Part I: Final Project Analysis
I came up with the idea of the San Francisco Hidden Wonders at the group discussion in class, and everyone in the group helped me develop the concept of the San Francisco Hidden Wonders. In the pre-production process, Ronnie and Masha helped me come up with the places in the program. I found the song and the pictures online. Ronnie helped me with the script and the CGs. I think the process pre-production was well organized, and this lead to great amount of time saved during production. In the end we managed to finish shooting within 30 minutes. However, there were several things that could have been greatly improved to make the project better. For example, Ronnie and I could have been more creative with the CGs and the scripts; and on a personal note I could have been a better communicator to the TD and CG operator so that the entire process would have been less confusing. Overall, the entire group did a great job, however as individuals the talent could have been more energetics. As a whole production went nearly as I had envisioned it beforehand, however the project does need some extra time to be edited to make it perfect. From this project, I learned that a well-prepared pre-production could save a great amount of time during production. I also learned that it is hard to ask the talents to act enthusiastically when they are truly bored.
Part II
In terms of the technical aspect of production, I thoroughly enjoyed being behind the camera and operating it as well as doing audio. When operating a camera there are many things that need to be done so that the camera can is able to take a good image. In the first instance the camera needs to be put into white balance; to do this, I need someone’s assistance in holding a pieced of white paper in front of the camera, while zooming in on the paper and then press the white balance button so the camera can properly read it. The next thing that needs to be done when operating the camera is for it to be focused. To find the focus, you need to zoom all the way in on the object, and then slowly turn the focus knob until the picture comes into focus. Thirdly I need to adjust the iris based on the feedback form the control room. Another important think I need to consider is when I am composing a shot, I need to remember to leave some space for the headroom, so the object doesn’t seem to be pulled up or even attached . I also need to remember to leave nose room when composing a shot. Last but not least, I need more practice in maneuvering the camera as the director instructed me to do so.
When working with the audio, the first thing I need to know is if there is a microphone involved; if so, then I need to make sure to write down all the input numbers that are provided to me. Secondly, I need to turn on the audio board and turn on the speaker in the audio booth. Thirdly, I need to set the master fader to unity. In addition to the previous three steps that need to be assessed before I begin, I need to patch the audio if it is necessary, and then I need to do a mic test. Last but not least, I need to set bars and tones, music, and all the microphones to 0db.
I had learnt a great deal of knowledge in this studio production class. I came in with little knowledge in camera operating, audio, CG, and TD, and I walk out of this class as a “semi-professional”. Thank you for these wonderful 6 weeks!
Work Cited
Zettl, H. (2010). Video basics 6. Australia: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
