Distributing Video To The Masses

Distributing Video To The Masses

View more webinars from Richard Harrington.

The cost of creating video for the Web has plummeted, but it is still one of the most expensive elements of many Web site or Web 2.0 initiatives. Publishers want results—and it’s up to you to get them. In today’s world, your video needs to be in several places simultaneously, with great hooks bringing users back to your Web site. In this session you’ll learn how to become a hyper-syndicator, publishing your video to devices including cell phones, laptops, and televisions. Video publishing may start with an embed code, but so much more is possible—and this session will show you how to take advantage of the best opportunities available.

For more on creating video for the web, check out Professional Web Video.

Progress Payments – Get Paid for Creative Work

I wanted to just share a thought with those of you who are doing creative work for hire. Make sure you are getting progress payments along the way. The last time we hit an economic rough patch (back in 2001) I remember getting stiffed by a client who went bankrupt. This client of course had paid their bills consistently for 2 years... but then the doors closed and I was out nearly $5,000.

Let's just say... lesson learned.

The basic tenet is progressive billing. Make sure you are invoicing the client throughout the life of a project. This way you’ve gotten at least 50% (but hopefully more) of the money in before the project leaves your hands. Once the project leaves your shop, it's pretty hard to get paid (you've lost your leverage).

Here are some practical tips to help you avoid getting the short end of the stick.

• Use Milestones – Payments are most effective when tied to milestones. Sign the agreement, deliver the script, start the shoot, etc.
• Don't Confuse the Accountants – Try to avoid payments of identical dollar amounts as it can lead to confusion with accounts payable. It's almost a guarantee that some will get kicked out or ignored.
• Try 55%/45% for Deposit + Shoot or
• 40%/35%/25% Deposit + Production + Post or
• 35%/30%/20%/15% for a Long-term project
• Stand Your Ground – Be prepared to withhold or watermark deliverables if client falls behind on payments (just be sure to put it in contract and warn them first).

I hope this gives you some practical knowledge you can use. I'll be speaking about the business of video and photography at the American Society of Media Photographers Strictly Business (SB3) Conference. Three locations LA, Philadelphia, and Chicago.

Keep Your Mac Calendars and Address Book Clean

At RHED Pixel, we use the Mac’s built-in calendar and address book to keep the office organizer. Technically, this is a no-no as they’re not really designed for 20 different devices to be syncing at once. But hey... we’re risk takers. I did find two great apps on the new Mac App store today (they are also on the web too).

Here are the official descriptions:

If you're like us, your calendar is how you manage your life. And that means that bad data can mean a really bad day—or worse. Calendar Cleaner removes duplicates, finds subtle problems with your events, and keeps everything clean as a whistle.

Your contacts are the center of your personal social network, and as such are often synchronized among your Mac, your iPhone, and many other apps, services, and devices. Contacts Cleaner finds and fixes the little problems that can creep in while you're not looking.

Post Longer Videos on YouTube

Non YouTube partners are starting to see longer time limits for their uploads. If you have no strikes against you for copyright infringement or other reported issues as well as held an account for some time, then you may get blessed. It doesn't seem to be anything you can request, rather just wait for it to roll out over time.

You can find more details on the YouTube blog.

YouTube won't officially say "how" long the limit is (I've uploaded a clip that was over an hour with no problems).

Here's the official release – http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2010/12/up-up-and-away-long-videos-for-more.html?

Confidence Instills Confidence – Practical Business Advice

I can’t tell you how many times I am faced with new challenges. Nearly every project brings up new technical and creative challenges that I’ve never faced. This is the truly exciting part about working in video. Rarely do I have every answer (but I do know where to look and how to solve the problem).

When presented with a challenge in a project, I exude confidence (but not arrogance). I know that showing confidence to my team as well as my clients is inspirational. A clear study of the challenge ahead will lead to solutions. Then I’ll leverage my networks. I have a collection of peers I trust to ask questions of. I can turn to online forums like Creative COW. I can ping my social network through Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. All of these play a part in fining the answer.

Everything I learned in college about video is technologically obsolete. What I learned was how to tell stories and how to solve problems. Every tape format has changed, every software application has upgraded ten or more times. Heck, web browsers didn’t even exist. But I know that I can learn. And because of that I am confident that I can solve any challenge I face and devise a solution that is an effective compromise between the budget in hand and the schedule I have. With a little practice, you can see the world this way too.

A Good List of Blogs to Try

Here are some blogs from the great team I'll be speaking with this Spring. These are the blogs of the speakers for Strictly Business 3 – a conference put on by the American Society of Media Photographers. I hope you enjoy.

2 Good Things - Strategic Career Reinvention with Judy Herrmann
www.2goodthings.com

Branding for Creatives with Colleen Wainwright
communicatrix.com/

The DAM Book  - Digital Asset Management for Photographers with Peter Krogh
 www.thedambook.com/blog

Jay Kinghorn's Blog: Multimedia, Workflow and inspiration for visual communicators
jaykinghorn.com

Marketing and Stock Photography Consulting with Ellen Boughn
ellenboughn.com/blog

Negotiating and Web Marketing with Blake Discher
groozi.com/

Journeys of a Hybrid - A still photographer and filmmaker talks about working in both still and motion mediums.
kellymooneyminutes.wordpress.com

Digital Marketing Blog with Rosh Sillars
www.newmediaphotographer.com/

Marketing for Creatives with Colleen Wainwright
http://www.virgoguidetomarketing.com/

Adobe Posts Its First Billion-Dollar Quarter

Great news for those who rely on Adobe software... according the Associated Press:

"The software maker Adobe posted quarterly earnings on Monday that exceeded analyst expectations and provided a rosy outlook.The company’s shares rose as much as 5.7 percent, to $30.85, in extended trading, after closing at $29.19 in the regular session."

To put this in perspective, "adjusted earnings were 56 cents a share in the latest quarter, surpassing the average forecast of 52 cents a share among analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. Revenue rose33 percent to $1.01 billion from $757 million last year. It was Adobe’s first billion-dollar quarter."

Here's the whole story – http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/21/technology/21adobe.html?_r=1&src=tptw#

Boston DSLR Wrapup

I had a great time up in Boston recently speaking to the DSLR Meetup group. I met some lovely folks and had a chancee to share a bunch of info about DSLR Pre-Production and Post.

Here is a great writeup on the event – http://www.needcreative.net/main/2010/12/20/holiday-boston-dslr-meetup-featuring-richard-harrington.html

Here are my slides from the event – Producing DSLR Shoots

Why Video is a Four-Letter Word to Many Photogs

It turns out that a lot of photographers are getting screwed. Photo buyers are demanding video. Clients are expecting professional photographers to just flip a switch in the camera and start delivering great video. Seems the age-old fallacy is kicking in again, just because the same machine can do several things doesn’t mean the operator can do them all well.

That’s not a dig at photographers. My computer has the capacity to do lots of things that I’d never even attempt (let alone sell to my clients). This view is unrealistic and disrespectful. I find it deeply disappointing that talented individuals are being asked to work under conditions that will lead to failure.

How do you fight unrealistic professional situations? Through client-education and personal development seems to work best. I’ve faced similar problems in the past... desktop publishing, nonlinear video editing, heck... even digital photography. All industries continue. But there needs to be changes and compromise... by both the clients and the working professionals.

I believe that education is the key to an industry evolving. That those looking to embrace a new art (as well as those who fear it) would be able to make their best career decisions through an extensive look at this emerging art. I do not judge those standing on the sidelines; rather, I recommend a deep exploration of the possibilities and opportunities.

Shot Ratio is the Key to Profitability

In video, its important to keep the ratio of how much footage you shoot to how much footage you use as low as possible. This ratio is the biggest influencer on maintaining profit.

More footage means:

• more storage – Hard drives cost money
• more time searching – Time spent searching for the right shot costs you money
• more time loading or transcoding – Even fast machines still take a long while to transcode

I always recommend rehearsing your shot if possible, then firing a few takes. Be sure to cut camera between takes as well so you can have shorter clips. If you're using a slate, hold it up at the start of each shot (then you can clearly see it in the clip thumbnail, which speeds up browsing).

You need to remember time equals money. More time searching means less time editing. More time recorded means more backups and hard drives. Look out for your best interests and you'll see more profitability.

For more on the fusion of photography and video, check out From Still to Motion.