Producing a Quality Video

There is a lot to juggle when making a video.

In the past 5 years, high quality, affordable equipment has put decent video production abilities into just about everyone's hands. Yet, many people choose to rely on a professional for their skills, creativity and ability to worry about the details of producing a quality production. Some of those details that the professionals focus on include:

Is the subject matter well lit?

While many of today's video cameras excel in low light situations and pleasing interviews can be conducted with natural light from a large window, this doesn't solve every situation. Professionals look at the light source and assess whether it is creating unflattering shadows on the face. Is the subject separated from the background; is there motivational or practical light and is it balanced with the professional lighting; is there a need for creative lighting?

Is the audio at optimal levels and isolated properly?

An on-camera mic is not the best mic for recording talent dialogue. Audio is "as" important if not "more" important than good visuals. An audience will tune out faster if a video suffers from poor audio as opposed to poor quality picture that has good audio. In order to achieve high quality audio it is recommended to use well placed, lavalier mics and in some cases shotgun mics when recording on-camera talent. It is also very important to maintain good record levels and to do a balanced audio mix in editing.

Other things to consider

Wardrobe - Does it compliment the scene or does the talent look unprofessional or inappropriate?
Location - Have you chosen the right setting for your scene?
Performance - Is the talent giving you the performance you desire?
Timing - Is the pace of the action and delivery of dialogue in tone with your message?
Composition - Are the shots interesting and properly composed? Are you making proper use of wide shots and close ups?
Management of time - Time does equal money
Content - Does it meet the objectives of the customer?

Taking these and many other issues into consideration will help to produce a video with the results you desire.

Our 25+ years of always meeting our customer's objectives has provided us with many great opportunities and experiences and we look forward to working with you to meet your goals.

Taking Risks

Taking artistic risks and creating stylistic content is dream of mine. In my career I have almost never taken artistic risks because Real Money is at stake. I have always found it necessary to go TRIED, TESTED, AND TRUE.

Yet there is risk every time you undertake a new production. In producing visual stories there is always a demand for doing something new that you haven’t done before. Experience builds confidence but every new situation is unique, hence every production is ... for the “first time”. Every time you move a light slightly, interview a new person, try a new font, edit a collage, work with new talent, mount a camera, pitch a client ... it’s NOT PRECISELY REPEATABLE ... it’s NOT A FACTORY ... or AN ASSEMBLY LINE. I’ve worked in places where producers thought it was, and they were constantly upset when the budget got blown, even by an hour.

Video producers constantly break new ground. Every request or task is different. Yes, patterns exist, it can be predictable to a degree but sometimes in this business one degree of difference can cost thousands of dollars and ... the loss of a job or worse, a client. I’ve seen it happen and at times my demand for perfection has been the contributing factor that has caused many ruffled feathers.

In short, that is why most of my career has been spent producing Bronze quality productions. Rarely have customers been willing to pay for Silver quality content and Gold quality? That happens in a totally different arena altogether, one that most clients aren’t willing to pay for and one that I’m usually just a spectator. The tools, personnel, talent, and most importantly budget necessary to pull off a Gold quality production is a true luxury for only the most demanding of clients and production companies. Truly world class stuff. This is why I am willing to admit that the productions I produce usually only achieve a Bronze. Still in the medals, but rarely is there enough resources or budget to achieve a Silver and unfortunately, to survive, I’ve had to accept a lot of grunt work that only qualified for a Ribbon of Participation.

So getting back to taking risks. Taking risk takes time, time costs money. Taking a risk doesn’t always produce desirable results, hence going back and doing it again, therefore eating up time which eats through money. Catch 22. This is why I go with Tried, Tested and True. Artistic choices are for the poor ... or rich. A while ago I was shooting a scene for my own creative project and one of my shots with an actress was obliterated with extreme lens flare from the sun. Due to the time of day I couldn’t achieve the shot without continually getting lens flare. The result? My mind was blown I was inspired to make every shot a lens flare orgy, a risky but creative choice, eat you heart out J.J. Abrams.

Now, as I enter the third and final chapter of my career I find myself on a new path. One where I am already taking risks and reaching past Tried, Tested and True. Maybe I’ll finally impress myself and actually create an artistic work that put money in the bank as well. Stay tuned, I’ll let you know. For now at least I can keep dreaming.

David Delouchery
www.hawkeyefilms.ca

Do you have one of those jobs that most people don’t understand?

You tell them what you do for a living and they just don’t get it or see the point. You’d think that in my industry, video production, that people would have a pretty good idea what it is that I and other craftspeople do day to day. They can visualize the camera, some lights, the concept of editing. After all, there is a 100+ year history of movie making and more than 80 years of TV for them to have formulated an idea of what it’s all about. Unfortunately though, I don’t produce multi-million dollar budgets and I have yet to work with any Hollywood A-listers. So when I tell them the actual details of the productions I make they often don’t get the reason or the purpose. My go to quote is that “I make rich people richer.”

What do I mean by that?

Well, as another saying goes “It takes money, to make money”. So generally, I work for business owners and companies that want to promote what they do and what they sell. They have the deep pockets to afford the services I provide, which the average person can’t fathom. When people ask what a typical video may cost I’ll usually say that it generally ranges from about $5,000 to $15,000 or even quite a bit more depending on the details. That’s certainly more than what the average “Joe” would be willing to part with.

A challenge for producers, such as myself is that I no longer work in a walled garden. Nowadays, people have the ability to put together videos themselves thanks to lower cost equipment like smartphones, DSLR cameras and affordable editing software. Back when I first started in the business, dropping $50,000+ on editing equipment was normal and a decent broadcast quality video camera would set you back $20-$50,000. Add lights and other tools and your initial investment could easily climb to $150,000. It’s still that way if you want to work with the best equipment doing high quality broadcast work but the entry barrier has dropped now to $5-10,000 for decent tools that get the job done. Want the job done right? You need to trust a professional like myself who has the experience, skills and time to get it done effectively, with quality, and in a timely manner.

Getting back to the cost, people will ask “Why so expensive?” Well, if the video requires a professional actor to host the video, that usually costs $1,000+ per day. Want professional narration? $500. Need a script written? $500-$1,000. Editing - $3-5,000, The actual shoot $1,500+ Needs some animation? $2,000+ Those are very rough numbers and the actual price can vary widely depending on the details, so don’t quote me or hold another producer to these prices. It just gives you an idea of how things can add up. Why does a Hollywood drama cost $30 million but an action flick costs $150 million? It’s all in the details.

So then, the next question is “Well, what kind of videos do you do and why would somebody watch them? Typically, it’s all about education. I point my camera at subject “X” and you the viewer will become educated on what it’s about, why it’s important, how it works, why you want it, need it, CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT IT.

Sometimes, the sales message isn’t SO strong but usually I’m trying to convince the viewer that the message IS important and worth watching. The why, as I said previously comes down to money, spending money to make money.

Our first multi-cam concert recording

We recently filmed our first multi-cam concert on May 27th, 2016 at The Registry Theatre in Kitchener. Legendary saxophonist John Tank and his All Star Jazz Quintet were on stage and we rolled our cameras to capture a stellar performance that evening. The light and sound booth looked like Nasa's Mission Control and we couldn't help but share a pic from our tightly squeezed in perch. 

The following clip from the event features 3 un-manned cameras which were live-switched and covered 15 angles/shots all from our vantage point at the video switcher.

A New Direction

After 25 years of serving the video production community throughout Waterloo Region and beyond, I have finally made the decision to head in a new direction.

Since the early 90's I have helped the producers of JBinMotion, Advanced Video Techniques, Waxworks Creative, Gecko Communications, Memory Tree, Pan Video Services, Fred Smith Studios, ICSL, Piksuk Media, and a number of other producers and friends to produce quality videos for their customers.  Along the way I produced a number of products directly for the end customer as well but I preferred to run the show from behind the camera and edit suite.

I am now embarking on a new path to offer a customer direct video service. Still under the banner of Hawkeye Films but our focus is now on Live Event Multi-cam Video Recording, Streaming and Projection.  The plan is to offer affordable, semi automated capture of quality video and audio that can be completed and delivered with fast turnaround, as well as live-streamed and/or IMAG projected to the event audience.

Over the years I've watched the production community change in the Waterloo region from a few key production companies and a number of independent operators to a more diversified and larger group of producers. The cost of production gear has dropped significantly in some aspects.  These has evened the playing field and allowed a number of new players into the market.  In other ways the cutting edge developments of empowering story-telling tools has increased at a rapid rate. New gear is being out-dated on a quarterly cycle and chasing that tail can be an expensive endeavour.

With all this in mind I have discovered a new avenue that will allow me to side step some of the issues and concerns that I outlined above.

If you are an event planner/organizer I invite you to consider our service that can effectively capture your event, meeting, program etc.  Please visit our Live Events page to learn more about how we can assist you to deliver a successful event.