Project 3: Juggling

Learn how to juggle well enough to teach others in a time based medium.

10.21.20

Juggling is hard. I watched a few videos on how to start and all of them said to start with 1 ball, then gradually add more as you feel comfortable. Since I am right handed, throwing the ball with my right hand is much easier and when I try to throw it with my left hand I have no control and the ball ends up flying everywhere. Right now, I am still struggling with 2 balls. The videos I watched said to pretend to throw the balls at two points in the air to keep the throws consistent and it is helping to keep the balls from being thrown a foot away from my hands.

Left: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4_IUMS4yc8 Middle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCYDZDlcO6g Right: https://www.wikihow.com/Juggle

10.22.20

The first thing that I noticed from the good videos we watched is that the speed of the video plays a large part in the tone and how that affects the mood of the viewer. In the opening scene for Mad Men, the transitions between each scene was fairly slow, allowing the viewer to feel like they are also falling very slowly which also gives them enough time to observe the graphics and content of the advertisements. In contrast, the Italian Police Parade was faster paced and fit more with the content because the purpose is to see the patterns that the motorcycles can create in large quantities and if the video was slowed down, it would not have the same surprising and exciting effect on the viewer.

We also watched numerous bad tutorials. From those, I realized that background noise, surrounding environment, editing, and camera angles play a very large part in the quality of the video and how communicative it is. If a video was difficult to hear because of background sounds, had a funny object that constantly catches the viewer’s eye or was filmed at a bad angle, then it does not fulfill it’s purpose of being a tutorial.

10.25.20

Over this weekend, I tried to get better with juggling 3 balls to be able to move onto 4.

How to juggle 3 balls:

1. Learn to throw 1 ball between both hands. Imagine a scooping motion. The height of the ball should be about a foot above head.
2. Move on to two balls, this time imagine 2 points a foot above hands and throw balls to opposite points, again with a scooping motion. Throw second ball when the 1st ball is at the vertex of the downward parabola.
3. The process is the same for 3 balls except when the second ball is at the vertex of the parabola, throw the 3rd ball into the air.
4. Repeat for a few cycles until mastered.

My main issues were that I was not throwing the balls high enough which didn’t give me enough time to throw and catch another ball, and I was throwing the balls straight up in the air. Even after a few days of practice, I can only juggle three balls in a few cycles before the balls start flying everywhere.

10.26.20

Since my task contains fast motion, the only way that I could really capture the key steps were to take a video of me juggling and screenshot the important frames. My main focus was having a somewhat distraction free background and to have the balls be the main focus. What I struggled with the most was having the camera set up be close enough to show the motion of my hands, but not be too close so that the balls are out of frame when I toss them in the air.

It was easy to pick out stills from the video because I knew the steps to juggle and it was in the order that I learned so I kept reciting the steps over and over in my head which gave me a clear idea of how I wanted the storyboard to look like.

10.28.20

Class Discussion

1. Logical shifts in point of view: when is it appropriate to show the point of view of the juggler compared to watching the juggler?
2. Starting and ending point: is the ending satisfying for viewer?
3. Missing or redundant frames: consider if there is information that has to be “filled in” by the viewer or if some information can be held back.
4. Action vs. verification: showing the task in motion vs showing the completed task.

From class yesterday, two main things were pointed out in my story board: hotspots in the background and lighting.

Having the background be free of hotspots and distractions will help the viewer to focus only on learning the task, so for the video, I will just adjust my lighting so that it doesn’t form a shadow and move the furniture out of the frame.

I was also informed that showing how to juggle 3 balls is good enough so I don’t think I will try to learn how to juggle 4.

Revisions

Something I want to add to my video is the progression of learning to juggle. I don’t think it makes sense for me to start off the video with three balls since that’s not how I learned, and juggling three balls from the beginning is a huge jump. To do this, I’m going to add shots of me teaching with one ball at the start, then gradually getting up to three. Also I will show the motion of my hands, specifically the scooping and placement. If I start out teaching the viewer to juggle three balls, the video will only be 10–15 seconds, which I don’t think is enough time to grasp how to successfully juggle, and there will also be a lot of instructions that they have to fill in on their own.

For the video, I wanted the point of view to not be what I see (like holding the balls) because I think if someone was following this tutorial, it’d be easier to see the instructions from a straight on perspective, not from my point of view.

How to improve:

1. Try doing the video outside because of consisting lighting. In this video, I was worried of standing too far away from the camera because my figure would cast a shadow on the wall, which means that the video overall is very tight. Although this takes away any distractions, it also inhibited me from throwing the balls at a normal height and for my hands to be in frame.
2. The beginning of the 3rd clip juggling with 2 balls lasts a little too long. Toss the balls separately 1–2 times then move on to throwing them at the same time, the step is simple enough where it doesn’t need to last 10 seconds.
3. Start off video showing all 3 balls, since the viewer would need to have at least 3 balls in order to juggle.
4. End the video showing 3 balls again for a satisfying ending.
5. For the next video, do not cut out the sound. The sound may allow the viewer to know how they should catch the ball, and it’s just satisfying to hear in general.

Notes from discussion:

1. The frame is too tight, need to see motion of hands and height of ball. Michelle suggested to go outside and find a place that does not cast harsh shadows.
2. Some of the explanatory clips were too long. Tossing one ball is quite straightforward so half the video does not need to be devoted to that one step.
3. Going straight into the juggling is shocking for the viewer, so Hannah suggested to ease into it by showing the 3 balls first.

11.03.20

This is my first version of creating a cohesive juggling tutorial. I think that I achieved my goal of showing the progression of juggling from 1 ball to 3, including sound, and creating a composition and background free of distractions.

Pacing: I made sure to think about how the video started and how it ended, but I think that I could have made both the beginning and ending clips longer so the viewer can ease into juggling and also so they can feel not intimidated by how fast and short the clips were. After splicing the clips together, I feel that the pace of the video is too fast. Part of the reason why it feels that way is because I am performing the task rather quickly, but also because of how short the clips are. When I put them all together, though they are technically cohesive, the video, especially the transitions, feels jumpy and I don’t think that a viewer would follow my tutorial because of how fast paced it is.

Instructions: I think that the instructions for juggling with 1 and 2 balls are pretty straight forward and clear, however I think that I can show the motion that the balls follow with my hands or fingers before throwing the balls in the next version. In the video, I show the balls and go straight into tossing them into the air, but I think the communication will be clearer if I first show the motion that the balls are supposed to follow. My intention for the instructions for the 3 balls were to show how the balls switch hands after one cycle, however it doesn’t look that way because the clips were placed in with no context.

How to improve:

1. Slow down the movement in the clips, especially the ones that show the balls in hands.
2. Make the beginning and end clips longer and slower.
3. Show the 3 balls switching hands closeup, not just have clips of them in different hands.

11.04.20

Feedback:

1. The point of view makes sense.
2. Starting off with juggling made the video more trustworthy.
3. Transitions are smooth enough to where it does not disrupt the communication of steps.
4. Ending is very abrupt and not satisfying.
5. Progression of 1–3 balls helps it seem less daunting and more approachable.
6. The sound helped to establish rhythm which was helpful to know what pace the balls should be thrown at.
7. Some clips were too fast.
8. Instruction of three balls were difficult to follow because it was too fast.

I think that I can improve the ending of the video. I did not even realize that my ending was cut off so I’m glad that it was pointed out. Everyone said that it seemed abrupt, so in my final video I will make sure to make it obvious that the video ends. I think that the video was clear up until the point where I start to juggle three balls. For my final video, I will go slower when I show how to juggle with three balls, be more clear that the balls switch hands after one cycle, and break it down into more steps so that the viewer does not have to pause and rewatch the same clip multiple times.

How to improve:

1. Break juggling 3 balls into more steps and go slower.
2. Make the ending more clear so the viewer can feel satisfied and know that the video is finished.

11.05.20

Instructing how to juggle versus showing you juggling is a very big difference. Video about doing something compared to a video showing how to do something. From class today, I realized that my video is more demonstrative and showing rather than instructional. The problem is not only that I am going too fast, but I am also not showing where to throw the ball and where hand positions should be. I think that I can mitigate these problems by demonstrating with my hands what points in the air the ball should “hit” and showing the correct positioning of arms, hands, and body before the actual throwing part of the video.

11.07.20

My plan for the final video was to do everything the same as the second version except to break down juggling 3 balls into more steps. While doing the video, I was having a difficult time breaking it down while still making the video clear. I was trying to use my hands to show where to throw the balls but it was still confusing so I decided to include a different point of view in addition to the close up and mid shot.

Additional POV: Earlier in the project I thought that it would be easier for a viewer to see every step from a straight on perspective, not from my point of view, however I realized that the video would come off more showing me juggling rather than me teaching how to juggle. This led me to create a visual of where the person should throw the ball to make the instructions more clear instead of showing it with my hands in the air. I decided to visually show points in this set up because when I juggle, I imagine points in the air where I should throw the ball and it really helps me to throw the balls consistently without them flying everywhere.

Set Up: I created this set up by placing a large piece of bristol paper on two binders in order to have a slope for the balls to roll down and setting my phone on top of a window sill. I tried doing it on a flat surface but my hands were in the way when I was trying to show where the points hit so I tried to find a way where I could make the balls hit the point without my hands disrupting the frame. Another method that I debated using was stop motion. I didn’t go through with this idea because I was using natural light and the sun was about to set and I knew that taking multiple pictures of the balls moving would take a lot of time and the lighting would get bad. Also, when it starts to get complicated like juggling with 3 balls, I think it would be easier for that to be shown in real time rather than stop motion because the movement is not smooth like it would be if I actually showed the ball thrown in real time.

If someone were to be watching this to learn, I think that they would have an easier time going back to a specific section because the shifts in point of view’s follow a visual pattern of me showing the number of balls close up, where to throw the balls using the paper, and me actually juggling in the air. I realized that I should have done this since the beginning because it was how I learned how to juggle like many other people in my group to get more feedback on how beneficial it would be and how well I executed it, however I think that I performed the instructions pretty well to allow the viewer to understand the details and steps that it takes to successfully juggle. The ending looks like the camera slowly zoomed closer but in reality I was just moving forward. It was only after completing this that I realized but I don’t think it’s distracting or anything.

Overall, this project was more difficult than I imagined, not only because my task was something that I had never attempted before, but also because I realized that so much of how I try to explain things consist of pictures and words. Trying to teach others how to perform this task without saying anything or using diagrams was really difficult, but I enjoyed the challenge.