6 shot system

The six shot system is a very important piece to making an interesting news package.  Having a variety of extreme wide, wide, medium, close up on hands, close up on face, and over the shoulder shots help tell a story that intrigues the viewer and gives the video a more professional look.  Putting theses shots in order is called sequencing, which drives the story.

An extreme wide shot should be used as an establishing shot.  Typically extreme wides are used in the beginning of videos to set the scene and reveal the location to the viewer.

A wide shot shows the view of the subjects entire body, from head to toe.  This shot is important because it shows your subject's entire appearance. 

A medium shot is a shot of your subject from the waist up.  This shot is a little tighter than a wide and it shows the hands and the face of the subject.

A close up on the hands creates an intense feeling.

A close up of the hand focuses on what the hands are doing and draws your viewer into just looking at what they are trying to accomplish.  

A close up on the face is a dramatic shot that
often times can be hard to get.  The close up on the face is important however because it displays the subjects expression.  This shot can be used to display emotion an create suspense.  

The over the shoulder shot reveals what the subject views.  It is important while going behind your subject that you don't break the 180 degree rule.  This rule means that if you start filming on one side of the subject you should stay on that side and not film on the other side in order to avoid confusion and looking like you are shooting circles around your subject.  

When you are filming your shots it's important to film each shot for 20 seconds that way you can capture action within that time and edit out where there is nothing exciting occurring.  When you are shooting you should try to make 50% of your shots close ups, 25% mediums, and 25% wide/ extreme wide. The reason for so many close ups is because it creates a depth and a more interesting look at the subject.  

Raven Prop Box Package Review

The goal of this package over the raven prop box nominees was to recognize their acts of kindness. To make this package we had to find all of the nominees, pull them out of class, and take a picture of them to add in the story.  We chose an interesting character to share her story of how she helped someone when they were sick.  We got b roll of her working in class and to cover up jump cuts in her interview we zoomed in and out on her interview providing a new interesting way to tell a story.

We learned that if we wanted to do an interview where the shot zooms in and out we should've set up the interview so it was wider.  We used final cut to edit this video and we transformed the images by zooming in and moving the picture around.  I worked with Elena and Pedro on this and we all worked together in the filming an editing process.

Some of the shots I got of our character, Kayla, in class were rather shaky, so if I were to do this again I would bring a tripod to get those quick shots just to make the overall look of the package more professional.

If I do raven prop box again I would definitely get more b roll and use an interesting story to move the package along.  I liked how we focused on one girl and let her tell the story, but I think that we should've had b roll to go over some parts of her interview because it was rather long.

I thought this package was an interesting and new way to recognize the raven prop box nominees.  So I think this package succeeded in its goal.

Web vs. TV

After watching all three video packages of soccer free stylist Indie Cowie, I quickly decided my  favorite was the second web package by New York Times.  The elements that stood out about this package were the variety of shots it contained and the way they told her story.  The first web story and the TV coverage of Cowie focused more on the fact that she could do some cool tricks with a soccer ball, but the second web story got interviews with her parents and revealed more about her personal goals rather than just her accomplishments and her favorite tricks.  The New York times got shots of her in her home hanging out with her family and going to soccer practice, keeping the video relevant and interesting for the viewer, while the others just focused on her doing juggling tricks.  

All three videos talked about Cowie's favorite tricks and her accomplishments of juggling.  They all had a variety of shots of her juggling.  

The tv interview however wasn't as tight as the web videos.  The tv video also lacked a lot of variety in shots.  Both web packages used Cowie's interview to tell the story, in the tv story however there was a news reporter to relay the facts allowing Cowie to only share a portion of her story.  The style of the web stories was more entertainment based, that is they had music without voice overs while the tv package was more like something you'd see on the news. 

Overall the web videos were better composed, better lit, and didn't look as staged as the tv video.  The web stories provided more interesting information that hooked the viewer.  The web stories also widened their forces and talked about other aspects other than her soccer free styling skills.  

In my own projects I would like to use an interview to tell a story.  I think this adds an interesting element to a package.  I also would like to have my packages tell a story like the second web package did.  It clearly had a beginning, middle, and end, making the video flow. 

Pour Coffeehouse Package Reflection

ONW students are excited about the opening of Pour Coffeehouse.  However, there was a rumor circulating that the coffeehouse didn't open until 9AM upsetting students who want coffee in the mornings before school starts.  When me and Savannah went to film we discovered that the coffeehouse actually opens at 6AM.  The purpose of this package was to inform the student body about this new place and spark interest.

I contacted the owner and tried to get an interview with her, however she was unable to comply in time for the show so I made do without her interview.  I was still able to get a variety of shots and quality b roll so the package didn't suffer too much.

I worked with Savannah Plumlee for this project and we were able to work together to organize the b roll and create some good sequences.  We worked with color correcting the interview with Ciara, significantly improving the look of the shot.

If I were to do the package again, I would've made sure I had better communication with the owner of pour coffeehouse.  When we went to interview her she said that she didn't know she was going to be videoed and she didn't want to do it.  By that time it was the evening before the show so I was forced to go without it.  I think that the interview with Nicole, the owner, would've made the package more interesting and provided us with more crucial information on why she opened the coffeehouse and if she's had any experience running a business. Because I didn't have the answers to those questions I had to base my information on her off of her little speech she said before cutting the ribbon.

Me and Savannah were able to string some sequences together, however when we were shooting that was not our main focus.  I think if we would've followed one person going into the coffeehouse, ordering, then drinking, it would've made the story flow better and spark interest in viewers.

Another thing I would do differently is find a place with more ideal lighting for my interview.  After me and Savannah color corrected the interview it looked better, but it still wasn't as good as the lighting in the other shots at the coffeehouse.  For some reason the camera would not white balance very well in that particular setting.

Given the circumstances and the information I had, I think that the voice over turned out pretty well.  Also the close ups on the hands making the coffee and the close ups of the customers drinking the coffee were a nice touch to the package.

My next project I will definitely make interviews, lighting, and sequencing a main focus.  If I can improve in all those areas every week I think my packages will continue to get better.

Overall I thought the package was timely and relevant for the entire student body.  Hopefully my package stirred interest in the students and swayed them to check out this new coffee shop!

Questions with Pedro Von Simpson

Questions with Pedro Von Simpson

-                -transcribed by Isabel Lauby

1.     Q: How long did you live in Brazil?

A: I lived in Brazil for four years.

2.     Q: Why did you move?

A: My dad got transferred.  He was working in Brazil for a company and a spot opened up in Atlanta and they transferred him to it. 

3.     Q: Do you still have family in friends in Brazil?

A: Yes, all of my family lives in Brazil.  All of my close family at least:  my aunts, uncles

4.     Q: What was it like learning a new language?

A:  Well I learned them both (Portuguese and English) at the same time really because I was still learning Portuguese when we moved.

5.     Q: Do you consider yourself fluent in both English and Portuguese?

A: Yes, but I’m definitely better at English because I take classes for English.

6.     Q: What do you miss most about Brazil?

A: Probably the climate.  It’s warm year round and I hate cold.

7.     Q: Where do you prefer to live and why?

A: Probably here just because it’s safer and the quality of life is overall better.  Like here you don’t need as much money to live as nice of a lifestyle.

8.     Q: What is your favorite thing about the US?

A:  I think that here we have a really good government.  A lot of people don’t recognize that, but compared to other governments in the world we have one of the best.

9.     Q: What are some advantages and disadvantages you have from once living in a different country?

A:  Advantages are the perspective I get.  Like I get a different perspective on government, society, all those things.  Another advantage is probably college.  Here colleges like people from other countries.  It also helps a lot with learning other languages like Spanish.  Disadvantages…just racism.  Just whenever someone is prejudice towards people from other countries.

10. Q: Do you ever want to live in Brazil again?

A: Maybe.   I mean it really just depends on how well the economy is doing.  If the economy continues to grow down there and Brazil gets to a place where there is more opportunity than America, then yeah.

11. Q: What was the biggest challenge about leaving your home in Brazil?

A: Probably leaving all of my family because now I never see them, like I see them once a year.

12. Q: What do you do when you visit Brazil?

A: I travel all around Brazil.  I go see my family, but I’m constantly traveling.   It’s like a tour not a vacation.  Normally we stay for about four weeks so we’ll try to take like one or two weeks to try to go the beach or something.