Lever St Shoot: Equipment List

This is the equipment list for shooting the performances at Lever Street on the 10th and 17th December.

x 4  Panasonic P2 Cameras
x 4 tripods

Tricaster Equipment
Monitor(s)
Laptop
Sound Mixer
Dolly Track

x2 Boom poles

Wire Protection Mats

x2 Microphones  (condenser)

x2 Microphones (dynamic)

x3 XLR 3 pin cable

x3 BNC cable (long)

x3 RCA male/ Female

x4 talk back

x9 radio charger batteries

Online News Package Research

Throughout my research, I have been looking at other news packages on YouTube and UStream etc, they have provided me with vital information in order to eventually create my own package for our program. I have been able to more accurately determine what elements of any news package we create will attract certain target audiences, and what may turn certain people away from it, such as the presenting styles and the type of guests, right down to the colour scheme and the theme music.

Another news package resource I have found to be beneficial is the BBC website, and the packages that they provide on the site. Through the BBC I have been able to research another kind of news package presentation, a more formal and mostly in-depth entity, the following is an example of a news package created by the BBC:

This particular package is an example of the style of news package the BBC creates, there are several things to note which have been important to my research, starting with the way in which the BBC's logo appears throughout the whole video in the bottom left corner, something which I believe we should do with our very own logo when it's created, and if possible. The video includes a statistics listing section, wherein the presenter of the news package can be heard talking over, explaining the different issues at hand. The video also shows interesting ways to segue between interview and GV, using a range of different shots to convey not only the story, but the surrounding area, introducing you to the heart of the problem that is being presented, in this case a School headmaster who is earning more money than the Prime Minister in an underprivileged area. The video is a good lesson in how to film talking heads and the kind of framework that is acceptable at the BBC is a good place to start for if we are to use this technique.

Online News Package Research

Throughout my research, I have been looking at other news packages on YouTube and UStream etc, they have provided me with vital information in order to eventually create my own package for our program. I have been able to more accurately determine what elements of any news package we create will attract certain target audiences, and what may turn certain people away from it, such as the presenting styles and the type of guests, right down to the colour scheme and the theme music.

One channel I have found very interesting, and pivotal to my research, is the now infamous SBTV, the UK's leading online youth broadcaster. Despite this broadcaster focussing mainly on music, looking at the way in which the show is presented and then marketed to the public has been integral to my research, especially in determining our target audience, another thing to gain from looking into this channel is their interview style, which we may integrate elements of into our News Package if possible. Here is a clip from this channel, which gives a general overview of what they do and a good look at their interview techniques:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMq2CgzTqH4

I believe this video will prove to important to the group, and as research it has shown - albeit this one is with a celebrity - on a personal level, a good way to relate to your guest, how to make them feel at home, and how to get the best out of the interview. On a more technical level, the interview shows good points to integrate GV's, noddy shots etc and a good way to set up a backdrop. The way in which this channel has been able to totally relate to its desired target audience, it is an impressively successful channel created by people who are the same age as their target audience, which is more or less the situation our group. If we can find a way to channel the elements that has allowed SBTV the ability to do this, our show and news package should be a success.

Bibliography:
http://sbtv.co.uk/

News Package - Filming

Today in our groups, we began filming for Dave's assignment. We took a Sony V1 out along with a manfrotto tripod and a couple of boom mics, travelled to Jack's student accommodation and began filming with our interviewee Matt, who was acting as a student unhappy with the way in which the Manchester College provides little or no support for students who are planning on living away from home, at student accommodation of some sort within Manchester.

With Josh as our presenter, we had a few hours to film an interview with Matt in and around the accommodation, asking some fairly basic questions and trying to gain some opinion on the matter, which a number of people in our group have been affected by. The filming proved to be harder than we had expected, with a limited timeframe and a number of techinical difficulties getting in the way of progress, we had to compromise on a few of our original plans, but ended the day with more or less exactly what we needed.

Multicam Session: Band Performance 2

News Package Research - Content

For the news package, we have said from the beginning as a group that we will adhere to make the VT look as professional as possible, with the means we have at our disposal. We have decided that the style of the package will be minimalistic, with a continous and matching colour scheme that is the same from beginning to end, from the design of the lower thirds in the interview, to the colour of the sofa in the program itself.

Our logo will be simple, yet effective, the name of the show is 'Good Morning Manchester', so a simple but bold and striking 'GMM' lettering done in a thick black font inside a shape with the same colour as the scheme we will be using, similar to that of the New York Times' logo:

Finally, we hope to be able to either use a green screen as our backdrop, projecting a time lapse of Media City looking over the water there. Alternatively, if a green screen isn't possible we will hope to use a large flatscreen television on-set, where one of the presenters can stand and read the days top stories a long with pictures, and also that can have our time lapse on, behind our logo.

Green Screen

Today we were working with green screen, Ricardo introduced us to the background of them in the industry, why, how and when they are used generally, then we had a chance to take turns filming each other with the aid of them. We found out that a special lens attachment is used to create the effect, as opposed to having literally a 'green screen' behind the subject, this attachment emits a green light from LED bulbs that attaches itself to the subject, pending on how high or low you have the settings, and depending on whether or not the subject has bright green clothing on, which makes it harder to determine where the effect can be placed.

Once we had done the filming in small groups, we were able to then take it to the computers and manipulate it with any background image or video we saw fit to use, which had varying degrees of success and hilarity. I shot three different takes of my subject, each with a varying degree of intensity, ranging from -4 to +4, each meaning different things had to be done in the edit in order to make the image visually pleasing, when it is over exposed it is harder to feather out the intense green colour that surrounds the subject, whereas when it is under exposed it is difficult to achieve the effect without the subject looking like a ghost, therefore a middle ground had to be found whilst filming and then eventually editing.

News Package - Plan

14th November - We will be in our groups filling out release forms, getting consent done for the interviewee and permission to take out the camera from a member of staff.

21st November - Hopefully by now we will be starting our filming of the interviewees, starting with Matty,  getting shots of him talking in his recently acquired student accommodation. We will also hopefully be able to get an interview with a member of the hospitality staff at one of the private halls, such as Unite or Mansion House.

28th November - This day will be used for gaining the GV shots that we will need for the package, for example shots of students around Manchester, and around the Student Halls. Some examples of shots we have talked about in the group include the fountains in Piccadilly Gardens and general shots of the main student areas, such as Fallowfield and Oxford Road.

5th December - We will hopefully by this point be able to start our editing process, and will use the remaining weeks on editing, with the option of more filming if the need arises.

Research Outlook

We have now formed our individual groups in the class and have been working on coming up with an idea for our assignment. The group - consisting of Jack Ware, Josh Lloyd, Joe Kerrigan and me - has decided that the research project will revolve around student accommodation, specifically how Manchester College doesn't provide private halls to its students, or give them much in the way of help with this issue. We have come up with the following rough draft of a running order and script that we hope the show will eventually turn out like:


 Beginning of VT


Establishing shot showing our presenter walking towards a camera, equipped with a wireless mic, saying the following:


"Higher education comes with many challenges. One of these is finding accommodation if you are living away from home. Aproximately 300 students study undergraduate courses at the Manchester college."


We then cut to the first interview with a student at the college.

Questions
1. Do you think there should be more support for students?
2. Are prices reasonable?
3. Have you found accommodation that fits your needs and price range?
4. Where are you living currently? Is it practical?
5. What more can be done to improve the process?
 
"Although connected to universities, the college fails to connect an exclusive halls of residence for students."

Target Audience: 17 - 25 year old students around the country, but especially in Manchester that are looking to move away from home into accommodation, but may face issues with restrictions, lack of help from college/Uni.

GV: Student on computer, looking at private hall website.
Pro's:
24 hour security
Bills Included
Free content insurance
Common room (games)
Possibility of ensuite
Chance to meet new people

Presenter ending the VT with an appropriately chosen backdrop (Halls or Manchester College)
End of VT


 Roles
Director
Vision Mixer
Producer
Floor ManagerNegative:
Halls can be far away from college
Halls cost more money.
If you cant find a place to live, it would be difficult to travel to college.
People may be put off studying because there is no exclusive halls of residence.
Nearest halls: Oxny house and gardens (unite-students) in Rusholme.

Floor plan For Band Setup

This is the presumed floor plan that the band will be likely to use, when they come in to be filmed in the studio, for our project with Peter.

Research Assignment - News Package

Brief

Research and then pitch some ideas into the various aspects behind a newsworthy information package, relating to the Manchester College, for use within a Broadcast TV context.

I have been researching the methods of creating a news package, and have come across this video on YouTube made by Kimberly Fox, regarding the study habits of students at a college in America. Although the subject matter isn't quite relevant, the design and production of the piece will prove beneficial to my research, and in turn my end package.

The graphics used in the video are effective, and look relatively professional, also could be possibly re-created in some form with the use of Apple Motion (which we have used briefly in class). 

(screenshot demonstrating the use of 'lower third' effects)

Bibliography:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auGTCMlqXT0

News Package Research - Initial Ideas

Sport - Football

Transfers
Highlights
Behind The Scenes

"Behind The Scenes: Manchester City FC"

Start with a brief overview of the club (history etc.)
Have a presenter outside the ground that introduces the show.
Shots within the ground and a soundbyte over the top.

Interviews with people within the club who are making decisions at the top, interview locals asking how plans such as the new academy is affecting the community.

Include graphics that show the rate of which the club is spending versus income (cureent team sheet networth vs old team networth just before the takeover.)

Ensure an interview is gained with a director within the club, then a coupe of short interviews with locals and fans.

Finish the package with a summary from the presenter, including some personal opinion and something for the viewer to think about after the program, and a final point. Presenter can then do a sign off and be showing leaving the stadium as the camera stays still.

Assignment

Today Ricardo has assigned us a challenge that will become our assignment. We are to come up with an idea or a U-Stream Internet TV Channel. We must devise the following for the project:
- A name
- A target audience
- An idea for one program for the channel

The ideas for the individual program within the channel range from a music review show that focused on unsigned bands within Manchester, and would provide a platform for these bands to gain an audience. The show would include having new bands being reviewed by someone on the show, such as a live performance or a new single/album they were due to release. We would invite guests in to chat about their music, or music they love/hate, then we would have bands performing on the show. We would try and have resident DJ's doing podcasts etc.

Initial ideas that we have suggested within the group were things like, for the name, we had "The New Music Review" and "Student Life".

The target audience will be students, ideally aged 17 - 25 and based in Manchester.

Research Assignment - Tuition Fees

Brief

Research and then pitch some ideas into the various aspects behind a newsworthy information package, relating to the Manchester College, for use within a Broadcast TV context.

Research

It has been confirmed that from the start of the next school term, University fees will have risen to a maximum of £9,000 and that the country average for fees will be "£8,393". However, it has also been confirmed that the tuition fees for the Manchester College will reach no higher than "£5,585".


My research will look at tuition fees set by other colleges and Universities in the local area that offer similar courses, such as Salford and Manchester Met. 

I will also be looking at the pro's and con's of paying extra and then of paying less for a course, ranging from stats on eventual job prospects, drop-out rates and differences in the qualifications of tutors.

Vision Mixing

Today we had our first taste of Vision Mixing, using the tri-caster with Colin with a few others from the class. We learned the basics of using this system and the general precautions and routines you have to go through before use, such as turning all the cameras onto 'bars'.

We learned how to use both the composite connector and the component connector with the cameras, and the differences between both, and that we will generally be using composite. We will be using standard definition for the foreseeable future with the Vision Mixer setup, as this is all it is capable of at the moment. We learned that to change the inputs on certain camera number previews, we would go to 'input setup', then change to composite or component depending on the situation.

The order for the cables that are used with component, is a downward green, blue and red setup. I found out that when vision mixing, as a general rule of thumb, unless you are filming sport, you don't touch the live buttons, instead we should shift through shots with 'Take' and 'Next'. Also, that when working with transistors, we shouldn't use the stick, but use 'auto' as it does the effect for you.

03/10/11

Spent the morning updating our blogs, in some cases creating them.

Most of the day was then spent editing our interview pieces, trying to salvage something from the footage we had, and then watching everyone else's.

Some of the interviews were really well done, others not so much, I especially liked the camerawork in Mikael's, the editing in Andy G's and the overall work on Ashley's piece.

The Manchester College

Hi,

this is my first post for the Broadcast Television course at the Manchester College.

Testing, testing, one two, one two, one two three.

Bye!