Surrey Border Film & Video Makers
Woolmer's wisdom - Painting, cameras and alternative tripods
Every year a group of us take a holiday in some pleasant part of the
country for the express purpose of the pursuit of Art.
My video
camera goes with me with the express purpose of recording that pursuit in a
serious and entertaining way. So I take all the necessary equipment - and,
in my head, an idea of how I am going to be able to treat this one in such a
way that it will be distinguishable from the video of the last painting ho!.
I check that I have everything and that the batteries are charged up.
There is so much to remember! Paints, boards, brushes, easel, still camera
and tripod. And was that all? On arrival at the farmhouse in Dorset, I
checked and, lo and behold, I had left my video camera tripod standing up in
its lonely place in the corner of my study! So, no pan and tilt head to
steady my shots, just a lightweight still-camera tripod.
At times
like this, one has to use all one’s ingenuity. The still camera tripod
was
unsteady in the slightest of breezes and the camera slowly sank downwards
- not a required special effect! So, where possible, a wall might come in
handy if there happened to be a suitable wall in the right place, or a tree
trunk, or the top of a railing - anything that might be there. More often
than not, the lack of that tripod led to wobbly telephoto shots, so I kept
to wide angles when there was no way of supporting the camera.
The
general theme with this type of video does not seem to vary much, except the
scenery and the artists are one year older each holiday. I take various
shots of artists at work, close ups of the painting in progress and the view
that is being painted. This includes myself with the camera supported on a
suitable tree stump or whatever Then, at the end, I show all the finished
paintings one after another.
At the editing stage there is a shot of
the artist followed by his or her paintings lap dissolved from one to
another. So it is difficult to vary the films of these
vacations apart from the views. There are different pubs and sometimes
something unexpected might happen, such as a group of Morris Dancers that
create a special atmosphere. Then there are strange animals such as horses
or maybe a cow or a goat. If we are near the sea we will go down and swim if
the water does not look polluted or if it is not a shivery cold day!
One of the ladies in our group writes poetry and she creates a poem about
the week of triumph, the places we have visited and in particular, about the
house and surroundings. So I set up the camera with the tie clip mic on Phyl as
she recites to us followed by resounding applause. I find that it is
essential to use a chest microphone for this kind of thing; it cuts out
extraneous noises and the clapping does not overwhelm the speaker.
Best of luck on your hols!
John Woolmer
John and his wife Joan joined Surrey Borders circa 1991, bringing a strong new talent and expertise to the club that resulted in an enthusiasm for making club films and entering competitions as never before. John was a great writer and his stories became great films, winning Gold awards for The Gold Medallion and Paula, and others. John was energetic, painting for art exhibitions, making props for the next project, writing his book and gleaning data to eventually finalise the book of his family tree, and last but not least, operating the “confounded” computer that held it all together. He was a very talented fun loving man, who will always be remembered by the club and his family.
Who are we in this film/movie/video club? We make films, videos and movies and meet on the first Friday of the month to answer members questions and to discuss ongoing club projects. Well known film makers, judges and film professionals are often our speakers for the evening. We welcome visitors and new members interested in film and video, and there is no need to own digital cameras or camcorders and no need for previous experience, as we happily provide mentors for beginners. Surrey Border meetings start at 7:45pm and end just after 10:00pm with a refreshment break at around 9:00pm. Visitors and new members are warmly welcomed to the monthly meetings which are on the first Friday of each month (and the first visit is free). Our meetings are held in our new contemporary hall in St Joan's Centre which is in the grounds of St Joan's church in Tilford Road, near the station in Farnham. The hall has a large car park and is within easy reach of Guildford, Farnborough, Fleet, Bordon etc. In Surrey and Hampshire. Read more about us here.
Our interests We have a good mix of interests amongst members include script writing, acting, directing, technical and artistic and all agree that ideas and skills are more important than equipment as shown by there being fewer cameras and camcorders than members. Some get more enjoyment in viewing and discussing the films produced by others and just being part of the community. There are those who wouldn't wish to ever hold a camera or camcorder while some like to help in filming but don't own their own camcorder. Of course there are always those with the latest high definition wizz bang up to date cameras, camcorders, microphones and gadgets and the lovely thing is that they are always happy to demonstrate both equipment and techniques to others. For anyone thinking of buying a camera or camcorder advice is always on hand. We have almost equal numbers of members with PC and Mac computers. We regularly put on courses, tutorials and training sessions in the light of the current interests and needs of members. Individuals with particular problems typically have one to one help.
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