{"id":983,"date":"2015-03-31T13:26:58","date_gmt":"2015-03-31T13:26:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/?page_id=983"},"modified":"2016-01-25T14:31:17","modified_gmt":"2016-01-25T14:31:17","slug":"video-close-readings","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/video-close-readings\/","title":{"rendered":"Video Close Readings"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This post offers some models and suggestions for how to do a good job on the AV side of this close reading equation.<\/div>\n
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Best Practices<\/b>
\nTo create a good video\u00a0narrative for a close reading, you should remember some of the following best practices:<\/div>\n
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1.\u00a0 Keep it short.<\/b>\u00a0 Podcasts can rely on the text of your close reading as a “script” but the most useful ones will be 10 minutes or less so feel free to excerpt from your post, rather than just read the whole thing.
\n2.\u00a0 Keep it lively. <\/b>The key to good audio narration is to remember that your voice (or voices) must engage the listener –must convey emphasis, emotion, atmosphere.\u00a0 It’s not easy and not everybody is a good “narrator,” but keep in mind audience-related issues such as pacing and pronunciation.\u00a0 Nothing helps more in this process than using different voices for different parts of the podcast. That’s also why we’ve been creating free “Lincoln” podcasts at our House Divided Project<\/a><\/span> Soundcloud channel using the voice of actor and professor Todd Wronski to create audio-quotable versions of Lincoln’s documents.\u00a0 Feel free to plunder them at will!<\/div>\n
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From Michael van Wambeke, Letter to Ulysses Grant, July 13, 1863:<\/p>\n

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From Susan Segal, Letter to George Meade, July 14, 1863:<\/p>\n

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From Andrew Villwock, Remarks to Ohio 166th, August 22, 1864:<\/p>\n

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From Rhonda Webb, Letter to William Sherman, December 26, 1864:<\/p>\n

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All of these efforts were posted at YouTube and edited in either iMovie or Windows Moviemaker by total amateurs.\u00a0 None of these participants had any real experience in documentary film editing before they began work.\u00a0 Hence, there are rough patches and occasional problems, but overall, you should be able to see and appreciate from these efforts the potential power of merging new technology and old-fashioned close reading in a modern-day classroom.\u00a0 Here are the video tutorials that these participants used to help prepare their work:<\/p>\n

Windows MovieMaker tutorial (by Russ Allen, Dickinson College, Class of 2014)<\/p>\n

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iMovie tutorial (by Leah Miller, Dickinson College, Class of 2014)<\/p>\n

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You should also check out these FAQs pages from the House Divided Project, which provide a host of resources for the budding documentary filmmaker, including access to public domain images, music, sound effects and other tools:<\/p>\n

Where can I find Public Domain Civil War Era Music?<\/a><\/span>
\nWhere can I find Images for Documentaries?<\/a><\/span>
\nDoes House Divided have any sound effects available? (Updated)<\/a><\/span>
\nWhere can I upload a Video?<\/a><\/span>
\nHow can I edit the audio for Documentaries?<\/a><\/span>
\nWhere can I download music for Documentaries?<\/a><\/span>
\nHow can I create Documentaries?<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

And, of course, if you want to consult the professionally produced close reading videos created by Matthew Pinsker and Lance Warren specifically for Understanding Lincoln graduate\u00a0course, you can check out the full Vimeo album here:
\nUnderstanding Lincoln<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

There is no single checklist for a great video close reading, but always remember that the digital tools should enhance the reading \/ analysis experience, and not detract or distract from it.\u00a0 Also, the same usual rules of research and evidence apply.\u00a0 Don’t use a picture of Lincoln from 1864 when you’re discussing him in 1854.\u00a0 Provide proper credits and acknowledgments at the end of all videos.\u00a0 Try diligently not to violate copyright or trademark laws –video is a more restrictive format in that regard than text, even with the usual “fair use” exceptions for educational purposes.<\/p>\n

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This post offers some models and suggestions for how to do a good job on the AV side of this close reading equation. Best Practices To create a good video\u00a0narrative for a close reading, you should remember some of the following best practices: 1.\u00a0 Keep it short.\u00a0 Podcasts can rely on the text of your […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":373,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-983","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/983","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/373"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=983"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/983\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-288pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=983"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}