My first try at creative videography. Please C&C.

[hswrestlinfan]

Critique/criticism/comments very welcome. I'm new to this, and any input would be much appreciated. The video subject is my baby daughter. It's an upbeat video... fairly pleased with the results, but I know I have a long way to go to get better! Please pick it apart!

https://vimeo.com/41234097

Shot with a Panasonic GH2

 

[diamond3]

I liked it and thought it was well done. The cuts flowed with the song, the color seemed balanced and most shots were in focus. All of these other suggestions are minor.

Minor critiques: The only thing i'd say that didn't fit was the one scene that repeats twice of the baby screaming/crying about 1/3 of the way into the video. It distracted me from the overall flow of the video. It might just be me though.

Additional ideas: I'm not really sure what to call it, but try some clips where the camera is moving to create the appearance of a transition. So for instance instead of cutting to a shot directly with the baby in center frame, you go from something in her hands up to her face. Involve some panning of the camera or circleing around the baby for some different views. All of these are a challenge with a dslr and staying in focus, but they add a little more to the shots I believe.

 

[hswrestlinfan]

I liked it and thought it was well done. The cuts flowed with the song, the color seemed balanced and most shots were in focus. All of these other suggestions are minor.

Thank you! Much appreciated!

Minor critiques: The only thing i'd say that didn't fit was the one scene that repeats twice of the baby screaming/crying about 1/3 of the way into the video. It distracted me from the overall flow of the video. It might just be me though.

Good point on the repeating clip... I questioned it, but in the end decided it added something, if nothing else a bit of humor (for all the good times, there are also some tears.... ok, a lot of tears) You might be right, that it might not fit well with the other clips.

Additional ideas: I'm not really sure what to call it, but try some clips where the camera is moving to create the appearance of a transition. So for instance instead of cutting to a shot directly with the baby in center frame, you go from something in her hands up to her face. Involve some panning of the camera or circleing around the baby for some different views. All of these are a challenge with a dslr and staying in focus, but they add a little more to the shots I believe.

Very true, most of them are fairly stationary. some quick panning would have been good... most of the clips are 1 second, and a few of them are 2 seconds... but really that suggestion might have more to do with how I video tape than edit. I'm not sure if I have many panning clips to choose from. I'll keep that in mind as I record going forward.

Yes, keeping things in focus is always a challenge... especially since I don't have any special equipment ... just my fingers on the ring. It has auto-focus but I find that it 'breathes' too much for my taste. Especially when the f-stop is set at 1.4.

 

[acearchie]

The one thing that you have got right that a lot of people don't is length. 1 minute is a perfect bite sized length for something like this, especially since you are just trying out some video.

I agree with the poster above that the repeated clip didn't work for me. The few shots at the end of grandparents??? was also distracting because it literally is 3 clips in B&W.

I would have stopped down for focus as you can still compromise with some OOF background but also make sure you have critical focus on the subject which in some shots was off.

Watch the rolling shutter. I realise you have no "special equipment" as you put it but really try to keep the camera steady!

There were some really nice jump-cuts in there as well which is good because you realised that you needed to speed up the action with the rhythm of the music.

The slow fade to white was a nice addition too!

Now try something with a more linear narrative and lets see what you can do!

 

[WRP]

...the color seemed balanced and most shots were in focus.

Actually, that was the exact opposite of what I was going to say. The color temperature was all over the place. You have a very cool blue shot from outside window light right next to a very warm indoor lighting clip. This happens over and over. You need some serious color work.

 

[hswrestlinfan]

The one thing that you have got right that a lot of people don't is length. 1 minute is a perfect bite sized length for something like this, especially since you are just trying out some video.

I agree with the poster above that the repeated clip didn't work for me. The few shots at the end of grandparents??? was also distracting because it literally is 3 clips in B&W.

Good points about the B&W... seems random that just a few clips are that way. I didn't like the color in one of them, then figured I'd just make all of the grandparent shots in B&W. A bad choice in retrospect. I added those clips just to make the video more meaningful for personal reasons, but I think if I did it again just 100% for creative purposes I would have just left those out. Thank you.

I would have stopped down for focus as you can still compromise with some OOF background but also make sure you have critical focus on the subject which in some shots was off.

I've got that lens stuck at f1.4. Need to venture away from that!

Watch the rolling shutter. I realise you have no "special equipment" as you put it but really try to keep the camera steady!

There were some really nice jump-cuts in there as well which is good because you realised that you needed to speed up the action with the rhythm of the music.

The slow fade to white was a nice addition too!

Now try something with a more linear narrative and lets see what you can do!

I'm thinking about investing in some sort of rig to steady my shots. Not where to start on that front.
The linear thing will surely be a challenge... telling a STORY adds a whole other dimension! Thanks for the props and tips. Very much appreciated.

Actually, that was the exact opposite of what I was going to say. The color temperature was all over the place. You have a very cool blue shot from outside window light right next to a very warm indoor lighting clip. This happens over and over. You need some serious color work.

When using video clips over a wide period of time, some at night by candle-fire, some by a window during mid-day, etc. is there any way to really avoid this?

 

[WRP]

When using video clips over a wide period of time, some at night by candle-fire, some by a window during mid-day, etc. is there any way to really avoid this?

Yes, it's called post production. Color grading a video after it is shot is extremely important if you don't want it to look like crap. Think of feature films that are shot in all conditions over months of time.