You’re probably asking yourself, “Why is she that excited about a bowl of zucchini noodles?”
Well, you’ll have to read this post and then watch the video to find out!
And for the record: zucchini noodles do bring a smile to my face, but not as hysterically as this picture depicts. Or at least, not yet!
Remember when I said that one of my New Year’s resolutions was to “foster my creativity?” Basically, I wanted to challenge myself to be more creative, take creative leaps of faith and put myself in environments where I’d be creatively challenged!
If I had it my way, I’d have a video for every single recipe I make. However, it’s expensive to hire someone to come and shoot videos, edit them and then, you’re constantly on someone else’s schedule. So, this was the perfect opportunity to challenge myself creatively!
Not to mention, I always have a vision of what I’d like a video to look like and it’s frankly frustrating not being able to execute that vision. Or is that just me? Call me an over-achiever, but I want to be involved in every single step when creating my brand!
Well, a couple of weekends ago, I dragged Lu to the Downtown Community-TV Center (DCTV) in TriBeCa (in Manhattan), which offers classes, workshops and rentals for videography.
Doesn’t he look thrilled?
I found the course online through CourseHorse, which is this amazing website which lets you search for classes in your city (only available in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles right now – but I think there are more coming soon) in basically anything!
I chose Videography, but I was eyeing some of the cooking courses, like an “Italian Vegetable Dishes” class and then, there were some great options for some Adobe programs (like Photoshop) which I’m always using and always saying, “I really need to take a course on this!”
The class at DCTv in TriBeCa was amazing – immensely helpful in learning the basics of DSLR videography. It was called “Video DSLR,” in case you live in the NYC area and are curious. It was a two-day intensive course.
Some of the students were serious documentary filmmakers, some were people like me who want to shoot videos for their YouTube channels and others wanted to boost their resume for future job applications. It ran the gamut!
The instructor, Josh Koury, was so friendly, helpful, and patient. He went through the fundamentals and outlined everything for a beginner. He talked about the big pictures first and then got into the nitty-gritty, which I thought was really beneficial.
Now, I wouldn’t say that we’re experts now. I wouldn’t say we give Steven Spielberg a run for his moeny. However, after this class, we’re fully educated on how to make a basic film.
So much, in fact, that we made a film this Sunday, I edited it and now, I’m sharing it with you all! Prior to making the video, we had to invest in some videography basics. If you’re curious about making your own videos, I’m happy to share that list with you – just leave a comment and I’ll build it into a future post!
We’re so proud of the video and I can’t wait for you to see it (keep scrolling!) However, there are some things we struggled with, such as:
- Adjusting the aperture so that the focus was better
- Adjusting the white balance (the lighting in my apartment is terrible, because we live across from at all blue building that casts a blue shade over everything) – I look orange in a lot of the shots. I promise I’m not orange.
- Lighting in general – we didn’t use our purchased light kit, but we definitely will next time.
- Styling the shot – I’ll probably move my giant Poland Spring water cooler and the beach chairs in my hallway before shooting the next video. Maybe I’ll even get some flowers!
We didn’t learn editing in that class, but I’m already looking into courses on CourseHorse on that. I did the editing in iMovie, which isn’t the most versatile or professional program (but it’s all I had and was comfortable working in!)
At the very least, it was a fun weekend for an engaged couple and it’s a skill that we both learned together. It was a blast making the video with Lu – we had to work together, be patient and be positive when giving criticism (which can be tough sometimes when you’re so comfortable with someone – it’s easier to just scream, ‘stop, you’re doing it wrong!’)
Most importantly, I fostered my creativity, learned something new and now, I can save money and use these skills to bring you exciting, new video content more often! This is the most rewarding part of being an entrepreneur – figuring out how to do everything from scratch. It’s exhilarating!
Now, without further ado, here’s the debut of our first Inspiralized video – constructive criticism and compliments welcome! I’d love to hear what you think! Also, the recipe in this video (which, as you’ll see, is my favorite weeknight go-to meal) follows this post!
I even added a blooper at the end – I warn you, I’m a spaz!
Disclaimer: Although CourseHorse provided a free complimentary course at DCTV for me to review, all opinions are my own.
Nutritional Information & Recipe
Easy Weeknight Chicken Pomodoro Zucchini Pasta
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound boneless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper to taste
- ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup canned pomodoro sauce or sauce of your choice
- 2 medium zucchinis Blade C, noodles trimmed
- 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper and dice into cubes. Place a large skillet over medium heat and add in the olive oil. Once oil heats, add in the chicken and cook until done, 5-10 minutes.
- Once chicken is cooked, remove from the skillet and transfer to a small pot and set over medium heat. Add in the tomato sauce and let cook, about 3 minutes until sauce is heated.
- While sauce heats, add the zucchini noodles into the same large skillet and toss for 2-3 minutes or until cooked to your preference. Once cooked, transfer to a bowl and top with chicken and sauce. Top the pasta with freshly grated parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
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