Personal Written Reflection

First semester was alright, but it definitely could have been better.

I put out a few stories this semester, 2 of which were just highlight videos. I think they were all pretty  good but they're lacking 2 interviews instead of just 1, and a stand up. Although, this has been the issue since the beginning of Junior year. I plan on fixing it going into second semester if I'm still in the class.

One of the first stories I put out this semester was my story on the new ONW principal Chris Zuck. Since this story only focused on one person, I think it's alright to have only one interview, but it probably would have been nice to have some interviews with students and have them give their opinion - as long as it's a positive one - and maybe hear what they thought about the change in principals. I also would have used a tripod while filming him working because a lot of my shots were pretty shaky. My last critique for this story is that I would have made the interview shot tighter. Outside of all that, it was a solid package. I liked the b-role I used of him just doing work. I think it was a good idea for b-role instead of just students working; it's more relevant to the focus of the story.  He also gave some pretty detailed answers in the interview and gave me something to work with as well as helping tell the story.

My next story was of our new Athletic Director Joe Gunderson. I think this story had a pretty good interview set up; Mr. Gunderson was in focus and he wasn't overexposed. Something I would change is I would have made the shot a little tighter (Yes, I've noticed that a rather wide interview shot seems to be a recurring issue in these stories I put out). I also probably would have tried to get b-role of Mr. Gunderson working rather than just using b-role of students. B-role isn't my only problem though; the time we had for the interview was pretty limited and I couldn't ask him as many questions as I would have liked. I'm glad I got the story out on a crunch for time, but it would have added a little more to the story if I was able to ask him all of the interview questions and had b-role of him working like I had with Mr. Zuck. The lack of matching b-role was most likely due to poor planning on my end. Other than that, I think it was a decent story; Although, in my opinion, it was a drop in quality compared to the story on the new principal.

Following the Gunderson story, I did one on our new Sophomore Counselor, Elva Medina. I liked this story. My only critique would be on the interview; the window in the background let's in a lot of light, so much so that it just looks like a shiny white ball in the background, and that takes away from the quality. Lastly, Ms. Medina was not in focus in the interview. Besides the interview, it was a good package if you ask me.

I also put out a recap of open mic night. My only problem with this story is that every single shot used was extremely shaky. It was really really bad. And I have no one to blame but myself. A solid recap with some sub-par b-role in terms of steady shots. Below sub-par, in fact. Scrap that story.

My other 2 stories were highlight videos (first one, second one). Not much to be said about them; they were what you'd expect from a highlight video. Looking back I should have added a voice over to both of them and at least 1 interview. The shots were good though, and the music was school appropriate.

My most recent story was of the Winter Choir Concert. This was a good story. Jared edited and helped film this story. The shots were all steady and in focus. I think we did a good job. The voice over was solid too. I also think he did a great job editing and putting this story together, especially with all of the soundbites he used. The only things missing from this story are interviews. Outside of that, I consider this story a job well done.