The Olympia Sweet Adelines video I mention in a previous blog is completed. I finished it a few weeks back and sent the DVD’s out to the recipients. I had been worried that it took me a little longer than they would have liked, but my contact from the Sweet Adelines said this was the quickest they had ever gotten videos back after the concert.
Well, that was good to hear. Especially considering I bid for the job, and took it away from another video production house in town. I don’t want to come off like a jerk trying to steal peoples business, but there is a certain amount of satisfaction in knowing that I took one from the big boys. I’m not going to name this video production house, you’ll have to take my word for it; they are big.
Which made Mary Carol’s comments about the production that much more savory.
Hi Ken I absolutely loved the video. It is by far the very best product we have ever had! I really liked the extra touches with the identification of the characters etc and the transitions from one to the other and the variety of the filming… EXCELLENT.
Thank you again for your great work! Please know that I will be happy to refer your name to anyone needing video taping services etc. Take care – talk to you soon.
Emphasis is from the original, not added. While realizing I got the job over the big production company that normally does it, statements like “by far the very best product we have ever had!” really hit home.
Here’s a clip -
Good stuff. It was fun to shoot, fun to edit, and an all around pleasure to do. Hearing how appreciative my clients were is very rewarding. Obviously I’m doing this work for money, but I’m not above praise initiated ego-inflation. Satisfied customers remind me that I know what I’m doing, and I do it well.
My last post dealt with yellowbook shoots, and I briefly touched on how I am contractually not allowed to utilize the videos I shoot for my own promotional purposes. That is to say I can’t put them up on my website, or my blog. I wouldn’t be able to put them on a sample DVD or a demo reel that I sent out to prospective clients.
It’s a little frustrating, but there are ways around it. Like this blog. I write on this blog, and I include a link to a video I saw online. It just so happens that I shot the video I’m linking to.
Which brings me to my focus. A video shot in October for the company I’ve been doing the yellowbook shoots for. Apparently they like what I’m doing enough to have me do a shoot for one of their own clients in Seattle. They called me up and asked if I would be willing to do this shoot, and I’ll have to admit there was a bit of pressure. Well, that’s an understatement. It was a lot of pressure. I felt like this was a make or break gig.
My reason for mentioning the legality of showing videos is because I feel some small degree of angsty annoyance. I consider the video that I shot for them to be among the finest I’ve ever shot. No. It is the best thing I’ve ever shot. I’m very proud of it. I want it to be the core of my demo reel. It should be my flagship sample.
But I’m not allowed to use it.
Well, maybe in a couple years, I might be able to get rights to use it. By then, I should think, it will no longer be the crown jewel of my accomplishments…
I may have talked it up to the point wherein now, viewing it, you will be thinking “What’s the big deal?” I have no apology. I think it’s awesome.
That’s just one of the things I need to learn to live with attempting to transform my passion into a successful business. There will be concerns that will not always allow me to keep every piece that I create. I need to think of this more as a business than an art.
