Busy Family's Strategy on Building Video Collection

Every birthday, recital and special event, I end up with miles of footage but no video."
– Ruth Waworuntu, Parent (Framingham,MA)

The problem with videotaping is that there are just so many memories to cherish: birthdays, graduations, music recitals, dance recitals, sports event, holidays. By the time you try to video tape every highlight from the first day of school to the Little League baseball game, you've got too much raw video footage and too little time to do anything with it.

To maintain a sustainable effort building your family video collection, try following the 1-2-3-Showcase! Plan.

What is the 1-2-3-Showcase! plan?

Since you can't shoot everything and edit everything you shoot, decide what you want to end up with at the end of the year. The 1-2-3-Showcase! Plan suggests that in one year , you will have created:

• 1 video story (3 to 5 minutes)
• 2 video vignettes (1 to 2 minutes)
• 3 video photo shows

What’s in a Video Story?

A video story is a 3 to 5-minute video that covers a significant event in your family life, the "major event" of the year. Examples are graduations, family trip to Hawaii, a retirement party and big holiday events. A video story is a well-choreographed sequence with a beginning, middle and end. I like to include more details, close-up interviews, more contemplative scenes, etc. Aim to do 1 video story a year.

What’s in a Video Vignette?

A video vignette is about 1-3 minutes long. Vignettes are not stories with beginning, middle, and end. They capture small moments of our lives. It’s the little everyday things that usually just pass by and are remembered no more yet they are the little things that make your lives rich and precious. Examples are a child’s first attempt at riding a bike, house renovation, junior’s first haircut, a swim meet, Grandma teaching your daughter how to knit, etc. Aim to do 2 video vignettes a year.

And a photoshow, what’s that?

A photoshow is a lot of fun and easy, easy to make with the right software. A photoshow is a bunch of photos strung together into a movie-like video with music, captions, transitions and special effects. They take minutes to do and bring back the memory to life just as powerfully. If you have not created a photo show before, there is a link at the end of this article to a video tutorial on how to create photo shows in minutes. The software is even free if you are a Comcast Internet subscribier.

Let’s summarize our 1-2-3-Showcase plan: 1 video story, 2 video vignettes, 3 photo shows. These videos can be shared via the web, email or ipod.

Now, doesn’t that look much more manageable already? What you are doing is setting yourself up for success.

There is one free video-editing software that lets you build videos - stories or vignettes - and photo shows easily and quickly: Windows Movie Maker. That's the one I recommend for busy families and hobbyists.

But wait, here’s the best part. It’s the Showcase part of the 1-2-3-Showcase plan. At the end of year, you showcase your 1 long story, 2 vignettes, 3 photo shows into a year-end highlights DVD.

The year-end highlights showcase DVD is a kaleidoscope of the year. It sounds like the biggest amount of work but it’s the least amount of work. You are simply taking the videos completed that year and laying them out in an attractive movie menu then burn the whole thing on a DVD. It is a beautiful showcase of the home movies you have created throughout the year, and a celebration of your family’s life and happenings that year.

By the way, it also makes a beautiful and touching holiday gift for your family and frends. Trivia: did you know a blank DVD disc now costs less than a greeting card?

Useful related articles:

Keep finished movies short & sweet

How to create videos and photoshows with Windows Movie Maker

How to turn photos into movies in minutes with Animoto

How to share your videos on the Web