Eric Maierson – Page 14 – Latest News from MediaStorm

MediaStorm Guide to Quickly Replacing Files in Premiere Pro

Post author:Eric Maierson
Post published:August 21, 2013

Here’s a handy tip for easily replacing assets in the Premiere Pro timeline. First, locate a photograph or video clip on your timeline that you’d like to replace. Then, in your Project Browser (Shift–1) locate your replacement file. As you drag the new item to the timeline, hold down the option key. Still holding the option key, hover over the asset in the timeline you’d like to replace. When you see a red box around the old clip, release the mouse. The timeline will instantly update with your new selection. What’s great about this shortcut is that the new asset will still possess attributes of the old one like cropping and effects, including color correction. This makes it particularly useful for updating RAW photographs with toned ones. Just make sure that both images are the same size. [1] For information on MediaStorm’s photography workflow check out the 40-page Aperture document included with…

MediaStorm Guide to Setting Up Shots

Post author:Eric Maierson
Post published:August 8, 2013

At MediaStorm, we ask one important question to test the veracity of our work: does it deceive the viewer? The most fundamental way to break trust with not just your audience, but also your subject, is to set up shots. [1] How to Set Up a Shot If you ask someone to repeat an action, you are setting up a shot. "Could you walk through the door again so I can film you from the other side?" "Will you put your shoes on again so I can get a tight shot?" "Can you pick up your coffee again? I missed it the first time?" If you attempt to direct the action or ask subjects something they normally wouldn’t do, you are setting up a shot. "Would you mind dancing?" "Can we take you to visit your dad?" "Will you turn off the lights so I can get some pictures that look more…

Time Lapse: The Making of Darkness Visible Afghanistan

Post author:Eric Maierson
Post published:August 6, 2013

In 2011, along with Leandro Badalotti and Brian Storm, I produced Seamus Murphy’s A Darkness Visible: Afghanistan. It remains the largest, most complex project I’ve ever tackled. Seamus began work in Afghanistan in 1994. By 2010, he had made 14 trips to the country, producing more than 35,000 images and recording 25-plus hours of video interviews. Leandro and I spent the better part of 4 months organizing the vast amount of material. To document our editing progress, I wrote a Python script that generated a jpeg screen grab every five minutes. The result is a time lapse that begins on June 6 and ends November 8, 111 weekdays later. There are approximately 4,300 images in total: one frame for every five minutes of work. You’ll see the entire project take shape, from radio cuts to final output. And if you’d like to learn more about our editing methodology, please join Tim McLaughlin…

Eric and Tim. Photo by Shameel Arafin.

In Praise of Tim McLaughlin

Post author:Eric Maierson
Post published:July 22, 2013

Do you know Tim McLaughlin? If you do, then you know he’s a gem. Not only is he a seriously genuine person–one of the finest–he’s also a tremendous editor. Go watch Surviving the Peace: Angola, a project he produced with gorgeous footage from Rick Gershon. It’s hardly a secret around the office that I have a 5-lb.-gummy-bear-sized man-crush on Tim. What I love about our relationship, besides his immense patience for my shenanigans, is his almost incessant drive to improve his skills. Tim’s desire to be better is palpable. And it’s infectious. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve meandered into his room feeling self-satisfied with my own work only to be floored by some sleight-of-hand he’s conjured up. Inevitably, such moments send me back to my desk, convinced I can do better. In moments of fancy, I imagine us as something akin to K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton, the fierce…

Thoughts on Going Further

Post author:Eric Maierson
Post published:July 9, 2013

At MediaStorm we strive to depict the truth of every single person we document. I sometimes refer to this process as going with the grain of the wood. That is, telling the stories that are embedded in the raw material. We aim to shape what is documented, not what we would like to see. That is our highest aspiration, to reveal the specific. In pursuing this ideal for close to a decade now, we have employed a number of techniques that permeate our work [1]. You are no doubt familiar with some of them: Stories that begin with an individual’s plight and end with a larger call to social justice. A steady pace defined by frequent cutting on musical beats. Video portraits that blend photography and motion. We use these conventions because they work and when used effectively they are powerful. I believe in them. I helped, in part, to create what…