Preface
When the first edition of this book appeared in 1985, single-camera video field production represented a relatively new approach to video production. Most college and university courses in video production were taught in the context of multicamera studio production, and even in the world of professional broadcasting, one-piece camcorders were still a relatively new and expensive form of technology.
The world of video production has changed significantly since then. The introduction of lightweight, portable video field production equipment has moved video production out of the studio and into the field, and the development and refinement of reliable, inexpensive editing systems has made postproduction editing more important than ever in the video production process.
Field production is now firmly established alongside studio production as one of the major modes of video production, and in the time that has elapsed since the publication of the first edition of this book, video has become an increasingly important part of American life. Video camcorders, VCRs, and DVDs have become almost omnipresent in American homes and offices. Video is widely used in education, business, medicine, and law as well as in the traditional broadcast arena.
Today the personal computer is well established as a video production tool as well as a means of displaying multimedia programs that integrate video with sound and text and accessing live or recorded audio and video on the World Wide Web. The development of a variety of digital video recording formats, aimed at both the consumer and professional markets, and the adoption by the FCC of a new set of standards for advanced television services promise to usher in a new age of digital media production and distribution.
This new edition of Video Field Production and Editing reflects the changes in technology and production processes that have taken place since the publication of the sixth edition. However, the central purpose of this book remains the same: to provide a text for students involved in video field production, concentrating on production techniques and technology appropriate to single-camera electronic field production (EFP) and electronic newsgathering (ENG). The book has five principal characteristics:
1. Focus on the single-camera/camcorder video field production process, with an emphasis on portable video equipment. Reflecting the continuing conversion to digital recording formats, this edition places a stronger emphasis on the DV/DVCAM/DVCPRO formats, in addition to the traditional analog formats that are still in use.
This new edition also includes over 100 new and revised photographs and illustrations of contemporary video field production practices and equipment. A section of color photographs illustrates basic principles of the color video system and production techniques dependent on color signal processing.
Material has been reorganized and updated throughout the text. There are new sections dedicated to HDV (High Definition Video) videotape recording formats, and tapeless digital recording media including high capacity optical discs, solid–state memory cards, and computer hard drives. Chapter 2, Preproduction and Production Planning, has been revised to include new examples of production planning materials such as budgets, storyboards, and script treatments and now contains the discussion of copyright and distribution as well. Chapter 7, Lighting, has been expanded to include a more detailed discussion of field interview lighting techniques. Chapter 8, Sound, contains new sections on digital audio file formats and a discussion of the Pro Tools digital audio production system. Chapter 13 has been revised to focus the discussion of video graphics on postproduction graphic design.
2. Fusion of aesthetic and technical concerns. The book discusses production strategies and processes as well as principles of equipment operation. Key production chapters on lenses, lighting, and sound are divided into two parts: one section deals with the technical aspects of production, the other deals with production techniques or aesthetics.
3. Full discussion of the elements and techniques of video recording and postproduction editing, including editing aesthetics, linear cuts-only editing, and digital nonlinear editing. The material on SMPTE time code focuses on the use of time code as a key organizational tool in the postproduction process.
New chapter sections including “Editing Voice–Driven Pieces” and “Storytelling” have been added to Chapter 9. These sections focus on news, documentary, and television magazine feature story structure.
4. The six Appendices contain a series of production exercises designed to help the potential producer develop production competence, as well as additional information on video recording formats, digital media and the metric system, and remote production planning.
5. As in the previous editions, key words are identified in boldface throughout the text and listed in the glossary of terms. The book also contains a comprehensive bibliography of books of interest to the video field producer.
Throughout the book I have attempted to aim the technical discussion at the general reader who has little or no technical background in video or electronics. I hope that through your experience with the text you will let me know whether I have hit or missed the mark.
One other comment deserves to be made here. The focus of the book is on video field production, but I have chosen to concentrate primarily on “small-scale” field production, the type of production in which student and home video producers (as well as many independent and broadcast producers) are most often engaged. These productions typically involve a minimum amount of field equipment and a small crew. The video producer who has access to a camcorder, a few microphones, a small lighting kit, and a simple linear or nonlinear editing system will find that it is this level of production that is principally discussed. Although the text does provide some descriptions of larger-scale productions and production equipment, they are not the primary focus of the book. I should note, however, that small-scale production does not mean amateur. Since the line between broadcast-quality production and equipment and nonbroadcast production is thin indeed, professional standards of production are stressed throughout the book.
Acknowledgments
As in past editions, I owe a great debt of gratitude to the many people who have contributed to the making of this book. My colleagues in the Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts Department at San Francisco State University have provided invaluable assistance as this book has evolved through seven editions. In particular I would like to thank Larry Whitney, Lena Zhang, Vinay Shrivastava, Chui Heo, and John Hewitt. Vinay Shrivastava provided invaluable assistance with the revision of the material on digital audio and the section on Pro Tools in Chapter 8. Winston Tharp and Steve Lahey deserve special thanks for the guidance they provided on technical matters. I am also grateful to my many students at San Francisco State University, whose production work and penetrating questions continually encourage me to see things in new ways.
I would also like to thank those people who provided new photographs for the seventh edition: Robert Barnshaw and Alice Palmer (Avid Technology, Inc.), Nick Schiller and Kelsey Linnett (Digidesign), Jim Wickizer (Panasonic Broadcast & TV Systems Company), and Carol Posnack (The Tiffen Company–Steadicam), and in particular Jaime Gomez (Eastern Connecticut State University). Thanks also to those students at San Francisco State University and Eastern Connecticut State University who served as models for many of the new photographs: Matt Basora, Alvina Cheah, Ronald Chery, Jonathan Duvall, Heather Graham, C.J. Hunt, Rada Ivanov, Monica O’Connor, Aaron Schultz, Keegan Stiles, and Rui Zhang.
Thanks also to those individuals who read earlier drafts of the manuscript and whose comments made it better, in particular John M. Hoerner, Jr., University of Montevallo; Bonnie L. MacDonald, Rhode Island College; Peter B. Seel, Colorado State University; and Laura Vasquez, Northern Illinois University.
I would like to thank my editor, Molly Taylor, and her administrative assistant, Suzanne Stradley, for overseeing this revision, and the members of the design and production team at Allyn and Bacon for their enthusiasm and attention to detail.
And finally, special thanks are due to my home support team: Marisa and Cara. I couldn’t do it without them.
Ronald J. Compesi
May 2006