A few months ago I moved up from a cheap crapcorder [sic] to an A1, and from this forum I was only generally aware of the increased attention that others have received when shooting in public.

Nowhere was this manifested more comically (to me) than during a parade I shot over Thanksgiving. Years ago I mounted my cheap camcorder on a cheap tripod right on the parade route, and spectators filling in couldn't care less: they bumped me, they sat on the tripod feet, and crowded my feet. I couldn't move an inch, and the footage in many spots evidenced the constant jostling.

This year, I shot from the same spot on the parade route with the A1 on my nice Libec tripod with a shock-mounted shotgun microphone, using headphones. This time, spectators jockeying for front seats gave me TONS of room, and one guy constantly (and thoughtfully) checked with me to see that he wasn't blocking my shot.

But the funniest icing on the cake was a young mother and her kid who plopped down close to my area. Through my headphones (I was looking away at the time) I heard the mom say to her kid in a stern voice,"See that very expensive thing up there? Don't bump it!"

Have any good ones?

-Steve

But the funniest icing on the cake was a young mother and her kid who plopped down close to my area. Through my headphones (I was looking away at the time) I heard the mom say to her kid in a stern voice,"See that very expensive thing up there? Don't bump it!"

Have any good ones?

I was shooting on a cafe terrace and set my camera on the sidewalk. We put someone in charge of pedestrian traffic so they could stop people from walking in front of the camera while we did quick shots, but it was hardly needed as people naturally stopped and politely waited until we nodded and smiled at them.

The cafe owner also had a lot more business than usual on that day from people who wanted to know about the shoot but didn't want to disturb us.

Oh yeah, one very pretty young woman gave her card and headshot to the grip, thinking he was the director. I shoulda worn my "director" cap. ;-)


j.

I've noticed that when I shoot, I get some people who will respectfully wait until we're done to cross the path. Others just stand of to the side and just gawk.

But the ones that bug me the most are the ones that are oblivious to everything and walk into shot or me or try to do the "Hi Mom!" thing thinking they're on TV.

When I was shooting "The Ring of Fireflies" at the Valley of Fire people who had driven all that way to take photos of the scenery, were instead taking photos of me setting up the camera....LOL

I certainly notice these effects from the public but the camera has no effect on the paparazzi. They regularly walk right in front of me to get pictures for their newspapers.

It makes for an interesting relationship!

Ian
Festival Video and Audio Previews - Festival Previews Ltd (http://www.festivalpreviews.com)

I usually get a few questions a day but i was on the mtn one day filming skiing. I had my Jib Crane up there and my skiers were lapping a certain spot. I turned around at one point and saw about 30 people watching us.

Shooting my nephew's high school football game, I had one parent come up to me and - assuming I was shooting for a local news crew - ask what channel they had to turn to to see the footage.
It gets better. At an away football game, I was told I'd get a better view up in the press box. I informed them that I was shooting for personal use only, and that I was not a member of the press. They still let me up in the press box...and on the sidelines. :)

I certainly notice these effects from the public but the camera has no effect on the paparazzi. They regularly walk right in front of me to get pictures for their newspapers.

It makes for an interesting relationship!
Festival Video and Audio Previews - Festival Previews Ltd (http://www.festivalpreviews.com)

When covering a royal visit recently I found the photographers (who were admittedly there by invitation of the council press office) were very courteous and were careful not to get in shot. The scrum (scum?) that surrounds major events is a different story - every man for himself - and that goes for the women too.

I was shooting video in another town at this beautiful park. There was an elderly couple sitting on a bench watching us. When we finished the shot we started to move to another location, walking by the couple. The man asked me what news channel we were from and "jokingly" I said, FOX news. I was laughing when I said that and they both laughed with me so I assumed they knew I was just kidding.

A few days later I heard that people in that town were talking about how FOX news was at their park that weekend.

-John

Well yes I agree people take you more seriously with the A1 but it's not always a good thing as I realised when shooting in Toxteth, Liverpool recently - all I can say is I was glad I was not on my own and had a car to get away in. The camera does look very cool and EXPENSIVE!

Well yes I agree people take you more seriously with the A1 but it's not always a good thing as I realised when shooting in Toxteth, Liverpool recently - all I can say is I was glad I was not on my own and had a car to get away in. The camera does look very cool and EXPENSIVE!

Well don't leave us hanging! What happened to you? Camera-hungry thugs?

Well don't leave us hanging! What happened to you? Camera-hungry thugs?

Yes indeed. Fortunately nothing serious happened in the end - but some dodgy scallies immediately homed in on my friend and me asking what the camera was worth, getting far to close, jostling us and looking menacing: (in very strong scouse accent) 'what's that you got there la?' etc. A violent move seemed immanent (I've been mugged in the area before so should have known better!) so we made a rapid exit. Got some good shots before we were noticed though. I suppose my point is that a cheaper (looking) cam can be an advantage in some places. But I wanted gritty urban material so you have to take your chances.

That's awesome that your A1 draws so much positive attention. Here is the LA area where Movies, TV Shows and Reality programming is everywhere it works very much against you at times. Have a cop see you and you are explaining it is a home movie to avoid a ticket. People will get in your way, will yell at you for being in the way, and can be quite hateful. Now sometimes you get a crowd of Hollywood people who will bend over backward, to find out how they can be in your project, no matter what it is. I've worked on the small home movie for myself all the way up to working on professional TV shows and films, and people can be really nasty to the main source of cash flow in this town.

Hell the bigger your camera is here, the more they notice and noticing isn't a good thing most times, unless you are interviewing tourists on Hollywood Blvd or something.

It is awesome that the rest of the world still gives respect to professional equipment and those using it.

In Disneyland Paris in October, I found I could use an HV-30 without attracting attention which will not surprise you, (my family refused point blank to let me take my A1 - just as well) but I could add a monopod, support bracket and Sennheiser G2 on-camera receiver to the HV-30 and still not get a second glance. However, the minute I started to wear headphones, then the "A1 effect" described here kicked in. I might as well have had a shouldermount camera, soundman with boompole and a producer with a clipboard. Don't tell Ty Ford, but I ended up not monitoring the audio a lot of the time so that I could fit in with the crowd. The oddest thing was that in shops, even although one or other of my kids was quite obviously tooled up with a radio mic with bodypack fully in view, people noticed it but didn't react.

The other trigger to attracting attention was anything grey and furry on the camera, so no shotgun outside.

A couple of weeks ago I was hired to shoot our town's Christmas Parade. As this is held at night, and wasn't going to require HD (they wanted to produce a web video), I left the A1 at home and used my PD-170. Now the 170 is a smaller camera than the A1, but still "pro" looking. Everywhere that I went, people were asking me if I was shooting for the evening news. There was a guy there from the local station, with a shoulder mount camera (including a large Channel 6 News logo on it). I think that I got more attention than he did.

The cool thing was that every time I pointed the camera (with a light) at the crowd, hundreds of people started waving at me :).

In Disneyland Paris in October, I found I could use an HV-30 without attracting attention which will not surprise you, (my family refused point blank to let me take my A1 - just as well) but I could add a monopod, support bracket and Sennheiser G2 on-camera receiver to the HV-30 and still not get a second glance. However, the minute I started to wear headphones, then the "A1 effect" described here kicked in. I might as well have had a shouldermount camera, soundman with boompole and a producer with a clipboard. Don't tell Ty Ford, but I ended up not monitoring the audio a lot of the time so that I could fit in with the crowd. The oddest thing was that in shops, even although one or other of my kids was quite obviously tooled up with a radio mic with bodypack fully in view, people noticed it but didn't react.

The other trigger to attracting attention was anything grey and furry on the camera, so no shotgun outside.

I think it's just hysterical that your family members wore wireless mics. Like some kind of family reality-TV show...that isn't on TV. My wife and kids are used to having a camera monitor their movements, but I think they'd draw the line at being wired up. Anyway, great idea -- I'm sure your video sounded great as a result.

-Steve

Have a cop see you and you are explaining it is a home movie to avoid a ticket.

Why would you get a ticket for shooting video in a public place? Or did I just read that wrong....

-John

Why would you get a ticket for shooting video in a public place? Or did I just read that wrong....

-John

John,

In LA as with most cities you have to have a film permit to do just about anything. Any filming above and beyond a home movie or a news oriented shoot, i.e. web news cast street interviews, or actual broadcast news, requires a permit. This extends beyond just public places to include private as well. If you are shooting a short film in your buddies house in LA you are required by law to have a film permit, which mind you cost over $300 a piece. Now if the shoot is small and the neighbors don't notice or mind, then keep it quite and do your thing. But once it spills out onto streets, people care, especailly cops.

I produced a short film for film school where we attained permission and permit to shoot in the park area along the Venice Beach boardwalk. I was perfectly legal, the crew was legal, and we didn't interfere with traffic, parking, or the houses lining our location. Yet I spent the majority of the day on the phone with Film L.A. aka the film permit office, answering complaints from the house owners because they didn't feel it was right and it was distracting. Mind you if we had not been there all nice and neatly setup that grassy area would have been populated by homeless bums, go figure.

Welcome to LA.

I know probably way more answer than you were looking for in that question.

Well yes I agree people take you more seriously with the A1 but it's not always a good thing as I realised when shooting in Toxteth, Liverpool recently - all I can say is I was glad I was not on my own and had a car to get away in. The camera does look very cool and EXPENSIVE!

That's why I keep my HV20. It's great for B-rolls (it's used on a lot of pro HD shoots) and it looks like any crappy consumer camcorder.


J.

This is a slight diversion but reading this thread brought back some memories of when I started in TV news. This was back in the 80's we did a local nightly newscast, had a huge Sharp camera (they were all huge back then) tethered to the VTR. These were the days before one piece units. so a crew of 3, camera, audio and reporter. We're out covering various events, and would get people commenting "WOBM is here" "You're from WOBM?"

Now WOBM had a great reputation for local news, I worked there years later, but WOBM was a local RADIO station. Why these people thought the RADIO station would need a TV camera is beyond me. I would just smile and tell them where we were from and got quizzical looks like "there's a local tv newscast?"

The other trigger to attracting attention was anything grey and furry on the camera, so no shotgun outside.

The closest I've gotten to any type of attention I was shooting fall foliage with the full kit and someone in a group of bicyclists yelled, "hey look, that guy has a badger on his camera."

I know probably way more answer than you were looking for in that question.

No, not at all. I was unaware that you needed a film permit, even for amateur productions. A good thing to know if/when I do some serious film work. Thanks for your answer, I found it very interesting.

-John

I shoot a fair bit for the news, and currently have been shooting public drunkenness problems we have in our town. I used to use a Sony HVR-A1 which was small enough (and with the XLR adaptor removed) to pass unnoticed. Now when I set up my Canon, I'm a much more obvious presence, resulting in a few angry drunk people threatening me. However it does make for much more dramatic footage, much to the delight of the reporters!
Also, there were a few reporters who refused to take me seriously with the Sony, although it produced fair images which were certainly better than some of the other reporters cameras, simply because it looked 'too small'. Now with the canon, their fears are relieved.

happened yesterday. Trying to film the snow storm in vegas. I was doing a shot of the roads blocked off and the cops decided it would be nice to put their spotlight on me so I couldn't get the shot. They didn't ask me questions or anything like that. It was just to prevent me from shooting. Just to make them mad I shot a little longer acting like it didn't bother me..LOL

Thankfully New York City has finally codified some clear and reasonable rules on using cameras in public. It's already complicated enough being an NYC police officer without having to worry about every camera in sight, they've got more important things to worry about. I still get the misc. public servant "busy body", who didn't get the memo, so I always carry some official printouts of the rules to hand out.

Funny thing about New York City, nobody really bats an eye if anyone is walking around with a large camera, even the big broadcast cameras don't get much notice. Production teams walking around with a couple of cameras, reflectors, and a sound booms are a daily event. You almost have to have an entire production crew shutting down a block before people even seem to get get mildly interested.

A couple of weeks ago, I was late for a meeting and went running out of my apartment and next thing I know I'm in the middle of one of those "re-decorate the apartment shows". Apparently a PA had cleared the hallway for the talent to come out a door, down the hallway, and out the front door. My apt door was exactly across from apt being renovated. They actually filmed me all the way out the front door, before someone realized I wasn't the "guy" they were supposed to be shooting. Being in a hurry, I didn't pay the any attention to them as I breezed down the hallway, past the camera, crew, and director and right into a cab coming down the street. It was very amusing to hear them all squawking at the PA as my cab drove away.

Great post as I was just thinking of the same.

I have a small Canon HF11 for light, pack and go occasions and usually get nothing more than a glance. I, along with the masses must fight for space to get the shot.

Several weeks ago, I attended a motorcycle show. I had my XHA1 mounted on a monopod and just walked with the photogs to their designated space. I was even asked by security if I was the photographer he was to escort to the private area! The "Progressive" girls stand and take pics with the masses, but "flirt" with the XHA1. Fun!

Last week at the San Diego Wild Animal Park I was capturing video of one of the turtles when the keeper came over and opened the gate so the turtle could walk out. I captures some really nice footage with the A1 sitting on the ground. Another keeper actually gave me a cart ride to one of the viewing areas.

Yes the A1 does get noticed, but in a good way.

I spent 3 days in a small town Scapoli, Molise in Southern Italy filming a music festival and was asked at least 15 times what TV station I was with. I had two condenser mics mounted on top of the A1 and it looked somewhat like the star treck enterprise. I looked more professional than the guys from RAI.

In the town of San Gregorio Magno, Campania a lamb was slaughtered and a fest was given in my honor. I can still taste the hand made ravioli. I was personally escorted everywhere by the town's former chief of police who got so involved with the project that he started directing shots and subjects as if they were actors! (ok he's my cousin's husband).

In Catanzaro, Calabria people started coming out of the woodwork to be a part of the production. I finally had to tell my friends I was done and that I couldn't film everyone Southern Italy.

In Adrano, Sicily, Trying to film one poem turned into a group of Sicilian poets beginning an impromptu competition for the camera as to who could display the most prolific oration in Sicilian dialect. One of the poems was 20 minuets long.

In Catania, a beautiful Sicilian madonna accompanied me to film b-roll in the fish market (well ok, we were dating).

In 5 weeks I never had to purchase a single meal or wash my own clothes. Someone's wife always took care of me. I was offered copious amounts of home made wine, cheese and Salami. I was escorted everywhere. You would have thought I was the pope. At one point I was "kidnapped" by one of my hosts and forced to endure a tour of Salerno when I really wanted to be out shooting b-roll. A tall American (who speaks italian) with a video camera is a big deal in Southern Italy.

A tall American (who speaks italian) with a video camera is a big deal in Southern Italy.

You just about sold me on a trip to Southern Italy. What if I don't speak Italian? ;)

People would still be nice to you but it would be difficult. It's not like other parts of Europe where everyone speaks English. I didn't speak English for 5 weeks. I think my doc would have been impossible if I didn't speak Italian. In fact in some remote areas the older people don't even speak Italian, they only speak regional dialects. Sometimes I would have to have someone translate their dialect into standard Italian for me. Fortunately, I can understand a lot of Sicilian so when in Sicily this wasn't as big a problem.

People would still be nice to you but it would be difficult. It's not like other parts of Europe where everyone speaks English. I didn't speak English for 5 weeks. I think my doc would have been impossible if I didn't speak Italian.

Sounds like greate footage and anecdotes for your DVD extras (or making-of feature).


J.

Too much public attention may not be very good and therefore I am considering a Canon 5D Mk II SLR camera instead of a big HD camcorder for shooting personal video. The retail price of both (5D body only) are almost the same in HK.

Here in the thriving metropolis of Abilene, Texas, people always call me "the news guy" and can't wait to get in front of the camera. People bring their kids up to me and hold their hands and make them wave. Young kids all get in front of me and start talking "cool" so I'll take their picture. Older folks smile and make sure their hair looks good. Its an advantage for what I spend most of my time doing -- freelancing for the local newpaper's video website. It makes getting the story much easier.

People would still be nice to you but it would be difficult. It's not like other parts of Europe where everyone speaks English. I didn't speak English for 5 weeks. I think my doc would have been impossible if I didn't speak Italian. In fact in some remote areas the older people don't even speak Italian, they only speak regional dialects. Sometimes I would have to have someone translate their dialect into standard Italian for me. Fortunately, I can understand a lot of Sicilian so when in Sicily this wasn't as big a problem.

Hey David I am going to Sicily (vacation) in a few weeks and taking the Canon HV30 and possibly the XH-A1. Anything I shouldn't miss while my wife and I are there?

Hey David I am going to Sicily (vacation) in a few weeks and taking the Canon HV30 and possibly the XH-A1. Anything I shouldn't miss while my wife and I are there?

Kale,

Piazza Armerina has some Roman ruins that are interesting to see. I used to live in Italy and took several trips to Sicily. One of the most intriguing points for me was that the Sicilians used to put house facades on top of caves in the side of mountains. In some cases, the facade has partially fallen and you can see the cave in the back of the facade. My personal experience with the Sicilians is that they are a warm people. Yes, many of the older ones speak a dialect but many of the younger ones will speak a better Italian and some of those will speak English. They really like to speak English.

Anyhow, have a good time and enjoy the beauty of the island.

Thanks David, I think I will just take the HV30 as to not bring that much attention to myself.

We shoot lots of events in my hometown, and we also are hired by the local football team to film all the games every year, home and away. We printed up cheap "press passes" and laminated them, put them on lanyards. Every single stadium we go to, when we carry in the A1s, they just open the gate and smile. The best was at the Alamodome, no one even batted an eyelash, just asked if we needed anything and showed us in for free.

We printed up cheap "press passes" and laminated them, put them on lanyards.

I've found, in former careers, that the people who get access look and act like they belong there. Yours is a good twist on that approach. I'll have to try that sometime.

Kale, What part of Sicily will you be visiting? It's such an interesting place that if you have a good eye you can find something beautiful almost anywhere you go. You will probably find the best stuff to film away from the tourist areas. I suggest renting a car and driving to some small towns. If you are in Eastern Sicily, take a day trip up to the top of Mt. Etna, the volcano. Or if you are near Palermo go to Mt. Pellegrino(pilgrim). If you are in one of the big cities like Palermo or Catania there are some really interesting open air markets. Make sure you visit the Cathedrals in Monreale as they have the best mosaics in the world. You might want to ask permission before you film someone (but they almost always say yes). There is tons of beautiful architecture everywhere. The vegetation is great, lots of old olive and other fruit trees. Basically, I could go on and on - you won't have a problem finding fun stuff to film.

Regarding Language. Yes everyone speaks standard Italian (only the old people only speak dialect - it's sad to see a language die). I was way off the "beaten path" when filming my documentary so I expected this. If you are on vacation you will probably be in tourist areas where people will speak English at hotels and restaurants. I had to speak Italian because I was with my relatives. From my experience, outside of tourist zones, Italians generally have very little interest in speaking English.

David M, We are going a cruise to quite a few ports and this will be in Palermo. I will definitely check out the places you have recommended but as I don't know a word of Italian I will probably try and stay somewhat close to the tourist areas. Thanks

My first project with my A1 was to shoot and edit a short film of my son's little league baseball team's season highlights. After a few games, folks got used to my setup and me around the fields, and generally paid me little attention after awhile.

Then one day between innings, two moms (I think) from the opposing team walked up with not-so-nice expressions on their faces. They said I looked awfully professional and mentioned not having signed any kind of release form. I assured them that my video was strictly "home video"; that I was just one of the dads. They walked off without further ado.

I was a little surprised that two apparent lay people thought to ask about release forms. This isn't Hollywood, but it is the nation's capitol, so I figured folks are maybe more savvy than I give them credit for. The funny epilogue is that I was so startled by the moms' appearance that I forgot to stop taping; although they aren't in the frame, the audio of our conversation came through perfectly.

My XH-A1 gets a lot of attention from me. I've had 3 prior camcorders, but this is the first one that I will (almost daily) take out of its bag and admire. I've had the camera for 6 months now too so it's a fairly serious relationship at this point.

Today I didn't have a great day, but after 10 seconds of holding my XH-"Steaksauce" in my hands I was right as rain.

Every time when I´m filming in the City (Germany, Munich) with my XH-A1 +Tripod, I get 80% of the time questions like "Where will it wo shown/broadcasted?". I always say "YouTube.com and VIMEO.com". Love the look on their faces ;-)

I'm about to take delivery of an A1 next week- it's been a lengthy process of deliberation, because out here in Springbok-land an A1 costs as much as a good overseas holiday. I took the liberty of going to another dealer in another town and chatting about prices, and pawing the A1 they were offering, rather lustfully! (I'm ashamed to confess I was also looking at some competitive offerings from other brands, but of course you'd understand!)
By the time I had found out what it costs to buy an A1 from these guys, I'd had two charming women initiate conversations with me, and the impression I get is that the overall effect of being seen with A1 is rather like driving a red Italian sportscar: one gets noticed by all the right sorts of people!

FWIW I wish my XHA1 was invisible......

Far too often i get too much attention when shooting in public with the XHA1, particularly when it's set up on a tripod and has either my WD-H72 wide angle adapter on it or my Letus Extreme. People galk and stare, many people come up to ask questions about what television station I'm shooting for and on at least 2 occasions I have been asked by security to move along. In the cases of security persons, one was on a sidewalk outside a financial building. I was not shooting the building but rather across the street at clouds moving on a mirrored office building to use as a timelapse...I was asked what I was doing and asked to leave. The other was on a sidewalk shooting closeups of chemical plant stacks. A worker driving by stopped and said I should move along as security persons will detain me and have me charged by police for tresspassing. In both cases I could likely argue my right to shot from public spaces but I do not see the value in taking a chance when I could stand to have issues that could result in loss of thousands of dollars of video equipment.

Conversely there are times when it can be beneficial. I have been able to do shoots from many non-typical locations such as free use of a bar for shooting a music video, walking tours with national park employees and often meet and talk with people that otherwise would likely never happen. There are also some very amusing reactions from people but generally it tends to be curiousity.

It's always something when going out in public with such a visible camera and for a majority of what I do (stock footage mainly) I would love to do it as nochalantly as possible.

All the best,
James Hooey

Such is the Italian way. I sent my son to Italy as a graduation gift from college. His video is nothing short of remarkable!!

Luigi Antonio Bruno


I spent 3 days in a small town Scapoli, Molise in Southern Italy filming a music festival and was asked at least 15 times what TV station I was with. I had two condenser mics mounted on top of the A1 and it looked somewhat like the star treck enterprise. I looked more professional than the guys from RAI.

In the town of San Gregorio Magno, Campania a lamb was slaughtered and a fest was given in my honor. I can still taste the hand made ravioli. I was personally escorted everywhere by the town's former chief of police who got so involved with the project that he started directing shots and subjects as if they were actors! (ok he's my cousin's husband).

In Catanzaro, Calabria people started coming out of the woodwork to be a part of the production. I finally had to tell my friends I was done and that I couldn't film everyone Southern Italy.

In Adrano, Sicily, Trying to film one poem turned into a group of Sicilian poets beginning an impromptu competition for the camera as to who could display the most prolific oration in Sicilian dialect. One of the poems was 20 minuets long.

In Catania, a beautiful Sicilian madonna accompanied me to film b-roll in the fish market (well ok, we were dating).

In 5 weeks I never had to purchase a single meal or wash my own clothes. Someone's wife always took care of me. I was offered copious amounts of home made wine, cheese and Salami. I was escorted everywhere. You would have thought I was the pope. At one point I was "kidnapped" by one of my hosts and forced to endure a tour of Salerno when I really wanted to be out shooting b-roll. A tall American (who speaks italian) with a video camera is a big deal in Southern Italy.

I work for my local Sheriff's Department making training videos and the like. We have a pair of A1's and a bunch of nice equipment to go along with them.

When I shoot by myself (exteriors and whatnot) people do ask what station I'm filming for quite often, but what's more amusing is to be riding with a deputy and get out of the car with him or her. Everyone thinks they're going to be on "Cops," and hams it up.

I recently was taking footage of a local fair with the A1 and everyone wanted to know what channel I was from. I was shooting pictures of a steam engine that was cordoned off, and they insisted I come into the "danger zone" (and it was horrifically dangerous) to get better shots.

Gotta love it when the appearance of the camera allows you better access!

Back in 2000 when I was a senior in high school I went to an Al Gore rally in Kansas City and brought my old Canon AE1 35mm SLR camera with a big telephoto lens on it. I think I lied and told someone I was with my school newspaper and they let me up in the press booth which was a stage set up above the crowd for the journalists and photographers. I was with all the guys from the KC Star who had super expensive Digital SLR's which were a new thing back then (they were all shooting Nikon then). After the rally I got to go in the press tent and eat a free meal. I remember seeing Robert Novak from CNN. Anyway, as an 18 year old it was a lot of fun and it was all because I had a "professional" looking camera around my neck. :)

I taped a kid's birthday party using my A1. With the A1 I got a lot more room to get better shots than if I had had my Sony HC20 since people gave me more leeway. I even had people ask for my card. The video turned out great and hopefully I will do a few more parties.