We’ve often talked about documentary video on this site and the one thing that we’ve stressed time and again is that a documentary topic does not need to be “big” to be good. Many readers look at documentaries like Ken Burns’ Civil War and assume that all documentaries need to be similarly epic sagas. But sometimes smaller stories have even more potential to really speak to people.

For example, take Cassi Glisper’s Next Tooth One Mile, a documentary about what it’s like to live with a gap between your front teeth. Cassi, an independent filmmaker with a decade of experience in short films, hit on the idea when she started doing research into dental options for her own gap. She’d lived her whole life hating her gap, but it was only when she decided to fix it that she really started thinking about what a gap represented.

It’s an intriguing idea for a movie. And one that could grab the interest of any viewer — I don’t have a gap myself, but, having some crooked snaggleteeth, I was immediately eager to hear what people would say to Cassi. In some ways, it’s a perfect documentary subject because it’s something you hardly even think about until someone pointed it out. Audiences have agreed, and the film took home honors at the 2009 International Film Festival Ireland and the 2010 Swansea Bay Film Festival in Wales.

“I planned interview sessions in public areas around the country with the intention to get as many perspectives and insight into the world of gappers,” said Cassi. “I knew that meeting real people and hearing of their human experience would shape the outline for the film,” said Cassi. “On weekends, I would hit the street with my video camera, a friend, and a small sign that read, ‘Got a gap, I want talk to you.’ While out, I looked at the mouths of those passing by. If they had a gap, I would ask if I could interview them for my documentary. Ninety-eight percent of those I asked agreed to be interviewed. I confess that New Yorkers were my toughest audience.”

Cassi’s interviews turned up some surprising results. While she had assumed that most people would hate their gaps, she found that about half of her respondents actually enjoyed having gap teeth. Most people would laugh at first when she explained her project, but quickly became excited at the chance to She interviewed gappers across the United States in California, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, and Georgia, as well as overseas while on vacation in France and Kenya.

“Gappers in the United Stated had varying opinions about their gaps,” said Cassi. “Some felt that society thought they were from a poorer class because they didn’t get their gap closed. Others felt that their gap gave them a unique look, and they liked looking different – not like everyone else. But in Africa, having a gap is a BEAUTIFUL thing. Those with gaps are considered lucky. There are some people who try to drill a space between their teeth so that they can join this lucky group of gappers.”

One of the trickiest aspects of a documentary is always the man-on-the-street interview. It’s relatively easy to get a person to speak with you when you’ve arranged an interview in advance — they know who you are, what you’re doing, have reviewed your credentials and generally know what to expect. Not so when you’re approaching a random stranger! Cassi took a unique approach to set her subjects at ease. She would show them a picture of herself before she had her own gap fixed. This made them more comfortable with me. Most gap-toothed Americans could relate to her ambivalent feelings about her own gap, but the reaction was very different when she showed her old photos to people in Kenya.

“They couldn’t believe that I closed it,” said Cassi. “I remember one guy in particular saying, ‘Cassi, why did you do it? Why did you close the gap? It was beautiful! You could marry a great guy here.’ ”

After completing Next Tooth One Mile, Cassi is working on a feature script, entitled Rice & Gravy, about a friendship between two 13-year-old loners — a third generation Japanese American girl who moves to the deep south from California after her grandparents’ experience in a WWII Japanese interment camp and an African American girl from a long line of southerners.

You can learn more about Producer/Director/Writer/DP Cassi Glisper and her movies at her website.

I did not see this coming. Rather, I didn’t see this coming so quickly. OmniVision has announced a 16-Megapixel sensors that they claim are capable of capturing 4608 x 3456 at 30 fps or 4K2K (3840 x 2160) at 60 fps (!) for use in still and video cameras as well as high end mobile phones. So far, we haven’t heard any news of the chip being incorporated into any specific device, but the fact that it’s possible is staggering. This means that in the very near future, the average person can shoot video from their phone that will have enough resolution to be projected onto the big screen without up-scaling! Read the rest of this entry »

In video production, knowing how to use a green screen is an essential skill for any producer. It is an irreplaceable tool and can give you a lot of creative freedom in post-production. But in my book, knowing when to use a green screen is just as important as knowing how.

There are so many resources on how to shoot green screen for your project. Forums and blogs are filled with tips and tricks and best practices. In my experience, clients and producers seem to view green screen as a magic tool that makes a shoot easy, and avoid the hassle of being on location. However,  if you’ve had some experience trying to achieve high-end results with green screen, you’ve no doubt been frustrated with the process.

If you find yourself needing a shot of an actor hanging off the edge of a skyscraper, then green screen is probably going to be the most economical, and safest option. Often times, however, I’ve been asked to shoot green screen for scenes when a park, a news set, or a nondescript background was needed.

While green screen may appear to be a simpler option, often times I find that by the time I set up all the lighting properly, and spent the time in post-production to get the key and background correct, my time would have been much better spent researching and securing the right location. Good green screen work takes a lot of forethought and post-production time, and if not done properly, can easily bring down the production value of your entire project.

For interviews or a spokesperson, using a white or black background is a simple way to give you some of the options a green screen shot offers, without the time-consuming task of keying and precise lighting. Some simple editing can allow for graphics and other assets to be placed alongside your talent. I’ve always found white and black backgrounds to be easy to work with, while continuing to keep the production value high without a huge time investment.

So the next time you’re considering breaking out the green screen, consider your options carefully, and make the choice that will result in the highest production value you can achieve.

The FinePix XP170 is an up-to-date version of the FinePix XP20 that is really becoming an evolving process and this time it comes quick since the FinePix XP100 and FinePix XP150 showed up just last January. The newest addition is a welcome one, more so by your friends and family since sharing photos with Android and iPhone users is as simple as the download of the FUJIFILM Photo Receiver. TheFinePix XP170 has a dedicated function for this, so it’s something you’ll have to try when you are pushing this camera to its fullest extent.

Able to go as far as you are is the hallmark of the FinePix XP line, so the XP170 lets you go big despite dust, dive into water as deep as 32 feet, ride the slopes at negative 14 degrees Fahrenheit and survive a six-foot drop. To really round out the ruggedness we look for operability in such conditions, there is one-touch recording and an anti reflection 2.7-inch LCD to provide good visibility outdoors and underwater.

Important video considerations with the XP170 are the 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor, 14MP, H.264 format, max. resolution at 1920×1080, mini HDMI out, and no audio or internal memory to speak of, but there is an SD card slot.

Toss in 240fps shooting and all you need is footage worth watching in slow motion. The 5x optical zoom is appropriate for the size of the camera and if the CMOS-shift stabilization works as advertised, even your fully zoomed shots will look focused.

The small touches of a double lock battery compartment and water resistant lens should seal the deal for use in multiple environments – you’ll be comfortable that your battery is not at risk, and water can be easily shaken off the lens. I always appreciate an external battery charger and the XP170 includes one. Curiously, only blue and orange are available as colors for the XP170 which should be available for $280.

The fine folks at Fujifilm make it possible to have fun in the freedom that comes with a rugged camera.

(Looking for the press release?)

CTIA Wireless 2012 – by Beata Dumaplin

Videographers have been using wireless technology with wireless mics and recording devices for years, and in our society today, almost everything is wireless. Wireless phones, Internet, printers, keyboards and mice; access to anything, virtually everywhere. Even our children’s toys have wireless capabilities, with downloadable apps and games. Wireless devices have taken our world by storm and if you’re ready to jump on the invisible bandwagon, you should join us as we set our sights on CTIA, the International Wireless Expo.

CTIA is like a giant meeting of the wirelessly minded. A variety of companies will be there, from computer based companies like Sony Electronics, Dell and Electronic Arts, to cell phone carriers like AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile and even application corporations such as Pandora and Firefox are all scheduled to attend. Beside these well-known names, over 1,000 exhibitors will be there, showcasing their newest contributions to the wireless world.

Meeting from May 8-10 this year in New Orleans, Louisiana, CTIA will be hosting a variety of keynote speakers from all different fields of wireless technology. CEO’s and chairpeople from Pandora, the Federal Communications Commission, Visa,  MasterCard and so much more. In the afternoon on the 8th of May, they will be hosting their first “Carrier Roundtable” where the major cell phone carrier representatives will be talking about their latest innovations in wireless. Former President Bill Clinton is scheduled to speak on Thursday the 10th.

Although video doesn’t seem like a main focus in this conference, we are hoping to see more innovated steps toward wireless in our field as well. We are sure that advancements in smartphone technology will be sure to assist the cellphone camera’s use. We have already seen upgrades in lenses that apply to your smartphone camera and major players are starting to find ways to use video from smartphones in full fledged movies. We hope to see more interesting advances in that field.

Though wireless has not yet made a giant impact on the video creating world, we already have some abilities to edit footage on tablets and smartphones  and it would be nice to see wireless streaming technology from our video cameras to our computers, or a more advanced editing software for the smart phone. Whatever the future holds for wireless technology, it will be at CTIA.  So stay tuned, we’ll be there to check out all of the latest advancements and we’ll be sure to tell you all about it.

Beata Dumaplin is a freelance writer and independent photographer.

Video production is such a wide and varied field, from hobbyist and amateur producers, to Lone Wolf business people and full-fledged production facilities. Is your interest in editing video production or video production service? Are you a wedding video producer or a newbie looking for advice? Are you making online video or educational video? Video producers come in all flavors and inquiring minds want to know: who ARE you? What kind of video work do you do? Let us know, we’re curious about what type of video you make, and for what purpose.

Recently, EarlC, one of Videomaker‘s moderators, posted a Videomaker Forums Survey looking to answer some questions about the type of video producer who reads Videomaker, either online or in a paper edition, and who reads our forums and who is active on them.

As many of you might know, Videomaker forums are chock full of advice from real video professionals working in the trenches – and best of all, they’re FREE! How many places can you get service for free, huh?!?! Read the rest of this entry »