Mac Pro Podcast
Video Podcast Basics - Shooting for Vidcast
by Joseph Nilo
Are you ready to join the glamorous world of video podcasting? Do you find yourself with way too much free time, getting too much sleep, and seeing way too much of your friends and family? Then video podcasting is right for you!
Here is an overview and some tips for getting your video podcast up and running. This article will be the first in a three part series . . . check back in future columns for “Editing for Vidcast” and “Encoding for Vidcast”.
This article assumes you’ve done some research on podcasting in general . . . if you need some good places to start:
Apple’s Podcasting forums:
http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=1107
Podcast Alley forums:
Podcast 411 podcast:
Podcaster Confessions Blog (yes, blatant self-promotion, here)
http://www.podcasterconfessions.com
My Podcaster Confessions blog has a series I’ve been working on called “Podcasting 101: The Guide” that has some tips for you in the beginning stages of your podcasting venture.
Shoot!
We’re assuming here that you’ve got a video camera of some sort. Mini DV cameras have become quite affordable. You don’t necessarily need the latest, greatest HD camera to get your message across.
In the January issue of macCompanion, I wrote an article that highlighted some shooting and lighting basics (on a budget). Check it out!
Some tips to keep in mind as they relate to a video podcast:
• Closeups are more interesting that big wide shots
Wide shots are for documentaries and westerns. Keep in mind you’re going to be (in most cases) encoding your video down to 320x240 and people will be watching your masterpiece in iTunes or on their iPods.
• Progressive footage encodes better than interlaced
Most of you out there might not need to worry about this . . . 99% of consumer DV cameras shoot standard NTSC (North American standard) or PAL (for those of you in Europe) footage, which is interlaced. Interlacing is the method most standard televisions use-- you are watching 2 fields made up of odd and even lines. This is done very quickly by the TV. It draws the even lines first and then the odd ones.
Progressive footage is not interlaced . . . it is made up of a sequence of full images. A buzzword lately is cameras that shoot “24P”-- 24 frames per second of progressive footage, which emulates the frame rate and look of a film camera.
All that being said, progressive footage looks better on a computer screen (which is not interlaced like a television) and is easier on the encoder, especially if you only have 24 frames per second as opposed to the more standard 29.97 frames per second NTSC specification.
• Handheld footage does not encode as well as locked down footage
Put that camera on a tripod! I believe this is the first rule of “kicking your home movies up a notch.” When you encode video and are concerned with quality and file size, “locked down” works so much better.
A video encoder looks at the information in one frame of video as it compares to the next. If there is a static background, the encoder can use the same information as in the previous frame to make the same bit of information in the next, and the next, etc. This efficiency makes the encoder happy and results in better quality and smaller file sizes.
Some other things that can choke an encoder (other than shaky footage), are pictures with lots and lots of information: trees blowing in the wind, moving water, etc.
So get out there and shoot! Video podcasting (I believe) is a revolution and a “new generation” of video content. It’s quite exciting to be a part of the next wave of media. It’s your opportunity to be seen as well as heard.
Next Episode: Editing for Vidcast
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For more information on multimedia in the Macintosh platform, check out my weekly Mac Pro Podcast vidcast at www.macpropodcast.com
And for more information on the art and business of podcasting, (complete with tutorials!), drop by Podcaster Confessions: www.podcasterconfessions.com
