Post Production Preliminary Task

Today we began editing our preliminary task and so by using Final Cut Pro we started putting various parts of our footage together in order to create a continuious sequence. The editing programme looks like this:


You begin by making sure that you have all of the shots that will be of use to you into a Log Bin. You have to make sure, you view each footage because there is always the possiblity that there is a part of a shot that would be useful in the future. When making the log bin go to File --> New ---> Bin --> rename it preliminary. This new bin allows you to copy and paste the shots that are wanted making it easier as they are all together. Once you have the particular shots you need, drag the shot you would like as your opening shot to the time line; the tiem line allows you to cut the shot so that you only have the parts of the shot needed for your particular scene. When viewing the footage, drag the mouse backwards to when you would like to start it and finish it; in my opnion this is the easiest way to cut the shot and allows you to undo any cutting that you regret. However, when overlapping shots, in order to inform the computer when to stop one shot and begin the other press I, then press O to indicate to stop the shots. By over lapping the different shots it gives a continuous and smooth effect but in order to make sure that it is smooth, you have to make sure that the place that the character is is when you are stopping at is in the same place, for example: if a character is moving and you choose to change from a wide shot to a medium close up then you stop it while the character is in the same position. In order to create a scene that made sense according to the storyboard, we started off with the close up of the hands shaking. When we started off, we found that it was quite hard to work out how to cut the shot so that the word "ACTION" was not heard in the background. Nevertheless, eventually, we figured it out and it became a lot easier. In order to make sure that the transition from one cut to another was smooth, we had to look closely at where to stop and where to begin with the close up of Elly's feet walking into the room. The different shots that we used, we wanted to create a tense situation and to indicate that "B" is the enemy and holds the higher status in the pair. When editing we gave more screen time to Libby in order to emphasise that she is the victim and so the audience is on her side. The clip viewer allows you to view the whole shot and the edited shot, so that you can compare them and see if it looks better or not.

In my opinion, the post production preliminary task started off relatively hard but once I got the hang of how the programme worked it was a lot easier to create a smoother continuous edit.

Primliminary Task Evaluation

While filming the preliminary task my group filmed the scene in the media classroom: NO4 and the blonde lights were set up so that we had a specific lighting that we had to adjust the camera to. In order to do this, we made sure that the screen was white balanced by zooming into a white piece of paper underneath the light being used, and pressing the correct button, once pressed the flower on the screen will begin to flash and a number will then come up. You must change the white balance every time you change the location and depending on the intensity of the light. The classroom was a good location as it meant that we had the door, props and correct lighting for how we wanted to portray the scene.

 

I took the role of the camera person and therefore tried to vary the levels and types of shots I used to make a bigger impact on the scene itself. Moreover, I also had to make sure that the camera was securely fastened on the tripod and that it had been bubbled. As the director, Daniella took control of saying "STANDBY, ACTION and CUT" and this gave the actors an indication as to when to begin the particular scene.

 

The scene was:
  

 

 

We started off by filming the entire scene in a wide shot and in order to make sure that we had enough time between each shot when we begin to edit the scene. Additionally, it was vital that "A" made sure to walk in through the door and walk out every time we filmed the scene because it allowed the sound of the door and her footsteps to be heard within the camera. We had "A" stand up with character "B" sitting down so that it represented her higher status and that she is the more dominant character. This was emphasised when we did the over the shoulder shot behind "B" and I placed the camera so that it emphasises that she is looking up at "A", which was also evident when we filmed another over the shoulder shot from behind "A" and we raised the level of the tripod so that it suggested her being taller and looking down on character "B". Then, in order to gain some variation with the shots and their angles, we decided to do an extreme close up of "B"'s hands to show that she is nervous before "A" enters the room, thus, indicating that something is going to happen that she is scared about. Another key shot we took, to symbolise this was an extreme close up of "B"'s eyes. The shiftiness and nervousness that "B" portrays, foreshadows the rest of the scene. In relation to making "A" have the higher status by using the camera as a hand held and filming "A" walk into the room, stand there and walk out of the room again, from the floor. By looking up at "A" it creates the illusion that they have the most power in the room. In relation to filming her walking in to emphasise her power, we used a hand held tracking shot while filming her walking. This is a common shot that is used within movies and TV shows in order to create suspense and tension. An example of this is within the Devel Wears Prada and there is a close up, tracking shot of Meryl Streep's shoes as she is walking down the hallway to indicate that she is the dominant character. When filming the tracking shot from the floor, I had to be aware of the blonde lights and so Tom set up the positions as to where everyone should stand in order to allow it to be shot smoothly. Another time we used the hand held camera was when we filmed "B"'s feet to indicate her change in position when "A" enters, in having the close up of the feet the audience can visibly see her tapping nervously before "B" enters while having her cross her legs when she is speaking to her. In my opinion this was a very successful shot as it allowed the subject of the scene to be evident through her body language.

 

Then, we changed the location of our filming, to show "A" walking towards the room angrily. By changing to outside we had to change the white balance and adjust the settings so that the camera was adjusted to the change in atmosphere and lighting. There was a door at the end of the corridor and within the door there was a flight of stairs, in order to make the scene more realistic and engaging, we had "A" walk up the stairs, out of the door and into the media classroom. While filming this particular shot, we decided to use the tripod because it meant that it was stable and in a fixed position rather than using a handheld which would have changed the atmosphere and objection of the scene.

 

When filming, we had to continuously be aware of the 180 degree rule because if we broke it than it would mean that the person whom I am filming at that time, would suddenly appear in a different position than they were before and this could confuse the audience. In my opinion, the preliminary task went really well and I personally really enjoyed myself being in control of the camera. Although, there were certain shots that we had to re-shoot because of silly errors, an example being I accidently stopped recording before "A" had left and so that was my mistake, but overall I felt that Tom, Daniella and I worked well as a team and therefore there were a lot more good shots than bad.

Introduction to Video Cameras

On our first lesson using the cameras we learned about the camera itslef and what each button is used for and how it effects the final product.

TIMECODE: The timecode is seen at the top of the screen and is used to indicate how much time the person has filmed and left on the film. It looks something like this:

the 01 represents hours, the 34 represents the minutes and the 36 represents the seconds. However, the 14 in the time code represents the frames. The maximum frames allowed is 25 and once it reaches 25 it will then go back to 01, it is 25 per second as well so as soon as it changes the second will also have reached 60 and returned to 01, this is the shutter speed. A useful way to imagine how the shutters work is to imagine a little man inside the camera opening and shutting the frames so that if you turn the shutter speed up than the little man will be clapping a lot and this changes the speed of the vision on screen; for example if you increase the shutter speed than the image is quickened and so by changing it, it can change how you wish for the audience to interpret the scene.

WHITE-BALANCE: White balance is used to help the camera adjust to the light and the colours within the shot. There is a button on the side of the camera that says: wht balance and when you press it, it takes the colour of the viewing image and uses that as a basis; this is why it is best to start off with focusing on a white area so that the colour is clearer and there are no problems with it later on.

ZOOM: There is a zoom control on the camera that allows you to zoom in and out. In order to focus on a specific object, zoom in to an extreme close up of the object and then zoom out; this allows the focus to be better and the image to be a lot more centered on something rather than just a shot.

FOCUS: There is a focus control on the camera and this allows the image in your view finder to be sharp and clear. You can either focus automatically or manually. In doing auto-focus the camera will automatically focus on what is on the view-finder. However, because it is automatic, it means that the camera focuses on whatever is brightest first and so doing it manually allows you to adjust it according to how you would prefer your shot to be.

When using a camera, you also have to remember to set up the tripod! Using a tripod allows the video to be a lot more smooth and the continuity is usually much better. In setting up the tripod you must unhook the three legs so that they are at the right level of height, I found that working with it at its highest was easier. Then, you must place the camera on it firmly and in order to make sure that it is on securely use the adjusting nut underneath and the panning handle so that the bubble is directly in the middle of the circle; this is BUBBLING. This will make sure that the camera is secure and will not move when you are using it. The panning handle allows you to pan across the scene and to adjust the level of the viewing.

If you want to appear more involved with what is happening on screen than it is usually best to use the camera as a handheld; this gives it a more personal feel and also allows the cameraman/woman to experiment more with levels. During the filming of our scene, we varied it by using both the tripod and handheld depending on the shot we wished to make, this allowed it to flow more easily rather than from one shot to another.

CAMERA SHOT TYPES:

WIDESHOT:

EXTREME WIDE SHOT:

VERY WIDE SHOT

MID-SHOT

 MEDIUM CLOSE-UP:

 

 

CLOSE UP

 

 

EXTREME CLOSE-UP

CUTAWAY SHOT:

 

 CUT-IN

 

 

TWO-SHOT:

OVER-THE-SHOULDER SHOT:

NODDY-SHOT:

POINT OF VIEW SHOT:

When filming a scene you must always keep in mind the rule of thirds and the 180 degree rule. Imagine the screen is crossed off into three sections so that it is clear about what the audience sees first. For most of the audience of a film or TV show, they would read from left to right and the screen is just the same, therefore the image that is going to be the initial thing they see will most likely be what is positioned on the top left hand corner. The rule of thirds is helpful when making film posters as it usually has the main character or hero positioned somewhere close to the first intersection of the screen, with the movie of the title further down so that the person viewing the poster has to scan the whole poster to read it, similarly to a book, e.g:

the first thing most people notice when looking at this poster is the loving embrace of Leornado DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, indicating to the audience that it is a love story and as the eyes move down the poster the boat makes it clear that without knowing anything about Titanic, it is going to be a love story involving the historic story of the sinking ship.

The 180 degree line is an invisible line that you need to constantly be aware of when filming anything and that was evident when we first practised with the cameras and I broke the rule and in doing this it confused the audience because person A started off on one side and because I began filming it from another side, it looked as though person A had moved place. By using the 180 degree line it allows the audience to understand perfectly what is going on and it won't seem as though someone has automatically jumped from one side to the other without moving.

Whilst filming, the actors need to know when they should start their scene and so in order to make this particularly clear and obvious the director should shout STANDBY, TURN OVER and ACTION. STANDBY readys everyone to take their position for the take. TURN OVER allows the camera person to know when to start rolling the film of the camera-a few seconds is then run as the camera gets up to speed- this is often referred to as LEAD IN, once this is done the cameraman will respond with STANDING BY and then the director can shout ACTION, cuing the actors to begin the take.