video-blogging
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Cinemassively: Video blogging as a form of expression
I know what you're thinking. This isn't Machinima! That's the beauty of vlogging, though. It could be. Vlogging, short for video blogging, is just that; a spoken blog entry recorded on film. It might consist of words on your screen, footage of your real life typist, Machinima of your avatar, or all three. It's also not limited to any platform, either. You could even vlog in WoW or LotRO.Michael Verdi, previously mentioned on Cinemassively for his Coca Cola Virtual Thirst video in Second Life, is best known for his vlogging site, freevlog. He is also an author of a book on vlogging, Secrets of Videoblogging. In this video, he uses all three methods discussed to showcase what goes on in his work with Millions of Us, a development company in SL and other worlds.I'll admit that the main reason I can't stop watching the video is the background music, created by Bart Cheever, VP of Production at MoU. However, it's also nice to see how surprisingly normal they all look. We see them chatting about business, bouncing around ideas, goofing off, and wearing their signature jumpsuits. While I'm sure their creative process isn't all fun and games, this gives us a glimpse of their routine. How do you choose to express yourself?
Video bloggers receive email from Apple
LC Angell at iLounge posted that Apple has sent out an e-mail to its roster of iTunes video bloggers recommending that they increase the resolution of their video blogs. We're not talking Washington Post-level High Def videos here. Instead, Apple recommends that those podcasters still using 320x240 videos upgrade up to 640x480 or 640x360. Welcome to the age of Apple TV. It would seem that It is no longer cool to format your video blogs for iPod-only viewing.
Encode H.264 so it will play on your iPod
As of late I have totally gotten into Video blogging, both consuming and creating them. I have a nice camcorder, a copy of Final Cut HD Express, and lots to say. However, despite my general know how in regards to computers video encoding is something of a black art to me. I usually just export my videos using the 'iPod' setting that QuickTime provides, but I know that isn't the best way to do it.Ryanne Hodson, video blogger extraordinaire, has created a screencast at Freevlog that explains how to squeeze the best video for your iPod out of QuickTime. There is no way that I could have figured this out, so if you are into video but don't know your codecs from your filters check out this screencast for some pointers.
Vloggie winners featured on the iTunes Store
A bunch of video bloggers got together over the weekend for the Vloggies, the first annual Video Blogging awards (think the Academy Awards only with more people filming themselves). The iTunes Store is featuring the winner vlogs in their very own section. Now, you won't find TUAW's podcast amongst the winners, but you will find lots of great video blogs. I am a fan of Josh Leo and Geek Entertainment TV myself (one day I'll be geeky enough to be featured).
Apple releases iLife 06, Photocasting, iWeb addition
Apple today unveiled iLife 06, a major update to their award-winning suite of multimedia applications. The largest updates came to iPhoto, which can now handle 250,000 photos and features better, full-screen editing options. A major new feature is called Photocasting, which will allow an iPhoto user to publish their photos to the web using RSS technology, allowing anyone to subscribe to a feed of their images and the ability to be notified of updates. You can also subscribe through your own copy of iPhoto 06, which will allow you to actually download the images and use them as if they were your own, enabling editing as well as ordering prints, cards and now calendars.GarageBand 3 now features a "Podcast Recording Studio," along with professional podcast sounds, a Podcast Radio Engineer, iChat Interview Recording and iMovie Scoring.iMovie HD 6 adds Apple-designed iMovie themes, real-time effects, cinematic real-time titling, enhanced audio tools and effects, multiple open projects and video podcast/blogging abilities.iDVD 6 brings Magic DVD, widescreen DVD abilities, an enhanced map view and the much-requested compatibility with 3rd-party DVD burners to the table.A new addition to the iLife family is iWeb, a much rumored new app that does what everyone had assumed: it will allow .Mac members to easily publish content from other iLife apps such as podcasts, imovies, photos, blogs and more to their .Mac space. It features Apple-designed templates, easy flexible site creation, and iLife media browser and one-click .Mac publishing. I guess there was a reason behind that 1 TB bandwidth upgrade back in Dec.Even with all these great new features, iLife 06 still sells a single license for only $79, with a 5-license pack for $99, and is available today at the online store. I'm sure local stores will have it in soon, as well.
