Free Coaching Sessions

OVFM will be running FREE Coaching Sessions in the New Year to show you how to get the most of your film material.  This offer is not limited to those using a camcorder but also includes anyone filming on an SLR camera or smart phone.  It also includes anyone who takes only still pictures but would like to know how they can put these together into a short ‘film’ by adding pan & zoom effects and adding music.  These sessions are completely free and without any obligation.

 

YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED:

Why are we offering these free sessions?

Most families probably only have a couple of faded photographs of grandparents or perhaps great grandparents and these will be passed to the next generation as family heirlooms.  Our hope is that in years to come what is being filmed today will be regarded as similar family heirlooms by future generations.

You can’t fail to notice the boom in people using their smart phones or SLR cameras to film moving images nowadays, in addition to those using camcorders.  Sometimes they are filming an important family event such as a wedding, sometimes it’s children or grandchildren, sometimes it’s a holiday scene or maybe it’s just something that has caught their eye.  Some of those moving images should also become family heirlooms but too often they are deleted after a couple of viewings, in part because when watched the quality is disappointing.

Our members enjoy film making but do get frustrated when they see films that could have been so much better if a little more care had been taken with how the material was filmed and how it was edited.  In the club we give feedback on members’ films to help them improve, and with these free sessions we are keen to pass on what we have learnt to the wider public.

We also want to show people who only take still pictures how they can put the images together using effects such as pan and zoom and adding music to create short ‘films’.

For the club we hope that when people meet us through these sessions, and see what the club has to offer, some will decide to join OVFM.  However there is absolutely no obligation to join.

 

How can the sessions help you?

We can help you if you are not completely happy with the material you have filmed or what you do with it after filming. For example:

• If what you filmed doesn’t look as good as you had hoped when you play it back.
• If you don’t know how to edit out the parts you don’t want and move clips around to turn it into a memorable film that is worth preserving.
• If you only take still pictures but would like to know how to arrange them in a show with pan and zoom effects and added music
• If you want advice on cameras, software or any of the special effects you can create in your films.
• If you don’t know how best to produce and store films for the long-term or how to convert old 8mm or 16mm films or VHS tape.

 

What will the sessions cover?

We will finalise the content when we have heard what people want to have covered.  We will cover topics such as:

how to plan what you will film,

how to build a story with your film,

how to film without excessive camera movement, which spoils many films,

how to edit your film to cut out the unwanted parts and move clips around,

how to make a film from still pictures

how to store your film for longer-term viewing.

When and where will they be held?

Fortnightly from 8 to 10 on alternative Tuesday evenings in the New Year at our club meeting room in St. Augustine’s Church Hall in Southborough Lane, Bromley Common.  Precise dates and further details will be provided when we know how many are likely to attend.

If you are interested in taking part or have any further queries please email us at info@ovfm.org.uk