Steve Kownacki
3
COW Coins
2
Premiere Pro Coins
Forum Replies Created
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What about a polarizing filter on the camera to control the amount of reflection?
Steve
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Thanks guys! Product development continues.
Steve
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Uri: why do you think an owner of business can get into an overload or burnout situation?
Been there numerous times. Because the hardest thing in business it to “lead” and have others instinctively have/share our drive, passion & determination. We strive to succeed; we are our own worst critics. We want to exceed client expectations. Sometimes the client is ourselves. Setting a goal of 5% increase in net profit – we are hard on ourselves. This is stressful, others go home at the end of the day. I hate the phrase “put in 8 and hit the gate.” When those around us “are not part of the solution” brains go into overdrive. Why am I writing this on a Sunday morning at 11:45? I agree with the lack of goal-setting. One also has to realize the need for coaching. Business is tough.
Now I’m re-thinking your question and are you talking about an owner OR owner-operator? What functions does the owner you ask about do in the business? Are you targeting any specific size organization? The last guy I worked for 19 years knew absolutely nothing about video, but was an amazing salesman. I don’t think he ran a good business necessarily. The e-myth is a must-read and one must understand the importance of working “on” the business not just “in” the business.
Steve
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As the technicians/newbies need to figure out (a la E-Myth) doing the work is the easy part, getting the work is the challenge.
Up until yesterday, I’ve distributed that piece as a chapter on the custom DVDs I give to prospects – Yes, every new prospect gets a custom DVD with their name on it & samples specific to what they are looking for. Even if they’re not looking for seminar recording I’m priming the pump for a cross-sell to other departments. By showing them good/bad examples, you can immediately bring up identity/quality issues in kind of a subliminal way and now they are the ones with a bit of doubt.
This is not to say we don’t “polish a lot of turds” by editing their footage like you mentioned, but they know not to jump to a competitor because “we didn’t realize you did that (better quality work)”. The key here is to reduce services and not the price. Full blown shoot or a few hours of editing, my margins remain the same.
The gap between the haves and have nots is getting wider – junk video for a few hundred bucks or budgets in tens of thousands. Gone are the days of corp world calling and tossing in $10K without much thought. So the best deal now is to embrace what they want, get that relationship built, and cross-sell what you really want to provide.
Steve
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Created this video a while ago and when a client sees the side-by-side comparison, it makes a difference. Some still shoot crap, but it helps them make a more informed decision and can really help when they need to convince a higher-up to get some budget. Many times it’s letting them figure out what they don’t want as opposed to what they think they want or can accept.
Steve
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Make sure you let a non-professional friend shoot with the flip. Or at least train yourself to throw your instincts out the window:
eyes in the middle of the screen with 2 feet of headroom
10 feet away zoomed all the way in, preferably digital zoom
bad white balance
silhouetted from a window
interviewer stepping over the answers
have lots of cell phones ringing
direct overhead lites for raccoon eyes
outside with lots of wind noise
cafeterias with lots of hard surfacesIf they were considering this, tell them about their credibility being marred. Or have them do it as an initial step in gathering material to generate questions for ‘real’ interviews.
Steve
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If you could piggy-back like Terry suggests I think that would be optimum as you are not the point-man for any technical issues for what may possibly happen during the live event.
A few years ago I video’d a series of hearings (in all types of rooms from hotel rooms to boardrooms, but no courtrooms): 2 teams of 2 atty’s each, a podium for presenting, and 5 hearing board people – 10 mics total + sound from computer and DVD playback. I used Shure wired desktop mics similar to these https://snipurl.com/tkaji [https://www_shure_com] for each person. Generally provided great sound.
The Issues: You need a 10 channel+ mixer to adjust for each situation and mic. Mics have a limited pickup pattern, about 18″ at best for the ones I used. I was also providing house sound, so feedback was always in the back of my mind. Or are you just concerned with your recording? These mics also have mute switches on them so when attys didn’t want anything heard they would have a tendency to mute and then NOT turn them back on- so have a runner to do that for you or lock out the mutes; the other great things is they would cover the mic with their hand – thinking we didn’t hear them, well, we heard them along with alot of thunderous booming as they hit the mic. That noise would also go to the house sound and the mixed recording occasionally drowning out important dialogue from another presenter. Or they would turn the mics around or push them away – again the need for a runner to put them back in place. (Be sure to share this with your client – in a live courtroom I’m sure a runner would be frowned upon). I think I rented each for $30/day/mic plus mixer, engineer, etc. Not cheap, but they could afford to do it right, I think the least expensive one there was $400/hr. I’ve also used PZMs with success, and you can probably get away with fewer mics overall, but still take a soundperson along.
And if you’re mixing to 2 channels any issues you get you have to live with. Since you have limited control on the situation, you need to find ways to take control. Find a great audio person with a multi-channel mobile recording capability and track each mic separately.
I think this situation calls for what is discussed here very frequently – talk with your client and be honest about what you can do for a given amount of money and be open about the things you can’t control. Expressing the complexity now of what needs to be done is far easier than trying to explain your way out of an attorney coughing fit that drowns out the most important audio of the shoot. You hate to have to say I told you so to them, but things happen. This is why I don’t do weddings. Oh, an remember the backup to the backup. At least 3 extra mics, 10 cables, etc. And you’ll need LOTS of setup time too.
And think about the edit too, what’s going to make that process easier? And how long is the whole trial going to last – hours, days, weeks? That’s lots of footage to cope with.
I see you have over 1400 posts, if you fill out your profile we’ll know what level of production you’re trying to accomplish.
Steve
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Well Todd, as it goes I’ll be changing my business to an LLC with S elective. This will give me the protection of a corporation with more tax advantages of a partnership; I’ll be an employee of the company and have the ability to take draws too. Seems like a bit less corporate reporting too – just an official annual meeting. Will take only a week to create.
Steve
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If you can have fun with it I’ve always liked Renaissance Man. If you need the biggie go for Director of Video Media. Titles really mean jack, have the skills and the reel (file?) and you’re good to go.
Steve
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Hmmmm…. if the boss is asking it should probably come with a raise too.
Your site looks corporate-focused but creative, do you need to play to that? How much interaction to you do directly with clients that a title would matter? I met a guy in Colorada at some live events that just seemed to know it all and was the go-to guy for everything. His card said “Important Guy”. It fit. For many years I was Creative Guy, that got attention and was memorable and had value.
Steve