Sports Internship
When I first signed up for this sports internship class I was intimidated by the idea of doing a live broadcast, but I thought it would be a nice challenge and a chance to try something new. I have previous experience with cameras from the other film classes at Macon State, but this class offered a very different opportunity.
The first time we met there was some equipment I wasn’t familiar with, but over the next few games I learned more about the set up and how a live broad cast works. The main new piece of equipment I’d seen before was the tricaster which is used to take the live signals from the three cameras and send them into the computer.
The first game I worked I ran the wide angle camera and I think I did pretty well. It took a little to get use to following the ball (“Where’s the ball??” became a frequent question to our fellow classmates and camera people) and framing the shot for a moving target. For running the wide angle I left it a little wider than I did in following games. An example from my first game can be seen in the following clip where the shot is too wide as it includes the audience stand (which isn’t necessary) and the players are too small:
Clip Here
I was kind of nervous about running the zoom camera at the second football game, but I managed to capture a really good shot at the beginning of the game. While working the zoom camera I found it helpful to rely upon the wide angle camera person if I lost the ball in the tight shot of the zoom camera and to make sure we had coverage of the ball. Most of the time I ran the wide angle camera during the season, but I enjoyed the challenge the few times I did run the zoom camera!
Clip Here
As the season progressed we all became better at setting up the equipment, running the cameras, and breaking down equipment quickly. Usually we rotated out which cameras we ran and everyone actually got along really well!
Paul as he ran the zoom camera on a really cold night at the game!
Personally I found the field camera the most difficult camera to run. You have to watch out for the players who might run into you and film all at once. The camera we used at first was a little heavy and since I’m kind of short I found it difficult to hold. In order to have the camera look level I had to lean back a bit to gain height in the frame. The other times I ran the field camera we used a lighter camera or we used the tripod so it wasn’t as difficult.
Teresa running the field camera with the tripod. This in itself could be a challenge as it was harder to frame an action shot with the camera rooted to one place on the tripod, compared to your much more versatile, if not more uncomfortable, shoulder.
Below is a clip from when I ran the field camera, one of the biggest challenges was not letting your frame go all over the place while filming!
Clip here.
Inside our announcers sat commenting on the game and Brandon usually ran the tricastor for us. As he changed cameras on the main screen he would let us know via our headsets. We quickly learned the only time you should change your shot was when Brandon was not on your camera.
During halftime! Sarah was trying out running the tricastor the night this was taken. Halftime was always a welcomed break at the games, especially when it was really cold outside!
Over the course of the semester my filming improved and I become a lot more aware of what it’s like to film a live broadcast. I found myself watching football games at home even and thinking about some of the shots the professionals take that as a viewer we take for granted. I learned about the tricaster, the radio antennae, and definitely learned about Cat 5 cables. The Cat 5 cable that ran down the field was 300 yards long and I quite frequently had the task of placing and rolling up this cable with the help of a classmate.
Doing this class was a very nice opportunity to learn a different style of film, learn about some new equipment, and practice working in with a team with digital media. It takes a different kind of skill to follow unpredictable live action and keep in mind that your audience is live, you can’t go back and edit your clips or make sure you shot is just right. The view from on top of the announcer’s box was also a nice bonus!
-By Laura Wallace
Dr. Wearn
NMAC 4471
December 5th, 2011
