This is the second All For Our City video I created this year. Like with any series it takes time for me to establish what it is. In this case that would be more related to how I film. This series has already been established over the course of 2 seasons. How I film it though has changed dramatically this season. In seasons past I could stay in one section and film the entire video. This season in order to film everyone I was filming previously, I have to move around the entire stadium. On top of that I also have expanded to using a second camera in section 102. So, there is a lot more that I am doing this year than in the past 2 years.
I am not complaining. I am simply stating the facts. I enjoy filming and creating these videos. I have fun doing it. I think that expanding to that second camera and moving all over the stadium makes for a better video. It changes the scene. Similar to how a movie would. In such a way that it adds different backdrops and characters into the same video. All of which is connected by the location. From a visual point of view, it gives the audience more.
Second camera issues
One of the ways I expanded the videos is by adding a second camera. This camera is set up to capture crowd shots of section 102. I achieved this by mounting a GoPro session onto the capo stand. It was also set up in a manner where when I leave to go film the other groups across the stadium, I always have a shot of 102. 102 being behind the net makes it perfect for crowd shots when the team scores. In seasons past I got these crowd shots by placing my camera on the wall at the bottom of the section. I also had a really good crowd shot during last year’s home opener by having the capo wear a GoPro head mount. So I know I can get some amazing shots this season.
The issue I have had in San Jose game with this camera though is the battery life. I start filming with this camera almost right after worm ups. It only lasted until about the 60’ without being turned off during the game. With no external battery on the camera I can’t just change the battery. After some research, the easiest option became change the camera out. So, I bought another identical camera. One of the benefits of this was that I could also use the camera for the GoPro soccer videos. Changing out the camera was my plan during Saturdays game. It worked pretty well. I didn’t change it soon enough though. It didn’t capture all of the footage I wanted. In the next match, I will change it out sooner and see if that works out better.
Other than that, filming went pretty smooth. I got all of the frottage I wanted with my main camera. Editing the second episode was easier. This is because most of the animations where already done. I also didn’t have to worry about the format as much as in the first episode. I was able to upload it without any major issues. I did have one hick up which was my fault but it didn’t delay me from uploading the video onto YouTube this morning.
What did I do different
What I changed in this video that I didn’t do in the last video was just a slight adjustment to the lower thirds. In the first video, I created lower thirds to show the time in game on the video. The first I added lower thirds with time was in last year’s video “All For Our City-Reno vs Morelia (Jul. 14, 2018)”. I liked how it looked on the video and got enough positive feedback on it to implement it in this years All For Our City videos. For the Orange County video, I decided to take it a little further then in the San Jose video. I added the group logos to the lower thirds where the time in game would be. The reason I did this is introduce the different groups. That way there might be less confusion for new views as to which group they are watching.
Another thing I have been doing with the graphics since day one is score cards. Score cards like the lower thirds I have started to implement allow viewers to connect more with what’s happening on the pitch. In the first season, I added the score every time there was a change. Last year that changed. I started only adding the score cards to halftime and at the end of the match. This was because I thought that having the score on the screen every time it changed was repetitive to the point where it was annoying. It also got in the way of showing what I was filming. Things like player and fan celebrations. I can’t remember if it was on purpose or accident but I didn’t put a final score card on the San Jose video. After watching that video a few more times before finishing todays video, I thought that it could be confusing to viewers if I have the halftime score but not the final score. I think that it could leave viewers wondering at the end of my video if the score changed from halftime to the end of the match. So, I put the final score in the Orange County video. I plan on doing the same with videos here on out.
Analytics expectations
I don’t think that this video will do as well as the San Jose video. Simply because of audience size. The MLS has a larger audience then the USL. The San Jose Earthquakes have more fans and reach a larger audience then Reno 1868 FC does. That’s not a big deal though. I’m still going to push this video to get 100 views. That’s only 31 less than the San Jose video. I think that’s reachable.
Pregame video
I did not do a pregame video. I want to do a live pregame podcast series. You can read more about this in “March Blog”. I wasn’t able to find the micro phone that I wanted to buy in time to do the video. I did order a similar microphone off of amazon that hopefully will be here before the next match Saturday.
Postgame
I did do a Live Postgame video. My phone was on a low batter when I started the video. Not even 3 minutes into the video my phone died. The video was nowhere to be found until I looked on my creator studio this morning. I even looked for it multiple times yesterday. It’s up now. I will take more steps to ensure a better Live Postgame video after next week’s match.
Zac Electrifly 