Blast-video

The importance of writing to your video

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 06:48 GMT

Shawn Montano of the Edit Foundry has a post that, to me, illustrates how important it is for video journalists to write scripts based upon the video that accompanies the story.

Quite often I’ll get a story that a reporter has written with more than a few lines in which I challenge myself to find shots that are relevant to the story. This is one of those stories. A majority of the story I felt the shots I chose worked well. But there are some lines of track I really struggled finding the right shot to edit in.

For those tough lines, Shawn chose shots that carried a symbolic meaning that was close to what the reporter said.

In a perfect world, the reporter would have figured out that her script didn't fit the video, and she could have rewritten. Alternatively, she could have simply shot all of the video that she needed for the story she wanted to tell. But everyone knows the world isn't perfect. When both options fail, people like Shawn save the day.

Go check out his post to watch the story and read about how he did it.

The importance of writing to your video

Tutorial: How to create 3D film animation with PShop layers and Apple's Motion.

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:59 GMT

CBSNews.com overhauls site with emphasis on video

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:32 GMT

Yesterday CBS News revealed its new site, which aims to ease navigation and put more focus on video content. The CBSNews.com landing page now features a mix of the latest news articles, pictures and video, with prominent placement for CBS...

Tips from a reporter who learned the basics

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 06:36 GMT

John Tedesco is a San Antonio Express-News reporter who I had the pleasure of teaching video during my time there. He was a good listener and a quick study. Now he's ready to share what he learned with others. Go check out his post where he lays down the basics of shooting video, with a great attitude:

As a newspaper reporter, I think it’s challenging and fun to figure out new ways to tell a story with video, which can reveal some things better than the written word.

To illustrate his tips, John posted before and after videos.

Here's an example of what John would have produced before training:

Here's an example of what he can produce after learning the basics:

Tips from a reporter who learned the basics

Video Journalism Fight Club

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 00:42 GMT

Inspiration for learning videojournalism

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 06:20 GMT

Ken Kobre has an awesome post about one still photographer who has finally given in to the video demands of his newsroom. The effort brought some harsh criticism, and Ken is sticking up for the photog. These are inspiring words for anyone who is just learning video.

In sum, the point here is not to pick on a particular photographer, who has spent decades shooting stunning images around the world, but rather to underscore the chasmic leap that even the best still photographers must make to conquer the world of videojournalism. While photographers have some advantages, as one critic aptly noted, a lifetime of experience capturing stills does not prepare you for shooting moving images: “It takes time and practice. It involves changing the way you see, think and work.”

The harshest naysayers, accomplished videographers in their own right, compared Lee's video to a student project. While intended as an insult, that may in fact be the highest compliment. After all, the best videojournalists are learning as we're doing. It comes with the territory. Every assignment is another lesson.

Go read Ken's post to find out what criticism he was debunking.

Inspiration for learning videojournalism

Cultural shifts - the emerging video journalism picture

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 05:01 GMT

Learning video journalism - a trainer's tale

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 00:08 GMT

How To Think About the New News? Listen to Best Buy

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 06:43 GMT

Watch this video, and while you're doing it, substitute Best Buy's products for news and it's brand/stores with a news organization.

Everything Best Buy CMO Barry Judge talks about Best Buy doing this or that, think about how a news organization can do or think similarly.

What did you think?

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Skills needed by today's journalists

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 07:01 GMT

Renee Barnes is a radio journalist in Australia; she also teaches online journalism there. In her blog News Frontier, she recently asked readers to rank eight skills, or skill sets, for new journalists:

Evidence of blogging and interaction with a wide range of blogs

An understanding and active use of social media (Twitter, RSS, social bookmarking etc.)

The ability to tell an engaging story using still images and audio (audio slideshow)

Ability to shoot, edit and tell stories using video

Basic ability to create interactive story elements using Adobe Flash

Ability edit audio and produce podcasts

Ability to file from the field breaking news

Ability to moderate online discussion

Actually, Barnes said “online journalists,” but I think that means ALL journalists.

I like the way she broke up the skill sets. I also liked reading the responses she received on her blog. Several people rated 1 and 2 very highly; some thought 7 was paramount; most put 5 in last place, and I would agree with that. After all, she's asking for “most important” skills — for journalists across the board.

My ranking would be 3, 2, 7, 6, 1, 8, 4, 5.

I think that without the ability to do No. 3 well, the rest just falls by the wayside. Too many journalists have trouble recognizing (and ignoring) a tired old story that no one wants to hear. Too few have a knack (and the true curiosity) to sniff out a unique story that will catch almost anyone's attention. You can't do No. 7 properly or well if you have not mastered No. 3. Moreover, No. 6 is vital to both video and slideshows. If you can't do audio well — gather, edit, format, equalize, and output — you can't do video either.

One skill I would definitely add, for a new ninth item, is interviewing. This goes hand in glove with 3, 6, and 7. In listening to raw audio of student journalists' interviews, I hear that they often ask terrible questions, fail to listen attentively, miss many opportunities for follow-up questions, and sometimes flat-out fail to ask the most necessary questions. Interviewing does not come naturally like breathing, and I think we're neglecting it as a skill to be honed in many of our classes. Yes, we teach about interviewing — but how many journalism educators actually listen to their students conducting a one-on-one interview?

(Thanks to PhilChubb for pointing out Barnes's post to me.)

Great use of graphics and pictures in video form

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 06:52 GMT

This piece on the Mexican drug war is an example of the wonderful use of graphics and pictures to tell a story. Very informative and compelling. There's really not that much video in it at all, but it definitely works.

Great use of graphics and pictures in video form

The Rumors are True! Shawn Smith Now Unemployed!

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 06:09 GMT

Well, not exactly unemployed. Starting today, I'm self-employed :-P

Today is my last day serving as senior producer for MLive.com.

My video explainer (turn your volume all the way up - sorry about that)

WHERE I'M GOING

Since 2007 I've been working on my own internet marketing group with three others. We started by building websites for small and medium-sized businesses, and that grew into other things, like search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click marketing (PPC) and social media marketing.

This year, we've far exceeded our goals, and we have the confidence to start making this a real gig.

My full-time “job” will be internet marketing for my own crew - Optimal Webworks!

AM I BAILING ON JOURNALISM?

No. I'm not.

I'm going after a dream of mine that I think I have a real shot at achieving.

In the meantime, I'll still be talking at universities about the new landscape for journalism and I'll hopefully have more time to share ideas here for using new media to improve journalism.

AM I OPEN FOR BUSINESS?

YES … if the project is right. Contact me through this blog or @shawnsmith or through OptimalWebworks.com.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

It's been awesome to get to know many of you through this blog and conferences and working relationships. You really helped push me forward and think in new directions.

To my friends at MLive: You all are awesome. It's incredible to look at what we accomplished in the four years I spent with you despite numerous limitations. Thank you Eric Braun for hiring me and encouraging me. Thank you Mark Hauptschein for keeping me on a upward track and your advice. Thank You Bill Emkow for listening to me, believing in me, and pushing me to do what was necessary - for MLive and myself. Thank you Justin Rogers for filling all the holes I ignored and balancing my madness. Thank you Mike Schiller for being a good friend. Thank you Christine Lasek and Tim Agne for putting up with me and helping me learn how to lead. Thank you Mike Itchue and Jonathan Oosting for hearing me, challenging me and finally taking the reigns. Thank you Kevin Nichols for making me feel welcome. Thank you James Schmehl and Phil Zaroo for some of the best shares in the office. Thanks to everyone who helped me succeed.

To my friends at Advance Internet: I can't thank you enough for all the opportunities you've given me. From sending me to New Orleans during the Katrina aftermath to shooting the shit at ONA conferences to encouraging me to push the envelop at MLive - you guys really gave me a chance to explore and grow. As my time winded down at MLive I realized what an incredible family Advance is. For all the cursing I did in the beginning :), I don't think there would have been a better place for me to be employed. Getting hired and embraced into the Advance Internet family was one of the best things I could have ever asked for. Thank you Scott Brodeur for engaging with me and encouraging me from the start - even before you were at Advance. Thank you John Hassell for inspiring my Twitter effort and your support. Thank you Joe Territo for giving me an ear. Thank you Steven Ibanez for shooting the shit with me and asking my input.

And thank you newspaper friends I made. You all helped me become a better teacher and a better listener. There's big success on the horizon. And I know it may not seem like it sometimes, but your efforts really are moving things in a positive direction for journalism and the company.

PARTING ADVICE

To people looking for jobs: If you want a job in the internet world, you have to be passionate about the web and show examples of your passion. In the new new journalism, it goes 1) online 2) mobile 3-tie) dead-tree print & tv. If this isn't how you think, then don't apply to work for a website.

If you want some real opportunities to try things online, look no further than Advance Internet.

And another thing, if you don't have a blog, facebook, twitter, youtube, delicious, digg, stumbleupon and reddit account, get it now or you don't even meet the status quo. No one is going to teach you. You have to learn it yourself …. that is until I publish an e-book this summer :)

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Sat, 30 May 2009 03:31 GMT

New Video: Twitter founder talks about Repositioning Twitter.

Tue, 26 May 2009 11:48 GMT

Twitter’s Biz Stone in text and video interview bits discusses Search Ads, The Twitter Ecosystem & More.

Use these story tips for your videos

Tue, 26 May 2009 06:49 GMT

Deborah at Advancing the Story summarized the advice of Pulitzer-winning journalist Tom Hallman. He's talking to print journalists, but these elements must be present in great video stories too. Here's how.

Hallman says journalists must write about “sound, gestures, perhaps the look of a room,” so that people feel close and intimate to the story. Videographers must use their eyes and observation to notice these things, and shoot pictures and sound of them.
Video stories are definitely better with a strong central character.
Construct your video story with a definite story arch - a beginning, middle and end (look at #1 on list).
Story pacing - Hallman talks about the length of sentences and paragraphs. With videos, pacing is also very important. But you use soundbytes, natural sound, and video edits to control your pacing.

Skipping ahead to finish up:

7. Strong middles and powerful endings – Though openings are important, Hallman says, “The body of the story is where we keep the reader interested. The ending is the payoff.”

We can take this advice verbatim to make better videos.

Along these same lines, Colin Mulvany published advice for video storytellers who are struggling to find the story even though they're simultaneously learning the technology. He says first, master the camera so you operate it on instinct while shooting your story. Watch lots of online video so you can observe how people do it well, and how they mess it up (check out Colin's post for links to online journalism video aggregators, or look at my “Video inspiration” links in the sidebar). The post goes on with great advice: Go look.

Use these story tips for your videos

PA in talks to replace ITV as local video provider to regional newspapers

Fri, 22 May 2009 03:00 GMT

The Press Association is in talks with some of the UK's regional newspaper groups with regards to taking over from ITV as the main supplier of video content, the Guardian has reported. At present, the PA provides free raw news...

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Tue, 19 May 2009 08:01 GMT

YouTube - 1981 primitive Internet report on KRON

Sat, 09 May 2009 23:24 GMT

Long before anyone had heard of the Internet, early home computer users could read their morning newspapers online ... sort of. Steve Newman's 1981 story was broadcast on KRON San Francisco.

How to convert .i3e files???

Wed, 06 May 2009 10:22 GMT

My newsroom recently purchased a Canon Vixia HF10...I wish I knew about the difficulty with editing the video files before I bought it. So the Pixela ImageMixer 3SE software the camera comes with saves the files as .i3e or .m2ts. Ok, but now what? I need to supply a clip to a tv station because my paper does a 30-minute news show. The person at the radio station can't open, save or do anything with this file. My Windows Movie Maker doesn't even recognize the files. How do I convert a i3e or m2ts file to something people can open and actually use??????

The Art of the Autograph

Wed, 06 May 2009 06:28 GMT

Eric Seals of the Detroit Free Press emailed me and asked me to take a look at his video “The art of the autograph,” about baseball fans and players.

Although the video is a bit longer than average, it really held my attention to the end. I enjoyed how Eric developed the story by talking to a variety of people: Several sets of fans, a good handful of players.

The shots where the players wrote their autograph on a piece of glass were very creative and entertaining.

This is really a well done video and an interesting story.

I think the only point I can critique is that the main bulk of the b-roll was from two areas: The fence where players walk by and sign autographs, and the field where Eric got the players to sign their name on the glass.

I understand that these were possibly the only two locations where autograph action happened. But I wouldn't have minded seeing some of the players in action - Video from practices, stills from past games, maybe even some baseball cards.

The b-roll we choose to use for our stories does need to relate to the subject of the story, but it doesn't need to be 100 percent literal.

The Art of the Autograph