Rewind: 10 Years Ago in Videomaker

Early Videophone Attempt
Who says video streaming is a new technology? In 1987, a company named VideoPhone offered an early method of transmitting video and audio over telephone lines. Images were black-and-white, 128 by 128 pixels with 16 levels of grayscale. Oh, and the frame rate? One image every 5 or 10 seconds. The system operated with any standard video camera and an ordinary telephone line.

Boxy Camcorders Everywhere
The typical VHS-C camcorder, circa 1987, was anything but compact by today's standards. Looking more like lunch pails with lenses attached than serious camcorders, models from JVC, Sharp, Minolta, Panasonic, Magnavox and Zenith looked nearly identical. Note, however, two common features that are very hard to find on today's camcorders: each model shown here has both a manual focus ring and a zoom lever. The average price for one of these VHS-C beasts was around $1600.

The Road to Stability
In 1987 (just as in 1997), quirky video stabilization devices were everywhere. This one looks like it attached to your elbow, shoulder, chest, torso and thigh all at once. The theory behind this device was that if you distribute the weight of the camcorder evenly, your hand won't shake it--or perhaps a properly immobilized camera operator won't be able to shoot shaky video. The problem with both theories is that the main cause of camera shake has more to do with the camcorder's small mass than the stability of your body. Immobilizing the videographer may have other merits, but it does little to cure camera sha…