n0d3.org

Video, as a content type, is gaining traction with online marketing for a variety of reasons: inexpensive equipment, cheaper bandwidth and hard drive space, the appearance of several viable dedicated video community sites and the advent of blended search results in Google. So, to put it mildly, lots of people are exploring video at the moment.

If you’re putting talking heads into your video, perhaps getting a video reference for your great work and so on, the following video by Burlington, Vermont’s Bill Simmon will be very useful. In this video Bill covers how to deploy the industry standard 3-point lighting technique to achieve the following:

1. Put enough light on the subject of your video (the person being interviewed) with a “key light.”
2. Use light to keep the subject from blending into the background with a “back light.”
3. Use light to keep the shadows on your subjects face from being too dark and dramatic with a “fill light.”

Bill uses a controlled studio and professional lighting equipment. This is probably beyond the means of most DIY online marketers experimenting with video. However, with a little creativity you should be able to apply the concepts he introduces using your own materials to improve the quality of your videos.

3-Point Lighting Explained! from Bill Simmon on Vimeo.

If you are fortunate enough to live in Burlington, VT and you’re interested in making better video, Vermont Community Access Media (aka VCAM) offers classes regularly. The above video was filmed at one of their classes. How’s that for cable access awesomeness?

Here’s a bonus link: An article about lighting houses.

The folks over at the Vermont Film and Media Coalition have produced a short video on why Vermont should pass a tax credit for film production. It features Bobby Farelly, Writer and Director “Dumb and Dumber” and “Me, Myself and Irene” as well as William H. Macy, Actor “Fargo” and “State and Main.”

I’ve always been happily surprised by the number of filmmakers and media producers who live and work in Vermont. Some went to school here at one of the several schools with excellent filmmaking programs. Others moved here because they could and continue to work due to proximity to contracts in New York and/or being situated on a good internet pipeline. I’ve been fortunate to meet and work with excellent film editors, directors of photography, actors, grips, sound crews, lighting specialists, animators and a horde of hard-working production assistants. All of whom live in Vermont.

As media production in all channels from print to 3-D animation to radio to video continue to experience changes in their production and business models, I think anything that helps develop talent and experience is a good thing and worth pursuing.

A commenter over at Bill Simmons’ Candleblog, stated how having a tax incentive has had an effect on the commenter’s boyfriend: “it means he doesn’t have to move to LA to work in film.”

Here’s the video and a transcript: Read the rest of this entry »