Create Your Own Digital Movies

Pam Strayer has been a documentary filmmaker since the mid 1980s and a media creator at the forefront of the digital creativity frontier for the last 15 years. Creative consultant and director of video on the ground-breaking 1992 CD-ROM, From Alice to Ocean, which launched the CD-ROM publishing industry, she has written numerous books on educational software for Apple and made films for teachers for the California State Dept. of Education on using computers in the classroom. She has taught and lectured on multimedia widely at industry conferences and Bay Area schools and is the recipient of a PBS Women's Management training grant and an American Film Institute multimedia fellowship.

Welcome to Create Your Own Digital Movies.

1. Welcome to the Wonderful World of Digital Video.

    Great Shooting = Easy Editing

    Discovering Your Digital Movie Style

    Digital Movie Gear

    What to Look for in a Digital Video Camcorder

    What to Look for in Shooting Accessories and Editing Equipment

    Movie Editing Software and Computer Requirements

    Summary

2. Shooting Digital Movies.

    Using What You Already Know

    Shots and Sequences: The Building Blocks of Movies

    Examples of Shot Types

    Action and Directing

    Directing

    Audio

    Top 10 Camera Essentials

    1. On/Off

    2. Record/Standby

    3. Widen/Tighten

    4. Inserting Tape

    5. Autofocus and Manual Focus

    6. Batteries

    7. Camera Case

    8. Tripod

    9. External Microphone

    10. White Balance

    Top 10 Tips for Shooting Video

    1. Use a Tripod As Often As You Can

    2. Learn How to Shoot Stable Handheld Shots

    3. Avoid Frequent Panning and Zooming

    4. Hold Your Shot

    5. Shoot a Lot

    6. Get Good Audio

    7. Leave Headroom

    8. Know When to Use Manual Focus

    9. Compose Your Shots

    10. Watch Your Lighting

    Summary

3. Editing Basics: Movie Maker and More.

    Getting Acquainted with Movie Maker: The Grand Tour

    Finding Movie Maker

    Opening Movie Maker

    Exploring Movie Maker

    Movie Maker Projects

    Your First Editing Exercise

    Step 1: Check Disk Space

    Step 2: Connect Your Camcorder to Your Computer

    Step 3: Capture Video

    Step 4: Import Music

    Step 5: Import Photo

    Step 6: Organize and Combine Your Collections

    Step 7: Edit

    Step 8: Trim Clips

    Step 9: Add Music

    Step 10: Add Transitions

    Step 11: Add Titles

    Step 12: Rough Cut to Fine Cut

    Step 13: Finish Video

    Let Your Computer Do the Editing: Using AutoMovie

    Top 10 Tips for Editing Video

    1. Create a Beginning, a Middle, and an End

    2. Select the Clips You Like Best

    3. Make Sequences

    4. Less Is More

    5. Learn How to Edit Audio

    6. Use Music

    7. Trim Your Clips

    8. Refine and Tweak Until the Last Minute

    9. Get a Second Opinion

    10. Finalize Your Movie

    Summary

4. Saving and Sharing Digital Movies.

    Using Different Formats

    Using Movie Maker's Finish Movie Section

    Using the Save Movie Wizard

    Saving to CD

    Sending in Email

    Sending to the Web

    Sending to a DV Camera

    Summary

5. Project 1: Creating Birthday Party and Baby Movies.

    Making Birthday Party Movies

    Getting Ready for Your Shoot

    Shooting a Birthday Party Movie

    Editing Your Birthday Party Movie

    Making Baby Movies

    Shooting a Baby Movie

    Editing Your Baby Movie

    Summary

6. Project 2: Making Travel and Vacation Movies.

    Creative Approaches to Making Travel and Vacation Movies

    Getting Ready for Your Shoot

    Shooting a Travel or Vacation Movie

    Shots to Get Before the Trip Begins

    Shots to Get During the Trip

    Shots to Get After Your Trip Is Over

    Editing Your Travel or Vacation Movie

    Basic Editing Steps

    Summary

7. Project 3: Making Sporting Event Movies.

    Creative Approaches to Making Sports Movies

    Getting Ready for Your Shoot

    Shooting Your Sports Movie

    Shots to Get Before the Event

    Shots to Get During the Event

    Shots to Get After the Event

    Editing Your Sports Movie

    Basic Editing Steps

    Summary

8. Project 4: Making School Play (and Other Live Event) Movies.

    Creative Approaches to Making Live Event Movies

    Getting Ready for Your Shoot

    Shooting Your Live Event Movie

    Shots to Get Before the Event Begins

    Shots to Get During the Performance

    Shots to Get After the Event

    Editing Your Live Event Movie

    Basic Editing Steps

    Summary

9. Project 5: Making Family Memory Movies.

    Getting Ready to Make a Family Memory Movie

    Don't Put Yourself on a Tight Time Schedule

    Ask Others to Help

    Start Simple

    Grow Your Project Organically Over Time

    Think (and Act) Like an Archivist

    Creating Photo Slideshow Memory Movies

    Getting Organized

    A Sample Slideshow Movie: A Memorial

    Editing Photo Slideshow Memory Movies

    Digitizing Old Movies and VHS (and Other Format) Tapes

    Digitizing Films

    Digitizing VHS (and Other Format) Tapes

    Getting Ready to Shoot an Oral History Movie

    Shooting an Oral History Movie

    Tips for Conducting Your Interview

    Conducting a Good Interview

    Shooting a Family Reunion

    Editing Family Memory Movies

    Basic Editing Steps

    Summary

10. Resources for Learning.

    Polishing Your Skills and Upgrading Your Tools

    Learning How to Shoot Better

    Improving Your Movie Maker Skills

    Upgrading Your Editing Software

    The Latest Video Trends

    Mobile Media

    Video Blogging

    Video As a Sport

    Summary

Index.