A Look Inside the Untethered Project File
Receive These Tutorials Directly in Your Inbox!
The Official Soundtrack of Untethered
TheScoreOfUntethered
The Important Auditory Landscape of Filmmaking
There is something very special that happens the experience of watching a film is exploring both new visual and sound landscapes. The combination of new music and visuals that match can create a powerful experience for the audience. When thinking of some of my favorite films, all of them had powerful musical scores to complement the amazing stories. You might not believe it, but I spent more money on music licensing than any other area of the film.
A conversation between me and a filmmaking buddy.
This is message I sent to my good friend Scott (Director behind BUILDER). His response is an adequate representation of how most filmmakers feel after enduring the painful process of sifting through hundreds of songs for a film. My journey of finding music was no different, and in this post I am going to share some of the different methods you can go for adding music to your film, and also share the much requested song list from Untethered.
“WHAT SONG IS THIS?!”
People asked me that after watching UNTETHERED far more often I expected them too. That makes me super excited, I really connect with music, and I am really stoked that there are people connecting with the music I chose to have in the film. Here is a full track list and links to purchase the songs!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDfEIhbFizIT9YOcI4dJiC2zBu7gVvap5
While reading this blog post I suggest clicking play on the playlist I created above sharing the songs from Untethered (the ones that are on youtube that is).
Official Soundtrack of Untethered
No Other Name - Ryan Taubert
00:10 - WaterFall Rope Swing Intro
Five Families - Ryan Taubert
1:53 - Park Slacklining
Place From Where I Fell - Instrumental - Elenowen
3:08 - Heading Up The Chief
Arrows Fly - Afterlife Parade
8:13 - The Art of Highlining
The Touch - Welshly Arms
11:53 - Rest Days at the Lake
Make A Little Money - Royal Deluxe
14:46 - The Line Gets Rigged
Halation - evolv
17:27 - Slacklining has Changed Me
Oh God, What We've Become - Instrumental - The Soldier Story
19:06 Wait He Does This Without a Harness
Silence
20:26 - First Free Solo Walk
I'm Gonna Do My Thing - Royal Deluxe
21:53 - I Just Started Doing My Thing
Silence
24:15 - First Free Solo Walk
Can't Stop The Avalanche -The Soldier Story
26.20 - World Record Celebration
Love in a Minor Key - Welshly Arms
28:21 - Credits
The Hours Of Frustration are Worth IT
Having a music supervisor is something that I dream of. The amount of time spent searching for songs is often far more than you expect. The above 11 tracks are just the final tracks in the film. I ended up testing and almost using over 35 different tracks.
You should definitely think twice before just taking and using someones music without asking. Even if it’s a project you are doing for free. Would you like it if someone did that with your footage?
There are several methods you can chose from for how you are going to add music to your film. I am going to take this moment to talk about copyright and fair use. If someone downloaded one of my videos from youtube, added their own music and then proceeded to re-uploaded it to their account, I would have a problem with that. I wouldn’t feel good that someone had done that, especially without asking. At the very least I want someone to at least ask about using the visuals I put in hard work to create. In the same mindset it seems rather obvious to me that If that’s how I feel, I cannot go and do the same to other artists even if it’s on personal not for profit videos. That is the position I have reached on this topic of music borrowing. In the past videos you can see I did not always follow this principle, however in my vlogs and other videos I have now made it a huge priority to only ever use music with permission. To my understanding there are several methods content creators like myself can utilize when trying to get music properly for their films.
- Hiring a Composer
This is not the route I chose, but this seems like the most ideal situation if you have a large music budget. Working directly with an artist to help bring a vision to life. Depending on the different workflows of artists you can often go back and forth on different ideas and then really hone in on a style and direction for the soundscape of the film. This route has massive benefits because it can allow the film as a whole to have a very holistic feel. I definitely want to use composers on future pieces, especially if they are in the sub 10 minute range.
- License Music from a Licensing Website
This is the method I ended up using for the film. There are several websites that exist to specifically hosts songs of artists and allow a license to be purchased. These websites can often be frustrating as it takes a while to find songs that aren’t already being used all over the internet. They also offer a great range of upgradeable licenses or different categories and prices for different types of uses.
- Fair Use Agreements with the Artist or Collaborators
If your film is a passion project it is totally okay to reach out to artists and ask about fair use. Some artists enjoy seeing their music getting used in work putting together by other people. At the same time, other artists definitely do not want you to do this, or will just put you through to their manager to arrange a license with their label. I did not do this route at all. I didnt want to endure the time consuming process of trying to email every single artist. They don’t always get back promplty and it can be very frustrating.
Getting a Real Band Feel
I really like the option of license sites like Music Bed. So often with some of other music licensing sites the songs can feel like they were made specifically for licensing purposes. They feel like they lack something special. As a musician myself, I really struggle with music that sounds like this in my films. Sometimes you can make these tracks work okay, but it starts to become really frustrating for me when the music seems to lack some sort of soul. That’s why I appreciate sites like Marmoset or Music Bed. They are sites that categorize from actual artists. A lot of these artists don’t just create music for licensing, they also release their own albums. I love that ‘real artist’ feel where songs have texture and life to them.
One of the issues that goes along with a licensing site is that you run the risk of the song having been in a piece that your viewer has already seen. That’s just part of the game. I tried my best to only use music I had personally not heard before. I don’t have ears and eyes in all corners of web video, but I did try to keep my ear open for these songs in videos that I had seen. There were two songs that I heard in other edits when I was already deep into the editing my film–I decided at that point that I was just going to have to be okay with it. There were a few other songs I found out were also part of OST’s for hollywood films. I had not seen the film before so I decided to just use it anyways.
Something that is really helpful with licensing sites is they allow you to download audio marked temp tracks. I downloaded, edited to and seriously considered over 35 tracks! Often I would think I found a great track to use, but then over time I would get sick of it on the 20th or 30th pass. At that point I would ditch the track and find something new. I was always downloading and trying new songs in the timeline for my film. I would do this and try to get a feel for how different songs effected the overall tone of a scene. This helped me get an idea and start to shape the musical arc of the film. I only wanted to use music I felt continued to grow on me as I went through the editing stages.
Getting Additional Scoring Help
While working on Untethered I had started to get to know a friend of my Chris Pulsifer. He does music composing for all sorts of projects. At the stage we started talking I already had music picked out for most of my different scenes, but I still had some issues I wanted to iron out. He helped me modify the ending of one of the songs in a way that I felt really added to the film. My typical song modifying is lengthening a bridge, or shortening the repetitions of a chorus, what Chris was able to do was create an added ending to one of the songs so it did not end as abruptly
I spent the most money on this film paying for the eleven different licenses I needed to use the songs in the film. At the end of the day I don’t regret it at all. I am really happy with the music in the film, and I am really happy that I did music licensing the proper way.
THE BEST CAMERA FOR ADVENTURE DOCUMENTARIES
THE DAY WHERE THE CAMERA DOESN’T MATTER
We are living in the most accessible age of film creation in all of time. You might say, “sure Levi, of course we are, technology is progressing as it always is.” But take a moment and reflect with me over what has changed in just the past decade of indie filmmaking. We went from having video cameras equipped with tiny censors that produced a very ‘digital home video look’—to large sensor cameras that enable a more ‘filmic’ aesthetic. All in the the span of six years or so.
I want to start off this post about cameras by saying, the cameras you shoot with don’t make you a better filmmaker.
That is the biggest take away. That is the only message I really care about in this gear heavy post. Those of us who tend to get into filmmaking have a huge interest in the technical side of the filmmaking process. That is most likely why you are even reading a post like this to begin with. Don’t get me wrong, I love cameras, I could talk cameras, codecs and bitrates for days. But when it comes down to it I have to acknowledge at the top of this post that the camera is not going to help you tell a better story. In my recent documentary project UNTETHEREDI got to shoot with a lot of different cameras to help make this project happen. I learned a lot about what you need and don't need to actually capture your stories in a visually pleasing way. I love good cinematography and I believe you can achieve this with a semi-minimal setup.
Sony A7s Rig up
The Best Mirrorless 4kAdventure Documentary Camera
If you were going to make any sort of adventure film tomorrow and need a camera, I would tell you to buy the Panasonic Gh4.Hands down this is the best value per buck in the game. Coming in at well under two thousand dollars new, this camera is a 4k workhorse. The Gh4 was one of the cameras I borrowed on this production and I put it to some serious use. It surprised me to be honest. The clarity, resolution and flexible dynamic range really made this a super functional camera for me. If I could have had my perfect situation, every camera used in the film would have been a Gh4. It is such a light and flexible kit.
Screenshot 2016-02-11 15.13.36
Screenshot 2016-02-11 15.14.35
Even if you have enough money to purchase a larger 'proper video camera,' like a c100 or fs5, I would still strongly recommend buying the GH4 and using your left over funds for other pieces of support gear, or lenses. If you have well over 10 Grand to spend on gear, that changes this advice slightly, but if you are like me and making your own self funded projects, I can't speak more highly of this powerful little camera.
That's my advice right off the top, and that's what I took away from a project that was shot with many different cameras. I am now going to dive into explaining all of the cameras used on my film, and the different things I learned throughout. If you have any questions drop down to the comments and let me know!
I Borrowed Every Single Camera.
When I started this project I decided I really only wanted to use my Canon 60d for timelapse photography. I knew it wasn't capable in video mode to do justice to some of the beautiful landscapes we would be shooting in. I didn't have enough money to buy a new camera at the time, so I looked for any ways possible to borrow cameras in my different stages of shooting. I shot for people for free in exchange to using their camera later. For this reason the project had over 12 cameras involved in the production, YIKES! That’s kind of what happens when you don’t have one specific camera of your own to shoot the entire film with. It definitely was not ideal having this many cameras, but with the help of my post wizard friend Ryan, we were able to get a consistent look and feel across the entire film. Lets look at the stats and then dive into the specifics of the cameras for this film.
The Exact Final Usage of Each Camera in UNTETHERED
CAMERA'S USED
Links to Prices
- Panasonic Gh4 - http://amzn.to/1JJxJrU
- Red Dragon - http://www.red.com/products/epic-dragon
- Phantom 2 - http://amzn.to/23yR5Gr
- GoPro HERO4 Black - http://amzn.to/1nS4V6x
- Sony A7s - http://amzn.to/1nS4Yis
- Inspire - http://amzn.to/1JJy11I
- GoPro Hero 3 - http://amzn.to/1SMKAvW
- Red Epic - http://l.left.ly/RED_EPICMX
- Canon 60d - http://amzn.to/1nS5b5w6D
- Canon C100 - http://amzn.to/1nS5f59
- Sony Fs7 - http://amzn.to/1JJykK0
- Sony 4k Handycam - http://amzn.to/1nS5gWI
- Sony Fs700 - http://amzn.to/1nS5lcT
The camera I had in my hands the most while shooting this film was the Panasonic GH4. This was the first time I had put one of these guys to use and I was really impressed. In combination with a Metabones Speedbooster I was able to use all of the Canon Lenses I already owned and I was getting results I was really excited about. This camera ended up making up 33% of what you see in the film, but the total amount of footage shot on location with it out of all the cameras was at least over 50%. What I loved most was the size and flexibility. It was light enough that I could climb with it comfortably almost anywhere.
Filming With the GH4
Screenshot 2016-02-11 17.57.25
This camera was also my biggest source of foley audio for the film. I had a Rode Video Mic mounted on it the entire time and I am super happy with the sounds I was getting out of it. If you hear a slackline sound in the film, it was most likely audio captured by the GH4. I also used it for some on location interviews. I never once touched the audio meters and just left it in the auto mode. This is risky, but I wasn’t in a head space to keep making sure my levels were correct. I didn’t want to turn them up and then forget to have them back down and miss a really excited cheering moment. It performed really well in this auto mode.
Pictured above is the Rode Video Mic
The windscreen I bought for it performed super well. I am really happy with the purchase. It was called the Movo WS160 and its available here on amazon for around twenty bucks. I purchased this mic mainly because it had the Lyre shock mount. This mount is far superior to the annoying elastic mount that the Rode mic's are famous for. At the time that I bought this mic the new Video Mic Pro with the Lyre mount had just been announced, and was not yet shipping. I still would have bought the previous generation because of the nearly 100$ savings in price. I also believe that it has better directional abilities because of the added length, but I could be off on that. I have yet to conduct a scientific test as I don't own the Video Mic Pro.
Red Epic with 70-200
The Interview Beast
Screenshot 2016-02-11 15.14.01
I shot all of the set up interviews in this film on the RED Dragon. I was able to use this camera because I was working for a production company who owned one called Transposition Films. I am really thankful to have had the RED to use for these situations. I shot in 6k with at least 8:1 RC so I could easily crop in later in my 4k timeline. That’s why you see the Dragon being the second most used camera in the film. I wish in hindsight I had done a multi cam interview, but for all of the interviews I was running as a one man crew and there was enough to look after as it was. I talk more bellow why I regretted hiking the RED into the forest for the shooting in the mountains.
LeviAllen_Flying_The Phantom 2
My Aerial Filming Setup
The third most used camera on the film is the GoPro Hero4 Black and that is because I shot a crap tonne of aerial footage with the Phantom 2 from Dji. I really wanted this film to immersive components. I wanted it to feel as though you were spending a weekend in the mountains with these guys, and when they are at the height of their experience, there is a visual component to match. It's the reason I tried to do on location interviews to an extent, and it's also the reason why there is so much aerial coverage in the film. I wanted to achieve this flying feel to match what it must be like to have control walking a highline. I also wanted to give an over the shoulder glance down at what these athletes are actually seeing.
The Phantom performed great for my needs. I needed to have something I could easily back pack into location, and get decent length flight times with. I ended up crashing a Phantom at one point in the shoot, but that's a story that deserves more than I have time to fit in this blog post.
Inspire_movi_RedEpic
The other aerial setup used in the film is the far superior Inspire One with the x3 camera. This quadcopter is more capable in literaly every way. This drone is owned by Zachary Moxley. He shot the gorgeous world record footage as well as several shots in the opening sequence.
Screenshot 2016-02-11 15.15.19
My Most Used Lenses
I most often had the Tokina 11-16mm on the GH4. Especially while shooting from the edge of the cliff. I used the canon 70-200mm with 1.4x for close ups, and my Tamron 17-50mm VC for other all other coverage. For interviews I used my trusty Rokinon 35mm f/1.4. My shooting partner RJ Bruni most often had the 24-70mm from Tamron on his A7s, which is essentially the full frame older brother of my 17-50mm.
ND Filters are A Must
In order to have a proper shutter speed and maintain a filmic look while filming outdoors, it's essential to get some sunglasses for your lenses. This is so so important to avoid that stuttery effect you see in so much footage. You might not think you can see the difference, but shoot two example shoots, one at 1/2000 and one at a proper 1/47th and you will see the difference.
UPDATE: I forgot to mention the ND Filter I used. I used the Tiffen 77mm Variable Nd
My favorite manual prime.
Shooting For the Look in Camera Without a Flat Picture Profile
I launched into production of this film without much time or space to do any testing of picture profiles. Testing before hand is always ideal. This way you can see how different profiles respond to light, color, and how they behave when attempting to grade. I was only able to get my hands on the GH4 the day before heading out on the first 5 days of shooting. For this reason I avoided using any super flat picture profiles or things of that nature. I shot entirely in Cine-D. It is a common practice to shoot your footage with a flat picture profile to help save as much available data from the image as possible. This is a great practice, and I use it often with cameras that I have experience with, and when using them in a slower paced controlled shooting environment. I did not use flat profiles however. I already find it quite risky trying to expose and focus properly when using flat profiles. Especially when you are out in the sun and have a glare on the monitor. So I made the decision right from the top to try my best to get a balanced image in camera. I still didn’t do an amazing job with exposure, but I wasn’t about to leave it up to a flat profile I didn’t have any experience with.
In Post Production We Definitely Had Our Work Cut Out For Us
Because of the whole 12 camera thing, the process of grading this film was an additional challenge. Thankfully I had partnered with Ryan Shcroeder who lended his services to the project. Frankly he did an amazing job. I am really happy with how the film came out as a whole and think it has a very consistent and polished looked. Many have commented on the stunning visuals in the film, and I know this was pulled off in part by Ryan's nifty grading skills. On a fun note, I spent one full day sitting beside Ryan while he was grading, telling him which camera was which in the film. At least I'm useful for something.
My Timelapse Rig
My Kessler Crane 2nd Shooter killin it with the timelapses.
The timelapse portion of the film is enough for a post entirely of its own. So that's exactly what I'm going to do, that is one of the upcoming posts in this series. For quick reference the rig I used was a Kessler Crane 2nd Shooter for motion control. The cameras I used were both a canon 60d, and a canon 6d.
The One Thing I would Have Changed While Shooting
If I could have changed one thing about production of Untethered it would have been shooting the entire film on just one or two cameras. I had access to a RED Epic MX to bring for the first section of shooting. Needless to say I was so stoked. My first project shot on RED, this is going to be so rad. However with brining the RED along into the mountains I bit off more than I could chew. There was frankly to much gear to properly manage and utilize fully. If I had enough batteries and RED Mags, I might have shot the entire doc on RED, but this wasnt the case. I had limited cards (2x 64gb) and it simply was not enough. I had even brought up my laptop to offload, but I ran into issues of my laptop battery draining.
As much as I love RED cameras, If I could have done things over I would have left the RED kit at home for this mountain shoot. We were running as a two man team and had a lot of filming to cover, the RED simply was too much camera for the job. In hind site I would have rather had two GH4 kits up there and had one timelapsing the whole time, or have one getting locked off side angles. I would have loved to shoot the whole project on RED if I had enough power and media but I didn't. Lesson learned. More isn't better.
The End Audience Cares About Story
I've learned more than ever that the end audience does not care about what camera the film was shot with. I think its obvious that pursuing the best form of our craft is important, but the craft should not intrude or trump the actual craft we claim to care about, storytelling. I had to make some tough choices in this film about including 1080p footage in a 4k project. I included the footage because I believe the content it ads is more important to the story than the 4k resolution. You know what, not a single person has mentioned that the 1080p footage stood out or distracted them. Not even other filmmakers. You will be able to find many a people on the internet that will tell you that I am wrong about this. But I've decided life's to short, and there's to many stories to tell to worry about those people.
I've decided the only metric I care truly about is stories told that resonate with people. Period. That's it. I am committed to tell stories with excellence using the tools that are available, but a camera will never be a reason for me to say no to a story.
All the gear on the ground
Why I am Giving My Debut Film Away For Free: [VIDEO]
This summer I embarked on one of the craziest adventures I have ever undertaken.
In the past months I have worked harder than ever before while investing thousands of my own money into a passion project. I had decided that I was not going to wait for permission to make the types of films I wanted to, I was just going to go for it.
I vlog twice a week and would love to have you along for the journey, you can subscribe here.
I am currently brainstorming some additional things I could put together for people to purchase if they want to, but I haven't reached any conclusions yet. I'll let you know what I come up with.
Written by: Levi Allen VanderKwaak
An Epic West Coast Sailing Adventure
Pursuing the Grizzlies
We had set off sailing up the beautiful Knight Inlet on the northern end of our trip. We were making our way up the inner coast of Vancouver Island and had already seen some amazing sites. However I got really excited when I heard we might make our way up to this beautiful place. To me Knight Inlet has remained a place of magical memories. A place that seems straight out of an adventure book.
It was in this exact spot two years ago that I had seen my first and only Grizzly bear. That memory has stood above most as something I won't be forgetting anytime soon. Being in the presence of a powerful creature in it's natural place of life, is a crazy experience.
We paddled in on dories from the Swift in Knight Inlet
On this trip however our first scouting mission was completely silent. Nothing. We heard word that ten sub adult grizzly bears had been seen that day alone, and yet in our two hours of paddling around we saw nothing.
Paddling back to the Swift
A Grizzly bear
I was overjoyed with excitement. After a night of songs on the boat we settled in for the night. The next morning there was a buzz aboard the ship as we got news there was a mom and her cub near by
Such a Powerful and Beautiful Creature
We silently moved the zodiac in as gently as we could. Everyone was almost holding there breath as we made it towards the shore. Our view was obstructed from these large posts in the water by the shore. These pillars that used to hold up a dock of some sort. Someone said they saw something move and we all strained our sleepy eyes a little more. Sure enough as we got in just a little closer there in plain site was a mother and her cub prowling the shore line. I thought to myself, this is why I love sailing, this is why I love adventure, it's all about moments like this.
The Pacific Swift Sail Boat
This is a Film I Made With No Budget, Entirely For Free
What excuses do you make when you put of creating projects you are passionate about? I know that I have tended to make a lot of excuses over the years. I don't have enough time, I don't have a nice enough camera, or maybe the content wont be good enough. Avoiding making things your passionate about seems all too convenient these days. It seems that a lot of people in the video industry have become so accustomed to saying,
"I can't afford to work on videos I want to. You know, gotta make money from those corporate clients, it's boring but it pays the bills."
I don't think you can afford to not focus on your passions. I have caught myself thinking in a similar fashion and I am convinced it doesn't have to be this way. We can still be making films about the things that we love, even if we claim to not have time to.
IMG_0449
If you are not making time for projects your are passionate about now, I don't think you will ever make time them. It all starts with today.
On this trip it wasn't even my responsibility to make a video. I was volunteering as a Watch Leader and helping run the sail training program aboard the vessel. Video was definitely a back seat priority. Yet even though it was back seat to my actual responsibilities I still took it seriously enough to make something I am proud of from the trip.
Being Okay With Less than Perfect
This was all made possible from being okay with less than perfect. Is this the quality of videos I want to be making? Not necessarily, for me I know I am capable of creating films of a much higher caliber, but I don't think that means I should pass up on the opportunity to make something when the story is there. Not everything can be a 100% film. One thing I am noticing is that people pay attention to consistency far more than they pay attention to announcements.
IMG_0295
It is my Goal to be a 'Go To' Outdoor Adventure Storyteller in British Columbia
I don;t want to be the go to adventure film guy because I want to be better than others. I definitely don't want to in order to win some type of social media race of stats and numbers. This is my goal because I want to be making films like this all the time. It's that simple.
I come alive when I make films about adventure.
I want to say no to making anything less than what I am passionate about. It is so hard to do this, but it means when I am selective in picking my projects, it creates the potential for each project to be the best thing I have created. That is the type of work I want to be making. Capturing and sharing stories that make me come alive.
Swift and Dusk
Right Now I am Covering My Bills So I Can Make Films that I Want to Make
Currently I am doing a lot of freelance editing. I am doing this so I can pay my bills and not be forced to take on clients or projects that are not a good fit for my company. I am growing Leftcoast Media House to be a specialized production house that tells adventure stories with excellence in the Vancouver and greater British Columbia area. I believe that you can make the tough choices to enable yourself in doing this as well. You can be making what you love if you are willing to sacrifice and fight for it.
Written by: Levi Allen VanderKwaak
Levi Allen
100 is an Amazing Number // A Discussion on Taking Steps Forward
Creating videos that have impact, growing your audience, and making work you are proud of is a challenging endeavor. Starting can be a challenge and following through can be even harder. It's easy to feel that you are the last to the game, that everyone else is too far ahead. You may be thinking that if only you had the chance to get an earlier start then you would be able to make your projects happen and get your work out there.
I want to challenge you that this is not the case. I heard a saying once that resonated with me: The best time to plant a tree was 25 years ago, the next best time is today. I want to challenge you that the best time to start creating your next project, the best time to start putting yourself out there, is now.
Every single person who creates started somewhere. They most likely started at zero. They started at square one. If that's where you feel you are, don't let it discourage you from starting, let it be motivation that you are in the best position to start.
Who do you look up to?
Who's work do you admire and wish one day you could be creating and having the impact that they are having. It can be so challenging to see which step to take next in order to get to where they are. That's because there is no single step one can take to get to where they are. They didn't take a single step, and neither will you.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of steps between beginning and becoming an established expert.
This is actually really good news. This means that we can make mistakes as we go and course correct along the way. We don't have to take one strategic massive step; the formula for progress is to take daily consistent steps, even when it is hard. My goal is to help ordinary people in their pursuit of extraordinary results. I love helping others grow and succeed. That is why today is such a big day for me.
Today is an Important Milestone
It's a big one for me. I have been working on building my email list since March earlier this year, and today I am stoked to share that the Leftcoast Collective has grown to 100 members.
"But Levi, my grandma has more instagram followers than that."
This is a huge deal because those that are apart of the Collective are real life people. They feel more like individual people than any other social network statistic. I don't care so much about numbers, I care about connecting with real people. You are a real person reading this, and 100 people like you have chosen to let me in their inbox. I do not take that lightly.
I will never have 100 members on the collective ever again. Even later today this number will push over 100 and I will have 101. In a way I feel like a parent who is mourning the inevitable reality that their child will one day grow older. I want to cherish the opportunity I have right now to help those who are already aware of my work. The goal for me is not bigger numbers, it is greater value given to more people.
It was January this year when I was sitting at my desk trying to figure out what I could possibly start writing about. The idea of building a website was a mountain before me that seemed unsurmountable and I couldn't think of where to even begin. You want to know how I started? I just took the first step. One step. For me that was registering a domain. Yet I couldn't stop there. There have been many steps in between then and now, yet I still feel as though I am just getting started. I want to take a moment and share some of my goals for how I want Leftcoast to continue to grow.
Where are Things Going?
The short story, create a lot more stuff.
1) Show Up More Often - This is the biggest one. Consistency is challenging and I want to make it a higher priority to be creating useful and helpful material every single week.
2) Create More Specific Tutorials - This is something that I feel I can be doing to create videos and posts that are far more helpful. Creating content that specifically teaches a certain skill.
3) Help those Who Want to Learn, and Share With Those Who Just Want to Follow the Story - This is something I have been wrestling with how to go about. There are some of you that are aspiring video creators that want to learn skills on how to create better videos. There are others that just want to follow the progress of some of my films, receive the Vlogs and hear behind the scenes stories of what I have been creating. I want to find a way to deliver the best I can to these two groups of people.
I am really excited for the next leg of this journey. I am seriously so grateful. This journey for me has been challenging, it's hard to create regularly. I want to encourage you in the pursuit of what you love. What is preventing you from starting? What next step do you need to take that you are over thinking? I believe in you, you can do this.
Written by: Levi Allen VanderKwaak
Levi Allen
Beneath Jamaican Skies // The Story and Film
All of my being felt incredibly peacefully still. The cool morning breeze was dancing around me and I was readily breathing the fresh air. I watched in amazement as colors began to slowly dance over the mountain side before me. Chills crept over my body as I was overwhelmed with the beauty I was beholding.
I felt as though I was watching a master painter work on his next canvas before me. This nagging feeling came that I shouldn't be here, it told me I was intruding on his beautiful work and he wouldn't want me to watch and enjoy. Yet a stronger and;gentler voice broke through and knowingly beckoned me to experience the present. He seemed to be saying, look here, enjoy what I making.
I like to call these experiences forever memories. Those precious moments of our human experience that you know won't ever be forgotten. Moments in time where every sensor in your body is taking in everything it can. In times like this it truly does feel like you are writing a good story with your life. You can feel so insignificant in a vast expanse and yet still feel a unique and overwhelming sense of value. It is as if something, someone, is calling you to take part in something bigger than yourself. It's this deep-rooted feeling you have a part to play.
This is why I love timelapsing. It has brought me to places and given me experiences that I hope to never forget. Once you get the timelapsing bug it begins to change the way you see and experience everyday life. You start looking for patterns and motion in the landscapes around you. It gives you an entirely new perspective to the moving world.
https://instagram.com/p/PAzCTOSLT-/
FILMMAKING HAS DRAWN ME TO SEE THE WORLD FOR ALL IT HAS TO OFFER, IT HAS PUSHED ME TO PURSUE EXPERIENCES I WOULDN'T HAVE NORMALLY PURSUED.
If that's sitting on a mountain through the night watching the stars move by, or chasing the last fading rays of a beautiful sunset. Timelapsing has added a dimension to my life of such rich depth and beauty. The moment I was describing previously was an iconic moment for me and my journey as an aspiring filmmaker. It is one of the few moments in my life where I have felt spoken to so deeply.
BENEATH JAMAICAN SKIES
A FILM BY LEVI ALLEN
You can view more of my films on Vimeo
https://instagram.com/p/Or7qx3SLVs/
BEHIND THE SCENES
This project came about through an opportunity I had to travel to Jamaica with some friends. I had just graduated from High School and I was really keen to make some projects with opportunities to practice and grow. I had previously shot my Beautiful British Columbia Film and I wanted to implement some of the things I had learned from this project. At this point I had gotten the timelapsing bug and literally timelapsed almost anything that would move.
I shot almost every sequence in this film in RAW stills so I could push the settings in post and do exposure ramping. I shot a lot of the sunset and sunrise timelapses using the Holy Grail method. Having these sequences in .CR2 was certainly very helpful. I also shot a ton of glidcam footage on this trip. There are a lot of shots that made it into the film, but literally about 10 times that amount that ended up getting cut.
HOW DID YOU GET SO GOOD AT GLIDECAM?
When people ask me how I got so good at operating a glidcam, I always point back to this trip. It was literally two straight weeks of constant glidcam shooting all day every single day. I would set up a timelapse and then use another canon T2i to shoot moving shots. I put in a lot of hours which helped slowly take my skills to the next level.
THE GEAR
The gear I used to shoot this piece is actually really simple
• Modified Flycam Nano ( I extended the middle column so it could hold more weight • Canon t2i (still an excellent very useable camera) • Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 VC (awesome run and gun lens) (one of my favourite lenses) • Rokinon 35mm f1.4 lens (one of my favourite lenses) • Borrowed sigma 10–20mm (I wouldn't recommend purchasing this) • Manfrotto Monopod (MVM500A) (absolute favourite tool for run and gun shooting)
For my intervalometer I used Magic Lantern.
THE SOFTWARE
I edited this film on my mid 2012 Mac Book Pro, it only has 8gb of memory, but the i7 intel chip handles things fairly well and is still my main editing machine.
- Premiere Pro
- Adobe After Affects
- Lightroom
- LrTimelapse
- Panolapse
https://instagram.com/p/O7kkX5yLQU/
WHAT WOULD I DO DIFFERENTLY IN THE FUTURE
I learned a lot on this project as you would expect when you spend so much time shooting and editing. I now know that when I create pieces like this I really need to be fighting to find a story that helps tie the whole piece together. This film for me was an amazing accomplishment of a visual display, yet there wasn't a driving story. There isn't a component that grabs someones attention and drives them to watch the entire thing. The only reason the average viewer would watch it all the way through, is if I managed to enthrall and entice them with the visuals. You need more of a grab than just something pretty. With this in mind I would have tried to capture the culture and the people. I would have tried to integrate a human element that viewers could relate to.
Another thing I learned on this project is that next time I am not going to shoot near as many GoPro timelapses. I have hundreds of gigs of .jpg timelapses all GoPro shot. None of them made the cut into the film.
Thanks so much for reading about one of my films. It is my goal to create more in-depth posts on my future projects, both in storytelling and in the technical production side. You can send me any questions or feedback through email directly by joining the Leftcoast Collective.
Download Free Guide of All My Favourite Tools!
I have made this guide available to all current and future subscribers of the Leftcoast Collective. If you would like to receive a copy of it directly join the Leftcoast Collective bellow. I will continue to send free great content every Thursday and you can unsubscribe at any time. [yks-mailchimp-list id="e34efe9754" submit_text="SEND ME THE FREE EBOOK!"]
Written by: Levi Allen VanderKwaak
The Best Thing You Can Do When Starting Out: Work for Someone Else
Three years ago I sent out over 50 emails in the span of two weeks trying to find opportunities for filmmaking. I got only a few replies, but that was all I needed. One month later I was on a flight across the country to film at a biking festival in Colorado. I only got paid for food and travel, but I wouldn't trade that experience for anything. For that week I got to shadow and work alongside a professional filmmaker. It was an awesome week because I learned so much.
Even though that was three years ago, I am once again choosing to work for someone else because I see it as the next best step forward. I have made this choice because for me I believe it’s the best one, even though it doesn’t have the best short term financial pay off. I am convinced this is going to be the wisest choice in the long run.
How Do I Make Better Videos Levi?
I get asked this question a lot. I often feel as though I don’t know all the answers, but one thing I know one thing for sure, working with other people helps you grow in immeasurable ways.
What are your goals? What stage of the game are you in? Are you struggling to find opportunities to get paid making what you love? How about trying to start your own production company? Are you having a hard time getting connected with others in the industry? You may have the skills to pull something off, yet you are struggling to have everything align to make it work. I am in some of these positions too, and that is why I am going to talk about five important reasons why working with others is a great idea.
What do you mean work for someone else?
What I mean is the large variety of ways you can find yourself working for, or with other people. This can be as an employee, as a friend, as an intern, or as a collaborator on a project.
My big push is that you need to find other people in your industry to learn from. You need to surround yourself with people that are better than you.
I am going to tell you why this should empower you to reach your goals and not make you feel insecure about your abilities.
Working with others is great because…
1. There Are Many Things the Internet Cannot Teach You
Yes, I am calling us out as the generation that has been taught by YouTube. I love learning from the internet, but there are many things the internet is missing. Hands on experience is a must for actually growing your skills. Working with others gives you an opportunity to learn directly from them and see first hand how they work. You have an opportunity to get real time feedback from those right around you. Having someone right there to meet you where you're at and guide your improvement is so crucial.
- That is myself on the left shooting with Josh Knepper from Transposition Films on the set of a music video for Trope
You also get the amazing opportunity to learn how to use equipment you don't have yet. This is huge for someone starting out. It's not about going fan girl over the equipment of your dreams, it's about actually getting experience with the tools of professionals. You can often get distracted with all the things you want to buy and not spend enough time making stuff. Working with others helps you make more stuff.
Freelancing and starting your own business does not exist in a vacuum. You need to interact and work with real people if you are going to make films. You cannot just relate on the internet. Extravert or Introvert, if you want to make it in an industry, you better start working on your interactions with real life people.
2. Other Perspectives Have Immense Value
Even if you feel that you know quite a bit about your field, there is so much you can learn from another person's perspective and process. I love how each individual has there own way of seeing and going about things. The way you experience and think about life might sometimes seem like the only way, and the best way. Working around others helps to show you that the perspectives that others can add are really valuable. Sometimes you might observe things that you disagree with; this is okay and it will help shape the way you operate on your values.
3. You Don’t Have to Be a Leech
Learning from experts in your field is one of the best ways to grow quickly at what you do. Yet how many times do you think so and so expert in you area gets the question,
“Hey can we meet for coffee? I would love to learn from you.”
I admit, I have done this often as well. However I now know there is a way more effective way to do this. Seek an opportunity to work with or under them on a project. They are not just going to ask for your help because they think you are special. You need to seek it out, make your face known to them, give them a reason to remember you, and then fight for an opportunity to work with them on a project.
At this point, who cares how much you are making. It is about the learning opportunity. When you are working with them, it creates a far better space for asking them questions about how they do what they do. It creates more of a give and take. You don’t have to be a leech.
4. You Can Develop Real Connections, Not Just a Network Tool
So many people are just trying to use others as a pawn in their game of winning success. When you work for and with someone else, it gives you the time to actually build a real relationship with them. It doesn’t have to be about using others for your gain. It can then be about growing together and enjoying community, something far more fulfilling than monetary success.
Working with people in real life helps create connections and not just a network. The other people in your industry do not have to be seen as competition.
You don’t have to despise those who do the same things as you. Why not work together and help each other along so you can both succeed? Having others around that you can lend a hand to, and who are willing to lend a hand to you when times get tough, are crucial to staying afloat while building your own business.
5. Getting to the Finish Line on Your Own is No Fun
Reaching your life goals on your own is no fun. Putting in all of that hard work, all of those long nights and weeks, pushing through all those struggles while seeking a victory, only to get to the finish line by yourself. It is far better to have people to celebrate with when you achieve things in your life. You don’t have to be a Lone Ranger. I sometimes think we prioritize monetary gains far above relationships with people. I think when we do this we are missing the point. Life is better when it is lived alongside others.
So There are Five Reasons, But You Need a Plan
Okay, maybe I have been able to convince you that working with others is a great idea, but here is the catch–you need to be smart about it.
This isn’t about jumping at the first opportunity that opens up. You really want to look for a good fit, hopefully with a leader in your industry. You need to have a plan. Everyone is at a different stage of growth: some are just learning how to hit record, while others can pull off full productions no sweat.
Be intentional about who you work with. Find great people that are actually good at doing their craft. Find people whose values line up with yours who you can build strong relationships with.
Don’t just work for anyone.
If you are working with others for a day, or for a few months, you should have a plan. How long are you going to work with them? When are you going to re-evaluate? Making a plan helps you utilize your time well. Be open and honest about your intentions, rather than vague and elusive. Tell others that you are hoping to learn and get to know people.
Get My New Free Guide!
You won't want to miss it, it is a packed full guide of my favourite computer tools, apps and plugins. Join the Leftcoast Collective and I will send it straight to you. I will also send free great content directly to you every Thursday, big things are coming that you don't want to miss. [yks-mailchimp-list id="e34efe9754" submit_text="SEND ME THE FREE EBOOK!"]
21 Things I've Learned
Twenty one things, Levi VanderKwaak has Learned
This past year has been one of my favourite years of life so far. I feel like I say that every year, but I just can’t stop being excited for all the things I have been learning and all the ways I have been growing this year. I turned 21 last week, and I thought it would be a great exercise to write down some of the most important things that I have learned so far in my life.
Year 21 of my life is the year for writing. I am going to be fighting to write every single day this year. What better way to start off this year than by writing a huge blog post about things I’ve learned. I don’t expect many of you to read the whole post, but I hope that as you scan certain lessons that I’ve learned will grab your attention.
Levi Allen VanderKwaak Has Learned 21 Things
1. Never Let School Interfere With Your Education
This has been my banner for life for the past 12 years. The phrase is a little reckless and has just the right amount of rebellion to make me love it. It was taught to me by my first mentor in life, Jeff, who instructed me, cared for me, and treated nine-year-old Levi like an individual.
School built around a system that rewards you for following the "map" well has never really been my thing. I never got a pat on my back for doing things the same ways as others, I never got applauded for mastering the formula. I dreaded School. Sitting in those concrete classrooms made me feel like I was a failure. This was only to be echoed through every report card I have ever received, which stated how I “wasn’t reaching my potential,” and how “Levi needs to focus more in class.”
I love learning.
Despite the crushing walls of school, I found energy and joy in the world outside. Most of all, I found a passion for learning. I’ve decided never to let school or the systems of life to interfere with my education. I am committed to being a life long learner. Despite struggling with the systems surrounding formal education, I am forever indebted to the teachers through the years that really took the time to invest in me as a person. I cannot thank these adults for the impact they have had in my life enough.
2. You Don’t Need Inspiration to Start
You know those times when you are having a hard time starting and you feel like watching one more video or browsing one more gallery on instagram is going to inspire you enough to keep going on your next big project? I have found that searching for inspiration when I should be starting actually makes it harder for me to start. I end up feeling like my ideas are no good and my project will never work out.
There comes a time when you need to stop the intake of so called inspiration and simply start creating from what is already inside of yourself. I have been learning to use my own perspective, the self-generated ideas that I bring to the table, and letting that be enough.
3. Find Your Confidence in a Willingness to Find Out
I used to think that confidence was best found by becoming competent in everything. With this mindset, my failures would lead to a lack of self-confidence. Instead of embracing my weaknesses, I believed that I needed to get better at everything. I used to find my confidence in skills, talents and the ability to be good at things. I have learned now that confidence is far more healthy and successful in the long run when it is rooted in a ‘willingness to find out.’ You don’t have to know everything, but if you are committed to 'finding out' solutions when you come upon problems, if you you willing to fix things that break, now that is a confidence that can be built upon and carried with you.
4. You Can Expand the Boundaries of Your Story
There are things about myself that I used to think were set in stone that are actually far more malleable than I thought. I used to say, “Nah, I can’t get up early every morning, I’m a night owl.” I decided that staying up late was my story and I wasn’t willing to do the hard work to change that pattern. Once I realized that I was self-defining things in my life that I was actually able to change, I began to re-write parts of my story. As a result, I have been able to change certain components of myself that I thought were just part of who I am. This applies to more than just the time I go to bed. I used to think I was a terrible listener and that would never get better, yet with hard work my listening skills have been improving drastically. There are some things like your height that you have no control over and maybe some things about yourself that you are never meant to change, but I have found that you can grow a lot more than I ever would have thought when you stop enforcing boundaries on your story.
5. You Become Who You are Around
I am so independent and headstrong that I used to think that other people didn’t influence me at all. To my surprise, I have found that I slowly become like the people I surround myself with. There are people with negative mindsets and those with positive mindsets that I can be influenced by, and I have learned that this is actually a choice that I get to make.
Who do you spend your time with? You will become like them before long. I have realized now that life is far too short to spend all your time with people that you don’t want to be like. Your mindset and outlook on life is influenced far greater by those you spend time with than you might first think. Filling your life with people that have good values and a positive outlook on life is so important. People that will build you up instead of tearing you down.
6. I Hate Debt and It Took Getting It to Know That
I don’t have much debt, honestly. But I hate it.
In high school I invested almost all of my money into camera equipment and computers because I was planning on starting a business in the film industry. That’s not a big problem. The problem is that instead of starting a business right away, I ended up studying for a year and I chose to borrow money from the government to make it happen. It was so easy. Just like that I signed up. Now three years after borrowing that money, I resent it. I wish I hadn’t. I wish I had sold whatever it took to have the money or found another way to make it work.
Debt is a choice.
No one is forcing you to take on debt that you don’t want. Yet once you do it's like being a slave. I don’t want to be owned by anything except that which is worth being owned by. I have decided in my life that being owned by a bank is just one of those things that is not worth it. For me, that means no flashy cars off the lot, no new camera equipment on a credit card, not even more education at this point. I don’t think the price of dept is worth it. The burden it has placed on my mind is like a dark cloud looming over every financial decision I make: “But what about your debt?” I want to be debt free, and age 21 is the year it’s going to happen.
7. Have a Wide Range of Influences
Anyone will tell you getting all of your advice from one source is a bad idea. I have learned that getting all your inspiration from one area is bad as well. It’s not good to only consume media content from your industry and your field. Who would have known that one of the biggest influencers on my approach to business and creativity would be a Hand Letterer! What even is a hand letterer? Earlier this year, I certainly did not know.
Yet getting inspiration from this source and many others has helped me build a reservoir of good advice and inspiration that will continue to fuel me for years to come. Try tap into many different fields and industries, especially if you are a content creator. If you only listen to one or two sources, before long all of your work will be but a clone and that is certainly something you want to avoid.
8. If the Door is Closed, Check the Window
Sometimes a door closes on an opportunity that you really wanted to pursue. I have learned that sometimes we shouldn’t give up on a good opportunity as fast as we do. Sure the door is closed, but did you check for a window?
It does us no use in life if we give up every time the path gets tough. Too often, as soon as obstacles are in our way we think it must not have been meant to happen. If there is something I am pursuing and it feels like a door has closed, I have decided to always check to see if there is another way. Might there be an open window?
9. Always Assume the Best
Sometimes people in life are malicious, they are mean, they have no care for others. I have found that these people are definitely the minority. It does us much better to assume the best from others that we meet and interact with. It shows them respect and can even catch them off guard. It can be so stressful to think that everyone who says or does something that rubs us the wrong way is just out to hurt us. So often that is not their intent at all. We can be free of so much negativity if we assume the best from those we meet in life. Sure, we will be wrong at times, but we will experience something far more satisfying the other 90% of the time.
10. Confrontation vs. Clarification
There is no hiding that I am a confrontational person. Anyone who knows me is well aware that I can engage in swift discourse on almost any matter. I am actively trying to move away from this type of mindset and interactions with those in my life.
Sometimes it feels so justified to be confrontational with people. It feels so right. Yet this is rarely the case, and it is almost always followed by regret later on.
I have been learning that seeking clarification with those around you is always the better way to solve tension. I need to continue to make this a priority, but thankfully I have come a long way within the past 4 years.
11. Actively Fight a Scarcity Mindset
It’s so easy to feel cornered, so easy to feel you have to make compromises in order to survive. The pressure to take on that client who isn’t going to pay well, but you feel you should anyways because you need the money. The feeling that you need to stay stuck in the day job you hate because building your own business is too risky. These are all things that go along with the scarcity mindset. This is something that I have been actively fighting for the past 8 months.
That day when risk is gone is never going to come.
There will never be that day when the fears and pressures of life are no longer present. Security is a mirage. It doesn’t exist. I need to stop waiting for security and the perfect situation. I need to stop compromising on my values because I feel I have to in order to survive. If I want to be free of the scarcity mindset one day, I have learned that that day needs to start now.
12. Professionals Take Responsibility
I am a growing professional. One huge area that I have been growing in is acknowledging that if I want to call myself a professional, I need to take the responsibility that goes along with it. There is no such thing as these terrible clients we all talk about. There are only terrible professionals that take on these clients. If they are a terrible client you never should have taken them on in the first place. You should have asked the right questions before hand to find out that this was not going to be a good fit. If a project goes south and has a bitter end, guess what, that’s my responsibility. What could I have done to prevent this? If I want to wear the title of 'professional' I need to be actively taking responsibility over every aspect of my projects. The blame game doesn’t work when you are professional.
13. People See What You Do, Not Your Intentions
Good intentions are great but they only go so far. Most people judge who you are by they way you act and the things you do. I do this all the time without even deciding to do it. I look at someone and I assess who they are based on what I perceive them doing. Yet how often do I get caught up in my good intentions without actually following through with my actions? I need to remember that good intentions are not enough. They need to be manifested by good actions.
14. What You Do Shows What You Love
What do you love most in your life? Are you convinced that if someone took a detailed account of your actions they would be able to recognize what you say you loved? I am not convinced the results would be what I want for myself. There are far too many things that I say I love, and yet my actions don’t reflect it.
The sad thing is that my actions reveal far more about what I actually love than I care to admit. This has been an amazing litmus test in my life.
Levi, tell me how you spend your time and I will tell you what you love. This is scary, and it reminds me that everyday I need to be spending time on things that I actually care about.
I don’t love instagram, I don’t love vimeo, and yet if you looked at how I spend my time day to day it would certainly be hard to tell.
15. Operating on Values is Far More Important
You are the only person who is going to make decisions on your values. I realized that I am the only person responsible in my own life to make sure that my decisions reflect my core values. Do I want to be a man of integrity and humility? How important is that to me? If I claim these characteristics are important then I actually need to be making the hard decisions that reflect this. When you compromise once for a quick gain, you are putting far more at stake than just one situation. I have realized that now more than ever I need to be aware of what my values are and hold them as the highest priority in my decision making.
16. Taking the Path Less Chosen is Harder for A Reason
It’s easy to complain when your are trying hard to find your own path through life. It is easy to flake out when you are trying to take the path less chosen. It is easy to feel down when you are trying to fight a scarcity mindset and think separate to the culture that surrounds you. Yet sometimes I forget that it’s that way for a reason. Acting different than the majority is harder because it is different. If it wasn’t harder everyone else would be doing it. The reward on your investment through making your own path can be far greater, but that does not mean the path to getting there is going to be easier.
17. People Put You in a Box
I used to hate the idea of people putting me in a box. I wanted to be the drummer, filmmaker, photographer, geek, mountain biker, surfer, snowboarding person. But people don’t know what to do with you when they see all these things about you. They want to simplify you to one component and remember you based off that. I used to think of this as a bad thing. I was troubled by the idea of being put into a box and was convinced that I would be an exception.
By wanting to be known for everything, people ended up not knowing me for anything.
Now this is mostly the case with interactions on the internet, but it also happens often with the people you meet and work with in real life. You don’t have to be the mysterious elusive person. When you have the courage to find your niche and actually become an expert in one specific area, it benefits your professional career immensely.
18. The Days are Long but the Years are Short
I may not be old and wise, but I am old enough to see in my own life that the days have been long and the years have been short. It gives me perspective in my young years that I need to make the most out of the present. I am a dreamer and a visionary. I spend so much of my day thinking about the future and things that are yet to come. I need to have a healthier balance on this and fight to live in the present and not let the long days slip by too fast. There are only so many opportunities you can have in one life. I am sometimes afraid that I might miss them if I live too much in the future.
19. People Don't Spend Much Time Thinking About You
I try not to spend much time thinking about the opinions of others. Sometimes when I do, it can feel like others think about my actions and decisions far more than they actually do. Sometimes I can’t help but wonder what other people feel about the choices I make in my life. The truth is, though, those around you, even those that are really really close to you, think about you a lot less than it ever seems. How often do you spend pondering the daily lives of those around you?
Now this isn’t something that is supposed to be upsetting, rather it is just a fact of life. You are the only person who lives 100% of your life. I have realized this and I want to continue to live more freely from the opinions of others.
20. I Need to Write Everyday to Reach My Biggest Goals
This is one of the hardest things for me to come to amends with. I don’t feel like a writer, and I certainly never aspired to be one. When an older and wiser filmmaker told me that if I wanted to make it in the film industry I needed to start writing, I doubted his advice but started to think more seriously about the importance of writing.
I finally decided it was worth it because I realized that writing is a stepping stone for literally every project I care about. When I think about the beginning process of anything that I want to create I realize that it all starts with this seemingly insignificant step: written communication.
Capturing your next brilliant ideas. Sharing your plans with others. Selling your skills to clients. All of these things hinge heavily on the skill of writing. I knew my writing wasn’t great and that made me not want to start, yet I know one of the only ways I can get better is if I start writing every day. That's why my commitment for 2015 is to write everyday. I still won't be calling myself a writer, but I am committed to write because I know it will take a lot of writing to reach my biggest goals.
21. I Can’t Keep Waiting for Tomorrow
Showing up and working hard, enjoying life to the full, starts today. I tend to get into a cycle of procrastination when I am faced with a challenges. I assume that the day that follows will be a better day to tackle some of the harder things in life. I do this with so many things including my laundry, my relationships, and my spiritual growth. I put things off far more often than I ought to.
I need to realize everyday that today, the present, is the best day to start showing up. You can wait forever but tomorrow isn’t going to come any faster.
Thanks for checking out 21 things that I’ve learned! This year is going to be the biggest yet. I am so excited for what’s in store and I can’t wait to keep sharing it with you as the months go on. Stoked for the journey.
Get My New Free Guide!
Get a Free Ebook
You won't want to miss it, it is a packed full guide of my favourite computer tools, apps and plugins. Join the Leftcoast Collective and I will send it straight to you. I will also send free great content directly to you every Thursday, big things are coming that you don't want to miss. [yks-mailchimp-list id="e34efe9754" submit_text="SEND ME THE FREE EBOOK!"]
Now is the Time to Share Everything You Know
I am going to be completely honest with you. I have been planning on starting a blog for over 5 years and always put it off. Finally after delaying it for the longest time, I have put in the couple hours to start one, and I am going to tell you why I think now is the best time for you to start one too.
The idea sparked when I first fell in love with filmmaking and the thriving online community that surrounded it. I wanted to be apart of this community and share my voice.
I dove head first into something I loved
I knew that I had lots to learn before I even began trying to share things, let alone trying to teach others. After buying my first camera and building a hackintosh computer, I spent every spare second I had researching filmmaking. Those were the days of countless test videos as I strove endlessly to achieve a cinematic look from my Canon DSLR.
The passion to share grew, but my desire and confidence was slowly choked out
The more and more I thought about sharing my voice, the more and more I asked myself “why is my voice worth sharing?” I looked out into the sea of the internet and saw so many other people with far greater talent than myself already contributing and writing great content. I had a fear that people wouldn’t care, that no one would respect anything I created.
I regret not sharing when I first started
Back in those beginning beginning days (i still very much feel like a beginner), I regret not having shared my journey. There were many things I was learning that would have been helpful for others, but unfortunately I never did the work to get it out there.
I had a mindset of, ‘one day when I make it I will be able to share.’
I didn’t know then that every persons perspective was valuable to others. I certainly didn’t feel as though the perspective I had could be of any benefit to others. I still don’t feel that, but I am beginning to fight those fears and start sharing always.
The truth is, there will always be people who can learn from you.
When I began thinking of sharing, I only thought about those who had ‘already made it’ in the industry. Those who already made great content. I figured they would never want to read my stuff, yet I forgot to account for the growing masses of others like myself who were hungry for knowledge about just starting out. I could have been helping countless people grow and pursue their passion over the past years. I've missed a great opportunity, yet its not to late.
I still don’t feel ready to share, but I am going to anyways.
though I have spent the last 5 years learning everything I can, I still don’t feel ready to start. I am going to fight this fear, I have decided to start sharing now. Even though I know just a year from now I will have grown so much more, that is totally okay. I realized I am okay with being wrong, I am okay with not being the best, and I have finally decided I don’t want to let those things get in the way of helping others.
I have believed for so long that there is so much value in the journey.
It’s time for my attitude of sharing with others to reflect this. I don’t want to just make it one day and then start writing. I know deep down that it wont be relatable, it will be hard to inspire others that they can do the same. People learn from watching others struggle and overcome with strength and courage.
I have seen this clearly through examples like Dave Dugdale over at learningdslrvideo.com. This guy is a self declared learner and sharer, I love that about him.
He knows that he is not the top expert in his field, but he is committed to helping others grow from what he is learning all the same. Through the archive of his blog you can see this extensively mapped out journey in his pursuit of growing as a filmmaker. He didn’t get to where he is over night and his blog is a testament to this. It is an inspiration to others by simply existing.
Now is the time to share everything you know.
What have you been waiting too long to start sharing? I am sure for you as well there are things you are incredibly passionate about. What are the things that all your close friends know you for and ask questions about? You don’t deny them and tell them to come back in 5 years when you are better, no, you share with them from where you are at. I want to encourage you to start doing the same with others on the internet. Sure it can be scary, people can be mean, but I know it will be worth it.
Put in the couple hours of work to get a blog running, start something simple and just start creating.