My Video Problems

Robind-r · Posted: Fri Apr 27, 2007 6:44 pm Post subject: "Arthur: the Ironmonger's Tale"

Just uploaded this doc on one of our local characters, alas no longer with us.
He - Arthur - ran an old ironmongery in Taffs Well for over forty years. I spent some months filming with him in 2004, but have only recently edited the material for a local festival.
Because of the upload restrictions on Youtube, it had to be cut into three parts...
Part One
You can follow the links to parts two and three if you're still awake Smile

I can't do much about the compression, but the original looks really nice...

Robin

flyfisher · Joined: 02 Apr 2007 Posts: 133 Location: Hertford, UK

Magic. So engaging, I watched all three. And not a mention of "fork 'andles" anywhere Wink

When I was about 15, I got a saturday job in an ironmongers. Not quite as ramshackle as Arthur's but certainly in the same vein, proper counter and everything, none of today's supermarket style find-it-yourself.

Anyway, I was no help whatsoever really because when I was asked for something I had to ask the owner because he was the only person who knew where stuff was. It was a family business and even his sons didn't seem to know the location of things any better than me.

Lovely man though. Didn't seem at all bothered that I could never find anything. Used to his son's probably.
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rogs · Joined: 03 Apr 2007 Posts: 50 Location: Bournemouth UK

Absolutely charming Robin -- and I thought the quality was very good -especially compared to the average You Tube production!

Did you record the audio with the camera mic, or a boom (couldn't see a lapel mic) -- how lovely to have spoken words without camera noise or hiss!!

And the true sign of a professional doc --within a couple of minutes I stopped trying to analyse the lighting, editing etc, and was just drawn in to the content -- top rate stuff.

We still have a similar character locally to us --- although Mr. Estop is only in his late 80's --- only the other day I asked him for a rubber washer of a slightly odd size, and he produced a packet of 5, with the price still marked at 4d each!!!

Can't imagine the grumpy old devil agreeing to being filmed though -- although sometimes he can be persuaded to part with an observation on the 'old days' in our area.

We'll not see their like again, I'm afraid Sad

Colin · Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 117 Location: Milton Keynes, UK

Nice one Robin! Back in my student days I did a 16mm film project about an old cobbler in Devonport who was about to retire and whose business would be closing (he had no family to pass the business down to). It wasn't quite as slick as yours (it was shot B&W Sep Mag Pos and tape-spliced) but the essence was there. Such a pity I never brought it with me when I left - no sign of it now. I love this kind of stuff - especially when people are recollecting a society that no longer exists.

Keep at it....

Colin

PS: I think the old cobbler's shop is now a MacDonald's. What a surprise!
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Look out for some great digital video-making features in "Digital Video" (Issue 0232), "Computer Buyer" (Issue 195) and "Computer Shopper" (Issue 235) magazines. And others I can't remember!!!

Robind-r · Posted: Fri Apr 27, 2007 10:44 pm Post subject:

Thanks for your kind comments folks - I wanted to produce a keepsake for our local community in Arthur's honour; he was so well respected and liked. I hope our people will like it as much as you do.
It was shot on the XM2 and most of it was with the onboard camera mic, though a couple of the "talking heads" were recorded using the AT55 mic - although this was onboard as well.
With such a small location and the camera being very close to the subjects, I think the audio worked very well. I was all on my own anyway, so it was a better option not to have to run cables and stands out Very Happy

Robin

rooster · Joined: 03 Apr 2007 Posts: 39 Location: Ireland

Gosh Robin I have to say thats a beautiful Doc.what a wonderful memory of bye-gone days and so well shot.Congrats most enjoyable. Those old men and women are almost gone and such a pity. We still have few here as you well know.
Bill
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"A stranger is just a friend you have yet to meet"

skierhughes · Posted: Sat Apr 28, 2007 3:27 pm Post subject:

About 2 years ago the local tea shop closed down. Not a cafe drink your tea, tea shop, but a go in and ask for your tea to be blended shop.

Unfortunately the couple were too old to carry on and nobody new anything about mixing tea and/or wanted to learn and so it didn't get sold as a business.
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fiona-w · Joined: 02 Apr 2007 Posts: 48 Location: Swansea,UK

Robind-r · Posted: Sat Apr 28, 2007 7:42 pm Post subject:

Thanks Fiona - I've ammended"gentlemen" to "folks" in my previous posting Laughing

Robin

fiona-w · Joined: 02 Apr 2007 Posts: 48 Location: Swansea,UK

- you're a gent, Robin.

By the way, wouldn't the National Museum or St Fagans be very interested in this as a 'living history' type of record?

We have an Aladin's cave ironmonger's here that is fascinating to shop in (no-where near Arthur's scale, though, but still floor-to-ceiling of treasures/junk that the owner has catalogued in his head). What I love is that he always knocks a bit off the total price that he tots up on a scrap of brown paper, so you feel like you've had a bargin, whether you have or not (most things aren't priced anyway).

I'll have to give him your link. Just hope he doesn't have some state-of-the-art PC stashed away in the back room to watch it on; I don't want the illusion shattered Shocked

.

Fiona

Robind-r · Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2007 1:16 pm Post subject:

Fiona,

I'm already arranging for copies to go to the National Library in Aberystwyth as well as Sain Ffagan. The local library in Taffs Well gets a copy as well. Wink

Robin

laserblazer · Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2007 1:21 pm Post subject:

You've fired me with enthiasm Robin. A friend of mine road for MV Agusta in the 50s and competed in major events including the IOM TT. I believe he was still riding for them when Agostini joined the team. I'll see if I can get him in front of my camera. His name is Harvey Williams if anyone can remember that far back.
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Robind-r · Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2007 2:33 pm Post subject:

Good for you! - it's very likely that he'll have lots of photographs and newspaper cuttings to add visual interest to what he has to say.
It's wonderful to stop and think about what and who is/are on our doorsteps. We're always looking for something to film, just to get to enjoy our cameras and software. Docs that are a social record enable us to enjoy our hobby as well as putting it to good use for posterity.

Robin

Colin · Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 117 Location: Milton Keynes, UK

I should perhaps add that from 1999 to 2003 I was Project Manager on a scheme that was funded by the Millennium Commission to enable people local to Milton Keynes to engage in the research of local history projects and present their work as websites. My 11-person project team provided all support and training - everything from interviewing techniques to copy writing to web page creation, audio recording/editing/compression, video techniques, image acquisition/editing/compression, etc - to the groups who were based at schools attended by their children.

Unfortunately, our project just pre-dated broadband (and therefore video as we know know it), blogs, RSS feeds, Podcasts, etc etc., but it was a great experiment both for the Open University and the school groups that took part.

On one occasion, a group got an old boy talking at length about life in his village in the early part of the 1900s, and dug out loads of photos, newspaper clippings, memorabilia, etc., and then died not long after it went online. They got there just in time!

Here's the link to the 60 projects that the "CLUTCH" programme enveloped:

http://clutch.open.ac.uk/mframe.htm

Chris "Hockeyshooter" (from the SDV forums) was a project team member and also our systems technical manager.

In fact, looking back on it, I can't believe we did so much in such a short time!!!

Colin
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Look out for some great digital video-making features in "Digital Video" (Issue 0232), "Computer Buyer" (Issue 195) and "Computer Shopper" (Issue 235) magazines. And others I can't remember!!!

rooster · Joined: 03 Apr 2007 Posts: 39 Location: Ireland

An amazing coincidence I was watching highlights of the Antique Road show around 6 ish this evening and a lady had a handwritten script that Ronni Barker made of an old Ironmonger who sent him some customer funnies like four candles when he ,meant Fork Handles etc and the sketch they showed with Ronnie Corbett behind the old Ironmonger counter could have been your Arthur. I show ed that wee Documentary to some friends they loved it. Simple and no explanations necessary/
Bill
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"A stranger is just a friend you have yet to meet"