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• First Video: A Day In The Life of Mr. Fish

  Dustin • 02/26/2022 at 19:00 • 0 comments

  This log is actually copied from my other project on  using the Pi 400 as a daily driver PC. I reread it, made a few corrections, and was pleasantly surprised at how well this log turned out. I hope to eventually get very good at video production and teach it as I go. Until then, enjoy the random logs and videos that come out of this project.

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  Update: video link at bottom.

  I finally have some extra time and energy to get back to my video production project on the Pi. I’m currently wading through a sea of unlabeled video clips I shot for this project about a year ago. I decided to ignore my original notes as my creative tastes have changed.

  I have some new criteria for what is going to make it into this final video:

  Yes: Makes me laugh as soon as I see it. No: Terrible video quality, not funny, generally useless, or worse version of another clip. Maybe: Funny but not super funny. Might be a good option if there is no other version of the scene. Just has potential.

  I am making all these judgements based on my initial reactions to watching the clips. I use to trust my gut all the time when I was younger, but got away from it years ago. I used to be known as a very funny and entertaining person, and that made me very happy to make others happy. I did so by just being myself. Gotta be myself on this project and see what hot garbage comes out the other end.

  I started by using Krename to bulk rename the known 1080p and 4K files, respectively. I add either [1080p] or [4K] to the end of the file name to save time. The Pi 400 won’t even play 4K files for some reason, so I don’t even try. I batch converted a bunch of 4K files last time I worked on this. The Pi did an admirable job and gave me very good video quality. I CAN edit 4K video directly and render the final project in 1080p, but without having seen the clips and decided which ones are going to be used, I need to review them all. It’s far easier to convert first.

  Currently just watching all videos and making notes on them. Here’s an example of my current notes:

  Yes: Mr_Fish_picnic_table_001[1080p].mp4 Mr_Fish_pine_needle_flop_001[1080p].mp4 Mr_Fish_rock_sun_bathing_001[1080p].mp4 Mr_Fish_plays_ukulele_004[1080p].mp4 Mr_Fish_uses_toilet_001[1080p].mp4

  No: FPV_looking_around_at_beach[1080p].m4v Mr_Fish_plays_on_slide_002[1080p].mp4

  Maybe: Mr_Fish_rock_flop_002[1080p].mp4 - Might be better option Mr_fish_cooking_dinner_001[1080p].mp4 - questionable lighting and focus

  It’s a simple text document that helps me make a quick decision, mark it down, then move on. I copy the file name by just right clicking, hitting “rename” then control+a, then escape. Then I just paste the file name into my notes. I COULD do this without notes, but it’s far more mentally taxing and I’d rather not make mistakes that require hours of rendering to fix. It’s all about the process, which I am still working out. After I decide what clips will go into the final video, I have to decide on the order to put them in. These clips were taken at different times of lighting, so it’s fairly easy to sort by time of day and then sort even further within each category. Most of the work on this project is done at the beginning, just laying out the story line. It’s worth the effort to see a good video come out the other side. It will be even more satisfying doing it on the Pi and showing how easy it can be for anyone with $100 to get into video production.

  A random note on production notes: A good set would allow someone to lay out the entire video, and someone else to actually create the video, freeing up the person who wrote them. The notes are the outline for the entire project. Very helpful. I write my notes as if they need to be understood by someone else, even if that person is just future Me.

  I finally got a selection of clips I am happy with. I added...

  Read more »

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