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Do some people find it easier to learn a new effect from written instructions? or from a visual of someone performing it either at lecture or dvd?

Ive found that I pick up things when they are visual alot quicker than when writte down.

How do you find this?

what are you thinking of releasing chris?

IAIN wrote:what are you thinking of releasing chris?

Neither. I tend to make up my own stuff.

what are you thinking of releasing chris?

Well funnily enough there is a little something in the works (but thats not to be discussed in this area) I was just genuinley interested as Ive just been reading something that didnt really sink in at all, wereas Ive just watched it on dvd and got it straight away. Just intrigued me really...

Geoffrey Durham spoke about this the other night in his lecture.

He tells people to not use DVD's and video's because you will end up copying the person's rhythm instead of finding your own which you will do with written instructions.


I see where he is coming from, but tend to disagree. Yes it is possible for that to happen, but anyone with a desire to craft their own individual persona will still develop their own way (not method) of performing a routine they learn. Visually, as long as the teacher is competent enough to warrant teaching the item in question, most people will pick it up "easier"* because they can see the correct positions their hands have to go in, etc

*not necessarily better though

Isnt it that some people are visually aware whilst others learn through text? or something odd like that....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_learning

Arkesus: Geoffrey Durham also says this in his book.
I have to READ before I found this out as his lecture tours are limited.

IF you read instructions. thoroughly and I mean thoroughly, not as I am certain many magicians do, scan quickly to discover the secret; you will have a better understanding of the effect's workings/handling.
The written word makes you think for yourself. That is why books are always a more certain way of absorbing ideas than dvds.
DVDS can spoon feed lazy magicians.
Too many, (mainly the younger set) slavishly copy the routines, the handling, the patter etc. from DVDS

So, read & understand the instructions, learn the handling, practise the handling. Discover if there is something you SHOULDN'T do with the apparatus.
THEN IF you need to check anything visually, you can use the dvd.

I also believe filing the instructions,in order, not reading them once then throwing them away as GD recommends on page 91.

Some effects are often stored away after,say, a season to two's use.
You may find that memory may let you down when you resurrect the trick unless you have the backuo of files to refresh your mind.

Allen Tipton

There's a very subtle thing that's quite interesting about DVDs. When someone is committing what they do to cellulite they have to perform it, preferably on someone who is not a performer themselves. You never get that performance in a book. What you do get is what you get in the DVD, a set of instructions which is essentially how the performer themselves considers is the way the trick is done. Whereas this is something that they rarely get wrong (!) what does happen is that there will be little things that perhaps they do out of habit, and so aren't all that conscious of them any more, or they leave out for economy, that are actually just as important as the raw mechanics.

My experience of learning effects from DVDs, therefore, is this. I watch the performance; I watch the explanation; I practice; I perform it on someone; something goes terribly wrong and the trick fails; I identify where the trick went wrong; I go back and watch the performance and discover something that specifically prevents that wrong from happening.

There's a trick I love that begins with a participant cutting into a loose stack of cards and shuffling them. Later in the trick I will ask them to cut the cards. At this point, if they shuffle the cards, all is lost, but it is a sad fact that some people do not know the difference between cutting and shuffling, and some people will be content to cut the cards into three packets and reassemble. I'd encountered this a couple of times, and on going back to the performance section of the DVD noted that the performer, after getting the spectator to make that initial shuffle, suggests they cut the cards too. The only reason why the cut is suggested at that point is to learn how the participant will interpret the instruction, but that is something that is overlooked in the instructions. It's those little lessons that you potentially miss out on if you learn an effect from a book.

That said, I own more books than I do DVDs and there is a lot to be said for learning these things yourself.

Both.

If possible I read about it. Cant grasp it, seek a demo (just performance usually) and then go from there.

Sometimes its done in reverse, but I personally find that harder to grasp.

I dont just find this with Magic though, I find I learn anything quicker visually than through text based learning. I found this with Palm reading also...spent hours reading books - in one ear- out the other- yet when I was shown it first hand by someone I picked it up straight away.

Books every time.

I don't mind pictures or photo's included in the text as they can often paint a thousand words but as has been mentioned in this thread previously DVD's are an ok source of ONE presentation or style but too many young magicians are just following the DVD patter etc verbaitum.
I'm old school though. I enjoy the plesures of sitting and reading. and I have a small warm feeling inside when on a quiet day with nothing else to do I just browse through my own magic library.

I realise that creators often have to go with market trends and question how well a product would sell without the now common DVD instructions.
But this is also from my jaded perspective that the "new generation" of magicians are all about method and not about performance.

I enjoy the plesures of sitting and reading

dont get me wrong I love reading myself, it just doesnt sink in

Isnt this just a generation thing ? When I started learning magic the only real option was books. I am self taught in alot of areas (not just magic) and its all came from books. Wheras alot of the newer generation tend to like the dvds. Dont get me wrong, I have a couple of magic dvds which are very good. Though there is nothing I like better than sitting down with a good magic book

jim

i would always use a video instead of a book if i can. i reckon it is mostly that books can be badly written so you do not understand what is meant. if you can see what is needed then it is very simple to learn. it's also hard to practice and read but it's easy to watch and repeat.

I like books and I like DVDs, but which one's best?

Only one way to find out......