Question 3 for CCR post

    The next CCR question that I have to tackle is "How did your production skills develop?". This question is essentially asking me go back and reflect on how I have improved throughout the year of being in this course and to point out the specific steps I took during this project to reinforce my abilities.

    It is safe to say that time humbles you. When I walked into this class for the first time I had it in my mind that I was already pretty well-versed in the process of producing quality media content. This is opinion was largely based on the fact that I has previous experience making content via YouTube videos for 3 years at that point.  However, I quickly came to the realization that although my previous work may have appeared good in my eyes, I would almost always make my decisions based purely on instinct, rather than properly thinking through the how I was going to execute the idea. As I progressed throughout the year, I would frequently look back at my previous work and see issues with is that would end up annoying me today but would never have even crossed my mind before. This shift from instinct to planning and deep analysis shows the progress I have made throughout the corse in the most prominent way. I used to think I was thoughtful and put allot of work into my creations, today I would have to disagree.

    Going into this project, I made it a goal of mine to push the envelope of my standards even further. I wanted to come out of this project reflecting on my previous projects for this class thinking the same way as I do about my previous videos. One area I have been lacking in for the entire year is lighting, so I got to work making sure that would not be the case with this project. In my previous work for this class, I would normally take maybe 2-3 takes for each shot, and not even think too deeply about lighting. With this project however, I made that priority number one to rectify. Because of this new found dedication, I ended up taking around 5-10 shots per scene to guarantee excellency in comparison to my previous work. The time and dedication needed did require patience, but it was all worth it since it translated to the quality of my production being increased. Bellow I will show a screenshot of one of my first projects, and a screenshot of my current project.

One of my earlier projects, shot is not visually
appealing and face has a obvious shadow

Current project, lighting looks allot more intentional,
and the shot is allot more visually appealing.

Script:

At the beginning of this school year, I had a decent amount of experience with filming and editing, as I used to upload videos on YouTube on topics that I liked. However, I never understood the why in what I was doing, and I never would put real thought or planning into what I was doing. As I advanced throughout the year, I improved my camera skills, how to more effectively frame shots, and how to use lighting to create a more professional look, this especially was something that I lacked understanding in.

I also developed my editing skills, which I used to think where pretty good, there is a weird sense of nostalgia that comes with looking at my past work. By experimenting with different software, and allot of trial and error I learned how to cut clips more effectively and add transitions in a way that made my work more engaging. Specifically, I learned that the more simple the transitions and editing was, the better the outcome of the piece as a whole was.

Overall, I became more confident as a content creator, and while I have gone a while since I made my last video on YouTube, this class and project has inspired me to give it a second shot. Who knows maybe I get back into content creation and will continue to learn. Maybe one day after a while of practice I will look back at this final project and feel that same feeling of discomfort and strange hint of disappointment that I have right now looking at the videos I made before being in this class.