This is the longest video I have made to date. The programme I use is Movavi. It's a very intuitive app that allows you to produce a video of reasonable quality quite quickly with some simple, if rather familiar, methods. The idea is to get across the product qualities quickly and efficiently. Movavi does this as long as the video and stills you import are of reasonable quality. I only use my Galaxy SM-A326B and the results are fine for most purposes. The end result is published on Facebook and Instagram as well as on Linked in.
Movavi adds music with a limited range. I have chosen to stick to one theme so that it is familiar to customers. You can also add special effects but these are best kept to a minimum to avoid the special effects becoming the main feature. The fade between clips is useful to make the video feel smoother and more professional.
I tend to use the end product in the video but I will spend more time filming the process of manufacturing because that is really the interesting part. To those that are interested anyway.
I use only locally sourced wood. The oak come from a supplier near Oswestry and the spruce from a supplier near Ellesmere. All within 30 minutes of where I live. The minimum number of miles added to my product is very important to me.
At the timber yard it is a little like stepping back 50 years. They don't do e-mail or that new fangled internet stuff! They only take calls at 10am when they are in the canteen. The log processing sawmill was made in Britain! They asked the company who made it, and they are still going, to renovate and service the current machine. £89,000 quote. They decided to invest in some 3 in 1 (£4.50) and a new blade! As far as I could see the machine was operating very well indeed. I watched as the log was cut down to a 8"x 8" perfectly square post. The operator has come for a summer job 13 years ago and was still there! Moaning like crazy but rather good at what he does.
The oak planks I needed were nearby, in perfect condition, dried and seasoned ready for my CNC machine. It is European oak, I was told, but I was unable to pin down the country of origin.
I have just invested in a planer/thicknesser. Before this I had to sand the oak for ages to get a smooth flat surface. Not easy. Oak is very hard and the sander struggled to give me what I wanted. The planer is very quick. It's important to plane with the grain for a perfect finish, but once done it is ready for the CNC machine. Even thickness throughout. This means that the CNC machine cuts an evenly deep letter.
The signs are carved, then sanded again, then a coat of varnish diluted with white spirit, then 4 or 5 coats of varnish sanded with wet and dry between every coat. I use Wickes own brand. By far the best.
Finally the sign is carefully wrapped and packed and sent via Evri. Usually.
Here is the video:
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