S cottish A V D ay
AV News 201 - August 2015
John Patton
The Scottish Photographic Federation used to host this gathering but for reasons as yet not fully explained , it abandoned its commitment to audio visual enthusiasts a couple of years back . Step forward doughty Bill Barr of Carstairs CC who almost single-handedly has managed to stage this annual event in the excellent hall at St Bride ' s Church , Bothwell . Those of us who have organised similar activities know that it takes a lot of hard work , optimism and continuing trust in the loyalty of local practitioners . The good attendance , not just from Scotland , but firth of its borders , was testimony , not just to confidence in the organisational skills of the Lanarkshire man , but to the high level of interest in AV .
Tony Collinson LRPS DPAGB , of Leeds AV Group , ( right ) proved a sound choice as presenter on Sunday 10th May ; as well as vast experience of the medium , he is a line dancer , twitcher and spent a worklife in sales . I shall eschew all metaphors about keeping us in line and providing a bird ' s eye view but his professional skills in demonstration , communication and conviction were much appreciated by all those in attendance .
Good planning is essential in Tony ' s view and he carefully laid out the work flow model which he engages . A system of classification , using keywords ( TAGS ), was demonstrated as a secure way of finding those images you uploaded and mislaid . This took up most of the morning and underlined the importance that he attached to organisation . He shoots in RAW and emphasised its crucial importance , together with the use of SMART OBJECTS . He dealt with aspect ratio , verticals , perspective , resizing of images and lens correction among a wide spectrum of other post processing issues .
Tony showed his recording sound booth , constructed from a cheap IKEA box and egg cartons . A range of equipment and sound editors were also illustrated . Copyright infingement is something that all AV workers should be aware of when using recorded music or secondary sound . As well as first class images , to have impact , the AV must have high quality sound .
A considerable portion of the afternoon was spent on examining the features on PTE 8 and how best to make use of them when combining images and soundtrack to create an audio visual sequence . I suspect that quite a few of us are tentative in deploying OBJECTS and ANIMATION and using keyframes to best advantage in our work . Tony encouraged us to experiment and 3D images of pages turning on a book were certainly inviting , if puzzling .
Tony Collinson , personable , knowledgeable and a mobile , Yorkshire energy source , radiates infectious enthusiasm . Good teachers appreciate the importance of differentiating knowledge and skills to ability level , a hallmark of his approach . The credibility of the teacher is fundamental and we saw some striking illustrations of Tony ' s skills . ' Whitby Goths ' is a long way from basic photoharmony , which I recently saw described rather idiosyncratically as ' traditional AV '. The Scottish AV Day was a memorable success from which AV workers at all levels could enhance their knowledge and skills .
Bravo Tony and Bill !
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