Classwork: Multicam Editing

In this blog you can find the work I did on how to edit with multiple cameras. My group filmed the footage, but I edited it alone. My teacher provided a template for the blog post. 

What is Multicam Editing?

Multicam editing is the process of editing footage of a single scene or subject recorded from different cameras and angles. Showing the same scene or subject from different angles helps make the video more dynamic and visually captivating for your audience

Shooting

Our subject , a classmate, stood in the centre of the room and did a short performance. My group stood around the subject to record the performance from different angles. You can also see members from other groups because we did this lesson as a class. To make it easier to synchronise our cameras, the teacher clapped at the start of the scene. This allowed us to line up the video in the editing process and ensure that the transitions would be smooth. Without this simple action it would have taken a lot longer to sync the videos. 

(BEHIND THE SCENES IMAGES): LINK HERE

Here are the raw videos from my group members:

1.

2.

3.

My editing process

• Upload the videos to the editing software

• Detach the audio of the clip to use in the final video. 

• Find the ‘clap’ marker on the audio.

• Line up the video files together. 

• Cut where I want the edit to happen

• Don’t delete the clip, just lower the opacity. This way it can be used again later. 

• Mute all clips except for the one you want to use. 

the picture above is how I decided to put my chosen music that I wanted to put with the video onto the editing app. I copy pasted the link of the song, then. converted it into an mp3 version.

Here is my final edited video:

Reflection:

Although I'm not responsible for the editing part for the music video project, I found this mini project very helpful as it provided me with lots of insight on how editing works. Perhaps I can help out Jasmine (my teammate who will do the editing for our music video) edit if she needs any assistance. Moreover, I think that the multi-camera editing method is a new method that I've learned. Now that I think of it, it's often used in movies but I've just realized now. I believe we can maybe use this editing method as one of the editing method options for our music video later on as it really helps with the continuity and fluency of the clips. I used my phone to edit since I don't have any editing apps on my laptop. I encountered several problems while editing the video. One includes how we were supposed to line the three videos up so that it would be easier to clip. I couldn't do that on my phone, I don't know why, so I decided to just clip it as usual. This was more difficult and less efficient to do but I'm glad that I got that over with. Another problem I encountered was that the music I had put into the video suddenly stopped midway, I've just realized while rewatching the clip after uploading it. I've also learned that we don't need to delete clips while editing in case we need it again. Instead, we can just adjust the opacity of the clip. This is very helpful as I can use this method in the future.

Shooting Practice: Music Video

 This post contains a mini project that helped us learn how to shoot a music video. We shot our verse as a group and then created this post together. 

My teacher gave each group a verse from 'Here Comes The Sun' by The Beatles where we had to plan a scene which included various camera work and edits. The goal was to get us to practice continuity when filming as well as lip syncing for our final music video project later on. 

Below is the verse chosen for us by our teacher.

We were first given 15 minutes to plan and create a storyboard for our scene. I (Rachelle) made the storyboard, however, my teammates Jasmine and Beatrice helped to think of ideas for the scenes. Before making this, we initially planned on doing our scenes outdoor on the field. However, there was a sudden heavy rain, so we changed our plans and decided on another location, which is the hallway. The storyboard is pasted below.

After that, about another 25 minutes were given for us to film our clips, as well as the rest of the class to edit the clips. Here are some behind-the-scene pictures of me making the storyboard and Jasmine editing the clips.

Below is the final music video.

Here is the link to the Google Drive in case the video can't be played.

Below are the problems we faced before, during, and after the filming of this mini project, the solutions we implemented, and what we would do to improve when working on our upcoming music video project.

Problems:

• When we were assigned this mini project, we faced unexpected heavy rain, which didn’t align with the song’s cheerful and bright theme - especially given the title, 'Here Comes The Sun.

• The hallway we chose for filming had a constant flow of people passing through, which was both distracting and visually disruptive in the footage. Additionally, it caused delays as we had to wait for people to clear the area, while also having a time limit for the filming process. 

• The heavy rain made it difficult to hear the song we were supposed to lip-sync to, especially with other groups filming nearby and contributing to the noise.

• With only three members and two of us acting, we couldn’t follow our teacher’s advice to use two cameras, as we only had one person available to operate the camera.

• We recorded the scenes on a team member’s phone and shared it through Whatsapp so that Jasmine could edit the clips. Unfortunately, the resolution of the clips, as if not bad enough, worsened. 

Solutions: 

• Due to the rain, filming outdoors wasn’t an option, so we decided to use the hallway to take advantage of natural lighting while staying sheltered. Initially, we chose a hallway near the school’s toilet and lounge, but the high number of people passing through made it unsuitable. To avoid disruptions, we relocated to the hallway near our classroom on the opposite side of the building.

• Listening to the song became another challenge, especially when using the 'tracking' camera movement, as it required us to move farther from the music source (phone). To address this, we came up with two solutions, such as carrying the phone with us while filming or placing it midway along the filming path, which allows us to hear the music clearly as we move forward. 

• To fix the bad resolution, I decided to just compile the clips onto a Google Drive to send to Jasmine.  

Next time:

• To improve for our upcoming music video project, I believe we should start filming well in advance of the deadline. This will give us more flexibility and prevent rushing, especially in situations beyond our control, like unfavorable weather. By having extra time, we can wait for better weather conditions that align with our mood board and plan. This will ensure that the final result matches our vision and maintains a high standard of quality.

• Since we’re planning to use two actresses from our team, it would be beneficial to bring a tripod for the filming process. This will enable us to use two cameras, as recommended by our teacher, allowing for a smoother filming process.

• Next time, we should just always send our files through Google Drive to save time. 

Reflection:

My role in this project was to make the content of the blog as well as the storyboard. My teammate (Beatrice) helped me with the problems, solutions, and improvements. Jasmine helped to edit the clips. I really enjoyed making the storyboard as I got to discuss ideas with my teammates. Spotting down the problems, solutions, as well as improvements to make really helped us as we could use these on our actual music video project. I also did the lipsyncing scenes along with Jasmine as we are the main stars on our actual music video project. Lip syncing here has helped us spot our flaws so we can fix it and be better.