DP Reel 2013 - Constructive feedback welcome!

traviswears

traviswears

Well-known member
Hello community,

I haven't posted my work here before but I finally updated my reel and was hoping to get some constructive feedback. Mostly, what works and what doesn't. I realize it's a bit long for a DP-only reel, most of it is commercial and not exactly "cinematography".

I was trying to include some projects I've shot and produced that are not necessarily the nicest looking stuff but might give a producer the right idea about my versatility. Not sure if that is coming across in this or not!

I'm in the middle of the country, Kansas City, MO. Also looking to network with like-minded shooters and producers alike here in the Midwest or anywhere! I travel pretty often for work and would love to make connections with other pros in the business via linkedin, Instagram or twitter. Always cool to meetup and talk cameras, etc... during downtime.

https://vimeo.com/59209198

Thanks!
TW
 
Hi Travis. Plenty of nice stuff in there, however, especially toward the end I felt I was getting a slight repeat with some projects already covered. The last minute wasnt as solid as the first 2. Also, by the time 2 minutes rolled around I was starting to feel the music was just the same 4 bars on repeat as well. Zoned out.

I'd say put all your best stuff up front in the first 2 minutes and cut the first minute of the audio, using the last two for your edit as it does have that nice little crescendo toward the end.
 
Noel Evans said:
Hi Travis. Plenty of nice stuff in there, however, especially toward the end I felt I was getting a slight repeat with some projects already covered. The last minute wasnt as solid as the first 2. Also, by the time 2 minutes rolled around I was starting to feel the music was just the same 4 bars on repeat as well. Zoned out.

I'd say put all your best stuff up front in the first 2 minutes and cut the first minute of the audio, using the last two for your edit as it does have that nice little crescendo toward the end.
Click to expand...

Great feedback! Appreciate the thoughtful criticism. Agree that it needs to be shortened and gets a bit repetitive. Thank you for watching.
 
Great reel. I'm going to echo what everyone else said... Get rid of a lot the aerials (only need one or two), more than half of the landscapes and filler "cool" shots (maybe just use a few as transitions from the shots of substance), ditch half the interview style, half the live stage footage. More of the narrative shots if you have them, and if not, cut all the other shots down till they get about the same amount of screen time as the narrative. Push those big names to the very front (walmart, ESPN or whatever they were), it'll help keep a hold of those with really short attention spans or those that have to dig through 100 reels in a day to find the guy they're going to hire. That should help trim the fat.

Basically what I'm saying: Cut it in half, and get rid of so many repeats and similar shots. I'd say with this material, it should be no longer than 1:20. Looks good tho man, just giving the constructive criticism.
 
ryan brown said:
Great reel. I'm going to echo what everyone else said... Get rid of a lot the aerials (only need one or two), more than half of the landscapes and filler "cool" shots (maybe just use a few as transitions from the shots of substance), ditch half the interview style, half the live stage footage. More of the narrative shots if you have them, and if not, cut all the other shots down till they get about the same amount of screen time as the narrative. Push those big names to the very front (walmart, ESPN or whatever they were), it'll help keep a hold of those with really short attention spans or those that have to dig through 100 reels in a day to find the guy they're going to hire. That should help trim the fat.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the kind words and the constructive feedback. I agree it needs to be cut down and everyone else does as well! Am going to attack that soon! Thanks!
 
I didn't care for the rapid fire interview segment that starts around :30 -- I kept wanting to really appreciate some of the shots and couldn't because it cut away too fast. Maybe do it on every half note instead of every quarter?

Other than that I enjoyed it, but I also agree that it could stand to be a little shorter. Great job.
 
refocusedmedia said:
I didn't care for the rapid fire interview segment that starts around :30 -- I kept wanting to really appreciate some of the shots and couldn't because it cut away too fast. Maybe do it on every half note instead of every quarter?

Other than that I enjoyed it, but I also agree that it could stand to be a little shorter. Great job.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'll relook at the interview segment and see how it feels to extend them a bit. Appreciate the time you took to give me feedback.
 
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