Creating an Online Portfolio

I chose to host my portfolio on a free blogging platform. I had a blog on Wordpress, but without your own server to host your files, you need to use the free Wordpress. I didn't like this, because they make you purchase many plug-ins to use the same features that you can get free with Blogger. I absolutely hated Tumblr. Not all Tumblr templates offer the basic Comments widget that allows users to comment on your posts. This annoys me as a user and it discourages interaction. I've seen blogs on Tumblr where people ask you what you think, but there is nowhere to tell them... no Comments section, no contact info.... Other popular platforms (I haven't tried) include LiveJournal and many of Six Apart's platforms (TypePad, Movable Type, Vox...).

The easy choice for me is Blogger. For beginners, they offer many drag-and-drop or click-to-add options for designing your layout and publishing your blog. For those who know HTML or CSS (and anyone can learn the basics easily), Blogger offers the ability to load your own XML document with your custom design, the ability to use one of many free templates online, or the option to just use one of their default templates. It is highly customizable in the simplest way and it is FREE.

I added a few features that I think are essential for any blog:

1. A custom banner at the top. (Your template should tell you the size. ex: 860 x 130 px)
2. Add This buttons (you can see them at the bottom of each post in my blog) make sharing info from your site as easy as the click of a button. You can customize the look, the list of sites you can share to (more than 200)...
3. A Contact Me form allows readers to contact you/give you feedback/interact. You can either write your own JavaScript code or use an online service. I use WuFoo. It is free and allows you to customize your form (choose what fields to include, which are required and which are optional...) and embed it on a page on your portfolio site. This helps by keeping your email private. Otherwise spambots (evil programs that search the Inernet for email addresses, so they can sell it to all those annoying marketers that send spam) will find it on your site and you will begin getting loads of spam mail.

As you can see on this site, Blogger also allows for several pages. I have my pages listed just below my banner: Home, Bio, Resume, Videos, Design, and Contact Me. Name them so that they are self-explanatory.

KPTS Promo Shoot

Last Monday, I was able to join Gabe and Stacey at KPTS for a promo shoot. We set-up in the studio with field lighting and shot with a Canon 7D and a Canon T2i (550D). For audio, we set my Zoom H4n on a tripod and ran a lav mic into one of the channels. It was a pretty smooth shoot and even easier transferring the files. Gabe edited two promos from the shoot and posted them on his Vimeo page. It was only the second time that I used the H4n and I think the audio came out great. Tell me what you think.

Credits:
Gabe Juhnke: Producer/Camera/Editing
Stacey Jenkins: Producer
Mark Kenny: Camera/Audio

ESC Merit Awards

I have been really busy lately and did not get to submit anything for merit awards. I have been re-designing my site from a mere blog to an effective portfolio to direct potential employers to. This new site features a home page with a bio, a resume page, a video portfolio page, a design portfolio page, my blog page and a page with a form to contact me. I learned more HTML and CSS than I ever cared to learn, but I believe the site is an effective form of communication. I even created a favicon for the bookmark and address bars, as well as an iPod/iPhone icon to display if iPhone users add my site to their homescreen. I can't help it that I am very detail-oriented.

Anyway, I was bummed that I did not get to submit anything for the merit awards, but I decided that I'd rather have a solid portfolio that shows employers my skills rather than a piece of paper that claims I have them. Not to write-off merit awards... I am merely saying I had only enough time to dedicate to one pursuit, so I chose my portfolio. Good luck to everyone who submitted entries. I will be attending the ceremony on May 11th and look forward to seeing who receives the awards.

Keeping Up

I have been experimenting with my new camera.

I am working on several projects at once. I am editing footage I shot with my new T2i from my family's Easter. I think I have a reason to use split screen at a point in this project. My kids and their cousins found a turtle and I captured footage of the turtle walking, as well as the kids' reactions. I think this would be great as a split screen with the kids looking in the direction of the screen showing the turtle. Alone, each of these shots would be boring, but I think as a split screen it can capture the excitement and wonder they experienced and the viewer will be able to see what they were excited about.

I am also shooting a couple of career profiles (video portrait style) that I hope will show students what production jobs are like.
(609:Project 4) I'm profiling Gabe Juhnke, the Production Manager at KPTS, and (609:Project 5) Stacey Jenkins, a producer at KPTS. I am shooting on my T2i and have already started collecting footage. I took my camera to work and got some shots in the control room during the production of Ask Your Legislator. I'd like to get shots of each of them performing various aspects of their jobs: directing in the control room, shooting in the field, editing and directing personnel. I also plan to use some of KPTS's footage in my edit.

I am also planning a video portrait (609:Project 6) of my other boy who has hemophilia. He is 8 and self-infuses... meaning he sticks the needle in himself and is learning to give his own meds. This will be the focus of this video and I may again employ split screen to show him infusing on one screen and on the other (or others) I'd like to show some ways in which he lives a normal life: playing soccer, at the playground, going to school...

I finished editing my Center of Hope video. I'm not completely satisfied with it. I wish I could have captured more shots, but some things were out of my control and I had to work with what I had. Despite this, I learned how to import alpha channels from Photoshop and I was able to experiment with text motion graphics. I wish I had time to experiment with AfterEffects, but not yet.

Anyway, I'm busy... and this is why I have been neglecting my blog.

Center of Hope Video

Here is the first cut of my latest project. Description is below the video.

Center of Hope from Mark Kenny on Vimeo.

A promotional video for the Center of Hope, a homeless prevention program in Wichita, Kansas. Anita Cochran is the reporter. I shot with a Panasonic DVX, but also used some footage Anita had, and edited this piece for a fundraiser event. I created the graphics and shot the interviews with Bill, Brenda and Amy, as well as some of the B-roll at the Center of Hope office downtown. The interview with George and most of the B-roll at the Center of Hope was provided to me and I simply edited it into this video.

Hollywood Video

Hollywood from Mark Kenny on Vimeo.

Went to Hollywood and Santa Monica in August 2009 for an Inhibitor Summit. Shot some home video on a Canon FS22. Hated that camera, but last night I decided to edit a little piece to remember the trip. This was very challenging since I didn't shoot it for a project, it was just random shots while we were out. I didn't want to miss the moment by trying to get "money" shots.

'Pachelbel Kanon' by Detroit Illharmonic Symphony. Courtesy of BeatPick.com.

Just Do Something

OK!  I have been collaborating on a project and I am waiting on audio, so I have become very bored.  I finally decided to just do something.  I didn't want to plan and shoot, then edit, so I decided to dig through the home video archive.  I found some video from a trip Amber and I took to Hollywood and Santa Monica.  I didn't shoot this video to ever be edited.  Honestly I just kinda left the camera on while we did stuff and occasionally stopped to get a shot.  None of it was framed or planned to be used for anything other than remembering our trip with raw footage.  Not sure why I wanted to use this footage, but I think I wanted to see if I could make a decent edit with not-so-great footage.  I wanted to have a montage of quick cuts mixed in, also.  I also had to find a way to transition from day to night shots.  I'm typing this as some video renders, so I will finish it and post it soon.