Final Cut Pro X – editing course (1/2 day remote delivery)

Course objectives:

• Develop a basic understanding of Final Cut Pro X features
• Provide basic level film and sound editing skills
• Offer ongoing support via QuickTime film clips

CONTENT:

Introduction with viewer and menu overviews

- course content / objectives

- general navigation / preferences

Importing

- film / music / photos

- new event / new project

- file management

Working on the timeline

- display styles

- zooming in/out

- drag and drop

- clip trimming

Getting creative

- visual enhancements

- sound (mixing/levels)

- transitions and general effects

- working with text, generators and themes

- inserting logos / icons

Sharing

- linking to video / online media and accounts

- consolidating media

- basics of archiving

When it comes to asking for client feedback, the four main areas of interest for me are; 

Approach to the work; timing, planning etc

Understanding of key project outcomes

Ability to deliver these outcomes

Professionalism, interaction with others and then of course any other comments/views/feedback…

Here are some responses from my clients:

“The project was challenging from a timing point of view; capturing the best features of three buildings, at different times of day (and with weather conditions not playing ball) inside two days was always going to be tough. Andrew’s planning, and willingness to burn the candle at both ends ensured the best possible end product.”

“AJ spent a lot of time prior to the shoot discussing our business, existing and desired markets, core features of our product, and media usage. The “hard yards” put in before the shoot were the crucial factor in the success of our project.”

“This was an experimental project for us, and Andrew really helped to tease out the messaging we were hoping to achieve through the photographs. Client feedback thus far would suggest he got it spot on! One of our key deliverables was to represent the fun factor in our product; AJ’s interaction with our staff and residents created the right atmosphere of genuine excitement to ensure that target was met.”

“Solid planning phase, timely follow ups, showed flexibility on scheduling and maintained good communication throughout. Engaged with the subject, asked questions, proposed ideas. Captured the essence of the shots, they look natural and honest.”

“Excellent communication skills, puts people at ease and helps their personality shine through. Solid technical skills. Have a script but listen to his ideas as well – you’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

“I have used Andrew at Digit Imaging on a number of occasions for some high profile PR work and I have to say that his professionalism and ability to understand the requirements on the job are two key reasons why I would not hesitate in using him again.”

“My project involved capturing images of two very high profile figures from the world of business and entertainment in conversation for a publicity shoot.  Andrew not only achieved this at very short notice, but also delivered a finished product in less than 24 hours, to go live on the BBC websites to promote part of the Sport Relief campaign in 2010.  Andrew had only 10 minutes with the subjects and managed to put them at ease immediately.  I would highly recommend Andrew and Digit Imaging for any future projects.”

“We found Andrew to be extremely professional in his approach.  He was punctual, polite and very discreet throughout.  In fact we barely noticed him as we requested a reportage style of photography and this was delivered expertly.  We are subsequently aware of a number of his other more recent works and believe he has a great talent.  We not only wish Andrew well in pursuing this career but would heartily recommend him to anyone considering employing the talents of a very special photographer indeed.”

“Andrew works well both inside, outside and alongside multimedia teams, going about his job extremely professionally and avoiding being noticed in anyone else’s shots, despite multiple video cameras covering several different angles. Employing this approach, his presence is welcomed by director, location manager, camera operator, PR, attendee and event organiser alike. Andrew is always willing to share tips and best practice with less knowledgeable associates.  Despite his complete awareness around other professionals, he manages to deliver stunning stills photography appropriate to – and without disrupting – high-profile events, and makes use of a variety of electronic transmission and communication media to deliver the best results with speed.”

“Kept to schedule very accurately and responded to last minute changes immediately.  Understood brief and what was expected 100%.  Met the brief exactly and went the extra mile to ensure that the results were exactly what was needed i.e.researched the locations to be photographed and analysed when the best time for photography would be.  Very professional.  The author, editors and publishers very happy with the work.”

“One of the things you’re going to love about working with AJ is his straight forward way of doing things. He is a professional who clearly cares about you as much as the ‘shot’, of course because of AJ’s planning and approach he will understand your needs completely; be they time constraints or just the feel of the image you’re looking for. Another nice thing is that when the times are set, they’re met, and he delivers outstanding results with a wonderful sense of humour, he has an uncanny ability to put you at ease and really get the shots you want.”

“Professional, short telephone interview from Andy confirmed what was required and secured a date and location to shoot.  Good set of questions and a thorough briefing gave me confidence that Andy understood what I wanted.  Exceeded expectations and a lovely way to spend a few hours, interesting banter, great humour.”

“Highly flexible and accommodating with obvious restraints in terms of physical location at any given time taken into account and well addressed.  Obvious comprehension of both product and intentions with respect to image portrayal or message transmission to the intended recipient.  Limited only by availability and our inability to pin down definitive scheduling for attendance.  Might be considered over-familiar by some but friendliness with professionalism works for us.”

“AJ has a very pro active approach to any project he undertakes, he ensured he fully understood the brief and will then come back with questions, feedback and observations from his perspective to ensure that there was a clear outcome for all parties.  AJ’s planning was very detailed and covered all of the areas that were required.  With this particular project a range of options were looked at in terms of practicality of the photoshoot and AJ offered complete flexibility around times to suit the needs of the business.  The excellent attention to detail that AJ insists on were managed within the time frames that were agreed and all of the areas discussed prior were achieved with several more that AJ found whilst working through then photoshoot.  AJ has a fantastic ability to work with all levels of the team, he ensures there is a collective understanding of the goals and then gains a team buy in to ensure that everyone is comfortable with what is happening.  I would highly recommend AJ, I have not found anyone else in this field that shows complete flexibility around the needs of the business and the ability to deliver great results!”

“Andrew is extremely committed to all projects he enterprises, very punctual, respects set timings and he’s is very able in setting up a realistic planning to completion. Andrew is outstanding in generating the right probing questions to uncover and to understand the full spectrum of a projects outcomes and goals. Once understood, Andrew will honestly relay his ability to accomplish the outcomes or not.”

“In my experience, Andrew’s ability to accomplish outcomes have been excellent and has succeeded in all the projects we’ve worked together. Andrew is very committed to any project he accepts to work with, he does it passionately and therefore with a high level of Professionalism. He’s someone who is genuinely interested in what others have to say.”

“Andrew is a people’s person, he’s very able in adapting to different multi cultural situations and is appreciated by those with whom he interacts with. He’s a great person to work with, very talented, highly intelligent and shrewd but also fun”.

“Excellent overall. Very involved approach to understanding what was needed. Some delays along the way which was mainly due to untimely feedback from us. The 4 videos are of excellent quality and are exactly what was required. Total commitment throughout with no hesitation to push the Client to obtain answers.  Delighted to be working with such professionals. Would have no hesitation in using your company for future work.”

I would advise and welcome any prospective clients to talk to past clients and get a better understanding of what I do and how I do it.  My reputation is very important to me, when I’m dead and gone all that will remain is a few images and my reputation, so 100% satisfaction begins right at the start of the process.  

Please also note that I never invoice a job until my client is completely happy – and so far, after over 6 years that has not yet come up.

Nur Suryani Mohamed Taibi, eight-months pregnant rifle shooter from Malaysia:

“When baby kicks, I will breathe in and breathe out and try to calm myself down and talk to baby: ‘Behave yourself and help mummy to shoot!’”

Now that’s commitment (and optimism)!

What was your most memorable moment of the summer?

Just a short update for you; there are now two new creative strings to the digit ‘bow’, film making and eLearning, bringing together three very exciting things – my lifelong love of film, my previous people development career and my passion for getting paid for doing groovy, meaningful creative work. I’ve been through most of the pain barriers in both disciplines over these past two years and came out with globally recognised work.

The Sales eLearning tool developed for The Straumann Group has now been translated in 9 languages and inspired a series of follow up products for trainers, managers and even a general business management tool. The technical training film for engineering giants Schlumberger is a 4 module odyssey of heavy machinery overviews and insights, maintenance guidance and scheduling, using sexy 3D modeling and graphics animation, some myth-buster style mayhem, interviews and even a full set of learning and evaluation tools.  It’s a veritable 1 hour and 20 minute visual feast and already making very positive waves across the business.

Let’s face it, who doesn’t like to snuggle down with a good movie, a glass of something nice and a jumbo sized Toblerone?  But for those of you tasked with the more serious business of delivering your next company blockbuster, here’s what you might find interesting;

• Full conceptualization to final authoring and artworks service – we can manage it all
• Project mapping and status updates to give you full financial clarity and reporting
• Work to, pay homage to any genre or style
• Animation, interview, space, concept or instructional output
• Delivered in any format or media you require.

Are you or your colleagues looking to document a project in the near future or mark a milestone year by telling your company story in the most enduring and engaging media formats?  Perhaps you wish to consolidate in-house skills, boost productivity or manage costs a little tighter?  Or maybe you just need a good portrait image?

If so drop me a line – they say that talk is cheap but for my lovely contacts talk isn’t cheap, it’s always totally free!

Or why not write back and let me how things are going and maybe share your favourite film of all time?  A little clue for you about about mine; its a 1970s comedy bank heist movie, set in WW2 France

Six fully interactive Flash-based modules provide a core development program which is based on over 20 years of best practice selling techniques, tailored to very specific client, market and regional factors. The product takes learners of all levels through both prospecting and selling disciplines. To enhance learner engagement each module has a variety of built in multiple choice questions, quick fire Q&A sessions, clear (and measurable) links back to the workplace in the form of straightforward assignments and an online assessment and results reporting mechanism. Modules are broken down into bite-size 20 minutes parts that provide everything your team need to know; taking a new recruit through to being productive or just giving your experienced pros a refresher.

Prospecting:

Getting organized / Making first contact / Appointment making

Selling skills

Asking questions / Closing techniques / Objections & Consolidation

The program now also features a supportive, but essentially stand alone, e-trainer module and field successes have inspired development of an e-manager module and a client request for a customer sales specific module.  To date this product has been translated into 9 languages (Chinese/French/Greek/Persian/Polish/Russian/Spanish/Thai/Turkish).

Attached is a brief overview to give some insight into the look and feel of the program as a PDF.

eLearning_demo

To say that we’re excited about this exclusive access project and totally blown away by the levels of skill and experience in the team are massive understatements.

Conceived by two massive rev heads Ben Grayson and Chris Endean, these events are like nothing before.  Whether you’ve never touched a clutch lever before or rarely get down on two wheels, there is a challenge to be had for everyone with additional coaching coming in the shape of our current leading UK riders.  Rates for track and corporate days are silly low, so whilst it might be hard on your wrists and backside, it won’t go too hard on your wallet.

Our own team isn’t too shy of skill and experience either, hailing from MotoGP, SuperBikes, F1 and assorted off roading and rally championship coverage backgrounds; we are confident that if there was ever a chance for someone to look totally outrageously cool on two wheels it’s going to be on a MotoXtreme track.  If you do nothing else extreme this summer, do make a trip out to one of the MotoXtreme events – and we’ll be there to capture your every moment of glory and/or…

To get a better idea of what’s going on or to book in for an event just click on this – motoxtreme

If you are looking to pre-book images for an existing event, just drop us a line via the contact email and we will get right back to you!

Images from our recent adventures overseas are here

BTR is also one of Bulgaria’s longest established bands; formed in ’84 during the dark and paranoid days of Communism which brings a whole new meaning to the idea of getting your mates together in a garage to thrash out some tunes!  OK, it’s unlikely anyone had a garage but the risk to life and liberty remain pretty obvious.  Bucking such a system and at such an early stage of development shows real balls and perhaps some insanity, which in my mind equals class!

The band…

The lead singer is a poet in the vein of Jim Morrison, the bassist a throb pounding monster, the drummer IS Animal’s long lost Balkan cousin and the lead guitarist could teach Gary Moore a trick or two.  When they do eventually let the rhythm guitarist loose to sing he’s like an angel; a very funny, slightly evil angel who warbles you softly down into a false sense of lighters in the air security before the band kicks back in and begins running you over all over again…  If you like your rock fully cocked, these boys are the best around..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B.T.R.

The challenge…

To produce an honest account of the effect these guys have on an audience, capture the environment and provide them with some images to compliment the already huge library of shots they have whilst giving them something a little different from the norm.  I needed to work low light, slow exposure / soft flash shooting under some seriously difficult UV lighting colour patterns whilst not getting sucked in to the atmosphere and losing my steady hand!

бтр в полинеро