Here is my latest aircraft movie, Flying Legends 2009.

See what you think!

Dave

Details

Hi Chris,

Thanks for your comments.

Following your comments last time, I got into the Friends Of The Fighter Collection enclosure close to a P.A. speaker, which you can see in several shots, to record the official commentary. For some reason, the speaker did not start to work until partway through the display, when I got some good voice, other than when it was drowned by engine noise! Maybe you didn't watch that far?

The intro ..........mmm........ I'll have to think about that! I was always going to show the static aircraft anyway and, as I've watched loads of movies where the opening titles don't finish until many minutes in, it gave me the idea to make it a bit different and combine them with the titles.

It will be interesting to see what others think. You probably know the old saying "you can never please everyone". If it gets to the stage I don't please anyone I'll give up video and take up knitting!

Dave

Nice one, Dave. I watched the whole 60-odd minutes - but then I would, wouldn't I?!

(Then ol' granpa adds his own 'buts', if he may be so bold)

I have to agree with Chris about a narrative and that the intro was drawn out. I did like the graphics/effects of the titling but for me it was the intervals between the titling elements that made it too long. More than a few seconds and it needs some effort to remember what the previous element had been, especially as the intervening visuals are so compelling. (Or is it just that my own memory is failing?)

Beyond that, doesn't it depend on who's the target audience? The aficionado will avidly watch every second of the aerial ballet, taking in every twist, turn, whisp of smoketrail and so on, and this you have presented excellently within the constraints of available hardware, wildly varying available lighting and elusive subjects. For the fan, then, I reckon a high score.

I have a feeling that the 'average' viewer (is there such a person?), however, might just get the 'Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines' syndrome. You know the one - they go up-tiddly-up-up, they go down-tiddly-down-down. For this audience, perhaps cut the flying hard back to absolute highlights, with lots of variations and regular cutaways to the static displays (some of these moved from the intro area?). 30 minutes?

Now, just to reassure you that I liked it - really - I'm going to run it again with my eyes closed this time, to get the full effect of the Merlins, Pratt & Witneys etc, as I heard them long ago! Looking forward to your next, already!

Hi Dave

I think one always has to consider the fact that the average male has a similar attention span to a goldfish!!! Well, not quite but it's a known fact that our minds start to wander after as little as 15 minutes. Something you might like to consider is to break up the edit into shorter clips ..maybe by aircraft category, age??? etc etc?? Most TV programs only run for 13 minutes (then some ads) and then another 13 minutes to compensate for our poor attention span. My wedding videos use the same technique and although the entire DVD runs between 60 - 80mins, there are no segments longer than 15 -20mins (and that's purely because I can't slice the wedding ceremony into two parts)

Plenty of people still want nothing cut out of your documentary but they probably want a break so if you had it in say, 5 or 6 segments you are pleasing all the people (the avid enthusiast will still watch it from start to finish) I might have a particular fascination (like Action) for flying boats so I would home in on that section.

Even if someone watches initially, just one section, it's more than likely that the quality of the content will entice them to look at more, and they will be quite willing to as well, because their brain has had that vital 30 second break between segments and is then ready for more. No, I admit I didn't watch it all because I saw over 60 minutes of video and I really felt I didn't have the time to watch it...however if there were half a dozen 10 minutes clips I would dive in straight away and probably watch all of them!!! Same movie but a different viewer presentation!!!!

Often the success of any media is not only the content but also how it's presented.

Chris

Great video, really enjoyed it. Just for future reference there is a field opposite where you can get near the display axis. Saves the hustle of loads of people and the sun is on your side too. 

Dave,

There's no mistaking it. You know how to shoot very well. And, you do a nice job with editing for the most part.

I do agree with some of the other comments though about 'lulls' in the "story". I have to admit, I did not watch the entire video. Without some narration, the content became less interesting as the time went on. Video alone is not enough to hold this viewer's interest. Some of the video such as the longshots of flying planes just didn't belong. Now, had there been some closeups cut into the footage, it would have made the presentation more visually engaging.

Adding a narration describing the significance of certain planes would make a world of difference in the presentation.

For example:

The World War 2 American Fighter known as the P-38 Lightning was built by Lockheed. Developed to a meet a requirement imposed by the United States Army Air Corps, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, separate enclosure containing the cockpit and armament. Known as the "fork-tailed devil" by the Luftwaffe, the P-38 was used in a several roles including bombing, ground strafing, reconnaissance, and as a long-range escort fighter.

You could even add some cheese with, "now let's watch as it's put through its paces".

You get the point. You don't have to be an expert. There's plenty of info on the net. Rewrite it a bit and voice over. For plane-philes, just watching a video may be cool enough for them. But for outsiders who are just viewing, narration is pretty much essential.

Still, you do nice work. Just keep developing your skills.

Jeff