A peek inside the video training
I made a Soundslides about the video training I wrote about on Friday. It runs 2 min. 17 sec.
I shot 133 photos and used 30 in the slideshow. I interviewed six of the participants for about two minutes each. The trouble with this (as you’ll see) is that it’s not really a story. But I think it will give you a good idea of what the morning was like. Afterward, the participants spread out in and around the building to shoot, but I didn’t have a chance to take pictures of them shooting that afternoon. I did the interviews after the shooting.
The interviews were recorded on an Olympus WS-200S with an Electro-Voice 635N/D-B mic. The audio was edited in Audacity. Photos were shot with my Canon SD700 IS. I lazily did not crop or tone them.
It really wrankles me (or something) to see “Soundslides” used as a noun. Shouldn’t it be the adjective in the phrase “Soundslides package”?
August 20, 2007 at 7:31 amI get perverse joy from writing “a Soundslides.”
If Joe Weiss doesn’t object, I will persist …
August 20, 2007 at 1:21 pmYou may find this article by Regina McCombs an interesting read: http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=101&aid=125795
August 20, 2007 at 2:49 pmThanks, Sriram. Regina is an old friend of mine, and that’s a very good article.
August 20, 2007 at 5:54 pmAny idea how they will handle the increase in the amount of video coming in when reporters start shooting? Will the shooter of the video edit or will they hand it off to a producer?
August 20, 2007 at 11:57 pmScott, I’m not sure whether they have different policies for editing at each newspaper. I have heard that at many medium-size papers, they are only handling about five or six reporter-shot videos per week. Makes sense, as this is all so new. I know at washingtonpost.com (not a Gannett paper, obviously), the reporter-shot video is handed to an editor.
August 21, 2007 at 9:13 am[...] second take on Gannett’s video training program. This time, with photos and [...]
August 21, 2007 at 1:43 pmArrrrgh Im getting Deja vu.
This is exactly what I’ve been doing with a newspaper group over here, right down to the camera kits.
It’s great fun though isn’t it.
August 24, 2007 at 10:30 amHey, Andy — post YOUR gear list!!
Do you train them in teams of four, or teams of three? Have you tried both?
How many helpers do you have in the room? How many teams?
August 24, 2007 at 11:09 amHi Mindy
Our set up for training mirrors the key kit for the newspaper group we are training for. Our student kit is a bit different
We are using the Sony HVR-A1E which is a great camera (and the defacto newspaper video camera by the look of it). But the pain that is having to take tripod plates off to change tapes has already resulted in one or two lost plates reported in the field. It’s a Libec LS-22DV tripod btw - very good but can break with over zeleous tightening of leg locks
Mic wise we are using Sony UWP-C1 radio mics (and lav)and a Beyer M58 handheld. I tend to recommend the M58 as the first mic to go for when they are recording - easy to use and set up.
I’m training them to use Avid xpress pro as their editing package. Again that’s what they use back in their office. (For teaching students we have a mix of Avid newscutter and fcp.)
The courses are set up to run over 2 days with 10 delegates working in pairs. They are a mix of photographers, reporters, sub-editors, news editors and even the odd editor so it’s a great way to chat with those having to do this at the coal face.
I run them by myself (i get very tired of the sound of my voice).
By the end of 2 days they have shot and edited an interview and edited a short news package that they then script, voice and finish.
It’s a lot to get through but it really gets (most of) them excited for the possibilities and keeps me fired up to show them what a great storytelling tool video can be.
August 24, 2007 at 4:27 pmThey finish two editing projects in only two days? And you teach alone? You’re the man, Andy!
August 24, 2007 at 5:23 pmOh I wish!
I would love more time. Really it’s as much about raising awareness of the ups and downs of using video. They do all manage to get through though and I think it is as much about them realizing that their journalistic sense and skils does carry further across mediums then they think.
August 25, 2007 at 12:29 pm