Robert Penn - Digital Content Production

Movement

 
Assignments that involve movement, such as, dance or theater documentation challenge the production crew, especially in high contrast and/or low light settings.  Supplemental lighting is not permitted during most live performances and video cameras do not "see" as well as the human eye. In addition, medium and close-up footage will sometimes exhibit visible differences that must be matched in post-production to the compulsory wing-to-wing lock-down wide angle shot.

For the production or research archive, the director's or choreographer's vision must be accurately documented, including the darkness.  This record informs students, researchers and historians and will continue to do so for years to come.

A lot must be done in post-production to prepare the record for the casual viewer - and it must be achieved without sabotaging the artist's vision.  Since I love to edit in response to and in synch with movement, I finalize the edit first. Correcting lighting is the last thing I do before making the master tapes.

Plan Shoot Edit Burn

You can learn about my services at http://www.robertpenn.net 

Weddings and other Ceremonies

There are many ways to videotape a wedding. And many types of edits. I use the documentary approach to tell the story of the happy day.

Two cameras at the actual ceremony are essential. One starts near the entrance and the other waits on the altar just like the groom. This allows the edit to cut between the excited well-wishers and the anxious bride. The same applies to reception lines, speeches, dancing and goodbyes.

Though the happy couple may someday want to relive their most wonderful day by watching hours of footage from stepping into her gown to unfastening his tie after the first dance, most family members and friends will be happy to receive a 30-minute edit of the day's events. Thanks to DVD autoring it is possible to supplement the short wedding film with a slideshow of stills extracted from the footage and/or taken by a still photographer.

The process

I ran into a friend at the local post office. He asked me to speak with him about making a training video. Of course, I agreed. We met the next morning for coffee and he told me his idea. He is a first timer at this and my five-part opportunity quickly became apparent.

First, get a clear idea of his objective: make video recordings that will expand his existing mental health care practice. Second, outline ways his real-life success can be replicated in media for distribution. Third, tell him what the ideal crew and budget would be to achieve his objective, using familiar successes in the self-help industry. Fourth, answer his questions in clear and concise language.

We had a great conversation. My friend has a lot of charisma, experience and a wonderful manner. I can easily see how he gains the trust of his clients and facilitates their progress. Like most people, he had limited knowledge about effectively translating his face-to-face experience into a recording. My input assured him that much of that process can actually be conveyed via recording.

Fifth, now I wait to see if he hires me to help him achieve his objective.

The work

You can see some of my work at http://www.robertpenn.net - here is a sampling:

What is digital video?

Digital video is a general term for a group of cost-effective recording devices. Most popular are the mini-DV cameras that are widely available today. These are great for moving snap shots of everyday events, such as, vacations, baby's first walk and to record the damage your car sufferred in a fender bender.

There are other digital video formats for professional applications. I work in DVCAM because genlock eliminates sync slippage between audio and video tracks. This is important for corporate training, event video and performance documentation, especially multi-camera shoots.