First of all, here is my video from Challenge 2 . . . https://vimeo.com/68539965.  I tried using music from my iTunes account.  It’s tough to find music that works well with a 25 second video.  Have all of you figured out how to mute the audio within your video?  In iMovie you double click the video on the timeline and move the audio tab to “off”.  If want to leave the natural sound on, iMovie automatically reduces the sound level of your music so you can hear both audio tracks.  At the end of my 5×5 I did this during the arm wrestling part if you want to check out how it sounds.

Now, on to Challenge 3!  For the rest of the summer most of your challenges will be in the form of a 5×5, but with different techniques to focus on.  My hope is that by the end of the summer you have a large variety of clips to put together for a “Summer of 2013″ video.  Check out one of my first family videos “A Speelman Summer”.  Notice that the clips are quite short  . . . anywhere from 5- 8 seconds each.  The quality is not that great because I really didn’t know what I was doing , but my kids still love watching it!

For Challenge 3 you will be creating a 5×5 with still photos in between each video.  I’d like this 5×5 to be focused on one event . . . at the park, at the pool, at the zoo- anything you are doing this week.  Be sure to shoot both photos and video!  I shot mine in the backyard of the kids playing with our brand new $29 inflatable pool  Some of my stills are from my camera roll and some are from Instagram.  Here it is. . .

You may decide to add still photos in with your final “Summer of 2013″ video.  Here is an example of a “Fusion” video that includes both . . . https://vimeo.com/56562585  Go out and have fun!  I’m LOVING the videos I’ve seen from all of you so far.  PLEASE share your work!  We love seeing it and we ALL learn from it!

Our family is so blessed to have such an awesome dad . . . Joe has always been a hands on dad that cherishes family time and tradition.   Happy fathers day to one of the very best dads I know!

Hopefully everyone got a chance to play a little bit and see what will work best for you over the next 12 weeks . . . your phone, point + shoot or DSLR camera.  Any video recording device  and editing program will work.  I’m going to stick with my iPhone for now since I haven’t experimented much with it.  I want you to get the most out of these challenges so use whatever works best for you.

For the next challenge we will be creating a 5×5 video.  If you have followed my blog you may remember last year my sister and I tried to create one 5×5 each month (we only made it 6 months ).  A 5×5 is simply 5 short, 5 second clips.  Vimeo has an entire group dedicated to creating 5×5′s.  It’s a great way to practice shooting and editing on a very simple scale.  Check out one of my 5×5′s HERE.  The original 5×5 rules state that each clip should retain the original sound, but I’m not going to be so strict on this challenge.  Check out this 5×5 created by my sisters good friend Steve where he breaks this rule beautifully . . . https://vimeo.com/35935535.

I’d like your 5×5 to represent a day in your life.  Your first clip should be shot between the hours of 7-10, the second clip from 10-1, third 1-4, fourth 4-7 and fifth clip from 7-10.  These DO NOT have to be shot on the same day.  Take the week and experiment with some different shots. You could shoot your toast popping up out of the toaster, your morning commute to work, rain outside on the pavement . . . really anything.  Try to make your clips about 10 seconds each so that you can choose the most interesting (and steady) portions for your 5×5.  Most editing programs will tell you how long a clip is.  Edit each of your 5 clips down to exactly 5 seconds (no cheating here).  You can leave the original sound or add music of your choice.  If you are not sure how to edit clips down to 5 seconds search up a tutorial of your editing program on the internet- there is a wealth of information out there.

Publishing your 5×5 . . .

Most editing programs have an option to publish directly to You Tube, Vimeo or Facebook.  Flickr is another video hosting option.  You will have to create an account with one of these video hosts if you don’t already have one.  I use Vimeo, but there are quite a few good options.  The easiest is usually whichever one your program is automatically linked to.  Post a link to your video here or on the 12 Weeks Facebook page by next Monday June 17th  . . . don’t be shy!  We are all learning.  I’ll post mine next Monday too!  Have fun!!

*If you haven’t done it already, be sure to download the 8mm app free from Starbucks.  I did and it’s awesome.  You can process videos through the app that are in your camera roll already and then bring those videos into iMovie (thanks Christina Lawson for the tip!).

So bummed, I officially missed the past two weeks.  Life just got entirely too crazy.  Oh well, I hope to pick back up for the rest of the year!!

I think a lot of people believe that shooting and editing video is extremely complicated- and it definitely can be, but if we boil it down to the basics it can also be quite simple.  This summer I will be taking you on the simple route.  I recently read this quote from photographer/filmmaker Chase Jarvis . . . “the best camera is the one that’s with you”.  I have a feeling that most of you have the capability of shooting and editing video at your fingertips every single day.  Your smart phone, regardless of the brand, is capable of taking great photos and incredible video.  We are going to start with “the camera that’s with you”.

Your challenge is two-fold this week:  first, I want you to check out the video function on your phone and try it out.  I’m not looking for stellar video right now- I just want you to experiment.  Make sure you are shooting video horizontally, not vertically. . . other than that, you can record anything you want.  We’ll get into technique in the next challenge for now I want you to become familiar with how to shoot and playback video.

The second part of the challenge is to download an editing software for your phone.  I have an iPhone and I use iMovie.  It is the iPhone version of iMovie and the software is loaded right on my phone.  I have heard that the 8mm app for iPhone is great too.  If you are Starbucks connoisseur, 8mm is the free app of the week.  Pick up the free app card in the store or download it from the Starbucks app on your phone.  The code is good until Aug. 20, 2013.  I’ll be picking it up and checking it out!

Here are some other video editing apps you might want to check out . . .

For iPhone

iMovie is Apple’s video editor made for the iPhone and iPad. Much like the desktop version of the app, the mobile version of iMovie lets you edit your videos, add music and transitions, and create a trailer for your finished flick.

For Android

VidTrim Pro is a video editor and organizer for Android that allows you to trim and edit your videos on your Android device as well as compress your finished videos and share them with friends via email or on video sharing sites such as YouTube. The app also has a built-in “frame grabber” you can use to grab specific frames out of your video to use as stills.

AndroMedia is a full-featured video-editing program for Android that offers many of the same features you might find on a traditional desktop video editor. Features include the ability to add effects and transitions, to overlay title clips and captions, and to fade in and out video.

For most smartphones

iSuper8 lets you give videos you’ve recorded on your iPhone a vintage look, grading each pixel of your video to give it a unique vintage look. The app allows you to adjust the frame rate of videos you’ve recorded to 12, 18, or 24 frames per second and has number of customizable film stocks you can use to make your video look its best.

An alternative movie editing app that does most of the tricky technical stuff for you is Magisto — Magical Video Editor (free on iOS and Android). Use it to create cute movies and overlay them with special effects. Simply select clips and a special video effect (from options like “Sentimental” or “Let’s Party”). These add colors, blurs, sparkles and so on.

Now, I must admit that the video above represents the first time I’ve ever experimented with iMovie on my phone.  I just added the stock music that comes with the app and used existing video on my phone.  I found it to be pretty intuitive, but here is a great tutorial if you feel more comfortable checking it out first . . .  https://vimeo.com/60199602.  This weeks extra credit assignment is to take a few of your practice clips and maybe a still photo or two and put them together in whatever editing app you decided on.  We will get into this more next week, but if you are sitting in the car waiting on your kids to get out of baseball practice this is the perfect time killer .

*If you phone is not capable of shooting video then use your point and shoot camera.  You can edit with iMovie on your Mac or download MovieMaker for your pc . . . both are FREE!

**Also, if you are a DSLR user you can shoot your video with that and use whatever editing program you prefer.  We will be exploring some different camera angles and techniques that can be done with any camera.

Now go shoot some video!

This has been such a crazy and emotional week.  Yesterday we said a tearful goodbye to Kim, who has been our babysitter, caretaker, second mom and treasured part of our family for 14 years.  She has put her heart and soul into shaping our four kids over the years.  Friday was Elle’s last “Kim Day” as she calls them.  We feel so incredibly blessed to have her as well as her entire family in our lives for the last 14 years.  Of course, she won’t be able to get rid of us quite that easily . . . we’ll be dropping by, hanging out and meeting up for years to come.  Below is a video tribute I put together with a few of Kim’s favorite songs of our many years together.  The families of all “Kim’s Kids” are so close.  Our children have grown up like brothers and sisters.  As you look at the photos above you can see just how close they all are.  We will cherish those friendships forever.

I started working on this video back in February and put the final touches on it this week.  I hoping that anyone who joins in the video challenge this summer will have a similar highlight reel of their summer to show off in August!!  CLICK HERE if you want to join in! Can’t wait!!