Silver CatFish temptation

"Ok Sir, just deposit the down payment to confirm booking, I'll check tomorrow." The conversation ended abruptly after exchanging salam. I checked the online bank account and the deal had been welded well. So, my next project will be covering another happy moments for a special couple who had decided to end their solo era. The father of the would be bride has shouldered the responsibilty to find a suitable wedding cameraman for the special day. Much to the relief of the bridegroom to be. Now I just have to book a ticket flight online to Kuantan (budget airline of course) and plan a rendezvous with my contact there. Silver fish cooked with tempoyak (fermented durian paste) is the most special delicacy there and I am one of the biggest fans as it reminds me of my mother cooking everytime I balik kampung.

looking out for an elusive monster

Foraging through the internet is one big deal when the outcome does not really bear fruit or fruits. It was (is) a very frustrating personal experience and the qwertyuiop seemed to be too elusive for my fingers to tap. I had tried many times looking out for an adapter that possibly could ease the non linear editing work of mine without having to transfer the Avi files to a third party storage device. In the world of technology, the word obselete should be observed with care as you might be trapped in a labyrinth following  the claim made by the device producer which does not go in tandem with the advancement of tech world. Sony claims that the device is popular and the most prefered choice but nowadays laptops of different brands seem to discard the firewire technology due to the popularity gained by USB 2.0/3.0.

Rendering the frame

Rendering is the final process in which the raw footage is either turned to Ntsc Dv/Widescreen/SD or Pal/Ws/ SD so the video will be compatibly suited with varied TV codec acceptance signal. Unless you play the raw footage (AVI) through windows media player or Mac, then there is no need to convert the footage. The negative side is the format race of Av giants might render the old format useless as time progresses. To overcome it,you have to keep up with the trends by updating the video codecs. It is like saving current p/point document to windows 97. Open it again may result in lost of certain features (97 format). This happens as technology is progressing although the trend does show redundancy. Obsolete program compatibility offer is just a courtesy move by the software giants in order not to lose fan base.

to carbonize or not...

Recently I went to a car accesory shop and witnessed the transformation of a Civic FD to Mugen RR. The carbon fibre bonet cost 2K while the body kit is around the region of 4K without the paint job. Well it is not about applying the transformation to my car as I am pretty much interested in the carbon fibre look alike sticker which has the texture (tactile) and 'cool' sensation from my point of view. I have this plan in my mind which is to carbonize my Sony HVRZ5 body with the dummy sticker. It will surely look great but I have to make sure the cosmetic change is not going to affect the Handycam capability dispensing heat. Boxy compartment of the handycam will faciliate the process as I just have to stick. encapsulate and forget but what about the cursive parts, it will require different skill and tool and perhaps the bodykit installer might give me some insight or help,maybe? or I might end up being outcast by the society for the reason of trying to be different from others.

Family Day 2010 & Lactic acid

Two days ago I was hired by a company in Shah Alam to capture priceless moment of their staff organizing Family Day in Teluk Batik. It was a good experience as I was able to spread my wings and try new stuff at hands. Shooting videos for corporate functions require great length of patience and abundance of PR skills. The dinner event lasted until 12am (approximately) and I had to avoid myself from becoming succumbed to the biological clock. I was lucky that my bedroom was ten minutes drive away from the resort. Thinking about the comfy bed made the 2.3 kg handycam felt three times heavier. Next time I have to bring in the tripod. Muscle aches are common as nice shots require steady hands. Lactic acid build-up does take its toll
and it will last for about a week before the swollen muscles recuperate.

The probability of getting the best shot

Getting the best shot is every body's ultimate dream. It boils down to to the fact that the shot should be in tandem with the overall concept and does not look fake or dull and isolated from the rest of the footage. It is not a question how but when the best moment appears. It is highly recommended that you be alert all the time and do not let the precious moments to slip away without being 'tagged.' This is when consistent exercise bears the fruit. As for me, shooting video should not be restricted to only one particular subject, eg: wedding. The broader your scope, the more experience you gain in terms of pre and post production process. Versatility is the order of the day as it transcends the mental barrier in which you comfortably entrenched yourself in all these years. Shooting videos for corporate functions or family day should give proper insight of the requirement needed as you are dealing with dynamic environment and intuition is crucial element in determing the next step as the surrounding might change all in sudden and forgetting to bring along extra light could ruin the entire footage and your reputation as well. It is best to say that being too preoccupied with single format production does have negative residual effects.

pre-visualization & moments alert

Pre visualization requires us to forecast whatever potential footage we could create in the location. By doing that we are very certain of what we are going to shoot. A choreography move is therefore essential to make sure the footage is in line with the theme and concept desired by the customers . A well choreographed event sequence can eliminate unnecessary scenes which are considered redundant in non linear editing process. This is necessary as we have to integrate and fuse suitable elements in real time with minimal / optimum utilization of video Fx effects. Overdoing it would render the final product to become like secondary students' PowerPoint projects as they tend to incorporate too much surprising elements to impress pretty faces near the front row seats. Less is more should be the ideal foundation in producing pleasant to look at clips. Furthermore it will look professional and most important of all the clips should  represent the way you convey the ideas in creative format without 'additional attention grabber struggle.' It has to be effortless and that's when the 'moments alert intuition' kicks in like an unstoppable Nostradamus protege. The precious moments are like lightnings, never strike twice. Could you ask the parents of the bride to shed their tears again? Even if they agree, it will be like asking Fidel Castro to do zapin or Arnold Schwarzenegger to sing dangdut.
Insist for schedule from your clients. If they can not give you print out page then make sure you are able to jot down vital point by calling or meeting them personally. Being a wedding / function cinematographer requires sniper-like concentration. The snipers have handlers or those who anticipate Coriolis effect that might change the end result using state of the art gadgetry so they can concentrate on the target and fully reap the benefit of getting the diazepam in the system. What do we have?
Nothing more than a sharp mind and steady hands.

who is the jabberwocky?

Last week I watched Alice in Wonderland directed by Tim Burton. Yes if you saw a male with broad shoulders and unshaved beard lurking around the cinema entrance somewhere in Ipoh, waiting for the 'entry call'  that's probably me. I'm not an expert in this field but the film perpetually moved my thought toward unparalel motion. I mean the film really snatches the 'cliche' of the original version. It defies conventions and encourages the audience to discard traditions. The provocation is generated brilliantly through funny dialogues. The cunning characters undeniably have done their jobs well. Apart from pumping iron, I also read a lot of these stuffs when I was doing my degree and eventually the reading has taken its toll (in positive manner) because it gives me the insight of today's world. Future scenarios are the results of past events and in Aesop's fables, humans nature had been studied and showcased in the immortal stories, using animals to camaflouge potential messages. Read Animal Farm by George Orwel to know about basic politicking skills and graduate further up by tuning to any Tv stations which show prime time buletin. You'll see the connection and perhaps you will not be in 'wonderland' ever again.

Fire Power

At the shooting range, I learnt one thing which is very important...Never play around with guns or get distracted. In one occasion, we were doing an important procudere that came at the last stage in the shooting practice. It was to clear the bullet compartment of the M16 rifle from a bullet or bullets that might still remain 'unseen' in the chamber. Everybody had to stand up with the right hand holding the rifle's pistol grip. After making sure the compartment had been secured, we had to 'slap' the breach block button and automatically the sliding mechanism lurched forward. Then a loud 'bang' echoed. One rifle was still loaded and the cadet behind me accidentally pulled the trigger... He was standing right behind me. The bullet whizzed over my head and went straight up. I turned my head and saw the cadet who was still astonished with his mouth agape. The Instructors were looking at each other and believe me, their faces were as white as a surprised ghost. I thought the cadet must have miscalculated the amount of bullets contained in the magazine. So after finishing his 19th-bullet, he assumed there was no bullet left...leaving behind a 5.56 mm in the bullet compartment. It is a classic example of one small failure which leads to a bigger catastrophy. A wake up call that resonates eternal pulse in me...the pulse that reverberates continuously which carry one crucial message...You do not know when your time is up.

Don't be confused

Don't be confused by their colourful appearances.

Well they like to show the opposite of themselves. I pitty these individuals a lot as they are allegedly trapped inside the wrong 'compartment' as alleged by their own kind. I bumped into them quite a lot and this showed that their population has steadily increased. Why opt to be a male when you have small non muscular body frame, I mean, look at yourself in front of the mirror. If you want to be one, make sure you don't just wear a T-shirt which has uniformed stripes and a pair of bermuda shorts. It is too cliche. Change your physical 'setting.' Build enough muscles. Men don't wear shoulder pads. Make sure at the end of the training session (if you can afford one) your body resembles V -shape starting from the waist up. If you still have pear-shaped figure or hour glass figure, forget about dreaming to become like one. A real man doesn't have to stock himself with eternal carbo supply around his waist. By the way, eat a lot of testosterone enhancer pills and discard the estrrogen and progesteron hormone if you can, or can you? Am I confusing myself?

Which path should you follow?

There are a lot of useless buzzing when I started this venture but for me there is no use of trying to replace Nostradamus. Prophecy still haunts the community. They merely make prediction and prophecise as though everything is in their hands. Of course like the Mayan calendar, only the negatives and distortions come out. Nostradamus' predictions were being stretched like play doh to fit current events. They did not have similarities but words and phrases were added to coincidentally connect the unrelated paths of different labyrinths. But still, his prophecies are regarded as flawless although majority of us know the truth. This is the modus operandi of the skewed ones. So it is understood why the community behaved in such a way. For them truth can only be verified  if they can agree with the facts presented. A's or B's opinion is considered secondary. So ask yourself this question; Which path should you follow?

Steady hand

I don't like to bring along the cumbersome tripod as it  limits my movement and at the same time I don't have to worry about the safety of that RM300 plus handycam stabilizer. The function of the tripod has been replaced by two sets of priceless organic arms which are directly attached to my shoulders(my hands). It is an effective method of using your hands as tripod replacement, just make sure both of the reliable appendages are really steady and of course years of training in the Army Reserve Unit has resulted in significant increase of upper body strength. The shooting practice develops steady grip as I have to be calm before pulling the trigger once the pin-point accuracy has been acquired through the cross-hair. Breathing and heartbeat have to be in sync because a slight vibration could distort the end result although the target has been securely locked.
Live 5.56mm bullets are enough to clear any distractions out of your head since your platoon mates are close by. Careless mistakes are potentially fatal in nature. When shooting video, mistakes can be rectified on the spot, at the shooting range; it is either a bullet straying off its intended path  or exit wound injuries. It is obvious that shooting videos are far less risky.
So the training I've received so far is after all very useful even though both are worlds apart, the essence is still the same.