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Lost Coast North in moving pixels.

1K views 13 replies 13 participants last post by  EBG 18T 
#1 ·

I gave a blow-by-blow account, complete with heaps of pics and a generous amount of beta, from this trip back in September.

I had hoped to finish and release the accompanying video at the same time, but life got in the way of that objective, as it often does and should.

One very small reason for the delay was uncertainty with which direction to take production of the video. I had almost two hours of footage to distill down, which could have gone many different directions.

Many times in the past I've spent way, way, way too much time drilling down through the video, being hyper-vigilant about every detail along the way, to arrive at a polished end product that I was proud to share and happy to re-watch myself. Not possible to overstate the amount of time that it takes to do that, and the amount of additional time it takes to do it well.

One major consideration along the way: target audience. Sometimes it's just the people that were on the trip. Sometimes it's for a wider range -- like people that might consider repeating the trip. Other times it's for everyone: friends, family, small flightless birds. In distilling the clips down you've got that target audience in mind the whole time. Regrettably, you're also faced with the daunting reality that if your video encroaches on or exceeds ~4 minutes, probably no one is going to watch the whole thing.

Far too often I've busted ass to deliver a sub-4 minute video. In that process so much is lost -- so much of the story, the context behind it, the meat from the bones of what was done and seen and experienced.

I've also noted, when watching videos made by friends or peers of similar trips, that if the video ends at ~4 minutes I always want more, and the longer these accounts run the more I understand of the place, the route, the challenges. I always want to see more.

Thus, this time around I've simply said "no" to the endless and thankless process of getting under 4 minutes. I *did* winnow the footage from 2 hours down to 20 minutes. I included a handful of voice clips not because they're apropos of anything much in the vid, just because they help to share the mood and tone that accompanied our travels.

One detail that doesn't come through in the vid: How much it rained. I think this is because I simply didn't bring the cameras out unless it was only drizzling or less. Man did it rain.

Without further ado...



 
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#3 ·
i will watch this later, when i get home and can enjoy it. but i wanted to post now to request that your 4-minute rule remain in the bin where it belongs. i have enjoyed plenty of well-made cycle touring vids which run longer than the above and savored every minute. an accurate, in-depth productions are far more entertaining and inspiring than short and superficial vids. thanks for sharing, the effort is appreciated.
 
#4 ·
i will watch this later, when i get home and can enjoy it. but i wanted to post now to request that your 4-minute rule remain in the bin where it belongs...
Yes, screw the 4 minute limit for those w/o much attention span. I will happily sit back and appreciate the whole thing when I have time.

And please know your efforts are very much appreciated by many people.
 
#6 ·
...I've also noted, when watching videos made by friends or peers of similar trips, that if the video ends at ~4 minutes I always want more, and the longer these accounts run the more I understand of the place, the route, the challenges. I always want to see more.

Thus, this time around I've simply said "no" to the endless and thankless process of getting under 4 minutes. I *did* winnow the footage from 2 hours down to 20 minutes. I included a handful of voice clips not because they're apropos of anything much in the vid, just because they help to share the mood and tone that accompanied our travels.
Agreed. No reason a high quality trip account needs to adhere to format of a pop video.

Not coincidentally, 20 minutes is just about the ideal time to kick back, slow sip a pint and enjoy, minus the rain and mosquitos. ;)
 
#9 ·
Great stuff. Really hard to comprehend the scale of that country and the challenges faced without a video like that to put it into perspective. Having only been to Alaska aboard a nice comfy cruise ship, it's probably not quite the same.

PS - normally I won't watch more than about 60 seconds of a video if it isn't good at the beginning. Rarely won't even start watching a video if it's over 5 minutes....... That didn't feel like 20 minutes at all.
 
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