Photo Montage Vs Video - Peak District Online Debate

Jan. 13, 2011 - PRLog -- Digital technology has broadened the scope of visual arts dramatically.  Video and DVD images, and a host of other image manipulation tools for the computer and internet, have allowed creative artists to explore new and exciting venues for their work.  Video production is available to virtually anyone in this day and age, and it has proved to be an easy and fun medium to work in, especially for dabblers and individuals wanting to capture reportage-style memories of family, friends, and events.  A wide array of digital photo manipulation and slide show tools is also available for those wanting to do a bit more with their digital photos.  Everyone who has a computer and a camcorder or camera can experiment and get creative with images and videos.  However, like with all artistic media and venues, this does not necessarily make everyone an artist.  Beautiful videos and photo montages are the result of an artistic and creative eye, not merely some computer software.  

For many in the industry, the question arises as to which video format is the more appealing:  the straightforward video production or the video photo montage.  It’s a question worth considering, especially if one is trying to accomplish a specific goal with a video production.  Both formats have their merits; however, both do not necessarily require the same amount of time, skill, and creativity; nor do they both draw the same responses from those who view them.

Straight video footage certainly goes a long way towards accurate reportage, and when watching a video of a place or an event, one can see, on the surface, the truth of the matter, as it were.  Naturally, videos can be doctored and edited.  The good video editor will be striving to present the subject in a particular light.  However, he will still be working with the footage which was filmed.  Good video footage requires a talented eye, a steady hand, and some decent equipment.  The result is usually some excellent reportage.

Video photo montages are alternatives to straight video footage.  Like video, they can provide less formal, reportage style images.  However, truly good photo montages can go so much further.  Probably the most striking aspect of a photo montage done on video is the ability to create a mood—a feeling, a tenor—a response from the viewer.  Really beautiful video photo montages can evoke emotions, memories, even bring one to tears.  It is a talent and art form to first capture the photo—the right angle, mood, lighting, subject, camera setting, etc.—and then create the right blend of photos both with each other and with the music chosen, to produce a cohesive, unique, and creative whole.  This whole package then becomes a new creature which strikes the viewer with a particular mood, eliciting intuitive responses right in the heart.  The montage, then, takes considerably more work—planning, thought, patience, creativity—than video production.  

Considering what type of video excels for a particular purpose is an important decision.  Straight video footage certainly has its place and is excellent for panoramic vistas and perhaps more “just the facts, please” types of reportage.  Video photo montages have their place, as well, and are far more than simple slide shows or a series of static images.  Instead, they are tools for the professional photographer to put together a moving and creative piece of art—something which both shows a thing for what it is, but at the same time shares with the viewer the mood and feel of a place.  The montage goes a long way in capturing the elusive:  that something that people are thinking of when they wish they could share a moment in time with others.  Take a moment to view a few Peak District video photo montages and see if you don’t feel the quintessential mood and essence of the place!

Judge for yourself on

http://www.youtube.com/user/peakdistrictonline

# # #

The internets most popular guide to the Peak District - with the latest accommodation information, hotels and cottages in abundance, and everything to do and see in the Peak District and surrounding areas of Derbyshire!