Winners - Underwater Videography Contests
December 2016 Video Contest Winner And Review
WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND RESIDENT UNDERWATER VIDEOGRAPHY EXPERT JEFF GOODMAN
Winner: The Sea by Ronald Faber
Winning Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gVgk7lTMp0
Last video competition of 2016 and all entries were very good to watch. Making videos is quite a complex art and discipline and it is good to see so many of you having a go. Getting all elements together in one video can often be time consuming and frustrating. Continuity, colour balance, exposure, camera moves, framing, script, storyline and so on are all part of the process. But, don’t let these factors put you off trying your skills at video making. Quite often the simplest of videos with only a few dramatic shots are the most enjoyable.
Creatures of the Philippine Sea #2 Kalinga ornata – Tony Exall
Watch Tony’s video here.
Lovely. So simple in it’s structure and narration and very watchable. Beautifully shot with sharp well exposed images. A short video lasting around a minute and a half and entertaining all the way through.
Dessat 2016 – Peter Salvatore
Watch Peter’s video here.
Nice beginning with the crab confrontation, followed by some good wildlife images. Although the images were sharp and well framed, there was an issue with colour. Have a look at colour balance adjustment on your edit software and try to make all the images and sequences in the video the same general colour. Good music.
Anemonefish aka Clownfish – Henry Hall
Watch Henry’s video here.
Excellent opening camera move. Really good to see some graphic information titles through the video which gave the images themselves a solid purpose and kept my attention right thought to the end. Music fitted well but was looped a few too many times and became a little repetitive. Good video though.
Sardine Run – Milton Westy
Watch Milton’s video here.
Very exciting diving. So good to see so much life in one shot. Music working well to enhance the images. Well edited and shot.
Closed Circuit with the Sharks of Nelson Bay – Jared Simcox
Watch Jared’s video here.
Excellent images of the sharks. Well filmed with good steady images, well exposed and framed. The re-breather and lack of bubbles certainly give a feeling of tranquillity which is reflected nicely by the soft music.
The Sea – Ronald Faber
Watch Ronald’s video here.
Just the opening shot said to me ‘this is going to be a good video’ and it was. It’s a story of the sea, beautifully scripted and narrated and very well shot. It is also well thought out and conceived. Although the wildlife images are slow and unremarkable, accompanied by the narration and music, they take on a dreamlike quality that makes you take another look at the seas that support us and give us life.
And the Winner is….
After much deliberation I felt the overall winner this month was The Sea by Ronald Faber. It was simply an all round good video that kept my full attention right to the end.
Happy New Year everyone and look forward to seeing your entries in 2017. And look out for the winner of Video of the Year 2016, which we will be announcing on the site in the coming weeks.
Good diving.
Jeff
WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND RESIDENT UNDERWATER VIDEOGRAPHY EXPERT JEFF GOODMAN
Winner:
Winning Video:
Hi everyone. Happy Christmas and New Year. Just four videos this month. I felt the Maria Bereozka film ‘Jingle Fish’ had the edge over the others by way of carefully executed shots and editing, which gave a good steady pace to the video.
Looking forward to more films next year.
If you are keen to advance in your film making skills, don’t forget to look at my book and/or take my RAID Action Camera course.
A love story by Ronald Faber
Synthetic voice – Really!!! Didn’t know there was such software in existence. Should have know better really. Nice video though. I don’t get many entries with David doing the narration. Good story and well shot with great steady camera work and lighting. The editing was spot on as was the music choice. The David voice did give it a certain quality that no matter how good or poor the film actually was, the audience automatically assume it has to be professional and thus top quality. It’s a clever trick but not sure I like it.
Jingle Fish by Maria Bereozka
Nice thoughts and excellent images with great quality. All works really well. The video has a real good feel to it and I love the diver/animal shots.
Fish Dance by Maria Bereozka
Ah Maria, Once again it is your narration that lifts the film by 100%. although your camera work is very good with steady well lit shots.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year Dives! by Maria Bereozka
Not sure about this one. Didn’t quite work for me. It seemed to be a collection of loose shots put together to the music.
The January competition is now open for entries. You can enter up to three videos by clicking here.
WINNER CHOSEN AND REVIEW BY SCUBAVERSE.COM’S EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND RESIDENT UNDERWATER VIDEOGRAPHY EXPERT JEFF GOODMAN
Winner: Sharkydelity by Fredi
Winning Video:
Such good films this month. It took me a while to decide on the winner. I had to watch them all twice. But in the end my choice was Sharkydelity by Fredi. You can seen my comments on this film as well as all the others below.
If you are keen to advance in your film making skills, don’t forget to look at my book https://www.divedup.com/shop/action-camera-underwater-video-basics-the-essential-guide-to-making-underwater-films/
Time to breath by Maria Bereozka
Yep! Love it. So relaxing to watch and I really feel a bond with Turtle. Good camerawork.
Sharkydelity by Fredi
Lovely written intro thanks. Adds so much to the actual film. It’s a great story and stunning images.
A perfect blend of aerial, land and underwater sequences. Your music choice was perfect as was your camera work and lighting which gave wonderful clear, steady, sharp, well exposed and beautiful framed images. I liked your creativity with the editing, especially where you made the most of the music phrases.
Point of view by Maria Bereozka
The written intro was obviously heart felt and moving. It is so good to set up a video in this way. Once again it is your narration combined with your artistic skills and imagination that make your videos so unique.
Underwater Red Sea paradise by Maria Bereozka
Nice feel to the video which was well complimented by the music. My only suggestion is that for general reef shots you try some way to hold the camera steady. It’s not so important with moving subjects like the ray but when there is just coral and background fish the camera must be as steady as possible.
Banda Sea, Seram Sea and Raja Ampat by Daniel French
Sounds like a fantastic trip from your write-up. The on-screen identification captions work really well. I like the slow motion throughout. The slow steady tracking shots and the slow animal movements. It creates a very peaceful feel and the music is perfect. Great camera work and lighting. I also like your camera angle perspective on subjects where you get below the animals.
Maldives Far North Expedition with MantaTrust by ondrejv
Good written intro thanks. I liked the personal on-screen introduction. Wonderful shots of the mantas. What amazing animals they are. Having gone this far though with the shooting and editing I would have loved to have had some information on what you learned about the Mantas especially as you were with the Manta Trust.
Calm Indian ocean by ondrejv
Stunning opening shot of the Sweetlips. Fabulously sharp and well lit. You have captured some excellent wildlife images and the music fits really well. Loved the turtle turning to look at you.
The December competition is now open for entries. You can enter up to three videos by clicking here.
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