Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-01-24
Camera Angles
Comer0 Angles
Film Editing Eliminates
Slow Spots and Errors
By Alexander J. Wedderburn
cvrofor OF Photography
The Smithsonian lnstliviion

the SEntnSor
Like the still Photographer.
the movie maker sometimes
makes mistakes. Portions Of
his films can be over or un-
derexposed. light struck, or
unsuitable for some technical
reason. Or, they may fail to
make the grade for some other
reason.
They may need to be re-
arranged in better sequence.
Obviously something must
be done-and the editing table
Is the answer.
No matter what your de-
gree Of skill at cinematog-
raphy, you must learn to be
utterly ruthless when it comes
to pruning one of your movies.
Scissor every inch of film not
of top quality down to the
very last frame.
It will often turn out that
the film benefits greatly.
Scenes Con Be Retoken
Even entire scenes may have
to go into the waste basket.
Often these can be reShot
but even if this is not possible,
it is better to be rid of poor
scene than to have it mock
you from the screen when your
fellow movie makers take stock
Of your work.
Then there is the matter
Of scene Encouragement. There
are few photographers indeed
who can shoot an entire story
in the camera just as it will be
shown. No matter how care
fully you may plan the shoot
ing, you are almost sure to
discover later that the trans
position of one or more scenes
will improve the picture
greatly.
There's another angle, too.
You may give little thought to
continuity and other finer
points, but you will in time
find it well worth your while at
least to splice your related
films together onto reels.
Order Out Of Chaos
After a few months Of using
your camera you will find
yourself hunting for some par
ticular roll of film. Even If
you have kept all your films in
one place, searching for a GER
tain roll is an aggravating
waste of time.
With an editing outfit you
can splice films on related sub
jects together onto larger reels.
This not only makes it easier
to find a specific film but you
will be able to sit back and
watch 80 minutes or so of I'M
interrupting film screening in
stead of jumping up and
changing from roll to roll after
each so or 100 foot roll has
sped through the protector.
AS a notable example, many
of US have filmed the activities
of our children over the years.
These can be carefully edited
and spliced with one or more
reels assigned to each year.
Family outings and vacations
are also worth tying together
in this manner.
Sports events provide an
other easily recognized cate
CORY for filing purposes. These
are just a very few of many
possible breakdowns for segre-
eating films over the years.
Cord File Index Is Help
After editing and filing your
films on the reels, you will find
it advantageous to keep a card
file index that tells you at a
glance where each film is
stored. The cards. like the
reels, can be filed according to
subject matter, giving names,
dates, events, and other peril
nent information.
The cards may also have a
number that corresponds with
the same number to be found
on the reel that holds the film
you are looking for. A brief
resume of the contents of each
reel should be pasted on the
outside Of the can in which the
reel is stored. Then you can
tell at a glance If you have the
one you want.
Study Screening Carefully
Whenever a roll of film
comes back from the labora-
tory run it through the pro-
jector at least four times be-
fore going to work on it. After
two screenings you will be able
to look at the film effectively
and recognize its faults. BY
the fourth or fifth running you
will have a good idea what
scenes should come out and
which should remain.
If you don't own an editing
device that allows you to view
the film as it passes behind an
inspection screen, use your
protector.
You can stop the machine
and reverse it until you come
back to the spot where the cut
should be made. Then mark
a frame with a grease pencil
and repeat the mark when
you come to the end Of the
"cut."
When the film has been run
to its conclusion you can find
the spots that need attention
without difficulty.
Some Of the Items Needed
You need only a few items
to edit your films. A viewer is
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