Transcript highlights

Here is my audio transcription with highlighted areas that pertain to what I would like to focus on out of the transcript in closer detail.

Notes

• I like all of his narrative, but it's too long, and therefore I would have too much extra footage to shoot in too short a time frame 
• I highlighted recent events - why? More relevant? Includes poaching as it's almost a climax in the narrative? - all locations where I could film are local

• "love nature, patrolling the countryside" - fields, woods, close up details (berries, leaves, animals?, etc) - tripod, maybe some shoulder rig?
• "poaching on Mendips, keeps you fit" - shoulder rig and tripod, dad walking on Mendips
• "caught poaching" - location where he was caught - dad included in the frame?
• "kept an interest" - books, magazines, antlers around the house, in situ
• Monty - show photos or footage?
• "invited to The Warren" - footage of him shooting, the atmosphere of the shoot (camaraderie, other participants, dogs, pheasants in game 4x4), the locations of the shoot (mix of moorland and woods)
• Charlie - footage - at home, on walks, dad interacting with him - tripod and shoulder rig?

Still Image Shoot

While I had the D800e booked out, I also shot images that normalised the presence of the field sport lifestyle in our home. I followed Shawn's tuition and shot images of the gun oil alongside Fairy Liquid in our kitchen. 

Although these were just tester images and were not really formally shot (I didn't use a tripod and shot them all "freeheld", so to speak), I was not very happy with them, as they were constructed, and I was very aware that they were artificial and constructed (I don't know how to explain this properly, I think that I should stick to shooting natural occurrences of the field sport lifestyle in our home, instead of constructing situations).

The contact sheet with these images can be found here.

Reading Group

Reading group article here.

Reading group presentation here.

My notes are available after the jump.

Audio Transcription

This is the audio transcription of the initial interview shot with my dad, which can be found here.

Feedback #1

After briefly showing some of my recording (audio and visuals) to my tutor group and Shawn, I talked over what I had shot that weekend. Shawn recommended I transcribe the audio to find what bits are most interesting to me that I want to use/develop, and to take it from there. 

I was advised to not include still images in the film, and to just make it a film piece, not a multimedia piece. I was also advised that when it came to editing the film, to not bleed the whole film with audio and to let some scenes talk for themselves. I was also advised to get more visuals in 30 second tests and to edit small pieces together, some subtle and some literal.

Initial Filming

I wanted to start "creating" for this project as soon as possible, so I booked out a Tascam from the media centre and a Nikon D800e with a 50mm lens from the photography office so that I could get an initial audio and visual recording of my dad talking about the family's history with blood sports. 

Bedroom setup

I set up both the Tascam and the Nikon on tripods in my parents's bedroom, as the walls are plain. We set up a chair near the wall for Dad to sit on as I recorded, and he had made a list of things he wanted to cover, from the wider family background to his participation. We tried recording a few times - some were stopped short as the Tascam could pick up the sound of him moving his hands - but eventually we gave up. 

I decided that the background was too plain, and the shirt he was wearing blended in to it, the neighbour's dog wouldn't stop barking and the audio was being picked up, and Dad's delivery of his narrative was too formal and "stiff" sounding. The light was also being affected by dark clouds, and turning up the ISO left the image on the camera either too contrasted or too noisy, depending on ISO number. However, upon reflection, the focus is sharp and crisp, which pleases me. 

We decided we would try to shoot again the following day. I added notes to his notes that depicted little things to think of while delivering his audio (e.g., no moving of hands or feet, no vague indications of time "last week" etc, to be relaxed). When watching playback, he said that he felt that he was giving a formal presentation, like he was speaking to my tutor group about it. 

Screencap

We continued the following day, and decided upon the front room as a location to record. 

Front room setup

I felt that being on the sofa instead of on a hard chair might be more relaxing, and prompt Dad to give a more fluid delivery of his narrative. I instructed him to look wherever felt comfortable as he was talking, and to try to talk as if he were talking to me. This gave a more free-flowing style of delivery, which is what I was going for. To sync the audio and visuals in post-production, I used my hands as a replacement clapperboard. 

I believe that the end result was successful. The only things I don't like are that because the carpet in the front room is red, when the sun shines brighter it reflects a red cast onto Dad's face; and also at the end of the audio, my dog waking and shaking his head can be heard. As this is an initial recording I expect I will have to rerecord this following feedback, and will consider the red casting and audio problems when I rerecord. 

The first recording of audio and visuals can be viewed here.

D800e Moving Image Workshop Notes

Although I have previously filmed using a D800e, I thought it would be beneficial to go to the D800e Moving Image workshop anyway to expand my knowledge. The group was run by George.

• Dave Neil in media centre is good for filming questions
• £3000 worth of equipment including lens - get insurance
• The zoom button with the minus in the magnifying glass changes the brightness of the screen, not the exposure
• Info buttons have different settings
• Shoots 20 minutes in one take
• Settings under movie settings
• mic sensitivity
• frame rate - always have 25fps
• Tech office are getting focus pullers
• Shoot in manual mode and manual focus
• Aperture - front dial
• Shutter - back dial
• Shutterspeed can't be bigger than 1/25, if shooting 25fps it should be 1/50 as it makes it look like film
• Slower shutterspeed makes movement look more natural "what you see with your eye" - you get a slight blur
• Neutral density filters for bright shooting conditions with wide aperture - also use ISO to control exposure
• FX - full frame
• DX - dx lenses
• 5x4 crop
• 16:9 filming ratio
• h264 file format - equivalent to RAW
• transfer it to Apple Pro Res - changes it from capture format to something you can edit in
• Tech getting fluid head tripods, already have cheap shoulder rigs
• Directional mic shits on hotshoe - ask media centre
• LED lighting - lightweight, portable, need battery pack (2 hours), also plugged in mains (tungsten and daylight LEDs for flexibility)
• Small tungsten Arri lights - location lighting. Comes with daylight filters

Summer Project Feedback

I presented my summer project work to my tutor group during the last week of September (presentation can be found here). 

My initial feedback was good, and encouraged me to continue with the project for the first semester. Shawn liked the idea of the shooting books normalised in the bookcase in our living room, and suggested normalising some other shooting paraphernalia, as the domestic space made it more interesting, such as having the gun oil next to car oil or washing up liquid. It was suggested to me to make the interview precise, and to ask precise questions about the lifestyle, social aspects, etc. instead of focusing on just the sport.

Summer Project Final Images

 

Summer Project Presentation

My summer project presentation can be found here.

Shopping List - Idea Four

In this project, I will capture a family-friend’s interest in genealogy. Kim has been interested in discovering her family history for many years, and travels across the country to record offices to discover more about her heritage; this summer she took a trip to Ireland by herself to follow up some leads on her research. The idea for this project was based upon her involvement in my diptychs summer project for year two, as it was about hobbies. Genealogy has also become very popular over the past few years, with TV shows such as “Who Do You Think You Are?” becoming a primetime fixture on the BBC, and TV commercials for genealogy websites quite commonplace.

For this project, I will be interviewing Kim about how she got into genealogy and her interest in it, what she has found, and her plans for the future. I will then take this information and it will help to form either a multimedia video piece, or a photo-essay with accompanying text based upon the interview. Shots may include her collection of family artefacts – such as photographs, documents, family trees, and other objects, observational portraits of Kim researching at home or at a records office.

The equipment I will use includes a Tascam for interview recording, either a Nikon full-frame camera or maybe a medium format analogue camera, a range of lenses, a tripod, and Adobe software (either Premiere Pro for a multimedia piece, or Photoshop for still images). Depending on whether I decide to do the photo-essay, I may shoot images with the medium format. I will research printing companies that can print newspaper-style booklets for the final presentation of the photo-essay, if I do decide to go down that route with this project. 

This project may be ideal for the second semester, and could be a good project to display in exhibition. I may write a photo-essay regardless if I do display this project in exhibition, as mass-produced copies could be available for visitors to the gallery space to take away if they desire.

Shopping List - Idea Three

I have been trying to arrange a photoshoot for one of my dad's colleagues for a while now, and it seems it may take place soon. She is in a choir, and they have wanted portraits taken for some time, however because of issues within the choir, it has been a long time in the pipeline. There may be a potential project with the content of the choir, however, I will find out more about that when the initial shoot takes place.

The method in which I would present this project would be determined if I were to find content matter that I feel could hold a full project. However, since it would be about a choir, I would incorporate a recording of the choir singing.

Shopping List - Idea Two

In this project, will be documenting my friend Kayleigh's journey as she undergoes jaw surgery to correct an overbite. Kayleigh is 21 years old, and the overbite is something that she has had since childhood, and has suffered bullying due to it. She has also suffered many dental problems. In order to get the surgery on her jaw, she has had to have a brace fitted as per requirement. The surgery involves breaking her jaw and realigning it to give her a perfect “bite”, something that will leave her swollen and in much pain for several weeks. The entire recovery will be around three months, and she will have a different appearance after the swelling and bruising has gone down, and her bones have completely reset. The recovery time will mean that Kayleigh will have to take time off of work, where she is a carer to adults with learning difficulties. The surgery itself is not as uncommon as people think, and is pretty routine and straightforward.

For this project, I will be charting Kayleigh's journey from before surgery to after the operation. I will focus on her feelings towards the surgery (both pre- and post-op), and the psychological effects it may have on her. I will present the work as a multimedia piece, including still images, moving images, atmospheric audio, and a spoken voiceover in an interview-style by Kayleigh herself. Shots may include portraits of Kayleigh (surgical profiles before and after the surgery), dental maintenance (brushing teeth, caring for braces, etc), preparing for hospital, and post-op development and recovery. The moving image pieces will feature some similar content to the still shots.

I will use a Nikon D800 with a range of lenses (fixed 50mm, 35mm, macro lens), a tripod, and a Tascam in order to capture the content, and will edit it together using Adobe Premiere Pro.

As the date of the surgery has not been confirmed yet, it may be that I cannot carry out this project at all for my third year. However, I would still like to make this project. It may be that this project could be completed for the May 2014 deadline; however, it all rests on the date of the surgery.

Shopping List - Idea One

In this project, I will delve further into my previous project on shooting from second year. In my previous project, I focused upon why members of the shoot I attended participated in the sport of pheasant shooting. I presented my final images in the form of a book, featuring location shots of the landscape in which the shoot takes place, formal location portraits of some participants of the shoot, and studio still-life shots of a dead male and female pheasant. I found that some people participate in the sport as it is nostalgic, it is a great way to socialise, they get to see their dogs “do what they were bred to do”, and for some, it is in their blood.

For this project, I will look at how “cruel sports” are a big part of my family, and in particular, my how they are a big part of my dad's past and present. I will explore his history with “cruel sports” - pheasant shooting in particular – charting from his introduction to them in his childhood, how his interest in them has grown over his life, and his experiences with them now. I will explore what shooting means to him, and how it has affected his life in both positive and negative ways.

This project will be in the form of a multimedia piece, featuring still images, moving image, atmospheric audio, and an interview-style audio. I initially intend to include still-life images of shooting paraphernalia that is around the house (for example, shooting magazines and books, the gun cabinet in the loft, the equipment for the gun – cleaning kit, cartridge bag, gun cases, etc), informal portraits (for example, documentary-style portraits of dad reading shooting books and magazines, cleaning the gun, etc), and moving image shots similar to those above. I expect I will return to the shoot to get images and moving shots of my dad shooting, and atmospheric audio recordings of shooting.

I will use a Nikon D800 with a range of lenses (fixed 50mm, 35mm, macro lens), a tripod, and a Tascam in order to capture the content, and will edit it together using Adobe Premiere Pro.

I believe this project will be perfect for the December/January deadline, as the shooting season begins on the last weekend of October. In the meantime, I will shoot images and moving shots, as well as record atmospheric audio that does not require the location of the shoot, as well as conduct an initial interview. This will allow me to start editing the film earlier, and will give me time to reshoot or rerecord things that may need tweaking.