Hi everyone, just putting this question out there, where is HD stock footage going in the semi-near future? (2-5 years) I'm curious to see what the current opinions out there are..or inside knowledge wink wink! Are things going to go the way of 4:2:2+ colour space, and/or move away from mpeg-2 towards mpeg-4?

Just a few crumbs for your thoughts!

Right now it looks like there are more people & companies trying to sell stock footage than there are people & companies wanting to buy stock footage.

I've found that my clients want HD in just about any flavor so long as it's HD. I specialize in underwater work so most of my deliveries are sourced from HDV. My SD stock requests have all but disappeared. Obviously the better quality HD you can provide XDCAM/HDCAM, etc. is preferred but if the shot is what they want they'll take BetaSP, etc.

Yeah I figured that, I have a friend who has a stock site, and knowing what things to shoot has always been the most important thing, but now what camera to get/wait for to future proof his own footage is key. Essentially longevity of the footage format is under question...interestingly he recently had a request for RED footage.
hmmm

If you wait for the "future proof" camera you will always be waiting. Discovery, etc. like the XDCAM HD and Varicam at least. I'm sure everyone would love Red 4:4:4 but really how many stock inquiries will you get for it? I've got 15 years of footage that's been obsoleted but at the same time I still sell footage from that same old SD collection.