VISION IN MOTION is an introduction to digital video for stills photographers. Written by Trevor Meier, both a professional stills photographer and film-maker, this eBook discusses the core issues of motion storytelling.
No doubt about it, video is an entirely different medium than stills photography. It’s a different language spoken with different technology and created with different processes. For digital still photographers there is often a great deal of cross-over, but without some help things can easily get lost in translation. Join Trevor as he takes you through the core issues and sets you on the right path to beginning to put your vision in motion.
This e-book has a different subject from the previous releases as it introduced a new subject to the site. It is not a book about photography, but about a video. And this is a good news.
On only 20 pages of “Vision in Motion”, Trevor Meier skillfully summarizes the most important points in building a good movie. The book is well organized, and divided in three chapters, Story, Sequence, and Technique, each loaded with practical information and tips to get you started. The familiar to still picture professionals topics, like exposure control or focus, are discussed in a new way and attention is directed on how they differ when shooting video. The author also mentions things photographers normally don’t need to worry about, like recording sound, and gives advice on necessary equipment and accessories. It is a great book to get you started on recording your first digital video.
(This is just a fragment of the review I wrote on my blog. You can read it here: http://tinyurl.com/visioninmotion)
What a great intro for us still photogs. Thanks for the book. this will help us all who have though, “I can do that” in looking at all the DSLR video that is out there now.
Having a background in video production, I like to keep up with how still and video are converging. I found this ebook to be a great primer on what anyone wanting to try out a DSLR for video needs to keep in mind – how to capture usable sound, the difference between moving and still images, necessary equipment.
It’s well worth the price.
I recently purchased a EOS7d, to quench my thirst to begin exploring the possibilities of adding film to my storytelling. I purchased this book as a starting point, and it is one I believe I will print out and lay at my bedside. Trevor’s language through out goes like this” first, lets talk about, you’ll need to know, always remember, consider, I prefer,pay attention to …..” Its as if he is predicting what you will confront while shooting. He explains the basic language associated with digital footage and gear. I highly recommend it.
When Vincent Laforet released Reverie back in 2008, the photographic world had its eyes opened to the possibilities available now that HD video was possible from a DSLR. I was no exception to this and eagerly awaited the release of the Canon 5D Mark II so that I could try my hand at it myself. Although I did buy one soon after they appeared in camera stores, my experiments with video didn’t run to much more than learning which buttons to press.
Vision and Motion by Trevor Meier gets me once more thinking of video. Not because of the technique talk, but because he is one of the first to discuss to why behind it, the motivation needed and the responsibilities that come with it, in regard to the power to tell stories. Like all good creative work, it’s about the creators vision, and from this, the story and the sequences follow.
I have several of the other Craft & Vision ebooks, but am not sure if I want to dabble in video. I’d love to hear from other photographers who have this ebook and if it was a helpful introduction. Have you started trying video, and are you finding it is complementing your stills or distracting?