Anyone doing it, I've been reading about the conversion, and it doesnt' appear to be that big of deal. Not anymore than web video conversion. Hehe, I wonder how much you would charge to convert wedding clips for IPOD download?

Interesting idea... creating a separate video for a clients video iPod. I bet those with the v-iPod would go for it.

On a similar note, you can use the video iPod or PSP as a promotional tool. I bought a PSP, partially because my boys begged me, partially because I'm a gamer myself, but mostly for the video and photo capabilities. I've converted all my sample videos to the PSP format (which is just a variance of mp4) and stored them on a 1gb memory card. It's already come in handy. I was with some friends out to lunch yesterday and one of them mentioned to an engaged waitress they knew that I was a videographer. She asked me for a card, and I gave her one, but I also pulled out my PSP and showed her some sample videos right there. She seemed very impressed and said she would call me to talk more. She also said that her fiance has one those PSP's and they had no clue you could use it for video other than the movies you can buy for it. I didn't think of it until reading your post, but if I happen to pick up this wedding, I'll offer a PSP version of their highlights video. Couldn't hurt!

The screen is very crisp and clear, and much larger than an iPod. It has built-in speakers, so headphones aren't required. Plus, the games are cool!

Later,
Dan

Interesting idea... creating a separate video for a clients video iPod. I bet those with the v-iPod would go for it.

On a similar note, you can use the video iPod or PSP as a promotional tool. Later,
Dan

Dan, let me know how the PSP development goes, not that I need to spend the money, but this would be a great on the fly presentation. I honestly don't have an ownership history with gaming stations, and I know very little about the PSP, but your idea is very insteresting. I was reading an article today in my DV magazine where they were doing the workflow for IPOD casting, so I thought about why not use it for video and offer it like any other media. But now that you've given me the idea about IPOD Demo, I might actually ask the Boss what she thinks.

Well, while the Sony PSP has a bigger 4.2" 16x9 format screen, built-in speakers and removable storage, it is thought-of and marketed-as a video game machine. Although it does an *incredible* job of playing music, photos and video, if someone recognizes it, they would possibly think it as a Playstation toy.

The iPod video on the other hand has a 2.5" 4:3 screen, but the internal storage is very large and it looks very, very cool. The iPod is definitely more "chic" and a much, much better mp3 player than the PSP. The iPod is definitely NOT thought of as a 'toy'.

For me, the two best points for the PSP, in using it as a video marketing tool, is that it has built-in speakers and the screen is 16x9 format. If I show a demo to a potential client with an iPod video, they would have to put on headphones to hear it. Some people, particularly strangers, would likely be put-off by that.

Really, when it comes down to it, me being a gamer anyhow (my wife is still wondering when I'll grow up!), the PSP was a good choice. If you're more into listening to music, then the iPod video would not disappoint you at all! There are also other choices out there for portable media players. Creative Labs has one, I think, as well as others.

Great idea, though, marketing a video formatted for a clients portable players, if they have one!

Later,
Dan

(my wife is still wondering when I'll grow up!),
Dan

Dan, as I tell my wife, we nerds don't grow up, our toys just tend to need a MACK warrantee

Interesting idea... creating a separate video for a clients video iPod. I bet those with the v-iPod would go for it.

On a similar note, you can use the video iPod or PSP as a promotional tool. I bought a PSP, partially because my boys begged me, partially because I'm a gamer myself, but mostly for the video and photo capabilities. I've converted all my sample videos to the PSP format (which is just a variance of mp4) and stored them on a 1gb memory card. It's already come in handy. I was with some friends out to lunch yesterday and one of them mentioned to an engaged waitress they knew that I was a videographer. She asked me for a card, and I gave her one, but I also pulled out my PSP and showed her some sample videos right there. She seemed very impressed and said she would call me to talk more. She also said that her fiance has one those PSP's and they had no clue you could use it for video other than the movies you can buy for it. I didn't think of it until reading your post, but if I happen to pick up this wedding, I'll offer a PSP version of their highlights video. Couldn't hurt!

The screen is very crisp and clear, and much larger than an iPod. It has built-in speakers, so headphones aren't required. Plus, the games are cool!

Later,
Dan
Hahhahaah u know whats funny, Ive started doing this too, and a VERY similar situation came up for me along these very lines.. it not only comes in handy having an on the spot demo machine, but i also agree.. the gams absolutely kick ass..

here are some games id recommend ;)

Burnout Legends (even if ur not into racing, its more fun crashing)
Wipeout pure (better than the Ps2 version)as for H.264 on PSP, Vegas lets u manage al this from within the timeline..pretty awesome stuiff. It wouldnt surprise me if they allow this kind of manipulation when the PS3 or BluRay comes out either....

Theyre yet to decide an official video format for BD, so we wait...

The ipod is mpeg-4 complient right? I have premiere pro 2.0 and to the best of my knowledge I cant publish mpeg-4. How do you convert?

Peter... I totally agree, the games are awesome! I have Burnout Legends. Almost to the end. As awesome as the game is, I'm struggling with the Super class. They are so fast on that relatively small screen that I am constantly crashing :-( Haven't play WWipeout on psp yet, but I love racing games. I'm planning on picking up Most Wanted and Splinter Cell next week. Speaking of kick-*** games, I just found an incredible deal on a 360. Talk about awesome games. I picked up Burnout Legends for it and it rocks! I feel like such a nerd among all these professionals here for being such an avid gamer. It's such a stress release for me!

I use PSPVideo 9 on my windows box to convert for the psp. The mac solutions are crap so far. FFmpegx is the best so far, but I'm having such intermittent results that I just go to my windows machine to convert, and they come out very, very nice... expecially the 16:9 clips! Since I'm a mac user primarily, I don't use Vegas, although I've heard great things about it.

Oh... ahemmm... my wife is convinced it's a "business tool" only, but I just can't help but to pick up some games.

Ruben... the iPod videos are mp4, but not stock. For the PSP, there's a special header written to the file, so you can't just drop any mp4 on it. I'm pretty sure the iPod video is the same. There are many, many 3rd-party video conversion programs you can get for pc if PP2 won't do the conversion natively. Quicktime Pro also does the conversion seamlessly, and it's what I recommend the most (only $30 if you don't have pro already). Do you have an iPod video?

Later,
Dan

No i dont, but i thought it could be an easy "lets have fun and create videos that i can put on friend's ipod videos". But im not gonna drop 30 bucks for something i would hardly use.

Anyone doing it, I've been reading about the conversion, and it doesnt' appear to be that big of deal. Not anymore than web video conversion. Hehe, I wonder how much you would charge to convert wedding clips for IPOD download?

I've done this as a special 'surprise' bonus for my wedding clients since the the iPod w/video was released. Even before the video iPod was released I had already adopted as standard practice the inclusion of DVD-ROM bonus features that include various compressions of the wedding video, blooper reels, etc in formats that the client can give to friends on CD-ROMs or post on their family websites, etc.

The wedding coordinator from whom I get most of my business specializes in a special type of ceremony that seems to attract an international draw of very small intimate groups...folks who have family and friends all over the world who cannot be present for the ceremony. My first wedding video was for a bride from Korea and a groom from Germany whose father had recently suffered a stroke and couldn't travel - it gave me the idea of providing the extra formats as a special surprise bonus that I continued with all my wedding videos at no extra charge. As soon as the video iPod was released last fall, I began including iPod compatible versions on the DVD-ROM as well. I suspect that in short order the little gadgets will become so 'ever-present' that it will become a nice little novelty to be able to show your wedding video to your co-workers or in other settings at a moment's notice.

I haven't noted any other videographers in my area who provide this service, although there are production houses that charge some decent to high rates for such conversions. I have been told that I need to advertise this feature to gain clientele, but from what I have noted from dealing with brides and grooms, this info is often pretty much lost on them. Since weddings are only a small part of my business, I'm as busy as I can handle and don't mind a small amount of extra effort to provide a cool little spin on their product that they may or not come to appreciate in a year or two when their spouse gives them a video iPod as a Christmas gift. Maybe they will come to appreciate how 'forward-thinking' their wedding videographer was. Although I suspect most of them haven't even thought twice about this feature, in time they will all have iPods and think of it as a cool thing that their wedding video is ready to go.

I also include a menu screen on the DVD (in the bonus features section) that explains the bonus features in clear concise form, and a 'read-me' text file on the DVD-ROM that explains it in greater detail, so that if they ever decide to put the DVD into a DVD compatible computer, it should be pretty self explanatory and simple to access the iPod version of their video and load it up in their iPod.

Although it does take a little extra time to provide the extra formats, it really doesn't take any significant amount of work..I hope to soon have an Automator script that pretty much takes my mastered video file and does the conversions by itself overnight so that in the morning I can just drop the folder into the DVD-ROM segment of the DVD and burn it.
-Jon

I saw someone who added his and her iPods onto the wedding package for a extra $800.00. He was just putting pictures on the iPods.

Hey Dan, the 360 aint here jsut yet...

as for being an avid gamer, i too am in that boat.. nothign beats burnout3 on the ps2 across a 7 metre screen... ;)

I used to write and shoot stills for a gaming magazine almost 10 yrs ago and its amazing how far things have evolved.

Either way, now i find that the PSP for what it is and what it can do, is prolly the most advanced unit out there. Now if only the xbox360 came with a proper operating system where we could install our own software to it.. how nice would it be to have 3 of these chained up.. imagein 3 triple core CPUS for video editing..
Absolutly kick ass...

coffee time ... back to BO Legends... ;)

I use my Dell Axim PDA with a 4gb compact flash card. It has a 3.7 inch screen. I have 4 dvd's on the CF card right now that have been encoded with i264 codec, mpg4. I have my demo on it as well. In a pinch it works great. I use mine while I travel to watch movies.

I encoded the whole series of after effects training so I can watch it on the road. :)

Jon

I also own a PSP, I brought it in San Francisco from the mega Sony store they have their. I was lucky to get it when it first came out and a reasonable price. $249.00 + a purchase of one game was what it was required.

The convincing I had to do with my wife. Honey, it's such a long trip, we'll get bored. This could take some of the boredom out while driving back to Washington! Look at all the cool features! (Ever try to explain the wonders of electonics to a wife?) :)

I recently purchased a 4gb hd and battery pack that came included. It offers more memmory and extra long life. The cost was $199 at Fry's but I brought mine at Best Buy with the price match that Best Buy offers. This is great! The Hd comes with it's own management software that will convert your video files for use on the hd. It's the simplest system I've used. It'll convert to H.264 with the header files and you can set the quality settings for compression. It also offers to save in wide screen or tv mode. All the music I have installed and the music videos I have installed on it, and I still have 2.5 gigs left.

The downside of this 4 gig back is that your once cool looking PSP has two big bulges in the back. Now your daughter can use the PSP as a table for her Barbies. Personally, I think it offers a better hold on the system. A bigger grip on to your game system. :)

I do think the PSP is the greatest portable game system that's come out so far. The graphics and games are simply the best. The only thing is the streaking effect with fast motion that I don't care for.

P.S. All the music videos that the users post on this great site is downloaded onto my PSP. I watch it and study it, hoping to become a better camera man. It's a great way to study someone else's work.

Well, I'll start doing some research on PSP vs. VPOD in terms of cost benefit, storage etc. I do like the business applications of the VPOD. I'm going to go see what good packages are out there.

I just started offering an iPod version for my clients at no charge. I figure I'll make up whatever I lose on conversion to referrals. To me this is the same thing as someone sharing wallet size photos of their wedding.

Chris Watson
Watson Videography
www.dynamovideo.com

Steven, seems like your original thread here has two conversations going on...

Peter, yeah I forgot the 360 hasn't made it down-under yet. It's pretty cool, but being just for games, it's a bit overkill. I still love it. If I didn't get the deal I did ($220 for the Premium) I certainly wouldn't have it. I originally thought I'd buy it for $220 then sell it on eBay for upwards of $600, but my boys would have locked me outside forever if I sold it :( so it's here to stay.

Jonathon, you have some great ideas, and I think little touches like those really help with wom referrals. My last wedding, I taped a few moments of the b&g thanking everyone for attending, and I dropped that on about 20 little mini-dvds along with the highlights clip for them to send out with their thank-you cards to special guests. They loved it! It has a little interface and everything.

John Kang, I agree the PSP is the best portable device. I much prefer it over the vPod, but that's just me.

And believe me, I know the heartaches of trying to justify the money we all spend on electronics. She's a hair stylist, and recently needed new shears. When she told me the pair she wanted was $280, I freaked out... $280 for scissors!?? She promptly went upstairs and grabbed my camera bag, started pulling out equipment and naming the price of each, and I quickly shut-up :P

Isn't it amazing how a woman can remember every little detail that we might forget. :)

It helps to keep me humble.

Regarding the PSP, they have those adapters you place on top of the PSP monitor to view the screen on tv. It's basically a camera that picks up the picture from your PSP screen. I don't think it's the best way to go but you can view it on a larger display. This are 3rd party gear and you can read reviews about them on other sites.

I've always wondered when Sony would bring out an adapter to show what's playing on the PSP on to the TV screen. I've read about this in Video Business magazine (I think) and their was a hint by Sony (?) that they were coming out with a adapter to connect to the TV set. This is due to the drop in sales of UMD discs, so the speculations went.

I've seen a shot of some teens playing a PSP game while viewing it on a TV set. They were playing a racing game, and It didn't look like they had the monstrous adapter attached to the top. At the time I had not thought anything about it as this was around the time that Sony had just recently released the PSP. Now it sort of makes sense that Sony would have maybe put some considerations into this. I think the adapter will use the usb connection. It'll probably be a usb to rca connector, kinda like those cheap video capture devices you connect to your computer via usb.

I say this, as this would be another notch for Sony to Apple's iPod. Once more way to display your images without lugging too many things around.

Of course, this could all be under Area 51 as well...

I saw someone who added his and her iPods onto the wedding package for a extra $800.00. He was just putting pictures on the iPods.


Did that include 2 iPods, or what?

I often use a portable media player to show work to prospective clients. I have used both the iPod (which has no speakers, which is a pain) and the PSP (which has little storage and the speakers are pretty quiet if you're in a restaurant or something).

I now use the TAVI portable media player (www.tavi.com). It was expensive (~$500), but it's way smaller than the PSP, has a protected flip-top screen, has 20GB of stoage, and 2 LOUD speakers.

So far, it's the best player for client presentations that I have found. YMMV, however...

Best,

Ben

So far, it's the best player for client presentations that I have found. YMMV, however...


However what?

Benjamin, the PSP only has little storage if you have a little memory card. Compared to the vPod, even the largest card is small! But on my 1gb card I have 7 (3 minutes average) demos on it, 6 episodes of The Office, about 30 mp3s, about 80 photographs, and maybe 10 gamesaves, and there's 100 megs left over. I agree about the speakers though... they are weak. During encoding, I usually pump up the volume some, but it's still a bit weak.

That being said, after checking out that tavi, it looks awesome! One feature that would be really nice is the video-out. Can't do that with a vPod or PSP. Also like the multiple formats you can save the video in. If only it was 16:9, it would be perfect. I'll definitely check it out more. Thanks for sharing!

Dan

Anyone have the work flow from Vegas 6 or so to the Ipod, I just bought this thing and don't have the money for Quicktime pro after that drop of change. :}

I just started offering an iPod version for my clients at no charge. I figure I'll make up whatever I lose on conversion to referrals. To me this is the same thing as someone sharing wallet size photos of their wedding.

Chris Watson
Watson Videography
www.dynamovideo.com


Chris, what is the workflow from Vegas to the Ipod, I did a straight out 320/240.mov but it didn't import.

it's not about .mov, it's about codecs.

.mov is the container format, you want to encode ipod-compatible files with the mpeg4 codec, if that's all you have... so it would be an mpeg4 file in the .mov format.