newbie needs help « Videomaker Community Forums

dino
Member

Hi guys, im a newbie in video making. the guys down in my office and me decided to make a video presentation for our boss. because her birthday will be coming soon. we were thinking to take videos of her close friends and relatives. interview them, ask some stuff about her, and get a short birthday greeting from them. Can you guys give me some pointers or tips on making this project. I will be using my panasonic PV-GS39 camcorder. i have a tripod. we have a couple of halogen floodlights down at the office. ill be using adobe premiere pro 1.5 for post production(editing). basically thats the equiptment i have. hope you guys can help me with this. thanks in advance!

dino

Posted 5 years ago #
compusolver
Member

Try to use an external mic, and keep it within a foot or so of the speakers' lips. A lav mic would probably be best. People tend to do bad things with handheld mics - talk with their hands and absent mindedly move the mic to far away while waving it around, or holding it so that it obscures part of their face, etc.

Don't just shoot "talking heads". Once you've established the speaker, keep the audio going but switch video to photos, etc. that illustrate the subject being spoken of.

Once it's in post, you may want to consider a little background music, animations, etc.

Have fun, but be careful - a bad video could get you demoted! X-D

Posted 5 years ago #
dino
Member

compusolver Wrote:
Try to use an external mic, and keep it within a foot or so of the speakers' lips. A lav mic would probably be best. People tend to do bad things with handheld mics - talk with their hands and absent mindedly move the mic to far away while waving it around, or holding it so that it obscures part of their face, etc.

Don't just shoot "talking heads". Once you've established the speaker, keep the audio going but switch video to photos, etc. that illustrate the subject being spoken of.

Once it's in post, you may want to consider a little background music, animations, etc.

Have fun, but be careful - a bad video could get you demoted! X-D

thanks a lot. do you advice that i go with 16:9? im trying to think how should i start the video, do you have any advice how should i start it?

Posted 5 years ago #
compusolver
Member

Now you're getting into the area of creativity - something that should be entirely up to you.

If it were me (and if my resume was up to date) I'd start off with something that was sure to get attention - flashy graphics and exciting music, then an over the top tribute to the boss, perhaps starting with a shot of my staff lined up, facing same direction, giving a one-arm salute *transition* to the boss with a stern expression (composited moustache optional)...

Have fun with it. But do update your resume, just in case. X-D

Oh, the format question... widescreen or standard...depends on what it will be viewed on. If you're going to display this at the office, then what monitor will it be shown on?

Posted 5 years ago #
dino
Member

it will be viewed at her house. she hs a widescreen tv.

i started to shoot a couple of days ago. its not that easy. its hard to keep your co-workers behaved and quiet at the background while shooting another person. its hard to tell a senior co-worker to SHUT UP! :) but i think it will go just fine......but im updating my resume as you said :)

if you guys have more tips, i will be glad to hear them.

thanks!

Posted 5 years ago #
;0)
Member

drop all your co-worker a friendly note to remind them that while you intend for this project to be a fun and positive experience, they are responsible for thier behaviour. There IS a camera rolling. You are responsible to edit the final cut. They will be at your MERCY when the final product and any possible outtakes/blooper reels get out. They should be nice.

Posted 5 years ago #
dino
Member

job well done! we gave our boss the video. our boss loved it!. i still have my job. hehehe.
thank you guys for all the help!

this is what i did. i only asked 3 questions. question #1 is what can you say about our boss. question #2 your unforgetable moment with the boss. #3 what is your birthday wish for boss.

i started the video with some pictures and soft music. then put all together answers for question #1 then put together answers for question#2 then question#3. at the same time, inserted some re-enactment for flashback effect. while speaker is telling the story of the unforgetable moments. inserted some old pictures. and after the credits i added some deleted scenes and bloopers.

thank you guys!

Posted 5 years ago #