To get familiar with the operation of radio/wireless microphones, here is a simple step-by-step Guide to Radio Mics.
Simple Guide to Radio Mic
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Author Archives: robmcbride
Mid-Term Test Q&A
Dates for the mid-term test:
JMSC0052 – Oct 28 (Fri) 2pm
JMSC6093A – Oct 28 (Fri) 6:30pm
JMSC6093B – Oct 29 (Sat) 10am
Q1: What kind of questions will there be in the mid-term test?
A: Good question. The questions will be about your shooting knowledge and editing principles, which we have covered so far in our classes. They are more practical rather than technical – e.g. We won’t test you on the colour temperature of daylight. Instead we will ask e.g. What’s the significance of having correct white balance?
Q2: How should I prepare for the mid-term test?
A: Another good question. You can study the “Shoot Yourself” and “Glossary” handouts. However, there is no need to memorize those definitions. They are just for your reference. If you have attended every class and understand what we have taught, then you should be quite well-prepared.
Q3: How long will the test take?
A: It will take about 40 minutes.
Q4: What is the format of the test?
A: It will consist of both multiple-choice and longer form questions.
Q5: How about if I cannot attend the test?
A: Contact us at rob@robmcbride.com or kahong@hku.hk or alibunao@hku.hk.
AJE Toys Script
Script of toy fair story for Al Jazeera English: Download Here
Portable Harddrives
In this course, you are required to have a portable harddrive for editing your video stories. Here is the specification of the hardrrive recommended:
- Portable (Do not require any external power source)
- Preferably equipped with Firewire 800 connection socket
- Or – Equipped with USB 2.0 connection (cheaper but slower)
- Capacity 320Gb – 500Gb
Lacie and WD are the most common brands available in local computer centres. They cost about $1,000HKD. It should come with 2-3 year local warranty.
The harddrive is universal to any OS (Windows/Macintosh) when it is newly acquired. You can configure your harddrive in 2 partitions,
so that it is compatible among Windows (FAT 32) and Macintosh. You can do this by using “Disk Utility” (Go –> Utilities –> Disk Utility) on Macbooks.
FAQ 1: Where can I buy the harddrive?
Ans: You can purchase the harddrive in Wanchai Computer Centre. Take bus 40/40M/23 from HKU and get off at Wanchai MTR bus stop.
The computer centre is on the opposite side of the road (next to a football field).
FAQ 2: How much video can I store on the harddrive?
Ans: Every 5-min video occupies 1Gb of space. So let’s do some calculation…
FAQ 3: Why do I need to purchase a harddrive?
Ans: It is because the computers are used by a few classes, i.e. around 60 students. Each time you will be randomly given a computer. In
addition, you risk losing data if you store them on public computers. Besides, you can build your own multimedia portfolio with the harddrive.
FAQ 4: Can I use my existing harddrive?
Ans: You need to re-configure your harddrive (back-up existing data and re-format) if it is not configured for Macintosh. However, older
harddrives may not be fast enough for video editing.
FAQ 5: What can I do if I cannot afford a harddrive?
You may acquire a cheaper one with only USB 2.0 connection. However, harddrives with USB connection are sometimes not fast or stable enough for video editing, especially HD video editing, so we recommend Firewire 800 harddrives. Let us know if you have any difficulties.
Where to buy tapes?
You will have to buy tapes for this course. Please have them ready by next class (Sept 9/10).
We are using 60-minute mini-DV tapes. Doesn’t matter which brand to buy – Sony, Panasonic…etc.
Here are the places where you can buy mini-DV tapes:
1. Photo-finishing stores
2. Photo equipment shops along Stanley Street in Central
3. Photo equipment shops along Sai Yeung Choi Street South in Mongkok (Montkok MTR Exit D3).
It is more expensive to buy just one tape (~$30HKD). Therefore, you are recommended to buy a pack of 3 or 5, and it will cost around $15 – $20 per tape in average. You may want to share the tapes with your classmates or reserve them for future use.
Essential Guides
Trouble-shooting abilities are essential in video production. When a technical problem arises, there must be reasons behind, and solutions to it.
Try to understand the problem, identify the possible solutions, and make use of “Help” function in FCP, Google and guidebooks to solve it.
Here are some useful guides and handouts:
2. Guide for using your hard drives with JMSC MacBooks
There are also many useful resources and tutorials online. This is one of them – Creative Cows Forum and Tutorials. There are also some useful video tutorials on Youtube.
If you have spotted any, please feel free to share them here.