GTPlanet, I need your help!

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Tom

Tom

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Disclaimer - I didn't put this into the Motorsport section as it features a variety of different elements away from the subject.

As a lot of you know, I am both a Radio Broadcaster and a Motorsport Journalist and I am looking to expand further afield into Commentary, sort of combining the two in a roundabout sort of way if you will. I've had a few forays into commentating beforehand (see BST V8 Challenge) and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, even if it was a tad amateurish.

Recently I've been in contact with David Addison who is the main commentator alongside Tim Harvey for the British Touring Car Championship and after a phone call with him today I'm intrigued as to what possibilities may arise. We spoke about trackside commentary as well as television commentary and both seemed to be highly interesting and unique in their own ways.

David suggested creating a showreel and then sending it off to various different contacts to see what the outcome will be. I believe that this would be the best way to go about things as it allows organisations to see my work in action and therefore make a judgement.

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The problem arises when it comes to video editing however. I can record the audio and mix it down without too much trouble but when it comes to adding it to a video and then editing it so it looks as professional as possible. That, I have no experience in whatsoever.

I also need to source the video clips without any commentary so it can be dubbed over which is easier said than done, so any help with that would be greatly appreciated.

Essentially I would like the showreel to comprise of commentary on a TV race (BTCC, GT, Formula 3 etc), a hotlap (perhaps an old F1 qualifying lap, probably the easiest one to find) and also some narrations such as a qualifying or practice report.

So, you can see that I am asking a lot and I would really like to work in-depth with some members of GTPlanet in order to source, edit and produce a showreel of commentary with a runtime of around 5 minutes.

Any help that could be offered I would really appreciate, so if you are a video editor, computer nut or just have experience in this sector, then please do feel free to put yourself forward. I would also like to use this as a learning curve, if I can gain some video editing experience and improve my skills further then it would be bad thing at all.

Thank you in advance.
 
With a little bit of time and dedication it isn't difficult to make a good looking video using cheap/free software. I used to make some reasonable stuff in my spare time, software will have changed since however there is a surprising amount of really good freeware out there that will easily do what you want.

Good luck, hope it goes well.
 
Is it possible to source a race that has already been edited and somehow remove the current commentary but not the race audio and then layer your own commentary over the top?
 
W3HS
Is it possible to source a race that has already been edited and somehow remove the current commentary but not the race audio and then layer your own commentary over the top?
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Thinking about that. You can use audacity to make karaoke versions of songs by removing the vocals. However the vocals need to be centre panned and it quite often isn't perfect. It may be worth giving it a go with the sound from a race if there is one he specifically wants to commentate on.
 
I'm thinking there must be some program out there that will let you manipulate sound levels and pull out vocals to replace them with your own.
 
W3HS
I'm thinking there must be some program out there that will let you manipulate sound levels and pull out vocals to replace them with your own.
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Audacity! I spent a lot of time researching it when I was making some song covers and unless you have professional software the results from audacity is best you are going to get. Additionally audacity is brilliant for other audio editing and is free.

 
W3HS
Problem solved, Tom.

The Infield will be expecting free tickets to race weekends once you're a famous TV commentator!
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Brilliant, thank you both for your help, it's very much appreciated.

Now all I need to do is source the clips, which will be easier said than done.
 
Mike Rotch
There must be heaps of stuff on youtube.
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As it turns out Mike, you were right and I've found out that editing smaller videos is far easier than the longer ones which is unsurprising. With that in mind, I managed to give some editing a go on a Pole Lap of Schumacher's in 2004, it's a tad out of sync and I do stumble in a few places, but feedback would very much be appreciated.

 
That's really professional sounding. Excellent job.

Can you do similar to that with a piece of live footage, as if you were commentating for real?

My only advice would be perhaps slow yourself down a little. I know there's a lot to be said in a short time but it seems as though you're speaking mega fast, almost like if one was nervous. Maybe chill it out a bit? I don't know, I'm not an expert or anything.

Good stuff though.
 
Thank you @W3HS, your feedback is very much appreciated. Speaking fast is a trait of mine that I'm trying to slow down as much as I can, I was a tad nervous which doesn't help.

I will more than likely re-record it once I've got some experience behind me and can commentate competently and professionally.

I will certainly look into doing something similar on a race piece with perhaps 'slower' vehicles, such as GP3 or F3 as that will allow me to build up and progress further I feel.
 
More commentary, slightly less professional sounding however due to being recorded in my bedroom as opposed to the radio's studio.

 
Only listened to your first clip in full, but if i just stumbled upon that on YouTube i'd have thought that your job was a commentator. Maybe a wee bit fast in places, but it's definitely not something i'd be capable of. :)
 
SkylineObsession
Only listened to your first clip in full, but if i just stumbled upon that on YouTube i'd have thought that your job was a commentator. Maybe a wee bit fast in places, but it's definitely not something i'd be capable of. :)
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It's definitely a tad too fast upon reflection, but it's certainly something to work on and improve in the future.
 

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