Text & Photos: Julie Schwietert Collazo

This time last week, I was in Chile, sitting at the base of the most amazing mountains I’ve ever seen in my life, marveling at the fact that the clouds that had been hanging around for the preceding two weeks had disappeared as my colleagues and I rolled into town.

“Life is SO good,” I thought to myself. “I have the best job in the world!”

“I dunno; I kinda feel guilty,” one of my colleagues said about the trip after we polished off another pricey, hours-long, multi-course dinner in an upscale restaurant in Santiago. “Don’t,” I said, relishing the lemon sorbet palate cleanser that had been set before me. He looked at me dubiously.

“First of all,” I continued, “a press trip–as amazing as it is–actually is WORK. And don’t forget that. It’s not mucking port-a-potties or paper pushing, that’s for sure, but it IS work.”

I paused for another mouthful of lemon sorbet.

“You get up at 6 AM each morning, you’re on the road until midnight at least, and you need to be gathering article material all day long.” Pause. “Second,” I said, swirling the last bite of sorbet around on my spoon, “the sponsor really wants you here. And they expect something out of it. Don’t forget that either,” I concluded, as I laid the spoon down.

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What is a press trip?

As the name suggests, a press trip is a trip–usually two to seven days in length–that is sponsored by a tourism bureau, a hospitality industry provider, or an advertising agency and which is arranged specifically for writers and journalists. The goal of the trip is to inform writers about the destination and its attractions by giving them first-hand experience of a place. The sponsor or host of the trip typically expects that the writer will produce one or more feature-length articles about the destination in order to increase exposure and stimulate tourism in that area.

The nature of press trips varies considerably. Many press trip sponsors pay all expenses for the trip: roundtrip airfare to and from the destination, lodging, meals, activities, and gratuities. Other press trip hosts pay for all expenses except airfare. Clearly, the intention of the sponsor is to show the media who are on the trip the best facets of their country or city, and they will go out of their way to impress writers and journalists, putting them up in 5 star hotels, taking them to luxurious restaurants, and offering them activities that most writers would find impossible to enjoy on their meager salaries.

I know plenty of writers who are opposed to press trips. They feel that press trips are artificial. They argue that writers can’t possibly get an objective sense of a place–be it a restaurant or a hotel–if someone else is footing the gasp-inducing bill. They contend that hospitality providers are on their best behavior for press trip participants, and that writers are gently coerced to write favorable articles in return for the incredible free experiences they enjoy.

But having participated in several press trips, hosted by very different sponsors and in very different places, I have to say that those arguments are not only weak; they’re untenable.

First, if you’re a writer with integrity, you will write articles that convey your actual experiences, not some glowing, polished, barely concealed sales pitch that is at odds with what you saw and learned.

In Chile, we were toured around a resort that boasts the largest manmade pool in the world… right on the ocean (which, by the way, you couldn’t see). As we tooled around the pool on a motorized boat and stepped out onto an artificial beach, en route to an underwater bar with an exotic fish aquarium, I could barely conceal how appalled I was. In my mind, it was an environmental, social, and cultural monstrosity, and there’s no way I’ll write anything positive about it.

Second, if you’re a responsible writer, you won’t rely only on the programmed elements of the trip itself to provide you with information and insight into the destination. In fact, you’ll use the contacts you make (you ARE making contacts, right?) to gather more information on the ground than you ever could have gathered from afar. For example, while I was in Chile, I had questions about safety for travelers. I mentioned this to my sponsor, who was able to arrange an interview with the Sub-Secretary of the Interior of Chile. It was a contact I would have been unlikely to have made on my own, and the Sub-Secretary provided me with vital information and insight that will enhance some of the articles I write about the country.

Third, hospitality providers are rarely even aware that you are a writer or journalist being sported about the country, and even if they are, line staff rarely recognize the implications of treating you with the same surly attitude that characterizes their interaction with any other guest. The service at our all-inclusive resort in Torres del Paine was pretty atrocious, especially for the price, and there’s no way I could or would squeeze some glowing review out of my experience there. Even when your sponsors give hospitality providers a heads-up that their incoming guests are VIPs, it’s impossible for them to control hotel desk agent or waiter behavior. True colors will eventually shine through. If you’re an astute observer, you’ll see them and take note. But if you’re punch drunk on your third free cocktail, you’re not going to see them. That’s not the sponsor’s fault; it’s yours.

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Press trips give you first-hand experience and knowledge of a place. They give you the opportunity to meet people who can answer questions you’d otherwise be tempted to just Google. They give you, if YOU are responsible and resourceful, contacts that you can leverage over the course of your career.

Press trips also give you boundless opportunities to write about a destination based on your experiences. Those articles don’t need to be positive–and shouldn’t be– unless your experiences were positive. But the outcome of your experiences largely depends upon you. Are you a good listener? Do you ask questions that help you see the place for the complex, nuanced country that it is? Are you able to collect the stories that even your sponsors may not see, the human interest stories that really tell about the place you’re visiting? You owe it to the sponsor–and to yourself–to sit down at the end of the trip or within a specified timeframe afterwards, to talk about your experiences, the sponsor’s expectations, and the articles you expect to write and publish based on the trip.

Press trips don’t need to be sleazy. They’re only uncomfortable if you’re viewing the trip as an all-expenses paid vacation rather than part of your job. Keep your eyes and ears open, keep your cocktail consumption to a respectable minimum, and don’t check your critical sensibilities at immigration. Press trips can be incredible experiences for you and the sponsor. Both of you share the responsibility for making sure that’s the case.

Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo & Francisco Collazo
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After reading the articles in this series, you’ve become intrigued by the possibilities of boosting your blog with video. You’ve applied the tips we’ve shared–and those that readers far more experienced with video have offered (thanks, Craig!). You’ve produced some decent video you’d like to share with visitors to your blog…. now what?

The final steps in boosting your blog with video are publishing your video and promoting it once it has gone live. Here’s what you need to know:

1. Establish a YouTube account. If you don’t already have a YouTube account, now’s the perfect time for you to get one! YouTube, of course, is a massive online archive of videos, ranging from the terribly amateur to the compelling yet obscure. Signing up really is quick and easy.

YouTube isn’t the only online video library that’s free and yours for the using. Vimeo and GoogleVideo are two similar services. Each of the services offers its own advantages; the only major drawback of all three systems is that your uploaded video gets compressed considerably, affecting the quality of your final product.

Matador Travel’s video editor, Joshua Johnson, just tipped us off to a service that we haven’t checked yet but which seems to offer some serious promise: TubeMogul. TubeMogul is distinct from the other three services mentioned above because, as its website says:

TubeMogul is a free service that provides a single point for deploying uploads to the top video sharing sites, and powerful analytics on who, what, and how videos are being viewed.

In other words, if you have a TubeMogul account, you upload your video there and it gets distributed across YouTube, Vimeo, and more than a dozen other online video platforms. Sounds good to us.

Finally, if you are creating videos in a particular area of interest–travel, for instance–you may wish to do a Google search to see if there’s a specialized video platform that archives and broadcasts video for that subject. TripFilms is an excellent example, though there are many more. TripFilms happens to be especially interesting because regular video contributors may be able to get paid for their footage.

Regardless of the online video platform you select, be sure to name your account appropriately. If you have a blog you’re using to promote yourself as a writer, and if your blog (as it should) has a name, then your online video account should use the same name or something really similar. You’re creating a brand for yourself; be consistent.

2. Upload your video. Once you’ve decided which one(s) of these online video platforms you want to use, upload your video. This is a fairly straightforward process, and the instructions for doing so will be on the website you’ve selected. Typically, uploading video simply involves clicking “Upload,” noting the title, category, and keywords that describe your video, and selecting the video file from your hard drive that you want to upload. Upload time depends entirely upon the size of your file and the speed of your internet connection. Expect upload times of 5 minutes or less for smaller files; several hours for longer videos.

3. Don’t skimp on the details. Before you actually hit the upload button, stop for a second and review your entire submission. Does the name you’ve selected for the video match the title that’s actually on your video (if it has a title)? Do the key words or tags you’ve included reflect the content in the video? In your key words and tags, be sure to include common variations or anticipiated misspellings for words that might be typed in incorrectly during a search.

4. Promote your video. Once your video has been published, your online video platform will give you a string of HTML code that you cut and paste into a blog post in order to embed the video. Once you’ve pasted the code into your post, be sure to preview to make sure that your video appears and runs correctly. You may want to consider creating a new category for videos on your blog; that way, visitors can conduct a search for your video content quickly and easily.

5. Manage your promotional efforts. Your video is up on your blog. Now what?! You can use all the usual techniques you use to let people know about new blog posts: Twitter, Facebook, your e-mail status bar. You can send an e-mail to your contacts announcing that your blog is now video enhanced. You’ll also want to check into your online video account regularly to see if any viewers have left comments or ratings of your videos. Viewers who are doing a casual or targeted search on YouTube may access your video through that site, not through your blog, and their comments may go overlooked if you’re not checking in on your account on a periodic basis.

So go get publishing and promoting! And let us know where we can see your video.

Photo: Frederic-Michel Chevalier (Flickr creative commons)

Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo & Francisco Collazo

You’ve got your gear. You’ve accumulated some decent footage. Now, what to do with it?

Before you sit down to start editing, spend some time watching films–short or long, it doesn’t matter–with a critical eye. Now that you’ve been behind the camera, you’re likely to see the finished product in an entirely new way. The intel you take away from a couple hours scoping films will help you understand what details to attend to in the editing process.

Did you watch some films? Really?

Ok, you’re ready for the next step: editing your own footage.

The editing software you use will depend, to some extent, on the equipment you have. For instance, the footage you capture with a Flip camera can simply be downloaded to your computer, imported into Windows Movie Maker (which is pre-installed on most Windows PCs and laptops these days), edited, and then saved and uploaded to YouTube or another online video archive. The Canon HG10, on the other hand, comes with an editing program and (so far) we haven’t figured out a way to use any other program to edit the footage.

Regardless of the gear you’re using, any decent editing program should be accompanied by a manual or installed help function that will guide you through the editing tools in your particular software package or program.

While we’ll deal with publishing and promoting your videos in the final article in this series, you need to know that many online archives, such as YouTube, upload videos in segments of 10 minutes or less. Keep this in mind with editing; two or three minute videos are optimal for uploading and sharing. Besides, most visitors to your blog–even the most dedicated and intelligent ones–have a limited attention span and aren’t likely to spend much more time than that… even if your video is compelling or funny. (vis: La Corraleja, where a man gets gored and stomped by a bull. Compelling? Yes. Engaging? Apparently not, as it produced the lowest average time on our blog ever!)

Another question should inform your entire editing (and filming) process: What is the purpose of adding video to your blog? Will video be an adjunct to narrative or will it be a stand-alone main feature? The answer to this question will determine how you edit, whether you need informative subtitles, and what kinds of audio and/or still photo material you’ll need to gather in order to tell the story. It helps to answer this question before you even start filming (which is why we mentioned developing a storyboard in the last article).

Once you actually start editing, import a few clips into the editing program and use them as a means of getting accustomed to the editing tools and process. Start out knowing that editing takes time… more time than it took you to conceptualize and capture your footage. Let’s say you’ve got 20 minutes or more of footage and your plan is to produce a 2 minute video. Budget several hours–especially as you’re just starting out–to generate that final piece.

After you’ve finished editing, watch the video a few times. Are your transitions between clips smooth? If you’ve used titles, subtitles, or credits, make sure every word is spelled correctly. Have you added your name, blog URL, or some other means of contact to the final frame? How is the sound quality? Any online archive to which you upload your video will compress your file, impacting the quality of your final product considerably, so be sure that the video you’ve produced is the best quality it can be given the capacities of your gear and your editing program.

Stay tuned… tomorrow we’ll publish the final article in this series: how to publish and promote your video.

In the meantime, if you’d like to see a visit a few blogs that incorporate video, we recommend:

Emonome: Check out our friend Emon’s Central Park drummer video, which is in the top right corner of his blog.

Ian MacKenzie: You may already know that Ian’s the editor of Brave New Traveler, but you might not be aware that he’s also a new media producer. You can find lots of videos on his site.

Film editor photo: Filmingilman (Flickr creative commons)
Clock photo: Frankfarm (Flickr creative commons)

Text by Julie Schwietert Collazo & Francisco Collazo
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In Part 1 of this series about boosting your blog with video, we took a look at the gear you’ll need to begin creating video to include on your blog.

Once you’ve got your gear, it’s time to start working with it. In this article, we’re going to talk about filming. The lessons we share here were learned through trial and error… lots and lots of error. We’re still learning every time we hit the “start” button!

1. Embrace the learning curve.

If you’re brand new to video, as we were, understand that the first few weeks or even months with your camera are best devoted to on-the-street experimentation. Even if you’ve read dozens of reviews about the gear you’ve bought, even if you’ve scoured the instruction manual cover to cover, the way in which you manage your camera and push it to its limits will be unique.

Don’t make the mistake that we did and film “important” footage during this learning and acclimation phase–important being footage you’re not likely to be able to capture again. Film birds, cars, people on the street. Just don’t film that interview it’s taken you months to arrange.

Otherwise, you’ll have loads of footage you can use to write an article like this one.

2. Do a sound check. Every single time.

Sounds simple enough, but the temptation to skip sound check is strong– let’s just get to filming!–especially when what you’re filming is a scene unfolding spontaneously before you.

But if you do that silly “testing, testing, 1, 2, 3″ (Yes, every time!), you’ll save yourself the disappointment of sitting down to review your footage, only to find out that what you’ve filmed is a silent movie.

3. Get stills and filler.

No one shoots a film–no matter the length–in a single fluid shot.

A finished video is the result of the movie equivalent of a cut and paste job. In addition to capturing your primary subject, be sure to film some still and filler footage you’ll be able to use for introductions, transitions, and credits.

4. Think about the big picture. Unless you’re sending footage to “Candid Camera,” think about the implications of the people you’re filming. In certain sensitive situations, such as my recent visit to the naval base and detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, you’ll want to get verbal confirmation that your subjects are willing to be filmed. In some cases, you may even want to request that your subjects sign a consent form, which indicates their willingness to be filmed and releases you from responsibility once the film goes live.

5. Develop a storyboard. If you’re setting out to film with a specific subject in mind, develop a rough storyboard that lays out the trajectory of the narrative you want to tell. This exercise is useful for helping you anticipate the kinds of shots you’ll want to get while filming.

There are many other variables to take into consideration when you’re filming– light, angle, and sound being just three of them–but you’ll develop your own sense of the importance of each and your style of managing them the more you handle your camera. The tips above will just get you started!

Curve photo: Extra Medium (Flickr creative commons)

Microphone photo: jschneid (Flickr creative commons)

Scissors photo: reebob (Flickr creative commons)

Earlier this week, a CollazoProjects reader wrote:

I’d like to put more video on my blog but I’m a complete beginner. What software should I use for editing videos, adding music & text etc? Also appreciate any other resources you could point me towards to get started.

Heather’s question is a good one, and it requires such a detailed answer, we decided to write an article–or four– in response!

This is the first article in a series of four articles that offer you a crash course in boosting your blog with video. In this article, we talk about the gear you need to get started.

The second installment will share filming tips; the third will explain the intricacies of editing; and the final article will teach you how to upload, publish, and promote your videos.

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Boosting Your Blog With Video: GEARING UP!

If you want to add video to your blog, you’ll need a video camera.

Wait- I know what you’re thinking: “Forget that I asked! I can’t afford a video camera!”

Don’t stop reading, though.

While there are top of the line professional video cameras that could drain your bank account in one fell swoop, there are also a couple of lower end cameras that will fit into almost any budget. My personal favorite is the Flip Camera, a lightweight, pocket-sized video camera with the capacity to film and store up to 60 minutes of footage at a time. At just $153.00, this video camera is cheaper than most digital cameras and will let you produce some fantastic footage for your blog.

The Flip has some serious limitations, but if you’re aware of them from the beginning, you’ll be able to leverage the camera’s strengths to capture quality video. The Flip works best when you’re in a situation where you can shoot close up. There’s a zoom function, but it doesn’t permit slow and steady user control; furthermore, the microphone is small and won’t capture sound that’s far from the camera itself.

Watch our videos “The Happiest Woman in Guantanamo” and “Alpura Milk Dancers” to get an idea about the kinds of subjects and settings where filming with the Flip works best.

The Flip is super easy to use with respect to downloading and editing. The camera has a USB device that plugs directly into your computer and allows direct downloading. The software comes with the camera and installs quickly. Once you’ve got your video footage on your computer, you can use Windows Movie Maker to edit your clips and produce a finished piece.

If you’re serious about developing quality video and have the budget for a bigger camera, we recommend the Canon HG10. This is a high definition video camera that’s a notch above the home video camera and a few notches below a professional video camera.

This camera has far more flexibility and capability than the Flip, but if you’re going to invest in a camera of this type, be prepared to buy a couple of non-negotiable accessories.

A tripod is a must– we’ve got hours of shaky footage that’s unusable because we shot without a tripod. You can purchase a very decent Canon tripod that comes with its own bag for about $40.

Another accessory you’ll need is an external microphone. While video cameras all come with built in microphones, you’ll be hard pressed to capture audible sound without an external microphone (also called a shotgun mike). We use an AZDEN camcorder microphone. Two notes about this microphone: 1. You’ll need batteries (and will ALWAYS want to do a sound check before you start filming to make sure your battery hasn’t died) and 2. You should always check to make sure your microphone is on before filming.

Our next accessory purchase will be a lavalier microphone, which ranges between $20.00 and $700.00. A lavalier microphone clips onto your subject’s shirt and permits you to capture the very best sound, close to the source.

The Canon HG10 comes with a software CD that provides you with the Corel Ulead editing system. It’s not the most intuitive editing system I’ve ever used, but the quality of video is certainly superior to that of the Flip. Check out our “House of Memories” video to see if you can discern the difference between the Flip footage and the Canon footage. (And you’ll see why we advise you to buy a tripod!)

Finally, once you’ve got all your gear, you’ll need a bag to put it in. There are fancy hard shell cases with interior padding that will keep your gear protected, but these tend to be expensive and are heavy to carry. We use a Baggallini padded valise.

If you buy any of your gear at a store, the salesperson will try to encourage you to buy lots of other gear, but these are the basics. You’ll be just fine if you start with these items and start testing them out. Over time, once you’ve decided what kinds of videos you want to make and why, you’ll develop a better understanding of the accessories you’ll want to buy to enhance your video production.

Movie man photo: Simon Pais-Thomas (Flickr creative commons)

Gear photo: lucianvenutian (Flickr creative commons)

Flip camera photo: rmphotog (Flickr creative commons)