Mick Haensler
Forum Replies Created
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I’m having a similar issue with an HDV project. I’m a newbie to FCP so I figured it was just user error. But what I’m hearing here is, take it to Motion. Or is there a way to get slo mo to look good using FCP. Guess I should just take the FMC FCP 250 course for experienced editors!!
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
Time to play hardball Jeff, send ’em a fruit basket!!
Seriously, the biggest hurdle I see is the saturation of video production companies in your area. I googled “long branch NJ video production and got ten hits within a five mile radius of you. You’re also extremely close to NYC where there is countless houses to compete with. I don’t want to insult your intellegence by stating the obvious, but have you contacted some of your steady clients for referrals? Taken anyone out to lunch lately? Joined the Chamber of Commerce and attended meetings and socials? Networked with some of the other facilities in you area to see if you could partner on some projects? See if there are any industry specific trade shows in the area where you could set up a booth? Watched hours of TV to see who has crappy commercials you could improve upon. Scoured the Internet for local businesses that could benefit from a video on their website?
I research constantly. If there is a company I want to do business with, I find out as much as I can before I contact them. I’m fortunate to have lived in my area since childhood which means usually only one or two degrees of seperation between me and just about anyone I want to meet or do business with, which makes getting an intro pretty easy. As a good friend of mine is fond of saying…”ya gots ta know yer playa!!!
Best of luck
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
If they want to release this as a DVD then I definitely wouldn’t go with a FOH board feed unless they are using a digital board with a matrix output. A matrix board will allow the engineer to give you a seperate mix than what the audience is hearing. It’s still risky but will give you better results than a straight FOH mix. The other issue is you won’t have room mics, without them the mix will sound flat and you won’t get good audience response or room ambience. The cheapest solution is to record the stereo mix to 2 tracks of a multitrack recorder and feed 2 room mics to 2 seperate tracks of the recorder. At least that way you have some control in post. The only other alternative is to hire a sound company that does on location multitrack recording and leave everything up to them. It sounds like you wouldn’t be comfortable doing the audio yourself and since this is a live event, you only have one shot. I would most definitely get a price from a mobile recording company. For a 24 track recording including mixdown and mastering, plan on paying anywhere from $1500 to $4000.
As far as video, Beta SP will suffice. I would switch it live as well as record straight to camera. Make sure you have a backup recorder too. We usually record to 2 recorders, as well as in camera tapes and a standalone DVD player taking a stereo feed. That way you can give the client a spec DVD right after the show, they love that!! You will also need a com system so the director can communicate with the camera ops. Sounds like this will be equipment you will have to rent. I use a company called Video Equipment Rental. They are worldwide and can get anything you need for a reasonable price within a day or two.
Make sure you test everything out at least a day in advance in case something doesn’t work. And also make sure your recording audio to all the cameras to help with syncing issues in post. One more thing, be prepared to loose at least a year of your life due to the stress. I gig like this is not for the faint hearted. If something goes wrong the day of the shoot you need to think fast, always have backups for your backups. Apologize to your crew ahead of time for yelling at them because in the heat of the battle you will yell.
I’ve done quite a few of these for some pretty well known artists and believe me, while they are exciting, they are also one huge PITA!! Let me know if you need any more info.
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
Well Zane, I must apologize. My comment about your “insightful marketing tip” was sarcastic and immature. I’m sorry it affected you so. In my circle of friends, sarcasm has been lifted to an art form. It’s a way for us to let off steam and deal with the craziness of the world. Sometimes I forget that not everyone appreciates it and that it can offend as well as entertain. My apologies.
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
[Zane Barker] “If you want to do commercials, I suggest looking for local businesses to do them for. You can shoot them your self, or purchase stock footage and pass on the cost to the clien”
I appreciate the insightful marketing tip Zane, but it didn’t really have anything to do with my question. Has anyone had any experience working for Spotrunner or Globeshooter specifically that they would care to share? I’m trying to get an idea of payscale, frequency of jobs, how quickly they pay, things like that. Thanks
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
[Ron Lindeboom] “[Mick Haensler] “When you have a magazine claiming to be “The Authority in Event Videography” not only endorsing breaking copyright laws but printing articles showing you how to do it, it is highly highly doubtful the authorities will come a knockin. The bigger issue is getting paid a reasonable amount for the gig.”
I would beg to disagree here. The bigger issue is the copyrights which have been violated by both parties in this scenario”
My apologies Ron. I was in a hurry when I wrote that. I didn’t mean to down play the seriousness of breaking copyright laws. I just know from past experience that the Event Videography Industry seems to be OK with it which is one of the reasons I got out of it. Bottom line, if the Feds decided to make an example of someone, the entire industry would crumble….IMHO. Just look at the awards videos on the 4ever Group website. Almost every one is using copyrighted music. After spending 3 months unsuccessfully trying to get the rights to an 80’s pop song from Warner for an ad campaign I’m working on, I doubt very much any of these award winners secured the rights to their productions. I am open to being compeltely wrong on that.
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
Yes you will be breaking copyright laws. But as Steve said, noone really cares. When you have a magazine claiming to be “The Authority in Event Videography” not only endorsing breaking copyright laws but printing articles showing you how to do it, it is highly highly doubtful the authorities will come a knockin. The bigger issue is getting paid a reasonable amount for the gig. As Steve said, get a fee plus a per copy amount. This way at least you will cover cost, which is usually all you can hope to do with these types of gigs.
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
The obvious thing to me is to split for some audio programs for the Mac. So much can be had for so little right now, it doesn’t make sense to me to even consider a cross platform workflow.
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
Has anyone tried this process with HDV footage? Sometime in the next few months I’m gonna start editing a doc that was shot in HDV. I usually downconvert from the camera and just edit in SD, but for this one I want to keep it in HDV or some other HD codec.
MIck Haensler
Higher Ground Media -
One more question. After doing a search on the topic of using DVD footage, I found a recent thread describing a process using conversion software to change the TS files on the DVD into .mov files. Will I achieve better quality using this method or simply capturing the video via component from a DVD player.
Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media