thousands’ was really helpful when putting this week’s project together.

This chapter also explains the ‘cut on the action’ method of following one motion from start to finish through a variety of different shots. I definitely tried making this work a few times in my how-to video and think that I did a decent job of it.

Chapter Four – Screen Direction: This chapter talked a lot about towing the line…the 180-degree line, that is. Thankfully, the writing was clear, because I found the diagrams to confusing and it was really difficult to orient myself while looking at them and trying to imagine what it would look like on a screen. Basically, the axis of action needs to heeded while recording so that the viewer doesn’t become disoriented by the position of characters or objects on the screen. Such a change can be a massive distraction and can pull the viewer’s attention away from the production since they have to stop to re-orient themselves. I think, that as a viewer of media, this should be fairly easy to avoid since it feels so unnatural, but I guess there is still an opportunity for it to happen. Something I made sure to keep in mind while recording my video this week.

Research to Inform:

The robot invasion of Frank’s house in Tomorrow Land is a good example of a fast-paced scene in a small area that nails smooth transitions while piling in a lot of action.

 

I liked the long shots of Kevin Spacey walking that were taken from inside the car that’s following him, and the composition of the medium shots taken from the sidewalk and the closer transition of Spacey walking, going from having a crippled foot, to being able to walk normally.

 

Somewhat similar to the clip above, this scene from Willy Wonka after Charlie finds the last Golden Ticket seamlessly follows Charlie through the streets and the obstacles that he encounters on his path from a number of different vantage points to create a smooth sequence.

 

Create:

I wanted to shoot something that was lighthearted and fun, and thankfully my husband is a good sport. It was hard to keep this piece short, and I seconded guessed my editing a lot. It was difficult to choose which shots to use when I recorded so much of the activity. Ultimately, I think I found a balance for everything that felt right. Enjoy!

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VISUAL COMPOSITION II – VISUAL MONTAGE (PRODUCTION AND POST)

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READING & WRITING: 

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Chapter 10: After the Shoot – Editing: To start off this chapter, an exercise was presented to the reader on how to visual edit your surroundings. While I didn’t have anyone read it to me, I did try to follow along and perform the acts as described in the text. It was an interesting exercise because it made me slow down and properly look at what was an otherwise very familiar room in my home. I tried to take this experience with me when I went to my location to shoot.

One of the following sections was about establishing and then reestablishing the environment that you are trying to present. This was also helpful in framing the project for this module since the video was limited to one location. I found that pretty challenging at first and my first time going out to film was unsuccessful. After going through the chapter and wrapping my head around some of the ways I could apply these concepts, that feeling that I was working within a limited capacity went away, and I was really much more comfortable and inspired by the space I had previously thought would have been a bore to create a video around.

 

RESEARCH TO INFORM:

Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright): I know I’ve mentioned it in other modules and other classes, but Edgar Wright’s editing techniques are just too darn relevant to the topic to not include again. I love the rapid cuts that he edits in order to create a bit of tension in addition to moving the scene and story along – it’s an effective style that has become quite a signature in his work.

 

Stranger Things: This particular video has a number of editing examples but the first one is an edit that I really enjoyed because of the anticipation that is created with the wide shot, paired with the quick rapid movement of an unrelated scene that shakes the viewer out of the scene they were just engrossed in. It certainly guides the viewer out of, and into scenes effectively.

 

Dogma: This scene is edited flawlessly to intertwine climactic events taking place at two separate locations, each cut matching the ‘beat’ of the alternating cut as it goes back and forth. It’s quick moving but carries two very involved scenes along simultaneously until they reach their final and allows the viewer to follow along without needing much of an explanation about how the events of each scene ultimately affect each other.

 

CREATE:

This was an interesting experience. I was able to look at a park that I often walk through in a different light and I think I did an alright job of capturing that in the video. I REALLY didn’t want to include any narration in this project but obviously did, to fulfill the requirement. I think it was the type of video that would have worked better with captions/text along the bottom

I had purchased THIS stabilizer for my DSLR and had done some tests after getting it balanced because I wanted just a couple of shots with movement in them. After getting home and looking through what I had shot on the last day I could go out to film, I realized that it wasn’t nearly as smooth as I thought it would be. There is clearly a learning curve on this piece of equipment that I need to work out quickly.

The process felt very much like taking a still picture. Working on a tripod slows you down so that you have to pay attention to all the details and nuances. It isn’t about speed, it’s about composing the best shot you can under the circumstances. Circumstances for me around this project were rough but enjoyable overall.

(And now I’m running into a weird audio problem where the levels sound fine playing from my computer by are barely noticeable on youtube. UGH.)

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MODULE THREE: VISUAL COMPOSITION I – VISUAL MONTAGE (PRE-PRODUCTION)

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Reading & Writing

There was A LOT of reading this week, so I’m going to try to keep it tight:

Chapter One – Basics

Having been doing for photography for so long, all of the camera basics was a nice review. Since I’ve worked with both large format film, 35mm, and digital, I’ve had a lot of experience setting an exposure on a camera.  Honestly, I read through it and it didn’t offer anything new for me.

Chapter Two – Composition

This is another area that was a review for me. Towards the end of my undergrad degree, I took a class that required very intense critiques while working towards designing a book that we would each self-publish. This experience really nailed the concepts of good composition in my head so, to take photos for the compositional exercise that were framed in the center was actually more challenging than taking a ‘proper’ photo.

Chapter Five and Six – Camera Moves and Montages

Chpt 5 gave a decent description of tilts, zooms, and pans, all of which are in the basic arsenal of moves that any beginner should know.  There was one paragraph that stuck with me, which made note that cameras should move with purpose – which doesn’t mean moving all over the place, all the time. I think that in my mind, the idea of going from stationary photography to motion filming implied that there will have to be A LOT of movement. I’m going to really remember that it all still comes down to the principles of good composition from beginning to end and not worry about how much movement is present.

I couldn’t believe how short the montage “chapter” was – and it was pretty basic to boot. I was hoping that this section would reveal the some hidden ‘wow factor’ that I hadn’t thought about or considered thus far, but it seemingly defined the elements and let you go about your reading.

 

Video Pre-Production Planning Check-List – 11 Steps to a Successful Project

I’m not sure that I’m going to articulate this properly, but this particular article really defined the pre-production process in a way that was easier for me to consume because it seemed to be written from a slightly more analytical POV, and seemed a bit more business-like. I feel like I tend to gravitate to that style more at times, which was helpful.

It discussed things that weren’t totally flushed out in the text like message development, location scouting, distribution planning, to name a few. It was really helpful to see an extension of the planning process laid out here.

12 of the Most Popular Camera Shots all Actors Should Know

I really loved the examples that were used here – in fact, I was going to use ‘A Clockwork Orange’ for the research to inform section, but opted to look for something else after seeing it listed here.

I looked at these examples in terms of how difficult it might be for me to execute something similar when I start filming my project. Based on my chosen location, an aerial shot is out of the question, but there are many other types (over the shoulder, low angle, and others) that will be easier and perhaps more effective in the long run.

If there is one shot I’m still feeling a bit ‘iffy’ on, it’s the high angle shot, but I’m going to accept that one as a challenge to see if I can work on into the finished piece.

Storyboarding

I understand that storyboarding is a high-priority task, and perhaps more so if you aren’t editing your own footage. As someone who really likes to just do whatever moves me at any particular moment,  I have a hard time pre-planning and honestly, don’t put much emphasis on it because I’m the only one working with the footage. If I put it all together and find that I need something else, or that a segment didn’t quite work, I’ll just go back out and shoot it again. This article really made me think a bit more about how it affects others that I may eventually have to work alongside, so I think from here on out, I’ll be putting forth some extra effort in the area of storyboarding and stop thinking that its all about my part in the process.

Research to Inform

Rule of Thirds: I chose this particular clip because I liked the way that the frame kept the actors in line with the rule of thirds, and in the full context of the movie, is a pretty amusing scene.

 

The Cornetto Trilogy

Color: Okay, so not a clip, but I think equally as relevant and easier to showcase in still images, is Edgar Wright’s trilogy of films featuring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost which feature overtones of a particular color in each of the films:

Shaun of the Dead (Red)

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Hot Fuzz (Blue)

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Worlds End (Green)

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Aside from loving the stories, I was really into the visual elements such as these that made the entire collection of unrelated stories feel cohesive in their own way. Likely drawn from the fact that these three colors, when combined at different intensities and values, can create any color on the spectrum, and used primarily when a video is delivered via a screened medium.

Leading Lines: What Dreams May Come could likely offer an example of beautiful composition and cinematography for nearly every category. However, this particular scene was one of the first that came to mind while thinking about leading lines. The relevant content in the clip is short but meaningful in connecting the previous scene to the one that is about to fade in.

 

Perspective: The BBC program ‘Peep Show’ gets its name from the POV style that it is shot in. I feel it works really well since the show relies heavily on personal interactions between the characters.

 

 

Create:

This was all really difficult for me because I’m just not much of a planner…I’m much more about doing what feels right at the moment. I’ll generally go out with a scribbled list of a few ideas, but being so exact it really hard and too constrictive for me.

The composition exercise was easy in theory. Not all of the shots are from the final filming location, but I believe that they all demonstrate my ability to execute the design techniques. I’ve been doing photography for years, so they are all theories that I feel comfortable with.

Shot List:

Shot List

Pre-Production Planning:

Pre-Production Planning