Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Editing Tricks for Amateur Vacation Video #109

China 2001:  Yangtze River - Sailing up Qutang Gorge


Princess Sheena continues her voyage up the Yangtze River.  Some unusual sights, like cows riding on top of a barge loaded with coal.  A Monty Python song celebrates the waterway, and I give myself a new name:  "Gorges George" !

This is a three-minute video that follows a familiar formula.  Establish ... Unusual Sights & Sounds ... Humor ... Complementary Background Music.  The narration mentions smog; the topic is not discussed at length but one can only imagine how breathtaking the rugged terrain would be.  No amount of filtration or polarization can recover the colors which cannot be seen.  So, it's "breath-taking in an unintended way.  But the video has good content nonetheless.

Lessons Learned:
After eight chapters, the editing strategy mentioned above seems to be working for the China Vacation vignettes.
We Love The Yangtze was a pre-selected musical choice.  I knew it would be used even before we left home.  So I made sure to film content to accompany it.

Suggestion:
If you're serious about editing an entertaining movie, keep the video camera with you and ready to shoot at all times.  (For instance, when the Hokies raised their college flag, I was just hanging out on the deck.)

FYI:
All of the China trip vignettes are already loaded onto YouTube.  They may be viewed on one of my YouTube channels: HENBCtravel
I have three other channels that might be of interest:  HENBCvideo (miscellaneous videos that try to look professional, with particular respect for copyrights), RAGEAIR (advertises the licensing availability of my newsworthy videos), and this YouTube Channel of Shame (an odd collection of stuff, not respectful of others’ copyrights).



Music Copyright Considerations:
This original audience for this video was friends and family who would view the DVD in my living room.  It contains identifiable music that is regrettably used without permission.  
Today, with digital distribution, artists' rights deserve more attention.  Since this video is intended for non-profit illustration and educational purposes only, I believe that valid arguments can be made for its "Fair Use" in this situation.  Please understand that I do not encourage improper use of copyrighted material.

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