I was trained to shoot and edit video while working for a regional newspaper group and some of the examples here are from that time. It’s an essential tool to tell a story and many of the skills required stem from stills photography experience. Not every occasion lends itself to video, but those that do work well and impart information quickly in a short video format intended for a fast moving and impatient web audience.
Shot to accompany a still images feature on the Royal British Legion poppy Factory in Richmond. A perfect example of how video can quickly explain and deliver information to the viewer.
Showcasing the amazing memory skills of the 8 times world memory champion Dominic O' Brien while he was an adjudicator at the UK championships.
Shot in 2008 as a video feature on the Herts Air Ambulance for a regional newspaper. The aim was to spend time with the crew and maybe accompany a flight. On arrival they were out on multiple shouts and after hours of waiting for their return I shot a single landing of the helicopter on their return. The crew too tired to participate in anything but a short interview I left with very little content to build a watchable and informative short. The challenge became the edit.
A friend who lived on a house boat on the Grand Union canal remarked to me on how funny it was watching the swans and ducks falling around on the frozen water during the cold snap of Winter 2008/09. I and the camera batteries wrapped up early one morning to capture their antics on not the canal, but a nearby frozen aquadrome. They all duly ‘danced’ and performed on cue. There was, of course only one piece of music that it could all be edited to.
A research project undertaken at Herts University to create the worlds most relaxing room.
I seemed to be constantly assigned to video Nick Clegg the then little known leader of the Liberal Democrats in 2008. I always found him to be very accommodating to the fledgling video shooter and instantly liked him. I remember asking him to announce who he was for the soundtrack as I gently explained that no one really knew who he was. I probably wouldn’t bother today.
A feature on the annual St Albans beer festival. The very dark auditorium posed problems for the tape based video cameras of 2009. Today's low light ISO cameras would have taken this in their stride!