Presentation on Underwater Video Basics. Suggested topics ?

[ronscuba]

My local dive club asked me to do a presentation on underwater video basics.

Target audience is divers with little to no experience in underwater video. Many of the people have underwater photo experience.

I have some ideas on topics to cover, but wanted to get some input from others.

I plan on showing some sample clips from a few different camcorders. Presentation will last about an hour.

Any ideas ?

 

[Drewski]

Wow, that's a good question.

OK, here's a few thoughts. Underwater videography is 80% technique and 20% equipment. People who have more money than sense simply wind up with just as bad, but more expensive, vacation videos.

Explain that the port is everything in videography. GREAT camera, flat port = same results. Better to invest more in the port and slightly less in the camera. Explain the differences between flat ports, wide angle and super wide angle shooting.

Explain the basics of exposure settings, shutter speed and white balance, how each works and how they relate to one another. Explain that "automatic" settings in videography are just unrealistic. Explain how to set manual focus and the problem with auto focus for many diving environments.

Explain the basics of lighting and how important lighting is to even wide-angle shooting. Explain luminosity vs. color temps and the differences in lights.

Discuss the investment in videography. How SD had a "standard" and how it's still being figured out for HD (include RAW). Explain how tape is vanishing but how other storage media continues to evolve and how all of this impacts the manufacturing of housings. Talk about tube vs. custom housings, manual vs. electronic controls.

Finally, talk about how to post video on Youtube, Vimeo or Facebook and how to link it to posts. Talk about optimal CODEC settings and what to use for producing the best viewing results (tell me too!)

Sorry to blab, but you did ask!



Andy

 

[ronscuba]

Thanks Andy. Or is it Drew ?

I was planning on taking things at a more basic level and leave the more advanced topics for a followup meeting. Most of the members have no UW video experience and I usually recommend an Ikelite for someones 1st system. However, you have many good points and maybe I am under estimating my audience.

I was planning on discussing basics and system options, showing footage from a Flip Ultra to a consumer cam with Ikelite to a prosumer cam with Gates housing. I'm afraid if I get too technical and preachy about manual controls, MWB, lighting, etc., it will scare beginners away.

My general philosophy about UW video is everyone has different budgets and goals for their video. Some will never ever edit. I'd like to make a presentation that appeals to all. However, I only have an hour.

I guess I could always take a quick poll at the beginning and adjust accordingly.

Thanks again.

By the way, I find it interesting you recommend spending more on the port than the camera. Flat ports are cheap and in my opinion are the best choice for macro.

 

[gunsrunner]

Hello,
When i first started with video it was a very steep learning curve, that as i get further down the road, could get even steeper if you let it, or you can take a back seat and start to enjoy what you've got.
I think you would need to cover the computer needed to edit HD video, i have a range of PC's from overclocked quad core, crossfire editing rig too 2core netbook and several in between and find each has its quirks.
Program costs and needs could also be covered, i.e. PSElements skips, plays up on 2 core laptop, but Power Director works well.
Different options for lighting. Halogen, HID, LED.
Composition is one of the biggest things to get better video, i think.
You need to plan your shots and settle down to shooting that 15-20 secs of steady video, when i first started i used to get seasick trying to edit.
Now i am consentrating on get the video right first, even contemplating using a tripod.

Wow so much to cover and only an hour to do it!!!

 

[robint]

I think an important topic to discuss with beginners is "telling a story", not just shooting your dive, swimming around. It is important to have a beginning, middle, and end. My first trip I actually wrote down things (I learned from a video about video) on a slate...
shot of divers getting in water
shot of the boat looking up
shot of divers swimming around
shot of reef at distance, close up shots of reef
shot of fish at distance, then up close
some type of shot that signals the end of dive
(after my first video trip, on a liveaboard luckily, I got the hang of it, didn't need a slate)
All dive videos don't have to be formatted this way, but they ALL need a beginning, middle, and end.

Setup and maintenance of video rig - A few tips:
First, don't open it on the boat! If you need to get topside shots to add to your video, then you do it with rig in housing. Once you take camcorder out of housing, it is out until you can put it back inside an a/c room! Otherwise, you will have fog. Tip #2, it is important to put your camcorder in the housing, then turn it on and shoot a little clip to make sure it is working properly BEFORE you get on the boat. (My old camcorder was one that had to have lens opened manually and I forgot more than once! Also more than once I didn't have it aligned with buttons properly so it didn't work. I learned this tip the hard way, for sure!)


Another big thing to me --- you spend 10% of time shooting the video, 90% in front of computer editing. Once you tell people that, many lose interest in underwater videography! They really think that all these cool videos they watch are shot as-is, no editing at all, and every shot is put in video. LOL Most of us know we shoot tons of video clips and don't use them, or we have a 5-10 minute clip of something really cool but edit it down to 10-15 seconds.

those are my big things...

robin

 

[ronscuba]

Thanks everyone. Good idea to point out the computer requirements to edit HD and that a finished edited video is 90% editing and 10% shooting.

I'm already starting to change my outline.

Great suggestions, keep them coming.

 

[BDSC]

Another thing I'd touch on is that you can find some really good deals on used equipment if someone is interested in getting into video. I've typically seen systems for sale that are only a few years old for half (or maybe less) than what they were new and are still in great condition! The one thing folks will want to know is, "How much does it cost to get into all of this?" My first system and current system were bought used and I saved quite a bit over new.

 

[ronscuba]

We think alike.

I plan on showing video clips from different systems at different price points.

$500: Flip Ultra HD with Ikelite
$1200: Canon HF with Ikelite
$3000+: Sony FX7 with Gates

 

[sinistar]

Since most of them are experienced photographers, you can probably go light on the topics of packing / traveling with the rig (I wish someone had "enlightened" me on that topic when I first started).

I love the other suggestions so far. A few more suggestions:

1.) Spend just a few minutes describing how a shot is corrected for color, sharpness and maybe point this out in a sample you show so they can get a feel regarding how much they can tweak. Working one photo in PS is one thing, but tweaking 252 clips in a 30 min movie is another story.

2.) Since they are u/w photogs remind them that red filters are just as useful in video

3.) Maybe a quick minute or two on the pros / cons of HDD vs tapes vs flash cards - for example, I don't like bring a laptop with so for me a HDD based camcorder was never an option.

4.) If you can find any examples (good and bad) give them some background on how DSLR's are coming into play for U/W video - with the obvious lack of autofocus. If a person can master u/w video with DSLR, they can also bring home the best stills.

5.) The movie I recently finished was shot in 1080i and I was struggling to show in HD to friends then I finally found that limited HD content can be burned to regular DVD's and watched in HD on Bluray players - very simple, cool trick to distribute 20-40min movies to others.

6.) Maybe more on focusing, how autofocus is nice but relying on it too much can really wreck some otherwise great shots.

7.) This isn't always a "still" sport. In other words, some of people's most favorite shots are with the camera moving (not zooming). Swimming by people can look even better than people swimming by a still camera. Same goes for critters. A bunch of 12 second takes with camera still and subject still might look great but too much and it's too static. Be moving the camera while it's running for the effect of viewer in motion.

8.) Rarely (probably never) zoom during a shot unless it's throw away before or after what you'll use. Sometimes a slow zoom out works but in general, if the human body and eye can not accomplish it, it won't come across as very believable or interesting.

9.) Give a few examples of a editing process. For example, a 1 week trip resulted in 450 takes. Of those, 200 were thrown out. Of the rest every single one needed trimming at either end and 1+ corrections applied. That process took a couple of weeks in spare time. Forgetting about music, there are titles and still pictures that will be inserted. When done, rendering a 1min sample might take from 1 minute to 20min depending on computer, resolution, effects, etc. And rendering a 30min movie might take from 1hr to a day - lots of time to wait to discover a mistake.

...the list could go on and on, very fun hobby but very time consuming!

 

[didekeer]

I would also talk about lighting and the problem with hot spots. Some of the people you are talking to will not shoot video but will be the budy of someone shooting video. If you are shooting a certain subject with diffused lights or ambiant light, and your buddy points his strong focussed light on the same subject, the shot is ruined. I always have to explain this to new dive buddies.