The magic is gone from print video...

Rad

Rad

Well-known member
I was talking about the lack of video in newspaper just this week with one of our local paper photogs. They used to have a video guy on staff, and all the photogs were pushed, some even sent to high-end workshops, to put video on the web. But they just couldn't ever figure an easy and effective way of doing it. The video ended up being too long, and poorly produced, and didn't hold the short attention span of the average web viewer. That's too bad, they could do a lot of good on the web.
 
cyndygreen1

cyndygreen1

Well-known member
In my area the Sacramento Bee had a full time guy, but after a year or so they cut him back to the occasional video. My local rag in Stockton never got beyond the point and shoot phase...nice shots, tripod used, no story line. How video is used seems to vary from paper to paper...as well as the technical quality and content. That said, some of the most amazing videos I've seen have come from newspaper photogs who were given the freedom to produce their visions. Too bad TV photogs are tied down by producers and reporters...makes me wonder what THEY could do with that freedom.
 
SimonW

SimonW

Well-known member
Watching video on a newspaper site is kind of like going to a Green Party website to read about the benefits of nuclear energy.

Part of the reason people go to a newspaper site is because they are preprogrammed to expect to read articles, not watch video. My take on it anyway.
 
svp

svp

Well-known member
My opinion is that about 90% of video you see on newspaper sites is of poor quality and is either raw video or terrible, long, and boring packages. The same concept for tv news packages should also apply to newspaper video. Short, informative, and tells a story with a beginning, middle, and end. I just simply haven't seen that on newspaper websites. The videos I do watch tend to be full length unedited interviews with interesting people talking about interesting subjects. It's not that it won't work it's just that newspaper guys don't know how to do it and appear unable to swallow their pride and learn from the tv guys who have been doing it their entire careers.
 
B

Ben Longden

Well-known member
Michael said "It's not that it won't work it's just that newspaper guys don't know how to do it and appear unable to swallow their pride and learn from the tv guys who have been doing it their entire careers."

Said it in one.

We used to have a major regional daily have video news as well... and to be honest, the packs were unwatchable.

Badly shot, badly edited and with no story....
No wonder they died a quick death.
 
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