A Dizzying Effect

My head is spinning. Could be the wine, but the whirling sensation is more likely to have been caused by the never-ending stream of events, activities and projects that I do welcome, as they are all fun, they offer opportunity and experience, but by GOLLY! I simply don’t know how I am going to get all this work done!

One project of note, recently finished, and now onto the next phase of it, is the Kickstarter promo video for Caressa Starshine. You can view this intense but whimsical video

Caressa just launched her campaign last night at her performance at the Bunnell Street Gallery in Homer, Alaska, and one of the upcoming video projects is to weave together shots of that performance into a music video for her. Please show your support for independent musicianship and art by visiting her Kickstarter page, and know that every little bit counts! Thanks!

In other news, the Burning Basket project has become much larger than originally intended, and is rife with potential. I haven’t really counted, but I’m sure that I’ve got well over 30 hours of footage, well over a terabyte, to go through. There ae many facets to this particular project, and I’m hoping to have something to show for it online within a month. It might be a highlights reel, or it might be the original idea come to life: A time lapse of the entire event, from sand and rocks, through building, creating, weaving, and burning, to sand and rocks. We’ll see.

I sent the Atomos Ninja back to B&H. It wasn’t a “bad” unit…in fact, I miss it. However, I had little time to return it after I ascertained that it was not for me in the long run. I will have to come up with another $1000 to purchase the Sound Devices PIX 220, but I think it will suit my working style better. Without going into too much detail, here’s what I will miss about the Ninja vs. the PIX 220:

The Ninja has excellent battery life, a VERY useful carrying case, uses inexpensive 2.5″ SATA HDD OR SSD drives – I could record almost all day straight through without worry – and the super-simple touch-screen interface was a boon to quick setup and recording confirmation.

However!

With the PIX220 I will appreciate the ability to record in the DNxHD codec, with more bit rate choices, as well as the XLR mic inputs, the more robust construction, and most of all, a larger, more hi-rez screen, equipped with focus assist, with which I can actually gauge my focus when shooting, instead of guessing. There are a few more benefits, but one drawback is that it is not designed to use mechanical drives, which is a factor of cost, but not performance.

I’ll let you know how it goes, with a more complete review, and screen shots, if they ever actually make the damn thing available!

What else? I’ve been invited to shoot a series of high school plays, and am looking forward to shooting more people-oriented video for stock. I’ve a few fun clips up my sleeve, waiting to be fulfilled – some are dangerous, which makes careful planning more important – there will be no “Take 2!”

And winter is coming. Soon we will be snowshoeing out to the VW or the Toyota – not so bad if you are just carrying groceries, but my kit is getting heavy! We haven’t gotten sufficient wood in, the house needs some work, the vehicles need some TLC, and yet all I can deal with is the day-to-day involvement in this videographer’s lifestyle. It will come, though….the balance I seek.

And in the meantime, the cello beckons … my half-forgotten friend …

(Still whirling, but by now it’s most assuredly the wine)