Cacti & Flowers in Arizona

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lostdutchman

Cacti & Flowers in Arizona

Postby lostdutchman » Fri Aug 10, 2007 10:24 pm

Tonight I put together my second show (2:40 - 11.5 mb) with some photos I took on various hikes in southern Arizona.

http://www.photodex.com/sharing/viewsho ... 9603&alb=0

The music is an English choir singing "All Things Bright and Beautiful," a religious hymn.

After my first upload I found out that one must check the menu tab each time--the blasted thing remembered the menu from my last show. So I deleted it, made this new menu and, voila, here it is.

This is my second week using PSP. This forum is great. But for the basic functioning of the software there is nothing like "I wonder what this button does."

“Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic.â€

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Postby gpsmikey » Fri Aug 10, 2007 11:06 pm

Beautiful pictures, but I had a problem with the use of the quick/black
transitions when merged with the tempo of the music - they just didn't
seem to fit together. The places where you used a 1 second or so
A/B crossfade fit with that music better from my viewpoint. I do love
the cacti pictures - while I would not want to live there (heat/dry), I
have managed to be through there when things are in bloom in the past
and the desert is spectacular !!.

As for your comment about "I wonder what this button does", wait until
you discover the "right click" things that are burried in the program :D :D

mikey
You can't have too many gadgets or too much disk space !!
mikey (PSP6, Photoshop CS6, Vegas Pro 14, Acid 7, BluffTitler, Nikon D300s, D810)
Lots of PIC and Arduino microprocessor stuff too !!

lisco

Postby lisco » Fri Aug 10, 2007 11:22 pm

Ken-

Great Photos. Great choice of music, but I have to agree with Mikey. The "cut" transitions really don't work for me with the flow of the music. The music flows kind of slow and, to me, the "cut" fits more of a fast paced piece. I'm probably wrong. I usually am.

I think you have a great eye. I could only hope that I could have access to chances like that. A little too far to travel for me.

Keep up the good work. Look forward to seeing more from you.

Scott

lostdutchman

Postby lostdutchman » Sat Aug 11, 2007 5:52 am

Mikey & Scott,

This is why I'm enjoying this forum: You learn from so many other helpful people.

You both agreed that the "cut" transitions didn't work. I have to laugh at that because I chose them based on reactions to my first show where the advice was "too many transitions." So I didn't use hardly any in this one.

So, what you are saying is "each presentation is different and requires different treatment." I can see that. The selection of transition effects and the timing of transitions is definitely an "art" not a "science" and you learn what works by trying something and then submitting it for appraisal.

I have been viewing quite a few other shows, trying to see what is appealing to me in terms of transitions. However, I believe the best way to learn is not by looking, but by doing--and then submitting it to "y'all" for critique.

Thanks a lot.

My wife and I are heading out this morning to the Sonoran Desert Museum in Tucson--it is a botanic garden and zoo all rolled into one. We love the hot, dry climate. It will be a comfortable 97 today. When it gets over 105--that's hot. We have to go out in the morning at this time of year because of the threat of afternoon thunderstorms. We get some incredible lightning. My little Canon A510 can't begin to capture the drama in these storms. Actually, the camera probably can do fine, it's the photographer that has no tripod and no experience in long exposure, low light situation necessary during the storms.

Ken

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Postby gpsmikey » Sat Aug 11, 2007 6:26 am

Well, there is two "parts" to the transition thing -- one is not using
too many different ones (in most cases) the other is picking a
transition that fits the mood of the show - in general, a crossfade
of a second or two works well for slow/mellow music. Something
with a strong beat, usually uses a much quicker transition (often
synched to the beat). I often use the crossfade for a fast paced
show, but I use a crossfade of less than 2/10 of a second in many
cases - just slow enough to take the "edge" off the transition, but
fast enough to give a quick change.

And yes, as you observe, while there are a number of guidelines,
that seem to work in most cases, there are very few "hard" rules
that always apply (and where the "artistic" mind comes into play).

mikey
You can't have too many gadgets or too much disk space !!
mikey (PSP6, Photoshop CS6, Vegas Pro 14, Acid 7, BluffTitler, Nikon D300s, D810)
Lots of PIC and Arduino microprocessor stuff too !!

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Location: Sunny AZ

Postby KellyInAz » Sat Aug 11, 2007 11:03 am

Agree with the transition comments. It's usually best to stick with a/b transitions for a nice flow. Loved the music and pictures! Hope we get enough rain this year for another beautiful spring!! It's been a while.

Kelly
"I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it."

Thomas Jefferson

lisco

Postby lisco » Sat Aug 11, 2007 3:18 pm

lostdutchman wrote:I have to laugh at that because I chose them based on reactions to my first show where the advice was "too many transitions." So I didn't use hardly any in this one.

Ken-

I started thinking about this comment from you. I found the show you were mentioning.
2) might cut back on some of the transitions -- in general, unless you
want to draw attention to a particular transition, the "less is better"
seems to work well. They get too distracting and detract from the
pictures -- you end up watching for the transitions instead.

Correct me if I'm wrong Mikey, but I think what he was trying to get across to you was that you might want to cut back on the number of different transitions you use. Keep It Simple. From my little participation, I have noticed that most of the really good shows have either simple fades or cuts. Depending on the flow of the show and music.

I hope this helped to some extent. Mikey might come in and tell me I was wrong. Like I said before, "I'm probably wrong, I usually am." Actually, my wife tells me that. :D


Scott

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Postby gpsmikey » Sat Aug 11, 2007 4:53 pm

Hmmm -- your wife sounds like mine :D

Yes, that is the point I was trying to make - transitions are (in general)
supposed to be somewhat "transparent" in that they do not attract attention
but make the show move along in a way that only the pictures are the
focus. There are some special transitions that have special meaning (see
the Digital Juice show for more info on that "Punctuation") such as the
wavy water look -- usually used to portray dreaming or thinking of
something in the past etc. The most comon mistake most new folks
make is making it a challenge to see if they can create a show that includes
all available transitions (yes, I did that too :D )

mikey
You can't have too many gadgets or too much disk space !!
mikey (PSP6, Photoshop CS6, Vegas Pro 14, Acid 7, BluffTitler, Nikon D300s, D810)
Lots of PIC and Arduino microprocessor stuff too !!

lisco

Postby lisco » Sat Aug 11, 2007 7:53 pm

I think we all did at one time or another. I did, but learned from this forum that most of the time less is more.

Scott

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