Recording sound on Campus always makes me consider how I would isolate and record sounds needed for film. Because there’s so much happening inside and out it’s difficult to capture specific sounds without the rest of the environment. We captured the basic and obvious noises, the traffic, bathroom, study areas and tram activity. Even when going into an empty classroom to record an interview experimenting with signal to noise ratios, the sounds of the air conditioner, doors opening and footsteps on and above level are interruptions you wouldn’t want on set. It’s good to be reminded that audio considerations are just as important as the footage itself. Preparation in this area is a priority.

The depth of field exercise with the Sony EX3 was really helpful for this beginner. Understanding that the position of the camera and focal length will determine depth of field and whether all subjects are in focus or not. I considered under what circumstances I would decide to have only one subject in focus, for what type of dramatic scene would this technique be an effective choice. Entering into the point of view of a specific person or character came to mind, a scene where I would present the world through their eyes or isolate them from their surroundings. It could also be used in a documentary context perhaps with an interviewee to make a recount of a story more dramatic, or to take the audience back to the specific time of the recount (whatever this might be).

Looking back on our scenes from the first class was a helpful discussion focusing on framing, depth of field, costume, exposure, focus and action. All the decisions that help inform place, character, story etc. I learned a fair bit just from those two 50 second takes of campus life. As Paul pointed out, it was amusing how little notice people took of the cameras when no students in the class had made an effort to hide them or be discrete. People walked passed without noticing or if they did they were hardly self-conscious let alone curious. It actually gave me a shiver to think that people are so used to being filmed or photographed in public spaces now that they hardly think about what the footage might be used for. Maybe students on campus are just used to cameras but it did make me slightly uneasy to think about how unconscious or immune people are now of being filmed in public.