Video Camera

Shoko and I recently purchased a video camera. Although it's not exclusively for blogging (we plan to use it for all the usual things people do with video cameras: take it on vacation, document special occasions, send greetings) I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited about all the blogging possibilities it represents. Especially after all the fun Brett and I had making this video.

Right now I'm still trying to figure out how to use the thing. I won't bore you with all my technical problems...well, ok, I will, but at the very least I'll save it all for the end of the post so you can skip over it if you want. Suffice it to say, I'm not quite sure what I'm doing yet, so I'm making a bunch of videos just to test out how this thing works and how easily I can post stuff to the Internet.

The first video I made was a 10 second video of Shoko washing dishes, in which she was saying, "Is that thing on? You better not be taping me." Afterwards I was asked to erase the tape, so I won't be showing it to you. (Shoko is a bit more self-conscious than me about when she appears on the video tape. She doesn't like being taped in her lounging around clothes or without make-up, but hopefully will get her on video one of these days).

My next idea was just to do a little video tour of the apartment. You know, just for the folks back home to see where I'm living and how I'm settling in, etc. Shoko has vetoed this idea until the apartment gets cleaned.

By the way, I'm supposed to add that the reason the apartment is not clean in the first place is all my fault, and has no reflection on Shoko's house keeping skills. She tries really hard to clean up after me, but whenever I have a day off from work the apartment gets really messy again and she just can't keep up. (Those of you who've seen my bachelor pad days can relax however, it's not even close to as bad as it was when I lived by myself. Shoko just has a higher standard of cleanliness).

Anywho, failing those first two ideas, I just resorted to turning the camera on and acting silly. For some reason I thought it would be funny to talk into the camera whilst drinking a cup of coffee. I call it: "The Coffee Drinking Fool."

This is a rather pointless video, but keep in mind I just made it so I can have something to play with as I figure out what I'm doing. Hopefully more interesting stuff will follow as I get a handle on this, and actual tape some stuff worth taping.

I was able to successfully upload this online, but at the moment I'm having trouble embedding the video in my blog (see technical problems below), so I'll just give the link here instead for anyone who's got 5 minutes to waste. In the meantime I'll continue fooling around with the embedding links, so if you happen to be checking this blog regularly and seeing a video appearing and then disappearing, that's just me playing around.

The coffee is hot out of the kettle, which is why I'm slurping so loudly. Anyone concerned will be happy to know that I've got a haircut appointment scheduled for tomorrow. Shoko previewed the video before I posted it and commented, "It's so strange. You're good looking in real life, but you never seem to look good in photographs in videos." After that comment I was a little self-conscious about posting this, but I guess it's a little late to start having pride now. If you're watching this video and you don't know me, just keep in mind that I'm supposed to be better looking in real life.
Other than that I'll just let the video speak for itself...

Technical Problems
Despite the excessive amount of time I spend on line, I like to think of myself as more of an internet couch potato than a techie, so I really don't know what I'm doing. A techie co-worker was kind enough to help me pick out a camera I could easily use with a computer, which really helped me out because otherwise I wouldn't have had a clue what to get.

And now, figuring out how to use it with the internet...

It turns out this little 5 minute video I shot is 360 MB, over 3 times over youtubes limit of 100 MB, which is why I posted it up on google video instead. Is there a way to change the format of the video to something that uses less space?

As for the embedding problem: according to Blogger help, this is a problem that has been happening in a lot of blogs recently. I'll keep fooling around.

Link of the Day
Speaking of youtube videos, here's a friend's youtube page which has several Calvin Airband sketches on it. Great nostolgia. My favorite was this Calvin "Real World" Parody.