motion – David Helfer Wells

Making of a documentary short

My short documentary video, Farm Time, premiered in June of 2017 at the New Haven Documentary Film Festival. Being juried into a film festival tells me that a given video is in fact good, since succeeds in the eyes of others who get paid to look at lots of films. I am often asked what is the process that I undertake as I make the kind of short documentary videos that I like to make (and that I appear to be good at if you believe the numerous film festivals which have selected my work for screening.) With the idea of explaining the process, I offer this blog entry.

My particular choices for video gear

I am on my way to mastering video as a way of visually telling stories. A student asked about the gear I have chosen to use during that evolution. That question prompted the following answers, which became another blog entry. Keep in mind that MY answers to these questions are unique to my process. Every videographer / photographer solves their problems differently. With that in mind…. Read More

Hanuman Jayanti (a video)

People in Bangalore, Karnataka, India seize the moment as they celebrate the birthday of Hanuman (the Hindu monkey god) by lighting 100,000 clay oil lamps in the heart of the city. Read More

Haridwar Time (a video)

Haridwar is an ancient city in India. The River Ganges, after flowing for 253 kilometers (157 miles) from its source, enters the Plains of North India for the first time at Haridwar, which gave the city its ancient name, Gangadwára. Haridwar is regarded as one of the seven holiest places to Hindus. Read More

Waterfire Promotion Video

In a promotional video that I made for WaterFire Providence, you can hear from the volunteers what a powerful experience they have volunteering for Waterfire, a long running piece of performance art held on the river in Providence. Waterfire is a spectacle to be enjoyed through the eyes and ears (as well as the nose.) Read More

Thoughts on pricing video projects

Regular readers know that I am making a big push into video work. I find video an interesting way to tell stories, I like the fact that multiple senses are used in that story-telling, and of course, the publication photography business is moving that direction. I have had very positive reaction to my video “Cafe,’” which shows a locally owned and operated coffee place. One such response was music to my ears and lead me to write this blog entry. Read More

Video Hardware That Works For Me

I recently blogged about the software that I use when making my narrative videos. Here, I will be talking about the hardware, the cameras, lenses, microphones, recorders, tripods, etc., that I use. My technology choices (whether hardware or software) are very specific to my process, my workflow and my budget. The gear I use solves my unique set of problems and nothing more. Every person making videos should ask themselves, does the gear I have (or the gear I am considering) solve my problems? Read More

Tag: motion