Answering a question...
Jan. 3rd, 2014 01:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ash48A vidding one for the lovely ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
cassiopeia7
How long does it take you to create a three-to-four minute vid? From Muse inspiration to gathering clips and choosing music, to assembly (and the most amazing part to me, cutting on-the-beat), to the editing process, to knocking us all dead with another killer fanvid? How labor-intensive is the average SPN vid? (I know we all appreciate the work you do, but I have a feeling that many of us have no IDEA how hard you work on these masterpieces.)
A tricky question because it's really hard to gauge exactly how long a vid takes to make. Mostly because I grab time when I can - sometimes a good solid 4 hour block, or maybe just half an hour.
I seem to be making fewer and fewer 3-4 minute vids these days (more like 1 - 2min vids). They really do take a long time and these days I just don't seem to be able to find it OR I just don't have the patience to be working on something for so long.
But I can give some ball park figures. If I had a three minute vid to make I would want to have a least 4 weeks up my sleeve to work on it (possibly longer). Assuming I can spend a few nights a week working on it (about 3 hours each night) and maybe a Saturday or Sunday (another 3-4 hours). That would equate to about 48 hours. Then time would have to be added for tweaking it after a beta had seen it. Sometimes that can take a heap more time (depending how well the vid is working after the initial draft).
I find it hard to work on a vid for over 3-4 hours in one hit because my brain goes a bit numb. It's also hard to keep a good perspective when working that closely on it. I like to do a chunk (maybe 20secs) and leave it for a day or two and then go back to it. I find that gives me a sense of whether it's working or not.
The longest part of the process is gathering the clips. It takes ages and it's pretty boring. The best (and most fun!) part is working with the clips and nutting out how they best work to the beat - and manage to tell some sort of story. It can also be very frustrating when it refuses to work.
I used to gather the majority of my clips before I started editing but these days I like to mix the two. Gather some clips (which requires remembering where the footage is - and after 9 seasons that's getting increasingly difficult - dropping the ep into a clipping program (I use MPEG Streamclip), finding the clip, marking the section you want and then converting/saving it) and then edit a section. Of course it depends on the type of vid. When I made the recent J2 vid I clipped ALL the footage before I even began. It took friggin' ages. The No Surrender vid was a mix - the first half didn't take as long as the second half because I mostly had all the clips AND I know the footage pretty well. The second half was a lot of the newer seasons so I had to clip all those. That vid took about 5 weeks to make.
Oops. Long answer. Get me talking about vidding and that's what happens. ;)
Thanks for your question. And for the opportunity to chat about my passion.
xx
cassiopeia7How long does it take you to create a three-to-four minute vid? From Muse inspiration to gathering clips and choosing music, to assembly (and the most amazing part to me, cutting on-the-beat), to the editing process, to knocking us all dead with another killer fanvid? How labor-intensive is the average SPN vid? (I know we all appreciate the work you do, but I have a feeling that many of us have no IDEA how hard you work on these masterpieces.)
A tricky question because it's really hard to gauge exactly how long a vid takes to make. Mostly because I grab time when I can - sometimes a good solid 4 hour block, or maybe just half an hour.
I seem to be making fewer and fewer 3-4 minute vids these days (more like 1 - 2min vids). They really do take a long time and these days I just don't seem to be able to find it OR I just don't have the patience to be working on something for so long.
But I can give some ball park figures. If I had a three minute vid to make I would want to have a least 4 weeks up my sleeve to work on it (possibly longer). Assuming I can spend a few nights a week working on it (about 3 hours each night) and maybe a Saturday or Sunday (another 3-4 hours). That would equate to about 48 hours. Then time would have to be added for tweaking it after a beta had seen it. Sometimes that can take a heap more time (depending how well the vid is working after the initial draft).
I find it hard to work on a vid for over 3-4 hours in one hit because my brain goes a bit numb. It's also hard to keep a good perspective when working that closely on it. I like to do a chunk (maybe 20secs) and leave it for a day or two and then go back to it. I find that gives me a sense of whether it's working or not.
The longest part of the process is gathering the clips. It takes ages and it's pretty boring. The best (and most fun!) part is working with the clips and nutting out how they best work to the beat - and manage to tell some sort of story. It can also be very frustrating when it refuses to work.
I used to gather the majority of my clips before I started editing but these days I like to mix the two. Gather some clips (which requires remembering where the footage is - and after 9 seasons that's getting increasingly difficult - dropping the ep into a clipping program (I use MPEG Streamclip), finding the clip, marking the section you want and then converting/saving it) and then edit a section. Of course it depends on the type of vid. When I made the recent J2 vid I clipped ALL the footage before I even began. It took friggin' ages. The No Surrender vid was a mix - the first half didn't take as long as the second half because I mostly had all the clips AND I know the footage pretty well. The second half was a lot of the newer seasons so I had to clip all those. That vid took about 5 weeks to make.
Oops. Long answer. Get me talking about vidding and that's what happens. ;)
Thanks for your question. And for the opportunity to chat about my passion.
xx
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2014-01-03 11:54 am (UTC)How does that work when you've got all of your 20-second chunks working, then have to knit them together into the seamless final project?
I don't make them in separate chucks, rather just work on certain amount at a time (I didn't explain that very well.../o\). Sometimes it might only be 10 seconds, other times it might be 30 - depends how well it's going. I also like to work from the start to the end - I find it really difficult to move to a section of a vid if I haven't worked out the bits before it. So I build up as I go - using the footage I worked on to help guide the rest of it. I watch it over and over to work out the pacing as I build it. The knitting together is a constant process. I see a vid as a giant jigsaw puzzle (hence the icon I made…;D), constantly trying to find the pieces that match perfectly.
Do you have pages of notes, or do you link everything together in your head?
I jot down notes if it's a long vid. I usually print out the lyrics and scribble ideas next to it. I nearly always have to know how it's going to end so I know what I'm working toward. I think the beginning and the ending of a vid is extremely important - the beginning immediately tells the viewer what they are in or and the end should provide a solid conclusion to bring everything together (hee..in theory anyway). Ah, slightly off topic there - *g* - but I link as I go (from ideas that I have in my head).
man, I hope that makes so sort of rambling sense…
xx
no subject
Date: 2014-01-03 12:05 pm (UTC)The knitting together is a constant process. I see a vid as a giant jigsaw puzzle (hence the icon I made…;D), constantly trying to find the pieces that match perfectly.
The jigsaw imagery is a fantastic visual, and it makes perfect sense. (And your "linking" thoughts were not off-topic at all.) I love getting insights to how creative folk do their thing, especially when it's as magical as vid creation. Thanks again!
no subject
Date: 2014-01-03 12:10 pm (UTC)And thank you for indulging me and allowing me to chat about vidding. :DDD