• Pre-production: planning, budgeting, location scouting, permissions gathering
• Production: lighting, photography, B-roll (miscellaneous photography), voiceover
• Post-production: editing, music acquisition, motion graphics, DVD authoring
• Fulfillment: mass duplication, web delivery, or broadcast

Above all, our initial training is heavily PBS-influenced, so therefore appropriate treatment, pacing, careful composition and lighting, good sound, and upholding technical standards are always paramount to our delivery of your message.


Preproduction Planning: Establish the scope

The first step of preproduction involves a discussion of client requirements coupled with the realistic issues of actual shooting.

Is this a staged message, such as a training course, corporate communications, infomercial, advertisement, or public service annoucement (PSA)? Or is it coverage of an already-planned event? Is it scripted or non-scripted?

Can the shoot be single-camera or it is a nonstop event where multiple simultaneous cameras are required? How elaborate will the editing and graphics need to be? Is royalty-free music okay or do we need to commision custom music? Will we need professional voice-over talent? (A pro-sounding voice-over alone makes a huge difference!) Professional on-camera talent?


Preproduction Planning: Always do a location scout

What is the natural lighting at the location(s) like? Will we need lighting? Of course. Daytime exterior scenes need some kind light control (reflectors, nets) to make pretty images when working with harsh sunlight, daytime interior scenes also need light control and supplementation, and nightime interior or windowless sets demand a nice lighting setup which flatters the subject, eliminates a cluttered background while still showing it nicely (perhaps with some slants of light), and has a backlight on the hair and shoulders to separate the subject from the background.

What about sound? Is it just a single talking head or do multiple talent people need microphones? Wireless? Is the location too noisy? Are you doing the location scout at the same time of day that the shoot will be so that airplanes overhead that ruin your audio will not be a surprise?

From whom do we need to obtain permission to shoot at the location(s)? Are there members of the public or children present for which we will need releases (signed permission forms)? Are we incidentally picking up pictures or sound during the shoot that are copyrighted?


Preproduction Planning: Set expectations for post

What will the post-production requirements be? Will we need to add graphics? How elaborate? Advanced graphics work may have to be done by another facility. Will we have to scan or shoot photos or bring in other elements not gathered during the shoot(s)?

How much preparation for editing must be done? Did a script exist before shooting? Will the client review the raw footage and come up with a script, or will the editor decide on a sequence based on general client input? Will the client require transcripts?

Once editing starts and drafts of the edited program are presented for client review, how many revisions will need to be made? This is hard to predict, but how picky will the client wish to be?

Considering all of the above issues and deciding up front on guidelines will facilitate a realistic budget estimate before any work is actually performed.


Production and Photography: Details count

Preparation and experience together are crucial. A professional will know how to make a location or interview look its best on video.

She will pre-scout the location, knowing what questions to ask. She will always be thinking of the final program, anticipating issues of incomplete coverage that lead to editing problems. She will know of lighting, audio, composition, noise, continuity, 180-degree rule, and much more. She will be aware of backgrounds that are visually too busy. She will think about shadows, color temperature, and the time of day. She will consider airplane and highway noise. She will listen for "room tone". She will notice that annoying tree branch whipping in the wind outside the window.

Properly lighting for a corporate address, interview, or other "talking head" can make the difference between putting the audience to sleep and a slick, professional look. This takes taste, sensitivity, and experience. A hair backlight, a spot or pattern on the background, simulated "sunlight" slants on a wall, slats, cookies, etc, are all tricks of this surprisingly difficult trade. The better the light is controlled, the better the image looks. A poorly-lit scene looks flat, muddy, and dull.

Proper sound is essential and demands that the microphone(s) be placed as close to (ie, on) the talent as possible; a bad picture with good sound might be accepted but never vice versa. But it is much better that both be right. Wireless microphones help a great deal, but better test them and have a backup plan in today's noisy RF environment.


Production and Photography: The event

The shoot(s) themselves involve setup, shoot, and breakdown.

Setup can range from nothing to several hours of placing lights and microphones. In most cases, even that five-minute location scout visit a few days before the shoot will now pay off tremendously. Where will electrical power come from, if needed? Is the location noisy? What is in the background? What does the light look like at different times of the day?

During the shoot, the emphasis is all about just letting the camera roll as much as possible and getting much coverage. Tape is cheaper than any other costs at this point. A real video monitor is great peace of mind at this point to verify that the composition and lighting are up to par. And always, always, wear headphones to check the sound: VU meter levels will look OK even if there are serious problems such as the on-camera microphone rather than the subject microphone being selected or if there is an RF interference or room tone problem.

Breakdown always seems to take longer than setting up. But if the shoot went well, it is always a highly satisfying time of day. Of course, one will still be a bit nervous until the footage is viewed in a dark editing room and shown to be good enough to use, or, hopefully, great-looking (it is the great-looking images that will then look stunning after some color correction).


Production and Photography: More about completeness of coverage

The shoot itself may consist of covering the event, obtaining interviews, reaction shots, serendipitous shots, and anything else. Unless absolutely zero post-production is to be performed, the camera will roll more rather than less because tape is cheaper than recreating the event or doing another shoot, plus additional footage almost always solves editing problems.

Experience goes a long way during photography. Providing completeness of coverage with the later editing process in mind is a cost-effective skill. Making sure that the talent is properly lit and looking in the proper direction, that no objectionable background noises or visuals are present, and that the focus and color balance are correct, are among the myriad of "little" technical things that make the professional image. Experienced directors know how to make nonprofessional talent say the kinds of things that are required for the production (testimonials, for example).


Post Production: Overview

During "post", the program is assembled out of raw material. Graphics are created, music is found, and voiceovers are recorded. The program is then repeatedly refined until everyone is satisfied.

The client must take an early, active interest in the results. Post can be the lengthiest and costliest phase of a project if not properly planned and budgeted, or if requirements change significantly late in the project.

The post-production process is that of taking the raw camera footage and forging it into a finished program of the desired length and style.

If the program is the simple coverage of an event, then there is very little editing. Perhaps some bad footage is thrown away, maybe some music is mixed in, and a title or two is inserted at the beginning and end.

If the program is a scripted training tape, then the script will dictate the order of the scenes and any additional material (graphics, photos, screen shots, etc) to be inserted. The editor still has the responsibility to maintain good overall editorial structure, pacing, and cinematic conventions.

If the program is an unscripted training tape, or is to be a short documentary, then the editor has the responsibilities of the scripted training tape example above and additionally must create some kind of "story" out of the footage available. Ben Koning Productions specializes in this kind of client-hands-off work, if so desired.

If the program is a short-form commerical or program intro, the editing can cross the line into dynamic visual layout and may be very time-intensive. Weeks or more can be spent on a thirty-second sequence, for example.


Post Production: Preparation

Preparation for editing begins by making an inventory of available raw footage; this process is known as logging. Logging can range from almost nothing for simple projects to word-for-word transcriptions for complex projects. For most projects, the result of logging is a few pages of written-down timecode and description lines. In any case, logging is important not only for writing down what footage is available but also for familiarizing the editor with the footage.

Sometimes a client will want to take back a window dub (a low-resolution copy with visible timecode numbers) of the raw footage for review at leisure.

After logging, a paper edit is created; this is simply a proposal for a list of scenes, in order, and general notes about music and graphics, that will make up the finished program. The client makes changes and eventually approves it, perhaps using their window dub as a reference. At this point we also know if we need to shoot any more material or if we have everything we need.

The next stage is that of capturing the desired footage onto the computer's hard disk array. Doing this step after the paper edit saves some clutter and disk space. Yes, we might be able to capture everything that was shot, and in fact this is usually done for short-form projects, but we can always (and usually do) go back to the raw tapes and capture some more during editing.

With newer equipment, the capture step is becoming faster and increasingly less labor-intensive. Cameras are becoming more like computers, video clips are becoming less like tape runs and more like files, faster-than-realtime transfers are possible, and automatic thumbnail pictures of scenes can be offered.


Post Production: Editing the rough cut

Then the rough cut is created. This is a simple, first-pass edit of the project, usually lacking sophisticated fades, music, titles, graphics, and effects. If the paper edit is accurate, this process is relatively quick. A copy of the rough cut is viewed by the client, who specifies changes.

What is most important about the rough cut is that the talking-head and sound design is locked down. This is the last chance to make large changes easily. Cutaways and graphics can always be shown "over" the sound and changed later, but it is the "soundtrack" or "sound design" that is really being created at this stage, and along with it, the basic structure and pacing of the whole video.

It is vitally important that the client and editor agree on the final results of this stage before moving on in order to save lots of money and grief.


Post Production: Editing to fill all sound design holes

Music is usually added at the next stage, and the talking head sound level fades are made final and otherwise sweetened.

Sound effects, in the form of crunching shoes or running water, called foley work, which used to be only done in fiction films, often helps tell the story even in a documentary.

Music can come from standard music libraries (ie, $100 per CD, royalty-free, or more for better-quality music) or can be custom-written. The danger with standard music libraries is that the music therein may be heard somewhere else; however, custom music costs more. Under no circumstances must copyrighted music from a CD bought at a record store (or video off-air or from a copyrighted videotape) be used without written permission! This written permission can be obtained from clearinghouses established by some of the record companies, sometimes at a surprisingly reasonable price.

If the video was not driven by a voice-over already, at this point, sometimes glaring gaps in interviews are covered (and often this looks like it was meant to be done this way, not like a mistake) by recording and using voiceovers by the interviewers who appear in the video. For example: "I asked Joe why he could not visit his dad more often" is a voiceover we hear while we see Joe walk down a hallway -- all to cover for the fact that during the interview, the same question asked by the interviewer had a big sneeze in it.


Post Production: Editing for graphics and visual holes

Once the soundtrack is done and everyone is happy with it, cutaways (ie, cutting away from a talking head to show what they are talking about) are added; titles, such as tags (a graphic of someone's name at the bottom of the screen) are created, and effects are made. As this happens, rendering times tend to go up and the structure of the video becomes increasingly locked in. At this stage the editor will need to know specific contents for graphics and need to be in posession of every image and sound that needs to go into the program. Depending on the project, this stage of editing can be relatively quick or be by far the longest in duration.


Post Production: Editing for pacing

It may well be that at this point, the best thing that can happen to our video is that the client says that they love it, but ask us to cut it down from 10 minutes to 8 minutes. This will entail deleting some of our most clever edits and nicest-looking shots, perhaps, but if it helps to keep the pacing up and move the story along, it is well worth it.

Anything that is even slightly superfluous should really be cut out, no matter how much we worked on it. It is heartbreaking, but one must have the discipline to do it.


Post Production: Color grading, captioning, and fine tuning

It is at this stage of the project that color-correction is performed, if it has not been already, in order to make already-good looking images truly beautiful, or perhaps to correct color temperature errors made during production (sometimes on purpose if there was not enough time). This used to be reserved for Hollywood movies, but sophisticated color correction tools have raised the bar of having a good color "look" for all productions.

As the video nears completion, the client views a few more copies of the work in progress and specifies (hopefully increasingly small) changes. Soon, we get to a point where additional "tweaking" is possible but not really worth it, and the video is finished.

Certain videos will need closed-captions or open (visible) captions at this stage, such as translations into different languages. This is basically a transcription job and thus could be quite labor-intensive. Composition of language translation subtitles is a bit of an art and is, again, labor-intensive.


Post Production: Finishing

There may be a final couple of rendering or conversion or transcoding sessions, especially if the video was edited at a lower-resolution proxy or if multiple output resolutions or formats are needed by the client.


DVD Authoring

DVDs of the video, if they are for a release which does not need any menus, can be made readily and quickly at this stage. But if the production requires sophisticated DVD menus and DVD interactivity, this part of the project can approach the complexity of the entire previous post-production effort. Fortunately, DVD authoring is becoming easier over time.


Fulfillment

Fulfillment refers to mass duplication and delivery. This is the final step. This may include submission of a master tape, disk, disc, or network file, to a distributor, mass duplicator, cablecaster, or broadcaster; it may involve mailing, custom retail packaging, web encoding, and the assignment of SKU and bar codes.

If the client's requirements go no further than a master tape, then we are finished at this point. Examples include submission for broadcast, submission to a distributor for wholesale or retail, or simply delivery of the master for the client's own further use.

If the client needs mass duplication, then we will contract out with one of several facilties to do this. Custom printed sleeves (ranging from plain to full-color with custom photos, text, barcodes, and more), shrinkwrap, etc, are all available and surprisingly affordable; the cost varies by program length, custom vs. non-custom packaging, custom vs. non-custom packaging, etc.

For example, $8 / unit cost is typical for a 1/2-hour VHS tape with 4-color custom UV-laminated 3/4 sleeve plus shrinkwrap, assuming quantity 100. About $2-5 per unit is the corresponding price for DVDs. For an additional fee, these facilities perform mass mailing as well.


Professional video recording and storage formats

The images obtained in the cameras or camcorders are recorded onto a professional videotape format such as Betacam SP, DVCPRO, Digital Betacam, etc. We use DVCPRO, looking to be using DVCPRO50 soon, and have the ability to read and write DVCPRO, SVHS, and VHS; other formats can be supported through equipment rental or our use of other facilities.

Why must we use a professional videotape format? The reasons are picture and sound quality and robustness of the tapes. It is worth noting that the consumer DV digital videotape format, in its highest-quality mode, equals, and in most, but not all, ways surpasses the currently outgoing broadcast-standard Betacam SP videotape format.

Keep in mind, however, that "broadcast quality" is always a moving target, and major-market television stations and networks are now in the process of switching to formats such as Digital Betacam, Betacam SX, DVCPRO, DVCPRO-50, DVCPRO-100 (-HD), HDCAM, and D-9 ("Digital S"), all of which are superior to consumer DV.

A few outstanding prosumer HD ("high definition") cameras exist, but, as of this writing (July 2004), no full-size HD camcorder designs in the $10-20K price point that is our range are offered yet. It is unfortunate and enviable that most network programming is already all being produced in HD (and downconverted to non-HD, or "SD" for "standard definition" for SD broadcast). Hopefully Sony, JVC, and Panasonic will be able to begin to address this market gap in the next few years.


Professional Cameras

Why must we use an expensive camera rather than a consumer or prosumer unit? The reasons are versatility in field use, optical quality, and electronic quality.

The smoothness of the optical controls and professional tripods make for a stable image and smooth pans and zooms.

External audio inputs, pro microphones, and good technique produce clear sound.

The quality of the lens, the ability of the lens to be adjusted in focus, zoom, and brightness manually and with a great deal of control result in consistency and control over what is in focus and what is not (depth of field). Perhaps a distracting background can be pleasantly thrown out of focus behind a talking head.

Above all, the quality of the imaging sensors and processing circuitry, producing superior clarity (resolution), the ability to handle both dark and bright areas in the same scene (dynamic range), accuracy of color reproduction (colorimetry), and the absence of noise and other visual artifacts set the image far ahead of consumer cameras.


Why DV consumer gear does not always cut it

Why must the quality of the image gathered during shooting be so high, if its destination is "only" to be played through a consumer television or small computer window? And through quality-degrading transmission media such as the Web, VHS, or DVD (in decreasing order), no less?

One might be tempted to say that a consumer digital camera and low-cost computer will work just fine, simply because they are "digital" and that the specifications of the consumer gear seem to be okay. Yet a video produced in this manner will not look nearly as good as episodic TV, national commercials, and even most local news. Why is this so?

One reason is that professional techniques are almost never employed; images look so much better if they are correctly lighted, if they are decently composed, if attention is paid to backgrounds, if tripods are used, and if external microphones are employed and placed as close as possible to their subjects.

Another reason is that, as discussed above, a better camera and lens will deliver better colors, shadows, highlights, and edges. Images will be sharper, colors will be brighter and more accurate, and a larger range of luminance in the subject between bright and dark areas can be accomodated.

But there is a bigger reason: The necessity for 2x - 4x higher source image resolution, also known as oversampling. The cameras and computers used in higher-end production produce and handle greater data rates to provide more pixels per frame, more shades per pixel, and much less (or no) data compression.

Consider the fact that horizontal resolution of VHS is only some 240 lines and its colors are rather dark and dirty. DVD playback improves the situation greatly, but even so, TV sets can usually only resolve some 360 horizontal lines. Web streaming can be even worse.

Yet, if you compare a Hollywood movie delivered on DVD or VHS with a birthday party shot on the best DV camera and copied (or directly recorded) to the same, note how much better the movie looks -- it is no contest. Remember, in both cases you are only looking at 250 to 400 lines of horizontal resolution or so.

The difference is that the movie was produced on film, which performs at a horizontal resolution of 2000 lines or more.

A superior camera and edit system will carry high resolution picture data all the way up to the broadcast, print-to-film, copy-to-DVD/VHS, or encode-for-Web steps.

At this time those "extra" pixels contribute additional brightness and color information to those few analog "pixel positions" on DVD/VHS or those fewer digital pixels on the Web. Think of it as "smart antialiasing".

Usually the steps down in resolution are 2x or 4x: A good video camera can resolve 700-900 horizontal lines, most tape and editing systems can do 400-700 horizontal lines, and the destination is 240-400 horizontal lines.

However, having said all of this, it is amazing how good DV images can look if proper lighting techniques are employed, and care is taken to not have too much complex detail in the image to confound the DV format's data compression.

Many, if not most, prime time TV at this time is being produced in HD (High Definition) and downconverted to SD (Standard Definition, or "regular" NTSC TV) for broadcast. This is done not only for the future, but also because working in this way offers film-like oversampling benefits, albeit for a (very high, but still lower than film) price.


The tradeoffs: Better, Faster, or Cheaper

A handy guideline to remember is "Better, Faster, or Cheaper -- Choose any two". This slogan captures the dual tradeoffs between the quality plus resources put into the work and the ability to do something faster or better with higher-priced equipment.

Better refers to the overall quality of the program. Better cameras, better professional videotape formats, more time (money) invested in shooting and lighting and sound, more time (money) invested in post-production, more elaborate packaging.

Faster refers to the amount of time spent on the project. Costs can be cut by less sophisticated editing (ie, mostly cuts-only, a few dissolves, very simple titles/graphics) and by limiting shooting time (risking incomplete coverage).

Cheaper refers to the amount of money spent on the project. Less money means the project's artistic input will be less elaborate, but in today's age of affordable digital video, cheaper does not automatically imply a lower picture quality.


Some Tradeoff Examples

Better and Faster, but not Cheaper
A project which simultaneously (1) must be of high quality, (2) is complex in nature, and (3) is to be completed under tight deadline pressure, can be done but will require rental of high-end realtime editing facilities and experienced personnel. Examples: Well-funded corporate communications; Deadline-driven broadcast work.

Better and Cheaper, but not Faster
Most projects benefit greatly in cost savings by permitting a less agressive schedule so that lower-end equipment that requires rendering can be used, and so that a single-camera shoot can be substituted for a multi-camera shoot. There are no picture or artistic quality penalties resulting from the use of this tradeoff. We do not mean that this approach is slow; we say only that if the project is complex and requires many effects, it could (perhaps) be done faster for a great deal of additional money. Due to the digital video revolution of the past few years, this is how most projects are completed today. Examples: Training tapes; Public Service Announcements; Corporate or Marketing communications.

Cheaper and Faster, but not Better
Many projects can be performed economically if they do not require extensive preparation or post-production. Nowadays, "not better" need not necessarily imply lower picture quality, just usually less artistic input. Often a project in this category will be a simple linear-time shoot with one or two titles and dissolves and maybe some canned royalty-free music. Or perhaps the client wishes an off-line edit (a "work cut" using low-quality proxies for real footage) in preparation for either using equipment at another facility or a later higher-quality edit. There may either be artistic quality penalties or picture quality penalties resulting from the use of this tradeoff. Examples: Simple event coverage; Simple corporate communciations; Offline edits; Weddings.


Suggestions?

The process described above is only one very specific aspect of the motion picture production business, and it is at the very simple end of the scale. If you have any further questions or suggestions on how to improve this discussion, please email ben@benkoning.com.