Doug Graham
Forum Replies Created
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Kyle,
I’m sorry, but in reading this exchange, I think your posts are the ones that are hard to make sense of.
Nobody has said that using someone else’s material is “fair use” in every case. Furthermore, going all the way back up the thread, Peter never said that using someone else’s copyrighted music was legal. (Although he DID say that you’re not likely to get in trouble for it, especially if you use a CD supplied by the client…which is true.) It’s not legal, but at least so far the music industry has not gone after wedding videographers for this type of use.
Let’s just drop the “fair use” issue, anyway. It does not apply to wedding videographers. Period.
The gray area that DOES apply is “incidental capture”. Let’s say you are taping a guest interview. In the background, you can hear the DJ playing music. Technically, that music on your videotape is a copyright violation. However, its capture was “incidental” to the main purpose of the video, and so no violation has occurred. Now, the situation gets a little grayer when we tape the First Dance. Is that music “incidental”, or is it an essential part of the captured material? An argument can be made either way. Most likely, it would be ruled that the situation is a violation, but of a “de minimis” nature, meaning that while a violation has occurred, essentially no harm has been done to the copyright holder.
OK…so it’s (probably) safe to continue shooting receptions. Whew! How about some music to go under that photo montage?
That’s much more clear-cut. Syncing copyrighted material to your video without permission is a no-no. If the record company finds out, and decides to sue, you will most likely lose your business. SO FAR, the record companies have turned a blind eye to our industry, but a lot of us still feel uncomfortable in using copyrighted material. Some just shrug and take their chances. Some make a “good faith” effort, by buying (or having the client buy) the CDs, then destroying the disks once the video is done. This at least provides some compensation to the copyright holder, even though it is not a legally-approved procedure. Some use buyout music.
Until someone comes up with a workable licensing system for low budget productions like ours, each of us has to make a decision based on our own morals and sense of risk.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
The monopod is by far the cheapest solution. By holding it gently just below the mounting plate, you can also use it as a kind of rough-and-ready “stabilizer” as well.
It can also be used as a handheld “crane” for overhead shots.The next step up might be a VariZoom “FlowPod”, a monopod with a built-in gimbal so that it is also a stabilizer.
A FlowPod, or any handheld stabilizer, is heavy and hard to shoot with for long. If you do a lot of moving camera work, you might need to move up to a vest-and-arm type system. These are much more expensive ($2,000 to more than $25,000) but take the weight of the rig off your arm and wrist.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
The difference is that you are making money creating a media product. Using someone else’s copyrighted material as a part of that product, to earn money, without giving them fair compensation, is a no-no.
The problem here in the U.S.A. is that the mechanisms for obtaining permission, and providing “fair” compensation, were originally set up for Hollywood studios and record companies. They aren’t suitable for small budget productions like weddings or video scrapbooks.
The copyright law itself isn’t to blame, so much as the established legal machinery for implementing it. It badly needs work; other countries, like Australia and the U.K., have workable mechanisms for small-budget producers obtaining licenses, so it can be done.
Until someone tackles this, your only legal recourses are to use buyout music, compose and perform your own, or use a loop-based program like Acid to create it.
If you decide to break the law, you’ll have lots of company. The risk of being sued is pretty low (so far, anyway). But does the fact that many others are doing it, and that you probably won’t get punished, make it right? I don’t think so, but it’s an ethical and business decision that every event videographer must face.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
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Nope, nobody is attending NAB. It’s intended as a surprise for Sony, who’ll show up in Las Vegas with a huge roadshow, and nobody to see it. 🙂
Seriously, with NAB in April, and Thanksgiving and Christmas still ahead of us, I don’t think too many people are thinking much about it right now.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
Much easier way: the Ripple tool.
This is a little icon that looks like the cut ends of two clips, up at the top of the user interface. It has several settings, in a little drop-down menu.
If it’s off, then only the single clip you drag (or multiple clips you select) will be moved.
If it’s turned on for everything, then all clips, markers, etc. that are even with, or to the right of, your selected clip will be dragged to the left when you drag the selected clip. Also, any segment you cut out will cause everything to the right to ripple in to fill the gap you just made.
I generally use the Group/re-group command to ensure that audio clips are moved in sync with their associated video clips.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
Yep…my bad.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
Here’s a couple more from the ‘Shack:
https://www.radioshack.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=2032058&kw=choke&kw=choke
Regards,
Doug Graham -
It depends on how much work you put into it. I’ve seen some guys who’ll do a “video scrapbook” for $50…but all they do is point a camcorder at a picture, take a 5-7 second shot, then shoot the next pic, and the next, until the tape is done.
Then there’s the folks who capture each photo in high resolution, correct and retouch them in Photoshop, add frames, bring them into a video editing program, add motion, music, maybe narration.
These latter types will generally charge $3 – $5 US per picture, with a 50 picture minimum or so.
But also see this article: https://www.fastforwardclub.com/Articles/Business/Fallacy-Market-Pricing.htm
It tells you why you shouldn’t price your work to match the guy down the street, or by what people like me tell you in forums. Instead, make sure you price your product so that you get a fair return on your time and money invested.
Regards,
Doug Graham -
The Giant Squid has another desirable feature: they make a model especially for the iRiver which allows you to record in mono, doubling your recording time.
This is needed, because the iRiver reverses the normal standard (mono from right channel) and uses mono mic from left channel…without the correct wiring of your mic plug, going to mono mode will result in no recorded audio.
Regards,
Doug Graham