"How's that video coming along?" was the question on many a person's mind during the entire month of April and most of May. The reality was that even though I had graciously received donated video footage from three different performances and the dress rehearsal of "Parizade's Quest," I really did not have the software or the knowledge to do anything with it. As I was researching how to proceed, I discovered that I needed first to convert the contents of the seven DVD's into a program that my computer recognized.
During that process, my computer crashed. Apparently, the conversion software I downloaded from the internet contained malware. So, my computer got to spend a week in the shop waiting to be repaired. Before I got the computer back, I took a trip to visit grandkids in Pennsylvania for another week. Once home again, I was able to retrieve the computer. AND -- I also signed up for lessons to actually learn video editing.
In the first lesson, I learned some of the beginning steps to edit a video. I was to go home and practice those new skills. I quickly found out that I truly did not want to start at the bottom rung of the ladder! I wanted to instantly be able to do what my director's eye wanted to see happen. The biggest problem was that I needed to learn a boat load of new vocabulary in order to work the software. Back to the shop for Lesson Number 2. Okay, this lesson was enlightening and gave me some courage that I could do what needed to be done. So, still with trepidation, and a looming deadline, I marched back home to get the job done.
A week of soaking rain storms made my office in the basement seem like a dark dungeon. In spite of dampening skies and my ever dampening mood, I kept on keeping on! There were so many problems with the footage that made the vast majority of it unusable. One night, the camera was positioned behind a man with a bald head who kept reaching up to take pictures with his arms way high or reaching to scratch his head sores. Eeeeoooh! So gross! Another night, the camera was located to the side of the hall at a very acute angle.
Much of that show's footage was usable, but the show had other unfortunate malfunctions. The last show had the best camera angle from a tall height, and it was by far the best show performance-wise, but the camera was located so far to the back of the hall that it picked up incredible audience noise -- babies crying hysterically, loud rustling and coughing, and the creaking and moaning of constant walking on an ancient gym floor! I tried to patiently go through all of the footage one scene at a time, comparing all of the takes, hoping to find bits of good performances that could be spliced together. Well, one thing is certain, I certainly learned a lot in the process. What an agonizing process!
Just in the nick of time, and I am sure with some divine intervention, I got 25 copies of the keepsake DVD made for the cast members and their families -- packaged and delivered to the school. I hope the kids enjoy seeing their show! Whew!
During that process, my computer crashed. Apparently, the conversion software I downloaded from the internet contained malware. So, my computer got to spend a week in the shop waiting to be repaired. Before I got the computer back, I took a trip to visit grandkids in Pennsylvania for another week. Once home again, I was able to retrieve the computer. AND -- I also signed up for lessons to actually learn video editing.
In the first lesson, I learned some of the beginning steps to edit a video. I was to go home and practice those new skills. I quickly found out that I truly did not want to start at the bottom rung of the ladder! I wanted to instantly be able to do what my director's eye wanted to see happen. The biggest problem was that I needed to learn a boat load of new vocabulary in order to work the software. Back to the shop for Lesson Number 2. Okay, this lesson was enlightening and gave me some courage that I could do what needed to be done. So, still with trepidation, and a looming deadline, I marched back home to get the job done.
A week of soaking rain storms made my office in the basement seem like a dark dungeon. In spite of dampening skies and my ever dampening mood, I kept on keeping on! There were so many problems with the footage that made the vast majority of it unusable. One night, the camera was positioned behind a man with a bald head who kept reaching up to take pictures with his arms way high or reaching to scratch his head sores. Eeeeoooh! So gross! Another night, the camera was located to the side of the hall at a very acute angle.
Much of that show's footage was usable, but the show had other unfortunate malfunctions. The last show had the best camera angle from a tall height, and it was by far the best show performance-wise, but the camera was located so far to the back of the hall that it picked up incredible audience noise -- babies crying hysterically, loud rustling and coughing, and the creaking and moaning of constant walking on an ancient gym floor! I tried to patiently go through all of the footage one scene at a time, comparing all of the takes, hoping to find bits of good performances that could be spliced together. Well, one thing is certain, I certainly learned a lot in the process. What an agonizing process!
Just in the nick of time, and I am sure with some divine intervention, I got 25 copies of the keepsake DVD made for the cast members and their families -- packaged and delivered to the school. I hope the kids enjoy seeing their show! Whew!
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