Rain, Rain go to Spain!

We were tasked with filming a GAA game however, upon arrival we found out there was no allowance made for the weather forecast for that day and we would be filming with no cover on a small scaffold platform. 

I will use Gibb’s reflective model for each obstacle that I was confronted with that day, showing how I managed to overcome it, how I felt and what I learned from the experience. 

Fig (1) Gibbs reflective model

When I arrived at the ground I quickly realised no one else from the crew had arrived yet. The rain at this stage had been on and off over the morning and people were questioning if we could still film. I was very unsure as I nodded in a somewhat confident way that we would be fine. I managed to find someone to open the portable cabin beside the platform and while it was dirty, it thankfully did have a roof and working power sockets. So, I got to work cleaning down all the surfaces and started to set up the laptop and get WIFI access so when the others arrived at least that would be ready. As the rain had now subsided, I decided to go ahead and set up the camera and add the feed through the window of the cabin to the laptop. I then managed to secure a heavy high vis coat which I used to cover the camera and a few plastic bags which I used to wrap the power supply to the camera in and secured it by lodging it in the gap between the scaffold posts. 

As the rest of the crew started arriving, they did seem amused with the camera in its coat but also impressed by what I had managed on my own while waiting for them. Crisis adverted as we had a camera set up and secure, and a working live feed. When I reflect on this, I genuinely wouldn’t have changed anything that I did here, and I can also see how my training kicked in and I was confident enough to go ahead and do this on my own. 

However, we all quickly realised there wasn’t much we could do in terms of the rain that was forecast. So, we collectively made the decision to go ahead and live stream, knowing the worst-case scenario would be people asking for a refund if we went dead during the game. With the camera and live stream set up, commentator sound checks done, and everything checked over and secured in terms of the weather, we went live! With Catherine outside operating the camera alongside Drew, holding an umbrella over her, and Kevin and I inside with him managing to keep the stream running and the commentators live, while I looked after the live replays and kept the score updated. At this stage I felt proud of what I had achieved, and I know if it was only a few weeks before I would have just waited in the car until everyone else arrived. I felt I had gained more confidence in being able to do these things myself and although I was fully expecting someone to say it was set up wrong, they didn’t, and this genuinely made me feel good. 

The weather quickly turned against us, and Kevin decided I could look after the stream and commentators alongside the replays and scores, while he joined Drew in holding another umbrella over Catherine and the camera. At this stage in my placement, I knew how to manage both of these jobs separately however I had no experience of both at the one time, I was really feeling the pressure.  

“In the preparatory phase reflective activity occurs when students start to explore what is required of them, what are the demands of the field setting and the resources which they themselves have to bring.” (9) 

All was going ok until one of the commentators ask me to pull up a replay from earlier in the game, I turned away from the screen showing the live feed and when I turned back to the screen it was blank. My head was screaming ‘don’t panic, don’t panic’ but I held it together and quickly checked everything was on and all leads were secure inside the cabin. 

I could see the power supply was still shielded inside the plastic bags and therefore, I realised the camera itself must have gotten wet in some way. In a moment of panic, pressure and newly found wisdom I quickly brought the live stream up on my phone and seen it had lost picture but was still running and had sound. I let the commentators know, telling them to explain we had lost the camera feed and we were working to get that back. I then signalled to the guys outside telling them it was gone and to get the camera in quick. While they were taking the camera in, I went into the vMix settings and found, as I had never done this before, how to add a banner saying, “Due to weather conditions we have lost the camera feed, please stay tuned while we try to get it back up”. When Kevin came in and seen what I was typing he was both shocked and happy that I had managed that on my own. Upon reflection of this, while I was happy I managed it on my own, I also came to realise that sometimes I seem to perform better under pressure and if given time to think I feel my own self-doubt could have been my own downfall here.  

“Despite objective evidence of success, these women had a pervasive psychological experience believing that they were intellectual frauds and feared being recognised as impostors” (75-97). 

 Whilst written by Sakulku J, it seemed to fit how I felt at that time. In a way I could describe it as a feeling of waiting to be found out, which, even though there was nothing to be found out about, made me on edge over the course of the day. 

I feel I managed to deal with the problems quite well given the circumstances. Looking back, I feel that this was the day I began to feel more appreciated and accepted by my workmates and I feel I definitely had a bigger role to play than just responding to being told what to do I used initiative and manged to achieve something to help the team along the way.