I knew there was a reason I was hooking onto the size of video and aspect ratios. I was actually looking for a full manual to a still camera that I picked up. I stumbled into the Kodak Mini Video Camera, Product number #8398513.
This is a 640x480 video camera. It is small. How small? This is an image from the Kodak product site.
Yes, credit card small. Shirt pocket small. In your wallet small. Going through the rinse cycle in your pants small.
It is cute. I want one. This meaning nothing. I want to play with every camera and camcorder.
The Specs:
1/5–type VGA CMOS
Lens 3.1 mm (35 mm equivalent: 40 mm), aperture: f/2.4
Zoom 3X Digital - I beg you, don't use it!
Storage internal is 128MB with a MicroSD/SDHC slot for cards up to 16GB
Video format MJPEG with capture modes of VGA (640 × 480 @ 30 fps), QVGA (320 × 240 @ 30 fps), QVGA (320 × 240 @ 60 fps)
Still format JPEG
Microphone with mono sound
Tripod Mount - Yes!
Internal Rechargeable Battery
Amazon will have it on sale around September 20, 2010. Kodak on their web site shows it goes on sale in August. The price is $99 or thereabouts.
If you can work with the limitations and can see the interesting creative opportunities with this video camera then I think folks can have a lot of fun with it.
Don't use it to record Snookie's wedding. Do use it at the wedding barbecue and kegger feast.
Stay in the daylight and you will be fine. Bottom line, for an emergency or just in case video camera this could be just what you need when you need it.
I seem to be fixated on the topic. Early web videos was was 160x120. Yes, postage stamp videos. When I started shooting web video users were on 56k modems. The largest size we could use was 320x240 to upload video. All of those videos were in the square 4:3 aspect ratio.
Time marched on and soon entry level broadband spreads throughout the land. Folks started transitioning to 640x480. Then came the standard definition wide screen camcorders. Then voila, high definition camcorders.
That was fine when the user could make the decision on what size to upload. The problem is now most of the web hosts now are formatting their presentation screens for high definition formats.
What about all the prior content in various sizes and formats?
What about the functional camcorders that shoot in 4:3?
What do we do about prior content that might need to be re-fitted to the newer display formats?
This is another explanation of aspect ratio in plain English. The video is from Iceflow Studios TutCast. It is a little dated since YouTube has moved to even larger display options but it is still good.
I have about 300+ videos and more to come. For me, I need to consider making new choices about what standard size I'll be using to upload my videos. On the blogs it won't matter that much. I have a standard size that I use to fit my blogs format.
However the video hosts that I use also distributes my content to other places like the Internet Archive, Yahoo, iTunes and other content distribution points. Each has a preferred format and it is a safe bet they are using high definition/widescreen.
There isn't one answer. It depends on your equipment and needs. One way to think handle this is to be consistent.
If your camcorder records in 640x480 ----> Edit in the appropriate 4:3 aspect ratio ----> Export 640x480 No distortion or squished video. Viewers may see pillars on the side. That is ok so long as the video is correct.
There is a second option:
If you camcorder records in 640x480 ----> Edit in the appropriate 4:3 aspect ratio ----> Export 640x360 This will give the appearance of wide screen, no distortion. When displayed viewers will see the top and bottom letterbox bars.
Same idea for high definition camcorders. Record in 1280x720 ----> Edit in the appropriate 16:9 aspect ratio ----> Export 1280x720. You will have no problems because the video will fill the screen. Same concept for 1080p.
Unless the web hosts has moved to a higher aspect ratio. And they have. And the will. Once you understand how to do it you can adjust for any future changes in display size.
Elvira Sweeney is a Vidder. A vidder is someone who makes fan and fan tribute videos. They also at times create new videos based upon aspects of the original source.
Vidders, like videobloggers and those working in web video are having a dickens of a time with the ever evolving problems of maintaining the desired video frame size and aspect ratio. Many of the free web hosts are displaying videos in the 16:9 format.
Not all of us have HD camcorders. There are a lot of standard definition 640x480 camcorders out there, and standard definition wide screen camcorders as well.
In this video, Elvira does a good job of demonstrating the different aspect ratios of 4:3, 16:9 why it is important to pay attention to how you create and export your video to keep it in the proper ratio.
Just a few things, when she says DVD you think camcorder video format size. Also, I don't have a problem with the letterbox 16:9 bars but Elvira doesn't like them. But I do agree that if the video was shot in 16:9 you shouldn't see bars or pillars on the side.
For more information you can go to Elvira's Aspect Ratio page where she describes how to fix the problems of squishy videos.
There are times when you need a good kick in the pants. Something that reminds you that there are people creating quality work that you need to see in order to be a better person.
The Lens Blog at the New York Times has a mixture of photo slide shows, photography and video presentation that expand on what is a story.
Not only do you get to view the photojournalism but you also get to read how the photographer created the narrative for the story. I've just finished reading about how Eirini Vourloumis handled photographing Chinese businessmen in Africa and the post on A Living Ghost of the Khmer Rouge by Kerri MacDonald.
There is authentic journalism being practiced. There will always be people committed to telling authentic stories about our communities.
Busy is not the word for it. Should be back on schedule tomorrow but here is a little something I think you will like. Videomaker Magazine has a list of video tips that are very helpful to keep in mind.
There are quick tips on how to shoot good video, record audio and a sample model release that you can either copy or download.
I have read some grumbling from M$M sites and other so-called sage people that are kicking the Life in A Day user generated documentary concept. They question who would want to watch a video of people doing ordinary things?
They question how could anything good come from a pool of user generated content? Well, having seen a variety of user generated content I'm not that worried. There is a diversity of content including talking head, reporting/documentary, lifestyle and so much more.
Yes, some folks will record the goofy, the adorable, the obligatory cat video with equal time for the the dog video. There will be opportunists. There will be performers.
But what I hope for is more women take a moment and participate to share our stores. I hope that more men who have been quiet take a moment to tell who they are and what they dream of outside of the images presented in the media.
It is the small things that can move us, help us to see the ripple in the pond.
If you need to check out the rules dive into the Life in A DayFAQ.
Yet another good reason to mouse around new places. I viewed this video at ReelSeo blog. With a few bits of info you can make it easier for Google users to find your video. So they say.
This is Nelson Lee from Google explaining the process:
One of the main problem that independent videobloggers, web video creators and new media folks have is driving viewers to our sites. That has become more difficult with places like Hulu and YouTube. They do a great job of distribution and search but if you don't fit the format you are out in the cold.
It is a small step but important if it helps folks find your content. For more detailed information about how to create video sitemaps visit Google's Help page on creating video sitemaps.
I have to say the video implied it was easy but looking at the Help pages has caused me to wonder what the heck Nelson defines as easy. I'll take a closer look but I'm not sure that the video site map is intended for blog based users. If it is indeed for traditional web site programmers and developers then I would see it as a way to filter out independent content.
ReelSEO is a site for those folks interested in online video marketing and promotion. It is for marketers who want to understand and be a part of the business side of the video community.
However, as in most things, there is common ground that benefits all participants involved in web video. Encoding and compression is one of those things. This is a replay of a May 2010 presentation about Encoding Video for the Web.
This is definitely on the geeky side but there is good stuff if you can hang on.
It is one thing to believe it is a good idea but you just don't know the impact or the effect of what you are doing.
It is ok to call it quits. Sometimes it is necessary or the right thing to do. But if you are in it for a while you might find out that the blog and your work is important. Well, you are important no matter what but in the wee morning you question the value of the blog/vlog.
This video is podcaster Andrea Ross (I don't want to type the words former, I want to hope when she is ready she will get back to it.) talking about her children literature podcast, why she stopped and what she gained after the fact.
A good question came up on the Yahoo Videoblogging Group and I would like to document some of the answers provided. I'm going to make the question a bit more generic - Where can you post your videos? You have a variety of options depending on your skill level and needs.
Video Web Hosting Sites
All of the video hosting sites have a member or posting page for the uploaded video. If all you want to do is have folks view the video and you don't want to do anything more this is a fine option.
The limitation is that under a free membership you can't customize the page and have no control on what appears on the page. So if an ad pops up that you really don't like there is little you can do about it.
Easy Set-up Personal Blogs
You would like to have a blog but really don't want to spend too much time setting it up. Or you are on a mobile/smartphone device and need non-intensive options. You might want to look hosts like at Posterous and Tumblr
Posterous doesn't require membership, just an email account to upload text, photos and videos to your blog posts. You can also use it to feed content to other social networking sites.
Same deal with Tumblr you provide an email address, password and your desired blog name and up goes your Tumblr account.
Customizable Blogs
Next level are the customizable blogs. There are hundreds of them but I'll mention the well known ones as examples. Blogger is fairly easy to use. There are pre-made templates that a novice can use or you can squire your own template from other sources. You are locked in to the way Blogger does things but within that space you can do a lot of stuff.
By the way, you can use a mobile phone to upload to Blogger. If you are interested in that feature or other Blogger features check out the Blogger Help page.
Wordpress.com type blogs can be customize to the nth degree, there are plug-ins, attachments and all kinds of ways to personalize the blog. You do have to have the willingness to dive in and flip the switches.
Web Site
Old school I know, but for those that can sling the HTML/CSS vibe this is way to do. Total customization. Basic game plan is to obtain your own domain and locate a web host. I'll go into that in another post.
Bottom line, to thine own self be true, know your needs, skill level and time limitations and your decision process will be a lot easier.
This is a video by Clintus who is talking about the early days of videoblogging and the reasons why he has transitioned to YouTube. This is his opinion.
I understand what he is saying in the sense that there are so many more ways than the traditional method used by the original pre-YT videobloggers. They figured it out and was uploading videos long before YouTube and Blip.tv
YouTube made it easier to just upload videos without having to start, edit or create your own blog. You didn't even have to edit the video, just upload. There is no denying that it made it easy for all kinds of people to watch video and comment.
My biggest objection about YouTube is ownership of content. I just checked and section 6C they have address a portion of my major concern:
6c For clarity, you retain all of your ownership rights in your Content. However, by submitting Content to YouTube, you hereby grant YouTube a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicenseable and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, prepare derivative works of, display, and perform the Content in connection with the Service and YouTube's (and its successors' and affiliates') business, including without limitation for promoting and redistributing part or all of the Service (and derivative works thereof) in any media formats and through any media channels.
I left a comment at his post but I want to flesh it out a bit more.
I understand what Clintus is saying but I think that relying on one distribution source such as YouTube isn't good idea. I support all distribution paths included user generated. There are times when I don't mind the YouTube branding and other times it is not appropriate for the video.
Also things are changing again with mobile/smartphone/iPad video and multimedia content requirements. It can be an explosion of opportunity if we YouTubers, people that work in web video and Videobloggers take advantage of it.
I don't want to see a recreation of only multi-billion dollar sources controlling content.
We cannot and should not go back to those three channels on the television days. There is a vital need for open source media and distributed content. It is how this whole thing got started in the first place.
Create and distribute content in whatever mode you choose,
The answers are out there but there are different answers depending on your needs. This is Tim Smith giving his response to the question that I found at Videojug.
I just did a sweep of three blogs that claimed to have information about mini camcorders. Two were link bait or plastered with ads. The other seems to have been abandoned. Yes, it can be dicey trying to find reliable information about purchases.
I'm on the look out for new places but there are a few sites that have earned my loyalty. These web sites and blogs have timely information, good disclosure policies and have a diversity of camcorder information.
No one is 100% bias free but there is a difference between being a fanboy/fangirl and being enthusiastic about a brand and willing to check out other products.
Here are the places I would recommend for timely info on what I call web camcorders but mini camcorders works for me too:
CamcorderInfo has for years provided information about consumer, professional and now mini camcorders. Love the ethics section that explains how their writers and contributors handle relations with manufactures.
CNet Camcorder Reviews - Much goodness here from buying guides, camcorders by price breakout and videos of the new camcorders hitting the market. CNet also has First Look videos that give you the skivvy on camcorders.
A downside is that an ad may appear before the video. I can live with it because I have been going to CNet for 10 years and they gotta pay the bills like I do. The difference is that the site and the reviews are not plastered with 17 advertisements having nothing to do with camcorders.
Gizmodo The camcorder posts are lively. The folks that leave comments are passionate. Or jerks. Certainly opinionated. If you are in the market for buying a camcorder check out the deal of the day; there might be a code that can save you some cash.
Videomaker Magazine Product Reviews Page: I keep an eye on this one. Videomaker has a lot of good content anyway so it doesn't hurt to mosey around the joint.
I wrote a quick write-up for BlogHer on the global user generated video project being organized by Ridley Scott and director Kevin Mcdonald on YouTube.
Time is ticking because July 24, 2010 is but thought away.
From the project page:
On July 24, you have 24 hours to capture a glimpse of your life on camera. The most compelling and distinctive footage will be edited into a feature film, produced by Ridley Scott and directed by Kevin Macdonald.
The project would prefer video shot in high definition but I say use what you have, be creative and let them sort it out in the mix.
For more info go to the project page and check out the FAQs. This will open up a Google docs page that will give you the scoop.
There really needs to be a diversity of participation. I don't care who or what you think you are; if you can find the time record and upload a piece of your day on July 24, 2010.
For those of us that have been creating web video we have a never ending struggle to add music to our videos. Many of us did try to go to the office music license sites. We plowed through gibberish and bad search features. We tried to find the actually license owners.
When we did find the owner we learned that we didn't have $10,000 or more to rent the song for one use on a certain day under draconian conditions.
Fine. We work with musicians who do want us to share their music under their terms. Well, there is another option. FriendlyMusic.com could be an alternative to those folks that want an affordable music license for their videos.
For $1.99 it is worth taking the time to check it out.
As always, I want to know the details and the gotchas.
You visit FriendlyMusic.com and find a tune you want to place in your video. You find that bit of honey that you can afford currently $1.99 for a tune. You download the .mp3 and place it in your video.
According to the site's FAQ you are purchasing a synchronization (synch) license. One tune + one video. You can upload to places like YouTube, Vimeo and other sites and you won't get hassled or have your video yanked.
You can use segments of the song or the whole thing but just for that one specific video. However, the music can only be used for non-commercial purposes.
Define non-commercial. Back to the FriendlyMusic.com FAQ:
It means that if you are being paid to make your video, or are charging people to watch your video, or if you are getting revenue from advertising or other sources (other than UGC Network ad share revenue on the video portion of your production) when people watch your video then you have to contact us to negotiate an additional license fee.
The overlay ad that many web hosts place over the video? That is not a problem. That is ok because it is being done by the video web host, not you.
If you have products and services that you sell on your web site and you have audio from FriendlyMusic.com in your video you probably can't use the synch license.
If you have Google ads on your web site this could be considered commercial use. You would need to contact the web site to be absolutely sure.
Wait, there is more.
Most of us understand that when we sign up for free or paid video web hosting we agree not to upload certain types of materials that violate laws, community standards or are flat out illegal.
There are content restriction. If FriendlyMusic.com feels that you are in violation of their terms, independent of the video web hosts terms of service they can yank your right to use the musical content.
Do yourself a favor. Check out the terms of service to fully understand your rights and responsibilities. If you can live with those terms then you will be happy, the musician creating the work gets some money and maybe YouTube can focus on troll whacking a bit more.
YouTube made the announcement at VidCon2010 and on their own blog. Huge honking file size and can I say bandwidth choking 4K video can now be uploaded to the service.
Today at the VidCon 2010 conference, we announced support for videos shot in 4K, meaning that now we support original video resolution from 360p all the way up to 4K. To give some perspective on the size of 4K, the ideal screen size for a 4K video is 25 feet; IMAX movies are projected through two 2k resolution projectors.
Now this was going to happen. It is not a good thing or bad thing. You cannot stop innovation.
I'm gonna keep saying this until I'm blue in the face. In America we do not have the infrastructure to support massive 4K transmitted of videos over the Internet.
We do not have the infrastructure to handle the data needs currently required by the population. What good is 4G when we can't make simple mobile phone calls to a huge chunk of the country? Or calls that stand a 50/50 chance of being dropped?
Not to mention the data plans that want to restrict usage or make folks pay through the ying/yang. It isn't voice anymore. It is photo, videos, applications and texting gone berserk.
Cable and phone vendors like AT&T that want to slice up the Internet and stop Net Neutrality. Electricity. Power consumption. Resources. Squeeze out of user generated content for razzle dazzle. 4K cameras and camcorders?
I'm having a logic loop meltdown. Give me a moment.
Ok, I'm better. It isn't often I witness the birth of a new transmitting network and a new way of viewing video content.
It is a dog gone alphabet soup of video formats. Most video editing software can handle the standard ones like .avi, .mov or .mpg. If only it was that simple.
The truth is more complicate depending on your operating system, the software that you are using and the video that is produced by your camcorder.
Daniusoft Online Converter might be an option for those of you that have a great camcorder but you have a funky file format that does not play nice with your editing software.
M2TS, AVI, MP4, MPG, MPEG, 3GP, WMV, ASF, MOV, FLV, MKV, OGG Video aka Theora, DV, NSV
If any of these video file extensions ring a bell as to giving you fits there might be help for you. Let me share with you some common examples:
1. Your camcorder records in .mp4 but you are using Windows Movie Maker2 which only accepts .avi, and .wmv videos.
2. A friend gives you a video in the .wmv format and you want to put the video on your iPhone/iPad. You don't have QuickTime Pro and this is a one time only need. You only want to convert the video from one video file format to another.
3. You are a Linux, you breath Linux and will not be party to any imprisoned format. You want to convert the video you have to .OGG video
4. There is a video in the .mov format that you want to place on your 3gp phone.
The answer is to take your source video and convert into the desired format. You can use free applications like the Daiusoft Online Converter to help you out in a pinch. I would not use this on a regular basis but for occasional or field use in a pinch this is doable.
What You Will Need:
You will need a stable Cable/DSL/Broadband/Wi-Fi connection
The ability to locate where your video is on your computer in order to upload it.
You will need to know the file size of your video. You can upload to a maximum of 100MB. That is cool but some video files can be as large as a gigabyte.
The ability to rename the file so that you can locate it later and import into your video editing program or media device.
The web application is free. Now Danisoft does have similar products for sale. There might be one or two of them that you might want to check out if you plan on converting a lot of videos.
If you are interested in checking out those programs visit the main site at http://www.daniusoft.com
In the meantime keep the site in mind when you have a video conversion emergency.
Oh my. I was planning on stopping VidCon 2010 for one day. I didn't register because I thought there would be tickets at the door. Oops. They just sold out.
It does happen that folks don't show up but I'm thinking the place is going to be filled with mid-west and west coast YouTubers that couldn't attend the prior east coast events.
My understanding is that the parts of the conference will be live streamed. What am I saying? The place is going to be packed with people, computers, mobile phones and massive Wi-Fi demands.
The hotel IT and media AV people are going to be crying around 11:30 a.m. I've seen it happen. Unless the hotel folks were really briefed on the needs of the users of the conference there is a server or two that is going to go down.
Or not.
Anyway, maybe by Sunday a chunk of folks will be burned out, go home and I can slip on in. Seems like that would be closer to the spirit of an un-conference anyway.
Ryan Koo is at the helm of the No Film School site for transitioning filmmakers, creatives and other folks working in the various modes of telling visual stories.
There is a section on the site that provides a guide on DSLR video capture, processing and rendering those types of videos. The guide is directed to people who understand the basics of photography or creating videos.
And no, you are not going to shoot the modern day equivalent of Casablanca on it. But you might supplement your still photography with a brief video interview. You might record a video and want to use still photography for enhanced details of your subject matter.
These cameras give photographers and visual storytellers options. These options may require you to understand about sensors, frame rates, codes, conversions and finding new forms of meditation as things go wrong.
That is part of the fun. Unless you are on deadline. In which case read the guide now instead of suffering later.
I've met or had dinner with Vu and Lan as part of the Yahoo Videobloggers group. When I saw the link to their site I had to check it out. There was a lovely video on motion portraits created by The Bui Brothers.
At the site there are examples of their work, commentary, tutorials and the process they use to perfect the photo or video. It is also a place to observe the use of DSLR cameras with HD video.
I need to say I don't know what happened at the 2010 Streamys anymore than The Bui Brothers. Really, I'm not even gonna look it up.
If I did look it up I'd probably shake my head. I suppose I would wind up classifying the experience as a future learning lessons for organizers, presenters and participants.
There will be people talking. There will be people recording.
Years ago my choices were using a still rangefinder or single lens reflex cameras. There was no functional consumer video camcorders until the mid-1980s.
It took another 20 years for affordable camcorders to become accessible to the general public and another 5 to 7 years for digital video to kick in to place. There are a few of us that have wanted both still and video functions in one device.
Digital SLR or DSLR are now moving down in price to the consumer level. DSLR Video cameras make it possible to have stunning photos and video capture from one device. Along with innovation comes questions. What skills do you keep and which no longer serve your needs?
For all of us - from amateur, hobbyist, semi-pro or master craft-person there is a never ending learning curve. Yes, you take the time to set up a block of skills and knowledge. I don't much care how a person does that whether in school, self-taught or combination learning.
My point is that a foundation of skills and understanding helps you to adapt to changes in technology, products and distribution of your creative work. It has been true that your take the best of the past and, if possible, incorporate it into the new. Well, it should be true, maybe we need to start an intellectual recycling movement or something.
What I like about Dave's site is that he is conducting an open evaluation where we can observe the process. It will be a while before I can afford or justify purchasing a DSLR Video camera.
Well, no I could justify it right now but I can't afford it just yet. In the meantime, I can learn as I go with folks like Darren and Dave. I love finding good resources and instructional help.
In all things there is a balance. Let's say you want to go to VidCon 2010 in Los Angeles but you just can't swing the admission fee or have a fear of enclosed spaces filled with Flips and Nanos.
Not to worry. This is your answer:
SamProof has a open Facebook page with more info and location information. He isn't anti-VidCon.
According to his mission statement:
NonCon's goal is to provide people with fun and inexpensive things to do while gathering in Loa Angeles.
We're not Anti - VidCon - we just want to make events for people who can't afford to spend $120 for 3 days (+hotel fees)
That is how he typed it. I don't edit other people's quotes. My philosophy is when in Rome do both. Works in Los Angeles too. There is a lot to discover in the city this big so this can be a lot of fun if folks get into the spirit of it.
You can follow SamProof on his Twitter page as well.
