*Project is not fully completed, two video clips are still needed for final story*
For this project I have decided to create a visual story showing all the ways Washington State University students stay in shape. I included a couple interviews explaining the way students feel at WSU and how it promotes fitness in numerous ways. I was inspired by the the in class narrative tutorial, but instead of narrating the whole project I wanted the images to speak for themselves. It is more of a story, with the interviews to explain what is being shown throughout the piece. This type of video is much like the one my sorority showed me when going through recruitment in August. It showcased them, their home, and the activities they do together. I remember watching it and being mesmerized by the happiness and light. This is what inspired my piece, as I wanted something that could make others as envious as I was. My course topic is fitness, and I have really enjoyed focusing on the students at my university. I believe that fitness in college is very important and I wanted to highlight all my school has to offer. I included locations, activities, and specific skills that students do to stay in shape. I wanted to show how positive the campus can be. I chose a happy background song to cover the locations, simply because it is a happy place. I included not only the gym, because at WSU there are numerous things students do to exercise. From biking, to outdoor sports, and even walking to class, all of these things help keep people in shape. I made sure to have all shots horizontal, as well as having a steady shot, and focused on framing and balancing the shot. I wanted numerous angles, but still capturing what is important to the shot. I also wanted to avoid jump shots in my filming, so I captured a shot for at least ten seconds and added transitions to create a flow to my piece. I included an establishing shot, explaining what my video is going to be about before it begins. In my interviews, I made sure to keep the upper half of my interviewees body in the shot. I also kept proper rule of thirds, making them the center focus of the shot. I included dissolve, and fade to black transitions throughout my piece. Dissolve to change locations, and fade to black to end my story. I also included different split transitions for a different type of transition with the same effect.
I used all local places on campus for my footage. I did a variety of videos and images that best portrayed all WSU has to offer. I took some both indoors and outdoors depending on the activity and location it was being performed in. I took one of my favorite songs to use for this draft, and placed it over the entire video (excluding the interviews). Finally I chose places on campus with easy access, that any student could use. It is important to spread the word and inform students of all the free things the campus has to offer.
I began editing my draft by creating a new media story, and importing all my media files. I then placed all the files into my media sequence after adjusting their length in the upper left panel to about three seconds. After I had all my media files, I inserted the music clip I would be using for my piece. I simply dragged it from my dash board into the sequence under all the files. I then adjusted it’s length to about one minute and thirty seconds by dragging the media file to the left. After this was set, I arranged my media in the correct order I wanted it. I left two fifteen second spaces for the two interviews I will be conducting. I plan on using key frames to remove the sound only during these clips. I also plan to adjust the fit of my videos to maximize the screen. In addition, I plan on adding transitions between each image, and creating a title and credits to inform the viewer on what is being shown. I will use the dissolve to black for each of these titles. Finally, I plan on improving the quality of my shots by adjusting the lighting, contrast, and saturation for each clip. I want a bright environment in my video story. I did not struggle with many tools in Adobe Premiere for this draft. The hardest part were adjusting the length of the tracts to fit within the time frame. A simple solution to this was zooming in on the clip until I could adjust it the way I wanted. I also struggled with selecting the right transitions I wanted to use. With so many options it was hard to decide which ones complimented each other best. After reading over the past readings from weeks before, and watching some sample videos, it made it easier to see which transitions went well together and also what number was the appropriate number to use. Finally, I struggled with keeping my media size all the same for the fit. I need to seek further help and instruction in this in order to fix it for my final draft.
While not fully completed, I intend to attend class all this week to get help in these areas, and learn what tools I need to use to fix it. I have a clear vision for my project, and now all I have to do is complete it.
Outside media: Rise Up 4:13 Andra Day Cheers to the Fall R&B/Soul 0 15, https://itun.es/us/SwCA7
Taylor Leverett 
April 23, 2017 at 4:38 pm
To start, this has potential and that’s what’s important. But, if I had to critique it, you said it all. There is a tone of black shots of nothing that can be filled in with text or more video footage, and you have a lack of fluid editing between shots that lead to odd cuts. The music you used was good, but make sure to double check with how much you can use before copyright strikes it down. But, as for a strong point, I can say that the music goes well with the overall footage. I’m curious as to what the missing footage for the final draft will be, and I can say that taking this week to work everything out is a must. Otherwise, this is strong, but has a lot of potential to be even stronger. Just don’t let it become wasted potential. All in all, good luck.
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April 24, 2017 at 11:49 pm
You have a good idea here, but there are a few changes you should make to strengthen your project. I understand from your post that you have more to add to this video. When arranging the shots you should scale them to fit the screen and back to back to minimize the black space in the video. Consider using some of the techniques from the tutorials when editing your still images. I like the theme of this video and you did a good job representing a diverse variety of WSU’s opportunities to stay active. Although the song you chose is very powerful and fits well with this video, I am almost positive that it is copyrighted and wouldn’t want to have you lose points for using it in your video. There are lots of dramatic creative commons songs to use if you filter your search on SoundCloud. Best of luck working on your final project.
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April 25, 2017 at 3:06 pm
After reading the feedback from my classmates, there is a few things I need to fix in my video story. Overall, my peers said I have a very strong idea and good potential for my story. However, my draft was not complete and lacking specific techniques. I need to adjust the size of my images to videos. I also need to get new music, as copyright laws cover the audio track I am currently using. I also need to add in basic effects to create a flow to my piece. I need to add transitions and possible movements to create a stronger and more interesting story. I have good raw material, but now I need to put it together in a strong way. I also need to collect the important part to my story, the interviews. This will pull all my material together and help explain the purpose behind my story and create a more powerful message than just using images and video. Overall, the feedback given was very helpful, but was things I already knew. I plan on taking all of these suggestions and using them to create a story people want to see.
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