You may have learned about Digital Dave’s backstory, but here’s the answers to the things that drive me, and help you gain an understanding of what it’s like working with me.
Where are you based?
I am a photographer and videographer based in Twickenham, which is in west London.
You have done a lot of dance and theatre work. Is that all you do?
Nope! But as I have an expertise in that field having worked over a decade in a theatre. I would be remiss if I didn’t corner my niche, plus it’s somewhere I love to be. I also do corporate filming, work to promote local businesses, and shoot a lot of nature photography.
Do you really do all this by yourself?
Yes, doing everything by myself allows me to have creative control and accountability for the final product. However, I can and do collaborate with other creatives, especially on bigger projects.
I’d love to work with you, but haven’t used a film maker or photographer before – how can we make this work?
Don’t worry, the first time having someone with a camera work with you can feel technically daunting, but there’s ways we can work together to understand what one another is thinking by considering the following:
- Know exactly what you want – search online for the style of video or photos you’re after, from the look to the music and fonts used
- Have a think about where you want your content to go, and who your audience is – do you want to tell a story, or are you going behind the scenes? Do you want your theatre production photography for your social media, or can you see it being the poster, with text placed over the final image?
- Reach out early – it will allow for planning for eventualities, allow new ideas to be raised, and save on last-minute costs
- Factor filming or photography moments into your schedule, and involve your technical manager. This allows teams to work around one another, rather than be in the way
I need something edited, quickly – can you handle it? How long do you take?
Of course! I pride myself on turning around edits quickly. One hour’s worth of show footage takes approximately four hours to edit, which includes syncing images and audio, switching angles, colour correction and re-watching the full show to check for editing mistakes. For photos, a small selection can be fixed and sent within approximately one hour, such as for live ongoing events for social media, with a wider selection after.
But consider the following:
- I won’t compromise quality by providing a rushed product
- I will reduce the allowed amount of requested changes
- I will add a levy for 1) Last-minute bookings and 2) The expedited service
What are your minimum requirements besides a fee?
Per job: Travel (unless local and with a light setup); A hot meal and break where working more than six hours; Accommodation where required (outside of London). Carriages will be requested for any work undertaken finishing after 11pm, inclusive of get-out/load-out time.
On location: Arrangements for secure storage of equipment; Access to power.
Are you insured?
Yes, I have public liability insurance to make sure that in the unlikely event anything goes wrong, I am covered. I request a risk assessment for any work undertaken. I am also a stickler for cable management, and will treat anyone who brings me gaffer tape like royalty!
I work with young or vulnerable people – what safeguards do you have in place?
The safety and welfare of anyone vulnerable is of utmost importance – edits of this nature will be stored separately from others and will only be retrievable by the intended recipients. I have an enhanced DBS check. Parental consent slips should be requested ahead of time. Anyone who shouldn’t be included in an edit can wear visible accreditation so they aren’t included.
What do you use to edit?
FinalCut Pro and Premiere Pro, for videos, and Photoshop for photos. While I began my editing journey on FinalCut Pro, when collaborating with others or involving motion graphics, Premiere Pro will be what I use. My preference for multicam edits is FinalCut Pro – it’s just faster!
Do you back up everything you do?
Yes, to make sure your project is safe, content is immediately backed up to the cloud and to an external hard drive straight after the job. The raw footage is stored on an external hard drive, and the final edits will be shared via Google Drive with you for up to a year, so you can download your own copy. Subject to the cost of online storage rising and available capacity, I will review if this is possible for all edits in future.
How large will the file size be for something like a full show recording?
At 4K quality, an hour-long film would land at about 25GB. You may want a fast, stable internet connection and possibly an external hard drive so you have somewhere spacious to save it.
Did I miss anything out or have any more questions?