My ‘Pod When is a ‘pod not a tripod? When it’s a monopod, of course. When does a monopod have one leg and three feet? When it’s the 560B by Manfrotto. We couldn’t help but have fun with this valuable camcorder accessory when it arrived at the Videomaker Headquarters. F

reprinted from a Panasonic press release: PANASONIC ANNOUNCES AVAILABILITY OF AJ-HPM100 P2 HD MOBILE RECORDER WITH OPTIONAL AVC-INTRA CAPABILITY * New P2 HD Mobile Also Provides "Bridge for Transition from SD to HD * SECAUCUS, NJ (November 30, 2006) Panasonic announced today the availability

reprinted from a Digital Anarchy press release: Digital Anarchy Releases Chaos Stock Volume of San Francisco Timelapse Footage 20 Royalty-free, High-Definition Timelapse Images of Iconic California City(San Francisco, CA — December 6, 2006) Digital Anarchy, a leading provider of cost-effective

Here's a great example from the Disney Blog (which to our knowledge has no official affiliation with Disney) how music and clever editing can change the mood of a film. In this example a Mary Poppins fan recut clips from the movie into a horror film trailer. So, lock up your kids, because Scary

In a CNET News report, "Japan says no to Blu-ray, HD DVD recorders for U.S.," reporter Michael Kanellos paints an alarming picture of how slowly the U.S. is embracing the switch to HD television in contrast to Japan's own efforts to adopt the technology early in the game. Unfortunately

Artists, athletes and entertainers all know that the best way to become the best at what you do is to practice as often as you can. Why shouldn’t video producers do the same? A lot of people buy or upgrade their camcorders for a specific event — aunt Marge finally marrying that deadbeat

reprinted from a Bogen Imaging press release: Manfrotto Modo, the First Photo and Video Tripod Designed for Everyday Use World's most renowned professional photo, video and digital accessory brand showcases the "all in one" digital tripod New York, NY (November 2, 2006) – Manfrot

From yellow to blue, soft to harsh, indoor or out, the “color” of the scene changes with your light setup, and can influence the mood of your video. This is the time for walking down store aisles looking at colorful school supplies, buying new clothes for the kids, or dodging bright yel

What makes great art great? Composition. In this first of two parts, we’ll reveal some of the secret tricks of composition that the Masters use. Ask a lot of people what makes good art, and they’ll all have a different opinion from an artist’s use of color and paint to the subject

We recently got wind of ByteCaster, a site that will give you $100 and a video assignment if you submit a video that they like (around 30 seconds in length). Their intent is get some Web video content. Current topics that they are searching for videos on include dating, travel, roommates, sports, mo

Canon recently updated the HV10's page on their website. Most major retailers have the device in stock, going around $1300 on the streets. We can't wait to get this in for review. Canon, did you hear that? We really can't wait. We'll let you know when this one shows up at our front d

Reprinted from an Avid press release: Avid Technology, Inc. today announced that its Consumer division, Pinnacle Systems, Inc., is unveiling several new products. The additions include the Pinnacle Studio MovieBox and Pinnacle Studio MovieBoard families, both of which allow consumers to preserve a

$1,599 Indie-Dolly Systems 820 Thompson Ave. #26 Glendale, CA 91201 (323) 467-6160 www.indiedolly.com The Dolly Shot Every videographer knows the value of a steady truck or dolly shot. But not every videographer has the budget to obtain the expensive moving equipment. And if y

CSTV Networks (a division of CBS) has just launched a mighty, mighty website promising to deliver over 10,000 live college sporting events over the next year. Wow! That's a lot of Internet TV programming. Further proof that the Long Tail theory is alive and monetizing. Although, one could argue

I was in my early teens in the late 1970s when the VHS/ Betamax wars were raging. My best friend Robbie took the plunge and bought a Betamax. Indecisive, I waited. Early adopters run some risk, as anybody with a Commodore Amiga in their basement will probably tell you, but they also come away with s

Mini HDV There’s nothing like sitting by a roaring fire on a rainy evening reading the manual of a new HDV camcorder. OK. We’ll admit it, we’re all video geeks at >Videomaker, but honestly, with toys like Sony’s HVR-A1U 1080i HDV camcorder to play with, can you blame us?

Some camcorders have a plethora of buttons, others are menu-driven. Many name a button control one thing, and others call it something else. It’s time for the Button Game. Everybody knows you're a professional. You have three Emmys and last year you got footage of the mayor taking a brib

$468 Bogen Imaging Inc. 565 E. Crescent Ave. Ramsey, NJ 07446 www.bogenimaging.us 3 For the Money Shot The Manfrotto name has been present since the birth of video production. And if you've been shooting video for a while, you're already familiar with their its qualit

When you get involved and direct powerful interviews and shoot compelling video, you have the makings of a great Cinéma Vérité style documentary. In the late 1950s, documentary filmmakers began to take advantage of the new, very portable 16mm film equipment and took their filmmaking t

A Chip Off the Old Block Here’s a camcorder with an imager that rivals the size of a single XL2 imager. If you’re looking for a small, compact player that has a plethora of features, the Optura 600 is looking good. It’s nice to see that a smaller size camcorder doesn’t neces