Final Course Reflection

This course has truly been one of the best TCF courses I've taken. I don't get how it's not required for all media production majors. The most valuable thing has been going hands on with all of the cameras we did. I've learned to be much quicker in terms of jumping around from camera to camera and being able to figure out where the different settings for each are, and how techniques tools translate between them, what advantages and disadvantages they each have over each other. It's given me more confidence to be able to pick up a camera that I've never used before and get moving with it. 

In particular, I’ve learned the most about DSLR cameras, and that’s what I most wanted to learn so it’s fantastic. I’m so much more confident with them now.
Likewise, I’m more confident with lighting. I’m sure about the basics now and can see more clearly where I need to go next. I’d like to keep working on learning how to make things look more consistent from shot to shot.

This course has also given me much more experience in terms of knowing how a set is supposed to run, how everyone’s role factors into the successful operation of a set, and how to manage when things start going wrong as the inevitable will in some way.

I’ve developed more direction in terms of knowing what kind of visual looks I like a project to have and how to articulate that. I’ve figured out that I will likely play around with developing DSLR skills next. I love the look of DSLR footage and how people seem to connect to it. The alternate viewing reality they create totally suits me. The camera can so easily go beyond what our eyes do, it’s great.

I think I may be more attracted to the previsualization and post production stages of a project because that’s where I see myself being able to contribute the most vision, but with DSLR I’m totally engaged in the shooting stage. I think it’s because DSLRs up to this point in time have been able to most closely achieve that which I see in my head in terms of visuals that I want to create.

I also really enjoyed reading The Filmmaker’s Eye. The way the book is written is really interesting, going over the basic rules and then showing examples of “successfully” breaking them. And the images are gorgeous.

Overall this class has taught me a great deal that I'm excited to build upon. And honestly, I really feel like if every media production major had to take it, we would all be much less frustrated when it comes to working with each other, because it's teaches such basic language and technique that we all need to know, and it's now obvious to me when a student hasn't taken this class, weird!