7. Looking back at
your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from
it to the full product?
One of the
first pieces of filming I did this year was the preliminary task. We made this
to prove that we could work a camera on our own and set up a tripod and get
successful lighting and sound. We also had to show that we knew how to film and
edit using continuity editing. We also showed that we could do a
shot-reverse-shot and match on action shot. We also had to show that we knew to
not and how to not, break the 180-degree-rule. Doing this task defiantly helped
with our final media product, as it was a gentle introduction to film and
editing together a film. It showed us how noticeable it is when the 180-degree-rule
is broken and how badly it affects the whole product. Therefore, doing the
preliminary task taught me that I must avoid breaking the rule at all
costs. This task was also were I learnt
the very basics of editing the very user-friendly editing software, ‘final
cut’. It was helpful learning how to edit using a very simple clip that
wouldn’t be marked as it got rid of some of the pressure of learning how to
editing too well and quickly. The other aspects of filming and creating a media
product I learnt in the progression from starting the preliminary task are;
planning, sound, camerawork, editing, and lighting.
When
starting to create our finale media product the first step was planning. We
started planning our film by discussing the ideas together as a group and
writing down ideas that we came across and liked. We would refine our ideas of
the plot by running through them together again and again. This is very different to the preliminary task were we could make up our shot and pointless plot on the spot. I also learnt the importance of distributing the work load as evenly as possible to get through the project. I also learnt that sometimes things that you planned, don't always happen exactly how you want. For example, we didn't get all our shots done in the first go of filming. To make this worse, our actress dropped out before we had time to finish filming her. This meant we had to very quickly find some one else who is suitable for the role and re-shoot every clip. Another way something which went wrong and we learnt from it, is one of my members of the team, forgot the story board both times when we were shooting. However this showed me the importance of carefully drawing and planning out the story board. This is because, even though we didn't have it on us, it was still very helpful doing it so carefully as we remembered it well. Another thing that didn't go to plan, was someone had agreed to write our music for us. However they also dropped out. This taught us to look for other resources. We managed to look online to find some non-copywrite music which suited our film well. Finally, something else which went wrong is we didn't manage to film the scene of the car pulling into the house in the first shot. We didn't manage to film the scene for quite a while after as the weather wasn't similar enough to our first day of filming. Although we manage to film it and edit it in in time, it was still very stressful and a very tight squeeze. What I learnt from this situation is the importance of filming much earlier than you need it, just so you do have long enough to reshot if some stuff does not go to plan.
The sound was very different for my final media product compared to the Preliminary. I didn’t
learn that much about sound from doing the preliminary task its self, as we didn’t
do much on sound. I didn’t use music,
foley sound, and I used no external recorder. However, after having a double lesson about using external recorders and the importance of sound, and the location the sound is being recorded in, I learnt a lot. One thing that was very important to learn was the importance of adding atmospheric sound. However for the final media product, we used these many different sound techniques in our film. The double lesson on sound was a very strong starting point but the rest of what I learnt about sound came from practise when I worked on the final media product. I learnt how even a small amount of wind can be too loud to work with and can ruin the final product. I also learnt that if an actor shouts some of the script too near a boom mic, it can ruin the sound and sound bad and crackly. I learnt hat it is important to keep the boom further away and to edit the sound louder if need be. I also learnt through doing our final media piece, that when filming, and at the same time recording with a boom mic, it is very important to keep it away from the camera and out of shot. Although I did know this was a problem prior to starting our piece, I did not realise how easily the boom can slip into frame without even realising. Also, although it was not possible without losing too much quality, you can crop the clip if necessary, in this example, the boom being in frame.
I have also learnt a lot about camera work since starting the preliminary task. Ive learnt how important it is and how much it improves the shot boy have a word variety of shots. In the preliminary task, I used the minim amount of shots, making it look simplistic and too basic. Adding a larger variety of shots, (close up, long, shot, over shoulder shot, tracking shots, point of view shots, hand held camera work, etc) add interest to the film. They also allow space for different shots to present different ideas and feelings. For example, the over shoulder shot of the man at the beginning, make him seem dominate as he takes up lots of camera space. In our film we used what we had learnt about 180-degree-rule and were very careful not to break it. There were many shots, especially when the man is walking through the house, where we easily could have broken the rule, but remained careful not to.
I also learnt a lot about editing since the preliminary task. In my final media product I think its successful editing in the film on the title and the black screen to create a devision between scenes (the running scene and the scene in the house.) Through creating the preliminary task, I learnt the very basics of editing. It was useful that we all did each preliminary task by our selves, which insured that I did manage to learn all that I needed to, rather than sharing the amount learnt.
AC
I have also learnt a lot about camera work since starting the preliminary task. Ive learnt how important it is and how much it improves the shot boy have a word variety of shots. In the preliminary task, I used the minim amount of shots, making it look simplistic and too basic. Adding a larger variety of shots, (close up, long, shot, over shoulder shot, tracking shots, point of view shots, hand held camera work, etc) add interest to the film. They also allow space for different shots to present different ideas and feelings. For example, the over shoulder shot of the man at the beginning, make him seem dominate as he takes up lots of camera space. In our film we used what we had learnt about 180-degree-rule and were very careful not to break it. There were many shots, especially when the man is walking through the house, where we easily could have broken the rule, but remained careful not to.
I also learnt a lot about editing since the preliminary task. In my final media product I think its successful editing in the film on the title and the black screen to create a devision between scenes (the running scene and the scene in the house.) Through creating the preliminary task, I learnt the very basics of editing. It was useful that we all did each preliminary task by our selves, which insured that I did manage to learn all that I needed to, rather than sharing the amount learnt.
AC
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