Lessons Learned... Sooooo many lessons.
- Jonathan Dispenza
- Jan 6, 2022
- 2 min read
When I first discovered Daniel Schiffer I knew that I had a lot of learning to do. His mastery of video editing was evident. Much like you may be able to identify your favorite musician by the sound of their voice -- Daniel has the same effect with his productions.
In about 12 minutes he's able to teach, and inspire me to be better at my own craft. Daniel introduced me to a way to use transitions in video that helped the story form itself. I think most editors would agree that the transition is supposed to be hidden. The viewer is not supposed to notice it.
Daniel is able to use the transition, sometimes going to great lengths to highlight it -- all for the purpose of adding to the story. Much like an intentional opening shot in a proper Hollywood film. For Youtube content, a wide angle context shot may not be needed, but it brings the ability to think creatively and build new tools to tell your story.
A lot of common cinema films will open with an 'establishing shot'... a view of the city, the mountain range, the football field... this helps the view understand the setting. When I learned this, I immediately started to look for it while watching videos. The scene in Lord of the Rings 3 -- where Gandolf rides past Minas Tirith is an establishing shot that I remember vividly. It made it so apparent how large of a city that was, and the work that awaited the Wizard.
Film making in 2022 benefits from generations of brilliance, but also a rapidly growing set of technology and creativity that is advancing the art of Video faster than it's ever moved.
While I've got miles to go, and frames to film before I'll feel like I've actually helped -- Daniel inspired the video that lead me to create this Blog. Thank you @Daniel.
While this was a big undertaking for me at the time -- I learned 2 very important things.
Storyboards are important
Thinking about the edit while filming is more important.
I shot this whole sequence with the 'subject' only taking up about 20% of the shot. That meant when it was time to edit, I had to crop out a LOT. That took my most 'significant' video ever made, and turned it into a blown out, post cropped Lesson.
And while it still hurts to watch, I remember this lesson before any sequence I setup now :)
Kindly,
-Jon
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