This post by Glenn reminds me how far
TV and video technology have come since I got into the business.
The advance in technology has allowed
me to make documentaries about Iraq that would have been impossible
15 years ago.
In the late 80's VHS finally beat Beta,
but the revenge of Beta is that it became the broadcast industry standard
for more than a decade. VHS being a consumer product, Beta being
used by professionals to make commercials and television news.
In television news I have seen a long
line of formats.
I started out shooting sports on the
old reliable 3/4 inch u-matic . I carried the recording deck strapped
over my shoulder and the camera--connected to the recording deck--on
the opposite shoulder.
At that time most of the commercials
were post produced through a Grass Valley video switcher to reel-to-reel
1" inch tape .
The Video Toaster was the first desk
top computer based editing system--a Commodore (remember that?) PC that
could be used to switch live video.
The 'Flyer' was the first true computer
based editor that captured video to hard drives and allowed editing
in a non-linear fashion.
Before the Flyer, all editing was essentially
done tape to tape.
And at at the station I worked at that
could be a variety of tape formats edited on to a 3/4 Umatic master
for playback during the news cast.
The worst format ever? Hi-8 video.
That was a bad idea all the way around.
Not satisfied with the Hi-8, DVC-Pro
became the next 'it' format.
When I do my syndicated TV news reports
from Iraq, a lot of the stations require that I deliver it in the DVC-Pro
format.
The move to High-Def and Digital, seen
has a major leap forward for Television stations, actually catches them
up to where a lot of small producers already are for delivery purposes---delivering
a digital file rather than a tape format.
Oh, and Beta will continue to dominate
in professional production. The HDCAM is the industry standard
in many respects.
But at $115,800, it is a bit too expense
to take to a place like OP Omar .
Traveling to make a documentary about the Iraq war
as a one-man-band would have been cost prohibitive 15 years ago.
But with the advance of technology, a
little bravery, a little foolishness, a few technicals, the support of our readers, and a few dollars--a
one-man-band can make a documentary about the war in Iraq!
The Outside the Wire Project would not exist without the support of our generous patrons. Freedom isn't free, and neither is traveling to Iraq to show a different side of the War on Terror.
Please help support Outside the Wire by purchasing a DVD !
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