Much like the other units, I learned a lot of the technical terms and standards for filmmaking concepts. I had already known about and noticed many of these concepts when watching TV and movies. However, the first part of the unit was filled with great information from Roger Ebert that helped solidify those concepts and techniques as explained in my reflection. The examples and compilations were great practice to see how experts actually use the techniques in a meaningful way.

The thing that was harder than expected was the video assignments. The main thing that was difficult about was trying to come up with good ideas for the available assignments. After that got done, the next hill was actually doing them. I think it was just bad timing because of the weather and the conditions of the store when filming the assignments. I picked Friday and Saturday night, the two busiest nights, to try to film the commercial. After getting interrupted many times by customers, orders, and the phone, I was finally able to get all of my shots.

The thing that was easier than expected was coming up with the idea for the character story assignment. I had already made a few things that feature The Midnight Rider. Being able to edit and use the videos that I have taken while riding felt very rewarding. It is nice to look back on the cool or unexpected moments that can happen on a ride and be able to make something interesting out of them. Coming up with a new story to tell was fun and refreshing compared to the other assignments like the blooper reel.

Speaking of the bloopers, that assignment is what drove me crazy. The store was 85 degrees not factoring in the heat coming off of the oven when standing next to it. Trying to remember lines while standing next to the deafening oven while sweating like a pig was a new experience. I was saying the lines in my head, but they just would not come out into words on video.

The thing I enjoyed the most was surprisingly the look, listen, analyze assignment. I have never intentionally watched a scene without sound to analyze the filmmaking techniques. It was a fun and interesting way to think more deeply about why those film design choices were made. Then the audio only play through to hear how the audio was deliberately placed to enhance the scene. Taking the individual steps made the scene have more of an impact when putting it back together and watching with audio and visual.

I learned a lot about audio storytelling during this week. Similar to last week, the beginning of the unit was a great refresher to the audio specific vocab and concepts. I have always known about things like pacing, sound effects, and layering. Reading all of the sources in this unit really explained the impact that those audio techniques have on the overall story being told. The videos from Ira Glass had great information about the major parts to a story. My reflection goes into more details about his explanations on what makes a good story.

This unit ended up going pretty smoothly so it was hard to think about something that was harder than expected. The closest thing to being hard was the Sounds of My Day assignment because I had to capture all of that audio while still trying to do my job. I had to plan out exactly when I could take the recordings and do it quickly so I could stay on task at work. Some of the sounds, like the phone ringing and the well done timer, were quick grabs because they happened unexpectedly.

Doing the hands on audio editing was easier than expected. I already had the hardware and software to record instruments and edit audio. However, it has been a very long time since I have used any of it because nothing like it has even been required for class until now. I was surprised that I was able to get back into it this quickly and create some things that I am pretty proud of like the Eat Your Heart Out Beethoven assignment.

Another thing that was easier than expected was part three of this unit. After reading all of the information earlier in the unit, being able to spot the audio techniques in the the podcast was pretty easy. Maybe the spooked podcast is just really efficient at using those techniques as explained in the podcast reflection. Glynn Washington was very deliberate with his audio techniques, so it made them pretty easy to pick out when listening.

The thing that drove me crazy was also the thing I enjoyed the most about the audio unit. The Spooky Season assignment took me a lot of time and drove me a little nuts because I was trying to get it perfect. Listening to all of those sounds over and over in my headphones made it so I kept hearing them even after I took the headphones off. I really did enjoy being able to play my bass again to make something that sounds spooky and unique. These assignments gave me an excuse to go play with all of my toys.

The first half of the design unit was filled with information. The more surface level history and information provided in the first few links of the unit was interesting, but I took the most from the readings from Giggster and especially from The Vignelli Canon. The Giggster article was a nice refresher on design vocabulary that was needed. I still know what all of those words mean, but to have them defined in a specific design context made it more clear for this unit. The Vignelli Canon had great information described in my reflection on the booklet.

The main thing that was harder than expected was getting my brain into a creative mode. Getting started on each of these assignments was the hardest part. I would sit for too long trying to figure out what to do and how to incorporate the requirements with the creative design aspect. However, things actually start to flow once i get an idea and start to run with it. The Trading Card assignment took me way too long to come up with something, even though the character I came up with was like a fictional stretch of reality.

The thing that was easier than expected for the design unit was creating and managing the blog posts. I have gotten a lot more experience now using WordPress and integrating other forms of media into it than I was in the last unit. I am also more clear on the overall expectations for the unit which made completing the assignments easier.

The only thing I could think of that frustrated me this unit was trying to come up with photos that fit the design concepts for the Design Blitz assignment. The first two, balance and proportion, I thought of and got the pictures and wrote up the descriptions immediately. However, the last two took me forever to come up with something for any of the remaining four choices. I thought of the best I could for rhythm and dominance.

The thing I enjoyed most about the design unit was being able to create fictional stories that were still based off images and things that I created. The Story as a Game assignment was fun to think about and take the fictional character from the trading card to the next level. I could see myself taking it even further when I get some free time and maybe even turning it into something functional. I also enjoyed the Destination Poster assignment where I was able to think back to vacation in Florida. I am not used to needing the creative side of my brain for assignments, so this was refreshing be able to do something a little different.

The Visual Storytelling Unit made me think back to high school when I took photojournalism all four years. I have learned many of the techniques and methods that were explained throughout this unit, but have not thought about or implemented them since then. I worked on all four of my high school yearbooks and was editor on the last two, so it felt nice to get back into that creative mindset for this unit.

What Did I learn?

During this unit I learned a lot about how WordPress works and all of it’s different features. It is super simple to embed links, images, and videos into each post. I also learned, and am still learning, how to use these embeds of all forms of media to make my posts better and have them tell a better visual story. I also learned how to use Flickr and YouTube and all of the other socials that we are required to integrate. I have never had a reason to post to anything before this class so figuring all of this stuff out is new to me.

What Was Harder Than Expected?

Getting back into the creative mindset had proven to be the most challenging thing for me so far. I have not had to do anything creative since the yearbooks in high school. Since then my life has mostly consisted of making a product to specific requirements, no. There is no room for creativity. Having to take the requirements of these assignments and interpret them to be able to make something creative that still follows those requirements has been the most difficult thing about the assignment. Coming up with the ideas for the photo blitz assignment was challenging because I had trouble finding things that would fit the requirements.

What Was Easier Than Expected?

Learning how to use WordPress was actually quite simple after figuring out where all of the features were and how they worked. They make it easy to create, edit, and organize all of the posts and features within the posts themselves. I also found it easier to integrate all of the socials and media from them into the posts than I was originally expecting. I was thinking that I was going to have a difficult time with that.

What Was Frustrating?

Really the only frustrating thing about this unit was that the instructions were somewhat all over the place. I had trouble finding specific instructions on the Draw-It assignment in particular. In the canvas assignment, the instruction says, “At least one piece of supporting media you did not create (image, video, sound”, but then under it says, “do not need to create”, which makes it seem like it could be something that I made or something someone else made. There is also a link to other instructions for the Draw-It assignment that are different that what is on canvas. The instructions for part 3 in general were confusing to me. The star system, the instructions on the assignment website, and the canvas instructions combined made part 3 frustrating. The Rubric for the assignment is also confusing because it is worded as only one blog post with one set of requirements is being grated, when There are over 6 posts that were a part of this unit.

What Did I Enjoy?

I enjoyed being able to make all of these different forms of visual media and put them in a place where I can go back and look at any time. I am trying to find things that I enjoy doing while also completing the assignment requirements. I enjoy how I can make this class personalized and focus the content on topics that I actually like while still learning and implementing the core concepts of the course.

Visual Storytelling Unit Assignments:

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
  • Draw-It