Practicing Our Previous Opening Scenes - Jessica And I

In order to avoid wasting time we practiced are opening scene several times, therefore we would prepare for our first filming. Once we had gotten enough footage, I then used Youtube to find a footstep effect. Having both the footage and footstep effect I placed into Final Cuts and altered them both to make them in sync with one another. I used this as an opportunity to explore the different effects and video filters that Final Cuts have to offer. One filter that I found quite interesting was the 'Sharpen', the more i clicked on the 'Sharpen' the more sharper the footage became. 

Here is a practice footage of our opening clip:

As you are able to tell the sound of the footsteps replicate the sound of high heels and I am wearing wellies, as well as the fact that two different shoes are used in the clip. This is all because we used this as a test, to not only test our editing skills but who within our team is more skillful in handling the camera in handled position. It also helped us to understand in what way and angle the camera should be held, along with how the individual holding the camera would have to follow the artist up the stairs. 

Also as you can see during the clip I used the 'Sharpen' filter to give myself and idea of how the filter could effect our footage. 

Practice Shots - These are the practice shot for our new video (Jessica And I)

To avoid wasting time or creating more expenses for ourselves than we already have, we decided to a practice filming. What we were able to obtain from our practical filming is each other strengthens, for example:

- Who would be good at tracking shots?

- Who would be good at pans?

- Who is skillful with handheld cameras?

- Who could be good at filming long shots?

- Who would be best for editing the footage?

- The positions to hold the camera, to achieve certain camera shots?

All of these questions we were able to determine the answer for by our practice filming. Due to the schedule of lessons we were force to split up into two groups (Seun and I, Prince and Sath). Taking in turns each person had an opportunity to film using several camera angles and shorts.

Seun and I mainly focused on the opening scene (the staircase scene), We took several takes,approximately 8 different takes till we felt the opening scene was good enough. By taking the several clips, Seun and I found that Seun was more skillful at tracking shots and POV shotsthan I, as well as how we should record the opening clips. 

Being the opening scene it must not only by eye-catching but of good quality, therefore practicing filming the opening scene we thought must be essential For example we learnt in order to create a smooth, crisp tracking shot our artist would need a step ahead on the staircase, and whoever is taking the shot approximately two steps behind. One issue that came to our attention is the POV shot; due to not having the expenses to use high-tech equipment such as a craneour artist would need to know how to hold the handheld camera, along with what position would create a smooth POV shot. Having a high-tech equipment such as crane would help us avoid the issue of our artist knowing how to handle a handled camera. Nonetheless from doing the practical with Seun, we learnt that our artist would need to be bent quite forward to avoid her/his knee from dominating the footage. (Photoshop jess)

In this clip below you may notice a few things (which we hope you could ignore) such as the fact that we have used two different shoes, this is because (as mentioned earlier) Seun is better at positioning herself to get a clear, smooth POV shot.

Here is short footage of our practice shot - put together using final cut. 

Practice Shots

In order for us to get our filming right we have decided to split up the shots into groups so that each member of the group can have practice shots of what we would need on the day of filming.
Firstly, we asked Sath and Prince to work with a male to shoot medium close ups and side way shots as well as moving shots to show how the male lead would capture the video.
Here is a video with what they had come up with:

This would not be the male lead we would be using however, he shows some of the ways our male lead would be filmed.