Lab 10: Listen to Audio Portraits

DUE THIS WEEK IN LAB: Blog #3 (MOMI Trip), Audio Portrait

Resources:

• Storyboard Template
• Storyboard Resource
• Sample Storyboards from Famous Films

DUE NEXT WEEK VIA EMAIL: Storyboard/production plan for Project #3

Lab 9: Finish Audio Portrait

A Cold Freezin' Night

DUE THIS WEEK: Project 2 (Audio Portrait of a Person)
BRING TODAY: USB, headphones, music and/or sound effects (as .wav files)

Sign-up for a SoundCloud.com account!

Music:  Beware of too much music!

• Use music as an accent or a background. 
• Control levels to keep it from competing with voice and mix it down. 
• Don't fake it! Use music and SFX to enhance what is there, not to try to instill some emotion that isn't.

Sound Effects:  Again, be careful. The best sounds are often the ones you record.

• sounddogs.com (commercial SFX)
• archive.org (public domain material)
• freesound.org (sound sharing)
• mobygratis.com (royalty free film music)

The final piece should be 3 to 4 minutes. The mix should use elements including the voice of the interviewee, ambient background sound, music, and other sounds as you see fit.

Remember to identify a theme that will make your piece say something special about the world, or the "human condition." A story becomes compelling when it communicates something unique that others can relate to.

DUE NEXT WEEK IN LAB: Blog #3 (MOMI Trip)

Lab 8: Edit Audio

DUE THIS WEEK: Blog #2 ("What I Hear") is due.

BRING: USB, music, sound effects, & headphones

"Just Another Fish Story" by Molly Menschel

TOMORROW: Meet at the Museum of the Moving Image at 12:45PM SHARP (unless you have made arrangements to go on the earlier tour)! 

DUE NEXT WEEK: Audio projects (at end of class)

Lab 7: Record Project 2

BRING TODAY: USB and pre-interview questions.





Interview Tips (adapted from Natalie Conn)

1- Listen to the background noise. Is a fan on? Air conditioner? Can you move to a quieter location? Can you close a window? If outside, is there wind noise? Cars, airplanes?

2- Get your levels. Have the subject talk about their breakfast so that you can get the correct audio level. If you're just doing sound (no video) make sure the mic is about 4 to 6 inches from the subject's mouth. And check the audio level. It should be alittle above the middle. Around -12 db.

3-Notice your subject's speaking style and body motion. If they have a very dynamic way of speaking, be prepared for louder moments like laughter and move the recorder slightly farther away or slightly closer when they are talking softly.  If they are alittle nervous, they might fiddle with something in their hand or chew gum. Try to make them feel comfortable, have them remove the gum and reduce noises in the audio.

4-Try not to ask Yes or No questions. See last week's post. If you don't want your voice in the audio, remind the subject to answer questions in a complete sentence, including your question in the answer.

5-Don't suggest an answer in a question or finish sentences. Try not to say, "mmhmm, or "right right", or make any remark as they are talking even if it makes both of you feel alittle uncomfortable. Just knod your head quietly to let the subject know you are listening.

6-Listen to their answers instead of thinking about your next question. Follow up with questions related to their answers if they are telling a story that warrants more exploration or details or clarification.

7-Ask questions that conjure a story and give the listeners a sense of being there. For example, a line of questioning could be: Tell me about the day you first came to the United States. What were you wearing? What was the weather? How did it smell? What were you surprised by? How did you feel? 

8-Open it up. A good ending question is to ask the subject if there is anything else they'd like to add and/or anyone else you should talk to for more about the story.

9-Get room tone. Make sure to record some room tone while no one is talking!! At least 1 or 2 minutes, so that you can use it for editing.

More (short) audio samples: 

Transom's Sonic ID Project

Next week in lecture: Quiz #2! Please refer to study guide. Watch Project 1, intro to Project 3.

Next week in lab: Blog #2 ("What I Hear") is due. Edit audio project.

Lab 6: Review Project 1, Pre-Interview for Project 2



Take a look at StoryCorps "Great Questions": http://storycorps.org/great-questions/

Types of Questions

OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS (GOOD!)
*elicit more detailed responses [Can you describe what you did at your birthday party?].
*help awaken the memory of the person being interviewed so that they may tell their story in a more descriptive manner.
*open-ended questions usually start: Why? How? Can you describe?

 CLOSED QUESTIONS (BAD!)
*elicit yes or no responses, or one word answers [Do you like spinach?  . . . Yes].
*ask the subject of the interview to remember something specific, but don’t usually help us to get descriptive answers.
*they usually start with: Who? When? Where?

FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS (GOOD!)
*help you to get more information about a previous answer [Why do you like spinach?].
*help to clarify or explain an answer that isn’t clear.
*often start: Why? How? Could you explain?

LEADING QUESTIONS (BAD!)
*contain the opinion or assumption of the interviewer within the question.
*may sway the answer of the interviewee, because they think you want to hear a certain answer.
*an example of a leading question is: “So, all of your friends moved here from New York?”
*it’s better to ask WHO moved, and WHY, WHEN and HOW they moved, in order to get richer,
 more detailed information.

DOUBLE BARRELED QUESTIONS (BAD!)
*contain two questions in one.
*may confuse the interviewee, or allow them to respond to only half of your question.
*an example of a double barreled question is: “How long have you been eating spinach, and how do you like to cook it?”
*it’s better to ask two separate questions: First ask, “How long have you been eating spinach?” After that question is answered, you can ask, “How do you like to cook spinach?”

EITHER/OR QUESTIONS (BAD!)
*allow the interviewee only two options for answering a question.
*eliminate the possibility of a third answer.
*an example of an Either-Or question is: “Which is your favorite kind of fruit, oranges or apples?”
*it’s better to ask, “What is your favorite kind of fruit?” because the answer might be mangos, and not oranges or apples.

REMEMBER: DON’T INTERRUPT
*if you need to ask a clarifying question, wait until the person is done answering
*you don’t want to disrupt their flow

Other audio resources:

Transom.org – Great technical & creative resources for producers of audio/radio
Interviewers on Interviewing – A YouTube Playlist curated by Transom
PRX – Great library of public radio projects
SoundCloud – A YouTube-esque platform for audio



Next week in lab: Record project 2. Come to lab with your question list and headphones.

Lab 5: Continue Editing

BRING TODAY!: USBs (with footage), music, & headphones!

Subway Ballet (NY Times Op-Docs) from Joshua Z Weinstein on Vimeo.

To Do on Your Videos/Demos

• Finish editing your clips
• Add a title and/or credits 
• Add music (optional)
• Export for the web using Quicktime with H.264 compression
• Post your project on your blog! BEFORE CLASS NEXT WEEK YOU WILL NEED TO CREATE AN ACCOUNT ON VIMEO, UPLOAD YOUR PROJECT, AND LINK TO YOUR PROJECT ON YOUR BLOG! 

Final Cut Pro - keyboard shortcuts

• B = blade tool - cuts footage
• A = arrow tool - moves things around (like the selection / arrow in Photoshop)
• Z = zoom tool - looks like a magnifying glass, makes your timeline bigger or smaller
• P = pen tool - when you click on the button in the lower left of the timeline....

...you can use the pen tool (P) to make points on the video to alter it's opacity or on the audio to change the volume. 

• I = "In" point - Where your movie, or clip starts
• O = "Out" point - Where your movie, or clip ends

Review for Quiz!

In lecture tomorrow: Quiz! 

Lab 4: Intro to Editing

BRING TODAY:  USB Drives & footage

Resources: Vimeo's Video 101: Editing Basics, Setting Scratch Disks in Final Cut Pro

How to set the scratch disks in Final Cut
1) Make a project folder WITH YOUR NAME ON IT on the computer's Scratch disk and call it whatever you want - example: "Laura Hadden Project 1"

2) Make a folder inside of "Laura Hadden Project 1" and call it "Scratch"

3) Make a folder inside of "Laura Hadden Project 1" and call it "Video" - put all of your .mov files into the folder called "Video"

So now inside "Laura Hadden Project 1" should be two folders; "Video" and "Scratch"

4) Open up Final Cut Pro

5) Go up to the top tab and click on "Final Cut Pro" --> "system settings"

A window will open that looks like this:



6) Click on each of the set buttons that are highlighted below (the blue underline points out the folder you are pointing it to) and direct final cut to the folder you made called "FCP"

Setting the scratch disks tells Final Cut where to put all of the files that it generates as you edit. You should set the scratch disks every time you open up Final Cut!

Next week: Finish editing! Bring in music or other sound effects you would like to add to your project. as well as your USB drives(!!!). Project is due at the end of class.

Note: If you want to have more editing time, please refer to the "How to work in labs at Hunter" handout on Blackboard, but you have to use your flash drive or external hard drive to bring your project folder to those computers!

Lab 3: Shoot Project 1, Define Your Space

"Places matter. Their rules, their scale, their design include or exclude civil society, pedestrianism, equality, diversity (economic and otherwise), understanding of where water comes from and garbage goes, consumption or conservation. They map our lives.” 

― Rebecca Solnit, Storming the Gates of Paradise: Landscapes for Politics

 
TODAY:

• Create a shot list with your partner! Plan to shoot 12 shots just in case. Hold each shot for at least 10 seconds (you can edit it shorter later). This template might help. Detail not only what you're shooting but how.
• WHAT: Think carefully about what you wish to convey. It could be an emotional tone you feel in the location (claustrophobia, fear, energy); or it could be that you are interested in the quality of light in the space; or perhaps what intrigues you is what goes on there; or maybe you like the architectural details, or the colors; you could also contrast interior with exterior, light and dark, movement and stillness... it’s up to you! 
• HOW: Think about what camera position, shot size and composition will work best for each shot. Do not zoom! 
• Shoot your project with a partner.   
• Download and encode your material, watch your clips. 

NEXT WEEK:
Bring your USB drives to class again next week! We will begin editing.

Lab 2: Intro to 16mm, Camera Exercise, & Media Encoder

Send me your favorite short films to watch & discuss in class! 

Learn more about the Arri 16S here!

Reminder:

• Frame rate = Images (or frames) per second
• Shutter speed = Exposure of each frame (how long each frame is exposed to light)

SHOT SIZE

ANGLES

MOVEMENT (pans, tilt, zoom)

TRACKING

Reminder: No lecture tomorrow!

Extra credit opportunity: “Puzzles” produced by Hunter professor Tami Gold and Hunter student David Pavlovsky.  The screening will be at the Lang Auditorium Hunter North 4^th floor on Tuesday, February 11^th at 6:30PM.  The filmmakers will be present and available for you to ask questions about how they made the film.

Next week: We're shooting project 1! Bring your USB drives, create your Vimeo accounts, and scout your locations before the lab.

Lab 1B: Camera Workshop

Good morning! 



Send me short films (under 5 minutes) that you want to watch in class!

Intro to Camera (Canon FS11)

The camera manual: http://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/9/0300000959/01/fs10-11-100nim-en.pdf

Lecture 3 (February 19th) will go into more detail about how various factors influence an image.

P or Program AE (Automatic Exposure) – the camcorder automatically adjusts the aperture (the size of the hole through which light travels) and the shutter speed (the amount of time a single frame is exposed to light) to obtain the optimal exposure (the quantity of light) for the subject. This is the setting we will be using in class. 

Tv or Shutter Priority AE – Allows you to set the shutter speed value and the camcorder automatically sets the appropriate aperture value. Generally, we won't be changing the shutter speed value in film unless we are attempting a special effect. You can use faster shutter speeds to record subjects moving quickly, use slower shutter speeds to add motion blur. 

Exposure: An image can be underexposed (not enough light) or overexposed (too much light). To manually change exposure, press “SET” and then the arrow down until you find “EXP”, adjust the brightness left to right. Then press set again. 

Manual focus

Autofocus might not work well on:

• Reflective surfaces
• Subjects with low contrast or without vertical lines
• Fast moving subjects
• Through wet windows
• Night scenes

To adjust focus manually, press “[SET]” button, scroll to “[FOCUS]”, adjust focus left to right. Press SET to lock focus or press arrow up to return to autofocus. To reset, press SET and go back to [FOCUS].

You can use "infinity focus" to focus on faraway subjects (mountains, fireworks). Go back to [FOCUS] and hold it until an infinity loop appears.

White Balance:

The white balance function helps you to accurately reproduce colors under different lighting conditions so that white objects will always look truly white in your recordings. You can select [AUTO], [DAYLIGHT], [TUNGSTEN] (for fluorescent lighting) or you can set it yourself! 

[FUNCTION] > [SET] > Point the camcorder at a white object, zoom it until it fills the whole screen and press [SET]. Wait for the icon to stop flashing and stay on. It will keep this white balance setting even if you turn of the camcorder, so reset for each environment. Press [FUNCTION] and close menu. 

NEXT WEEK: Camera exercise, intro the Adobe Media Encoder. 

Lab 1: Artist Statement

Your first blog assignment is to write an artist statement. This is due in Lab 1B (next week!). 

What is an artist statement?

An artist statement is a written description of your work that gives the context of who you are and how that relates to the work that you make (or will make in this class). 

Things to keep in mind:

• Your artist statement will likely change over time – and that's great! You might not have a ton of experience right now (or even consider yourself an artist!) and the way you approach your work may evolve, but write about what interests you, how you are approaching your creative work right now and/or how you plan to approach your work this semester and beyond. You can always go back and edit later. 

• Your goal is to communicate your internal process to an external audience. Make sure it makes sense to someone besides you. Ask a friend to read it over if you're not sure.

• Don't worry about impressing your audience or name-dropping famous artists unless they actually influence you. If you want to mention someone as an inspiration, that's great, but try to focus on the specific aspects of their work that you like and are trying to incorporate into your own work. People should be able to see the influences you mention in your work.  

• It's easy to get self-conscious about the work you do, but learning how to talk about it is part of the creative process. Don't be shy!

Ask yourself:

• Are there any particular moments or experiences that have shaped who I am? How does that influence the kind of media I want to make?

• What inspires and influences me?

• How am I approaching my work? What's unique about it?

• What sort of themes does my work often address? What questions am I trying to answer? 

• What does it mean to me? What do I want it to mean to others?

Examples:

• http://www.jessiekotler.com/artist-statement/

• http://ronitfilms.com/statement/

• http://www.artstudy.org/art-and-design-careers/sample-artist-statement.php

Examples from students:

• http://chantting.blogspot.com/2013/10/artist-statement.html
• http://simone160.blogspot.com/2013_08_01_archive.html

Additional resources:

• http://www.ebsqart.com/Education/Articles/Business-and-Marketing/14/How-to-Artist-Statement/75/

• http://artistemerging.blogspot.com/2006/08/writing-artists-statement.html

• http://www.lightspacetime.com/newsletter/how-to-write-the-perfect-artist-statement/