The Filming Process

   I started filming yesterday, Friday March 18th. I was able to find a studio to film in for a couple hours. When I started filming I tried using different lighting such as low key lighting in a dark room with just a lamp as light. As i started filming and watched back some of the footage I found that it was difficult to see the dancer clearly, so I decided to film the majority with high key lighting by turning on the studio lights. This made the video look much better and easier to see the dancer. I wanted to make it look like the girl was dancing through a process of various days, so I asked my dancer to bring different outfits to change into. I took many different takes from different angles, trying to find the best view of the movements. 

   For recording I used my Iphone, since I don't have a nice camera to film with. I tried to test out my slow-mo on my phone to have an idea of how some of the dance moves will look slowed down. I found that the slow motion didn't look very good with the lighting in the studio and looked very grainy and unclear. For the parts I do choose to put in slow motion, I will have to change during the editing process. I tried to take different shots and angles into consideration when I was filming, too see which looked the best for specific dances. I took close up shots of the girls face while she was dancing to show her concentration for the sport. I used a close up for her feet, showing her skill and grace. I also used many long shots of her entire body showing movements of every feature from her face to her feet. 

   I asked her to change after every couple shots or so, into different dancer outfits to help viewers understand that she is not just dancing one day, but over a span of many. This will help develop her passion for dance. After looking through the footage I fell like I am still missing something, but I am not sure what that is yet. Maybe when I start editing I will think of an idea to improve my film. 

I got a lot of good shots with various dance moves. When I was filming I told my friend to just go for it and dance how ever she wanted, minus me asking for a couple techniques. I think that worked out very well, and gave ,me a lot to work with.

   When I start editing I am going to only slow some parts down, for example, her spinning, because I think it will look very interesting without over doing it. I am going to start editing and hopefully get some more filming in, possibly in different locations, during my spring break, so that I can finalize and get feed back on my project when I get back to school. The images shown are some screenshots from the videos I filmed yesterday.

Editing

   After filming and viewing all of the footage,  I am now ready to start editing. I am excited to start this, but also nervous because I want my project to be perfect and a lot of that comes from the editing. I have to make sure everything is in order of how I want it, add the title and names of people involvedmin the film, different effects to the video footage, voice over in certain parts, and music that ties in with the story. Editing is a huge factor and I need to make sure I have plenty of time to get it exactly how I want it. Editing is going to take hours upon hours to finish, so I need to make sure I use my time wisely.

   I plan to start editing tomorrow and work on it during my break. I want to make sure I get feedback from a wide variety of people, so I can reach my full potential of creating, what I hope to be, an amazing film. At first I am going to play around with different techniques to see which ones I like the best, then I will apply the to my movie opening. Once I have all of my video in order and how I want them, then I will add the text with the title. After all of that is done, I will finish off with adding music and my voice over, which I need to record after I edit. I am going to record my voice over after I finish editing the film because I want to know exactly what the film is going to look like so I know exactly what to say. I need. To figure out if I am going to do. The voice over, or if I am going to get someone else to do it. I am thinking about making the voice over in first person from the girls perspective. I feel that this will connect the audience closer to the main character, and makes more sense than the voice over being someone elses perspective.