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Isolation Bay - The Rising - Jurassic Coast, Devon, UK

RedZeppelin

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Jun 23, 2019
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184
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57
Easily the biggest shoot / edit I've attempted yet. Would really appreciate views and comments ?

In the few days run up to COVID-19 lockdown here in the UK, I made a couple of trips to my favourite local coastline. One was grey and overcast, one blue skies and glorious. A dark side and a light side, if you will.

This is the Light Side ?

 
I liked it all.

Especially the overhead shot at the end showing the shadows with the colors.
 
Amazing! Love your cinematic shootings, clearly you are a Pro!!! Very well done, impressive, I guess you are setting the bar really high for us to post our videos now!

Out of curiosity, at 1'00 "and then again 1'50" I see the waves and the reef/sand moving in some big steps or like hiccup. Is it some editing "speed up" effect that you have applied or some issue with fps (eg recorded at 30fps and video transcoded to 25fps or viceversa) or maybe exposure time / lack of ND filter or other? It is not my video device because I see this effect at those timestamps and not for the entire video.

Thank you for sharing and again congrats for your flying and editing skills!!!!
 
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Amazing! Love your cinematic shootings, clearly you are a Pro!!! Very well done, impressive, I guess you are setting the bar really high for us to post our videos now!

Out of curiosity, at 1'00 "and then again 1'50" I see the waves and the reef/sand moving in some big steps or like hiccup. Is it some editing "speed up" effect that you have applied or some issue with fps (eg recorded at 30fps and video transcoded to 25fps or viceversa) or maybe exposure time / lack of ND filter or other? It is not my video device because I see this effect at those timestamps and not for the entire video.

Thank you for sharing and again congrats for your flying and editing skills!!!!
Hi. Thanks so much for the kind words. I do see the 'stepping' you refer too, but can't tell you exactly why it's happening on the YouTube version - it doesn't happen on the original file here on my PC or when playing it back through my TV, so maybe down to YouTube compression or processing.

I use a fixed PL filter all the time on my Spark these days and the video was set to auto, but with exposure locked to the main frame of each clip. The Spark records at 30fps, but having checked, I exported at the default rate of my editing software (Filmora) which was 29.97, so maybe that has something to do with it. I only used a speed ramp on 2 of the clips in this video and neither are at the time stamps you mentioned so I don't think it's that.

I'm still very much experimenting with video, so hopefully I can iron out things like this. I'm far from a Pro, trust me ;) This 3 minutes was taken from around 60 minutes of footage, but I guess that's what editing is all about and I hope to be a bit more productive with my footage as I get experience.

Thanks again for the kind words and feedback. I really do appreciate it ?
 
Hi. Thanks so much for the kind words. I do see the 'stepping' you refer too, but can't tell you exactly why it's happening on the YouTube version - it doesn't happen on the original file here on my PC or when playing it back through my TV, so maybe down to YouTube compression or processing.

I use a fixed PL filter all the time on my Spark these days and the video was set to auto, but with exposure locked to the main frame of each clip. The Spark records at 30fps, but having checked, I exported at the default rate of my editing software (Filmora) which was 29.97, so maybe that has something to do with it. I only used a speed ramp on 2 of the clips in this video and neither are at the time stamps you mentioned so I don't think it's that.

ok, got it! In my videos I used to get that stepping effect when I mixed videos from a GoPro, a smartphone and maybe a drone without paying attention to the fps. By default, electronics purchased in Europe are set to 25fps (legacy from 50Hz electricity and analog tv scan lines!) and those from the USA are to 30fps. Mixing clips with two different frame rates is usually a big mess with that kind of stepping effect.

30fps is the same as 29.97, do not worry.

How do you lock the exposure to the first main frame of a clip? I use an ND32 filter on my Spark and I manually set the exposure time to 1/60s to ensure I get a super smooth video. I leave ISO in auto so that it can control the overall light at best. I hate staggering vertical or horizontal bars in my videos, hence I go for 1/60s that works well for 30fps. Yet, I understand why you set the expo constant, sometimes I get a nasty sudden exposure change in my videos, like the sky suddenly becoming brighter or viceversa. I shall try your idea!

I'm still very much experimenting with video, so hopefully I can iron out things like this. I'm far from a Pro, trust me ;) This 3 minutes was taken from around 60 minutes of footage, but I guess that's what editing is all about and I hope to be a bit more productive with my footage as I get experience.

Thanks again for the kind words and feedback. I really do appreciate it ?

Ok, let me add then that I love the way you have synchronised the soundtrack to the video (or viceversa), like the rhythm change at the beginning when the drone flies around you right after the prep tune and then the music changes with the next scene.

Very well done!
 
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ok, got it! In my videos I used to get that stepping effect when I mixed videos from a GoPro, a smartphone and maybe a drone without paying attention to the fps. By default, electronics purchased in Europe are set to 25fps (legacy from 50Hz electricity and analog tv scan lines!) and those from the USA are to 30fps. Mixing clips with two different frame rates is usually a big mess with that kind of stepping effect.

30fps is the same as 29.97, do not worry.

How do you lock the exposure to the first main frame of a clip? I use an ND32 filter on my Spark and I manually set the exposure time to 1/60s to ensure I get a super smooth video. I leave ISO in auto so that it can control the overall light at best. I hate staggering vertical or horizontal bars in my videos, hence I go for 1/60s that works well for 30fps. Yet, I understand why you set the expo constant, sometimes I get a nasty sudden exposure change in my videos, like the sky suddenly becoming brighter or viceversa. I shall try your idea!



Ok, let me add then that I love the way you have synchronised the soundtrack to the video (or viceversa), like the rhythm change at the beginning when the drone flies around you right after the prep tune and then the music changes with the next scene.

Very well done!
Thanks for all of the information. All of this footage is from the Spark, so no mixed media. I guess I have to accept the limitations of the Spark and accept that it's not always going to be buttery smooth footage, especially when there's a lot going on like waves etc.

Sorry - I should have explained. I have the exposure lock set to the function button on my remote. I always pre-fly a scene and lock the exposure to where I think it will be most balanced. For an example, for the second clip where I climb past the foliage to reveal the coast, I did that as a test run and locked the exposure to where the whole coast is in view. If I hadn't, the contrast of the dark foliage at first, followed by the bright sunshine and coast would have caused the sudden exposure change you mentioned.

I do need to experiment more with manual settings, but I'm trying to do things in stages and get better at one thing before I try another. I do try to make the music compliment the footage where I can. It's not always easy, but I think it adds a lot to the impact of a video, rather than some random background music, but it does make the editing process even more long winded ;)
 
Hi Red,
Superb shooting and great editing!!
Enjoyed it very much, and do keep sharing..
Cheers,
Ranjit
 
Wonderful job RedZeppelin! Great scene selection, nice transitions and you nailed the background music. ? As for the stutter, if you haven't already maybe check your encoder settings to what YT recommends. Even with I've had their encoder mess up a couple of my own but it usually seems to do quite well.
 
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Wonderful job RedZeppelin! Great scene selection, nice transitions and you nailed the background music. ? As for the stutter, if you haven't already maybe check your encoder settings to what YT recommends. Even with I've had their encoder mess up a couple of my own but it usually seems to do quite well.
Thanks @RotorWash - really appreciate it ?

I'll definitely take a look at those encoder settings. Like I said, still very much learning the ropes when it comes to video. I'm also switching over to Davinci Resolve as my version of Filmora is pretty old now, so maybe that'll help.

Thanks again ?
 
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Easily the biggest shoot / edit I've attempted yet. Would really appreciate views and comments ?

In the few days run up to COVID-19 lockdown here in the UK, I made a couple of trips to my favourite local coastline. One was grey and overcast, one blue skies and glorious. A dark side and a light side, if you will.

This is the Light Side ?

Well done really enjoyed the video neatly edited and well flown. Look forward to more of your dramatic coastline.One question, the sound track is fantastic. What is it?
 
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Well done really enjoyed the video neatly edited and well flown. Look forward to more of your dramatic coastline.One question, the sound track is fantastic. What is it?
Thanks so much @Hopalot ?

The samples right at the start are from a big collection of short samples I've gathered over the years, but the main sountrack is from the Epic Cinematic Anthems series by Mainroom Warehouse. This is from Vol 1, but you can get all 3 volumes for a great price here:


Thanks again :)
 
Wow. Nor sure what to say other then that was an outstanding video. So very well done. Great footage, editing and the music was so well suited. Loved it from beginning to end. Thanks RedZepplin. ??
 
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Wow. Nor sure what to say other then that was an outstanding video. So very well done. Great footage, editing and the music was so well suited. Loved it from beginning to end. Thanks RedZepplin. ??
Thanks @Spark^ - really appreciate you taking time to comment and the kind words ?
 
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This was a really incredible video. The music was perfectly paired and the scenes were breathtaking! I kind of wish you had comments enabled on the video because I would be happy to post a glowing review there to help out your channel. Looking forward to seeing more!
 
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This was a really incredible video. The music was perfectly paired and the scenes were breathtaking! I kind of wish you had comments enabled on the video because I would be happy to post a glowing review there to help out your channel. Looking forward to seeing more!
@pixelbrat Thanks so much. Couldn't figure out why I was unable to enable comments for this and other videos, until I did a bit of digging. Turns out I'd tagged the video as 'Made For Kids' thinking this would just enable kids to view it, but it looks like turning this setting on will actually lock the comments completely. Anyway, I've turned it off now, so would appreciate any feedback ;)


My video / YouTube output has been minimal until now, and I'm discovering a lot that you don't have to consider with stills, but hoping to keep putting out new footage as I get more experience with it.
 
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ok, got it! In my videos I used to get that stepping effect when I mixed videos from a GoPro, a smartphone and maybe a drone without paying attention to the fps. By default, electronics purchased in Europe are set to 25fps (legacy from 50Hz electricity and analog tv scan lines!) and those from the USA are to 30fps. Mixing clips with two different frame rates is usually a big mess with that kind of stepping effect.

30fps is the same as 29.97, do not worry.

How do you lock the exposure to the first main frame of a clip? I use an ND32 filter on my Spark and I manually set the exposure time to 1/60s to ensure I get a super smooth video. I leave ISO in auto so that it can control the overall light at best. I hate staggering vertical or horizontal bars in my videos, hence I go for 1/60s that works well for 30fps. Yet, I understand why you set the expo constant, sometimes I get a nasty sudden exposure change in my videos, like the sky suddenly becoming brighter or viceversa. I shall try your idea!



Ok, let me add then that I love the way you have synchronised the soundtrack to the video (or viceversa), like the rhythm change at the beginning when the drone flies around you right after the prep tune and then the music changes with the next scene.

Very well done!
Hi,

Just to update, I've discovered from digging back in a few Spark forums that it records video in what's called 'Variable Frame Rate'. I won't go into the mind numbing technical details, but essentially it means the Spark's native frame rate isn't all at the same speed during a clip, and this is widely reported as causing stutter issues.

I've seen a few fixes mentioned that encode the footage with a 'Constant Frame Rate', which is I think what @RotorWash was referring to in his comment. I've tested this encoding using Adobe Media Encoder and a YouTube preset. On playback on my PC, I don't see any difference, but it sounds like it'll make the footage smoother when uploaded to YouTube, so I'll try this process for my next effort to see if it works.

Thanks again to everyone for the help and feedback ?
 

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