2/24 Class

Today in class, we did different things for the first time. We witness our first "trial, with Doc Chris vs. Fernando (see below), and had a lecture about what's expected out of us for our blogs. We finished the class by watching DNCE's "Cake By The Ocean" music video and once again identifying shots.

In this class, we learned more about what it means to truly be a Multimedia journalist. My group is getting along well together, we're all usually in class and it seems like we won't be having a "trial" with any of us. I have grown by being able to recognize shots better, and especially in music videos, which will be important to me as an aspiring entertainment journalist. I definitely think Doc Chris' style is unique, and I hope that we continue to learn more things instead of just repeating some of the same information like we've done the past couple of classes before. Our assignment for spring break is to make a video of what we did with our week off.

2/22 Class

Today in class we went outside and around the college center to shoot photos and video. Class was cut short since it was a nice day. We split up the class into groups, and after doing rock-paper-scissors, we decided who would be first to shoot inside and who had to go outside first (see below).

Timmy recorded our group's reaction video about this class; it should be on his blog.

2/17 Class

Today in class, we went outside of the classroom and took interior and exterior shots of campus. However, I wasn't in class because I was at my first workshop for study abroad in Newcastle, England (although I still did the assignment, see below). We have 3 workshops, and it's mandatory to be at all of them so we make sure we have all the information needed to get crucial paperwork in on time and know important dates and facts about our trip. I'll be going for my entire junior year, and this first workshop was strictly for those going abroad for the fall semester and the year. We did some ice breakers to introduce ourselves and make friends with each other. Then we talked a little bit about adjusting to life in Newcastle as in what to expect with the academics, social sphere, and Geordie accent. I'm super excited to go, even though everything will be so new to me since I've never been out of the country. Our second meeting will be on March 15.

2/15 Class

There was no class today due to the inclement weather.

2/10 Class

We started class doing the same thing as before, calling out the shots in music videos with our teams. The team that ultimately won got their picture taken (using 3-point lighting provided by other members of the class) in front of the points board (shown below).

  

We then talked about "master shots" (the main, wide center shot that's to ensure something is captured if the right and/or left cameras fail)and demonstrated using some members of the class being the presenters of a talk show, and others as interviewees.

2/8 Class

This class was cut short to only 30 minutes, so instead of diving into a new topic we tested our knowledge of shot composition and looked at music videos and named the shots for the whole class. I liked doing this exercise because we were learning and applying our skills to real-life situation, and being a music fan, I thought it was so interesting to see how directors approach the videos with the same shots in their mind. Our homework was to look at music videos on our own and choose our favorite, so mine is posted below: "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift.

I chose this video because it had so many different elements to it with the different sets and angles and since the moment I first saw it a year ago I thought it was so different and amazing.

2/3 Class

In February 3rd's class, we worked further on 3-point lighting. We discussed the Icarus Rule/The Cardinal Rule of Exterior (don't shoot anything in direction of the light). We demonstrated 3-point lighting in class with our groups by turning off the lights and demonstrating key, fill, and back light with our cell phones (pictured below). We then talked about storyboarding and how it's all about intimacy, taking shots from wide to close-ups. Lastly, we looked at music videos that showed different types of shots and then our groups competed against each other to see who could name the shots first. Our homework was to create 15 and 30 second videos consisting of different types of shots (see below).

 

2/1 Class

In today's class, we reviewed what we talked about last class; shot composition, establishing shots, and lighting. We expanded on that in this class, going into detail on the purpose of an exterior establishing shot and then did an example using students in the class about when to use certain shots. Lastly, we talked about how many shots are comprised in videos of a certain length. So our homework assignment for next Monday is to make a about a 15-second video (fit for Instagram) that consisted of 5 shots, lasting 2 to 3 seconds each and a 30-second video made up of 10 shots.

We also briefly discussed storyboarding, which I learned a little bit about but hope to get more information on in the coming class. My group worked well together during this class by contributing in the class discussion. The vibe of the class was pretty laid-back as usual, however I'm hoping/expecting that it will get more serious and we'll get more accomplished in our class time as far as shooting and learning go in the future.

1/20 Class

In our first class of the semester, we covered shot composition (extreme close-up, regular close-up, medium close-up, medium shot, long shot) establishing shots (exterior vs. interior), and lighting (key, fill, and back). We then went out in groups to take shots on our iPhones of each other and around campus to identify the types of shots.

We also all introduced ourselves, the expectations for the class were discussed, and our homework assignment was to create a fake yet professional Facebook profile page to friend Doc Chris on and set up this blog. For the semester, I'm most excited about doing the gameshow project at the end of the term.