Why do you shoot home video?

November 25, 2008 at 1:04 am | In Editing Video, Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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I know why I do.

And well-known New York Times tech writer David Pogue knows why he shoots home video too. But he recently got an avalanche of comments to his blog from people, both for and against taking the time to preserve your personal memories.

His original blog post captured his compelling reasons for capturing family moments on video.

Pogue’s folo-up post examined the public reaction he got to his position.

Look, if you don’t believe in the purpose of preserving your family’s milestones through video, you’re probably not reading this anyway. If you’re on the fence, allow me to make the case, with the help of Pogue, who lists five reasons for shooting video:

1. For our older selves – “Life is fleeting,” Pogue writes. I couldn’t agree more. My youngest kids will be out of the house in 10 years. I already watch their baby and toddler videos over and over. You don’t think I’ll want to watch their soccer, baseball and basketball games when I’m 60?

2. For our descendants. Sure, the relatives I’ll never meet may not care about my kids’ (their grandparent’s) baby videos. Yeah… right. I would love to see video/film of my grandparents as children. But it doesn’t exist. One of the people who commented on Pogue’s post put it best, you need to “Plant a seed for a tree you’ll never sit under.”

3. For pleasure. Home video and photography is a rewarding hobby. But it also has a purpose (See #1 and #2).

4. For historians. Because you never know, Pogue says, “The home videos of today might become a valuable archive for historians of the future.”

5. For posterity. Yes, it’s true. Our ancestors may not care to watch our home video. But, Pogue writes, “Believing that somebody *might* someday be interested in your videos inspires and drives us.”

In his folo-up to his original post, Pogue reposted this comment from a reader, who said we document our lives because “It is as natural to our natures as breathing and our need for love.”

So why do you shoot home video?

If you’re comfortable shooting video, but don’t have the computer, software or skill to edit it on DVD, give me a call at 651-402-7086 or email me at kevin@kevinhuntvideo.com.

I’d love to help you tell and preserve your story.

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Use of video in churches

October 9, 2008 at 11:12 pm | In Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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Many churches, except for probably the most conservative denominations, have fully embraced the use of video as a supplement to their weekend services. The purposes are many… pastors recording sermons from unique locations, interviews and soundbites with church members, TV-news style recaps of mission trips and community service projects, etc… Even skits with humor.

Depending on their size and budgets, churches using video typically rely on members with shooting and editing skills to produce the clips. Some churches have created a church videographer position or a “Creative Arts Pastor” role. In the videos, sometimes the church staff does some acting. (For example, my church has done a parody of “The Office”, with several “characters” playing the roles of office employees).

Done right. I think video in church is a refreshing addition to the teaching/sermon time of a service and a way to stay culturally relevant.

The key is, the video has to look professional. It can’t look like someone used their hand-held camera without a tripod, microphones or lights.

An article in Christianity Today recently highlighted some great professional video work being done at Bel Air Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles. They’re not the first or the biggest church video operation but they are notable for their work. They are essentially a drama group. They even have their own YouTube channel.

Read the article if you’re interested in learning more, but I wanted to show you one of the examples from the Bel Air Drama Department (BADD), titled “I Never Said That”):

Five mistakes in many corporate videos

September 19, 2008 at 12:04 am | In Business Video, Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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I do corporate videos in my day job and for my video business upon request. It can be challenging to tell a corporate story for an internal or external audience that on first glance appears to be lacking personality, inspiration and muddied by corporate speak.

I thought I’d post some quick thoughts on some mistakes I’ve seen some corporations make with their videos.

Using video when audio or text work better

Want to post a five-minute video of the CEO giving a mid-year update for employees? Think again. There is no reason to have any exec stand in front of a camera and read a teleprompter for five minutes, when they can accomplish the same thing in an audio clip, email or text announcement on your Intranet.

Not enough lighting

Unfortunately, many corporate videos I’ve seen appear to be shot without any regard for lighting the interview subject, or lighting the area where you’re shooting in. To get around this, some less experienced video production folks will try to adjust the gain on their camera to account for the dark room. Bad idea. Light it right or don’t bother videotaping it at all.

Poor audio

If you don’t use a lavalier (lapel), stick or boom mic on your interview subject you’re wasting videotape and time. Seems like a no-brainer, right? Well, a downfall of the YouTube generation has led some in corporate land to think that the on-camera mic is good enough. It isn’t. No matter if you’re in a quiet conference room or a loud trade show floor. Invest in a wireless system or a stick or boom mic. And use it.

Too many chefs

When several people are involved in the script planning and writing, several people think they have the answer to making the video look good. Worse yet, you then have several people suggesting edits to the draft of the finished video because they don’t like the font of the graphics, the music, or think it’s too long, etc…

The dreaded teleprompter

Aside from CEOs, for once-in-a-while carefully scripted messages for employees or an external audience, no one in your company should be allowed to give an “interview” via a script on a teleprompter. It’s fake. And it shows.

If those five things seem like common sense, allow me to repeat what a manager once told me when I pointed out some suggestions for a corporate video I was asked to do.

“Can’t be that hard,” he said. “All you have to do is press the red button.”

Right. That’s all I have to do.

Idiot.

Video and photography and the law

September 12, 2008 at 10:42 pm | In Photography, Shooting Video | 1 Comment
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In my career in TV news, it was common to run into situations where people called our newsroom after seeing themselves or their kids in a newscast and threatened to sue the TV station if we showed the video footage of them again.

Sorry, you were in a public place, we’d tell them.

That remains a common misconception of many people. And more so today with so many more video cameras and still cameras on the streets.

Bottom line, if you’re in a public place – a park, store, school, shopping mall – and have no expectation of privacy or are not trying to seclude yourself from public view then you may be photographed or videotaped.

And, those photos and that video can be posted or published in various places. In my video business, where I often am shooting video or photos at high school or youth sporting events, I don’t need permission of the players, coaches or fans to put that on the Web for “news” or “artistic” purposes. I do get permission, however, to use images for marketing purposes.

It’s important to note that taking photos or video and publishing or posting photos or video are two different things.

The tricky part is, if you use a photo or video to imply that the person in the video is doing something they’re not, or use their image to put them in a negative light, then you can get in trouble.

I tracked down some great resources if you’re interested in reading more about the law as it pertains to photography and video. I can’t possibly address all the various situations that can come up, so…

The Best Article Every day featured a post called “The 10 Legal Commandments of Photography” that features some good scenarios and links.

Get the most from your high school team highlight video

September 10, 2008 at 1:38 am | In Editing Video, Shooting Video, Team Video | 1 Comment
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(This post is also available as a PDF on Scribd)

“The DVD was a tremendous hit at the banquet. Lots of laughs, applause and smiles.”

That’s the kind of actual customer feedback craved by every video production professional creating a high school team highlight DVD.

Did you feel that way when your son or daughter’s team video was played at their season-end banquet? If your answer is no – or “sort of” – then this article is for you.

Now more than ever.

In this era of the ever-increasing popularity of video – online, on the go and on your fancy flat screen at home – it’s becoming more likely for high school coaches, booster clubs and parents to hire a videographer/editor to capture the memories of their team’s season on camera and showcase them in a compelling team video.

But one video editor’s idea of “compelling” can be different than their competitors. And too often the less compelling video costs more.

Because your memories matter.

This article presents three concepts to consider for anyone concerned that the highlight videos ordered every year by their high school coaches, booster clubs and parents – no matter what the sport – have been falling far short of what they could and should be. Continue reading Get the most from your high school team highlight video…

Are you ready for moments?

August 30, 2008 at 11:56 am | In Photography, Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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“Some of life’s greatest opportunities come unexpectedly.”

That’s what Sarah Palin, John McCain’s choice as his running mate, said in her first public remarks yesterday after being selected for the campaign.

Got me thinking.

Are you always ready to capture life’s great opportunities and moments, for that matter, on video or with your still camera?

Can’t get the shot if you don’t have the gear with you,

Creative shots for your video and photos

August 27, 2008 at 11:54 pm | In Photography, Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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Been thinking of some advice to pass along for anyone who picks up a home video or still photo camera from time to time – That’s you – to get a little more creative.

Whether it’s for sports, family events or just for fun… Here are three quick tips:

1) Get low, get tall

No, that’s not just the advice my high school basketball coach gave me. It means sometimes you have to change your perspective to get a memorable shot.

What’s more interesting, a shot of your son/daughter jumping on the trampoline, taken while you’re standing next to the trampoline? Or, a shot you get while jumping with them, or even lying down on the trampoline while they jump around you?

My tall example is simple… put the video or still camera on a tripod and extend it high above your head, pointed down at whatever you’re shooting. Works great to get a shot of a team huddle, or family seated around the birthday child opening their presents at a party,

Don’t settle for boring.

2) For every action there’s a reaction

What does that mean? If little Sally gets her first soccer goal and you got it on video or in a photo, swing your camera around quick to get a nice close up of mom or dad clapping, jumping up and down, etc…

Don’t forget to shoot the things you’d normally notice when the camera wasn’t in your hands!

3) Peel back the layers

Layer your shots, meaning… have something interesting in a foreground lower corner of the shot you’re framing up. It could be a flower pot. It could be a picnic table at your campsite. Your dog. Have something that fills the space in front of your intended subject. The result is instantly a more creative photo or video.

I do… weddings

August 4, 2008 at 11:55 pm | In Photography, Shooting Video, Wedding Video | Leave a Comment
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About to say I do? I’ve got a proposal for you. Pun intended.

I’m not interested in being your main wedding videographer for your ceremony.

You read that right.

You see, I’d rather that you hire an expensive pro to capture your ceremony. The wedding procession, the vows, the kiss, etc…

I’m more interested in doing affordable wedding recap videos like this from the very talented Giant Brothers Films in Salt Lake City. Man, are they good!

And, wouldn’t a video like this be perfect to play at your groom’s dinner or before the wedding dinner kicks in?

In addition to video before or on your wedding day, you’re also probably weighing your options for a photographer.

Well, how about hiring the expensive pro to take all the official wedding party portraits, and I’ll serve as your official, affordable candid photo taker with my Nikon DSLR camera?

I’ll make sure you have plenty of creative photos of you, your wedding party and your family and friends before the ceremony and after. Including at the dinner and dance after your official photographer has long since gone home for the night. I’ll shoot pictures for a few hours and give you every jpeg on a CD for you to print out or store.

Or, if you’d like, I can also edit the photos into a compelling slideshow set to some of your favorite love songs, on DVD.

Now, I can’t even come close to this amazing wedding photographer, no one can, he’s awesome! But his kind of style and unique visual storytelling is definitely what I set out to do in addition to standard posed shots.

Future brides and grooms, how do you want to capture -all- the memories of your wedding?

Give me a call today at 651-402-7086 or email me at kevin@kevinhuntvideo.com and get what you pay for, for your special day.

The do it yourself dilemma

July 24, 2008 at 9:53 pm | In About Me, Business Video, Editing Video, Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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As I get older – pushing 40 now real fast – and my kids inch closer to the dreaded teenage years, I find that it’s easier to make the decision not to try and do a do it yourself project that I have no business doing.

Make sense?

Let me explain… Sure, I cut and nailed in all the wood trim after we (my wife and my brother-in-law) put in a Pergo floor in our living room.

But the trim was a pain to install. It took me a whole day! Not to mention the horrible job I did with all the nails that I couldn’t get to go in all the way so they’re sticking out of the trim. Nice look. Bugs me every time I look at the trim.

Should have hired a pro.

Sure, I’ve painted my kids’ bedrooms a few times but each time it’s taken several hours, not counting the cleanup, because I’ve always managed to blob repeatedly on the ceiling or on the carpet, making it much more of a mess than it needed to be.

I learned my lesson on that one. When we wanted to paint our main rooms…

We hired a pro.

Just because you can change a headlight bulb in your car, it doesn’t mean you can replace the brakes.

Just because you can build a shelf in the garage out of 2×4’s and plywood, doesn’t mean you can build a four season porch add-on to your home.

I know that many of you reading this have dabbled in learning to edit your home video. You may even be getting good at it. That’s great! I hope you have enough time to keep it up.

But no matter what your skill level, I can save you the time. I can add professional editing experience to your projects. I can add creativity that comes from the passion I bring to telling your story. Your video is as important to me as it is to you.

When it comes to video, hire an experienced (and affordable!) pro.

Five steps to improve your home video right now

June 24, 2008 at 10:01 pm | In Shooting Video | Leave a Comment
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When it comes to shooting video, it doesn’t matter if you consider yourself a beginner or an average or above-average videographer… there’s always something new to learn.

Here are five basic tips/reminders for what you can do the next time you press the proverbial red button on your consumer model camcorder that will improve your video:

1) How’s your lighting? – It seems basic, but you can’t shoot in low-light conditions without either turning on some lights or adjusting the gain on your camera. Best case, make sure there is plenty of natural light if you’re shooting indoors but not too much as it will “washout” your shot. If you need light, some consumer model cameras come equipped with a light on the camera – use it! If you’re outdoors, avoid shooting toward the sun and avoid shooting someone with the sun in their eyes if you can help it. Try to have the sun to one side or the other of their face.

2) Get in the right frame – If you’re shooting your daughter opening a present, pay attention to where she is in your viewfinder. Frame her with enough space above her head and in front of and behind her. Don’t be too far away. Don’t be zoomed in too close. Also, if someone you’re shooting is talking to someone to your left, don’t frame the person on camera on the left side of your viewfinder. Give them headroom – space in front of the direction they are speaking. Again, seems simple but this is a common mistake.

3) Change angles – Don’t sit on the couch and shoot everyone at your party from one angle. Get up, try a new perspective from another location in the room.

4) Don’t talk! – It’s the most annoying part of anyone’s home video, yet we’ve all done it. “Oh look, there’s Billy getting another hot dog.” Billy may be going for seconds, but you don’t need to give the play-by-play. Save the commentary for when you’re watching your video later. Resist the urge to talk! It’s not just annoying, you risk ruining the moment of a baby taking some steps, a grandmother reacting to a special gift, etc…

5) Steady it with a tripod – This is a given, and I’ve written about this before, but you must use a tripod whenever possible. Your video will suffer a bad case of the shakes and even you won’t want to ever watch it again.

Want more tips? Check out my previous post geared toward shooting sports video.


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