Do's and Dont's of AV

[JEB]

Folks,

For my sins I am about to take a lead roll in a photographic club AV. From what I can see there is not a great deal of experience (including myself) so we will all be on a long learning curve.

I have been looking on this site and on the Internet for some source of guidance perhaps along the lines of basic Do’s and Dont's but have as yet not found any single source. Plenty of tips exist, as I’m sure we are all aware, tucked away in many different places but as yet I don’t recall seeing one central resource.

Can anyone point me in any particular direction?

John

[Ken Cox]

well first off if your club is really interested bring in some guest speakers that are knowledgeable -- post your address in this forum migjht be a start and one of our experts may be able to steer somebody your way

ken

[JEB]

Thanks Ken,

I had hoped to get back on line befor anybody responded as I have noticed one thing and that is to check my spelling!

\John

[Ronniebootwest]

Is it wise to take on board such a responsibilty without first learning something about the subject? I applaud your courage but be ready for some shocks because the larning curve can be very steep, especially if you embark on 'Digital' photography to create the raw material for your audio visual shows.

I do not think that you will find a better program than PicturesToExe by the way.

[Severn Bore]

Hi JEB

It would be better if you already had some experience of AVs, but do not let your lack of knowledge put you off. As the lead you will be forced to learn quickly and that is no bad thing.

I do not have time to list dod and don'ts as I am about to join a group of local bell-ringers to ring a quarter peal for Queen Elizabeth IIs 80th birthday, and there will be others more knowledgeable than I who can help.

However, just four things to start you off:

Use P2E as it is very intuitive and an excellent piece of software!

Keep the sequences simple. Although there are lots of "whizzy" things you can do in a slide show, you can overwhelm an audience with too many fancy fades, etc.

Do not make the slide shows too long- about 5 minutes or so is enough!

Have alook at as many sequences as you can, such as those on the Beechbrook site. You will see all ranges of quality and experience level.

Good luck!

[ronwil]

Your profile gives nothing away, so we do not know if we can offer some local assistance from as Ken suggested a guest speaker. The fact that you are a member of a camera club suggests that there may be some regional organisastion to which you might turn for help.

Sutton Camera Club AV Group produce a complete programme of sequences to present to the Club on an annual basis. Apart from the individual sequences from the Group members, we also produce a combined sequence for which we go out on organised "photoshoots" for our material.

So if you were local to us we could provide a practical "Teach-in".

Ron [uK]

[Alan Lyons]

Hi John,

I agree that you have been very brave in taking on the task ahead of you, but as they say, someone has to. One piece of advice I would give is take command of the project. You don't have to be a tyrant but you need to be able to say with confidence "This is how the project should go" "This needs to be included", and hardest of all. "The project will be better if this or that is left out". I have sat through many shows which were torture because the author insisted on using every photograph taken regardless of quality or relevance. As others have said view any show you can get your hands on, but also reliase you are learning too. I am involved in a group in Dublin which is full of eager learners but we who do most of the teaching are happy to learn too. A friend once said as he introduced me at a workshop, " An expert is someone who is one step ahead of the possie" Try giving a lecture after that intro and the rest will be a walk in the park

Again let us know where you are and perhaps you can link up with others who are ahead of the possie.

Regards,

Alan

[JEB]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply. Yes perhaps I should be more explicit.

But where to start?

I am a relatively new member of my camera club but from what I can gather there does not appear to be any significant AV tradition or experience. I have been producing a few “shows” largely for my own entertainment for some months now using P2E and have been trying to generate some interest within the club. It would appear that, this being spring (even in Scotland), the seeds are beginning to germinate. The reason for my panic post is that I have been asked to raise the subject at our AGM on Thursday with a view to those club members interested, agreeing to shoot appropriate images over the summer months while the club is in recess! We have a topic and I am presently putting together a shooting strategy for putting to the meeting on Thursday.

All of your advice is appreciated and being carefully considered – any more is welcome!

It is possible that nothing happens but while the enthusiasm is there I am keen to nurture it.

Thanks again.

John

[TonyFalla]

Hi John

I have gone throught the same myself and actually did a tutorial for my club on PTE and Audacity about 18 months ago. I am relatively inexperienced but I did a talk showing 4 or 5 of my AV shows including my initial one that was done in Powerpoint.

I then went through building up a presentation with PTE, fades, titles, synchronising to the music, etc. I also included a short tutorial on Audacity which I use for producing my sound tracks.

I now have more experience and am about to start to prepare a second talk on some of the more advanced techniques I now have learnt and used.

I live in South Wales but if you would like to know more please contact me.

Tony Falla

Monmouth Photographic Club

South Wales

[JEB]

Thank all above for your interest (including Maureen who replied off line) for your interest and advice.

To the more cautious of you, I am afraid I have to say that your advice, though appreciated, is being totally ignored! Caution and I have never been close bedfellows, as I know to my cost – and no doubt be reminded of yet again!

You will perhaps have gathered, if you have been following this thread, that last night at our AGM the project was given resounding approval.

I feel I owe you all a little explanation of what we propose to achieve. There is nothing unique; indeed it has been done before many times, I know. We like many towns, have a local river and we simply plan to try to tell its story from its nearby source till it joins another river about six miles from our town, a total of about 12 miles. The river will be the catalyst but almost more importantly, there are a variety of photo opportunities, historic and social on its immediate environs, which we hope concentrate on.

I don’t wish to bore you with detail but at the same time I would like keep you up to date with developments and reassure you that all the advice given has been duly noted and is being taken seriously.

Time last night did not permit further action other than virtually gaining 100% support for the project and a commitment by all to get involved at least in capturing images. We will divide the river geographically and agree (or allocate!) beats. We will be capturing Landscape, Natural History, Architectural, and Portraiture, Leisure activities etc. over our closed summer season. We will reconvene next Thursday to put this plan into effect. It was felt that not only would this action contribute to the project but also provide personal opportunities for capturing material for the various winter competitions.

We have potential plans for lectures and teach-ins that no doubt will be developed with the passage of time.

Any further advice will gratefully be received.

Regards and thanks again.

John

[stonemason]

Hi John

From the days of slide tape AVs one thing to try to avoid is mixing horizontal and vertical format pictures thus avoiding the cross effect on screenas one fades to the other. If you must use both formats for some reason then try to make the change from one format to the other through an intermediate square picture. Also avoid similar pictures fading through each other as this sometimes produces a blur effect rather than a pleasing "third image". Not really sure if this is the kind of info you were seeking, but it may be of some interest anyway.

regards

Geoff

[ronwil]

Geoff

I never use now the intermediate square for horizontal to vertical transitions. If I have to use verticals and these our usually other people's images, in the Club situation that John is working on, I usually superimpose verticals over a diffused 1024 x 768 background, possibly the previous image if it suits the situation.

Ron [uK]

[LumenLux]

Ron, I like your method very much, and use it myself. I sometimes use the "quick and dirty" method of just using an appropriate slide as PTE background instead of having the black or colored background for the vertical photo. I don't think this method is always as "nice" or "elegant" as using Photoshop prepared slides, but it is often a very easy and practical improvement over the bothersome vertical-horizontal impact. Sometimes however, if the photo is the emphasis, rather than the sequence, I think it is better to let the vertical photo stand on it's own. The other technique I find helpful, is to use a transition that spreads the vertical into a horizontal format. Or narrows the horizontal into the vertical.

You and I know this subject has come and gone before, but I would like to hear some more opinions and ideas again now. Inviting others to share their "solutions" or even admit that the switching back and forth is not bothersome - if that is the case.