Filming

On Monday 18th February we did the filming for our promotional videos. We worked as a production crew of myself, Harry, Birgit and Michelle and swapped roles of directing, filming, sound and runner for each of our individual film projects.

When working on my shoot, we used the one main camera, which we kept on a dolly that we adjusted for different shots and scenes, the microphone on the camera which we plugged in or unplugged depending on the scene and in the filming in the main room we used two additional lights as well as natural light to stop any shadows and reflections. As props i was filmed using we used a second camera, a sound boom and a large sketch book and photo book.

When filming we had to get the grip of a few different production skills, with the style and set up being different on each of our shoots. For my shoot we had to film on the move whilst tracking me, had to use different types of shot such as close up, over the shoulder, pov, high angle and had to keep track of the sound levels on the camera microphone. For Birgits shoot we had to work in closer detail, with most of her shots being in zoom and close up we had to make sure the angle was right and that all reflections and shadows were taken out so she could add effects later on in the edit. For Harrys shoot there was a lot of dynamic movement and a mix of long shots and close ups on the same scenes.

We tried to follow all the procedures we,d been taught when filming, such as making sure the dolly was level when we,d adjusted its position, using the headphones on the camera to check the sound levels before we filmed the scenes with my dialogue, making sure there was no shadows and reflections by using extra light or blocking off light. One constant procedure we had to keep reminding each other of was to keep white balancing the camera every time we adjusted the camera position and shot.

For my shoot we tried to follow all the health and safety procedures i set out in my pre-production. Michelle as runner on my shoot made sure all the walkways were clear for the section where i walk and talk to camera, that the noise was kept down by closing all the doors to other classes in areas where we were shooting and no other students and staff walked in shot. Also there were additional procedures to follow such as avoiding trips on the cables for the cameras, lighting and computers in one of the rooms we filmed in.

Im looking forward to getting the footage back next week and to start editing it and making it closer to how i imagined it in my storyboard.

Filming Pre-Production Work

Once we had done research on existing company promotional videos and set up an identity for our media company we set up to make a promotional video for our own company.
We started by completing a post production pack, including storyboards to set up the sequence, style and story of our video.
A shot list to define each shot, its shot type, location, duration and order there to be filmed in.
A shooting schedule to plan our day of filming.
Location recce to work out for our shooting locations there suitability for shooting, access to facilities and identify any possible lighting or sound issues.
A resource list for any props, costumes, people and equipment we may need and were we will source them from.
Risk assessment to look at what could go wrong and decide on suitable measures to prevent loss, damage or injury.
Finally there's a script to define what dialogue is going to be in the video.

Design mind maps

We carried on from last weeks work by coming together in a group and remembering what needs to be included for a good promotional video and then putting that information into a mind map design.

Our assignment for this course is to design our own multimedia company, and from the skills we're learning create a logo, brochure and video to promote it.

To help this we then created mind maps on our own to help define an identity for our companies, the type of target audience we'l be aiming for and the psycho-graphics of this target audience.

Any of the above mind maps can be clicked on to enlarge.