A strange new species has been popping up on lawns across Alberta in the last 28 days. Journal videographer Ryan Jackson got to the bottom of the outbreak with this whimsical parody video. Video by Ryan Jackson, edmontonjournal.com
So after doing my last election video I wanted to do something a little different and a little funny for the Edmonton Journal. I came up with the idea to do a funny parody video a while ago but I wasn’t sure if this was the election to use the idea. Luckily my awesome wife pitched the idea too my awesome boss Kerry during Journal bowling night and Kerry liked the idea.
Before I would formally start the project through, I wanted to show that I had a plan. So Journal photography intern and Loyalist College graduate Megan Voss and I created a storyboard for the video.
With any video, the more planning and preparation you do at the beginning the less work you will have to do at the end.
My logic was that on election day there would be a huge audience in “election mode” and hungry for content. Presenting something different, funny and “get out and vote!” ‘ish would be heavily shared. Especially on Facebook where the audience leans towards comedy and activism. I turned out to be right as this was one of the most successful and most watched videos we’ve had in a single day!
I also made the video generic enough that we can use it for future elections and it could also be relevant for any election anywhere really. It also opens the door for future Planet Alberta videos on Alberta animals like the Jacked-Up Pickup Truck.
Here's Megan Voss cutting out my drawings and rough script of the storyboard.
I sketched out all of my shots and pasted them on the wall with a rough script. This was to assure my bosses that I had a plan for what to do and also get get feedback and suggestions for improvement to the script.
In order to get all the signs, Megan and I created a large Google Map with dozens of campaign headquarters for dozens of candidates. Then we just drove all over town for two and a half days to get all the signs. 76 in total! Getting the signs actually took longer than shooting the actual film!
I woke up at 4:30 am one morning and couldn't sleep so I got up and went out to shoot signs. It worked out because the light was perfect for this landscape.
Cutting out the baby signs.
So adorable!
Here's all of the signs we made for the time lapse scenes. I lucked out because this guy has a PDF of his sign on his website.
Here's Megan Voss pouring the dirt for the baby sign to grow out of.
Used three Alienbees Einstein studio strobes to light the baby sign. Why? Because the sun was very inconstant and I needed every frame of the time lapse too look the same. Wanna know the secret to BBC Planet Earth's amazing plant time lapses? They aren't actually shot in nature! They are all done in the studio with strobes and then superimposed into the nature shots after the fact. Tears...
Shot the baby sign being born with a 1D Mark IV and a 100mm Macro.
Used lots of fishing lines to bring the signs to life. "The Family is Complete"
Here's how I shot the opening scene with the globe similar (but not similar at all) to the opening of BBC's Planet Earth. Just a Canon video light with a cinefoil snoot. Panasonic GH2 with a Canon 100mm macro lens.
Here I'm filming my awesome trophy wife Ashe in curlers for the opening shot. I was originally going to find an old lady for this shot and then Ashe volunteered to do the shot which made life much easier.
Here I am photographing all the signs on my neighbours lawn. I didn't want to use my own front lawn for more than one shot.
Here I'm shooting the signs "sprouting" along the sidewalk. I used my 1D Mark-IV with a 300mm and a 2X converter = 780mm lens.
Chris and Nathan hiding behind the fence. I got the idea for this shot one night while trying to fall asleep.
Here's how I shot the weed wacker scene. The tree trunk was in the shadows so I used two reflectors to bounce light into the shade. The camera was down low with a 50mm f1.2 lens which is equivalent to a 100mm on a GH2.
I rarely get photos of myself working. Thanks Megan Voss!
Me sideways.
We simply taped the fishing line to the back of the signs. I was super impressed with how well this worked. I actually bought 6-pound-test line which was much thinner and probably wouldn't have shown up on film but I kinda liked the heavier 20-pount-test line because it was stronger and it looked funny that you could see the line on screen.
Jeff's and Chris and Nathan brining life to the signs with fishing line.
This is the funniest behind the scenes photo. I got a shot of Bowie the Beagle lifting his leg "just to be safe" but the shot never ended up in the final cut because I didn't want to imply that that the dog actually peed on the signs. Only that the dog was a "threat". Pretty awesome that Lucy could lift his leg with fishing line. This dog is going to be a star I tells you. A star!
Filming this video was pretty easy and also pretty hard!
I chose the local coffee shop Cafe Rista, 14213 103 ave. in Edmonton because it was quiet during the day and also the owner Simon was super accommodating.
He even let me put marks on the floor so I could keep the chairs and table in the exact same spot for each interview.
I spent a day in the coffee shop shooting test videos with myself in the chairs. I used this time to build templates for stitching the images and also work on the code for KRpano.
For a camera I just used my Canon 5D Mark-II with the Canon 8-15mm fisheye lens at 8mm. I kept the table and chairs in the same position for every video and the stitched them together after.
I used a little slider thing from an old enlarger to offset my lens a bit so I would find the no-parallax point. This helped make stitching the images together easier.
It was very important that I clamped the camera in the exact same spot for all of the interviews and also that the tables and chairs were in the exact same spot every time.
Here’s me interviewing Premier Alison Redford. The wonderful and talented Journal reporter Trish Audette actually came up with all the smart questions that I asked
For sound I used my Sennheiser wireless lav mic and I had my trusty Olympus recorder as a backup. I used my LitePanels MicroPro as a fill light.
After interviewing each leader separately and in different chairs, I used Final Cut Pro to align all the video clips. I then batch exported all the video clips and used Quicktime Pro to extract the video files into image sequences.
Once all the video was converted into still images I used PTgui to create a template and then batch stitch all of the still images into panoramas.
I them recombined all the panoramas back into video files using Quicktime Pro and synced the audio back.
I explain the process a little better here though my workflow has vastly improved since then. It pretty much changes every time I do a 360-video.
I used the amazing KRpano for displaying the 360-degree video. The HTML and Flash panorama viewer is unbelibeably powerful. Pretty much anything is possible.
In total there was 31 minutes and 50 seconds of video which works out to 45802 panoramas that I had to stitch together.
Needless to say I’ve been sitting in front of my computer way too much lately!
This has certainly been my most complicated video to date but also one of the most fun an innovative to create.
It’s not the holoceck… but we’re getting closer!
And here’s how it ran in the paper. I was sure that the caption explained that this was created from four separate images and it said “Photo Illustration by Ryan Jackson”
I was invited to speak at VendAsta Technologies about the work I’ve done on 360 panoramas and video. It was really cool because I’ve talked dozens of times about photography and video but I’ve never given a full presentation about 360 panoramas.
As I explain in the video , I’ve always been fascinated with the Holodeck from Star Trek and we are slowly getting closer and closer.
As a photojournalist I always get to go to places and see things that most people don’t and I find that 360-degree panoramas with audio or 360 Video can help give you the same experience.
At the pace of technology today. What’s stopping us from being able to download a 360-degree video into our brains in the future?
I got the amazing opportunity to embed with the Canadian military during exercise Arctic Ram. You can also read Journal reporter Elise Stolte’s great stories and see my 360-degree virtual tour of the camp.
A Canadian solder walks past dozens of snow mobiles at a temporary military base during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian solder unloads equipment at a temporary military base during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian solder is camouflaged in the trees and snow during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Cpl. Wilkinson unloads a supply truck at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
8 Platoon commander Lt. Nick Ethier (middle) instructs his platoon during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian solders line up for supper at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian solder serves supper during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian Solders in the mess hall at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian solders on night patrol at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
The view through a night vision scope of Canadian solders on night patrol at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. Journal reporter Elise Stolte and photographer Ryan Jackson were embedded with the military this week and saw the exercise first hand. Go to http://www.edmontonjournal.com/arcticram for photos, blog updates and check out The Journal on Sunday and Monday for the full story on our military in the arctic. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian solder loads blanks in his weapon while on night patrol at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian solders take a smoke break after completing their night patrol at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Members of 8 Platoon debrief in their ten-man tent at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 13, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Left to right. 8 Platoon commander Lt. Nick Ethier, Sgt. Timothy Nowlan and second-in-command Sgt. Liam Stratton walk to breakfast at the mess hall in the early morning at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Diesel trucks and LAVs billow smoke while warming up in the early morning at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
8 Platoon commander Lt. Nick Ethier climbs into a snow cave built during winter survival training with the Canadian Rangers at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Snowmobiles warm up in the early morning at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
8 Platoon second-in-command Sgt. Liam Stratton poses for a portrait at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian Ranger John Tinqui from Whati, N.W.T. poses for a portrait at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian solder stands guard at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian Ranger Charlie Quitte from Rae-Edzo, N.W.T. sets a muskrat trap during winter survival training for Canadian solders during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Snowmobiling with Canadian Rangers through the subarctic forest near Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Cpl. Amelie Lavoie, vehicle technician with Lord Strathcona's Horse makes a call to her boyfriend back in Edmonton. Every Canadian solder was allowed 10-minutes of satellite phone time on Valentines day to call loved ones during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian LAV Coyote drives up an ice road created near Behchoko, N.W.T. during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Trooper Pvt. Jason Hall with Lord Strathcona's Horse drives a LAV Coyote up an ice road created near Behchoko, N.W.T. during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Canadian solders with Lord Strathcona's Horse haul a tow cable from a LAV Bison to a LAV III that was deliberately stuck in a snow pile to test their ability to rescue military vehicles on an ice road created near Behchoko, N.W.T. during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian solder uses a LAV to heat up water during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
The Aurora Borealis lights up the northern sky above a military ten-man tent at Forward Operating Base Maiden 1 during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Bravo Company, Third Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry jumped onto Great Slave Lake, near the Edzo Bridge during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 15, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Bravo Company, Third Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry jumped onto Great Slave Lake, near the Edzo Bridge during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 15, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Bravo Company, Third Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry jumped onto Great Slave Lake, near the Edzo Bridge during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 15, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A paratrooper with Bravo Company, Third Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry jumped onto Great Slave Lake, near the Edzo Bridge during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 15, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Capt. Luke Kittson with 1 Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry watches the paratrooper drop zone on Great Slave Lake during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 15, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Master Cpl. Eric Roberts with Combat Engineer Regiment quickly packs up his gear after exiting the ice-cold water after a winter dive on Long Lake during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 16, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Leading seaman Sebastien Guay with Fleet Diving Unit Pacific prepares for a winter ice dive during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 16, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A Canadian soldier dives under the ice of Long Lake during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 10, 2009. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Eric Roberts / Supplied / Edmonton Journal)
Leading seaman Sebastien Guay with Fleet Diving Unit Pacific pokes up through a hole in the ice during a winter dive in Long Lake during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 16, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A latrine bucket behind the diving tent on Long Lake during Exercise Arctic Ram near Yellowknife on February 16, 2012. Approximately 1,500 Canadian soldiers and Rangers participated in Arctic Ram to re-familiarize the army with a harsh winter environment and to exercise Canada's Arctic sovereignty. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
In 2011 the U of A broke the record again and captured it with a 360-degree video camera that I built.
This year the record would be set again with 5,000 students participating. I figured this was a great opportunity to do a GigaTag where you make a GigaPan image and link it with Facebook so all 5,000 participants can tag themselves and their friends on Facebook.
I’ve shot dozens and dozens of panoramas over the years and one challenge is always movement between frames. I wanted to capture a GigaPan image of the 2012 World Record Dodgeball Game but it would be impossible with one camera shooting multiple images.
The solution?
Here is my crazy “Octo-Cam” made from aluminum and eight Canon Rebel T2i’s with 50mm f1.8 lenses. Each camera shoots 18 megapixels and when I stitched the images together with PTgui I can create a 220MP panorama!
Photo by Fish Griwkowsky.
AMAZING thanks to Don’s Photo for lending me the eight Canon Rebel T2i cameras and Canon 50mm f1.8 lenses.
I went to Metal Supermarkets with my design and they cut all of the 2″ x 4″ aluminum for me in an hour! In total it only cost about $120.
It took about eight hours to drill and assemble the frame and another eight hours to wire everything together. I used a PocketWizard Multi-Max to trigger the cameras.
Eight cameras means eight battery chargers! I was amazed that the batteries were able to last for over 2,700 images. They weren’t even dead!
Stitching test photos with PTgui. The final resolution depends on how much overlap you have between images.
I had PTgui interpolate the image to make it the maximum 25,000 pixels wide that JPEG allows.
“99% Preparation, 1% Pressing a Button” Ryan Jackson, staff photographer with the Edmonton Journal tells the stories behind his photos and gives tips and advice to students. Failure is always an opportunity to overcome obstacles and win. Sometimes people burn down bridges to see if you can swim across. Recorded in Victoria, BC at the Canadian University Press Conference on Jan. 12, 2012.
Ryan Jackson, multimedia photojournalist with the Edmonton Journal speaks on his “I Was There” music video, the need for multimedia journalists, trends in online video, trends in technology, and tips for student journalists to experiment with video at their papers. “Will cats save Journalism?…. I don’t have all the answers.” Recorded in Victoria, BC on Jan, 14, 2012.
You can find the GoogleDoc presentation at docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhf88d7p_549m8mxppf9
and more on my blog at punkoryan.com/training
Posted by ryanjackson on Dec 26, 2011 in GigaPan, photos
Edmonton Welcomes the World â??Team Canada for the 2012 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship pose for a team photo before their practice skate at Rexall Place in Edmonton on December 25, 2011. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
For the 2012 World Junior Hockey Championship in Edmonton and Calgary I captured a bunch of multi-gigapixel panoramas using a GigaPan Epic Pro.
I had plenty of video portraits and moments for the music video but I really needed some hockey action!
We spent a day on a back yard hockey rink in Fort Saskatchewan and also spent a day renting out an arena to get some more action shots.
All of the characters in the film had to sign a model release so just shooting generic footage of a random hockey game wouldn’t work. I left all of my set-up action shots for the arena shoot.
The last day of shooting was street hockey which really brought everything together.
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The Journal's Ryan Jackson and Amanda Ash film pond hockey at Clayton and Crystal Amos' acreage near Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on December 4, 2011. Brandt's song is the official anthem for the 2012 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship and the video, directed by the Journal's Ryan Jackson, will be played before every game. All the characters in the video are real Albertans who embody the spirit of grassroots hockey.
The Journal
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films pond hockey with the help of young Sawyer Amos at Clayton and Crystal Amos' acreage near Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on December 4, 2011.
Left to right. Christopher, Amanda and Brayden Bellamy pose to be filmed by the Journal's Ryan Jackson the Jubilee Recreation Centre in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 29, 2011.
Hockey fans Christopher, Amanda and Brayden Bellamy pose for a photo at the Jubilee Recreation Centre in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. on November 29, 2011 (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Amanda Ash unloads camera gear at the Fort Saskatchewan Hockey Rink.
We made use of the whole rink!
One awesome thing about the Panasonic GH2 was how light it was with a 20mm f1.7 lens.
he Journal's Ryan Jackson sets up an overhead camera for the puck drop scene at the Jubilee Recreation Centre in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. for the official music video for country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" on November 29, 2011.
Overhead shot with the GH2 on a pole.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films a puck drop scene with (left to right) Tyler Mrkonjic, Stephen Petruk and Steven Canduro at the Jubilee Recreation Centre in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" on November 29, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films Tyler Mrkonjic's parents Frank and Kathy with the City of Fort Saskatchewan town council sitting in as extras in the background at the Jubilee Recreation Centre in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" on November 29, 2011.
Filming the brother referees.
Directing the proud father and son.
Directing the main character Tyler Mrkonjic.
My Zacuto loupe was too big and heavy for the GH2's viewfinder so I used a Rotolight 6" Articulated Arm to hold it up. Worked great!
Here was my "data cart" with 27" 1080p monitor and 4TB hard drive.
Gear cart. This thing was a huge timesaver.
Frame grab from my GoPro mounted on a hockey stick for street hockey.
Street Hockey. The narrow street and trees made for a nice clean yet suburban-looking background.
My shot list for street hockey.
he Journal's Ryan Jackson mounted a GoPro video camera on a hockey stick for the street hockey shots for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on December 10, 2011.
Trying to squeeze in some shots of old timers hockey.
A screen shot of the hundreds of video cuts made in Final Cut Pro of the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" at Limbo Editing Services in Edmonton on December 11, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson in the editing suite with Adam Kidd, owner of Limbo Editing Services for official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on December 11, 2011.
Colourist Joe Owens with Presto!Digital Colourgrade colour balances and grades the final version of the music video for country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on December 15, 2011. Photo by Adam Kidd.
The first viewing of "I Was There" at the Edmonton Journal newsroom. It was my first time having a real audience.
All the people involved in creating the "I Was There" Music video. Left to right. Top to bottom. Adam Kid, Paul Brandt, Ryan Jackson, Shane, Deanna Smart, Amanda Ash, Sandra Marocco, Barb Wilkinson, Donna Christensen and Taryn Melnyk pose for a photo before Paul Brandt's concert at the Jubilee in Edmonton on December 12, 2011.
In conclusion this project was an amazing, challenging and rewarding experience. I met dozens of inspirational people from around Alberta and also made a new B.F.F. Amanda Ash. The Edmonton Journal and Calgary herald ran photos and Amanda Ash’s stories ran front page.
One of the most rewarding moments though was when they played the video on the big screen in the Saddledome during the bronze medal game and people stood and applauded!
My vision for the music video was to have video portraits or “vortraits” of people that embody the spirit of hockey combined with hockey “moments” that would trigger people’s emotions.
As a photojournalist with the Edmonton Journal I wanted to stay true to my roots as a journalist and make sure that all the characters in the film were real people and not actors pretending to be hockey fans.
We put a call for nominations in the Edmonton Journal and got about 100 responses. We contacted the best 20 and with the amazing help of project organizer Taryn Melnyk we created a shooting schedule that would allow us to film as many characters as possible in one month.
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Here are some of my favourite behind the scenes photos from filming in Calgary, Edmonton and Spruce Grove. All of the portraits are actually video frame grabs from the Panasonic GH2. Untouched and uncoloured except for the first one.
Zamboni driver Jeff Huebner poses for a photo at Signal Hill Outdoor Arena in Calgary, Alta. on November 17, 2011. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Zamboni driver Jeff Huebner poses for a photo for Ryan Jackson at Signal Hill Outdoor Arena in Calgary, Alta. on November 17, 2011
I had a notebook with me at all times and sketched out my shots.
In the fury of shooting it is easy to miss shots to be sure to write them down!
The Journal's Amanda Ash holds on to the back of an Olympia Ice Resurfacer while driver Jeff Huebner does laps around the rink at Signal Hill Outdoor Arena in Calgary, Alta.. while filming the official music video for country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" on November 16, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films Donald Boykiw while he floods the hockey rink at Willowridge Community Centre in Calgary, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" on November 17, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films Donald Boykiw while he floods the hockey rink at Willowridge Community Centre in Calgary, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" on November 17, 2011.
The Journal's Amanda Ash, left, and Ryan Jackson setup lights before filming hockey player Carolyn Boykiw, 16 for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" at at Willowridge Community Centre in Calgary, Alta. on November 17, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films Carolyn Boykiw, 16 for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" at at Willowridge Community Centre in Calgary, Alta. on November 17, 2011.
Carolyn Boykiw, 16, poses for a photo at the Willowridge Community Centre in Calgary, Alta. on November 17, 2011
The Journal's Ryan Jackson, left, and Amanda Ash film Tim Schneider with his two sons Craig, 8, and Matthew, 5, in their back yard rink for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 14, 2011.
Tim Schneider with his two sons Craig, 8, and Matthew, 5, pose for a photo with their back yard rink in Edmonton, Alta. on November 14, 2011. Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Thumbs up for snow! This was the first night we actually got snow! Good timing.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films Dean McCarthy with his son Nathan in their back alley in Edmonton, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 21, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films six-year-old Nathan McCarthy with his table hockey set in his home in Edmonton, Alta. for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 21, 2011.
Nathan McCarthy, 6, poses for a photo in his home in Edmonton, Alta. on November 21, 2011
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films sledge hockey players at the Donnan Arena for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 22, 2011.
My shot list for sledge hockey.
The Journal's Amanda Ash flexes her muscles after moving over five hundred pounds of camera gear before filming sledge hockey with Ryan Jackson for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" at the Donnan Arena in Edmonton on November 22, 2011.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films a sledge hockey player at the Donnan Arena for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 22, 2011.
A rare photo of Amanda and I together! Since we only had a crew of two people I was usually behind the lens.
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films old timer hockey player John DeGraaf at the Knights of Columbus Sports Complex in Edmonton, Alta. on November 23, 2011 for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 23, 2011.
Old timer hockey player Jack Evans poses for a photo at the Knights of Columbus Sports Complex in Edmonton, Alta. on November 23, 2011
The Journal's Amanda Ash interviews old timer hockey player Jack Evans at the Knights of Columbus Sports Complex in Edmonton, Alta. on November 23, 2011 for her Spirit of Hockey Audio Project. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
Spruce Grove Saints fan Marlene Spidla, 69, at Grant Fuhr Arena in Spruce Grove, Alta. on November 30, 2011
The Journal's Ryan Jackson films Spruce Grove Saints fan Marlene Spidla, 69, at Grant Fuhr Arena in Spruce Grove, Alta. on November 30, 2011. Jackson used a hacked Panasonic GH2 camera with a Canon 300mm lens. Using a 7.4x crop mode Jackson was able to get the equivalent of a 2220mm lens and film Spidla from across the arena for the official music video of country music star Paul Brandt's song "I Was There" in Edmonton on November 30, 2011. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
A mosaic of portraits from Paul Brant's "I Was There" Music video by Ryan Jackson, edmontonjournal.com
Finally. Speaking of Characters. Journal reporter Amanda Ash interviewed all of the characters in the music video and you can hear what hockey means to them and how they embody the spirit of hockey. The Faces of "I Was There" <-- REALLY COOL!
I spent about two months on this project. The first month was mainly pre-production, gear selection and testing, script-writing and preparing for the second month when we did most of the principal shooting.
Our first real day of shooting for the music video was Paul Brandt singing the actual song. I had filmed him singing in the recording studio in Nashville but I felt that we really needed him in a hockey rink with a guitar on the ice. Paul lives in Cochrane so Amanda and I arranged to get him on the ice for a couple hours.
Country music star Paul Brandt poses for the "I Was There" song iTunes album cover for the official theme song of the 2012 World Junior Hockey Tournament at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre in Cochrane, Alta. on November 9, 2011. (Ryan Jackson / Edmonton Journal)
When I said “a couple hours” I really meant it! Paul was extremely busy with his cross-Canada tour about to start so we only had him for two hours!
Amanda and I spent four hours setting up all of the lights, cameras and doing test footage. I had originally envisioned recoding Paul in multiple locations but in the end we only had time for three takes of him standing on the ice and three takes of him sitting.
No pressure!!!! Did I mention I was using a brand new hacked camera and had only shot one music video before?
I strongly believe in the 7P‘s: Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance
I had spent a month of non-stop research, writing, testing, planning, scripting and practice to ensure that nothing would go wrong. And thank God I did!
Paul Brandt was such a professional! He’s made nearly two dozen music videos before and knows what he’s doing. When editing the footage, Adam Kidd with Limbo Editing noticed that he tipped his guitar up and did the same moves at the exact same time for each take.
Paul was also just a super nice guy! He stopped to sign autographs and talk to any fans that came by. He didn’t have any kind of ego or image problem …. he didn’t need to! He already knew how to look good!
Shooting test footage of my wife Ashe with our dog Mr. Woofertons. I was deciding between using Canon D-SLRs or recording uncompressed 422 video from my Canon XH-A1. I ended up using a hacked Panasonic GH2 which blew both of them away.
I did a ton of research and also tested a lot of gear before starting the project. I already had a Canon 5D Mark-II and 1D Mark-IV which are fantastic for video but also have some drawbacks.
Canon D-SLR drawback #1 was Aliasing and Moire which are strange patterns that appear in objects like fences and nets and also in clothing like hockey jerseys. Since a music video about hockey would contain plenty of both I knew this would be a problem.
Drawback #2 was the rolling shutter of the CMOS sensors on Canon D-SLRs. Basically D-SLR video looks great until you start moving the camera and then you get what is called a “jello effect” where the video looks weird. One rule with music videos is that the camera is ALWAYS moving.
Drawback #3 was just that Canon D-SLR video looks like Canon D-SLR video. There’s nothing wrong with it but it seems like everyone is shooting with 5D Mark-II’s now and I can always tell when avideo is shot with one.
The best part is that a guy named Driftwood has hacked the firmware allowing you to shoot MUCH MUCH MUCH higher quality video.
How does it work? Basically the GH2 records standard 24 Megabit (Mbit) video out of the box. However the camera is capable of shooting over 170Mbit/sec video and also capturing Intraframe (also known as GOP1) where every frame of video is an individual still image instead of other codecs that only record full still images every few frames and then guess the frames in between.
I read reviews of how the hacked GH2 fared well against the $80,000 Arri Alexa and RED Camera. Not that it’s better than those cameras, but pretty damn amazing compared.
The aliasing-free GH2 solved Problem #1, the Intraframe codec produces much smoother motion which solved Problem #2 and the higher resolution and bitrate solved Problem #3.
The only drawbacks of the GH2 were:
The sensor was half the size (a 2X crop instead of the 5D’s 1X full-frame sensor) so a 24mm lens would become a 48mm lens. It would also be harder to achieve the narrow depth of field look but would be easier to manually focus since I would have more depth-of-field.
The smaller sensor produced more noise at high-ISOs compared to the Canon so I would need more light
The extremely high quality 176Mbit/sec produced 1 gigabyte of video per minute and required expensive Sandisk 32GB Extreme SD cards. A 32GB card would only hold about 30 minutes of video therefore I had to buy five of these cards at $150/each. Of course the price dropped right after I bought them!
The menus and functions of the GH2 weren’t as friendly as the Canon D-SLRs.
However the GH2 mainly excited me because the hack had only recently come out and it allowed me to capture quality that would make people ask “What did you film that on?”
So I bought two Panasonic GH2‘s and loaded them up with Driftwood’s 176Mbit patch. I bought a 4/3rds mount to Canon EOS adapter off ebay which allowed me to use all my Canon prime and zoom lenses and also control the aperture with a built-in iris.
For the music video I tried to use my prime lenses as much as possible including:
Canon 24mm f1.4L
Canon 50mm f1.2L
Canon 85mm f1.8
Canon 300 f2.8L IS
When I needed a zoom lens I popped on my Canon 16-35L which became a handy 32-70mm lens with the 2X crop and my 70-200 f2,8L which was an amazing 140-400mm lens!
I also purchased the Panasonic 20mm f1.7 which came in handy a few times but is WAY overpriced for what it is.
I purchased two Interfit Monstar fluorescent light kits. Each light has three massive 150-w bulbs for an equivalent of 1,800 tungsten watts without the heat.
Unloading all the gear at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre in Cochrane, Alta. to film Paul Brandt singing
I wanted to light almost everything in the music video for maximum quality as well as dramatic effect.
As you can see from my portfolio I love to light my portraits and I also wanted a consistent look all through the video.
I used two Interfit Monstar lights with 48-inch Octoboxes for the main lights. For fill lights I used three 500 LED video lights I got from eBay.
I bad to bring hundreds of feet of power extension cords as there was only one power outlet in the whole arena!
The lighting and camera setup for Paul Brandt singing the song "I Was There" at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre in Cochrane, Alta. on November 9, 2011. Jackson used Panasonic GH2 cameras running the Driftwood 176Mb firmware hack and Canon prime lenses for the entire film.
Other gear I used was:
Ikan VX7e 7″ HDMI HD monitor which was a HUGE help for manually focussing as well it has a false-colour exposure guide which helps prevent you from blowing out highlights.
A wide matte box which helped block lens flare and also keep snow off of the lens. This item proved surprisingly necessary for filming with video lights.
Fader Neutral Density Filters. You always want to keep a 1/50th shutter speed with video so an ND filter helps you stop down the light so you can shoot at 1/50th shutter at f1.2 outdoors in the sunlight if you want.
15″ Apple MacBook Pro i7 Quad Core for reviewing footage and converting the GH2 AVCHD footage into ProRes422 HQ. That meant for every minute of video I shot I would get 1GB original + 1GB converted ProRes422HQ video
Here is a better look at my Panasonic GH2 with a 4/3rds to EOS lens adapter and an Ikan VX7e monitor on a Kessler Pocket Dolly.
I used the amazing Cinemover slider for my second GH2 camera on a plank of fir wood. I used fir because it doesn't warp. I had the kit lens on the GH2 for this photo but used the Panasonic 20mm f1.7 for the actual shoot.
You can see the mark I made on the ice for paul to stand on. We did multiple takes and needed Paul to be standing in the same spot every time. He was such an experienced professional and did the exact same moves every take.
Journal photographer Ryan Jackson takes still photographs of Paul Brandt for the official iTunes album cover for the song "I Was There" at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre in Cochrane, Alta. on November 9, 2011. Photo by Amanda Ash, edmontonjournal.com
Paul Brandt takes a break from filming the "I Was There" music video to pose for a photo with some fans at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre in Cochrane, Alta. on November 9, 2011.
Amanda Ash packing away the video lights at the end of the day.
We used the Edmonton Journal minivan to lug our gear around. Even with the back seats taken out it was completely full.
Before heading back to Edmonton we stopped for supper and reviewed the raw footage. It was a huge milestone in the project because we had a "base" for the video with Paul singing on a hockey rink.
Here is the end result. The next blog post will be about filming the characters.
Check out my 360 degree before and after panos the wildfire devastation in #slavelakehttp://t.co/r5mvUTSa Amazing how much changed! 2012/05/11
RT @stephcoombs: Friday, look for Slave Lake, one year later. (By @jana_pruden @mariam_di, @estolte @taudette @ryan_jackson @lucastimmon ... 2012/05/10
RT @Shawn_R_Gray: Prompted by @piratepartyca debate, Through the Eyes of a Pirate examines the government's new import-a-worker rules: h ... 2012/05/09
RT @EJBarbWilkinson: Congrats to @ssmarcocco @ryan_jackson @AmandaAsh @jessicagirlspy for 3rd place #inmawc award for fantastic World Ju ... 2012/05/09
And here’s how it ran in the paper. I was sure that the caption explained that this was created from four separate images and it said “Photo Illustration by Ryan Jackson”
