Hey, wanted to know how the video shooting went. What things got done, and how is the progress going on editing?

Thanks.

It was mixed. We had a lot of things go really well, and a couple of things that didn't. But we learned a lot, and came away with many new insights, and some pretty good ideas about what to do next time.

The shooting began mostly with the silver level demo clips. We were able to capture all of the Silver Int'l Standard with Mikail & Olga, the Silver Latin with Mark & Viola, and the Silver Rhythm with Jonathan & Alicia. The smooth had nearly twice as much Silver material as any of the other dances, and we didn't quite get all of it. But it's enough to last easily unti the next shoot.

After that we moved on to bronze basic instruction, including figures and technical lessons. Unfortunately the Rhythm did not go well in this department, and the small amount of material we did manage to get will probably be scrapped and re-shot with a different couple in a few months.

The Latin went really well. Mark & Viola covered a little more than half of bronze, but instead of filming figures in order, they skipped around a bit and selected what they felt were the most important from all 3 bronze levels. They also managed to get in a few basic technique lessons. Instruction was simple and concise, and they were well rehearsed, which enabled them to cover quite a bit of material in the time they had.

Melissa and I took the Bronze Smooth and Standard. I began slowly and a little too perfectionistic, and tried to cover too much teaching material per pattern. As it became apparent that this method was not going to render enough material, I modified my approach and picked up the pace. In the end we managed to tackle most of beginning and some intermediate bronze, in 7 out of 9 dances -- both American and Int'l Viennese didn't make it this time.

We did get to film West Coast Swing with Craig & Deborah, including about 4 levels of demo clips and 8 patterns of full instruction. We did have a couple of last-minute cancellations, including our Salsa and Lindy teachers. Luckily we already had at least 4 levels of demo clips for both dances filmed in previous sessions, but unfortunately no full instruction until next time.

The camera crane we had hoped to use did not pan out, but it's probably for the best -- It would have taken a lot of time away from the material we did manage to cover. We have an idea that we would like to schedule a 1 or 2-day film shoot dedicated exclusively to material best suited for a camera crane, such as overhead shots while explaining amounts of turn in Paso, Samba, and all of the Smooth & Standard dances, as well as extended amalgamations danced to music.

So after 5 exhausting days, I'm pleased to say that the film shoot was mostly a success. The only missing elements are Bronze full instruction for Rhythm, Salsa and Lindy. But I do have a lot of material to edit, and I'm confident that we'll be able to schedule a follow-up film shoot long before I've finished processing and uploading the material from this one. So it may not even be noticed.

At the moment I'm waiting on an ultra fast hard drive, which should arrive sometime next week (The hard drive is fast, not the shipping). When it arrives, I'll copy the footage and begin editing. In the meantime, once I finish writing this message, I will get to work on the programming of the premium membership for the website.

Premium membership will roll out first, hopefully within about a month, which will include all of the full bronze demo clips already in place. Immediately after that, you will start to see new videos added every week. I don't know how long it will all take to finish, but I'm hoping to take a huge chunk out of it before the end of the year.

Regards,
Jonathan Atkinson
www.ballroomdancers.com

Well done Jonathan,

I see that the bronze International waltz, foxtrot and quickstep are only awaiting your editing progress and completion.
I can't wait to see your video demonstrations. I'm almost at that stage and very hungry to improve.

Sincerely,
Ross Jeal
Wales, UK

I was curious as to what the order of content release would be...at least including the first few things coming out, and hopefully a rough timeline, Thanks!

Will you be releasing a sample of the new footage? Just want to take a peek before I dust off my wallet.

Yes, I will feature one of the teaching videos (probably the first step in each dance) as a sample.

As for the narrated demo clips, they will be exactly the same as the ones you can see now. There will just be more of them. As of right now, the premium content available consists of the full bronze demo clips, plus an archive of all of the weekly variations (variations include full instruction).

I'm just now working on the final stages of the premium membership application, and in just a few weeks we'll be ready to roll. At launch, the video selection will be as it is now. But that's when I'll begin adding more material on a regular basis. Since there will be less material during the first few months than later on, we're thinking of providing some additional incentive at launch, such as a discount, or perhaps a longer period (say, 18 months for the price of a year).

Regards,
Jonathan Atkinson
www.ballroomdancers.com

Hello, on my first day with ballroomdancers.com
My experience up to now:
"Login or Register to view this video"
and:
"Get access to hundreds more video clips anf full screen video"
So I have registered and loged in, but no way for my video.
Next advice:
"UPGRADE to premium Mebership to view this Video"
and:
"Pay $99 PER YEAR"
Now I am searching for termination condition of such an agreement, but whitout results I came only to this forum.
Who can send me a link to the condition of contract (or discount, or 18 month for the price of a year, etc mentioned by the Administrator) please ?

Thank you very much.

If you're having trouble viewing any of the videos, then signing up for membership won't change that. Videos that require basic or membership are clearly labeled, as you described. All others should play immediately and automatically. If they don't, you'll need to troubleshoot to find out why.

The first thing we'll need to know is: What kind of computer or device are you using to view the website, and which version of the website are you viewing?

We have two versions of BallroomDancers.com: The main website, www.ballroomdancers.com, and the mobile site, mobile.ballroomdancers.com. If you are using a desktop or laptop computer, we recommend the main website, while mobile devices such as iPhones and Android phones should use the mobile site. Tablets such as iPads can go either way, depending on which experience you prefer.

If you are using a desktop or laptop computer viewing the main website, and you are having trouble viewing the videos, please make sure you have the latest version of the Adobe Flash Player installed. We will be switching everything to HTML5 video later this year, but for now, Flash is still required. Alternatively, you can install the Apple Quicktime Player (even on Windows), and switch your video viewing preferences in your BallroomDancers.com user account to Quicktime. One of the two is required.

If you are viewing the full website using an iOS device such as an iPad, you should also switch your video viewing preference to Quicktime, as iOS will not play Flash video. Alternatively, you can use the mobile site, which plays HTML5 video.

If you are using any small device such as a phone with a 5-inch screen or smaller, we urge you to use the mobile site. It's a much better experience, as it's formatted to fit smaller screens.

Most modern Android devices should be able to view the HTML5 video on our mobile site, but it's not guaranteed. You may need to install an app, tweak some settings, or upgrade to a later version of Android.

And finally, Apple fans be aware: As of the latest release of iOS8, there is still no fix for the web app bug. We are still holding out hope that Apple will fix this problem in the next release. In the meantime, to view video on our mobile site with iOS8, please uninstall your web app and launch our mobile site with Safari.

The Premium Membership policies can be found at checkout, prior to your purchase. It can also be found in our customer service area (Shopping > Customer Service), or by following this link: https://www.ballroomdancers.com/Shopping/Customer_Service/premium_policies.asp.

Regards,
Jonathan Atkinson
BallroomDancers.com

(Referring to "Videos and Premium Membership" posted by Jonathan) Those people who choose to use Apple Quicktime to view the videos should be aware of one thing. The viewing preference defaults to Flash Player, and you have to change the preference to Quicktime EACH TIME. At least that's my experience using Firefox on a Mac to visit Ballroomdancers.com. I'm one of the millions of people who have given up on Flash and its "upgrades" every two days to patch its many security holes. When I change (and save) my preference I can view the videos during that session. But if I close Firefox, the next time I come back to the site the preference is back to Flash.

This problem should go away when Ballroomdancers.com switches over to HTML5 video, but until then you may encounter the same situation I do.

I would like to know if I become a member if that will allow me to see the videos in full screen. I want to use my Samsung tv to see the videos and it does not allow me to download the latest flash but I thought that maybe I could use a device like chrome cast. However, I want to see the videos in full screen not in a small box on my 55 inch tv.