UWOL#34 - "String of life" by Geir Inge B. Brekke

[Geir Inge]

I hope and believe my contribution this time, are self-explanatory.
No less, it has not been an easy task to complete.
Difficult to track the objects, light has been very changeable during recording, as has the weather conditions.
Perhaps I should done me a few laps more, both in editing and on location.
Nevertheless, it has been fun and an exciting journey.
I had basically two ideas and not unexpectedly, I chose one, haha.
During my week-long stay in Crete, appeared suddenly a third idea.
It was canceled because of inadequate material. Well, we can't have it all, right?
Something I have color/light corrected but there is still a difference to note.
I've used one old clip (filmed for Uwol#33), a white car driving out of a tunnel, at 1:19.
I think and hope this is within the limits of the permissible.
I could easily chosen another clip but really enjoyed this one.
Feel free to give your comments.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark3 and GoPro 3.
Editing: Sony Vegas Pro 13.
Music: Sonicfire Pro and Acid Pro 7.

Uwol34-String of life by Geir Inge B. Brekke on Vimeo

[Trond Saetre]

Originally Posted by Geir Inge

I've used one old clip (filmed for Uwol#33), a white car driving out of a tunnel, at 1:19.
I think and hope this is within the limits of the permissible.

It is well within the limits. No worries!

[Vishal Jadhav]

Geir Inge,

Its so nice that i am finally seeing this film, was awaiting the toads film for some time.

The things that i loved were the perspective used, very unique with the gopro of those birds, also all around the film it was wonderful.

Film was very informative and surely keeps me glued on to the screen, watched it around 3 times.

The editing is superb and makes the story flow very nicely.

Love it

cheers

[Marj Atkins]

Hi Geir

This is a very enjoyable and interesting video.

Your underwater footage is amazing – it is clear and illustrates very well the interesting facts about these toads that you raise.

You had perfect lighting for the underwater scenes for the most part but I feel that those which are yellow due to the presence of particles from the bottom of the pond kicked up by the toads could benefit from a bit of desaturation.

Your story is well constructed and your narration is clear and easy to follow - perhaps a little difficult to follow round 01:10 due to low volume. The addition of water (Foley?) sound adds depth to the video.

I know that you mentioned some of the scenes could have had a second pass so I won’t go into the technical things except to say that one or two wobbly scenes at the surface of the water were a bit distracting.

Hopefully you will be able to add to this film and capture more footage of the toads working their way through the tunnels as they undertake the migration next year when it comes around again. Very well done Geir!

[Geir Inge]

I'm glad you liked my video, Vishal.
Thank you so much, I appreciate your feedback.

Thanks for your feedback, Marj.
You are always constructive in your comments, and I appreciate that very much.
I am a lazy guy, so sometimes I leave the tripod in my car.
Especially if I have to walk steep slopes, or in places with difficult accessibility.
Then some clips become a little shaky, other times I think it can spice up the movie.
This time I wandered over large areas, possibly filming the toad before it reaches the water. I was a little late, and the majority were already started mating in the water. All background sound in the film is original recording, but not necessarily belonging to the clip you see.
Toads at 2:35, consists of a female and five males. The female is dead because it has not got air. You can see the pink tongue sticking out of her mouth.
There is much I have not told about the toad, in this video. The video would be too long, so I've made a choice. Among other things, the toad has poison glands but not deadly, just enough to prevent predators.

Thank you for the clarification of old clips, Trond.

[Paul Wood]

Hi Geir Inge,

A lovely film, describing well the mating and migration of the toad.

The narration volume is a bit low, as Marj has said, but the excellent toad POV made up for it - I really felt for them as they struggled towards the road!

Out of curiosity, do you have any way of seeing the image of the GoPro when it is underwater, or is it just a case of patience and a good eye? (As I suspect).

I would love to see a longer version should you ever put one together, and congratulations, one of your best!

[LeRoy Gunderson]

I enjoyed this film very much. A very interesting subject and really cool underwater shots. Nice job.

[Geir Inge]

Thank you for feedback Paul and LeRoy.

When I film underwater with my GoPro camera, I use a GoPro app which connects to my phone.
Through my phone I can control camera and see what I'm recording.
I notice at 1080p recordings, transmission stopped sometimes.
At 960p recordings, I had contact with the camera all the time.
I do not know what this is due, and I have not done so much to find out the cause - yet.

[Trond Saetre]

Hei Geir Inge,

A nice film you made. I enjoyed watching.
Don't have much to add which hasn't been said already.

Well done!