Karen Nakamura: September 2006 Archives

This is another short post for my Visual Anthropology class. In the course of making your video/audio ethnographies, you'll may want to use some music in the background. There's some debate about whether this would be appropriate in documentary film (especially unmotivated or non-diagetic music), but there is a bigger problem using commercial music as it is copyrighted and you will find problems legally using it (especially if your work will ever be broadcast publicly).

One solution is to use CreativeCommons licensed music. Here are some sources:

• http://www.podsafeaudio.com/
• http://music.podshow.com/
• http://magnatune.com/
• Dave's Imaginary Sound Space: Podsafe music resources

Check the variation of the CreativeCommons licensed attached to the music. By definition, the CC license allows for free re-use in free media (check the strings, though) -- but you will need to negotiate if you ever sell your product commercially.

Darn it if I don't have some flickering from fluorescent lights in indoor footage from Japan -- shot with both my Canon XL-H1 and Sony HDR-HC1. This was both in footage shot in 60i and 30f -- with shutterspeeds of 1/30 and 1/60.

What is going on? While the United States is 60hz and Western Japan (where I normally stay) is also 60hz, eastern Japan including Tokyo and Hokkaido is 50hz. This means that I should have used a frequency multiple of 25/50 instead of 30/60. So the best shutterspeeds for avoiding flicker were 1/25, 1/50, or 1/100.

Let that be a lesson to me.

I mentioned in Visual Anthropology class that a cheap lavalier (clip-on) mike is ideal for doing both audio and video interviews. The cheapest that I found that should be sufficient for the purposes of the class is the Sony ECM-T6 for $12.95:

Sony ECM-T6 - Omni-Directional Lavalier Condenser Microphone - $12.95 (B&H)

The next level up is the Sony ECM-C115 for $39.95

Sony ECM-C115 Omnidirectional Lavalier Microphone - $39.95 (B&H)

Both of these have their own on-board power-supply (CR-2025 batteries) so they work with camcorders, audio recorders, and laptops that provide power (aka Plug In Power) as well as ones that don't. If you're going to use your laptop for recording, chances are it doesn't have Plug-in-Power, so you need a mike that is self-powered.

I was preparing a budget to get some student DV camcorders for my department. My requirements were that they had to have a microphone-in as a minimum. The three I came up with were:

El Cheapo: Canon ZR-500 == $250

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=418761&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

Middle-range: Panasonic PV-GS150 == $399

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=365713&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

High-range: Canon GL-2 = $2200

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=255811&is=REG&addedTroughType=search

A few years ago, I would have gotten GL2s because they're more rugged than any consumer camcorder. But I have the feeling that the field is changing quickly and that in two years (the estimated lifetime of a cheap sub-$500 consumer camcorder), we'll either be switched entirely to tapeless or HD format. So the GL2 can't amortize itself within its lifetime.

Annie Donwerth Chikamatsu has a great photoblog called Here and there Japan, which contains photographs and musings from her everyday life in Japan with her husband, son, and in-laws.

Steve Borsch has an excellent blog entry on why using Picasa's web album is a particularly bad idea -- because posting your images on it gives away all of your photograph's duplication rights to Google, without compensation and in perpetuity:

Your Rights

Google claims no ownership or control over any Content submitted, posted or displayed by you on or through Picasa Web Albums. You or a third party licensor, as appropriate, retain all patent, trademark and copyright to any Content you submit, post or display on or through Picasa Web Albums and you are responsible for protecting those rights, as appropriate. By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through Picasa Web Albums, you grant Google a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to reproduce, adapt, distribute and publish such Content through Picasa Web Albums, including RSS or other content feeds offered through Picasa Web Albums, and other Google services. In addition, by submitting, posting or displaying Content which is intended to be available to the general public, you grant Google a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to reproduce, adapt, distribute and publish such Content for the purpose of displaying, distributing and promoting Google services

"Promoting Google services" is very vague. A coffee table book about Google could be construed this way. Definitely an advertising campaign -- how pissed would you be if Google used your photograph on billboards across America and didn't pay you a penny? They have every right to since you gave them that right.

Furthermore, this is hidden in the Terms of Service which no one reads. How many other photo sharing sites have similar rights grabs in their TOS? Previously, I've blogged about why you should never enter most photo contests, but now it appears you shouldn't ever post anything on the web unless you own your own server.