Showing Off Stills in Videos

[Nimi]

My article in the print magazine Overland Journal came out yesterday and they asked me to produce a short video to promote it using a handful of stills. This topic comes up often in photo forums: what's the best way to present stills in a video? There are as many ways as there are photographers out there and here is my technique by way of an example.

PS: the 4:3 aspect ratio was dictated by the client. The effect on some devices is letterboxing, the borders on the sides, but this ratio is optimized for direct YouTube upright mobile viewing, not a computer or a tablet. Because the video is imbedded here, some of your devices will show the letterbox.

 

[MartyD]

Very nice! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Garfield]

Very nice! May I ask why you prefer fade-to-colour vs dissolve transitions?

 

[Nimi]

Very nice! May I ask why you prefer fade-to-colour vs dissolve transitions?

Thanks!

Actually these are all cross-dissolves (not the Adobe version which is not smooth on the in-). Occasionally I separate segments with 4 frame space so it fades to and then from black. For the gallery portion, there is a 5 frame space between the photos but I am running a constant white matte under it all.

 

[Kip Cotter]

On my attempt at wildlife videos, I have been liking some stills sprinkled in with the camera/EXIF data - probably pretty standard. I think it's fun for the viewer to see the area and action in the video, then see a good still or two that was achieved during that excursion.

 

[Nimi]

On my attempt at wildlife videos, I have been liking some stills sprinkled in with the camera/EXIF data - probably pretty standard. I think it's fun for the viewer to see the area and action in the video, then see a good still or two that was achieved during that excursion.

That's a good idea. The audience isn't photographers, but I have an article in early January for another magazine and I might try that! Great video, love the duck diving in the background at the beginning.

 

[txstone]

My article in the print magazine Overland Journal came out yesterday and they asked me to produce a short video to promote it using a handful of stills. This topic comes up often in photo forums: what's the best way to present stills in a video? There are as many ways as there are photographers out there and here is my technique by way of an example.

PS: the 4:3 aspect ratio was dictated by the client. The effect on some devices is letterboxing, the borders on the sides, but this ratio is optimized for direct YouTube upright mobile viewing, not a computer or a tablet. Because the video is imbedded here, some of your devices will show the letterbox.

Very nicely done - enjoyed it!

 

[MotoPixel]

Nice work Nimi, I like the effect on the white matte when you have to mix up aspect ratios of the images...way better than black bars. BTW, the audio seems like it was right on the edge of clipping/distortion...at least on my system here...might want to check that.

I've recently taken to sharing photos of some of my travels with friends and family in a 4K video format instead of sending a link to an album of stills and the responses have been very positive. Some may have some video and drone clips mixed in, as well, depending on the situation. Very easy to put together and you can mix in some pans and zooms of some of the images to highlight subjects and add some variety.

Here is a short video of stills from a few days spent in Ft. Davis, TX last Fall. Beautiful part of TX, BTW!

Cheers!

 

[Nimi]

Nice work Nimi, I like the effect on the white matte when you have to mix up aspect ratios of the images...way better than black bars. BTW, the audio seems like it was right on the edge of clipping/distortion...at least on my system here...might want to check that.

I've recently taken to sharing photos of some of my travels with friends and family in a 4K video format instead of sending a link to an album of stills and the responses have been very positive. Some may have some video and drone clips mixed in, as well, depending on the situation. Very easy to put together and you can mix in some pans and zooms of some of the images to highlight subjects and add some variety.

Here is a short video of stills from a few days spent in Ft. Davis, TX last Fall. Beautiful part of TX, BTW!

Cheers!

Thanks! Which track, music or effects? I mixed it in a hurry and I'm practically deaf so went by the bars on PP.

 

[MotoPixel]

The music track...really starts to be noticeable from the time the truck splashes into the mud hole at the beginning. If you bring the music track, down to the point that it doesn't distort, you'll likely need bring effects down to keep in balance.

Cheers!

 

[Nimi]

The music track...really starts to be noticeable from the time the truck splashes into the mud hole at the beginning. If you bring the music track, down to the point that it doesn't distort, you'll likely need bring effects down to keep in balance.

Cheers!

Thank you! I'll fix. BTW, the splash, waves and diesel sounds are all sound effects, not recorded in camera.

 

[Activert]

My article in the print magazine Overland Journal came out yesterday and they asked me to produce a short video to promote it using a handful of stills. This topic comes up often in photo forums: what's the best way to present stills in a video? There are as many ways as there are photographers out there and here is my technique by way of an example.

PS: the 4:3 aspect ratio was dictated by the client. The effect on some devices is letterboxing, the borders on the sides, but this ratio is optimized for direct YouTube upright mobile viewing, not a computer or a tablet. Because the video is imbedded here, some of your devices will show the letterbox.

So beautiful, combination of photos and videos! Thanks for sharing