Reflecting on my project work I feel that I have been mostly successful in responding to the prompt of tuning. My intent was to give the viewer the opportunity to contemplate nature through shifting between clarity and vagueness, and to notice unseen qualities within the park setting.  I feel that I was able to achieve this, as focusing and blurring certain aspects of the frame worked to draw attention to certain stimuli.  After looking at media inspiration such as the film Her I felt that this was the best way to tap into certain details that would otherwise go unnoticed.

I feel that the framing and composition of the shots was effective, as the use of mostly close up shots captured the noticing practice of tuning by amplifying the diegetic sounds that accompanied each shot. I picked this up during my test production, and the Robert Todd film Cove which demonstrated this technique effectively. I also liked the use of both static and dynamic shots, and how the use of static shots allows the viewer to notice more movement within the frame, as the work of James Benning explored. Planning my shots beforehand helped me establish what sort of footage I wanted to get and how much I needed.

I am satisfied with the equipment and location I chose; the setting let me tune into subtle elements of nature and the equipment let me get the best quality with what I had in terms of visuals and audio. Shooting in the early afternoon definitely helped get better lighting than if I had filmed later in the day, however if I were to film again I would aim to capture more footage in the morning for the best exposure. I tried to use as much of the footage I shot as possible, and didn’t cut out any more than I needed to so as to respond to the feedback I received. I also attempted to edit in a way that created a steady flow and aligned with the movement in each frame.

Areas I feel could have been improved upon are some technical aspects of the work; there were some shots that were out of focus where they could have been more clear, and the shots without the tripod were a little bit shaky which had to be fixed in post production. I also feel that I could have experimented more with the title font and colour grading to achieve a consistent visual aesthetic.

Something I learnt about noticing through this project was that tuning allowed me to perceive changes in the environment around me, such as the subtle movement of leaves or clouds moving over time. Although the location was familiar to me I found myself noticing qualities I usually don’t, through tuning into certain details and tuning out the bigger picture. I also built on my knowledge of nonfiction, documentary and avant-garde filmmaking. I aimed to record events that occur in reality while also presenting them in a unique manner.

In assignment 4, I would like to further refine my concept to explore the relationship we have with nature, and the interactions people have with their surroundings. One possible way of doing this is by drawing attention to the contrast between manmade and natural landscapes.