Video #1: Let's Look At Some Vids!

Okay, so here's the video recap. I ask that you please look at EACH video and read my comments for EACH video (not just your own!), so we can learn like we've learned from each other throughout this semester.

Overall, I thought we did very, very well on this assignment, especially considering it was a first-time video in this class. Lots of good B-roll, good story flows, ect. Certainly some things that can be tweaked, but that's to be expected.

Let's look for what worked and what didn't and what we could borrow for the next time and what we need to avoid doing again.

BTW, unless you received an email from me noting a specific grade, your grade for the Web post and Twitter exercises was 4.0 on each, with each equaling a practice story in final grade weight. (Future assignments will be graded more specifically and be of higher weight, though).

Here we go:



Shanin T.: Good mix of B-roll here. The B-roll consists of simple shots: a zoom-in of a textbook; a student working; me doing my thing; but it's all effective because it's showing the viewer exactly what is being talked about.




Sophie S.: Again, good B-roll. During the interviews, do you notice a slight tremor, though? No matter how still you think you can hold a camera, you can't hold it still enough. Consider using a tripod.

Isabella C.: Lotsa shake here. Tripod!


Maya I.-S.: I know we're working with basic equipment here, but let's be aware that we need to do what we can to maximize sound quality. Try to get the mics as close as possible to the speaker; avoid places that create echoes (like stairwells, hallways, and small spaces with high ceilings) or background noise (busy hallways, ect.).

Juliana M.: Again, watch audio quality by being aware of echoish spaces and background noise. Also, we need to make sure we do the same kinds of fact-checking that we do for print stories, like double-checking the spellings of names. The captioned last name of Christine LaRouere is spelled LaRouer, with the e at the end missing. Sorry; yep, that's a fatal.

Erik S.: Here, the wind creates background noise. Always be on the lookout for sound distractions.

Kyna G.: A title caption of "JRN 200 video" is like having a print lede saying, "JRN 200 story." Let's say what the story is about in the title caption, e.g., "What have students learned this fall in JRN 200?"

Kyle K.: Here, we're missing a title slide altogether. In the same way a print story needs a lede, we need either a title caption or title narration telling the audience what the story is going to be about.


Kristin N.: The fundamental rules of print still apply, like, use first and last names on first reference. Here, we did not do that, sticking just to first names. Let's be sure that we carry over the rules of journalism to any medium in which we do journalism, whether it's print or video or whatever.


Also, let's be sure to use B-roll more frequently during our interview segments, as we've seen in some earlier examples; and while I appreciate the sentiment at the end of the vid, let's leave our own opinions out of video stories, just as we would in print stories.

Ryan S.: Notice the back-and-forth between the two interview sources. We mix up sound bytes in the same way we'd mix up quotes in a print story. It's not all the quotes/sound bytes from one person, then all the quotes/sound bytes from the next person; it's quotes/sound bytes from both people interspersed throughout.

Andrea U.: Good interviews; good B-roll; good attribution; that's a good video. 

Kelsey P.: In one long interview segment, we start with the head shot, then B-roll, then back to the head shot, then more B-roll, and then back to a closing head shot. That's a good way to use a long interview without getting stuck on a static shot.

Spencer I.: We could use a title caption, and let's not forget the rule of thirds in shooting our interview segments.

Christine L.: The interviews here are a rule of third-ish.

Mara H.: Let's make sure our B-roll doesn't have sound that interferes with the source who is speaking while the B-roll is running.

Colleen O.: Shaky, right? A tripod would fix that. Plus, we do kind of an anecdotal lede here: we start out with vid of a typical day in class, before we introduce the title slide. In the same way a print anecdotal lede uses an everyday example to illustrate a larger point that's cemented in the nut graf, that's what we do here with the lede vid, with the caption acting as a kind of nut graf.

Alex S.: The music throughout the video kinda gets in the way of the sound bytes. When interview sources are talking, turn off other sound.

Jordan J.: Did we have written permission to use the copyrighted song? If not, congrats: you have committed your first federal crime, as noted by the Student Press Law Center's Web site:

—Can I use a recent pop song as background music for a feature story on our school TV station?

Not without permission or purchase of the appropriate license. While you could use a short clip of the song, for example, as part of a bona fide music review of the CD from which it comes, using the song solely as background music would not qualify as fair use. For more information, see the SPLC’s Guide to Music Licensing for Broadcasting and Webcasting.

Plus, a blooper scene at the end!