Progress!

So I was finally able to do it. I was able to order my HVX 200 on Monday and I am very excited. I have been saving money since last May when I first graduated. It all started with some graduation money my grandparents gave me and I have been taking about 100 dollars each week or so and contributed to it. Whatever side work I got I put my money there.

I sadly had to pay more than I would have liked but instead of just getting the camera, I get 3 different filters for ideal shooting, lens care, tapes, a extra battery, a SD card and charger, and a hard case!

So it was ordered on Monday and I will be able to send out my bank check on Friday and hopefully I will then get it some time in the next two weeks.

I feel this is a huge accomplishment for me, I have been waiting for this for so long. And with this camera I feel like new opportunities will be able to finally happen. Thanks to my learning in After Effects I will be able to continue my education and finally start doing effects with real video. I can start working on a project I got inspired for. And most importantly now with this camera I can start doing more freelance work in earnest, I can go off and get side jobs and maybe just maybe I can get a new real job.

Also really cool is my friend designed me some business cards for me and they look incredible. They look relaxed yet professional I ordered them last night, so I have that to look forward too as well.

I really feel like this could be another small step to something great. I really feel like I am making my way.

A Slight Move

I realize its been close to a month since I last updated this but considering how no one reads this except me I don't really feel bad about the lack of updates.

Things are still the same really, still working one job and still working my internship. My goal is to have a new job by the summer time. I know I have said this in the past quite allot but I just can't take it here any more. I can't stand the tedium of working here any more, I am not interested in the material we present the people here while nice are now getting on my nerves, and I just hate it a little more every time I come in in the morning.

However there is some good news. I have been teaching myself Adobe After Effects. Thanks to great sites like CreativeCow and VideoCopilot I have slowly been getting better at it and now with this new comprehension I have new ideas and creative projects I want to work on. And also most importantly I hit my mark and have the money I need for my HVX 200. I will be ordering it this week and will hopefully get it in two weeks and then I can start doing more freelance in earnest.

So there is a slight move in the right direction but still no major change...just yet.

Another Chance or Shot in the Dark

So I recently received a email from Emerson posting two gig positions in a few months. One of them is for this conference in Early June where they would need a videographer to shoot a gala and speakers and then edit it all. I applied to that and it seems that they are interested in me and I might get it, so that could be nice for another easy paycheck and thing to put on my resume.

The 2nd one is the more important one. This website is looking for a videographer and editor to go on a month long cross coastal trip (down the entire east coast). They need someone to shoot and then edit 2 - 3 min dailys for this website. This one I am really more interested in and applied for immediately. They must have liked my resume because the responded quickly and then asked for examples of web work and a reel. I was able to show them a few videos from H2H, but I had to scramble to make a new reel for them. I spent all last night compiling together a new reel which is only a min and 3 different things i have done. That's the annoying thing In terms of things to use for a reel I really don't have much. I never truly understood how a reel for a videographer is supposed to look but I pulled something together and after many errors and frustration I finally got it out to them sometime after midnight. So now I'm just waiting.

I know I shouldn't worry so much allot of people have told me that I will be fine, however I just don't think my reel was that impressive or that professional looking. This was a good wake up call for me on how I really need to focus on 3 things for my freelancing, construct a better looking reel, start a website, and get business cards created. All things I want to focus on more after I get my camera but one step at a time I suppose.

I really would like the 2nd job event though I don't know much about the site or what they would want of me, but I would still like the opportunity to find out. It would be a nice break from things it would satisfy the wander lust I have been having, get me some good experience and out of my current job for the time being. I really feel like if they accepted me I could talk to my current boss to give me a one month hiatus. I have worked here for a year and I have become a respected staff member so I could see it getting done.

Oh well just like with Discovery I'll just have to wait and see.

Karma

So I just got cosmic payback for having to go into work on Monday.

My boss emailed me last night saying along the lines "Hey could you double check your time sheet it says you have submitted 84 hours for the past two weeks." I responded saying I would because that is sort of high I normally only clock in about 60 because I only work 4 days. So I double checked and I told her that she seemed to have accidentally looked at my past 3 weeks instead of two. We always get paid for the past 2 weeks and she was looking at a 3rd week that she already paid me. When I told her this her response was.


"oh......my fault well I already submitted it so I guess your getting paid extra for this week."

So I just got paid for an extra week a week I was already paid for.

karma man simple karma.

Where's the Love?

So we had a huge Nor Easter here yesterday just so Mother Nature could prove to us that she did have some winter left in her and we got about a foot of snow.

That foot of snow meant snow days for my roommates, my parents and pretty much everyone else I knew, however I still had to get to work. My boss has there ups and downs, one of the downs is it takes the hand of God before the office will close and sure enough we were open. As I was getting ready to go to work saying goodbye my warm roommates in our warm apt, I made some calls to see if my coworkers were coming in. Turns out all my coworkers that drive weren't going in because they couldn't however because I take public transit I was still expected to come in. It was a battle of what I wanted to do and being responsible, so even though I really didn't want to I went through a hellish commute and showed up at work, it was just me the boss and two other coworkers.

I was hoping that if I did enough work my boss might let me leave early however that did not occur, I stayed all day and I did the work of four people. Now I don't feel cheated that I had to go in or anything the thing that burns me is my boss didn't say anything about what I contributed for the day. I guess I shouldn't get upset by this but some acknowledgement would have been nice.

Oh well back to more job searches.

The Straw and the Camel

So its not a giant secret amongst my friends and family, I am not happy at my current job. Its not a hard job, its not a bad job. Everyone here is very nice and the stuff we do is easy and can be interesting to do. However I have now been here for over a year and the tedium of doing the same thing in and out has taken its tole on me.

Me wanting to leave this job is nothing new, I have been ready to move on to different type of work since back in August, however there has been nothing really offered here in Boston that's like this job. Its not even pay, I know I am getting paid better than most kids my age in the type of work that I do but I am not held to the idea of money. If I got a job that paid me slightly less than this job I would be ok and still survive.

The big thing that keeps me here is the flexibility of my schedule. Not many other jobs would let me come in just for 4 days and then let me do an internship on the side so I can slowly work on my carrier. That's the biggest thing that keeps me here, granted the troubled economy doesn't help much either.

But its just so boring and tiring. I know I shouldn't gripe like this but I'm ready for a change, I don't really care if its another mind numbing job that I complain about in 5 months time I want something different, I want a different place to go to and do different things.

What really pushed this all over the edge today is, how they are now going to install inter office Chat systems and start monitoring our computers and Internet access. Now once again might seem like a trivial thing but to me is a big deal. I have found a way to multi task my work and communication with the outside world nicely where I do not lag behind in productivity. So to take that away from me and now make this like Big Brother is unacceptable. I need a break every now and then from the constant editing and tedium and do deny me that is beyond rude.

I know to allot this might seem just like a stupid thing to bitch about and in some cases I agree it is but this is just the last thing I needed to really want me to seriously just search and take whatever I can get as a different job and a new perspective.

Who knows....back to Big Brother.

Dulldrum

So there was this huge incident that occurred at my Internship. Ironically though I wrote all about it in my Livejournal, and I really don't feel like writing it all out again, however it was an experience that I won't forget anytime soon and now all the fun from my internship is gone.


...in other happy news. Last week for my job I went to NYC for two days to tape 4 restaurants. It was amazingly fun only because it was a break up from the regular day to day routine. It also helped me give me some perspective on the possibility of New York being a place to go to so who knows.

However NYC is gone and I'm back here at the office, and its hit me all over again of just how bored I am here. Its too mind numbing and I keep hoping for the chance for something better to come along. However I know there are no really other good jobs around Boston in my field, and for the pay I'm getting.

I know I am going to wait till I"m done with the Documentary but its just really numbing this whole day to day routine. Maybe I just need more field trips to New York?

Approaching Change

So there is always change that happens, and change can happen at any time.

While at my Internship this past Friday my boss and I were talking and he mentioned how all shooting for this documentary may finish in March. This surprised me I really thought this project was going to go well into the summer with the shooting alone. However it seems they may have too much footage and will have to wrap up by March. When that happens he says that they will be moving there offices to Brooklyn New York. If that happens my Internship ends.

Now on one hand I feel like I am overreacting a bit, I don't know the plan just yet and its still just about two months away so I don't have to panic or anything just more observe and see what might occur. I feel out of the loop most of the time only because I can come in on Friday to contribute to this thing.

On the other I really have enjoyed this Internship while I have not done that much I do feel connected to it. I'm also sort of curious of how my hours will pan out, you have to put in 250 hours to get the PA credit and I am oh about 200 hours short. But I have been there since October and considering I have been in only on Fridays I have over 50 which is pretty good by my count, and there has been more than a few times where my bosses have told me to not come in. So I'm sure I will get my credit but I don't think I can make it to 250 by March if they are indeed moving.

So this is a change that's coming and I don't like dealing with change, especially when I have enjoyed my work here. But still 2 months so I will just have to see how it pans out and deal accordingly.

Near Miss

So last week while working I received an email from Emerson's carrier services. Apparently Discovery Channel will be in Boston from February till May taping a Season of Time Warp, and they were sending out a casting call for different positions. One of them was for a Camera Assist. It mentioned where you could do an internship and they had a small amount of paid positions available. So naturally I jumped on it.

I submitted my resume and asked them to consider me. I know compared to some other people my resume is not as impressive as most but I do know my cameras and if its just a camera assist I have done all the jobs that were required in that job title, so I would know what to do.

Sadly I heard back from them two days ago saying my resume was not going to be passed on. Its not a huge set back and I'm not really devastated. I know that eventually down the line I will get to Discovery (or History, or BBC) and it did not have to be right at this juncture. However a small part of me would have liked to skip that few steps and already get in Discoveries sights. The good news is my Roommate who does stage design and art designs resume did get selected and is being reviewed right now. I would love it if she got hired because it would be an awesome experience for her.

I was thinking about if it did go through how my regular day to day life would have changed, I would most likely had to have quit my current job (which would not have been the worst thing in the world), and would have to take a break from my Internship on the feature Documentary. The idea that my life could change like that that simply makes me realize that no matter how long it seems my current situation I know it can change at any moment and that's a cool thought to think on .

So that was a fun shake up, I'll get you again Discovery until then back to the daily grind.

In it for the long run

So I went down to the Cape today to do more filming for this freelance video I am doing. On the way here I talked with my boss about what has to happen with this video. I really thought we were close to the end of this thing, but upon talking and the shooting of this it looks like this video might not be done till the end of the month possibly until next month.

This is the biggest project to date I have done, its very intimidating. The video is no more than 5 mins long but my boss and employers keep saying this video will be very important and do allot. I really feel like this video is my first solid step into my world as a freelance Videographer. On one hand I really want this video to be done but that's just my own self doubt. I feel like I have had too much help with this and I'm not doing enough on my own. But then I think about how this is a big project and my first one, and I have never turned down help in the past.

So while I was bummed at the idea of this not done yet, I realize that I shouldn't loose heart. This is just a step and I was reminded by a quote I heard just today at my shoot.

"The journey of a thousand miles all begins with the first step".

Under The Sea

So one of the things I promised myself I would do while I was in school was get myself some sort of an edge for documentary TV. I realize that at my current state there is no way I am going to get a job with Discovery, History, BBC etc until I have more camera experience and more notable things on my resume.

I remember I was watching Shark Week on Discovery, and I thought "wow that would be so cool to film...wait why couldn't I film that?" So I decided then that I would get certified in Open Water Diving and Underwater Videography. Over the Summer I achieved that goal and became certified in Diving. This week I take one step closer to that goal.

I'm enrolled for an underwater photography course. I will be taking two classroom sessions this and Next Wednesday. Over the weekend I spend both Saturday and Sunday in the pool at MIT, learning how to take pictures underwater. I'm really excited for allot of reasons. One Its been since August since I was able to dive and even if its in a pool I'll take it because diving is really just so much fun. Second just from a pure educational standpoint I really am interested in the idea of learning how to take photos underwater. The main thing they stress on to learn while learning to dive is getting comfortable with being underwater and breathing steadily. With this it takes this idea of ok your calm but now here is a camera and try to get a good photo when your perception is all screwed up.

So not only will this be very fun, it will get me closer to my goal. I like the idea of being able to do something fun, that also helps my carrier too.

Actual Rewarding Work

So a few months back I was recommended by my boss at my internship to do a project. One of the pro groups for this renewable energy resource, asked me to shoot and edit a video for them. Off in Hyannis this local business owner was installing her own land based wind turbine. I was asked to tape its construction and edit a video to show this woman's personal triumph but also how useful wind turbines can be.

I started this project back in October and it is now January. This is more the Freelance aspect of my carrier but I feel like its a big step for me. Granted I have had TONS of help from my bosses at my internship. They have lent me there equipment, there time, and there thoughts on the video. I know why while they are great people and help me out it also helps them out too eventually for there Documentary so its really win win.

This is however the biggest personal project I have had too date. When this small six minute video is done its not only going on the company website, but its going on the business owners site and will be used as an example for the bigger documentary I feel. So by doing this video in a small way I feel like I'm contributing to the documentary which is an incredible feeling. Monetary I am getting an amazing paycheck. One that is going all towards my new Camera. I want to purchase a Panasonic HVX 200. With that I can actually start doing more Freelance which I want to do so I can build even more contacts and get more experience.

This has been a very long and involved project but its very rewarding to me, and when its all said and done I will be happy that I was a part of it.