Professional Article Review

       For this article review, I read "At a certain age, nothing is more important than fitting in," by Tom Hallman Jr. In the article, Hallman describes the life of a 14-year-old boy who has a dangerous skin disease, and how he just wants to fit in, but can't. Using a narrative style, he shows how the boy is just like everyone else, except for his deformity. This gives the article a sense of reality that regular news stories don't have. It also paints a very clear image of the boy's life using written words, in a way that is extraordinary. The article is so well written that I don't really know how to describe the feelings you get when you read it. And the article doesn't stop there. Besides being very entertaining, it is very informative. It shows how doctors have to deal with a child like the one in the article, shows the statistics about the disease, and other necessary info in order to learn from the article. The best writers are able to combine entertainment with information, and Tom Hallman Jr. does just that. I got a chance to read some of his other reports, which are just as good as this one. I have also found out that he has a blog, and writes regularly on it. He has written a few books as well. The link to get to his blog is here. 

What Makes a Good Feature Story

       Many people make feature stories. Even more people watch feature stories. Lots of news stations will have at least a few feature stories created every day. However, not all feature stories can be the best, but they can all at least be good. A good feature story has a lot of elements, and each element helps support the overall video. The elements that you need are a good voiceover, good b-roll, good nat-noise, good lighting, good interview shots, good interview questions, and an interesting subject.

Subjects

       The most important element is the interesting subject. You need to pick a subject of your video that is able to appeal to people, where most people will enjoy the subject. That does not mean picking the most popular thing when you create videos, it means picking the subject that you are excited about and won't be boring for people to watch. Of course, if the rest of your video is exceptional, especially your voiceover, then people will be interested no matter what the video is about.

Voiceover

       The second most important element to your video is your voiceover. That is where your own personal touch comes through the most. The only way for a viewer to know who you are is through your voice. You need to speak the best way that you can. That means reading your voiceover as if you were talking to someone about something that you really enjoy. If it sounds like the person saying the voiceover is really bored, then the whole video will seem boring to the viewer. However, if you have the voiceover sound like you are excited about the topic, it doesn't matter how bad the camera footage looks in the background, the viewer will be excited about the subject of your video.

Interview

       Interviews are essential to a feature story. It is the main topic of the video. The number one rule for having your interview in the feature story is to make sure to never have your voice in the finished video. If you talk during the interview, then someone watching the video will think that the interviewee is not talking to them, and it should not fell that way. The interviews need to be set up and introduced by the voiceovers. There also shouldn't be any jump cuts within the interview, so that there isn't a weird spot where the person is moving one way, and then they are suddenly moving a different way in the exact same setting. When setting up the interview, the interviewee needs to be positioned in the right third of the frame, looking to their right of the camera. It allows the most intriguing shot for a viewer to watch, and makes it seem like the interviewee is talking to them personally, even when they really aren't.

The Other Elements

       The b-roll footage should be visually interesting to someone watching the video, but not too interesting that it distracts from the voiceover. The b-roll should also be about the subject, and relating to the overall theme of the feature story. The six shot system using close-up to wide shots is the perfect way to film the b-roll footage, if you want it the viewer to be interested throughout the whole video. The lighting in the video also needs be pretty good, or else someone will either be blinded by the brightness of the shots, or unaware of anything happening on the screen because it is too dark. The b-roll needs to be filmed in a well-lit location, but the interview portion of the video requires a little more effort on your part. The best way to have lighting set up for an interview is a bright key light 45 degrees in front of the subject, a back light that isn't as bright behind the subject, and a fill light to the other 45 degrees of the subject, that isn't as bright as the key light. The natural noise isn't as important as the other elements of the feature story. The main point is to have natural noise throughout the entire video, but you need to keep it a minimalistic level.

Feature Story Experience

       Making a feature story video was very different than writing a feature story. Making a feature video means finding the right shots, making sure angles are good, asking the right questions in an interview. In a written feature story, you have to use all the right words and phrases, choosing the best adjectives and verbs to make your story the best it can be.
       When making a feature story video, you first need to figure out your topic and concept, then write down 21 interview questions. Then you need to start filming your b-roll. This can be any clips of the person doing their activity or the event, as long as it relates to the overall concept of the video. Then you should film your interview. There are many important tips for filming this. First, you need to make sure you have good lighting. The optimal positioning would be to have a light in the front, 45 degrees to the subject, a light behind the subject to get a back shadow, and a light to the other 45 degrees of the subject, so you have not too much light directly shining on the person. If you cannot have three lights, you should try to have a light that is 45 degrees to the subject, and that their face is clearly visible in the camera. When framing the subject in the camera, place them in the right third of the shot, looking to their right of the camera, for the best effect. After doing this, you can interview them, then get to editing. While editing, you will probably figure out what you want to do for your voice over. When you feel like you're ready, record your voiceover, and put it into your video. When you finish editing your video, export and upload to youtube.
       When writing your feature story, you need to make sure to have a central idea you want to show before you even write a word. That way, you know what your story will be about and you'll never start running off into other subjects as you write your story. The first two or so paragraphs need to have a narrative hook, so that when someone reads your story, they will be hooked from the beginning. The best way to do this is create a scene for them to imagine in their mind, and then they will want to finish that scene to the end. Throughout the middle, you don't want to lose your readers with boring information, give them facts and quotes that light up the topic you are writing about. Also make sure to have a strong ending, with a summarizing point that doesn't leave your readers hanging off the edge of a cliff.
       I definitely enjoyed doing the video feature story more than writing it. First of all, I am at least pretty good at making videos, and not as good at writing. Secondly, writing the feature story is a lot less exciting than editing a feature story. The writing part you just have to sit there and write or type words. For the editing, you get to see the result of the video as you edit it, and that is just a lot more exciting than just words on a screen.
       Below, you can see the feature story video that I have made, and below that, you can see the written feature story.

Written Feature Story

            The Sun starts shining into your eyes, you pull your helmet down a little, and get ready for the jump. You can feel your own heart beating to the rhythm of the other heart below you. You tell your horse to get ready, and you whistle quietly. Your horse starts trotting, and you bounce up and down slightly as you ride around the arena. The horse starts going faster, and you can feel every time the horse’s hoofs hit the ground. Suddenly, right before you hit a barrier in your path, you lean backward and sit up straighter and your horse jumps over a hurdle, kicking up dirt behind you.

            This is an experience Kaylan Johnson gets to have every week. She is a sophomore here at Olathe Northwest, who goes to stables to trains to ride horses. Johnson participates at many activities here at ONW, including AE and debate. However, she is able to find time to go horseback riding and is really good at it.

            Horseback riding is very difficult, and even the really experienced can make mistakes. The first time she tried to jump her new horse, Gracie, she almost fell off completely. Johnson really enjoys riding, and she has been doing it for almost 7 years.

            “I’ve always been interested in horses… when we moved my parents signed me up, so about 7 years I’ve been riding now,” Johnson said.

            There are all types of horseback riding; Johnson does some of the many types of jumping, with a few different horses. “I jump or show jump and that’s within an arena, and there will be different jump horses that I ride,” Johnson said. Sometimes, she will do one jump at a time, or multiple at once, and other times she’ll work on positioning on the horse as well.

            Johnson also works with a trainer, so that she can learn to ride better. Her trainer helps her keep the right position on the horse as she is jumping so that the horse will react to her and have a perfect jump. The trainer is a very good rider herself, so she knows how to critique Johnson and other people’s riding as well.

            Horseback riding isn’t for everyone, but Kaylan Johnson knows that it is for her. She loves riding every week and getting to work with the different horses at the stables. Horse riding is a very good way for her to take a break from the fast-pace world around her and make a connection with nature through her horse.