AV News 186 - November 2011
At first glance it was impressive; the high screen directly in front towered above
everything making its own statement. I met Brian Jeffs for the first time and
after a brief chat he kindly found some seats at the back of the hall. I sat down
and looked around knowing that soon the big names in the UK Audio visual
world would be sitting in this very hall; excitement was building up inside me.
It wasn't long before names like Linda and Edger Gibbs, Jill K. Bunting and
John Smith appeared, not longer after Richard Brown sat down just two rows
in front of me. I soaked up the tension in the atmosphere as the minutes ticked
by then the lights dimmed and the intro started, we were underway.
The intro by Linda and Edgar Gibbs lasted a
few minutes it wasn't disappointing. After a warm
welcome from Keith Scott, day two of the
championship got under way.
As the main event started I wondered what
the other new entrants were feeling and who
they where, this year over 30% of the field were
newcomers to the championship, a sign that
audio visual is on the increase.
In my section 9:30 till lunch, split in two halves
there were seven new comers and some big
names too, Richard Brown, Howard Gregory.
As the first half came to an end I felt relaxed and had enjoyed the picture
quality on the screen, the sound too was just as good, booming out from the
large speaker system. As I exited the hall for the interval I wondered how mine
would look and sound, it would not be long now.
A welcome break of tea coffee and biscuit was served in the bar it was well
organised. I returned to the hall for the start of the second half, as the light
dimmed the tiny arrow moved around the screen to my sequence, then with a
flash it was off. Shot in 2009 a short sequence called 'Old Durham Town' in a
photo harmony format.
I lived every moment as the sequence projected on the big screen the sound
system giving it justice, what a feeling seeing your work presented in this
manner. At the end the lights came up again, the audience, as with all other
sequences before, gave a it a warm greeting, then silence in the hall as the
three judges conferred among themselves, for me a nervous few seconds,
finally time to relax the experience over.
The remaining sequences all projected without a hitch, lunch was in the air,
I'd gained a valuable insight into making better audio visual sequences and yes
I did note down some great ideas for the future. Although not a winner this time,
the old saying is: it's not the winning it's the taking part that really counts.
On a final note although a newcomer this time and my face unknown to
many, may I congratulate all who took part and to those that went away with
honours, well done. I realised my days of photo harmony are over, a true audio
visual is one that tells a good story, holds the interest and has impact, I took
that away with me from this championship. My day was truly memorable and
one I will never forget, it was well worth the wait.
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