Top Posts of 2010

This was a year of major changes that I felt the previous several years had been building towards. In 2010 my work situation improved, I moved, I traveled, and things were generally on the up and up. In terms of this blog, traffic also surged ahead as the variety on my site became more apparent as I felt I suddenly had a lot more to share. This year really marked the second chapter in the evolution of my site. Here's what was most popular on Editing Luke in 2010:

1. Salton Sea: North Shore Yacht Club
Originally posted July 10, 2010
After a road trip to California in 2009 and a repeat of that trip coming up in September '10, this post seemed  to strike a chord with others interested in the abandoned landscape surrounding the Salton Sea. I was incredibly fascinated with it myself, and numerous posts on the location followed.  

2. Universal Studios Singapore
Originally posted May 6, 2010
Apparently theme parks are pretty popular, because after a trip to Singapore in April 2010 the video I posted of the newly opened Universal Studios Singapore seemed to get a lot of attention. Creating the video proved to be just as much fun as going to the park.

3. Indio Outio: The Complete Project
Originally posted April 1, 2010
This was probably my most ambitious creative project of the year. Using all of the footage from my 2009 road trip to California, I created a series of posts with images and video clips that allowed visitors to take the road trip with me by clicking forward to the next location after each post. From the top of the mountains to the ocean, this was a cool way to share that experience.

4. 1999 Jaguar XJ8 Photo Collage
Originally posted October 9, 2010
In June 2010 I purchased my Jaguar XJ8 and I was buzzing about it for months afterwards. This simple post was nothing more than a collage of some of the images I shot right after buying the car, and it seemed to take off with other car enthusiasts.

Family Christmas 2010

Our annual family gathering on Christmas day has become one of the last remaining traditions that our extended family continues to honor each year.  As our group has grown it's become more difficult to orchestrate these large gatherings, but I think we'd all agree that without the holiday we might go the entire year without ever seeing everyone. Growing up you start to realize just how few and far between moments like this really are.

Last Christmas I got a Flip Cam and had asked for it specifically because I wanted an easier way to capture home videos.  In between dinner, energetic games of Pictionary, and one too many glasses of wine I managed to capture a nice sampling of our family gathering from that December 25, 2010.  With my Flip Cam at the ready, I guess we'll see what pans out this year.    

One More Mile

It was a year ago that my friend Dave and I kicked off our second road trip to California (two years since the first) and I couldn't help but get a bit nostalgic once facebook reminded me what I had been posting last September.  

I'm not sure when the opportunity to do something like this again will come up, but I know it's something I should push myself to do as often as possible with as many people as I can.  It seems that traveling like this not only allows me to see and do a lot of memorable things, but it also makes the conversations seem to resonate because you remember where you were when you had them.  

The entire time you're in a bit of a haze.  You can't wait to see what happens next or where you'll be.  And even though you're tired and maybe even a bit lost, in that frame of mind you're keen to push on that one more mile simply because you feel like you're always close to something new, something different, something you know you'll remember.  It's like nothing else. 
 

Side Streets and a Temple

With the smell of rain fresh in the air, the streets of Singapore were relaxed on this late Friday afternoon in April 2010.  We had just made our way from the coast, and after drying off at the hotel we headed out to explore the Hindu temple that we could see peaking out above the rooftops from our hotel.

The side streets were an eclectic mix of modern and traditional influences.  It wasn't a polished presentation like so many of the other places we had been, but simply a slice of daily life in Singapore.  I felt fascinated by the history that surrounded us.  Pictures in an antique store window showed what a transformation the country had gone through in just a matter of decades.
 

Going purely on the rough idea we had in our head of where the temple was located, we managed to find it relatively easily.  I'm not sure we even thought about what we were going to do there exactly, it was more just a plan to see it up close.

We approached the doors and saw a sign asking visitors to remove their shoes and come in.  What followed were quiet moments of exploration and reflection about a trip that had exceeded our expectations.  Stephanie and I didn't say much, not there weren't things to say, but I'd like to think that we were both content to let the location speak for itself.  Sometimes all you really need is an excuse to get lost.

April 16, 2010

It had clouded over, but both Stephanie and I agreed that we had to make the most of our final day in Singapore.  From our hotel we could see the water, and with our afternoon free we decided to find our way to the shore.  We'd spent a week on this island in Southeast Asia, and now we just wanted to put our feet in the South China Sea.

Miles of lush greenery hugged the coastline and we soon found ourselves walking amongst fresh flowers and tall, wiry trees.  You could feel the cool breeze rolling in as the sky foreshadowed the coming rain, but the shifting weather seemed to only enhance the walk we were on.  In some ways it was just another park, and yet that day I was keen to believe that I'd never seen anything quite like it.        

We reached the edge of the beach and walked to the waters edge.  You could see that there was a small shelf to stand on as the waves rolled in, but this was no place to swim.  Through the water you could see how the beach sloped dramatically into the ocean and disappeared into blackness.  Hundreds of cargo ships lined the horizon, and in some ways it was a bit foreboding. In retrospect it's probably what makes the moment standout in my head.

Like a couple of kids testing the temperature of a swimming pool, we cautiously took a few steps.  Then a few more.  My sandals sunk down in the soft sand and in an instant the waves were crashing and swirling around my feet.   

Taking deliberate steps and curling my toes in the cold water, it was one of the few times on the entire trip that I felt completely in the moment. So this is what it feels like to stand in the South China Sea.

A bit further down the beach we spotted a yellow lighthouse tower with a spiral staircase leading up to a round platform.  It was one of the few places in Singapore that we'd actually come across graffiti of any kind (the country is notoriously well groomed).  We browsed the English and Asian characters scrawled and carved haphazardly on the bright yellow facade, and it rang true that no matter where you are in the world, some insults are clearly favorites for everyone.  

That was when it began to rain.

 

We left the tower and headed for a nearby concrete pier to get a better vantage of the beach we had just walked.  The sprinkling rain soon became heavy drops, and as we approached the empty pier a roar of thunder announced the arrival of showers.

There was no avoiding the onslaught, and yet it didn't seem to matter.  Another epic crack of thunder boomed overhead and then echoed off of the open water around us.  As we noticed others scrambling from the beach, Stephanie and I quickly became soaked from head to toe, lost in our own make-shift adventure.  

Here we were in Singapore, on a business trip no less, and yet we'd been able to take time to just appreciate where we were - to let loose, to experience a wealth of new things, and to cap it off with something as simple and gratifying as this. The doorman at our hotel cracked a big smile upon our return, with no explanation about the weather required.  We still apologized for dripping.  

It was a rainy afternoon on the coast of Singapore.  April 16, 2010.

Waterworld Universal Studios Singapore Edit

Realizing that I hadn't edited anything just for the joy of it lately, I decided to revisit some of the footage that I shot at Universal Studios Singapore last year.  The Waterworld show in particular, offered a lot of variety for a fast paced and energetic edit.
  

The travel footage I shoot in general is always a great editing standby.  After a few months, or a full year in this case, I've forgotten most of what I shot which gives me a fresh outlook to try something new.  There's nothing that complicated about this edit, but I'm sure it's a lot more entertaining to watch than any of the other Waterworld videos that are just straightforward home videos.  If YouTube has proven anything, it's that it's all about the highlights.

Editing Luke in 2010

Another 12 months down and it looks like 2010 is going to be the year to beat!  There was so much to be thankful for in 2010 that it puts my optimism of previous years into an entirely different perspective - who knew you could pack this much awesome into a single year?

Not that I want to seem overtly in-your-face about my positivity, but I feel I'm due as this year I finally saw the tides change and the rewards flood in since film school wrapped in 2008.  If that last half of 2008 was about just recovering from student life, and 2009 was about stabalizing myself, than 2010 was clearly about launching myself forward - and what a launch it's been so far!

Here are a few of the key moments that made my 2010 a year to remember:

January 3, 2010 - I kicked off the year by launching a brand new portfolio site that categorized and showcased my entire video history.  The site, Editing Luke: The Portfolio was essentially a business card for those who wanted to know about me and my work.  Here was the first look.

January 2010 - I officially became the Web Media Content Creator for Weddingstar Inc. and cemented my role as in-house photographer and videographer for all of the original media content we produce.

February 11, 2010 - My combined online video views surpassed 500,000.

March 2010 - Six months after returning from a cross-country road trip to California, I finally completed and began debuting all of the edits that I'd created for a personal travel project titled, Indio Outio.  You can see the first edit of the series below.

March 9, 2010 - After making the semi-finals in 2009 with my short The Geology Student, voting began in the Yobi.tv Filmmaking Contest with me in the Top 40.  The campaigning began.

April 9, 2010 - In what was one of the most surprising moments of the year, I had been asked in February if I was interested in going on a business trip to act as videographer.  The destination: Singapore!  Here's what I wrote on the day we left.

May 11, 2010 - Throughout the remainder of April I debuted some of the personal footage I shot in Singapore.  Here was the complete post of edits that went live when all was said and done. 

May 30, 2010 - Weeks and weeks of voting and eliminations in the Yobi.tv Filmmaking Contest came to a conclusion when I took 2nd place, beating out 38 other filmmakers after making it to the final round.  In addition to a nice cash prize, the contest resulted in over 170,000 video views for my short the Geology Student. 

May 31, 2010 - The Editing Luke blog celebrated 3 years.

June 10, 2010 - After 10 years of having my license, and 10 years of driving the infamous Buick (5 years of which I owned her) I finally had the means to upgrade.  Say it with me, Jaaaaguar. Dream come true! Here was my Requiem for a Buick.

July 1, 2010 - To continue with the upgrades I traded a basement (one of the final shackles of my student life) for a spacious downtown apartment.  This was the move. 

July 14, 2010 - I was contacted by a publishing company in Singapore who had seen the posts I'd written accompanying my Singapore edits.  They wanted to use one of my posts for their English textbooks. Read more about it here.

July 27, 2010 - In what was one of my favorite video shoots of the year, I went to Calgary to film behind-the-scenes of a Weddingstar magazine photo shoot.  The edits debuted with the launch of the new magazine in December.

August 20, 2010 - One of the biggest milestones of my year, the combined views of my online videos finally surpassed the once seemingly unattainable 1,000,000.

September 2, 2010 - Inspired by the 2009 trip, my friend Dave and I decided to do another California road trip.  This time we'd extend the journey to 12 days and take an alternate route home, heading up the Pacific Coast Highway to San Francisco.  Here's what I wrote before leaving.  


October 2, 2010 - After our whirlwind trip of the Western USA had wrapped I took the thousands of photographs that I'd shot and edited them down into a glossy bound photo book. You can view the entire book online for free. 

From Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, the Hoover Dam, Palm Springs, Joshua Tree, Hollywood, Long Beach, the Salton Sea, Los Angeles, the Pacific Coast Highway, San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge, Reno and through the Rocky Mountains - there was a lot to see and share.  Photo collections have continued to pop up on Editing Luke throughout these last months of 2010.  You can see samples by viewing the Road Trip 2010 tag. 

October 21, 2010 - With a summer of contract edits complete with Stream Media, we all received some good news.

November 13, 2010 - My friend Tyler visited for the weekend and we retraced our steps from We Two Kings, the holiday short we shot in 2009.

November 18, 2010 - I was contacted by the University of Regina regarding some photo collages I had created and posted on YouTube.  They featured them on the brand new U of R blog. This was followed up several weeks later with a feature of We Two Kings in December.

November 23, 2010 - The Editing Luke blog reached 100,000 views.  Since May 31, 2007 this blog had been viewed in 150 countries in over 6700 cities around the world.

December 16, 2010 - With my loft finally settled and completely furnished, I went all out to deck the halls for the holidays.

December 20, 2010 - This marked the 3rd time in 2010 that one of my shorts made it into the preliminary voting rounds of the Yobi.tv Film Contest, despite the fact that I hadn't promoted any new projects there since my 2nd place win.

December 22, 2010 - Without a new Christmas edit this year, I opted to remix a time lapse I made while in the dorms at film school - Dorm Xmas Tree Remix.

December 31, 2010 - My year will close out with a final automatic payment that will see my first student loan from film school completely repaid.  I still have some work to do in paying down the remaining student debt, but the symbolism of ending the year this way can't go unnoticed.  I'll be starting 2011 with my best foot forward.

Like I said, 2010 is going to be the year to beat.

Dorm Xmas Tree Remix

Was a remix edit entirely necessary? No.  Then again, the initial edit wasn't that elaborate itself.  Since I've been busy editing for everyone else but myself this year, I thought it would be fun to present something kind of new before Christmas.

I've remixed my popular Dorm Xmas Tree time lapse video from 2006 for a bit of fun.  What is Christmas good for if not a bit of nostalgia, right? The new mix livens things up a bit and was fun to put together just to remind myself what my Christmas' were like when they were divided between home and film school.  With those days behind me now, I'm really glad I created little edits like this in the first place for quick flashbacks whenever I want.  Enjoy the remix. 

Salton Sea North Shore Video

From old photos and promotional clips, to vintage postcards and stories about the location, the Salton Sea has fascinated me since first visiting in the summer of 2009.  At the time the renovations to the North Shore Yacht Club had just begun, but the old abandoned structure was still very much the same as it had been for over a decade.  This short video recaps my first visit to the infamous Salton Sea in southern California. 

Weddingstar Behind the Scenes: Series (2010)

Over the last couple of weeks the six behind the scenes videos that I shot and edited this summer for one of Weddingstar's magazine photo shoots have been going live on our YouTube channel and blog. It's exciting to be at a point where I can reflect on a year of videos that I've produced for the company and consider where this experience might take me next.

The short series of videos gives a sneak peek at some of the brand new 2011 product line and is meant to give customers a glimpse of how much work goes into creating our magazine (which can be found on newstands around the world by the way, *wink).

It's been a lot of fun creating all these different types of edits so far and the best part is that I can see our videos becoming bolder, even more ambitious, and more elaborate as we push forward. It's been such a great creative challenge and learning experience to work in the midst of so many big and ambitious ideas and I can't wait to see what the new year brings!

Weddingstar Behind the Scenes Teaser

This summer I was asked to go up to Calgary to film and create a series of behind the scenes videos for one of Weddingstar's magazine photo shoots. The experience was a lot of fun, not just because of everything that I got to witness about how the magazine/catalogue for the company is produced, but because it gave me a chance to take the videos that I create for Weddingstar in a bold new direction - finally outside of my small in-house studio! 
 
On location shoots are something that I see becoming more and more important as I look for ways to help promote what the creative team members at Weddingstar design. It's what I love about the job. Everyone is able to play a key role by bringing their unique skills to the table and I feel fortunate to be able to share and learn from those mixed experiences. 
 
The behind the scenes shorts I ended up creating are only around a minute to a minute and a half long each (over 6 videos) but I think the imagery and mood of the shorts make a strong impression. They'll begin debuting in a matter of weeks on our WeddingstarTV YouTube channel. Until then, check out this teaser trailer I created for the debut below.

Split Wash 2: Jaguar XJ8

Nostalgia seems to be a great motivator. When going to clean my car a couple weeks ago I decided to bring along my camera simply for the sake of capturing something similar to what I had with my 1989 Buick. From that footage I created Split Wash, a short experimental video using a split screen to divide the recording in to two separate points and layer them together.

What I've done here is of exactly the same principal, except this time the image has been roughed up a bit more and repetition has been applied to the bottom layer. While the validity of these types of video as art can be debated, I've always had a fascination with the subtleties of editing and how it can force us to look at things in ways out of the ordinary. I often attribute this to painting. Like how an artist will create something that is as much about recognizing the paint on the canvas as it is about the art itself.

My goal isn't really to make this seem like more than it is, but in washing my Jaguar (just like I did with my Buick) I've captured a moment and presented it somewhat out of context to make the video and edit the subject. I find something visceral and tangible about working this way. In a little over two years the first version of Split Wash is now a little piece of my history; not quite a homevideo, not quite a complete project.

Pacific Coast Highway California

After the California road trip last year I guess I was feeling a bit exhausted carrying my giant video camera around. As nice as it is, it's hardly travel sized. So after the thousands of miles traveled, this clip from the Pacific Coast Highway near Big Sur is the only footage I shot on the entire trip - less than 2 minutes long. No worries though, I made up for all this with nearly 1500 photographs which will go towards a brand new photo book in the same style as last years. More to come on this.

Driving the Pacific Coast Highway itself is something that everyone should probably have on their bucket list. The winding roads hug the cliffs of the California coastline and take you from rocky beaches to expansive vistas from above. We were driving north from Los Angeles to San Francisco, and preferably if you were headed south you'd have a better view for more of the trip. Thankfully, there were plenty of places to stop, take pictures, and just enjoy the view.

While there won't be a huge onslaught of new road trip edits like there were last year, I am planning on doing a more elaborate edit with all of the 2009 footage very soon. Stay tuned for brief photo journals from the California road trip coming soon also! It's good to be back!

See two versions of the video below (with different song choices for each) and a video of my complete photo set from the PCH.

Singapore: Edits (2010)

To find yourself a world away in a foreign country for the first time is surreal. You quickly forget just what it took to get there when you're won over by the spectacle around you. For me, this was Singapore.

When I was asked in February if I'd like to go on a business trip with my co-worker Stephanie, I was elated. Not just because I'd be paid to travel, but because Singapore was a destination that I never really saw myself going to.

I'm fairly well travelled around North America, but this was to be my first time putting my feet in the other side of an ocean. It was my first time travelling for over a day in the air (combining all my flights that is). It was the first time I answered 'business' to the 'are you traveling for business or pleasure' question.

Singapore was a mix of welcome and unexpected surprises. Never did I think that we'd be able to see and do so much while still working during our days. Somehow, we still managed to cross all of the big highlights off of our list, leaving us both feeling like we were truly able to explore the variety and individuality the country/city had to offer.

From eating exotic seafood along the coast of the South China Sea to taking in the view of the city from the Singapore Flyer, from cruising up the river through the heart of the financial district to an afternoon in the sun at Universal Studios on Sentosa Island, to the Red Dot Design Museum, the famous Merlion landmarks, the Night Safari at the Zoo, exploring an ornate Hindu temple, raising our glasses of Tiger beer at restaurants and clubs, and shopping on Orchard Road - we managed to play just as much as we worked.

I hoped, but never knew it would have turned out this good.

Universal Studios Singapore

And with this footage comes the final edit of my Singapore trip last month.

Universal Studios Singapore was never something Stephanie and I had planned prior to going. This was a business trip after all, and with only one full day off we weren't sure there'd be time for a theme park. Luckily, there was.

On the good word of some of the people we had been working with, on our Wednesday off we took a taxi and then the monorail out to Sentosa Island. Sentosa is nicknamed 'Resort World' because the entire place is undergoing a massive tourist overhaul. Fancy resorts, beaches, and attractions are popping up all over this island on the southern end of Singapore. Universal Studios itself only opened in March, so it was only a month old.

Not as big as the park in Hollywood (see my edit of that here) it doesn't incorporate a tram ride element, and instead is all theme park. It was actually just the right size to see comfortably in a single afternoon, which was nice because it didn't feel like we had to rush.  From a Madagascar section to a Shrek themed 'Far Far Away' to a popular Jurrassic Park zone, Stephanie and I actually enjoyed the Revenge of the Mummy Ride in Ancient Egypt the best. We ran on twice in a row, and all I have to compare it to is the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland.

The Revenge of the Mummy ride is part tour of movie scenes, part storyline, and part surprise coaster. What was best about it was that it was a really good mix. Fire explosions, cracking walls, sounds of bugs swarming all over you, quick starts and stops, and then finally a thrilling coaster ride in the dark to finish it off! On the second time around I knew where the on-ride camera was and made devil horns at Stephanie. It made for a good souvenir photograph that I bought to take home.

All and all it was a fun afternoon, but the day was far from over. We followed up Universal Studios Singapore with a ride on the Singapore Flyer, and later that evening, with a cruise on the Singapore River Experience.

Hindu Temple in Singapore

From my hotel room on the 12th floor I could see the top of this Hindu Temple amidst a sea of concrete. Having found a Singapore travel guide before going, I read all about the varying religions of the country and the strong Indian influence as well, so when I saw this I knew it would be worth finding.

Stephanie and I travelled a little bit off the main roads and down streets that felt much more local - but in the best kind of way. It was one more thing to check off my list of experiences in Singapore. Ducks and chickens hanging in windows, cramped stores with shelves up to the roof, and people huddled on sidewalks discussing their day, it felt like an honest representation, or at least a nice balance to the glass and neon of the impressive Marina Bay district where we'd spent so much of our time already.

The temple was a nice surprise. Something peaceful and out of the way. Something it felt like we discovered by circumstance. Nearing the end of our trip, it proved to be an ideal place to reflect.

Singapore Flyer Ferris Wheel

On a long list of things to see and do while in Singapore, the Singapore Flyer was at the top of my list. It's currently the tallest ferris wheel in the world, and I couldn't think of a better spot to get views of downtown Singapore with such a tight schedule. At 42 stories high, it's a full 30m taller than its most famous Ferris Wheel counterpart, the London Eye.

I convinced myself before going that one way or another I'd get to see the Flyer in person. Met with a cruel twist of fate on the first evening we headed out, it was closed because of thunderstorms. Luckily we tried again the next day.

On our way back from Sentosa Island, Stephanie and I timed our arrival just right. The sun was setting over downtown and Marina Bay, and by the time we reached the top of the wheel all of the lights had come on and we got a view of the expansive cityscape glowing around us. It was just one more moment of awe in a trip filled with surprises. A trip where I actually did more, not less, than I had expected to.

Singapore River Experience

Sailing around Marina Bay and up the Singapore River was one of the many highlights on this amazing trip. The boat ride takes you all around the financial district of Singapore, so in addition to all the colourful restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, you're also surrounded by towering skyscrapers, large museums, the famous Merlion statue, and even the parliament building.

It was on the river cruise that I really had to pinch myself about where I actually was. The red lanterns, Asian signs, and impressive structures all emphasized the vibrant and modern culture of Singapore. The small country proved to be a mash-up of numerous Asian and western influences, and the wealth of the country was unmistakable in all the scenes we were witness to.  While there was a lot to love Singapore for, it was cruising down the river that actually gave us a moment to let it all sink in.

Singapore: A Bit of Everything Edit

While it seems like there's so much to reflect on I think I'll save most of it for my complete Singapore project post. In the meantime, I wanted to put something together relatively quickly to show everyone just what my Singapore experience was like - the video only making it more difficult to believe this was actually a business trip.

A co-worker and I flew to Singapore via Calgary, Vancouver, and Hong Kong - finally arriving at Changi International after an exhausting 27 traveling hours (including the transfer time in airports). The time difference was 14 hours ahead so it was interesting after finishing my work on the Monday in Singapore to realize that everyone back home hadn't even started their Monday yet.

We were out there because our company is buying a brand new custom laser machine to cut designs for a range of new stationary products for our site, and as the guy responsible for the in-house web media, I was sent to document just how the machine works and what it's going to look like. As far as I'm concerned this was one of the most awesome reasons to ever get into video - paid to travel to the other end of the world, yes please!

We clearly made the most of our down time enjoying (among a few of the highlights I recorded) a trip to Merlion park with the half lion half fish statue (the symbol of Singapore), exploring downtown, taking a river boat cruise around Marina Bay, riding the Singapore Flyer (the largest observation Ferris Wheel in the world), checking out an impressive Hindu temple while walking side streets, eating in Clarke Quay, and traveling out to Sentosa Island and visiting the brand new Universal Studios Singapore. It was the perfect blend of tourist spots and local exploration.

Specific edits of some of these places are still to come, but for now enjoy this snappy highlight reel of one of the most unforgettable, and certainly most foreign trips I've taken to date.

Rob Hudec "Dandelion" Album Showcase

Just last month I cut a promo for Rob Hudec's new album 'Dandelion'. Using footage that was shot as part of the Medicine Hat College's Welcome Week, this was a relatively simple, but altogether fun piece to edit. Check it out below and for more see Rob Hudec's website here.