Critique: Highlights (first pass) at DVinfo.net

A.J. Briones · July 22nd, 2005, 10:12 AM

hi all... this is my first clip up for critique, anywhere.

first pass edit on a highlight video.

http://www.infinite-studios.com/movi...Highlights.mov

quicktime (7 may be required) clip.

i might add some vignetting on the edges, and maybe bring more red out or change the MB look altogether (the flowers are looking more violet than red). also want to know your take on my current philosophy of using very minimal transition effects... i worry about my stuff looking like 80's effects-laden videos 20 years from now... but is it too "simple"?

and also, a question: the winery was very windy that day... any suggestions on how to take the hiss away from the lav audio?

thanks so much for your time.

Jason Bowers · July 22nd, 2005, 11:13 AM

Hi A.J. Welcome..
Overall I think you are heading in the right direction. Remember KISS (keep it short and simple) Simple is elegant too much effects take away from the real meaning. The shots in the winery and the reception look over exposed to me, maybe just my monitor though. The shot in the vineyard where the camera is still and the B&G are kissing could have had more excitement if you dissolved them into different areas of the row. Had them placed close, mid, far perhaps.
The audio on the vows seems to me to be off just a little, kinda like a chinese movie. What cameras are you using as well as which NLE? Good job though it will only get better..

My two cents worth

Jason

A.J. Briones · July 22nd, 2005, 11:24 AM

thanks so much for the comments.

we are using 2 vx2100's and 1 vx2000, fcp and magic bullet. used the "no. 85" preset in mb for look, and after multiple viewings, i'm not too fond of it.

and now that you mention it, the vo may be off by a bit... i eyeballed it on the timeline.

the first half of the reception shots were a bit blown out due to the time of day and the backlighting in the tent. we shot with "backlight" setting on... should we have done differently?

going to find a different look and edit a bit differently after i get more comments. it may take awhile, i have 2 weddings coming up in the next 2 weeks and 5 in different states of post. hopefully i can get more critiques in the meanwhile.

thanks again!

Young Lee · July 22nd, 2005, 11:41 AM

Great work~! Your wedding clip is and will be timeless.

Jason Bowers · July 22nd, 2005, 12:35 PM

A.J. magic bullet is awesome! I would try to manually adjust the settings to the original clip before adding the filters on and try to get the levels a little more manageable. As for the camera settings it sunds like you did everything right, but did you try to manually adjust the exposure or use the auto settings? Overall I think that the B&G will be very happy with the simple elegance that you have included. This type of editing doesn't age, it is the cheesy wipes and transitions that make a video look bad. Very well done, I hope to see more in the future.

Thanks

Jason

A.J. Briones · July 22nd, 2005, 01:16 PM

young and jason, thanks so much for your comments!

this is the first project i've worked on after upgrading to fcp 5 and magic bullet, so yeah, i should have paid more attention to the levels on those overexposed shots, but i was just so eager to play with mb and fcp's multiclip feature... no excuses, though... i will fix that for the second pass of this video.

re: backlight settings on the vx... we are using the auto presets. i use a 3-camera manned crew, and the two guys i use are good guys, but my primary concern is matching exposures and color balance (still having nightmares of my 2004 setup consisting of an xl1, a vx2000 and a panasonic 3-chip... cringe). two weddings ago, one guy was on backlight for the reception (he forgot to turn it off!) while 2 of us were shooting normal... it was horrible. i had to blow out our shots to match.

and yeah, my goal is timeless video and a minimal production look... i worry that if i overdo the production, add the soft diffusion, glowy stuff and break out the dissolves that it will look like a soap opera 10 years from now.

thanks again.

A.J. Briones · July 25th, 2005, 06:42 PM

any more critiques? i will be taking a second pass edit next week to fix some of what bothers me as well as try to address comments above.

i'd like to get as many critiques in before i get started.

thanks in advance.

July 22nd, 2005, 10:12 AM	#1
A.J. Briones Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 275	Critique: Highlights (first pass) hi all... this is my first clip up for critique, anywhere. first pass edit on a highlight video. http://www.infinite-studios.com/movi...Highlights.mov quicktime (7 may be required) clip. i might add some vignetting on the edges, and maybe bring more red out or change the MB look altogether (the flowers are looking more violet than red). also want to know your take on my current philosophy of using very minimal transition effects... i worry about my stuff looking like 80's effects-laden videos 20 years from now... but is it too "simple"? and also, a question: the winery was very windy that day... any suggestions on how to take the hiss away from the lav audio? thanks so much for your time.

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July 22nd, 2005, 11:13 AM	#2
Jason Bowers Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Thunder Bay, ON. Canada Posts: 374	Hi A.J. Welcome.. Overall I think you are heading in the right direction. Remember KISS (keep it short and simple) Simple is elegant too much effects take away from the real meaning. The shots in the winery and the reception look over exposed to me, maybe just my monitor though. The shot in the vineyard where the camera is still and the B&G are kissing could have had more excitement if you dissolved them into different areas of the row. Had them placed close, mid, far perhaps. The audio on the vows seems to me to be off just a little, kinda like a chinese movie. What cameras are you using as well as which NLE? Good job though it will only get better.. My two cents worth Jason

July 22nd, 2005, 11:24 AM	#3
A.J. Briones Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 275	thanks so much for the comments. we are using 2 vx2100's and 1 vx2000, fcp and magic bullet. used the "no. 85" preset in mb for look, and after multiple viewings, i'm not too fond of it. and now that you mention it, the vo may be off by a bit... i eyeballed it on the timeline. the first half of the reception shots were a bit blown out due to the time of day and the backlighting in the tent. we shot with "backlight" setting on... should we have done differently? going to find a different look and edit a bit differently after i get more comments. it may take awhile, i have 2 weddings coming up in the next 2 weeks and 5 in different states of post. hopefully i can get more critiques in the meanwhile. thanks again!

July 22nd, 2005, 11:41 AM	#4
Young Lee Major Player Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 268	Great work~! Your wedding clip is and will be timeless.

July 22nd, 2005, 12:35 PM	#5
Jason Bowers Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Thunder Bay, ON. Canada Posts: 374	A.J. magic bullet is awesome! I would try to manually adjust the settings to the original clip before adding the filters on and try to get the levels a little more manageable. As for the camera settings it sunds like you did everything right, but did you try to manually adjust the exposure or use the auto settings? Overall I think that the B&G will be very happy with the simple elegance that you have included. This type of editing doesn't age, it is the cheesy wipes and transitions that make a video look bad. Very well done, I hope to see more in the future. Thanks Jason

July 22nd, 2005, 01:16 PM	#6
A.J. Briones Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 275	young and jason, thanks so much for your comments! this is the first project i've worked on after upgrading to fcp 5 and magic bullet, so yeah, i should have paid more attention to the levels on those overexposed shots, but i was just so eager to play with mb and fcp's multiclip feature... no excuses, though... i will fix that for the second pass of this video. re: backlight settings on the vx... we are using the auto presets. i use a 3-camera manned crew, and the two guys i use are good guys, but my primary concern is matching exposures and color balance (still having nightmares of my 2004 setup consisting of an xl1, a vx2000 and a panasonic 3-chip... cringe). two weddings ago, one guy was on backlight for the reception (he forgot to turn it off!) while 2 of us were shooting normal... it was horrible. i had to blow out our shots to match. and yeah, my goal is timeless video and a minimal production look... i worry that if i overdo the production, add the soft diffusion, glowy stuff and break out the dissolves that it will look like a soap opera 10 years from now. thanks again.

July 25th, 2005, 06:42 PM	#7
A.J. Briones Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 275	any more critiques? i will be taking a second pass edit next week to fix some of what bothers me as well as try to address comments above. i'd like to get as many critiques in before i get started. thanks in advance.