Highlight July 28
 

This was a fun job but very hot day. Would love feedback of all kind thanks

Monday

www.quincevideo.com/v.wmv

Very nice! Some really creative stuff there! I know the song dictated a fast pace but it seemed almost too fast at times for me. Also, There were alot of handheld shots that IMO would have been better with a glidecam or other stabilizer partly because the fast motion you used highlighted every movement. But, that said, this was great and it was tough finding something to criticize.

(btw, if you don't have a glidecam I highly recommend one anyway; It's the best investment I've made)

Hey Adam,
Thanks for your feedback. Very much appreciated. I know you said you couldn't find much to criticize but your closing statement hits a nail for me. I used the glidecam quite a bit in this video from the formal picture session to the end of the party (specifically the dancing segments and decorations) :( so back to practicing using my glidecam. Thanks for viewing the clip

Monday

ooh. Now I feel bad. Sorry about that. I may need to watch your video again then. I think it may have been a couple shots that stood out for me that ruined it for the rest of them. Yeah, the glidecam does take alot of practice to get really good at. I'm still working on perfecting it myself.

OK. Now that I watched it again it's more obvious to me that you used a glidecam. There are a couple things that stood out to me that kind of ruined the effect for me. Please keep in mind though that this is my personal opinion and we all have different styles so take this advice with that in mind. First, like I said before, alot of the shots seemed a bit too fast. The speed, I think, takes away from the smoothness that is the whole reason to use a glidecam. Also, I could tell that you constantly had a hand on the control shaft. When you are doing a glidecam shot, try not to change direction with it. What I mean is, once you start your move, try to get it going the way you want without having to correct it. If you can do this perfectly, you should be able to complete the move without touching the shaft part. This will give you a really smooth move. Also, when balancing the glidecam, alot of people tend to settle for less than perfect. This will make it harder to complete perfect shots without correction. Make sure you have it balanced perfectly so that when standing still, you can keep a shot framed without your hand on the shaft.

Again this is just my opinion and my style is not your style or anybody else's but if it were me, this is what I would work on. However, this is really good work and I had to really stretch to even criticize anything.

Alright Adam,
Great tips! You are correct that I have settled for less than perfect balance on the glidecam, sometimes I get frustrated that it just swivels to the left just a hair >=(
I also tend to put to much of a grip on the shaft with my fingertips for guiding purposes. I appreciate you looking at the video twice and really pushing to expose imperfections on my part. It helps in getting better. Thanks for your time and input! Much appreciated. Take Care

Monday

Anytime! You have an obvious talent and I know you will get as good as you want to be!

Nice work
 

I liked your consistent use of speed: fast movements & velocity effects. The colors were largely consistent throughout as well. The musics temp (upbeat) matched the cutting style. About the only thing that got a little too much was when the camera moved in arcs over a subject (the tables) AND the movement was fast. A little too much motion for my taste in those areas.

I did notice the overall color pallet was... different than I'm used to. May be this was just due to the pallet of colors at this time of year. It seemed that greens were subtle compared to other colors. The one scene where greens stood out was the lawn in front of the State house bldg. But even then, it seemed like the colors weren't as vibrant as clips I've seen else where. This might just be because of the camera / brand used. I'm not sure.

This is just a small issue because overall I really liked it.

really liked it!
 

Hey Monday--Nice job, man! Your stuff just keeps getting better and better...I especially liked masking the mirror on the table to the color clip, the pace seemed to fit the vid really well, too. It's funny reading what Adam had first written, 'cause the first thing I thought when I watched it was that you must've gotten a stabilizer...hehehe. I see where you must've inverted it and ran it a few inches off the ground in that grass shot--that tipped me off, too. You'll just get smoother the more you use it, like Adam said. That glidecam gives you a good workout too, eh? I know I sweat my butt off after a few hours with it.
I also think it would've been cool if you had just had the reverse clip of the b&w balloons coming down into her hands at the beginning (without the color shot of them going up), 'cause it would've made the last shot of the color balloons leaving her hands and going up sort of significant in a coming of age sort of way...not really a criticism, just something I thought would've been cool...
Keep up the great work--I know the girl and her family really loved it.
Vin

Hey Jason thanks for your comments. After watching the clip again for the 34th time (^_^) I see your point about the arcs and do see it a little conflicting as they were fast cuts and motion. I appreciate you pointing that out for me. The dullness of the clip was due to the compression used. I used 512k wmv I believe, I used it cause this one is going on the site as a sample and wanted viewers to watch it with not much drag time. If it was encoded at 1M it would've popped more. Thanks for viewing the clip.

Monday

Hey Vin,
Thanks for your comments. I do have a lot of getting use to with the glidecam. My previous assistant always did the glidecam stuff and I shot pictures so I never got as much time needed with the glidecam this year. Now I'm spending a lot of time with it and getting much better since this job. I agree with everyone that it takes a while to learn. The shot a few inches off the ground was actually done handheld. I saw it done in one of Patricks Trash the Dress videos. If performed well that shot really sticks out. I'm getting there with it though. Thanks for the feedback. Take Care

Monday

One thing about glidecam shots... if you speed them up in post, it essentially kills the smooth gliding flow you're trying to achieve.
1. Edit glidecam shots so they are no faster than 100% speed.
2. You can slomo glidecam shots 50%, then chop up 1 long shot into 2 short shots. This will make the moves appear smoother, yet still maintain your faster paced cutting.

Are you using a quick release on your Glidecam? I know it makes all the difference in the world for me--I've got a couple Manfrotto QR 577's and it not only makes for a quick switch from glidecam to tripod, but it makes it really easy to keep that perfect balance with the stabilizer, using a couple of marks on the gcam QR plate to line up the cam. No messing around with the screws anymore. One other thing that I did (actually my wife did the sewing-thanks honey) for my glidecam (to make it not look like something I made in the workshop) was a couple of black velvet covers with rawhide drawstrings. Covers up those shiny washers perfectly, and is thin enough that I can still stand the gcam on it's base safely. Here's a pic of it...
http://www.firsttakestudios.com/gcambooties1.jpg

Hey Vin.
Yeah I'm using a quick release plate with my glide cam. It's so stining easy and fun. I'm enjoying this benefit. Nice cover up on the weight portion (^_^). Got to get ready for another Quinceanera tomorrow. Should be pretty fun and difficult day.

Monday