Are you planning a big conference and need to record the event? Is your boss saying things to you like “We need to capture the keynote speaker”, “We need to stream the event live” or, “We need to put the video on our website later”? Here is a guide to what questions you will need answered to contract the right types of companies.

When was the last time you had fun at work? For many of us it has been a while and fun at work is usually something you do during lunch or around a watercooler. Employees may view work as dull, boring, unimaginative, and very often we see employees who are completely disengaged. Do a search for “employee engagement facts” and see what results you find. If you think employees are actively engaged you may be surprised to learn that many employees are not only disengaged, but actively...

One of the most common mistakes video producers make when they post videos on the internet is to not do Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for the video. Search engines cannot see the content of a video and they depend upon the metadata or the closed caption transcript to know what the video is about. This post will describe how to optimize the metadata on YouTube for SEO.

The technology to make create instant files directly from a tape-based camera is not new. Many companies have been marketing devices since tapeless cameras first camera out. But as the market becomes more refine, the devices become more intuitive. AJA has been one of the leaders in this market, and their most recent device, the Ki Pro Mini is no exception.

Sound Devices doesn’t sound like a company that would make a splash with a video mobile recording device, but they have in a big way. The Pix 220 and 240 are mobile video recorders that create up to 10-bit digital video files and transfer them to a compact flash of solid state drive. Not only can the Sound Devices Pix record from a tape to make an instantaneously digital file, it can convert resolutions of the file at the same time. The Pix 240 and 220 offers real-time conversion from 1080i...

Examining the Loss of Magnetic Media From Repeated Hard Drive Usage in Video Production

Advancing in technology today means making “less” of something. Camera technology is no different. It started by making the camera tape “less”, and now manufacturers strive to make the camera wire “less”.

Creative Asset Management is a key component of the video performance strategy. Implementing a content management strategy before shooting will help you to optimize your content for video search engine optimization (VSEO) if you intend to publish your content to the web, or for internal use, will help you manage locating, tracking, and building your content library. Whether you’re producing a video to publish for the viral or internal use, on or offline, here are some tips for implementing...

Red Light. Green Light. Red Light. Green Light. Much like the children’s game, video production is a sporadic stop and go ordeal. As a director of photography, when your green light is up, the client wants you to make the most efficient use of your time, and there is nothing worse than equipment failure. The Bebob Rouge ML-120 hot swap adapter can eliminate that moment for the camera battery for the RED camera. The Bebob Rouge ML-120 will take over when the battery dies for 2 minutes, enough...

Video is on track to be the most widely used online application. It’s creating a new standard for corporate communicators in today’s marketplace. When your organization incorporates a video messaging strategy the goal is to achieve optimal engagement and branded influence, but the content of your messaging is what reveals that actual outcome.

Do you ever wish that your camera support gear could multitask like a Leatherman Multi-Tool? With a simple flip of the wrist, a tripod could become dolly track; with another flip, a c-stand. The DC Slider manufactured by Floatcam, with distribution from Matthews Studio Equipment, offers this multifunctional concept to the camera platform. The DC Slider has a platform that can become a Mini Jib with a 63” jib arm.

The way society pays attention to media has changed. Are you shooting content relevant to the change? Going, going and soon to be gone are the days of static non-interactive content. Even in today's traditional television programming, messaging consists of commercials plugged with web inducement to activate engagement in audiences.

Many would agree that the key to successful lighting is control. Ask any freelance director of photography, however, and they will often tell you that control is difficult—if not impossible—to maintain in location production. With Litepanels new ENG camera-mounted lights, controlling light on location should be worry-free. Sola ENG LED Fresnel by Litepanels is a revolutionary...

The evolving landscape of new media has without question fundamentally reshaped corporate communications. Traditional measures for producing video content have new practices to comply with from standardizing production metrics to digitizing archives with streamlined meta-database referencing. Many companies new to the world of video communications are flocking to capitalize on the paramount trend sweeping the web with hopes that producing a video will put their business front and center on the...

Today’s technological world is about balance. People love large, epic technology in their homes, but the small portable for the everyday. Location production is no different. Sometimes location productions warrant a monitor when the camera is locked down, but sometimes the production is too run-and-gun to utilize a monitor. Zacuto has presented a good balance between those two situations with their Zacuto Z-Finder Electronic Viewfinders (EVF). Their line of attachable viewfinders has a 3.2”...

Apple and Intel have developed together a new transfer technology epically entitled Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt transfer technology is currently exclusive to the Lacie Little Big Disk drives. Thunderbolt technology integrates data and display protocol over a single cable, and can allow up to 10GB/second transfer speed bi-directionally from the drive to multiple sources.