i'm involved in a college seminar doing oral histories.

the students want to post their interviews on a website they will put together.

several students already have flip cameras-the ultra hd

http://store.theflip.com/en-us/products/UltraHD4GB1HR.aspx

for talking head shots in well lit environments, the 720p image isn't bad.

the camera is simple for the kids to use.

the audio is adequate.

the flip hd shoots a h264 codec so its very web-able.

the kids have macbooks so the can cut the footage in imovie.

my question:

has anyone ever actually seen any flip video posted on the web?

thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

be well

rob
smalltalk productions

It wouldn't be my first choice by any means, but for web use it's quite adequate, assuming a tripod or some kind of stabilization is going to be used ( otherwise it's terribly jittery). If they already have the cameras....good technique will go a long way towards making the footage useable

wayne-

thanks for the info.

be well

rob

Rob,

I teach TV journalism at the University for the Creative Arts in Surrey, south of London - and our students use Kodak Zi8s.

The model has recently been replaced but the Zi8s have been great - shooting 720p and having the benefit of being able to take an exetrnal mike - which improves the sound and interview capabilities hugely.

(Maybe Kodak should pay me for endorsing their camera!)

Here's a review I did of the camera ( YouTube - ‪UCA Today - road-testing the new Kodak Zi8 pocket cam‬‏ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dw7JfwgTWWY) ) - it's not a techy guide but it shows what sort of pictures you can get using it straight from the box.

For what it's worth, many of my students like using the camera - primarily because they don't have to hump a load of gear around with them.

Sean

For what it's worth, many of my students like using the camera - primarily because they don't have to hump a load of gear around with them.



That's students for your, anything for an easy life (wink).

Rob. It will work fine.. Sean had a good point about external mikes because of the 'soup can' audio you often get in rooms with hard floors and empty walls. The last thing you'd want is boor'ing video ..and bad sound. Think about doing close-to-zits, head-only shots..

If they already have the cams, then you're done .. if not then, for example, Kodak -just this week- released the Playfull which is $100 and waterproof to 3meters. 720p - 30fps HD. Even the cheapest beer will not brick this cam.

I have one here and it seems made for 8yr olds to do post production in the cam and post directly to YouTube, Flicker, Facebook or even email. It only lacks WiFi. I'd worry less about the mechanicals than the actors curing insomnia while discussing their 'history'.

Jim

... when I looked at the picture - I remembered that Kodak when de-spec'ing this cam left the 1/4-20 tripod adaptor off the list. 'Hand Hold Only'.

Nothing like that drive for mediocrity in a collegiate environment!

If the oral histories are important enough to capture and people are kind enough to give of their time then at least your class can do them the courtesy of using a better camera with a lavalier mike and dare I say it maybe even lights. The Flips audio is inadequate at best - especially for oral histories which depend on clean sound! You are telling both your students and your subjects that the project isn't even worth a minimal commitment to using decent gear. What does that tell them about the standards they should strive for in the future?

As a professional tv photojournalist, this thread is exactly what's wrong with tv journalism today. How can ANYONE think it's acceptable to use a Flip camera??? This is why kids leave college and can't make it in a tv newsroom. I would think someone teaching them would know better but it appears the teachers have become just as lazy as the students. Do the kids a favor and get them using a real camera, real lights, and real audio equipment. Easy=lazy.