Each  semester, I ran into several problems with the equipment: it was too complicated, or it wouldn’t work well with the software, or the files were so huge that it took forever for students to back up their work.

This year, we rethought the needs of the classes while making a purchasing decision on a new set of multimedia kits for the classrooms.

The upshot was that we wanted something simple and easy to use, that would also work well with our software. First, we looked at the Flip Camera, but at about the time we were getting our proposal together, Flip stopped producing cameras.

Then, we looked at the Kodak Zi8, similar to the Flip because it had the ability to use an external microphone. But after we’d put together the proposal, Kodak discontinued the Zi8. Grrrr!

So now we’re in possession of two classes worth of Kodak PlayTouch cameras. The cameras include a dual-purpose headphone/mic in jack.

The cameras are very easy to use. On-screen menus are not terribly confusing, and the video and audio quality are pretty good for a pocket video camera. They also record in m4v format, which makes importing into video editing software incredibly easy.

One of the purposes for choosing a pocket video camera instead of a higher-end camera was to remove as many technical obstacles as possible for beginning students, many of whom aren’t planning on careers as videographers. By removing the technical obstacles, the idea is that they (and their instructor) can spend more time focused on the purpose for video – telling the story.

I know some college media outlets are already using these cameras for reporters. For those who were looking at the Flip or Zi8, this seems like a pretty good alternative – at least until they discontinue it too. The price for the camera itself is around $125. I would encourage you to invest in a carrying case, however, as these things are definitely small and seem like they’d be easy to break.

I’ll report back more after we’ve used them for a semester.

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Second day videos have attempted to capture some of the scope of the destruction the tornadoes left in their wake. That’s a good use of internet video. But in the rush to show the destruction, reporters seem to lose sight of some of the basic principles that help make for strong video – especially Internet video. Watch this short clip from al.com showing devastation from Concord, Ala.:

There are some powerful images in that video.

The destroyed car.

The people picking through the rubble of their house.

The woman comforting the child.

The frustrating thing is that you never get to feel the impact of these visuals, because the video is constantly panning from side to side. Even as the video is panning, you only get fractions of seconds to view the scene as it passes by.

One of the first “rules” I hear from newspaper videographers about Internet video and I repeat ad nauseum in my multimedia classes is this: Don’t pan or zoom. Shoot steady shots. If you are trying to capture the extent of a horrible scene, shoot a wide establishing shot – steady, and then shoot a series of medium and closeup shots – snapshots of the devastation.

I don’t want to single this reporter out – I’ve noticed this frequently with breaking news videos. It’s easy to forget the basics when you’re staring at an event of a lifetime, or even of the year. Time is of the essence. Editors are tapping their feet for the latest images from the scene. Don’t forget the basics. If it helps, write Don’t Pan or Zoom on a strip of tape and tape it to the back of your video camera/mobile phone/whatever so you’ll see it every time you get ready to press the record button.

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Today, Ars embraces the age of moving images with the launch of Ars.TV, sponsored by Canon. To celebrate, we’re holding a science video contest and will provide the grand prize winner with a Canon EOS 7D. Not only does the EOS 7D shoot great video, it also happens to be a fantastic DSLR. The grand prize winner will also score a Premier subscription to Ars. A runner up will take home a Best Buy Gift Certificate worth $500 as well as a Premier subscription.

Deadline for entries is Dec. 25, so get to shooting.

Here’s a video that explains how to make a cool science video.

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The stories produced for the CICM workshop in Louisville are now up on the Mapping Main Street site.

Mapping Main Street is collaborative documentary project funded in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard.

Related articles

• Editing at the CICM Main Street Stories workshop (collegemediainnovation.org)

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Main Street Louisville: Behind The Scenes from CICM on Vimeo.

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