Junior Year Reflection Semester One

What I've Learned

Junior year has been a huge step for me and I have learned probably more in this one semester than I did in ecomm the past two years. Previous years in ecomm I did not know how to work the camera or how to work Final Cut Pro but I have learned a lot and grown in many ways. I learned the six shot system, the twenty one questions you ask for an interview and the different preferences on the camera. There are still plenty of ways I could grow in in ecomm so I have lots of goals for the upcoming time I have in this class. One goal is to learn how to work the camera perfectly and how to write better blogs.

Six Shot System

The six shot system is a way to incorporate sequencing into your stories. There is the extra wide, wide, medium, close up, extreme close up, and over the shoulder. I think that this is very useful when you need more B-roll and can not find anymore. For example, I did a story on MaryAnn Traxler and how she auditioned for American Idol. With the auditions being in Hollywood there is only so much B-roll you can get so we went into her class and filmed her working in class using the six shot system. 

Twenty One Questions

Twenty One Questions is a list of what kind of questions to use for an interview. Mr. Allam gave us a sheet at the beginning of the year for what to ask. During our first project it was very helpful because I had only conducted one interview and it was sophomore year when were assigned to do a news package and looking back on it, it was very bad. I feel like my interviews are usually my best work because I have good questions and with good questions you can get good answers.

Camera Settings

Last year, even though we were taught how to work a camera and all the basics of it, I still really did not know much. I still do not know that much but I have learned a ton compared to last year. This year we learned how to white balance it and the zebra settings and color balance and things all along those lines. I feel like I can actually use the camera and make shots look pretty unlike last year or my freshman year when I filmed a lot in front of windows.

Goals

One of my main goals is that I learn how to properly work the camera in every way. Like I just said I have learned a lot but I still have a lot more to learn. I want to be able to put a camera on the tripod without any help. It's kind of embarrassing that I still can't but I have always had trouble with it. I want to learn how to make sure the audio is perfect without having to take forever on figuring out what is wrong, I will just know the problem and how to fix it and not have to ask for help.

My other goal is to learn how to write a better blog. We did have the opportunity to revise our old blogs and I did not take up that offer. I want to start out the new year with a more positive outlook on writing blogs because I used to really hate it. It honestly is not that bad but I did not put much effort into it. My goal is to get better grades on my blogs next semester and next year.

To Wrap it Up

All and all, I have learned a lot this year in convergence journalism class. I am really happy I decided on this strand of ecomm because I like it a lot. Although, I have learned a lot I still have plenty more to learn and I propose to learn a lot of it next semester. I'm determined to get a better grade in the class and have more fun, too.