Good Things from Spring

[James Sudik]

Hello folks,
I second guessed posting this, as it has no commercial value, nor need for feedback. I was playing with the GL2 in the back yard and grabbed some shots to send to family, but was impressed with the output and felt like sharing. A taste of spring, and hopes for good things to all. Enjoy if you care to. (a little nudity here FYI) :) Happy Easter.
http://www.screenblast.com/sudik/spring04

[Frank Granovski]

Thanks, James! Now to go have a look. :-))

[Michael Connor]

scenery looks good....though couldnt get the actual footage to play?

[James Sudik]

I'm not sure why.....should just click the "play video" button. This is just some "home-movie" footage I cleaned up with simple editing to share with family. The date in the first part should read April 9th, not March FYI. I really just posted the link because I though it was a fun couple of minutes with a nice spring flavor to it. To be honest, I don't know if anyone here watched it, but it (the video) has worked for me and my family around the country. *shrug* Dial-up modems will not have any luck playing this...in case that applies.

[James Chesterton]

Hoping not to sound funny, but I would perhaps consider a little editing. The Child Protection Act prohibits me from videoing my stepson playing football. Just thought I would mention it, you know what people are like.

Cheers.

[Michael Connor]

It worked this time, though cant comment from an editorial perspective as it did not really play as a movie, kept buffering. And i had to switch it off....yea that guy has a point... dunno what its like in the US of A but over here i would be scared of filming a child wearing shorts, never mind naked. sure my mum has pics of me naked as a baby, as most parents have, but its grey area, and people are getting locked up every day for child pornography, there are many siccos out there, you got to be carefull publishing stuff like this at all, not just publically. Someone could get hold of that material and use if for improper purposes. I know its a sad world, but if i were you id take it down from public viewing, or cut the naked shots out all together.

[James Sudik]

How truly sad. I film my 1 year old son playing in the backyard with a wading pool and the garden hose (without his diaper on) and I have to worry about perverts. Don't get me wrong fellas, I appreciate your concerns, and have taken heed. The video is now password-protected for family viewing only. A few shots (none with my son in them) had some really nice DOF and framing I thought, so it encouraged me to put it here. I emailed admin to remove the thread, but got no response as of yet. Curious about why you cannot film your stepson playing football?

[James Chesterton]

It is down to the Child Protection Act. It's gotten to the point where we can't film our kids in the school play, even take photos of the football teams at the childrens matches without written consent. It is very sad, but the internet is an open door for all kinds of abuse.

[Michael Connor]

yea, each county here in the UK is different, some countys do not allow photography at all for school events, some supplying their own. I work with young people, and had to get all of the parents of some kids i worked with to sign concent forms so we could use a camcorder whilst they did a drama show. Tis a crazy world at the moment with too many dodgy people around.

[Alan McCormick]

I totally agree about the "totally mad" bit. I was allowed to video my 5 year old daughter in a Harvest Festival play last October (a few days after getting my XM2). I gave a copy of the edited version to the school who liked it such that they asked me to do the Christmas plays.

After that I was invited to see the latest UK guidelines by the headmistress, as StMichael says every County can interpret them differently.

It is a shame that we cannot watch our kids grow up when we will be too old to remember.

To top that I am doing a long term project with a monks priory here in the UK where 50 schools go on one day in the summer. They would have loved to have a few seconds of that in their video but changed their minds for the same reason.

[Michael Connor]

Interesting point you made though, it may make the way clear for people to film and edit events properly, instead of every man woman and child standing there with their 'handycam!'
Incidently, how do you go about filming these shows with one camera? Do you get lots of cutaways? And do you stay in real time... ie keep all of the audio and make it interesting with the cutaways? Reason i ask ave filmed 2 stage type things, and really needed the second camera angle (wide) to cut out the dodgy bits where i need to adjust the camera or get a bit wrong!

[Alan McCormick]

It is very, very difficult to have a 1 Cam production like school plays etc.

Yes you need loads of cutaways, you never have enough.

Depending on situation sometimes you can film the rehearsal only so no audience (ambient sound) but you can frame more easily. If it is at an actual showing you may be stuck at the back on your tripod (H&S issues).

There are always gaps between scenes so you can zoom in and reframe but then it shows a different view per scene. I very much doubt 95% of UK schools would allow 2 Cams or more in (if any at all) from now on. A difficult area.

Of course if you can show you are a professional and advise that you can shoot the video intact, sell them to the school who then can forward to parents it will cut out the 10-20 Cams, cameras wobbling all over the place.

My eldest daughter hated all the Cams at last years play as the parents were moving around, turning Cam lights on and off etc. I was in the back of 4 rows on my tripod but still managed to produce a video. Saying that if I am commissioned to do it this year I will be putting my case forward for best position etc. or I won't bother.