Looking back on the semester: Part deux

Posted: April 24, 2008

As promised, I’m back again with more grading of my Gainesville Explorer videos and slide shows. But before I begin, I have to point you to Mark S. Luckie’s blog, 10,000 words. This link came via Megan Taylor.

In ranking the top-seven student newspaper Web sites. he named The Independent Florid Alligator No. 1. While I’m excited about this because I will be officially employed by The Alligator in a few weeks, there is more immediate coolness. The first “standout feature” he mentions is MT’s very own brain child, the source of much of my love and my anguish, Gainesville Explorer! Hooray for us.

But back to what I came here for.

Lake Wauburg:

  • The good: I really liked the opening shot. I always wanted to start one of my videos with my entrance into the place, maybe have the camera sticking out of my car as I drove through the gates. I never had someone to hold the camera while I drove, or drive while I held the camera, so I never got to do it. But getting this shot of the U.S. Highway-441 sign satisfied me at least a little bit. As far as shots go, I really think I got around and got some good ones. I like the interview that I took back when I thought this was going to be a Soundslides. I liked the photos I used. I also liked how I matched up the visuals with the audio well.
  • The bad: It was a windy, windy day. Unfortunately, you can probably tell that from the video because of how shaky the camera was. I had a hard time keeping it still. For some reason, the actual video quality is worse on this video than on some of the others.
  • What I might have done differently: I wish I would have had a video camera the first day I went out. I ended up just taking my photo camera because there was no video camera for me that day. But the first day, the director at Lake Wauburg took me out on a boat ride. It would have been nice to use some of that as video. Also, I should have put who was talking at the beginning of the video instead of the end. The other thing was that the establishing shot was too long—should have cut it by a few seconds. Overall, I didn’t have too many regrets about this one.
  • Grade: B


Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail:
  • The Good: One of the best parts about this story was actually going to the location. It was one of my favorites, probably No. 2. The good thing about this one was that I got it done. It was my first photo story since taking photojournalism a year ago. I liked the little motion thing I did with the bike riders, but the only really good photos are the one of the man and woman taking a break from jogging, right at the beginning and the one of the flower at the end.
  • The Bad: The pictures just aren’t very good. I didn’t get enough pictures either. In my defense, the weather was awful, and I’m still a novice with the photo taking. The motion thing I did with the bike riders was good overall, but the first transition was off and weird. The voice over is pretty rough and boring, but this place was pretty boring—in a good way.
  • What I might have done differently: I couldn’t control it, but I wish the weather could have been better. It would have made all the difference for the story. People would have been other there, the lighting would have been better and the overall atmosphere would have been more vibrant.
  • Grade: C-


Gainesville Raceway:
  • The Good: The opening sequence for this video is great. I like how it feels like you’re about to start a race. It was probably the only time that a shaky camera was a good thing. It looked like you were actually in the car. I really liked the interview. The guy was really sincere, he seemed to really love what he did.
  • The Bad: There are some audio problems. I was very windy, and I picked that up on my mic. It wasn’t too bad though. I may have used one too many cross dissolves, but I don’t think it brought down the quality at all. The real mistake I made in the video was a shot of two cars ready to race, but in a lapse in judgment, I didn’t show them take off, oh well.
  • What I might have done differently: I would have brought a different tripod, and by that I mean I would have brought the monopod. I had some tripod troubles with this video, but it was OK. This was one of my favorites, so I don’t have too many criticisms.
  • Grade: A


Ginnie Springs:
  • The Good: This was easily my favorite assignment, both in terms of location and outcome. I think I got some really good shots. The natural sound was great and so was the music I played over the natural sound. Heck even voice over was OK. My favorite part of the video was the part with the bus. The bus and the music had a very cool going-to-camp feel to it. It was the perfect amount of hokey. The other thing I noticed is that there is an insane amount of color going on in these pictures. It’s really cool. I’d say the best thing overall was my choice to shoot photos instead of video. I just don’t think it would have been the same as a video.
  • The Bad: My one big criticism is that though the voice over is OK, as in my voice sounds good, the information is alright, it really gets lost with the really good natural sound, music and photos. Watching it over again, I found myself forgetting that I was even talking.
  • What I might have done differently: Well, you can’t see this in the video, but I was carrying around a monopod the whole time, and that was annoying as hell because I didn’t even use it. The other thing is that I would have loved to have been able to do some of the stuff there, but alas I was working. If my camera was water-proof, I would have gone tubing and taken photos along the way.
  • Grade: A+


Things definitely got better toward the end. So what did you think of the whole experience?

Comments