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Dale Guthormsen · October 31st, 2009, 02:19 PM

Good afternoon,

Well, this has been my most frustrating chllenge to date.

The original story line had to be scraped. We had snow,sleet, rain, wind and cold temps which prevented me from even getting to the location to shoot. I was not physically capable of hiking in through the Mud for my most important shots and close-ups.

I had some footage and thought I might get some footage thursday and Friday. Unexpected company from Germany and out of town occupied those days and I was physically trashed by 8:00 last night when the house was clear.

I sat down and looked at what I had and groaned. Wife sheila encouraged me to see what i could do, so I did.

I put it together, did the voice over and made the mp4. My player would not give me sound at all!!! I had it sounding alright from the timeline so I submitted it!!!

Today I downloaded vlc player and well, I wish I had not bothered!!

I know, excuses, excuses, excuses.

Chris Swanberg · October 31st, 2009, 07:48 PM

Dale do you have a link? I am unable to find yours for viewing.

Chris

Dale Guthormsen · November 1st, 2009, 07:49 AM

Here is a better link

Mike Sims · November 1st, 2009, 08:33 AM

Hi Dale- Sorry you had so much trouble this time. I enjoyed watching this one. I liked the shot of the Buffleheads. How did you do the long pan at the end. Nice. The music was well chosen. It gave a very relaxed feeling. Maybe with the long drought gone I’ll get to see the Snow Geese return again this winter!

Finn-Erik Faale · November 1st, 2009, 09:00 AM

Dale,
What a kingdom! It is so fascinating to watch the mess of flying Snow Geese in 00:56-01:07.
With all your problems, you have made a fine film.
The voice over is a bit too low for a Norwegian ear.

Rich Ryan · November 1st, 2009, 09:31 AM

Dale,

Sorry you had just a bad time of it. I hope you managed to follow rule #11 for at least a short time.

I enjoyed your offering. That's a lot of geese! Just the shear number of geese is overwhelming. The pan you did starting at 1:50 was nicely executed, I have difficulty getting a smooth pan for that long, so "my hat's off to you."

The topic is interesting. I would have liked to learn a bit more about the geese and their life. You had some fine footage. You voice over is good, but I would have liked more information about the geese.

Chris Swanberg · November 1st, 2009, 11:28 AM

Dale.. This was a visual treat and spectacle. How lucky you are to live near such a gathering of birds!

I'm sorry and can commiserate with your trials, tribulations and frustrations. The audio was not without it's "issues" but I know what you are capable of in that department and it doesn't serve any purpose to point out what you yourself probably already know. Stilll, it wasn't THAT bad.

Your long ending pan was nothing short of incredible. As I lust for a better tripod I find myself wishing I could afford a Miller, Sachtler but you seem to manage better than ok with your Vinten. Food for thought.

Thanks for a glimpse into a place and event few ever get to see !

Chris S.

Mike Beckett · November 1st, 2009, 01:37 PM

Dale,

Well you triumphed over adveristy anyway, and produced an excellent little film.

Nice opening shots; the mid-air tracking shots through the mist were very well done, very smooth and very close-up. I see you got that superb feeding circle in too!

The music would seem bizarre if you played it separately, but it worked so well with the footage for some reason. Meks the geese seem pretty cool guys.

Those sequences of the massed birds (such as at approx. 1:47) were awesome. What a glorious racket they all make!

I presume the geese were quite far away - if so, that's a good mic you have, I'm going to have to think about an upgrade (and a blimp) soon. My location sound suffered and had to be hidden behind a music track and voiceover.

Trond Saetre · November 1st, 2009, 06:01 PM

Dale,
Even with all the problems you had this time, you made a nice and interesting video.
Well done!
The long pan in the end was amazing. First I thought it lasted a little bit too long, but then I got more and more impressed of both your camera skills, and also of how many birds you had there.

Thank you for sharing!
I look forward to your next ones.

Kevin Railsback · November 1st, 2009, 08:59 PM

Dale,

Loved that shot of the ducks spinning in a circle. I've never seen that before.

What an amazing site that must have been!

Those shots of thousands of geese in flight are awesome!!!

It might have been the most frustrating challenge for you but I think you produced fine work here.

Kudos to Sheila for encouraging you to push on.

The long pan was wild. Just when I thought you had to be coming to the end because there couldn't be THAT many birds, you kept on panning. It's a hard thing to do for so long and so smooth. Pat yourself on the back for that shot alone.

Bob Thieda · November 2nd, 2009, 09:47 AM

Dale....a worthy effort, especially considering the obstacles put in your way...

The shots where you showed the shear numbers of birds really made the video for me...
There were several of them and they were all good.

Yes, the VO suffered a bit. The music tended to cover it up, but I did understand it...

Considering everything...nicely done!!

Oliver Pahlow · November 2nd, 2009, 12:47 PM

Dale,

What part of Germany did your company come from? That fog was amazing and the shot with the screen filled with flying birds, you did what looked like a pan that followed the flying birds at first then stopped the pan and the birds flew by. That was a nice effect. I enjoyed it alot. I did not think your VO suffered.

Dale Guthormsen · November 2nd, 2009, 04:13 PM

Good afternoon,

Thank you for the kind comentaries to be certain, appreciated.

This was unequivically the hardest one ever and it should have been my easiest!!!!

I felt it needed close ups I did not get!!

the Pan, the vintin tripod is an outstanding tripod and mostly limited by me.

Per johan inspired me to to step up to a higher level tripod and it was a fine investment!!!

H0owever, while I set the tension just right, used the trusty rubberband, and moved slower than natural for myself, I am not real pleased with the HDV or compression that casuses it to look jittery!!

I would love to hear how to avoid that from some you guys that know so much more than myself!!!!!!!!!!!! I was wondering if adding a bit of gausian blurr might help that???

LASTLY, I want to thank everyone on this list for the last (almost three years) of help. I joined this group to learn and improve my wildlife videoography and I must say that it has been a huge help technically speaking and as well as inspirationally!!! My work you never see has improved so much!!! You people are all the best.

Meryem Ersoz · November 6th, 2009, 08:54 AM

it's amazing that these birds fly so close to each other, in such a tight pack, without ever seeming to plow into each other....how do they do it? put humans in the same numbers, and we're trampling all over each other...

Trond Saetre · November 6th, 2009, 09:21 AM

I read somewhere that the birds keep track of the (up to) 7 closest birds, and by this they can keep their position in the pack without hitting each other.

November 1st, 2009, 07:49 AM	#3
Dale Guthormsen Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Saskatchewan Posts: 3,048	Here is a better link UWOL 15 on Vimeo __________________ DATS ALL FOLKS Dale W. Guthormsen

November 1st, 2009, 01:37 PM	#8
Mike Beckett Trustee Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Antrim, Northern Ireland Posts: 1,569	Dale, Well you triumphed over adveristy anyway, and produced an excellent little film. Nice opening shots; the mid-air tracking shots through the mist were very well done, very smooth and very close-up. I see you got that superb feeding circle in too! The music would seem bizarre if you played it separately, but it worked so well with the footage for some reason. Meks the geese seem pretty cool guys. Those sequences of the massed birds (such as at approx. 1:47) were awesome. What a glorious racket they all make! I presume the geese were quite far away - if so, that's a good mic you have, I'm going to have to think about an upgrade (and a blimp) soon. My location sound suffered and had to be hidden behind a music track and voiceover. __________________ Irish Railway Videos on Youtube

November 1st, 2009, 08:59 PM	#10
Kevin Railsback Trustee Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Posts: 1,544	Dale, Loved that shot of the ducks spinning in a circle. I've never seen that before. What an amazing site that must have been! Those shots of thousands of geese in flight are awesome!!! It might have been the most frustrating challenge for you but I think you produced fine work here. Kudos to Sheila for encouraging you to push on. The long pan was wild. Just when I thought you had to be coming to the end because there couldn't be THAT many birds, you kept on panning. It's a hard thing to do for so long and so smooth. Pat yourself on the back for that shot alone. __________________ --==Kevin==-- http:naturephotostudios.com.com

November 2nd, 2009, 04:13 PM	#13
Dale Guthormsen Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Saskatchewan Posts: 3,048	Good afternoon, Thank you for the kind comentaries to be certain, appreciated. This was unequivically the hardest one ever and it should have been my easiest!!!! I felt it needed close ups I did not get!! the Pan, the vintin tripod is an outstanding tripod and mostly limited by me. Per johan inspired me to to step up to a higher level tripod and it was a fine investment!!! H0owever, while I set the tension just right, used the trusty rubberband, and moved slower than natural for myself, I am not real pleased with the HDV or compression that casuses it to look jittery!! I would love to hear how to avoid that from some you guys that know so much more than myself!!!!!!!!!!!! I was wondering if adding a bit of gausian blurr might help that??? LASTLY, I want to thank everyone on this list for the last (almost three years) of help. I joined this group to learn and improve my wildlife videoography and I must say that it has been a huge help technically speaking and as well as inspirationally!!! My work you never see has improved so much!!! You people are all the best. __________________ DATS ALL FOLKS Dale W. Guthormsen

October 31st, 2009, 02:19 PM	#1
Dale Guthormsen Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Saskatchewan Posts: 3,048	Mosiac Good afternoon, Well, this has been my most frustrating chllenge to date. The original story line had to be scraped. We had snow,sleet, rain, wind and cold temps which prevented me from even getting to the location to shoot. I was not physically capable of hiking in through the Mud for my most important shots and close-ups. I had some footage and thought I might get some footage thursday and Friday. Unexpected company from Germany and out of town occupied those days and I was physically trashed by 8:00 last night when the house was clear. I sat down and looked at what I had and groaned. Wife sheila encouraged me to see what i could do, so I did. I put it together, did the voice over and made the mp4. My player would not give me sound at all!!! I had it sounding alright from the timeline so I submitted it!!! Today I downloaded vlc player and well, I wish I had not bothered!! I know, excuses, excuses, excuses. __________________ DATS ALL FOLKS Dale W. Guthormsen

October 31st, 2009, 07:48 PM	#2
Chris Swanberg Major Player Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 904	Dale do you have a link? I am unable to find yours for viewing. Chris

November 1st, 2009, 08:33 AM	#4
Mike Sims Major Player Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 880	Hi Dale- Sorry you had so much trouble this time. I enjoyed watching this one. I liked the shot of the Buffleheads. How did you do the long pan at the end. Nice. The music was well chosen. It gave a very relaxed feeling. Maybe with the long drought gone I’ll get to see the Snow Geese return again this winter!

November 1st, 2009, 09:00 AM	#5
Finn-Erik Faale Major Player Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Porsgrunn Norway Posts: 280	Dale, What a kingdom! It is so fascinating to watch the mess of flying Snow Geese in 00:56-01:07. With all your problems, you have made a fine film. The voice over is a bit too low for a Norwegian ear.

November 1st, 2009, 09:31 AM	#6
Rich Ryan Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Pleasanton, CA Posts: 127	Dale, Sorry you had just a bad time of it. I hope you managed to follow rule #11 for at least a short time. I enjoyed your offering. That's a lot of geese! Just the shear number of geese is overwhelming. The pan you did starting at 1:50 was nicely executed, I have difficulty getting a smooth pan for that long, so "my hat's off to you." The topic is interesting. I would have liked to learn a bit more about the geese and their life. You had some fine footage. You voice over is good, but I would have liked more information about the geese.

November 1st, 2009, 11:28 AM	#7
Chris Swanberg Major Player Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 904	Dale.. This was a visual treat and spectacle. How lucky you are to live near such a gathering of birds! I'm sorry and can commiserate with your trials, tribulations and frustrations. The audio was not without it's "issues" but I know what you are capable of in that department and it doesn't serve any purpose to point out what you yourself probably already know. Stilll, it wasn't THAT bad. Your long ending pan was nothing short of incredible. As I lust for a better tripod I find myself wishing I could afford a Miller, Sachtler but you seem to manage better than ok with your Vinten. Food for thought. Thanks for a glimpse into a place and event few ever get to see ! Chris S.

November 1st, 2009, 06:01 PM	#9
Trond Saetre Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Bergen, Norway Posts: 3,375	Dale, Even with all the problems you had this time, you made a nice and interesting video. Well done! The long pan in the end was amazing. First I thought it lasted a little bit too long, but then I got more and more impressed of both your camera skills, and also of how many birds you had there. Thank you for sharing! I look forward to your next ones.

November 2nd, 2009, 09:47 AM	#11
Bob Thieda Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Carol Stream, IL Posts: 541	Dale....a worthy effort, especially considering the obstacles put in your way... The shots where you showed the shear numbers of birds really made the video for me... There were several of them and they were all good. Yes, the VO suffered a bit. The music tended to cover it up, but I did understand it... Considering everything...nicely done!! __________________ Bob T.

November 2nd, 2009, 12:47 PM	#12
Oliver Pahlow Major Player Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Woodridge Illinois Posts: 237	Dale, What part of Germany did your company come from? That fog was amazing and the shot with the screen filled with flying birds, you did what looked like a pan that followed the flying birds at first then stopped the pan and the birds flew by. That was a nice effect. I enjoyed it alot. I did not think your VO suffered.

November 6th, 2009, 08:54 AM	#14
Meryem Ersoz Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 3,015	it's amazing that these birds fly so close to each other, in such a tight pack, without ever seeming to plow into each other....how do they do it? put humans in the same numbers, and we're trampling all over each other...

November 6th, 2009, 09:21 AM	#15
Trond Saetre Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Bergen, Norway Posts: 3,375	I read somewhere that the birds keep track of the (up to) 7 closest birds, and by this they can keep their position in the pack without hitting each other.