We experienced mix feelings when filming the performance shots. We needed to film 3 separate times. Our band, originally made up of 3 members, each portraying one person from Motorhead. The first shoot went brilliantly, we had no issues with getting the equipment, the stage where they would perform was free and the band was all there and on time. However, many of the shots we took there we’re problems with. To start with, the tripod we had booked was taken without us knowing, so lots of the shots we’re ruined by some movement. On some shots, we had the light in-front of the camera, an upon watching it, it became obvious that the glare would make the scene look bad. Some of the shots we took we’re also taken at an angle in which other parts of the room could be seen. For example, we took a shot from the side, but windows could be seen in the background, resulting in an artificial looking environment. At the end, it turned out we needed more shots.
The 2nd performance didn’t start as well as the first shoot. All the original band we’re present, on time and in the same outfits as last time. However, the one drum kit all groups had to share had been double booked so we had to wait an hour until the group before us had filmed as we allowed them film before us, as some of the groups members had to leave early. After we started to film, things went well. The faults we made last time such as the lights in front of the camera and shooting the windows in the background we made sure we didn’t make the same mistake twice. Things went well; we took many takes and had lots of ideas. However, when uploading the footage, the only explanation we could think of is that we saved it my documents and not the media storage device as the footage could not be found. This, obviously, was the most annoying thing that could happen so we had to re-film again.
The 3rd performance was scheduled 5 days before the deadline. We had to film then as there was no other chance. Unfortunately, out drummer could not make it so we needed to replace him, but this was a hard decision as the original knew the song, and our replacement did not. Another addition to the band was a singer, as the microphone stand could not be booked for this time. However, although we now have more members than Motorhead have, we felt the singing was better for the performance as when the bassist sang, there was not much emphasis on singing, and more on the bass playing, so the new addition helped with the acting. However, now that we have new members, the footage that could be used from the 1st shoot had to be removed and there we’re new members. There were also other problems again with double booking. The drums were needed by 3 groups, so we had to wait for the one group so out filming was delayed for an hour. After shooting, I offered to drive the drum kit to the other group, as they needed it over the weekend. Apart from the delay, filming went brilliantly. We made no mistakes regarding lights in front of the camera etc, and we also seen this as a chance to take photos for out DVD front cover and advert. This time we made sure that the photos and video footage was uploaded to the correct area, so we did not loose it again. We then had 5 days to upload and edit the performance into the video, however we decided to stay after school in order to make sure this was done in time.
Wednesday, 25 November 2009
Narrative blog
When we first started planning the video we decided that the setting for the narrative shots should reflect the style of an illegal poker game being played in dark and dusty basement or garage etc. One member of the group had a cellar so we decided that this would be the best place to film, as although it was quite small, it fitted in very well to the image that we were going for, as it was quite dark and dingy, and seemed quite a secretive location, that only certain people knew of the illegal gambling that was taking place. We decided that the actor’s costumes should look quite “gangster-like” and sleazy, with the boys in shirts/suits and the girls in classy dresses wearing a lot of make-up, almost reflective of typical 1940’s mob style. When we first began filming the narrative we began to encounter some problems; first of all, although we’d managed to acquire a poker table, it didn’t come with a table or legs for it to stand up on, so we had the actors having to balance it on their legs, making the movements and filming very awkward. Another problem we found when watching the footage back, was the lighting. As it was quite dark in the cellar we brought in extra lights to increase the brightness, however when we filmed we’d left some of the lights in front of the camera, highlighting where they were and making the filming look amateurish. Taking these problems into account, we decided on having a re-shoot of the narrative, this time we were more prepared. We managed to get a table for the poker table to balance on; also we were more prepared and focused on where the lights were placed, so that we could get the best possible shots. This time round we knew what shots had worked and which ones hadn’t from the previous footage, so we were more organized as for which shots and angles we wanted to include, also our actors were a lot more comfortable in their roles, as they had already had a “practise” with them, making, in our opinions, the second shooting a lot more successful than our first go at filming.
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Rough cut video (including feedback)
After submitting a first draft, we received feedback. This was completed by the teachers and other members of the class on what they liked about the video and what they thought we needed to do to improve it. After looking at the responses, it would appear that there was a few recurring suggestions, therefore when working towards our finished product, we will use the key suggestions, to help us progress to a higher quality video.
The first point, I felt was of great significance, was to reduce the length of each shot. By shortening the duration of each clip, it would mean the footage will sustain the fast pace rhythm of our chosen song, which conforms to Andrew Goodwin’s theory that in a music video there must be a relationship between the music and the visuals.
Another way we could improve, which has been suggested in the feedback, was to make sure the performance footage was in synchronisation with the song. I felt this was the most vital change we had to make to our video because without this, it would not appear to be a professionally made product. To achieve this change and make the song look like it is being played rather than mimed; it will require the clips to be edited more carefully in ‘Adobe Premiere’.
Some of our ideas gained some positive comments. These included the locations we decided to shoot both the narrative and performances sections in, the costume and props used and several camera angles we used. The first being a close-up tracking shot of the poker chips being pulled towards the winning player in the narrative segment and the second, an over-the-shoulder shot of the drummer during the performance piece. Due to their popularity, these will all be included in the final draft of our project.
The final piece of advice I believe will help us accomplish a successful music video, is to use a wider variety of shots, including more close-ups of the vocal lines, drum beats and solo riffs in the performance section. By doing this, it will allow us to begin to work towards our first point of cutting down on high duration clips, because we will have more material to choose from.
Although, each piece of advice we received can be used to great effect, I think that to achieve the best result possible, all three must be combined with the existing ideas we gained compliments for.
The first point, I felt was of great significance, was to reduce the length of each shot. By shortening the duration of each clip, it would mean the footage will sustain the fast pace rhythm of our chosen song, which conforms to Andrew Goodwin’s theory that in a music video there must be a relationship between the music and the visuals.
Another way we could improve, which has been suggested in the feedback, was to make sure the performance footage was in synchronisation with the song. I felt this was the most vital change we had to make to our video because without this, it would not appear to be a professionally made product. To achieve this change and make the song look like it is being played rather than mimed; it will require the clips to be edited more carefully in ‘Adobe Premiere’.
Some of our ideas gained some positive comments. These included the locations we decided to shoot both the narrative and performances sections in, the costume and props used and several camera angles we used. The first being a close-up tracking shot of the poker chips being pulled towards the winning player in the narrative segment and the second, an over-the-shoulder shot of the drummer during the performance piece. Due to their popularity, these will all be included in the final draft of our project.
The final piece of advice I believe will help us accomplish a successful music video, is to use a wider variety of shots, including more close-ups of the vocal lines, drum beats and solo riffs in the performance section. By doing this, it will allow us to begin to work towards our first point of cutting down on high duration clips, because we will have more material to choose from.
Although, each piece of advice we received can be used to great effect, I think that to achieve the best result possible, all three must be combined with the existing ideas we gained compliments for.
Monday, 23 November 2009
Editing
Editing the video
For our group, editing was about the only thing that always went right. First of all, our group always had the opportunity to edit, and although there was only 6 computers in which had the software to edit the video, there was always enough for every group in the class. Most of the members in our group contributed to the editing, and did their fair share of it, resulting in various ideas and shots that would be used. Some small issues occurred such as opening the file could take up to 10 minutes, as lots of people would be trying to access the link storage the videos we’re saved under. However, this was only a small problem and didn’t really trouble our group greatly, as all other groups experienced this and there was no way to overcome it. As a group, we thought the editing went well, most of us understood how to do it, it was a great way to put all our ideas together if we took it in turns and good for feedback of the rest of the group.
Editing the DVD cover and Advert.
Editing the DVD cover and Advert in photo shop seen out group encounter more problems than we did editing the video. First of all, some of our group wanted to do the DVD cover and Advert as a group and some wanted to do it individually. We decided that the people wanting to work as a group did and people wanting to work individually did after checking with the teachers. Editing the Advert for us took a long time. First of all, we took pictures of 52 individual playing cards. However, we took the photos on an angle without knowing so when placing the photos side by side, it took a long time to straighten them all up. It also took a long time to cut out the background of the cards because we took the cards against a yellow backgrounds hoping they would cut out fairly easily but some of the cards blended into the background. It took around 2/3 hours to cut the cards out so this was fairly time consuming. The initial idea for the DVD cover had to be totally changed. IF you look at the first draft, the idea was to take certain cards, take members of the band and put the head on top of the cards. However, the heads we’re far to small in the case of the joker card, and did not look as how I imagined. We also thought a skull would look good blended into the background as the card ace of spades means death. However, the skull we used was not an original image and could not be used. We decided we did not have enough time to draw something complicated like a skull so we had a total rethink about the whole DVD cover. Upon designing a new one, we all agreed in out group it looked better than before, so we we’re very happy with the final outcome.
For our group, editing was about the only thing that always went right. First of all, our group always had the opportunity to edit, and although there was only 6 computers in which had the software to edit the video, there was always enough for every group in the class. Most of the members in our group contributed to the editing, and did their fair share of it, resulting in various ideas and shots that would be used. Some small issues occurred such as opening the file could take up to 10 minutes, as lots of people would be trying to access the link storage the videos we’re saved under. However, this was only a small problem and didn’t really trouble our group greatly, as all other groups experienced this and there was no way to overcome it. As a group, we thought the editing went well, most of us understood how to do it, it was a great way to put all our ideas together if we took it in turns and good for feedback of the rest of the group.
Editing the DVD cover and Advert.
Editing the DVD cover and Advert in photo shop seen out group encounter more problems than we did editing the video. First of all, some of our group wanted to do the DVD cover and Advert as a group and some wanted to do it individually. We decided that the people wanting to work as a group did and people wanting to work individually did after checking with the teachers. Editing the Advert for us took a long time. First of all, we took pictures of 52 individual playing cards. However, we took the photos on an angle without knowing so when placing the photos side by side, it took a long time to straighten them all up. It also took a long time to cut out the background of the cards because we took the cards against a yellow backgrounds hoping they would cut out fairly easily but some of the cards blended into the background. It took around 2/3 hours to cut the cards out so this was fairly time consuming. The initial idea for the DVD cover had to be totally changed. IF you look at the first draft, the idea was to take certain cards, take members of the band and put the head on top of the cards. However, the heads we’re far to small in the case of the joker card, and did not look as how I imagined. We also thought a skull would look good blended into the background as the card ace of spades means death. However, the skull we used was not an original image and could not be used. We decided we did not have enough time to draw something complicated like a skull so we had a total rethink about the whole DVD cover. Upon designing a new one, we all agreed in out group it looked better than before, so we we’re very happy with the final outcome.
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