I just got back from Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic where we covered a fairly large conference. We had two goals: (1) cover the conference meetings for documentation/training/posterity and (2) shoot some sizzle from the event for marketing/fun. The two goals are really entirely distinct and require different gear and strategies, although within the realm of video production there is a lot of overlap.

Coverage of the meetings themselves is both easier and harder than more creative shooting and basically involves a camera at the back of the room on a tripod. That's it. Easy! Except that most of the breakout rooms are poorly lit and the audio feed, well, any audio feed is better than no audio feed.

We shot with Panasonic P2-class cameras, an HVX200 and a newer HPX170. Both were functionally equivalent for our purposes here (the newer camera has better low-light, which is nice), since we shot SD resolution DV25 video ( actually 30p, since it's going to computer monitors only). Two reasons for this: (1) the videos are going to be highly compressed on the company's Intranet anyhow and (2) a single 64GB card can hold 277 minutes of video, so you can shoot all day. We were plugged into the wall, so batteries weren't an issue, but we each had a battery anyhow, just in case (e.g., audio buzz can instantly be killed by unplugging from the wall). The audio feed was supplied by the hotel, which, in my experience is a crap shoot, but we had a clean feed and, with the only real problem being that the mixer was at the front of the room, which meant I couldn't get to it and that the presenter or anyone could mess with it (and often did), which played havoc with my levels. Anyhow, any audio feed is better than no audio feed and, other than a few glitches and a lot of tedium, we got our shots.

The sizzle shots of the more glamorous events were also easier and harder. Since we didn't need wall-to-wall coverage, it is definitely more fun, but, since it isn't wall-to-wall coverage, there's always a shot or two that you'll miss, depending on your strategy. Glamorous events? Why yes! The big event was the Hard Rock Hotel's Grand Opening shindig, which included a celebrity red carpet arrival event and the company's traditional guitar smash. Red carpet events are, honestly, not very fun, probably for anyone: camera teams from all over get penned into about a 20-foot long line and have to fight for prime real estate. In practice, everyone is very nice and accommodating, but, ultimately, you gotta get your shot, so there's a bit of elbowing and nudging. There's also quite a bit of shouting and some strategy to getting what you need: "Hey! Darcy! Give us a look over here!" My partner on this shoot was great at this and got a number of celebs (Terrell Owens, Pete Wentz, some others) to come over and have a chat with us straight to camera, which is the real money shot.

There were also a couple of concerts - The Whalers, Blue Oyster Cult and The Gypsy Kings (pictured above - taken from a video still) - on different nights. Even though each offer different challenges (e.g., The Whalers were on the beach), these events are actually trivially easy to shoot because the stages are always very brightly lit and because we can't really use any of the footage anyhow. Bands need to control their brand and image very tightly, so video is almost never allowed at all (except for everyone doing the modern smartphone salute) and if it is, there may be heavy heavy restrictions, like you can only shoot the first 15-seconds of the first three songs (I'm not kidding). This is fine, since we aren't covering the concert anyhow and only need a clip for internal purposes to run under the VO "...and on Friday night, Blue Oyster Cult rocked the conference with more cowbell..." So it's easy and fun. Still, if the managers see you setting up a tripod or walking around with your professional video camera, you are going to get a tap on the shoulder and a stern finger wagging, so you need to be clever. Or you need to be shooting with a camera that doesn't look like a video camera. Managers and PR people are getting a lot smarter about this, so if you dwell for a long time (as opposed to popping off a snap shot) they will often know what you are doing and...stern finger wagging. I've even been to events where they won't let in anyone with a DSLR or a camera with a detachable lens, except for the professional photographers booked to cover the event. I've never been completely shut down, however, and I'm always very polite and apologetic when I do get a stern finger wagging (which happens rarely, but not this time). In any case, I got my shots, right up at the front of the stage and had a lot of fun doing it. Oh, and one more piece of advice: bring ear plugs. If you do this fairly often, get nice professional ones. Definitely mandatory equipment at less than $20.