Tuesday 9 April 2013

The First Video I Ever Made For The Internet Was Made Using A Poem

My Video Introduction

The first video I made for public viewing by internet users was an experience that took me about three days to do, and yet it lasts just under three minutes... This video took so long because it was made using a poem. 

Admittedly, it is not my best poem, but it rhymes! (I know not all poetry has to rhyme.)

I wanted it to be Poetry Perfected (excuse the pun), and so I had to make a few revisions when I wrote the poem. Then I had to re-write it (print it actually) so that I could easily read it in front of the camera built into my laptop, to record it. It took me few tries to get it right, but finally, I did. 

Speaking while looking at yourself is tough! (My laptop serves as a mirror when it is recording, which is different from being recorded by someone else using a camcorder, cell phone, or other video-recording equipment.)

Plus, I had to fix my hair and put some make-up on and dress in nice clothing, too. I don't do this on a daily basis, only when I have to look good. At my age, I don't have to look good every day, especially when there is no one to see me!

(Of course, now that I have Skype, I brush my hair every day...)

Why I Made This Video

The reason I made this video was to earn points for a contest that I was in, The Great Online Scavenger Hunt. I earned 10 points for making the video, and an extra 5 for indicating:
1. my favorite food
2. my favorite color and 
3. my favorite vacation destination.
Ultimately, this video was worth 0 points, as I was ejected from the contest. (They claimed I cheated. I maintain I did not. Points were earned for completing different tasks/challenges, and I had over 900 after three weeks. The winner of the contest had 931 after 5 weeks, and so it is pretty obvious that I would have won. I think I was a victim of discrimination... being too smart for my own good!) I tried to fight the decision made by the gamesmasters (their word, not mine) but they did not have the courtesy to respond to my emails. Unfair. 

However, life goes on. Dealing with disappointment has become second nature to me. I try to focus on the positives, rather than the negatives, and that is why I wrote 21 Things I Learned From My 21 Days In The Scavenger Hunt.

There are many good things that were borne from my experience in that contest, and this video was one of them. I learned how to make a video, upload it to the internet, and even how to embed an HTML code into a Tumblr blog to make the video "fit" (each time I tried uploading it, Tumblr would "break"). Considering that I am a non-technical person, I was pretty proud of myself for doing this! I have also figured out how to include this video here. It is not as complicated as I anticipated!

So, without further adieu, here is my introductory video. I hope you like it!





I would appreciate any type of feedback that you could give me! 

For example, is my voice clear? Am I speaking too fast, too slow, or just right? Did you enjoy my poem? How would you rate it on a 1-10 scale, with 10 being the best score you could possible give me? What improvements should I make in future videos? Should I have included the words to this poem, or is the video enough? 

Please let me know your thoughts! Thanks!

6 comments:

  1. Lorraine, apparently you *are* a tech person after all! Your poem is both fun and informative, and you look and sound great. For improvements, I would just say to perhaps increase the lighting a bit. I didn't feel a need to see the words because you read it clearly and slowly enough for me to soak it in. It's great to see you and get a sense of who the writer is behind the blog. Congratulations on your new blog! I love poetry!

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    1. Thanks, Sue! I will try to make it brighter the next time I make a video. Great feedback, by the way. I really appreciate that you took the time to comment and check out my new blog! I hope to see you back soon... well, as soon as I publish another post! (Which will be Poetry Perfected!)

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  2. I agree on increasing the lighting. I on the other hand, always like to have words to accompany the video. You could easily put them below the post, but it would be even more visually appealing to add them to the video, it not all of them, maybe a few words or phrases could flash on the screen here and there for emphasis.

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    1. I have no idea how to add words to a video... but I would love to learn! If you know how, send me an email, and fill me in! Thanks!

      I think I will add words to accompany future videos of poems, and maybe even "edit" this post to include words to the poem in this video.

      Thank you for the feedback. I REALLY appreciate it!

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  3. Cool I just watched it. I do like the ending. I don't know that much about making videos. I know how to take a picture but that is my limit. I can play with my pictures on the computer and make the good but videos now way. The poem was great

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    1. Thanks! I kinda figured you'd like it. You might like "Videos for Dummies", too, which is on my other blog.
      Here is the link: http://lorrainemariereguly.wordpress.com/2013/04/21/videos-for-dummies/

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