This is the first blog post I’ve ever done in my life, so I’m pretty nervous and excited. Before starting this class I’ve only ever had experience with making two videos in my life. I had decided to take this class in order to become better at making videos, even if broadcast wasn’t necessarily the field I was heading towards. So it’s no surprise that I felt extremely nervous and even nauseous before the first day of our class. The night before I contemplated dropping the class and enrolling into another version of 550; however, my mom talked me out of it. So here I am, currently in our fifth week of class and although I feel stressed and anxious, I’ve found that I really enjoy our class. I’ve already learned so much in just these five weeks. I now know a lot more about the features in premiere and how to shoot video and each week I finding myself learning more and more.
The first project in the class was our video essay. I felt like the assignment had me on an emotional roller coaster the whole time. My first attempt, the day in the life of a KU student, seemed boring to me after filming it. My second attempt to film my DnD group ended up with the sound to be wonky. At that point I felt like I was gripping straws. I was freaking out the tI’d have nothing to show the class, however with some guidance from my roommate I was able to come up with one final idea. It turns out that being without a lot of video experience I spent hours upon hours of filming. I was never satisfied with my work and I made the mistake of panning and zooming, a big no no in the class. Thus, I spent more hours reshooting work. After hours of editing, I eventually was able to get a product that I felt was decent. From a classmate I was able to learn how to stabilize some of my shakier shots and I stored this information to use again in the future. After our critiques in class I was able to find parts in which I needed more work. I had shortened the ending, making it 'zip past the screen. I noted this mistake and decided to ensure that I wouldn’t do the same in the next assignment.
The VO and VOSOTVO was our next assignment and I felt like it was just as challenging as our video essay. At first I was at a lost of what I could shoot, but I eventually decided on the weather. Next I stepped into the cold for hours on end to shoot video Monday evening. By the time I came back from shooting I couldn’t even feel my fingers or face, but it was worth it because I enjoyed my shots. It was forecasted that we would have gotten some more snow on that Tuesday, but unfortunately we did not, so it blew a hole into my plans of shooting some video of snowflakes falling from the sky. Another thing, much to my dismay, was that the weather allowed it to be warm enough to the point where the snow began to melt. I scrambled to get some more footage and decided to do some tight shots of areas where some snow had been left untouched by the sun. Then came the hardest part, editing the video. It’s probably because of my lack of experience, but it took me 6 hours before I had finished editing my videos. But though those trying hours I was able to learn about frame holding and some other techniques, like coloring and lighting. I found it shocking that I was able to even teach these techniques to a classmate. I feel like I ‘m always the rookie in the class, so it felt good to be able to help teach someone else. The next challenge was the script. I’m more used to writing for print, so it’s a challenge for me to come up with a more conversational style, however after our critiques in class I was able to grasp how to become more of a conversational writer. I thought I had shaken off the mistake of cutting videos short, but I made the same mistake once again when showing my soundbite. I learned that the interviewee needs to be in the shot for five seconds in order for it to be easier for viewers to process the lower third. I was saddened by the mistake, but it’s just another step within the learning process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6wPe2ohxfY&index=22&list=PLqpN7C8wHXjYSqJXh2GkQsBIXMfzgDLYz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqX08DZQEbs&index=32&list=PLqpN7C8wHXjYSqJXh2GkQsBIXMfzgDLYz
I really enjoy our class, and although I had been apprehensive in taking the class in the first few weeks, I’ve come to love the energy and the positivity of the classroom. I love how supportive everyone is and how much everyone is willing to help each other. It feels good to know that the people in class have my back and I have theirs. The class never fails to teach me something new and that’s what I look forward to every week. I hope to learn new things in our upcoming assignments and to steer away from my previous mistakes.