(HUMOUR) Remember the ‘Crap Shot’?

The crap shot is an amateur (at best) move to provoke some sort of visual interest because the viewer is either comatose or dead I guess? I stopped about 10 secs in to the Cambridge advert and the multiple crapshots forced me to wonder if the presenter is some sort of creepy prisoner/criminal type under house arrest and there's a need to cut to his probation officer. Bizzarro, I want to get off this ride now.

I came across a #crapshot in the wilds of YouTube today. I couldn't get to the end of it. https://youtu.be/ELD5uBFmN-8

The origin of the crapshot. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eL8vHOAp9E8

I agree!!! The “ crapshoot” has become ubiquitous and is indicative of just plain, well, over editing. There’s a piece on YouTube that covers how star wars was “saved in the edit”. That’s true but most modern clips are f@@ked in the edit. Usually by excessive jerkiness, cuts, crapshots, colour changes, silly “static” lines placed over sidebars. It’s just maddening.

OH MY GOD!!! Use a camera angle for more than 2 seconds!! This is a guy showing his passion for a product, it isn't a 90s EXTREME TV ad. I have a feeling they knew it would be a problem as they haven't enabled comments on the video. I also have a feeling that having access to multiple cameras and a staffed edit suite needed to be justified. Maybe they were getting paid per shot?

This was just embarrassing. Someone said that if a wine needs intensive tv marketing, then it is no good. This made me think of that

I didn't even know that annoyed me until I saw this. Thanks for letting me know I was annoyed so I can complain and moan properly every time I see it!

I too agree that the editing is a bit distracting. There is a person on YouTube who has a good channel for vinyl and he does multiple edits in a single sentence, like he can't complete a section of speaking without editing into another part of the same sentence. The channel has good content, but I really don't understand why he can't complete a sentence without the cuts!!

I miss the puppets. Still keep watching to the end in the vain hope they come back.

In this instance, all it does is highlight that the presenter didn't bother shaving.

Why am I thinking of Channel 4s 1980s character Max Headroom ?

I'm a little late to this one, but it seems likely that this is was actually some sort of packaging mock-up.

No wonder comments are turned off, I've seen less jumpy videos about trampolines

Hi Mat, I totally agree. I had seen the Cambridge evo ad already, and was totally underwhelmed. In the first few seconds it seemed like it might be the ultimate core of a modern sound system, allowing many inputs. However as the blurb and the 'crap shots' kept on and on without telling me anything useful, my interest waned significantly. It was only on this second viewing that I thought it MAY be useful, once they started showing what could be connected. The jump shots are are totally unnecessary and could be easily achieved with subtle cuts across several cameras aimed at the presenter. Cuts to the product are good, IF they are relevant. Given how hard this video ad is to watch, I will stick with my current (if outdated) system, because I still haven't seen a compelling case to spend up. BTW, I have always been an ardent admirer of Cambridge Audio products, as well as other British audio gear makers. as US audio gear always sounds a little too harsh for my taste.

To be honest it is the frequency of the cuts that has my eye hunting for the subject I am meant to be looking at. Just counted (because I am sad and curious) and it works out to an average of a hard cut every 2.5 seconds or so. It was around 150 hard cuts through the video.

Just wait until they start using drones to fly around the room to get different angles.

It is really great that the first thing displayed on the Cambridge Audio's screen is the word Puppet... seen right after watching the puppets video about the crap shot.

I also detest these shots - it's a like the filming of a filmed interview - a meta-filming, if you will. The BBC have been doing this for years, particularly in "interviews" with their star correspondents.

I really like Cambridge Audio. I have a 651p phono preamp and the DacMagic 100 which are both excellent. But yea, that video is just awful. The cutaways of the guys hands are particularly annoying. I guess wood side panels are coming back into fashion !

I couldn't agree with you more. I've always hated this sort of thing, and this new ad is a particularly nauseating example, though I must say the product looks fabulous.

I remember this being used on the Sensodyne toothpaste adverts in the UK, really annoying

Wholeheartedly agree! One of the reasons (along with the Queasy-cam that someone also already mentioned) that I don't watch TV or movies anymore.

I like this kind of editing but not in this video. The carp shot can work very well but you need to know what are you doing

I managed about one and half minutes. Noticed the comments were turned off, maybe someone had sent them your post :D

Indeed

I bought a Cambridge amp based in large part on the review of your unit you posted some years ago. Great equipment. The editing on that promo though...not good. Looks like an editor trying to be artsy at the expense of the viewer's ability to comprehend what's being discussed.

I'd never seen the puppets crap shot vid, funny stuff. I like these little vids :)

I watched Mat’s Crap Shot video just a couple of days ago and this pops up! When I started to see videos with this kind of editing, I thought it was done to show more emotion and maybe add a little drama (I’m thinking crime stories). I don’t mind it but while I was watching the Cambridge video, Mat’s video was playing in my head. I made it halfway through then stopped. All I kept thinking of was the muppet banging on the keyboard. 😁

...also annoyed that the design of the Evo speakers is almost a knock-off of the brilliant Guru Junior: https://guruaudio.com/products/junior-veneer I have a pair, first generation. Mine has a darker face plate, so the likeness is even closer. Even the magnetic speaker grilles first appeared on the Juniors a decade ago... But sure, it's a good mounting solution, so why not? 😃

My pet peeves are instead the shaky handcam they like to use in "professional" productions now — also present in the linked video, BTW. We have gimbals that cost peanuts now! Also dislike a variety of the 'crap shot', where the B-camera is mounted on a dolly (and/or crane), so that they may slowly pan across the scene every now and then. For a particularly egregious example, see Oprah's infamous interview with Mr. and Mrs. Markle. Or don't, rather. For several reasons.

Well, I made it 2 minutes. I feel like you could make a good game out of this though. "Hi-Fi Bingo". With the way most of these types of product announcements go, the goal would be to cover the entire card rather than make a single line.

Ever seen the interviews on the Fawlty Towers DVDs? https://youtu.be/ay7k-1isfl8

I'm not that much bothered by the crap shot in itself, but especially at the beginning the cuts are so ridiculously short it seems like the editor replaced the clips of the sales guy in a clean living room into a timeline template that had clip lengths adjusted for an action sports video... found that more disturbing. Also agree with @dan nocket who said it could be that the guy wasn't able to say more than 3 words in a row without a retake, and when you have to cut if you don't change angle it's even worse...

Hey, they have problems focusing correctly when they move to the side angle shot too. Surely that counts for something.

I'm not saying it's acceptable (I find it distracting and awful) but there can be a practical reason for this. This editing technique can be used to compensate for a video subject who cannot for the life of them get through an entire take. Even the best editors can only do so much when they have absolute crap source footage.

Reminds me of the editing in the Wonders series with Prof Cox, sometimes on his face, sometimes from above, sometimes a wide-angle from the side, sometimes just his hands..... aaaahhh!

Much better is the Harry Hill TV Burp look to the side reaction shot. That I like.

How about making a parody video with the puppets, or even your good self where you take the technique to absurd levels? Like that side profile shot... have you or the puppet try to "keep up" with the editor! It would be like that Looney Tune where Daffy Duck fights with animator!

You are not alone, Mat. This editing technique is distracting and pretentious in equal measure.. I think this is an editing technique that is popular in film school and is probably being taught by instructors who learned it from one specific camera teacher. It screams "I'm a clever editor! A cleveditor!" It is essentially a slower version of the seizure-inducing editing style we all recall from late 90s MTV. It made so much of their programming unwatchable.

Well, it's supposed to ensure that the video remains interesting. However, I just find that the more they do it the more distracted I get. I start noticing nothing but the constant perspective changes and completely lost track of what the video is going on about. https://richwilkesfilms.com/movement-and-pace-why-slow-videos-are-boring-and-how-to-fix-it/

Great products, crap video's! Oh dear... 🥴

I can't stand it either. It's as though they believe the viewer has no attention span and they'll lose interest if they see a static shot that lasts more than 3 seconds so I take this editing technique as an insult to my intelligence. It also ends up looking too busy and distracting.

"Yo, hey, buddy. Over here. Look this way. Camera's over here, pal."

thanks for posting this again. Never saw this short you made and now I can't stop seeing it in every promo that wants the viewers to think they're down to earth

Thanks? This is like pointing out dead pixels or the wires in the old Trinitron monitors. Now that I've been shown this it's going to bug me till the end of time :/

Haha I didn't know anyone else hated this like me.

I totally agree. The Cambridge Audio video is also (apart from the crap shotting / crap shooting / crapping shots / crap shots?) way too long. I couldn’t make any sense of what he’s saying in the first few minutes. I made it to three minutes into the video.

Managed just under a minute. It's like a student showreel; confusing and irritating and too many techniques all crushed in at once.

Toothpaste adverts here in Canada are the worst for this. They do it because they think it makes it appear more "authentic", like the filming was unplanned and spontaneous. I don't think it's really fooling anyone and I find them as irritating as hell.

just...............wow never had motion sickness before, feel really ill now - only got 45s in too

Cambridge Audio are so far up their own arse, they will have to turn the volume on that thing to 11 to hear anything.

That 2017 "Crap Shot" video is unlisted??? So many people are missing a reeeealy good laugh )))

I had to double check that that was really Cambridge Audio's YouTube channel. I swear it came off as a slightly less snarky parody of that technique than your puppet video did. (Also, I miss the puppets)

I don't like it either, but it's because it feels pretentious to me. Like, this person talking is also talking to an audience, and I'm just one of the of plebeians listening as this wise asshole schools us.

No wonder they turned off comments. I left one on their home page video instead. :-)

Looks like "baby's first video editing" to me :D

It does appear to be for the people with the 2 second attention span, so each change resets that attention countdown timer.

I have to say I think it's because the guy is not particularly appealing. It would be like putting me up there. If it were a very attractive person, I don't think you'd see people complaining about the shots so much.

While I wasn't all that bothered with the pretentious video editing, I am left wondering why I can't save this video to my watch later, like I do with all of Mat's videos, for watching on the 4K with Roku. Is Cambridge Audio afraid that I might need a reminder to buy this product later so they turn that off. It make no sense like everything else about this video.

Good grief, an object lesson on how to distract viewers from the subject under discussion. Maybe they had to keep cutting away to avoid showing the price tag. Have you seen how much that Evo 150 is? I'm sure it's very good, but completely out of my league. Love the puppets - really miss them. Hoping their cultural deradicalisation course will end soon and we may see them again.....

Why not take it a step further and make it more exciting with a "Battlestar Galactica"-alike shot (BSG zoom)? ;-)

I made it to 1:01 then had to stop. The visual phrasing has nothing to do with the verbal phrasing, and those sub-second shots don't allow the brain to absorb anything. Maybe this is a version of Monty Python's Killer Joke, where the audio editor and the video editor were not allowed to see or hear each other's work, for fear of madness followed by death.

Just got a really bad diarrhoea attack 😭

Totally agree, and enhanced (or worsened if that's word) by the unfocussed shots and shakey camera.

I'm definitely distracted and annoyed by the relentless viewpoint switching in this promo. But I don't feel affected by the crap shot in itself. In fact, I like it when videos show a glimpse of what's going on outside the main camera, and admit they're showing a fraction of reality, if they otherwise pretend to be non-ficton. But just once is enough, thank you.

It looks like the video editor drank way too much coffee and got bored every 3 seconds so switched to another shot.

Almost deserves a **Strobe warning**

They switched the view far too frequently at the very least and made it a slurry of crap shot.

It's very annoying. Also, @ 1:13 and 1:15 the film is running backwards. The tell-tale "reverse eye blink" gives it away, apart from the inverted physics of inertia.

I think your puppet's crap shot is actually better because it's clear and evident that it's a "stylistic" choice rather than a disinterested cameraman not caring where to point his camera, and a blind spokesperson not knowing where to point his face.

I see they threw in the 'drunk camera operator' shots for even more edge. Tragic.

The random cut to his hands for no reason... It can not be unseen.

Arghhh! One of my pet peeves. But I do enjoy mediocre puppetry, more of that please!

Yes! I've despised the "crap shot" for years and and am glad to learn that I'm not just a solitary old man yelling at clouds. It's great to finally have an appropriate term to describe it. One of the non-tech YouTube channels I follow recently added a second camera, which means they've started editing this shot into their videos every 10-20 seconds. I can't even watch them any more; I just see them pop up in my subscription feed and sadly scroll on by.

Also - I laughed my pants off on your video. I really enjoy thr comedy. Keep up the good work 👍

Whoa. They used more cameras than a normal person has fingers. Hey Zues.

I see what you mean. Over used editing technique. Shame, other than that it’s well lit and pleasant on the eyes.

Cambridge Audio has hidden the likes/dislikes and disabled comments. Gee, I wonder why...

It didn't bother me but I had to stop at 'Bluetooth turntable' for some many reasons.

Trying too hard.

Are you talking to me? No

I think this was pioneered on TV by whoever produced Jamie Oliver's cooking shows in the 90s, it was incredibly annoying then and it still is now. Less is more!

I rather like my CA gear. I have an integrated amp with a good phono pre inside, a cd-player and now pretty much useless FM/DAB not plus (which I have half a plan of turning into a network player using a Raspberry Pi or something). Ironically I specifically like the clean, unobtrusive, no-nonsense and non-distracting design...

Mat, you can blame it on 1) an attempt to appear "dynamic", 2) vestiges of music videos, and 3) the ten second commercials (or adverts as you call them in the UK). Unfortunately, I fear that they are here to stay. (Or, perhaps worse... soon they may be like "blipverts", a la Max Headroom).

The use of the crap shot technique in that Cambridge Audio infomercial was irrirating, but I just found that I got bored rather than annoyed. At 6 minutes in length, it might also miss the mark if aimed at an audience with a short attention span.

Haha, I know what you mean, but sometimes it's done tastefully, like in Netflix's Formula 1: Drive to Survive.

Yeap I can’t stand it. It’s used a lot to edit out pauses and reattempts. So I understand amateurs using it to hide a jump cut. But this video goes beyond tolerable for me. It even looks like they applied focus hunting deliberately as well. Shame. Although the product does look good.

Totally agree - very annoying. Who is that guy supposed to be talking to anyway? Shame really as it looks like a nice bit of kit... can only assume they're targeting a much younger audience than myself...

The writing in the Cambridge Audio video was horrid. Second-rate brochure copy banged out by a marketing exec in a hurry, then read by someone they took hostage. Not even Alec Guinness could sell those lines. It's like the editor is desperately trying to distract the audience from the sermon.

Silly old arse 🤣

At least they didn't have any grainy black-and-white close-ups of the guys knuckles or eyebrows, so there's that for next time, I guess.

Agreed - I got 60 seconds in and could not watch anymore, why it offends so much is because as the viewer you are forced to break eye contact, not a problem when swithcing to the product but unwatchable when returning to the presneter and especially when going from presenter to presenter. Shame as the product shots are quite nice and it seems a good unit.

The song playing at :31 seconds into the Cambridge video is called "Puppet Strings". Maybe they took inspiration from your puppet video.

It seems like, when filming a person, they value impatience and lack of rhythm in editing, and fidgeting and handholding in camerawork. It's almost comically inconsistent with the smoother, steadier shots they have of the product that align well with the music and voiceover, which shows they're not always in a hurry or on crack when making promotional materials.

That is an extreme variant of the genre and, I completely agree, really rather annoying. The focus hunt adds an unwelcome twist too. It's a shame as the product looks pretty decent.

Have to agree about the crap shot - the video was painful to watch because of it.

I thought I'd unintentionally bumped my mouse wheel on the first couple of zooms. Quite distracting and barely informative. By the time the device comes into focus, we're whisked off to a close-up of the top of this fellow's head. Crazy!

I felt like it was just too jerky, regardless of what angles they used. Did anyone else notice the player was playing 'Puppet Strings'? Coincidence!?!?!??!!..... Probably :P

You aren't wrong. I also couldn't finish watching the C.A. video. All that cutting away and not looking at the camera made the video look amateurish. They need to fire whoever edited their video. On the other hand your "crap shot" parody video was hilarious. I appreciated it especially after watching that first video. I hadn't seen it before so thanks for sharing!

In general, when used well, cutting to a different view makes the video seem less sterile and forced... but OMG that Cambridge Audio thing is a disaster .I am not prone to seizure...but I was getting one...

IIIII II IIIIII II IIIIIIII III III IIII III IIIII III That's my comment viewed from the oblique angle.

I’m mad as hell, and I’m not taking the « crap shop » anymore!

Mat, that was horrible. In the old days, when a company made a promotional film, you just got bored from watching someone drone on about their product in one long take to camera. Making all those strange cuts to unusual angles doesn’t help. I didn’t even understand what features they were trying to demonstrate. Maybe if I could have stood to watch the whole presentation they would have eventually described what this device does.

Yep I hate it. All it portrays is a "we've got more more money than sense" vibe. They have money to burn on extra cameras and pointless extra editing. Why not stick another camera up the presenters back side while they're at it. If my attention is going to be teleported else where then it might as well be away from whatever that is. To be fair it's probably some marketing guys wet dream.

When I was building my home streaming setup, I looked at dedicated streaming all-in-one boxes like this. Can someone can explain why they are so expensive? Even second hand ones are £700+. I ended up getting a small Android tablet with a nice-looking dock and hooking it up to my existing amp. Is a box like this really worth ten times as much to anyone but the richest of audiophiles?

Oh yes, it is annoying. I was not sure what you even meant with crapshot, but when I watched the video it became clear just after a few seconds. I hope this is just a fad that will go away sooner than later.

I couldn't even stomach it past "GREAT BRITISH SOUND". It's just vibrations in the air, mate.

Haha. You have a point.

I hate when the person interviewed is NOT looking into the camera...seems to be the new fad of the last 5 years...or more. And the rest. NO.

Yeah, introducing some camera angle changes is good, but here it just give me the impresion that I am on a boat...

This is great! I didn't see this video back in 2017 and I'm glad to see it now! I notice the Cambridge Audio folks are employing new advanced crap shot techniques like deliberately shooting out of focus and cutting to shots of just the presenter's empty hands. What innovation!

Thank God it’s not just me. It’s horrifying! I’m guessing it was taught in a film course a few years ago as a trendy way to keep your attention. I hate it. The Vox channel on YouTube have some really interesting stories, but I have to quit many of them because of this technique. I’m overwhelmed by a “will you look at me when you’re talking to me” feeling of rage!!

So many cuts! It's like a bad MTV parody from the 90s!

I'm with you on this one Matt. Can't stand it, and still so widely (over) used.

That Cambridge Audio video got a dislike after the first minute. Then I came here to tell you. Mat I love the crap shot video so I liked it.

The unnecessary zooms is annoying too, why am I suddenly looking at his hands?

lol all those pointless zoomed in side closeups and intentional blur going into focus, and intentional shaky camera. lol it's like a circus show

here's a really bad one I noticed a few years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnOi2Nxt9pc

I'm relieved to find that I'm not alone in hating it 😊

Wow, I can’t watch that either. Super annoying editing style, makes me really uncomfortable. In the words of Ryan George, “It’s like ADHD, the movie”.