by Demitri » Feb 27th, '06, 17:36
Ok, finally got it to play for me!
First change - This was very sloppy, but an interesting idea. Your get ready took too long - you need to work on pulling off a double quickly. The longer you take to do that, the more suspicious your audience will be. Your handling of the card was awkward, as well. Try to pull it off the deck in a way where you won't need to change or alter the way you're holding it for the effect. Any spectator will be suspicious if you have to handle "one card" with both hands. As for the change itself - there are a few little bits to work on. You can see the back of the original card as you're shaking - so you need to work on squaring it up in motion. Also, when you lay the "card" back onto the deck, the other card is noticeably sticking out off the top of the pack. The pack was squared perfectly while on the table, so even if your handling of the actual change was smooth, this would trigger the alarm and ruin the effect for you.
Card Spin - This was fine by me. I can't do it, so I won't comment on technique. Looks good.
Color Change - Not too bad, the moves were fluid and well done. A personal preference for me - is I like having the deck completely squared when the change is made. If the cards look slightly "off" as they did in your video, I think a spectator would suspect something. A way I work around this is as you do the change and bring your hand back to reveal, I bend the very tip of my middle finger over the edge of the pack, and squeeze in the heel of my palm on the back of the deck. It's quick and subtle - but is my way of squaring the pack before the reveal. Don't be too concerned with it - after a bit of practicing, the square up will take a split second and won't detract from the change.
Your shapeshifter was done well. The dribble get ready is a nice touch.
Snap change looked good to me. I didn't see any flashes or anything like that, so I can't comment on things to make it better.
The final change was interesting, but for some reason I just didn't like it. It was performed well, but it just didn't work for me. This is just a personal thing, so by all means continue to use it. Again, just watch your replacement of cards. Cards that aren't squared call attention. Keep working on that and it will enhance your effects.
Nice job. Keep up the good work.