Video – Page 21 – Journeys of a Hybrid

July 5, 2010July 3, 2010

The Making of a Documentary

Technically, I began working on my latest documentary, “Opening Our Eyes” about 7 months ago when the idea came to me. I had just seen Robert Frank’s show “The Americans” at the Met in New York City with a friend of mine and I commented to him that I was really yearning to get back to my beginnings and take a visual road trip.

Even though I had spent a lifetime traveling and shooting assignments for editorial and corporate clients, I never lost sight of my passion to explore with my camera.

Moscow_IMG_2695 — Gail at Red Square, Moscow

In the beginning, my explorations were through the lens of my still camera but when I started shooting motion about ten years ago, my tool of choice became a video camera and with that came self assigned documentaries.

It had been two years since my last passion project “Freedom Riders” and I was itching to start another. My daughter had just graduated from college, I was an emptynester and pretty much free to do as I pleased. I had accumulated over 300,000 airline miles, thousands of hotel award points and another 300,000 plus American Express points. I didn’t know what I was saving them for but it seemed like a good time to use them. So, I made a decision to take a trip around the world. I felt like I still had the energy and stamina to take on such a journey but something was missing – I needed a purpose.

The Idea
I have always been interested in the “common man” as opposed to the celebrity and the simple story that resonates in a viral way. I’m intrigued by people who go up against all odds, to right a wrong or fight for a cause and never give up. I usually side with the underdogs and am inspired by the Cinderella stories. And so after that day at the Met, an idea was born and that was to shine a spotlight on 6 people on 6 different continents who were making a positive difference in the world because it was their calling to do so.

Of course coming up with an idea is the easy part and many times those great ideas seem to drift away with time as one gets caught up in daily work and life. But this idea wasn’t going away – I knew it was the right time for me to bring these stories to life. My goal was to create individual videos about each of these people that would combine together as a feature documentary. My hope was that the film would not only create awareness of my subjects’ efforts, but also motivate others to create change.

The Pre-Production and Facilitation
Next came the hard part – making it a reality and the first step was figuring out how I would fund it. After working on 2 other self-assigned passion projects, I knew one thing and that is that it’s really hard to sell an idea. When I was in the planning stages of The Delta Bluesmen, I spent a lot of time applying for grant money and seeking funds from a variety of sources to no avail. I finally got frustrated and decided to self fund the project even though it meant taking it a bit slower and doing more of the work myself. My critics thought I was crazy to tackle a short film by myself and self fund it but I stuck to it and created a piece I’m proud of and which has brought many rewards to my life. So with that experience behind me, I took another leap of faith on my latest project and started the planning process. But perhaps most importantly, I focused on the fact that the positive aspects of working on a self-funded project is that it would be the way I wanted it to be – not compromised for the wrong reasons.

My first order of business was to send out a query to everyone I knew as well as use social media to find my subjects. My first subject was a given – a local young woman my daughter went to high school with, Maggie Doyne,

KopilaValley-6697 copy — Maggie and some of her children

who opted not to trek off to college after high school. Instead she wound up in Nepal and built a home for orphaned children. She’s 23 years old now, has 30 children in her home and is in the process of building a school. Then my daughter Erin, expressed interest in working on this project with me. She knew she’s need to leave quit her job, sublet her apartment and say goodbye to her boyfriend for 3 months – but she wanted to be part of it. And so we became a duo and with that the project really took off with her support and help.

Since the project was self-funded, I had to be extremely creative with the budget – or lack thereof. So after nailing down our subjects across the globe, we started to plan the logistics –airline tickets, hotel rooms, visas, vaccinations and of course equipment needs. From January to May, I spent countless hours booking reward tickets with 14 airlines for 29 flights – a round the world itinerary with extra local hops thrown in. I’ve arranged for 99 nights of accommodations, staying with friends, friend of friends, using reward points, paying for budget hotels and bartering for other rooms. I had to bite the bullet and pay large sums for our vaccinations and visas and budget for our meals. Most importantly, I needed to purchase new gear because my intent was to shoot this project with the HDSLR cameras. I knew I wanted to shoot stills and video and also knew that I had to travel lean and mean so this seemed like the best solution. You can read more about the gear here.

The Execution
We are about one third through the shoot and have worked on 3 continents. The scheduling has turned out to be brilliant – we work hard and exhaust ourselves for chunks of time – anywhere from a week to ten days and then have a few days to recoup, catch up on sleep, write in our blogs, or just sightsee and take some still snapshots along the way. We’ve had a couple mother/daughter disagreements but for the most part we are having the time of our life and seeing the world. At this point we sometimes forget which currency we are using or what the exchange rate is or what our room number is but in the process of creating a film, we have built a lifetime of memories.

We have also created an audience who tune into our project blog religiously and follow our journey as we go along. But something remarkable is happening and that is evident in the comments we are getting. We are opening people’s eyes though our travels and our writings. We have connected our audience with our subjects and their endeavors and are building a global community. It has been truly inspirational meeting and working with our subjects and there are days that my heart is full to bursting and confirms my belief in this project.

Post-Production
When we return in September, my first priority will be to edit the videos that I promised in barter arrangements. And hopefully at the end of the month, I will begin the edit. It will most likely take me a month just to log and transcode the footage and sync the audio in the situations where it was captured independently. I’m confident in my editing abilities but I would love to work with a pro. So if there is a pro out there reading this who would love to get involved in a fabulous documentary – I’d love to hear from you.

Distribution
Not really thinking about this part right now other than to use social media and perhaps itunes and Amazon to distribute it. But I have faith in this project and something tells me that this will take on a life of its own. It’s a feel good story and we’ve already gotten a lot of support and interest.

At any rate it’s the trip of a lifetime and I’m taking it with my daughter so I’ve already been blessed.

June 28, 2010June 24, 2010

Biggest Mistakes Made Shooting Video with DLSR’s

I’ve been working quite a bit lately with both the Canon 5D Mark II and the Canon 7D, shooting video. I’ve been shooting video with traditional video cameras for the last 11 years so I wasn’t in the dark as to how to shoot motion. But I’m not ashamed to say that I’ve made my share of mistakes with these hybrids.

Here are a few to watch out for:

Don’t forget about audio. So many still photographers forget the importance of audio and then what they are left with are a bunch of video clips with lousy or unusable sound.
Don’t capture audio with the camera mic. You’ll never get good sound if you do. I also stay away from plugging in an external mic with the mini stereo plug.
Don’t turn off the camera mic when using an independent audio recorder. It’s always good to have the audio recorded to cards through the camera to use as a reference when syncing the sound later in post.
Don’t discount reading the manuals. A lot of shooters think since they are coming from a photographic background, they don’t need to read the manuals. There are big differences when shooting video – make sure you read the manuals about some of the nuances and avoid making stupid mistakes.
Don’t shoot video like a still photographer. Remember video is time in motion – so let motion play out in the camera. Let subjects move in and out of your frame. Let the camera roll – don’t shoot moments in time.
Don’t forget about the story and sequencing. I usually see the big picture when I’m shooting. I think about the finished completed movie in my mind’s eye so when I’m shooting I’m always thinking about what is coming next – where will I go from this shot – where did I come from. If you don’t think like this then you’ll have a disconnected mess that won’t be easy to edit.
Don’t be sneaky. These cameras look and are still cameras. Don’t deceive people into thinking that you’re not shooting video and/or sound.
Get it right in camera. Unlike still photographs, video doesn’t do as well when it’s over manipulated or corrected in post, especially when trying to crop or enlarge the image.
Don’t skimp on you shots. When shooting b-roll video – you’ll need lots of it to tell the story in post. Shoot different focal lengths as well as angles for variety to cut to.

10. Don’t shoot verticals. I know, I know there will be some of you that will disagree with me but if you want a vertical – don’t turn the camera sideways – crop the vertical in post. A contradiction perhaps to #9 you say. Well there are always exceptions.

June 25, 2010June 23, 2010

Packing for 3-Month HDSLR Shoot – Too Much or Too Little?

When I embarked on my 3-month journey to create a documentary Opening Our Eyes, I posted a blog entry about what I was packing. http://tiny.cc/7pc9f

I received quite a few comments – publicly posted and otherwise and many people remarked that I was taking too much. After one month into this sojourn, I thought perhaps an update would be in order.

The main verdict is – my hunches were pretty much on target and I didn’t over pack. Sure it’s a lot to carry – but there are two of us and it all fits into two medium sized photo backpacks. I have used all the lenses that I brought except my old Nikon fixed lenses that I planned to use with the converter. Those I could have left behind – but the trip is not over yet so I’ll have to wait on that determination.

Bringing two camera bodies is a must if only from a back up point of view but when shooting stills as well as video, it’s a lot faster to have one dedicated for video and one for stills, especially when shooting with the Zacuto Z-Finder and rig.

And bringing two laptops has proven to be a very smart move. I had recently purchased a new Mac laptop with the latest operating system and there have been numerous times when I could not connect with the Internet – but the older laptop (2 years old) has had no problems. That and with limited Internet time, when we are able to get online, having two computers has saved a lot of arguments over computer time between my daughter and myself. We take full advantage in the airline club lounges to upload items and check email while waiting for flights. I have also had to rely on my extra laptop battery for the older Mac as the original battery was no longer holding a charge for more than an hour.

My audio equipment is sufficient and I am constantly switching back and forth between capturing my audio directly to the camera cards with the JuicedLink DT454 and separately with the H4n Zoom. One item I do not have that I really need is a male-to-male XLR cord. I found out that I couldn’t use my wireless set with either the JuicedLink or the Zoom because they both need male ends and I only have male to female XLR cords. I keep thinking there must be a solution that I’m overlooking so if someone has any thoughts – please let me know.

The small Matthews boom stand rig that I put together is terrific. It was meant to be used for table top studio shooting but for me it is perfect because it breaks down into multiple pieces, is light weight and easy to use.

I’m backing everything up onto two hard drives and I have just now used up the first two (500 G) drives. That leaves me with 6 more drives which is just about perfect depending on how much I will shoot.

Lastly, my iPod has helped with my sanity on these long flights and layovers and my Blackberry Tour phone has worked everywhere and it simply amazes me. Many times it has been our only connection to home. So I have to give kudos to Verizon and their global service. I’m truly impressed. Still a lot of remote places to go – so we’ll see how well it does as we move on.

I stop and think about the equipment we are carrying and the new technology and how this would not have been possible just 5 years ago. It’s an amazing time we live in and I’m taking full advantage of it. Can’t wait to see what the future will bring.

June 23, 2010June 24, 2010

Planes, Trains and Automobiles – With Photo Gear

I am about a third of the way through my 3-month round the world trip working on a personal project and documentary, Opening Our Eyes. I’m holding up pretty well – better than I thought actually. After all, it’s a whole lot different putting myself to this test this time, more than 35 years after my first adventure around the world. Besides being older, I’m carrying a lot more expensive photo and video gear with me and I have a job to do. Yes, it’s a personal project and not an assigned job, but for someone like me, I take it with the same commitment and responsibility that I would if I was shooting for a client. In fact, if anything I have a more vested interest and push myself harder. But I’m not alone, I’m traveling and working with my 23 year old daughter Erin

Istanbul-5312 copy — Erin wearing a GoPro Helmet Cam at Spice Bazaar in Istanbul

and having her along has made all the difference in the Without her, this project would have been much different and harder on me. Besides being attentive to the travel logistics with the multitude of flights we need to make, the hotels we need to arrange and find once we arrive at our destinations and coordinating our subjects all over the globe, we need to be constantly attentive to our security and safety. When traveling with photo equipment – and a lot of it – my daughter and I must be forever diligent and aware of our surroundings. I’m fortunate that my daughter is along for this trip because we watch each other’s backs, especially when shooting in bazaars or traveling on public transportation.

Many days I feel like I have two jobs to do – one being that of a creative and making sure I get the images and video that I need for our project and the other being that of a travel agent. Fortunately for me, I’ve been facilitating my own travel arrangements as long as I can remember and I’m good at it. I’ve also built up a kind of sixth sense and I’m streetwise which seems to keep us out of trouble and harm’s way. I sense danger and go the other direction.

We’ve managed to keep a balance of down time and project time, leaving a little room for error because not everything goes according to plan. Plus, travel does take its toll and some days we just need to give into our bodies telling us to take time out. When I’ve finished this sojourn, I could write a book – in fact I could probably write a couple of books – on travel – on passion projects or on shooting a documentary with HDSLR’s. Maybe I will after I get the postproduction done on this project. Or maybe I’ll just take a vacation – at home.

June 17, 2010June 17, 2010

The Problems and Pitfalls of HDSLR’s and Video

I have been working intensively with the Canon 5D Mark II and the Canon 7D, filming a documentary Opening Our Eyes. I have discovered the good and the bad with the video functions of these cameras.

The visual is stunning and there is no argument there but there is a lot more to video than the image and therein lies the difference between the HDSLR’s and a traditional video camera.

First and foremost the audio is a bit clunky. I’m shooting both interviews and b-roll. For my interviews, I opted to capture my audio separately and I will sync it later in postproduction. I am using the Samson H4N digital recorder. It is a phenomenal tool but I did discover one big issue that I should make everyone aware of – especially those of you that don’t like to read manuals. You can use this device with “AA” batteries or with an AC adaptor. Because of some of the remote locations I’m working in, I am mostly using it in battery mode. It devours batteries. It says the battery life is about 6 hours – but I think perhaps it’s more like 4 hours realistically. It seems like we barely get through an interview session and we need to change batteries.

Here is where I need to issue a WARNING – when changing batteries – always turn the unit off or you can corrupt the audio files. I found that out the hard way and I had numerous files corrupted. The information was there but it could not be accessed. Had I fully read the manual – I would have known this problem, but I didn’t and in my haste so as not to keep my subject waiting, I didn’t turn the unit off because it takes some time to boot up again. Luckily in my case I have the camera audio, which I always use as a reference, and even though the audio is not ideal, I will only be using the audio as a low-level background audio with an interpreter’s voiceover as the primary audio.

Another problem I have with these cameras is the short durations that you can film – less than 12 minutes for the Canons. A couple of times my subjects have been deep in conversation with very emotional moments – and the camera stops. I know this will happen, but what am I to do – stop them in mid sentence as they tell their stories with tears in their eyes? So for me working in documentary style as opposed to storyboarded films – these short durations is a major issue.

Lastly, the fact that you can change lenses has its pluses and minuses. The pluses are obvious but when shooting video I am shooting lots of variations – wide, medium and tight shots from different angles and moving quickly as I do. It slows me down to change lenses and since I’m shooting journalistically, I’m apt to miss some good moments when I do.

Like anything else, these cameras have their pros and cons. But what I’d really like to see is a video camera with a big chip. I’m hoping the manufacturers are listening and that will be the next generation of cameras.

June 10, 2010

Having Fun with the GoPro Hero Helmet Cam

One of the great gadgets I saw at NAB this year was the HD Hero camera from GoPro. It’s intended to be an adventure sports camera that can be mounted on anything from a surfboard to a helmet to the side of a vehicle but we’ve been having fun with it on our Opening Our Eyes journey going through markets and bazaars.

We had a fabulous day in Istanbul today before heading to our next subject in Warsaw, Poland. After seeing some of the great landmarks in the city, we spent a couple of hours walking through the Grand Bazaar wearing this amazing little camera strapped to our head. Depending on how fluid your stride is, you can get some stunning hi res imagery that gives a viewer the feeling that they are having the experience themselves.

You cannot preview the image you’ll get as there is no eyepiece, but the lens is a wide angle lens with auto exposure and auto focus so shooting blind isn’t such a crap shoot. You have to do a bit of testing to determine how it reacts to various light conditions but the exposure compensates nicely as the lighting situation changes and it’s pretty much right on target. The audio is also pretty good quality, at least for any b-roll shooting.

For the price and the ease of use, the imagery this camera shoots is spectacular and it’s a lot of fun shooting in situations where you might not be able to use a larger camera. I’m suitably impressed and I haven’t even really tested all the capabilities.

We had a lot of fun today with it in the Grand Bazaar and got a lot of funny looks and comments. Check out our walk through Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar and see for yourself.

June 9, 2010

Back to My Beginnings

I became a visual artist , not as a photographer, not as a filmmaker, but as a storyteller using images and later video to tell the tales of other cultures, lands and people through my eyes and my journeys. My camera was my tool – it was a means to an end. The end being the story that needed to be told.

I’ve spent the last 30 some years documenting the world through my lens, whether it be for magazines like the National Geographic Traveler, Smithsonian or Travel & Leisure or for major corporations. I’ve been blessed and have truly lived a charmed life. But there have been times when I’ve started to go off kilter – or stray from the essence of my being. It’s easy to do, especially in a culture that is obsessed with the drive to succeed – the definition of success being to make a lot of money and have a lot of “things”. Don’t get me wrong – I also enjoy the rewards that money brings – but for me that means having the resources that help me to live a full life.

A few years back I was shooting a documentary on the Delta Blues Musicians and I spent a memorable afternoon with blues drummer Sam Carr. As we were winding up our conversation under the shade of old tree he sat back and said “I’ve lived a rich man’s life in a poor man’s shoes”. That comment has stayed with me over time and when Sam died last year, I was told that his family was grateful for the interview that I captured that day and used his comment as his epitaph. I was humbled and honored, but mostly felt richly rewarded that my personal project had touched the lives of others.

As we wind up our first stop in Africa on our round-the-world trip, some of the fears and trepidations I had that came with taking a risk, and heading out to the unknown for 3 months, have vanished. In their place is the calming realization that this was what I needed to do at this point in my life and I was grateful I had the means to do it and the stamina to travel on a shoestring budget. Africa puts things into perspective – this vast continent is so wild, colorful, rich, poor, exhausting and exhilarating all at the same time. Africa has taken its hold on me and has sparked my true spirit.

My daughter and I decided to take some time to get out of the city and go to Murchison Falls National Park, after shooting the first part of our documentary about people making a positive difference in the world. We saw

Murchison-1772 copy — Elephants along the Nile

elephants, hippos,

giraffes,

Murchison-1311 copy — Giraffe, Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda

antelope, cape buffalo, baboons,

Murchison-1607 copy — Baboon, Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda

slept in a tent and sat by a fire in the evenings under a canopy of stars that stretched from horizon to horizon. We chatted with people from countries all over the globe – all of us different yet with a common cause – the love of the journey.

Of course I shot still photos

Murchison-1161 copy — Cape Buffalo, Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda

as well as some VIDEO but more importantly I absorbed this rich experience and it energized my spirit and my soul. This is the “fire” that I need every now and then. I think we all need a spark every once in awhile and to get past the science of the photographic craft and back to the essence of the art and the story. That is what ultimately leads us to create the kind of visuals that will resonate with others. That spark is different for all of us but nevertheless an essential ingredient for the creative process. It’s not the tools, nor the techniques that define the message or create the images that strike a lasting chord with those who see them. I was fortunate that I learned that years ago and now I’m reminded of those lessons as I get back to my beginnings.

We leave Africa today and continue our journey – next stop Istanbul, Turkey and then on to Poland where our next subject awaits.

June 2, 2010June 2, 2010

Photographers and Video

I’ve been reading a lot of the still photography forums over the past few weeks and I’ve seen a lot of questions about capturing sound with the hybrid HDSLR’s. I’ve also seen some misleading information so I’ve decided to take a few minutes to clear up some misconceptions.

First – Audio is everything in video. People can tolerate a mediocre image but if they can’t understand or hear the audio – they won’t watch. See for yourself – turn the sound down on your TV and see how long you stay interested in the program – even if the image is stunning.

Second – You have many options of capturing audio with the HDSLR’s depending on what you are shooting. I think many still photographers assume everyone is going to be shooting “indie films” with crews. One of the things I find appealing about some of the new technology is that you don’t necessarily need a large crew and a Hollywood budget. And sometimes, if discretion is in order, you’re better off with a small crew. With that said – you should know how to capture good audio.

Third – NEVER use the camera to capture audio – it just isn’t good enough. And I would probably say that you shouldn’t plug an external mic into the camera via the mini plug. I don’t think the audio quality is good enough, especially for an interview.

Fourth – Either use a pre-amp with XLR inputs like a Beachtek or JuicedLink and an external microphone. Make sure you get the mic close to the audio you want to capture. And most importantly monitor the audio through a good set of headphones.

Fifth – Capture your audio independently with a good quality digital recorder like the Samson H4n Zoom and sync it later in post. Syncing sound in post is a snap with a great software application called Plural Eyes.

Lastly – Audio is everything! And remember as you add video to your skill set, you’ll be using your ears as much as your eyes.

June 1, 2010

Outside My Comfort Zone

The older one gets and the more settled one gets in their own ways, the more difficult it is to push oneself outside their own comfort zone. I know this full well, as I am now immersed in a project and a journey where I’m pushing myself every minute of my day and will be doing so for the next three months.

I’m in Uganda, Africa right now and every day I face several challenges. Everything from attending to my personal needs and safety, to negotiating taxi rides and reconfirming upcoming flights to making sure that I’m getting the content that I will need to create the documentary I’m working on, Opening Our Eyes. Little things become much harder and take a lot longer to deal with than if I were at home. And every minute it seems like I’m facing a new learning curve.

Last night, for some inexplicable reason I couldn’t get an internet connection with my laptop. Nothing had changed from the night before when I was online for a good 3 hours, yet all of a sudden – I couldn’t get online. Since I’m working with a digital workflow and totally dependent on a computer, I brought a backup laptop just in case. The “just in case” scenario has already come into play and that backup laptop has become my connection. A few weeks ago when I wrote the blog My DSLR Kit for My 3-Month Road Trip, I received numerous comments telling me that I was taking too much stuff. A part of me agreed but after only one week into this trip, I have used every piece of gear that I had packed. Call it paranoia or the voice of experience but I’m glad that I have the backup, regardless of the extra gear it necessitates.

Building a comfort zone happens gradually, where you set up your business and lifestyle and things click into place over time. But nothing ever stays the same in life and if you’re not proactive, before you know it you get in a rut – whether it be a creative rut or otherwise and when change happens – and it always does – your comfort zone disappears regardless if you were the one that made that a conscious decision or not.

I’ve always known when to “rock my own boat” – when I’ve become dangerously too complacent. I knew at this point in my life it was time that I really push myself outside my norm and as hard as it is at times, I’m confident it will bring great rewards my way. It already has.

Any time I leave the country, especially since I’m usually shooting when I do, I challenge myself on many levels. Yesterday, we were following one of our subjects through a crowded downtown area in Kampala as she went about her errands and searched for just the right fabric in various shops. It was chaotic and a test of nerves as we made our way through the crowded streets dodging vendors, scooters and buses. We were also testing our GoPro Hero helmet cam which was a lot of fun. It was hard enough to blend in being the only “mzungus” (whites) on the street, let alone wearing a camera on your forehead. But check out the VIDEO and see for yourself how it is to negotiate your way through the streets of Kampala. And that’s what I love about this little “adventure sports” camera – it makes the viewer feel like they are part of the action. You can also see what I mean when I say that I am pushing myself out of my comfort zone.

May 30, 2010

Shooting Video in the Field with the Canon 5D Mark II

The first two days of our Round the World Journey, shooting the documentary Opening Our Eyes has been quite full and I’ve faced numerous situations – really putting my tools to the test.

Our first full day was spent at the offices of Wrap Up Africa, which are located in Kampala, Uganda. In addition to shooting b-roll of tailors at work, we shot several interviews. Our main interview was with Wrap Up Africa’s founder, Letha Sandison, followed by interviews of a couple of her staff members. We also did interviews of some of the cancer victims that Letha has helped. Here is where I not only needed to be attentive to my technical details but be sensitive to the situation and the people that I was interviewing. Hearing some of their stories is heartbreaking and hard for many Americans to fathom. Sure, we all watch the travesties taking place throughout the world on the nightly news, but it’s quite another experience to speak with people who have experienced horrendous tragedies in their lives that are simply unimaginable.

One woman, Evelyn who works for Letha had been abducted and held captive by the LRA, which stands for the Lord’s Resistance Army, and is not exactly a charitable group. She managed to escape after most of her family had been killed in front of her. She is now raising three orphans who had been victims as well and works with Letha, helping others.

Our set up was simple and deliberately so. I set up the Canon 5D Mark II and captured my audio separately with the H4N Zoom. I had two mics – one shotgun on a small boom stand and another lav. I will sync them later in post. We chose a room that had ample window light as we are traveling with only a small camera light and nothing else. Our biggest challenge was that the cabinet installer decided to do his work the day we were shooting – so the sounds of hammering and drilling made up our ambient background sound. But the mics were placed close to our subjects and did a pretty good job of boosting their audio above the din of the environment.

The next situation we faced was shooting b-roll in the dirty environments of a potter’s studio and a foundry. Again we used the Zoom to pick up the ambient sound of the environments. After a morning with the artists, we packed up quickly and headed to Mulago Hospital to visit the children’s cancer ward. We were not allowed to shoot video but we did shoot some still images and was happy to have the hybrid cameras that captured beautiful files – far better than frame grabs from a traditional video camera.

Then we headed to the market, which as usual is always a trying experience. For anyone who has traveled to congested third world environments, you know what I mean by “trying experience”. You must be aware of your personal belongings at all times, while shooting and I wish at times that I had eyes in the back of my head. On top of that I’m sensitive to those that don’t want to be photographed. It’s exhausting but at the same time exhilarating because of the exotic nature of the environment. My daughter wore the GoPro Hero helmet cam that is a tiny camera made for adventure sports but she had a lot of fun walking through the market recording the event with running video as we walked through the market.

I was shooting video with the Canon 5D Mark II and used a shotgun mic on top of the camera and run through a JuicedLink audio mixer. I’m embarrassed to say that somehow, even after lots of testing – I came back with no audio! Luckily the helmet cam Hero picked up very good ambient audio so I’m able to use that and layer it in post. In the chaos and confusion of the market, I probably didn’t set it up right and today I will do additional testing so as not to make that mistake in the future. But the video was captured beautifully and I will interweave those clips into the documentary with sound from the interviews and ambient sound from the Hero.

I am realizing one thing though and that there is nothing easy or streamlined when shooting video with these hybrid cameras. The results are stunning, but the shoot and workflow are much more tedious than when shooting with a video camera. Perhaps at the end of this three-month journey, I’ll be singing a different tune – I certainly hope so.

I’ll keep you posted as I get access to the Internet, which is iffy, and we’ve been off line for the last two days. But there’s something humbling about being off the grid and I’m learning to take it in stride and appreciate what I have. Today is Sunday and we are resting and storing up a bit of energy for the coming week. Please read more about our journey at Opening Our Eyes.