Filming Issues

Issues whilst filming (first shoot)

Due to the amount of planning, prior to our shoot, everything should have run smoothly. However, we encountered multiple issues that meant that this was not the case. On the first day of filming we discovered that our Sony Z1was faulty; it would allow us to film for a few minutes at a time before a battery error message appeared and the camera would shut down. We returned to the hostel to charge the batteries the first time we encountered this issue, however the problem persisted as we continued to film. Eventually we realised it was potentially due to a faulty connection between the battery and the camera, however there was nothing we could do to resolve the issue, save from returning to Sheffield and collecting another camera (an undertaking that would consume far too much time). Due to this issue we were forced to finish filming early on the first day and as such missed out on obtaining some establishing shots and an interview we had planned to obtain on that day. We did however, manage to film some of our interview with 'the faces of disco' before the problem arose.

To solve the faulty camera issue we managed to obtain a course mates cannon DSLR, which meant that we didn't have to abandon the project as a result of loosing the Z1. Whilst this allowed us to continue filming, it was not without its own problems. Firstly none of us had used a DSLR before and as such were unfamiliar with its settings. We began filming and promptly realised that it was not storing the footage we were collecting. Being inexperienced with this camera it took us a while to work out that we were using the wrong type of memory card. As such were forced to buy a new card and started our shoot again properly. I feel I adapted well to the camera and quickly learned how to make the most of the DSLR's capabilities and limitations. For example we used the camera's excellent depth of focus to great affect and produced some very striking compositions. We did however struggle to obtain the establishing shots were hoping for due to the new camera's poor zoom. I feel we managed to obtain some high quality footage however, despite our inexperience. Another issue we faced due to our inexperience was the problem of memory; throughout the day we were forced multiple times, to stop shooting and buy new memory cards (a problem we had not encountered before because we had only ever filmed using tape). We then realised this problem was occurring because we were filming in a incredibly high, memory intensive frame rate, this is an issue I now have the skill set to avoid on future shoots.

Another issue we faced as a result of loosing the Z1 affected the film's sound. We had originally planned to attach a rifle mic to the camera when recording our interviews, however we did not have an adaptor for the cannon and as such were forced to use the marantz as we had the appropriate xlr lead. Whilst this was not a massive problem it did give us an extra job whilst editing, as we had to synch the sound to the video at a later stage.

Perhaps the biggest mistake made on this shoot was the decision to not always shoot using a tripod; our multiple set backs meant that we were behind schedule and as such we often rushed to set up the camera without using the tripod. On reflection this was a very poor decision on my behalf as it meant that a lot of our shots at the docks were very shaky. I have taken this as a learning process though and will take extra care to set up the tripod properly on future shoots, especially when using the zoom.