Sunday 20 January 2013
Off with the Birds
It wasn't till my forties that I began to notice, I mean properly notice the birds in my garden. It had always been nice to see and hear them but I never had what I can best describe as "relationship" with them.
Its very simple; you feed them and like twitter they follow you. What I have noticed is that it quickly becomes part of your routine, you begin to care about them. Their needs are so simple. In time you get regular individuals appearing and this is an account of my having what I think is a remarkable relationship with my blackbirds.
The point of my blog is to suggest that both you and and the person you care for might find this a rewarding pursuit. I think it's another tool in the tool kit regards loneliness and also with conditions like dementia as its "real time" pleasure, it also gives you both things to talk about as they happen.
It must be about 8 years ago when I came back from a days fishing and still had some bait left, sorry for the squeamish reader but they were maggots. As I off loaded my fishing gear I left them on the window sill, and forgot about them. When I remembered the following morning and looked at least half of them disappeared.
So I put the open bait box on the ground and placed a small video camera by it, set it to record and went in doors. Within a few minutes a head popped out of the honeysuckle bush, then in that cute way she cocked her head sideways to study the bait box, and 20 seconds later she was tucking in.
The bush she had emerged from was to the left of my front door and you almost brushed past it as you left or entered the house, at just over 5 feet in height there was a gap in the foliage with 3 blue eggs sitting in a perfectly constructed nest.
I went to the pet shop and got some meal worms, and over the following days I would chuck a few on the path and whistle, always the same tune. It only took a few days for her to cotton on to the routine. I would whistle and where ever she was, over the road, in the park, or on the nest, she would come.
Blackbirds are very territorial but she did allow one other, a male to come into the garden, I soon realised this was Dad and within few more days he would also come to my call. At the same time a robin got in on the act and was initially much bolder than the pair of blackbirds.
Then we had babies:). I could stand 18 inches from the nest and look at three gaping yellow mouths and mum was never put off by this. I could tell Dad apart from the male blackbirds because he had an odd grey feather (which is rather like the tip of a black cat tail being white), it was a little genetic trait, not age.
This presented a new challenge, mum and dad were feeding 3 insatiable kids, so when I put worms down they would cram as many of them in their beaks as possible. The challenge was to put the right amount of worms down, it's in their instinct to hoover up all feeding opportunities, they are the Labrador of the bird world:). This drive would mean that once they had about 8 to 10 worms in their beak each time they tried to pick up another one, one or two would escape. It was painful to watch, and also very funny but would take far too long so 8 at a time was the best way to get the grub into the babies fast to give them a head start.
It was an extremely hot summer and they were nesting on a south facing wall, so on a couple of the worse days 30C plus I will admit to putting a fan out by the bush to keep the chicks cool. It wasn't long before they fledged and were following mum or dad for food and shouting for more, so they very quickly got used to me and were perfectly happy to come within a foot of my shoes and feed.
It was around then that I began to notice the male copying my whistle in his song, and over time he would use that as a way to call me when he wanted food in the morning. The drawback was he would sit in the tree opposite the bedroom and sing his socks off at 4 am. But in the evening his mellifluous song from the chimney to was just a delight.
I came home one lunchtime and saw Mrs blackbird spreadeagled on my doormat, she looked injured..... She was sunbathing and so were the kids. I had never seen them do that but was chuffed they felt so safe in my front garden that they could do that.
As time went on I saw we had two females and one male, and he had the same flash of a grey feather on his side. Over that summer I used to open the front door just to get some air movement and coming down the stairs I saw mum had come inside, clearly looking for a snack. One one occasion she found her way in to the front room. No panic when I arrived I just opened the window, made sure she saw me put some food on the sill and when she was ready she left.
I saw her and her family through the winter and one of things I had noticed is they would seem my car arrive and fly over to meet me, they 100% recognise cars, and people. If other people went to the front door they would ignore them, as soon I turned up however they would fly down to greet me and demand meal worms. It got to the point where I had to step over them :) they also befriended our post man. If I was taking my dog out they would quite happily stand underneath her, completely unphased.
Black birds don't live for ever anyway, and they had a dangerous habit of flying from the park across the road to the house just a few feet off the ground which always worried me if I called them.
I came home one day to find Mrs blackbird very injured but alive a few doors up. I couldn't bring myself to do anything, so had to walk away and remind myself that nature is nature and in this case there was nothing I could do. Some how she made it to my garden and I found her dead at my gate, so poignant. I still well up now:)
As we both need cheering up here is the amazing thing: each year blackbirds would appear, quite fearless of me and feed. I changed my car and in a few weeks they soon could spot me 50 yards from the house and beat me to the gate.
I can only think I have somehow been imprinted onto the memory of this and other generations of the family because 6 years on and despite not having fed them for 6 months as I moved out recently, last week I called and a female appeared making the soft chupping noises, and came within a few feet of me. I went to the pet shop got a few worms went back and called her and she came and fed, like it had always been that way.
For several years I could hear blackbirds in and around the park whistling the unmistakable tune I whistled, as the family spread out in to the surrounding areas and set up new ones of their own.
I have had so much joy out of quietly and slowly building a relationship with my birds, and with all the snow this is a great time to not only look after them but also to get to know them, they never forget where they get food from so many of the birds you feed today will be with you all years....and perhaps longer.
It's out there, you just have to notice it, and through all sorts of bad times my birds always gave me pleasure, in the moment, and then as now put a smile on my face.
UPDATE
Its now 2016 and hard as it might be to believe but 7 years after moving out the new generations of blackbirds still fly over to greet me when I visit my ex. For me this proves beyond all reasonable doubt that their trust of me is genetic, it hard wired because these are individuals I have not fed on a daily basis for years.
Jon
Wednesday 16 January 2013
The Business Case for the Recruitment Tool
These are the facts in 2013
The overall cost to the sector of recruiting the wrong person, who was never cut out to be a carer and who leaves before one year costs the sector in excess of £3,500
With the churn rate of carers running at 19% for the UK, that is over 122,000 carers leaving the profession every year.
122,000 carers x £3500 = £430 million approx.
So if this tool recruited just 30 people who where the "right stuff" that is a saving to the sector of over £100k, and for every one who does stay that's a saving of £3500 year on year.
Not only do you save funding, at the same time you recruit the right people who do care, are compassionate by nature and who will stay in the sector for long periods of time. The savings are there year on year, plus all the additional benefits with continuity of care, experience acquired over years that can shared with new carers, its a long list.
With the churn rate of carers running at 19% for the UK, that is over 122,000 carers leaving the profession every year.
122,000 carers x £3500 = £430 million approx.
So if this tool recruited just 30 people who where the "right stuff" that is a saving to the sector of over £100k, and for every one who does stay that's a saving of £3500 year on year.
Not only do you save funding, at the same time you recruit the right people who do care, are compassionate by nature and who will stay in the sector for long periods of time. The savings are there year on year, plus all the additional benefits with continuity of care, experience acquired over years that can shared with new carers, its a long list.
The Employers Tool
Not everyone is an experienced interviewer so for owners and
managers it’s a great addition to their recruitment tool kit. Used to help
identify likely candidates prior to interview, or even as part of their on line
recruitment process when advertising posts. I often liken it to the triage
approach, but used in the early recruitment stages.
Employers must be swamped with people who just want a job and not a career
in care, but in that mix of applicants there will also be golden nuggets,
natural carers, the ones who will stay because of the job satisfaction they get from caring.
Given the rates of pay, candidates lose very little
financially by quitting a career in care for a job in a supermarket, so
retention is that much harder to achieve.
As part of the overall recruitment process it does provide employers with another reference point when assessing suitability.
As part of the overall recruitment process it does provide employers with another reference point when assessing suitability.
If employers have any doubts they can always refer to one of
the clips, and discuss that topic in more detail with the applicant, topics like “how would
you cope with death?” can be a wake up call to those who only saw the "fluffy" side of care. Its a lot more than making teas and tucking people up for the night.
The Applicants tool.
People looking at care as a career don't always have an accurate picture of what is involved day to day, and have not considered the harsher realities of the job.
The Recruitment tool lets applicants get a feel both the people who work in care & the up and the downsides of the job. Therefore it's best viewed before applying for a job in care if possible and certainly prior to being interviewed.
So by the time they have done the quiz section and watched the clips that follow they will know in their hearts if they are up to it. So those that can't manage the more challenging aspects of the job will drop out and look for something else. This is good for both the applicant and the employer.
Each person that drops out at this stage because the tool has helped them realise now rather than later saves the sector £3,500
The tool therefore works in both directions, finding the right people and finding the wrong people
Evaluation of the Tools EffectivenessThe Applicants tool.
People looking at care as a career don't always have an accurate picture of what is involved day to day, and have not considered the harsher realities of the job.
The Recruitment tool lets applicants get a feel both the people who work in care & the up and the downsides of the job. Therefore it's best viewed before applying for a job in care if possible and certainly prior to being interviewed.
So by the time they have done the quiz section and watched the clips that follow they will know in their hearts if they are up to it. So those that can't manage the more challenging aspects of the job will drop out and look for something else. This is good for both the applicant and the employer.
Each person that drops out at this stage because the tool has helped them realise now rather than later saves the sector £3,500
The tool therefore works in both directions, finding the right people and finding the wrong people
When you are trying to evaluate the softer stuff, discover
where hearts are, what is motivating someone to investigate a career in care
it’s never going to be a precision tool, unless you use PentothalJ
So like any “questionnaire” it can be manipulated by a user
wanting a high score, but its novel approach makes that harder especially when
you play it for the first time.
It provides a great indicator and saves both employers and applicants time by making the recruitment process more efficient all round.
From a directors POV the acid test is to show it to anyone who delivers care themselves, that is the target audience I am connecting with, if they feel it defines what makes them a carer then I can be confident that is it's on target. From all the feedback sinse it's launch that would seem to be the case. No matter what changes occur, the values of a carer and what is in their hearts will always remain the same.
It provides a great indicator and saves both employers and applicants time by making the recruitment process more efficient all round.
From a directors POV the acid test is to show it to anyone who delivers care themselves, that is the target audience I am connecting with, if they feel it defines what makes them a carer then I can be confident that is it's on target. From all the feedback sinse it's launch that would seem to be the case. No matter what changes occur, the values of a carer and what is in their hearts will always remain the same.
Delivering the Tool to All Audiences
I spent some while deciding what format to use, I needed to
ensure that even a care home still running on Windows 95 could use it. I opted
for a CD platform, and used my encoding skills to make the high quality video
clips run smoothly. So its reach is massive and will also work well on android
phones or play direct from a USB memory stick as well as on line.
I also made it so anyone can simply copy it and share it easily because the more people that use it the better.
I also made it so anyone can simply copy it and share it easily because the more people that use it the better.
Flexible Template
The format was designed for multiple uses in other sectors, e.g. by changing
the interviews so that they represented the audience group you wish to engage it
could easily be reworked for nurses, health care assistants etc. Very importantly it is fun to do, and much more engaging than any written format.
It has a role with careers officers in all area's of the
education sector I believe not just Job Centre Plus.
The sector needs to find carers at a steady rate as 122,00 of them
leave each year and need to
be replaced just to tread water and with dementia for example treading water is not a realistic option.
The
Training & Qualifications version is targeted at several audiences, one
being the returner to care, who may be frightened off by the raft of exams and
qualifications. These people are gold dust as we know they have both the hands on experience and also no illusions about the job they are returning to.
I have not updated this version as qualifications have changed from the NVQ days. This does mean it will only play on Window XP machines, or any previous version of window.
Conclusion
Its waiting to be used in the care sector but needs vision and backing to do its job effectively and a small refresh of the intro.
It is also possible to do "regional versions" that will resonate better with regional audiences. One might argue that the last 4 years was when we needed it most to reduce costs in the care sector.
In my experience to date, it is much harder for people who are not naturally carers to understand the power of this tool, where as those that do have the instinct to care "get it" and are moved by it and are motivated purely by the job satisfaction the career care offers.
This has worked against me when trying to explain it's power to decision makers as it doesn't naturally resonate with them for the above reasons. It's no different from being with friends who like football and you don't, if you don't have that football thing its hard to connect on that level with them.
It is fit for purpose, great value for money,road tested and the concept can be re worked for many uses outside of recruiting carers as the health sector faces many similar challenges. It can also do a lot more but that's for another blog.
This is only the first third of the complete tool but why don't you play the quiz ..."and see if you have what it takes to be a carer".
To play the quiz click this link and off you go. You will need to Allow ActiveX, it's perfectly safe to do so.
http://tinyurl.com/aayqrgp
To learn more about the compassion/recruitment tool here is the blog.
http://tinyurl.com/bfp3qw3
Thanks
Jon
I have not updated this version as qualifications have changed from the NVQ days. This does mean it will only play on Window XP machines, or any previous version of window.
Conclusion
Its waiting to be used in the care sector but needs vision and backing to do its job effectively and a small refresh of the intro.
It is also possible to do "regional versions" that will resonate better with regional audiences. One might argue that the last 4 years was when we needed it most to reduce costs in the care sector.
In my experience to date, it is much harder for people who are not naturally carers to understand the power of this tool, where as those that do have the instinct to care "get it" and are moved by it and are motivated purely by the job satisfaction the career care offers.
This has worked against me when trying to explain it's power to decision makers as it doesn't naturally resonate with them for the above reasons. It's no different from being with friends who like football and you don't, if you don't have that football thing its hard to connect on that level with them.
It is fit for purpose, great value for money,road tested and the concept can be re worked for many uses outside of recruiting carers as the health sector faces many similar challenges. It can also do a lot more but that's for another blog.
This is only the first third of the complete tool but why don't you play the quiz ..."and see if you have what it takes to be a carer".
To play the quiz click this link and off you go. You will need to Allow ActiveX, it's perfectly safe to do so.
http://tinyurl.com/aayqrgp
To learn more about the compassion/recruitment tool here is the blog.
http://tinyurl.com/bfp3qw3
Thanks
Jon
Sunday 13 January 2013
How to Measure Compassion
Question.....
"Would you choose to be a passenger in a car when the driver had only done the theory test but had never driven a car before?".
Recruiting the right people to the care sector who have that inbuilt "caring nature" is the only solution to ensure care is delivered in the way we all want in the future, but it can't all be learnt from study and qualifications.
In my opinion most of the problems we read about in both the care and health sectors is down to the lack of that "instinctive need to care" People who have genuine compassion simply could not behave in this way unless under some kind of duress.
The overall cost to the sector of recruiting the wrong person who never was cut out to be a carer, who leaves before one year is in excess of £3,500
The numbers are incredible, with the churn rate of carers at 19% that is 122,000 carers leaving the profession every year.
122,000 x £3500 = £430 million. So if this tool recruited just 30 people who where the "right stuff" that is a saving to the sector of over £100k. Not only do you save funding, at the same time you recruit the right people who do care, are compassionate by nature and will stay in the sector for long periods of time.
You are throwing away training and your investment in recruiting that person, which you now have to fund again. Not only that, but think of the impact on your remaining staff if they're having to pick up extra shifts, or on the people who use your service when they have to keep getting to know new carers. It doesn't make for a positive situation for any of them.
Training for both health and care sectors is as far as I can see "academically driven", but compassion is much harder to teach as it's in our nature.
It is a thing people can learn, the Dalai Lama tweets about compassion a great deal, that and warmheartedness. However this takes time to learn and besides, the current systems don't seem to acknowledge the importance of being compassionate in its haste to train on procedures and protocols under shrinking budgets and new guidelines.
So the key is to find the right people at the very beginning of the process and identify those who may not have the right make-up for roles in care or health. The saving starts from day one and continues for each year that person delivers the care to a standard we all want as both provider and receiver.
This group of people "love their jobs" they are instinctively kind and compassionate. As a consequence they get huge job satisfaction and reward in giving care...so how do you identify people like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfzUALbMZls
Measuring compassion
The concept was the brain child of Lee Stribling who was also responsible for creating a unique resource for people caring for those with dementia. www.Demenctiachallengers.com
My job was to bring this vision to life and make it work. Perhaps because I would describe myself as caring, and do look after someone. My mentor said "winning the heads, hearts and minds is how to engage an audience". I realised it was possible to re engineer this and use it as the way of identifying my target audience, "people who have care in them".
Why the Quiz Format?
Its up to you; you can play the quiz now and come back to the blog or have a go at the end to see....
"if you have what it takes to be a carer"
The solution was to create a quiz, like a gateway, at the front of the tool which was designed to run on any platform, be it web, disc or just a usb stick.
The quiz needed to be interactive and have an inbuilt scoring mechanism to feedback to the user. This sounds simple, trust me it's not! This needed considerable thought and planning to get the bias and calibration correct.
To validate its effectiveness feedback was requested from users once it was released, so I know it works.
Sadly I don't feel the true potential and ways in which it could be used in recruitment has ever really been understood and is now something that should be revisited, as it seems so relevant today to the needs of not only carers but anyone recruiting. The achievable cost savings from every perspective seem hard to ignore but they have been, well that's my view anyway.
If it identified one hundred carers who then went on to stay for more than a year the saving to the sector is 100 x £3000.
Wider Applications
It would seem to me to be as applicable to the recruitment of nurses as it is for carers. The format is the same it just needs populating with nurses talking from the heart about their jobs.
Training and Qualifications
It has already been reused to address the fears that so many have around achieving qualifications and exams, in this case NVQ's. It has the quiz at the heart of it and has just been reworked for that purpose. I could do so much more, the issues it addresses are timeless as well so it has a fantastic shelf life.
With Regret
Sadly, and a mistake in my opinion only the front end quiz is available on line, then the audience have to go to links on YouTube. This breaks the connection and engagement I had built into the second and larger part of the recruitment tool. Its like having to keep changing channel on order to watch a movie, it stops it being immersive.
The full version then has clips that directly follow the quiz so it's seamless and far more effective. I very carefully constructed the "narrative" to take the viewer on a progressive journey where they hear about the profession and all its aspects, including telecare.
I think its true power comes from the fact that these are real people speaking from the heart about all aspects of their job, so the tool also gives the viewer a real feel for how it is to work in care.
To get these real and honest contributions from people who had never been in front of camera was partly as a result of keeping it to a crew of one, much less intimidating. Also creating the right "atmosphere on set" put them at their ease.
I have probably done well over a thousand interviews in my time as Director who is also a lighting cameraman, and have a good reputation when it comes to working with first timers.
As you will have gathered I would be delighted to get this tool out there, I know the DH liked it as I was at one point asked to quote on 100,000 Cd's, but then the spending reviews killed that off when actually it was in my opinion just what was needed, as it was paid for and ready to go.
The Business Case Blog http://tinyurl.com/a8sbn7s
"Would you choose to be a passenger in a car when the driver had only done the theory test but had never driven a car before?".
Recruiting the right people to the care sector who have that inbuilt "caring nature" is the only solution to ensure care is delivered in the way we all want in the future, but it can't all be learnt from study and qualifications.
In my opinion most of the problems we read about in both the care and health sectors is down to the lack of that "instinctive need to care" People who have genuine compassion simply could not behave in this way unless under some kind of duress.
The overall cost to the sector of recruiting the wrong person who never was cut out to be a carer, who leaves before one year is in excess of £3,500
The numbers are incredible, with the churn rate of carers at 19% that is 122,000 carers leaving the profession every year.
122,000 x £3500 = £430 million. So if this tool recruited just 30 people who where the "right stuff" that is a saving to the sector of over £100k. Not only do you save funding, at the same time you recruit the right people who do care, are compassionate by nature and will stay in the sector for long periods of time.
You are throwing away training and your investment in recruiting that person, which you now have to fund again. Not only that, but think of the impact on your remaining staff if they're having to pick up extra shifts, or on the people who use your service when they have to keep getting to know new carers. It doesn't make for a positive situation for any of them.
Training for both health and care sectors is as far as I can see "academically driven", but compassion is much harder to teach as it's in our nature.
It is a thing people can learn, the Dalai Lama tweets about compassion a great deal, that and warmheartedness. However this takes time to learn and besides, the current systems don't seem to acknowledge the importance of being compassionate in its haste to train on procedures and protocols under shrinking budgets and new guidelines.
So the key is to find the right people at the very beginning of the process and identify those who may not have the right make-up for roles in care or health. The saving starts from day one and continues for each year that person delivers the care to a standard we all want as both provider and receiver.
This group of people "love their jobs" they are instinctively kind and compassionate. As a consequence they get huge job satisfaction and reward in giving care...so how do you identify people like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfzUALbMZls
Measuring compassion
The concept was the brain child of Lee Stribling who was also responsible for creating a unique resource for people caring for those with dementia. www.Demenctiachallengers.com
My job was to bring this vision to life and make it work. Perhaps because I would describe myself as caring, and do look after someone. My mentor said "winning the heads, hearts and minds is how to engage an audience". I realised it was possible to re engineer this and use it as the way of identifying my target audience, "people who have care in them".
Why the Quiz Format?
Its up to you; you can play the quiz now and come back to the blog or have a go at the end to see....
"if you have what it takes to be a carer"
The solution was to create a quiz, like a gateway, at the front of the tool which was designed to run on any platform, be it web, disc or just a usb stick.
The quiz needed to be interactive and have an inbuilt scoring mechanism to feedback to the user. This sounds simple, trust me it's not! This needed considerable thought and planning to get the bias and calibration correct.
To validate its effectiveness feedback was requested from users once it was released, so I know it works.
Sadly I don't feel the true potential and ways in which it could be used in recruitment has ever really been understood and is now something that should be revisited, as it seems so relevant today to the needs of not only carers but anyone recruiting. The achievable cost savings from every perspective seem hard to ignore but they have been, well that's my view anyway.
If it identified one hundred carers who then went on to stay for more than a year the saving to the sector is 100 x £3000.
Wider Applications
It would seem to me to be as applicable to the recruitment of nurses as it is for carers. The format is the same it just needs populating with nurses talking from the heart about their jobs.
Training and Qualifications
It has already been reused to address the fears that so many have around achieving qualifications and exams, in this case NVQ's. It has the quiz at the heart of it and has just been reworked for that purpose. I could do so much more, the issues it addresses are timeless as well so it has a fantastic shelf life.
With Regret
Sadly, and a mistake in my opinion only the front end quiz is available on line, then the audience have to go to links on YouTube. This breaks the connection and engagement I had built into the second and larger part of the recruitment tool. Its like having to keep changing channel on order to watch a movie, it stops it being immersive.
The full version then has clips that directly follow the quiz so it's seamless and far more effective. I very carefully constructed the "narrative" to take the viewer on a progressive journey where they hear about the profession and all its aspects, including telecare.
I think its true power comes from the fact that these are real people speaking from the heart about all aspects of their job, so the tool also gives the viewer a real feel for how it is to work in care.
To get these real and honest contributions from people who had never been in front of camera was partly as a result of keeping it to a crew of one, much less intimidating. Also creating the right "atmosphere on set" put them at their ease.
I have probably done well over a thousand interviews in my time as Director who is also a lighting cameraman, and have a good reputation when it comes to working with first timers.
As you will have gathered I would be delighted to get this tool out there, I know the DH liked it as I was at one point asked to quote on 100,000 Cd's, but then the spending reviews killed that off when actually it was in my opinion just what was needed, as it was paid for and ready to go.
The Business Case Blog http://tinyurl.com/a8sbn7s
I have also created a visual language for people with learning difficulties to help them understand a 43 page legally worded tenancy agreement into something they can understand. I made it with them and for them.
http://jonbryant54.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/a-completely-difference-audience-to.html
http://jonbryant54.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/a-completely-difference-audience-to.html
As with all my work its re usable so it can be multi purpose, this how I deliver value added projects to my clients. Multi role, Multi platform solutions that demonstrably work.
Wednesday 2 January 2013
10 Top Tips for shooting better videos
10 Top Tips for shooting better videos
If you plan using any kind of camcorder for
your videos you will find this a handy blog when it comes to shooting your own
media successfully. If you are using a web cam the comments on lighting, sound and performance will be helpful and relevant too. My tips are for both the novice and also the slightly more adventurous as the same "rules" apply.
Being dyslexic meant handbooks and instruction manuals were not for me when it came to learning about cameras and editing, so by trial and error I am completely self taught on the technical side. I ended up running a corporate video production company based in centralLondon
Along the way I learnt and refined all the skills I needed to shoot, light, direct, manage sound and edit all my own work. I hate seeing charities pay through the nose for what is so often very average soulless work provided by an oversized team with fab offices all of which come out of a charities precious funding. So learning the basics and doing it yourself has to be the way forwards.
What I have attempted to do here is to distill, from a very practical perspective gained over 30 odd years in the "biz", the things that I think will help people and organisations make better videos for themselves using their own kit.
Now that technology has made everyone a potential videographer I saw the government has published its own guidelines http://digitalhealth.dh.gov.uk/a-basic-guide-to-videos/ ,
I hope my blog might also compliment that initiative, as there is a big step between owning a video camera and making good engaging content, and the technical side of things is only half the story. So time spent investing in your skills now, will pay you back many times in the future.
To see what can be done with very basic kit and a team of one (including a couple of table lamps using regular low energy light bulbs) please take a look at the Skills for Care videos I produced below. Simple lighting, static camera, no effects, no music, no captions, no script, no rehearsals, no crib cards off camera, no autocue, no shots of anyone but the people we want to hear from.
So my advice is that a one man crew is far less intimidating for the interviewee than a larger team. Ideally clear the room of people and take a few minutes to relax your interviewee. Make sure they have water, nerves can make for dry "claggy" mouths, and check they are happy with their appearance. ALWAYS get their permission to film in writing before hand, people come and go with jobs and you don't want problems down the line.
I always take peoples notes and especially scripts away before I record anything, I want them to talk to me about stuff they know, not read a script and attempt to "play " a part. I get them chatting about what they were planning to say and off you go... works a treat, so record that chat every time...(an old directors trick so keep it under your hat:) ).
Show the footage to them, people often correct their own nervous habits if they see them without you telling them. If they have trouble maintaining eye contact with you, simply suggest they talk to your neck, that's often worked for me. The best interviews are a one to one conversation NOT a speech at conference.
Make sure you understand the subject matter, tell people you are filming and how much time you want for an answer, 30 seconds or 4 minutes, it helps them frame their response. So short chunks are the best way to work. Finally be sensitive, your calmness will rub off on them don't rush - you will know when they have relaxed. Perhaps re take the first two things you shot as many people get in to their stride after a couple of goes.
With the exception of the Minister none of these people had ever been filmed before, they didn't have a script, they were all really nervous to start with but soon forgot I was filming. They were just themselves, and that is the key, when people speak from the heart they can move us, and speak to us rather than perform and just mouth the words.
ALWAYS review both sound and pictures before leaving the "set" or location. If someone has given up precious time, better to re shoot then rather than later.
We all make mistakes and if equipment is going to play up it will always wait till you said "action" in my experience!
You can use short clips for a huge variety of applications and do very some clever things if you want, such as the quiz I made for Skills for Care. IF you think a bit beyond the obvious "YouTube clip" strategy you can get much more mileage out of your media. http://icarequiz.skillsforcare.org.uk/
Introduction
There is no great mystery to shooting decent videos on non-professional equipment but there are a few common mistakes that I see time and time again. Perhaps the most important thing to realise is what your equipment can and can’t do. Many of today’s cameras are almost entirely automatic but you want these systems working for you and not against you. Also spare a thought for your audience, 120 minutes of wobbly cam and wind noise isn’t much fun, so always think about your audience and how, when and where they will view your videos.
Being dyslexic meant handbooks and instruction manuals were not for me when it came to learning about cameras and editing, so by trial and error I am completely self taught on the technical side. I ended up running a corporate video production company based in central
Along the way I learnt and refined all the skills I needed to shoot, light, direct, manage sound and edit all my own work. I hate seeing charities pay through the nose for what is so often very average soulless work provided by an oversized team with fab offices all of which come out of a charities precious funding. So learning the basics and doing it yourself has to be the way forwards.
What I have attempted to do here is to distill, from a very practical perspective gained over 30 odd years in the "biz", the things that I think will help people and organisations make better videos for themselves using their own kit.
Now that technology has made everyone a potential videographer I saw the government has published its own guidelines http://digitalhealth.dh.gov.uk/a-basic-guide-to-videos/ ,
I hope my blog might also compliment that initiative, as there is a big step between owning a video camera and making good engaging content, and the technical side of things is only half the story. So time spent investing in your skills now, will pay you back many times in the future.
To see what can be done with very basic kit and a team of one (including a couple of table lamps using regular low energy light bulbs) please take a look at the Skills for Care videos I produced below. Simple lighting, static camera, no effects, no music, no captions, no script, no rehearsals, no crib cards off camera, no autocue, no shots of anyone but the people we want to hear from.
So my advice is that a one man crew is far less intimidating for the interviewee than a larger team. Ideally clear the room of people and take a few minutes to relax your interviewee. Make sure they have water, nerves can make for dry "claggy" mouths, and check they are happy with their appearance. ALWAYS get their permission to film in writing before hand, people come and go with jobs and you don't want problems down the line.
I always take peoples notes and especially scripts away before I record anything, I want them to talk to me about stuff they know, not read a script and attempt to "play " a part. I get them chatting about what they were planning to say and off you go... works a treat, so record that chat every time...(an old directors trick so keep it under your hat:) ).
Show the footage to them, people often correct their own nervous habits if they see them without you telling them. If they have trouble maintaining eye contact with you, simply suggest they talk to your neck, that's often worked for me. The best interviews are a one to one conversation NOT a speech at conference.
Make sure you understand the subject matter, tell people you are filming and how much time you want for an answer, 30 seconds or 4 minutes, it helps them frame their response. So short chunks are the best way to work. Finally be sensitive, your calmness will rub off on them don't rush - you will know when they have relaxed. Perhaps re take the first two things you shot as many people get in to their stride after a couple of goes.
With the exception of the Minister none of these people had ever been filmed before, they didn't have a script, they were all really nervous to start with but soon forgot I was filming. They were just themselves, and that is the key, when people speak from the heart they can move us, and speak to us rather than perform and just mouth the words.
ALWAYS review both sound and pictures before leaving the "set" or location. If someone has given up precious time, better to re shoot then rather than later.
We all make mistakes and if equipment is going to play up it will always wait till you said "action" in my experience!
You can use short clips for a huge variety of applications and do very some clever things if you want, such as the quiz I made for Skills for Care. IF you think a bit beyond the obvious "YouTube clip" strategy you can get much more mileage out of your media. http://icarequiz.skillsforcare.org.uk/
Introduction
There is no great mystery to shooting decent videos on non-professional equipment but there are a few common mistakes that I see time and time again. Perhaps the most important thing to realise is what your equipment can and can’t do. Many of today’s cameras are almost entirely automatic but you want these systems working for you and not against you. Also spare a thought for your audience, 120 minutes of wobbly cam and wind noise isn’t much fun, so always think about your audience and how, when and where they will view your videos.
·
STAYING FOCUSED Auto
focus is great providing it focuses on your subject and not the background (or
worse still the dust on the surface of your lens). So before you shoot double check your focus is where you want it. Don’t be frightened to use
manual focus, in some circumstances it’s the only way to get the shot you want
especially if the subject is not centre frame.
· SOUND The
next time you are sitting in a busy pub or restaurant try out this little
trick. Find someone talking a few yards away from you and watch them (without
staring please); you will be able to pick out their voice from the noisy
background and understand them. Now shut your eyes, you will find it is impossible
to pick out what they are saying if you can’t see their lips moving. Our brains
help us fill in what we can’t hear with the help of sight, lip reading plays a huge role in "hearing". I have yet to find a
camera or microphone with either brains or eyes! Remember when shooting, even
if you have got headphones on, your eyes are still filling in the blanks as you lip read, shut
your eyes for a second or look away, can you still hear what is being said?
Remember if you are filming from the back of the hall, then that is exactly how it will sound, echoed, fuzzy and unclear. Better to get nearer the PA speakers, and nearer the speaker, shooting at an angle stops people being hidden by the lectern. It also looks so much more interesting.
Remember if you are filming from the back of the hall, then that is exactly how it will sound, echoed, fuzzy and unclear. Better to get nearer the PA speakers, and nearer the speaker, shooting at an angle stops people being hidden by the lectern. It also looks so much more interesting.
·
ZOOMING Professional
camera people would normally only use zooms when the camera is sat on a tripod.
The “Zoom” lens is great for long shots, if and when you need them, but when I
teach people to use a camera I tape the zoom button up! By staying wide, it
forces you to “go to the subject” and fill the frame. Getting in close in to your subject great for two
reasons, you get less camera shake and the microphone is close to your subject
so the sound is always better. So many beginners centre the interviewee in the frame leaving one third of the frame above the head empty. I call it centering, and with no disrespect, the shot on guide to video page is a classic example. (Draw 2 diagonal lines corner to corner over the frame and the bridge of the nose is centre frame). Look at the framing in my clips, there is no air above the hair:)
· MIX & MATCH Add variety to your shots, mix close ups with wide shots, keep each scene a
sensible length. A ten-minute shot from the same angle can boring. Move about
between shots, and again don’t pan left to right every time, slow wobbly pans
look terrible and are hard to edit well, remember you are telling a story, and always remember your audience is not you. If you alternate between a nice close up (head and neck) and a medium wide shot (head down to elbows) with each question of an interview or each piece to camera, it will edit together and look much more professional. As well as it making the editing vastly easier if you want to remove a bit from the end of a scene.
· COMPOSITION I prefer to compose my shot so all the action happens within the frame and I
don’t have to move the camera unless I want to allowing people walk through the shot rather than following them. Shoot your wide shots of a location or subject from one
position and don't just zoom in for a close up. Pause the recording, move
closer and shift your angle round relative to the subject by 30 degrees or so
to the left or right, now you have re framed your close up start shooting again. When you come to edit your video will look much better as the cuts will be less "jumpy" and more natural. The trick with good camera work is that your audience are unaware of the camera, lumpy zooms, jerky camera moves are just an unwanted distraction from your content.
· FIGHTING the LIGHT None
of us like staring into bright lights, cameras are the same, always try to keep
the sun, or main light behind you. If it’s one of those bright but overcast days try and keep
the sky out of the shot, raise the camera and looking down works well. What happens if you don't is the camera sets its exposure for the very bright sky and the subject is prone to silhouetting. A great rule of thumb is to have the sun or the light source 45 degrees to the left or right of the subject and the light coming down on the subject at the same angle, this is called "High 45" lighting by lots of the professionals.
·
HAND HELD Watching
some people’s work you might think that the camera was surgically attached to
their shoulders or chest. Get the camera off shoulder height sometimes, try shooting at waist height sometimes. Maybe standing on a chair gives you a great vantage point of a team meeting, or drop the camera to floor level. Its not always appropriate but bear this in mind as this will add further variety to your movie. An elderly persons shuffle is so much more powerful from a low angle as is the rush of commuters feet shot that way. Preserves anonymity too:)
·
CUTAWAYS For those that intend to have a go at slight more advanced editing this bit is important. These are the little shots "cutaways" are used to bridge one take/scene with another so the viewer does not see the edit. Here is the problem, if you cut 10 seconds out of a speech, the speaker with "Jump" where the cut is, so you need another relevant image to paper over the cut. You see it on TV everyday on the news, where they cut very briefly to the interviewer nodding and then back to the speaker. That's why they are called "noddies". So the final sequence might actually be two takes shot hours apart but"appears" to be one contiguous take.
Perhaps you are cutting a 2 hour presentation down to 30 minutes. What you need is cutaway shots of the audience, or close ups of the on screen speakers support material. A very wide shot of the room can be useful too so you have material to cover the edits, so always take time to grab a few cutaways on any shoot. You can never have too many cutaways trust me they are the editors best friend and as you are likely to be the editor treat yourself:)
Perhaps you are cutting a 2 hour presentation down to 30 minutes. What you need is cutaway shots of the audience, or close ups of the on screen speakers support material. A very wide shot of the room can be useful too so you have material to cover the edits, so always take time to grab a few cutaways on any shoot. You can never have too many cutaways trust me they are the editors best friend and as you are likely to be the editor treat yourself:)
· GOOD PRACTICE Give
each shot what we call handle bars, in other words, let the camera roll for a few
seconds after you have hit record to give it time to stabilise before moving
the camera or action beginning AND at the end of every take count to three before stopping recording, especially with dialogue. The other reason is that you need a few seconds before and after the shot so you can dissolve to it or fade out of it. Shoot 1 minute of silence in the place you have been doing an interview. This is
called a buzz track, having a minute of uninterrupted ambient sound is
invaluable if you are cutting dialogue where there is fluctuating background noise so for the more advanced editing it can be used to wallpaper over
cuts in dialogue at a conference (they always have air con) seamlessly.
· GONE with the WIND Wind
noise is often a problem, not just the crew:) and the best cure is Walkman headphones, for you not them! It won’t
reduce the wind noise but, you can hear what is going down on tape not what you think is being recorded so you can
find more sheltered positions if you need to. Keep the wind on your back if you can. One great
trick is to get some “fun fur” from a cuddly toy and make a little fur tea cosy
for the microphone. The fur absorbs a lot of the buffeting wind and yet is
acoustically transparent.
Directors Tips
My best advice is that there is no substitute for hands-on experience, so when you are shooting something important practice as much as you can beforehand. Learn to always shoot with editing in mind. Try simple exercises like filming the various stages of making a cup of tea, vary your shot angles, break the scene down, use wides and close up shots to tell the story, see what works and what doesn't in the editing stage.
When it comes to interviews, get the interviewee to build the question in to their answers so it becomes a statement. e.g. If I ask you "how long have you been working here?" and you say "6 years" unless we keep my voice in to hear the question or use captions the audience will not understand the answer. If the interviewee builds the question in to their answer it makes perfect sense "I've been working here for 6 years".
Shoot in short chunks so a fluff right at the end doesn't mean re shooting the entire thing again. There is much to be said for having a few goes at it, looking back over the results, sleep on it if you have time and then have another go, it's all about gaining confidence.
Jon
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The last thing to touch on is
being in front of the camera, in my time the most unlikely and sometimes gifted
public speakers have fallen apart and can't string two sentences together once
you have said "action".
Its very easy to become
suddenly self conscious so my best tip is to make the camera your
"friend", talk to it as though it was someone you know really well,
don't try to act, or over script yourself.
Shoot in short chunks so a fluff right at the end doesn't mean re shooting the entire thing again. There is much to be said for having a few goes at it, looking back over the results, sleep on it if you have time and then have another go, it's all about gaining confidence.
I hope some of that was
helpful.
Jon
PS You can always post a clip on the web or send me a question "how do you light if using a webcam?" and I will be happy to give
you some constructive feedback.
Training and Consultancy kept
simple and affordable.
I deliver training to
organisations including charities, focused on what they want to say and to
whom and using the clients own kit for the session. I identify what they need
to learn to produce media internally to a standard that achieves there
communications objectives and the cost savings therein.
At the same time we also film
the session, which the client then edits down so they have a shared resource, a
video manual, that anyone can access in the organisation in the future. This
gives clients much better value all round.
Interviewing people, or being
on-screen yourself is another skill set I teach people, and have many tips and
tricks of the trade that make life so much easier and the results so much more
successful.
Being one of the team of
developers that originally helped Microsoft get video on the web I can also
advise in what platform to use, be it web, Intranet or Disc. Drawing on a
wealth of experience in helping people and organisations up their game I can
also suggest strategies for reaching their audiences.
Please email me at jon.bryant@btclick.com
or tweet me @Chicustard if you would like to know more about training, I also
do one to one coaching on Skype if a client has a very specific skill they need
to understand.
Footnote
As I didn't have the
resources the big production houses in Soho had in the early days, it meant
that I had to find ways to achieve the same production values with much less,
which is why I always rather liked the following:
"The man that says it's impossible should not interrupt the man who is already doing it".
No idea where my Dad got that from
Hope that helped a little
Cheers
Jon
Tuesday 1 January 2013
About Me
Being a sensitive type and with a decent touch of dyslexia meant school wasn't much fun, but as I realised later in life it did have an upside. You could take things apart when I was a kid to see how they worked, so to compensate I learnt about the world in a practical way, much to my parents despair, I was not always so good at re building things:)
I love to see examples of intelligence and ingenuity, the ability to improvise, think outside the box, challenge the conventional and find elegant solutions, hope there is something of that in me.
So professionally I sum myself up as a creative problem solver with 34 years experience in shooting, directing and producing corporate media for a wide range of uses: including training, PR, marketing both internal and external and communications, culture change, speaker support, video-casts, public consultation and events. Clients included Thames Water, the NHS, Deloitte, VW, British Gas, Ray-Ban, Halifax, Bacardi etc.
I was a photographer prior to that so my "eye" is well developed and I shoot, direct and edit all my work. There is a lot of over charging for mediocre work in sectors that can't afford it and that does get my back up. I have run a virtual team with no overheads for a decade now and there is very little we can't deliver without all the fuss and via a single point of contact.
Culture change has always been one of the most rewarding areas of my work, takeovers, re structuring, relaunching even just re branding organisations have impacts on the workforce that management plans rarely account for.
Cultures break down, sides are formed, minds become fixed and soon you have a divorce on your hands. The biggest asset any organisation has is the sum of the experience of its workforce. Trust takes years to build and seconds to loose.
The more the communication and respect is lost between management and staff the less vital feedback from bottom to top happens till eventually everyone is guessing how the other one feels... and there lies a blame fuelled meltdown. Getting these two groups to hear and respect each other is such a rewarding side of my work.
Over recent years I have been offering my mainstream skills to sectors where I can make a positive difference through my work, for Skills for Care and the Social Housing sector for example, where I have created a visual language for people with a wide spectrum of learning disabilities.
After 18 months I have just launched what I believe is the first Suicide Prevention Tool Kit for people with learning disabilities, the feed back from the pilot has been better than I could ever have hoped for with unanimous support from both academics, clinical staff a professional carers. I am now trying to pull all this together so that my vision and dream for it being a nationally available resource can become a reality. This is my legacy job, the job where it is possible my efforts may save a life.
Also over the last 5 years I have also been developing 3D software that lets people access all relevant information around any project via a single intuitive interface, we can all point:) I going to market this year and has performed well at events like the Chelsea flower show and the Shambala Music festival where it was used by the Health and Safety team.
On a more personal note I have been practicing Tai Chi for a good few years and have always found a great deal of wisdom and common sense in Buddhism and mindfulness since my teenage years.
Being a "creative" has its Yin and Yang elements, as Spike Milligan said "we see things brighter than others but some things hurt more too". Empathy is a funny thing as it seems you glimpse a persons heart when perhaps others don't. It's definitely what makes the work I do these days so much more rewarding and hopefully why I am a sensitive director who can get people to speak from the hearts.
Mindfully yours
Jon
Twitter @ChiCustard or jon.bryant@btclick.com M 07831 832 439
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