Webisodes shot on HF200

Chamber005

Chamber005

Carbonite Member
So I posted this in the user films section, but I thought it'd be cool to keep the canon crowd in the mix as well:

Whoa -- this is crazy time!

So we shot the entire first webisode, and HOLY CHRIST!! I've never in my life done anything with a camera ever (except for the typical home movie stuff) and can I tell you -- this was an EVENT! A test in stamina to be sure!

Everything I've done with this whole filming thing has been absolute theory. Nothing practiced, nothing practical, just, "Eh, yeah, that should work...DVXUSER says so!"

And what's worse is that we had NO MONEY and NO EXPERIENCE IN ANY REGARD on the set.

Obviously I'm not gonna broadcast that on the MySpace page, but I think everyone here can appreciate a guy's first time out.

Man!

So yeah, check out my NO BUDGET set-up:

Cad mic that's used for drums hooked up to an old DSR 200 via a 40 dollar mixer. All in total, audio was like 150 bucks (including the cam as it doesn't functuion as a camera anymore -- no viewfinder, plus other problems).

I had to then take the audio from the DSR into my Consumer Vegas program and synch it up -- BUT WE FORGOT TO SYNCH WHILE SHOOTING!!! LOL! Too funny. Luckily the camera had its own audio, so I was able to just line up the two audio tracks visually when I stretched the wavelength to its furtherest point.

Oh, and speaking of visually doing audio -- NO HEADPHONES either!! My dad got a pair to me the day after. Hup! Maybe next time, right?

So okay, the camera used was an HF200 (not too shabby) Picked it up for 350 bucks from a shady character I met at a mall. BUT since my computer is only a Pentium D (still, an upgrade from my 4), the highest I could take the cam was 12mbps! Ack! My Penny D should have been able to do 17mbps, but the label lied. 17 was too much for my old girl. Still, at MPEG2 level it's fine. The thing's an internet-only project, so 12 ws good enough.

So come the day of shooting I'm sending my poor girlfriend on a bunch of errands because I realize that I don't have all the make-up supplies that I need and -- YEAH!! I had to do all the make-up before we even started shooting!!

I don't know if one day to shoot a webisode is normal -- but it was TOUGH! We had to do more than 50 different shots in ONE DAY! I dunno what the norm is, but it felt like a LOT!

AND I HAD TO ACT TOO!! And when I say act...man...way harder than I can describe. Friggin couldn't breathe, dying of heat exhaustion -- you'll see what I'm talking about when I post the final edit.

Which is what I'm supposed to be doing now! I gave myself 2 days to edit, but I've been getting pulled a million different ways by the website and art and friggin people in different countries. The whole thing is a damn BEAST!!! And I have no idea what I'm doing...

Luckily I'm optomistic and a generally easy going dude.

I'm doing everything I can to get the website and 1st webisode up by this weekend. Though this one dude told me that I should wait until Monday to post it on YouTube...

ANYway,

PHEW! AND PHEW!!!!

If I would have known it was this hard makin little flicks...Ah, hell, I woulda done it anyway, right?!

Good times,

;)
 
Cassius said:
Fun, isn't it?
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HA!

No, but it totally is. I've only ever written stuff to play around with in comic books or on stage. This is totally new and awesome! It's a lot bigger than the video stuff, though. We've got comic book stuff, blogs, candid videos -- lots and lots of random goodies all in one easy-to-swallow green-flavored drink!

:D
 
you said you picked up the hf200 for 350 bucks?
Wow!

Though, is this the Canon Vixia HF200 or the Canon Legria HF200?

(Either way, I believe you got yourself a deal!)
 
JawaadAhmadKhan said:
you said you picked up the hf200 for 350 bucks?
Wow!

Though, is this the Canon Vixia HF200 or the Canon Legria HF200?

(Either way, I believe you got yourself a deal!)
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Vixia. Yeah, as has been with everything in this project, I needed a certain item and it magically appeared. (Like, literally, the cam I was going to use, an old DSR200, broke and the same day someone posted this camera on Craig's list in Chicago. Bizarre and blessed event)
 
WE HAVE LAUNCHED!

I was finally able to make it happen. 4 months ago I literally had never tried make-up, filmmaking, web design -- NONE of it. I'm really pleased with what I've been able to get off the ground, and super excited about the future of the webisodes and the series project as a whole.

Please check it out. DVXUSER has been integral to helping me realize the piece. Check out the video and then move onto the second aspect on the website. Hopefully you guys enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheGreatIndependent
 
Hey guys, I mentioned this in the user films section, but I thought I'd send a plea to my Canon peeps too --

I'd really appreciate any feedback you guys might have to offer, not only on the video but also the secondary piece on the website.

www.thegreatindependent.com

(click the multi-media tab, THE OVERS: REMNANTS, go to the bottom and click the icon, Username: JamieLane, Password: Daydream)

Thanks so much for any feedback you can offer!!!!
 
I don't understand the link with the passwords. What does this have to do with your web episodes?

I watched part of the first video. Looks like you have a solid team, but you should keep a close eye on some production aspects. Lighting and sound are huge pieces to making a short work. I suggest tighter shots and someone with a boom pole on the main actor. When the phone voice comes on, its so much cleaner than the main actor, it contrasts.

Keep it up!
 
greeches said:
I don't understand the link with the passwords. What does this have to do with your web episodes?

I watched part of the first video. Looks like you have a solid team, but you should keep a close eye on some production aspects. Lighting and sound are huge pieces to making a short work. I suggest tighter shots and someone with a boom pole on the main actor. When the phone voice comes on, its so much cleaner than the main actor, it contrasts.

Keep it up!
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Thanks, yeah the equipment we're using is just for the webseries. Our mic is actually for drum high-tops, but it works pretty well (they're CAD mics that were 2 for 50). The reason the phone probably sounds so much clearer is because we're stripping away alot of the audio and messing with the DBs in order to give it that phone quality. I've toyed with the idea of running my audio tracks through a noise reduction process. Maybe I'll experiment in the next webisode. The main issue is that I have to shoot the entire thing in a day, and then I have about two days to actually edit before rendering and posting -- and I'm doing it all on my own. So I routinely have to cut corners to make sure I'm getting everything out in a timely manner (along with the website I have a normal job too, right?)

The website is part of the larger multi-media piece which the webisodes are just an aspect of. The website actually has an appearance in the second episode which I think further blends the two properties.

I think the second episode had a little better pacing than the first, and The Beautiful Girls donated a song to the soundtrack so that was really awesome to work with as well. I'm deinterlacing the 60i and bringing the blacks to 0 for Exposureroom.

www.youtube.com/user/thegreatindependent

Thanks for your thoughts!
 
The pacing is better indeed. Your edits are good aswell.

I would suggest getting the mic closer to the subject when they speak. This takes away alot from the series. You can buy a cheap shotgun and duct tape it to a monopod for really good results. Also, do you have any lighting available to you? I've used shop lights (from autozone) for many shoots and it makes a world of difference. You are getting low light noise from the camer and you could easily avoid this with some sort of lighing. 30$ or less and you can get a dual light w/ tripod from Autozone. Its not the best but you can really clean up your image with it.

I don't mean to criticize, just giving you some pointers that I myself have discovered over the years.

Keep it up!
 
greeches said:
The pacing is better indeed. Your edits are good aswell.

I would suggest getting the mic closer to the subject when they speak. This takes away alot from the series. You can buy a cheap shotgun and duct tape it to a monopod for really good results. Also, do you have any lighting available to you? I've used shop lights (from autozone) for many shoots and it makes a world of difference. You are getting low light noise from the camer and you could easily avoid this with some sort of lighing. 30$ or less and you can get a dual light w/ tripod from Autozone. Its not the best but you can really clean up your image with it.

I don't mean to criticize, just giving you some pointers that I myself have discovered over the years.

Keep it up!
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Hey, critiquing is all good! I also have a thread on this over in the User Films section that has lots of art work from the show, etc (or you can just swing by the facebook fan page).

And to your points -- yeah, I think people are going to see a huge improvement in audio and lighting in episode 3. We're reshooting most of episode 1 and some of episode 2 before printing the DVD (but that is a long, long way off -- not until February 2011 will all the different components of the piece, including the webseries, be completed). We're going to try out wired lav mics and do all contrast/brightness correction in post, allowing for the most possible light during the actual shoot.

We're actually shooting on Halloween which should be cool for the main actor!

Thanks so much for your feedback!
 
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