PRESENTING YOUR FINAL ARTWORKS

Presentations of your final folio of artwork will take place in your final class (week 12 for Jenna's classes, week 13 for Michael's).  

Please upload all of your finished artworks to your blog.

Your images need to be jpeg format. Export from Illustrator as a jpeg. Or Save As in Photoshop as a jpeg.

You may need to make the images smaller (72 dpi) to be able to upload them. Refer to previous blog post about how to change the image size in Photoshop for how to do this.

Remember that you may need to upload your video to Youtube or Vimeo and link or embed your video on your blog.

If you have difficulties uploading your artwork to your blog, you will be required to hand your work in to your lecturer on a CD/DVD. Or if you do not want to upload your work to the internet for privacy reasons please notify your lecturer and hand in your work on CD/DVD.

To present your work in class, you can show your images from your blog, usb, cd or external harddrive. You do not need to create a powerpoint presentation unless specified by your lecturer.

Present and critically discuss your final folio to the class with critical discussion (i.e. the formal and aesthetic qualities of the work, the subject matter, your intention and the digital techniques explored), with provision for class feedback and discussion. The presentation should be approximately 5-10 minutes long. 

You will also be required to actively participate in the discussion on other’s works.

FOR STUDENTS ON PLACEMENT

**Please discuss with your lecturer regarding how you will present you works in place of the oral presentation.**

For students in Jenna's class, please upload all of your artworks to your blog and write a brief statement on each one (what you would have talked abot had you presented orally). 
 

Uploading video to your blog

It is unlikely that you will be able to upload your video straight to your blog, so you may need to use a video hosting site like Youtube or Vimeo, then link it or embed it in your blog.

It is unwise to upload a video the internet with copyrighted images or sound/music. Please be aware of the copyright of other works. If you have used copyrighted materials, it is probably best to hand your work in directly to your lecturer. If you have used material with a creative commons licence please credit accordingly.

iDVD - Publishing your video to DVD

Open iDVD
Create new project. Name and choose location to save project.
Select relevant aspect ratio (standard or widescreen)

Before doing anything else, we need to make sure the settings are correct. In the menu bar > iDVD > Preferences > General > Uncheck show Apple watermark.
Projects > Video Mode: PAL


When it opens it will look like this:

 

         ^ Info button     ^ Show Drop Zones     ^Play

Playing in the centre is what the DVD menu looks like. Running along the right hand side is the menu themes you can choose from. Select a theme if you want a menu. You will notice grey 'drop zones', these are areas where you can drag and drop still images or video to play like previews before the the DVD plays. Be sure to drag and drop the image/video directly into the drop zone, other wise you will be adding a video or image to be played. Depending on which theme you have chosen there may be more than one drop zone. Click on the show drop zones button to identify all of them.

Click on the Info button (bottom left of the screen). It will give you the menu info where you can choose the music or the loop duration of the background for example.

It is not necessary to have a menu, as you can set the DVD to play as soon as it is inserted into the drive or player.

Click on DVD map (first button of the three in the middle)

                              ^ DVD map  

                                          

This shows you the flow of the DVD. As you can see you can drag contents into the first box to play automatically when inserted. I would use this option if I were showing a video piece at an exhibition on a loop. 

 

            ^ Info button

Here I have dragged my video directly into the first box, then clicked on the Info button bottom left. The grey movie info dialogue box opened, I clicked on Loop Movie. This means that my movie will automatically play looped when inserted into the player. 

If you do not want that to be the case, you can click on the Add (+) button next to the info button. Add movie. This will add a box after the menu into which you can drag and drop your video.

You can add multiple videos or slideshows. It will look like this in the DVD map view:

Or like this if you unclick DVD map:

If you click on the video titles (seen here under Revolution Main), then the info tab you can change the font, colour etc. 

If you click on any of that text (ie Revolution main, sequence 2, test) you can rename them too. 

You can preview your DVD at any time by clicking on the play arrow.

Once you are happy with your DVD, click on the burn button directly next to the play button.

It will direct you to insert a blank DVD. Then it will proceed to burn the DVD. You can make multiple copies easily by inserting another blank DVD when it has finished the first.

Burning a Data CD/DVD

If you are going to submit all or part of your final folio on a data CD or DVD, please follow the steps below for using the Burn program on the Macs at Uni.

Open the Burn application from the Applications folder.

Ensure the 'Data' button is selected from the 4 choices along the top.

Title the disk with your name.

Change the format to Mac + PC (this means you will be able to view the contents of the disk on both operating systems).

Drag and drop your final artworks from the desktop onto the Burn window.

Please ensure the works are titled clearly. Your still images should be .jpg and your video should be .mov files.

Click Burn. Insert disk. You can check the 'allow more sessions' box. This will allow you to continue to burn files onto the disk until it has run out of space. 

Click burn.

Wait for the magic box to put your pretty pictures and video onto the shiny round thing.
Label shiny round thing clearly with your name and student number.
Include a stamped self address envelope if you would like you disk returned.
Hand in to your lecturer with relief and a smile on your face.

Sound resources for video

If you are wanting to use legally free sounds, sound effects or music you can download from sites such as
https://www.freesound.org/
http://creativecommons.org/legalmusicforvideos

Just be sure to check the instructions of the artists to ensure you credit correctly.

FCP - Exporting your finished video

Find out the frame size of your video prior to exporting to ensure you do so at the correct size. To do this, control click on a clip in your timeline > Item Properties > Format.

Next to Frame Size, it will give you the dimensions of the clip (eg 1290 x 1080). Take note of this size. Click cancel.

Deselect the clip in the timeline by clicking on any of the grey area just above the video line.

Make sure the correct Sequence is selected in your browser (other wise you will only export what you currently have selected). 

File > Export > Using Quicktime Conversion

Name and choose location

Format: Click on Options.

Video Settings > Compression type > H.264

Frame rate: Current

Compressor Quality > High or Best

OK

Size:

This will depend on whether you shot in Standard Definition or High Definition

For SD choose SD 768 x 576 or SD PAL 720x576 4:3 or 16:9 for widescreen

For HD choose 1280 x 720 HD

(If you are unsure of the format of your video, command click on a clip in your sequence > item properties. In here you will see the format and the size of the clip, eg 1920 x 1080)

OK

Sound - You can leave the sound settings as is, they should be fine for our projects.

OK. 

The amount of time it takes to export your video will depend on the length and how much editing and effects you've added. 

You can watch a Youtube tutorial on exporting your video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpJCgL-_7YA

Compressing video using Handbrake and Streamclip

An alternative method to Compressor
You will need to complete both steps

STEP 1: HANDBRAKE

Whilst compressing your HD video into an Apple ProRes 422 file using Compressor is ideal, there is an alternative for students who do not have access to the program or are finding it confusing.

Handbrake is an open source video transcoder, meaning you can download it for free on to your own computer and convert your videos quickly and easily. Available for Mac and Windows.

http://handbrake.fr/


Open Handbrake. You will be prompted to select a source video. This is the video you want to compress. Navigate and select the video clip. Click Open.

Browse for the destination (where you want your converted video file to be saved).

Output Settings:
Format - MP4

Video
Video Codec: Mpg4


Press the start button (top left, next to the source button).

You will then need to convert this clip into a video file editable in FCP.

STEP 2: MPEG STREAMCLIP

Download Mpeg Streamclip for your Mac or PC.
 http://www.squared5.com/

File > Open File
Locate you mpg4 video you just transcoded in Handbrake

File > Export to Quicktime
Compression: Apple Pro Res 422
1920 x 1080 (unscaled)

Click on 'Make Movie'
Re-name file


Your videos should now be editable in FCP

2nd Generation and Contemporary Video Artists

IMPORTANT AND INFLUENTIAL 2nd GENERATION VIDEO ARTISTS AND CONTEMPORARY VIDEO ARTISTS:

Marina Abramovic : Starting out as a painter, Abramović subsequently shifted her focus to conceptual work, sound installations and mainly performances. She started in 1973 performing several works such as"Rhythm", in which she intended to stretch the limits of her body and mind. This theme appears in all her work, especially in her collaborative work with Ulay.

Dara Birnbaum : appropriates the television images and works with them in a subversive way, but her explicit intention is to show its superficiality and to unmask its manipulative methods.

John Cage : The American composer John Cage, to whom every kind of sound was considered to be music, is probably best known for breaking the boundaries between music, performance, noise and sound.

Sophie Calle : Consciously conceals the borders between art and life, fiction and reality, and between the private and public. Transforms her daily life with a series of performances, usually executed as a combination of texts and photographs.

Gary Hill : began working with video, text and sound in 1973 and has produced a major body of single-channel videotapes and video installations that includes some of the most significant works in the field of video art. 

Pierre Huyghe : Much of Huyghe's work examines the structural properties of film and its problematic relationship to reality. His work frequently mixes fact with fiction.

Paul McCarthy : performance work in the 70s; in late 80s video/performance installations.

Pipilotti Rist : aesthetic language quite close to music videos through the combination of music, performance and electronic manipulation. 

Matthew Barney : He is best known as the producer and creator of the CREMASTER films, a series of five visually extravagant works created out of sequence (CREMASTER 4 began the cycle, followed by CREMASTER 1, etc.). The films generally feature Barney in myriad roles, including characters as diverse as a satyr, a magician, a ram, Harry Houdini, and even the infamous murderer Gary Gilmore. 

Shirin Neshat : one of a growing number of contemporary international artists whose work crosses boundaries of nationality, culture, and artistic medium. Using photography and video, she has produced a body of work that investigates the cultural conflicts resulting from the collision of tradition and modernity in the East and West. Neshat turned to the media of photography and video in an attempt to investigate the role of women and feminism in Islamic society as well as her own status as a self-imposed artist in exile.

Soda_Jerk :  remix artists who work across the media of video, photo-collage and installation. By atomising and reassembling recorded culture they aim to manufacture counter-mythologies of the past that open new possibilities for thinking the present. 

Bill Viola : "My work? - says Bill Viola - is focused on a process of self-discovery and self-realization. Video is part of my body. It is intuitive and subconscious." 

More links:

Pipilotti Rist- I'm Not The Girl Who Misses MuchPipilotti Rist- I Couldn't Agree with you More

Pipilotti Rist - Be Nice To Me (Flatten 04)

Pipilotti Rist- Sip My Ocean (1996)

Bill Viola - The Reflecting Pool
Bill Viola - Ocean Without a Shore - Venice Biennale 2007

Gary Hill - Mouth Piece (1978)
Gary Hill - Site Recite (a prologue) 1989 

Switch (eye), by Tony OURSLER (1996)
Tony Oursler - Axe
David Bowie - Where Are We Now? (video by Tony Oursler)

Contemporary video art, whilst still including single channel or multi channel works (video works played on the one or multiple screens), has extended into another newish art form; installation. This is where the videos are shown, either projected or on a monitor, amongst an environment incorporating sculptural elements, objects, or intervened space. The video may be projected onto everyday objects, such as in Pipilotti Rist's Himalaya Sisters Living Room, or onto effigies, such as Tony Oursler's many contemporary works.

Matthew Barney's Cremaster Cycle is a pivotal contemporary work, in that it has the aura of a big budget Hollywood feature film/s, yet at it's centre it is conceptual and experimental.

FCP - Adding Music

If you want to add a song to your Final Cut video, you need to save it in the correct format.

If you are working on a Mac the song should be saved as an AIFF file.

If you are working on a PC the song should be saved as a WAVE file.

Converting you file.

1 Determine the audio sample rate of of your Final Cut sequence by selecting the sequence in the Browser and then choosing Edit > Item Properties.
The audio sample rate appears in the Item Properties window. The default DV preset uses 48 kHz audio. Make a note of the sample rate.

2 Open the song in Quicktime.

3 File > Export.
Choose where you want the file to be saved. This is where the AIFF or WAVE will be saved.

4 Choose Sound to AIFF from the Export pop-up menu.

Click the Options button.
In the sound settings window, set the Compressor to None and the Rate to the sample rate of your sequence. Also choose Stereo unless this is a mono audio file.

Click OK to dismiss the Sound Settings window.

Click the Save button.

5 Import the AIFF or WAVE into your Final Cut  project as you would with any other media file. You can drag the file direct from the Finder into the Browser window or choose File > Import > Files

FCP - Effect Filters

Applying a Filter to a Clip 

You can apply filters to clips in a sequence or to clips in the Browser, but it’s very 

important to understand the distinction between these two methods. 

 If you apply filters to a sequence clip:  The filters are applied only to that clip. The 

master clip in the Browser remains untouched. 

 If you apply filters to a master clip in the Browser:  Instances of that clip already in other 

sequences are untouched, but if you edit the master clip into a sequence, the new 

filter accompanies the clip into the sequence. 

In most cases, you apply filters to individual clips in sequences, not to master clips in the 

Browser. There may be occasions where you want every instance of a master clip edited 

into a sequence to have the same filter applied, such as during color correction. In this 

case, apply the color correction filter to the master clip in the Browser. However, filters 

applied to clips are still independent of each other. If you modify the filter parameters 

for a master clip, the same filter parameters in affiliate clips are not modified. 

Tip:  To maintain consistent filter settings across multiple clips, you can copy and paste 

filter settings using the Paste Attributes command.

To apply a filter to a clip in a sequence, do one of the following: 

• Select one or more clips in the Timeline, then drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser to one of the selected clips in the Timeline.

• Select one or more clips in the Timeline, choose Effects > Video Filters, then choose a filter from the submenus. 

Open a sequence clip in the Viewer, then do one of the following: 

• Choose Effects > Video Filters, then choose a filter from the submenus. Drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser directly into the Viewer. You can apply a filter to an entire clip or just part of a clip. 

Once you add a filter or transition you may get a red bar running along the top of your timeline, and if you try to play from your time line it may say UNRENDERED on a blue and black screen. This simply means you need to render the clip to be able to view it. This may take a while depending on the degree of the effects and the length of the clips. 

In the menu bar Sequence > Render > Both

Short cut is Command R.

FCP - Motion Controls

You can easily control the "motions" of your clips in the timeline to create some very effective looks.

Double click on the clip in the timeline. Click on the 'motion' tab in the Viewer window. Here you will be able to adjust the scale, rotation and position of the image, as well as crop it and feather the edge, adjust the aspect ration and the opacity, amongst other things, just by changing the parameters.

 

For example you could have multiple create a grid of 4 videos just by scaling them to 50 and repositioning the centre of each.

You can easily change the speed or direction of a clip. With the clip selected (either in the timeline or in the browser) > Modify > Change Speed (command J). If you want the clip to play in slow motion change the rate to a number less than 100, if you want it to play quicker change it to a number greater than 100. You can also check the reverse box if you want it to play backwards. The number in the rate box will turn red if reverse is selected.

FCP - Stop Motion Animation

Taking your photos
You have a couple of options here, depending on your subject matter.

i. Most digital cameras have a "shutter burst" or multi-shot function, where by holding down the shutter button it takes a burst of photos in rapid succession. This is a good option if you are using an animated object (for example a person or a moving object like a car).

ii. Your other option is to set your camera up on a tripod in front of your inanimate object. Take a photo, move your object slightly, take another photo, move your object slightly... repeat.

Remember, that a moving image is generally 25 frames per second. That's 100 pictures for 4 seconds. Or 1500 for 1 minute! For stop motion, we don't have to adhere to this too closely, as it is the stop part which gives it its character. So you might like to opt for half that, so 12 frames per second, for example, is perfect for Stop Motion.

Editing your images
You can edit your photos in photoshop if you want to, but remember you will need to be consistent, it may look odd if you only edit a couple and not the rest. Save as jpgs.

Putting it altogether
Open Final Cut Pro. First things first, click on Final Cut Pro in the menu bar > User preferences > Editing tab > Still/freeze duration. Change the time for how long you want your individual photos to play for. It is in the format of hh:mm:ss:ff so you will change the frames. If you are working to 12 frames per second for example, it would be 00:00:00:02 (as there are 24 or 25 frames per second).




Import all of your photos. File > import > Files. You can select more than one by holding down the shift key. It is a good idea to have them in order already, so that when you start putting them together in your timeline you won't have to search, and you can just simply select them all and drag and drop into your timeline.

You can add effects, the easiest way to do this is to export your animation as a Quicktime, then import it back into Final Cut, then add the effect to the whole clip. Export again as a Quicktime when complete.

You may also like to have music, if it is an mp3 or wav you can simply drag and drop the music file into your timeline.

WEEK 8 HOMEWORK - Video Art

1. Search the VideoArtWorld website using the categories check boxes on the right hand side of the page for video work which is related to your topic or project. Link it on your blog. Write a short 50-100 words on how this video made you feel. (If you cannot find anything that is specifically related to your topic, find something else which interests you)
Don't stop at one... if you find more, keep watching and researching!

2. If you haven't already, film your footage for your final video art piece. If you have filmed in HD or need to change the file format for FCP, follow the earlier COMPRESSOR tutorial on the blog. Bring all of your clips into the next class to begin editing together you final video. 

FINAL CUT PRO - Transitions

From the FCP manual:


COMMON TYPES OF TRANSITIONS
A cut, the most basic type of transition, is a transition with no duration; when one shot ends, another one immediately begins, without any overlap. All other transitions gradually replace one shot with another; when one shot ends, another one gradually replaces it. There are three very common transitions used that occur over time: fades, cross dissolves, and wipes. 
A fade-out begins with a shot at full intensity and reduces until it is gone. A fade-in begins with a shot at no intensity and increases until it is full. These are the common “fade to black” and “fade up (from black)” transitions. 
A cross dissolve involves two shots. The first shot fades out while the second shot simultaneously fades in. During the cross dissolve, the two shots are superimposed as they fade. 
A wipe is where the screen splits, moving from one side of the image to the other to gradually reveal the next shot. It is more obvious than a fade or cross dissolve. 

Final Cut Pro also comes with two audio transitions: a +3 dB cross fade (the default) and a 0 dB cross fade Cross Fade (+3 dB):  Performs the same operation as Cross Fade (0 dB), but applies an equal-power ramp to the volume level, rather than a linear ramp.
Cross Fade (0 dB):  Fades the first clip out, while simultaneously fading the second clip in. This effect applies a linear ramp to the volume level. As a result, the volume level dips in the middle of the cross fade. Each cross fade results in a different audio level change as the transition plays. Your choice of cross fades depends on the clips you’re transitioning between. Try one, then try the other to see which sounds better.
Using Transitions in Your Sequences Transitions, especially dissolves, generally give the viewer an impression of a change in time or location. When very long transitions are used, they become more of a special effect, useful in creating a different atmosphere in your sequence. You can use transitions to: 

• Convey the passing of time between scenes 

• Fade up at the beginning of the movie or scene 

• Create a montage of images 

• Fade out at the end of the movie or scene 

• Create motion graphic effects 

• Soften jump cuts (cuts between two different parts of the same footage) 

To add the default video transition, do one of the following: 

• Select an edit point between two video clips or position the Canvas or Timeline playhead at the desired edit point, then press Command-T.

• Control-click an edit point between two video clips in the Timeline, then choose Add Transition from the shortcut menu. The name of the current default transition appears next to the command in the shortcut menu.

To add a transition from the Effects menu: 1 Do one of the following: 

• Click an edit point between two clips in your sequence to select it. 

• Position the Canvas or Timeline playhead at the desired edit point. 

• Position the Canvas or Timeline playhead on a transition that’s already been edited into your sequence. 

2 Do one of the following: 

• Choose Effects > Video Transitions, choose the type of transition, then choose the desired transition from the submenu. 

• Choose Effects > Audio Transitions, then choose the desired transition from the submenu.

If there are enough overlapping frames on both sides of the edit point, the selected transition is added to your edit, centered at the edit point.

How Transitions Appear in the Timeline Transitions are applied between two adjacent clips in the same track of a sequence in the Timeline. In the Timeline, a transition is displayed as an object overlapping two adjacent clips. You can still see the cut point between the two clips. A dark gray slope in the 

transition’s icon in your sequence indicates the speed, alignment, and direction of your transition. 

Aligning a Transition in the Timeline You can place a transition so that it starts on, centers on, or ends on the edit point between two clips in the Timeline. You should choose a transition alignment based on the editorial effect you want to achieve: 

• Starting on the cut:  Choose this alignment if you want the last frame of the outgoing clip to be fully visible before the transition begins. 

• Centered on the cut:  Choose this alignment if you want the cut point between the two clips to be the midpoint in the transition. 

• Ending on the cut:  Use this alignment if you want the first frame of the incoming clip to be fully visible. 

You will need to have a sufficient amount of the clip roll on to be able to add a transition. This means there will need to be enough video after the edit cut that FCP can use within the fade/transition.

Double click on the transition and it will be come viewable in the VIew window. You can edit the speed, alignment or length of the transition with more ease here.