Mrs. Watson's Blog

I am happy to be returning to Hillgrove with a bunch of great ideas about our show, your lessons, Hawk Talk, and our Talon TV program. I hope to get input from each and every one of you about how we can continue to improve the announcements, improve Hawk Talk, and improve our marketing efforts. More than anything, I'm happy to see all of my precious students! You all are the reason I do what I do. I hope that this year is productive, innovative and that you all discover things in yourself that you didn't know you had in your. I hope I instill a love of learning new things and a niche that you can pour yourself into with regard to video production. The friendships that you make in each of my classes makes me happy and I enjoy watching the camaraderie and the friendly and work-related conversations you have with each other. Don't let this post fool you. There will be more to this class than socializing. In fact, we will be busier than ever. We will be producing...

As we wind up the end of the school year, it is always my tradition to take a few pictures of my classes for posterity. Here are a few of the best/goofiest shots! Have a great summer everyone!

Loudness vs. Frequency and other audio properties is what we have been studying the last couple of days. Here is the Power Point for Loudness vs. Frequency and the notes on Transducers, Pick up patterns, and Mic types.

Many buttons, many settings, many things to think about when shooting video with a professional camera. Now that we are working with the cameras, it is important to know how to operate it competently and fully. You must always be in MANUAL mode and you must know about WHITE BALANCE, IRIS, SHUTTER SPEED, and SHOT COMPOSITION. How you choose to tell your story with video makes all the difference in how your story is recieved. I have uploaded the Power Point on Shot Composition for you to review.

Finally, we are working wtih equipment. I know students are excited about this. We start with the basics: the Tripod. There is also a monopod, pedestal, action mount, steady cam brace, gimbal, and spider mount. But if we understand the basic tripod and how to adjust all the parts, we know how to operate the others. Here is the Power Point on the Tripod parts

It is always the hardest thing to do; to go up to someone you don't know and start asking them questions. That's what reporters have to do in order to get the soundbites necessary for their story. That is what you will be doing. There are some specific techniques to interviewing that entail a little more than just asking questions. There is some phychology to it. Below are the PowerPoints that go with the module on Interviewing.

As we've been studying, TV and film development had a vibrant and active history, with many people involved in the deveopment of the new technology. Now, we are looking at the continuation of the development of television technology, including communication satellites, how TV works, and the development of the more recent digital television broadcasting. Here are the Power Points that go along with this module:

Students in all of my classes are currently working on producing a mini-movie.  This is an exercise to prepare us for the Cobb County Short Movie Extravaganza competition, which begins on October 31st.  We began the one-and-a-half-week assignment on Monday of this week.  At this time, it is due at the end of the class period on Wednesday, October 10th. Students are to produce a 4-minute or less mini movie on a topic of their choice.  They will be graded on the following: Pre-production:  scripting, planning and blocking shots, etc. Production:  Shooting (lighting, audio, plot lines, story arc, continuity, shot composition, etc.) Post-production:  Editing (transitions, audio/video matching, use of special effects where applicable, flow of the story, etc.) Other things that will be considered:  School appropriateness, how well the group worked together, how compliant the group was on deadlines, etc. Paying attention to these elements wh...