History of Video Production & Progression

Milestones a Timeline:

Video production’s origins begin with the first black-and-white picture taken in 1826 by Joseph Niepce. A few years after that, in 1832, Joseph Plateau became the first to simulate moving images in his invention called the phenakistoscope (“spindle viewer”). Following that, in 1870, John Wesley Hyatt developed and patented celluloid for its use as a base in photographic film.

In 1878, the zoopraxiscope was being used by various English photographers in capturing the movements of animals using multiple images. During this time, the principle of using closely captured images to create the illusion of motion (similar to Plateau’s spindle viewer) was prevalent.

It was only near the end of the century, in 1891 that true motion picture cameras would be invented by Thomas Edison. Eventually, in 1895, the projector would be made available. Color in films appeared in short segments throughout 1902, with full-colour ones only showing up in 1918 with the release of “Cupid Angling”. By 1927, films began to include sound. “The Jazz Singer” was the first to have such a development in the form of lip-synchronized singing and musical numbers.

The rise of computers also led to the advancement of other technologies, including video production. In 1964, Sony produced the first portable video recorder, and in 1973 videos could be stored in discs instead of in bulk rolls of film. VHS and laser discs were later developed in 1976 and 1977, respectively. As the years passed by, laser discs were eventually also phased out with the introduction CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Ray discs. In this era, producing and storing videos became easier and more portable, after eliminating the need for the bulking camera and film equipment that the 19th century required.

Today, videos can be found everywhere; from simple television commercials to advertisements and vlogs on social media. This is mostly due to the rapidly increasing availability of video production resources to the common people. The management of the produced video has also become easier as innovators continue to learn of more portable ways of storing much larger file sizes.

Now, video production is considered a separate craft from film-making, which has retained much of its old technology.

Transition from Film to Video Production

In the mid 19th century, another development was achieved, and this saw the birth of video production.

This was at the same time when live television came to the scene. During this period, mechanical editing was in an advanced stage, and this was what enabled the live TV programming.

Later when computers would begin changing things, one of the major beneficiaries was video production. This was in the late 19th century when non-linear editing came into perspective using technology.

Various technological advancement s have taken us to where we are now.

Video production can be further split into multiple categories:

Virtual Reality Video Production

Virtual reality videos are accessed via virtual reality headsets. These videos are different from its other video types in the sense that users can be fully immersed in the environment of the video.

Virtual reality provides interactive features, allowing the person to feel as if they are part of the artificial environment that’s being projected. These type of videos are mostly seen in video games and other platforms that require interaction with the viewer himself, although companies have also used virtual reality videos for an immersive advertising experience.

Animated Video Production

Animated videos are those which were entirely illustrated by its creators called animators. It has no live action elements and works based on the provided code and special software. Because of its lack of real elements such as human actors, animated videos have a wider range of possible subjects that can include fantasy elements and other objects and scenes that may not be feasible in real life.

The cost of animated videos much also tend to be much less compared to live action videos, since the former only requires a computer and some software. The only thing that limits an animation’s possibilities is the capability of the software used. Because of the rich potential of animated videos, they can be seen almost everywhere in the form of cartoon shows and movies.

Web Video Production

Web videos are, as the name suggests, videos that are specifically made for use on a certain website. Most web videos serve as advertisements or as introductions to the company itself. Any marketing techniques that the company uses on its clients in other platforms may also manifest in the video. Producing web videos depends on the resources available to the company, and the result may either be an animated infographic or a live-action skit and testimonial.

Social Media Video Production

Social media videos are fairly new developments, gaining popularity only after the rise of social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube. The means of social media video production are varied, with live action and animation coexisting in the same platform, but most viral social media videos are notably done using only simple equipment like smartphone cameras. What makes social media video production unique is that such productions must heavily take into account any emerging trends that can possibly popularise the end product.

In Conclusion:

Video production varies depending on the type of video being produced since the production itself will always be guided by the goal in mind. Today, there is now a rich variety of methods and equipment that can be used for any type of video production. Live action and animation techniques are now used in multiple fantasy movies, and such use can be seen as the reconciliation of the vastly different centuries of video production.

Today’s products of video production are typically colourful videos with well-arranged soundtracks, a far cry from the ways of the 19th century, which was, at one point, limited to silent black-and-white videos. The technology we have today has also enabled even the average man to produce full-length features— with just their mobile phone. These days, the only limitation to this particular art form seems to be our own imagination.

As long as 21st-century video producers continue to challenge and stretch the capability of the existing equipment and technology, video production will continue to be a dynamic technological affair.

A timeline of Video Production

Source https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/history-of-film-and-video-production

Let’s now look at some of the types of video production we have.

Virtual Reality Video Production

This entails the creation of video content that is viewed using the VR headsets. In VR Video, the user of VR headsets gets the illusion of being part of the video production. The user has the ability to interact with the video.

Animated Video

Before, animated video was put together using images that were drawn by hand, photographed, and shown in films. Nowadays, though, CGI (computer-generated imagery) is what’s being used and mostly replaced the traditional method of animation.

Web Video

As the name suggests, it is web video that aims at producing the video content for a website. Companies will upload a video on their websites as a marketing technique or explain a certain aspect to their clients.

Social Media Video

People will share video content on the social media platforms such as Facebook. Production of the video content can be classified as social media video. YouTube is also another good example of this classification.

Video production is very important as it helps in capturing special moments and also in marketing.

When hiring a video production consultant, you should ensure you hire someone with experience to make sure a nice video is produced.

At Imaginary Creatures, we offer high-quality video production. Call us or write to us for assistance in video production.