Viewfinder: A Lost Opportunity

As Videomaker enters its 15th year, I remember each of the various steps that have led to the current state of affairs, where anyone, with the proper skills, can now make great video. For most of the 15 years, producing video was not so easy. This was due, primarily to the lack of easy access to video editing gear. Up until just a few years ago, most people used to edit video using two VCRs. In today's environment, people editing video are using hard discs, whether in a computer or an editing appliance. We all know how convenient video editing is with hard discs. The instant availability of every scene and even every individual frame, the powerful titling software packages and the easy addition of perfectly timed music are just three examples of how hard discs make video editing an enjoyable experience.

In the past, video and audio was available only on linear tape. There was no easy way for two "consumer" VCRs to stay in sync or even start at the same exact time. What we really needed was some "other connection" between the two VCRs so that they could "talk" to each other. This "other connection" was available on professional VCRs called "editing protocol." The costs to add this connection to a consumer VCR was trivial, yet very few VCRs included this feature. As a result, video producers were forced to purchase a professional VCR (at nearly four times the price) or accept imprecise video edits.

Why bring this up now? Because I think that it helps explain why there seems to be a lack of loyalty to the companies that make camcorders and VCRs. Most video producers are purchasing video-editing gear from companies that do not make VCRs. These include Apple, Draco, Applied Magic, Adobe, Pinnacle and Dell, just to name a few. For years, ambitious video producers were poorly served by the VCR manufacturers. High-quality editing solutions were priced much higher than necessary, because these companies also had "professional" video divisions that offered products with much higher profit marg…