The Digital Storytelling class was a week-long class that met for 8 hours each day. I had to attend another education conference during the first 3 days of the class, so I had to play catch up and work mostly on my own for all of the course work. Overall, this was one of the most interesting and enjoyable courses so far in this endorsement series. I knew the least about this topic and the programs associated with it, so it was great to learn some new things and stretch outside my comfort zone.
Click the image above to see my full video.
Day 1: Stop-motion animation. The first class was all about stop-motion animation. Most of the class members created videos by snapping still photos of pipe cleaners using their iPad. I wasn't able to find any pipe cleaners while attending my conference, so I used a Sharpie marker to draw faces on some candy. These became the characters in my stop-motion animation video. I filmed the entire movie using iMovie on my iPhone. I imported the raw video into iMovie in my MacBook and added the sound effects, title screen, and end credits.
This was a very enjoyable project; one I intend to recreate. I plan to use a tripod that I have for my iPhone to improve the stability and consistency of the images. I also wasn't happy with the lighting so next time I will use additional lights, a light box, or will shoot outdoors. There were also a few parts of the movie that I story boarded for and wasn't able to shoot because my iPhone froze. By the time I got it reset, I had lost my phone placement and any progression from there would have had a different camera angle, so I decided to cut my movie a little short.
This project has given me some great ideas for more videos using these candy bits that I hope to be able to film very soon.
This was a very enjoyable project; one I intend to recreate. I plan to use a tripod that I have for my iPhone to improve the stability and consistency of the images. I also wasn't happy with the lighting so next time I will use additional lights, a light box, or will shoot outdoors. There were also a few parts of the movie that I story boarded for and wasn't able to shoot because my iPhone froze. By the time I got it reset, I had lost my phone placement and any progression from there would have had a different camera angle, so I decided to cut my movie a little short.
This project has given me some great ideas for more videos using these candy bits that I hope to be able to film very soon.
Click the image to learn more about Comic Life.
Day 2: Comic Life. The next project was all about Comic Life. There is a mobile app for iPad and a version for Mac. We created projects using both versions. Comic Life is a great way to tell a story. Like comics, it helps the viewer and creator focus on the visual aspects of the story.
Comic life can also be used to create story boards for video projects. Photos, drawings, and other graphic elements can easily be added and arranged to help build a story.
I haven't used Comic Life very much and will keep it in mind when working on other projects in the future.
Comic life can also be used to create story boards for video projects. Photos, drawings, and other graphic elements can easily be added and arranged to help build a story.
I haven't used Comic Life very much and will keep it in mind when working on other projects in the future.
Day 3-5: GarageBand and iMovie. I have used GarageBand and iMovie quite a bit before for projects for work. I have never really done any personal videos, though. I enjoyed creating projects for this class using these tools. I am hoping that my skills and creativity in building digital storytelling projects continues to increase. I have set some high goals for continuing to use the skills I learned in this class, including participating in the Canyons Film Festival and helping students and teachers at Jordan and Brighton to participate as well.
This was a great class. I wish I had been able to attend each day and learn along with everyone else. I had a great time and learned a lot anyway.
This was a great class. I wish I had been able to attend each day and learn along with everyone else. I had a great time and learned a lot anyway.