As we have now been in business for 14 years, many of you may be interested to know how we got started.  Here is the profile we submitted to Videomaker magazine, who is asking readers to do to help them get recognition.  Ours may be published in a future issue, stay tuned.   Without further ado:

It all started the first time I saw a video camera—my sister’s 5th birthday; the folks who organized the party told us they’d bring one along, and we got to see ourselves on a TV screen.  For years I was fascinated with television, wondering how it worked, how we saw the images, etc.  In high school, I took a media class, where we worked on several projects, including a parody of “The Brady Bunch”, one of my all-time favorite shows.  We used older equipment (not older than 2-3 years) to produce this project, was pleasantly surprised at how well it turned out.

In college, I pursued an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts; they offered media classes, Radio, Television and Film, two of which I took (I considered the film class, but wanted to concentrate on the other two) and really enjoyed.  We produced several projects here, including taping informative speeches on subjects like sketching, favorite albums, and music groups.  Some of us became a temporary tech crew, becoming more actively involved in the creative process—with a newscast and open forum program, we delved into producing more professional-looking programming.  Here I began to get a better idea of what was involved in television production.  With radio, the same thing, but television seemed more appealing—more opportunities to be creative. 

I had applied to several TV stations in hopes of working in the broadcast TV environment; no prospects, but did hear about a broadcasting school that had concentrated classes in radio, TV and video production.  For eight months, we learned the ins and outs of these plus news/commercial copywriting and newscasting.  It was very intense and fun to learn—after graduating, I interned at two cable stations, assisting with some in-studio and on-location productions, learning more about editing and producing small projects.

After going back to college, I began volunteering for a local cable station, having fun working with a regular crew on local productions, learning even more about production and editing.  In October of 1994, I worked for two video producers, taping a pre-teen beauty pageant at a local theater and two football games in southeast Michigan, learning more about professional video production and working with professional equipment—lugging a Sony DXC-3000 with a cable attached was a bit much…the dream job finally came in 1999, running a studio camera for a local station newscast—short lived and fast-paced, but fun. 

In November of 1994, my dad had read about a Nashville-based company that produces high school video yearbooks; this was the perfect opportunity for my sister and I, as she wanted to get into business marketing, I into video production.  After the visiting the facilities and much paperwork, we got our franchise and formed our company.  We spent many hours in the schools as well as the local hockey arena, filming our local team.  We only taped the video yearbook for one school year, as it hadn’t had the impact we had hoped—all 3 schools have great sports programs, a natural for selling many tapes.  After a hectic season, I decided to continue on producing, filming and editing for local and out-of-town clients, learning more about running a video production company as I went along.  I hired two friends to help out, both of who have been very instrumental in the company.

Now with 14 years in business and having done work for many clients, concentrating on wedding/event video, sporting events and dance recitals…it’s great to help folks preserve precious memories and become even more involved in the creative process—the two things that bring great satisfaction and keep us going.

 

Greetings Fair Readers!

Welcome to a new month, spring is finally here (though it may not feel like it sometimes), folks are planning special events and there's positive energy everywhere.  A great time for enjoying the things we look forward to!

We have been busy with some projects in the planning stages, including an upcoming anniversary party taping, editing a wedding demo on our laptop system, and adding new services; we now offer PowerPoint and event planning assistance.  With those planning weddngs, anniversaries, class/family reunions, wedding/baby showers, this will help ease the stress of the planning process--we want to make things easier for current and potential clients and customers.

There will be more to come in the near future, such as the possibility of adding Blu-ray DVD production (we've been talking about it for some time and now feel it's getting time to upgrade), tapeless production (the latest technology in video acquisition--it does make it easier) and expanding our studio.  As always, comments and suggestions are welcome, feel free to contact us with them.  In the meantime, stay tuned!

Happy 14h Anniversary!

With a new month and new year, we are geared up for some exciting new things!  As we look back on the last 14 years and reflect on how things have changed, we are looking ahead to how we can upgrade and further serve our past and potential clients--hi def Blu-ray discs, tapeless editing, more online video, whatever the new technology brings.

We are in the process of editing a wedding highlights DVD to show potential clients--on a new laptop!  This way, we can show them what they can expect, while meeting with them anywhere--editing and presentation on the go.  It's important to keep up with the latest trends, and we will be sure to do so, as the times change.  If anyone has other ideas for this, please be sure to let us know.  Also be sure to check out our demo on AcidPlanet--comments and suggestions are always welcome.

Thanks and talk to you all next month!

Hope everyone is doing well--we have had a mildly busy season, with planning new projects, contacting potential clients, and getting ready for the holiday season...looks like winter is here already (*sigh*), but it should be a mild one, from what they say.

The 2009 wedding season is coming up, we hope to do well, despite the state of the economy.  Recent articles in all of the video production trades say there's no need to fret, we can all prosper.  Forget the bleak economic forecast and roll with the punches.

The Michigan Admirals had a mildly successful 2008 season, are looking to go all the way next year...we may not be filming, as we are planning some bigger projects for summer 2009, stay tuned for details.  Our last wedding video, featuring Samantha and Josh Burns came out great--they were very pleased.  We combined a documetary style with some cinematic elements--the bridal party entrance had an "old film" look, much like what you'd see on video sharing sites--we may be posting a demo video on some of them, keep your eye out for some.

In the meantime, be sure to check out our demo on AcidPlanet, let us know what you think.  Take care and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Greetings Readers!

This has been a busy month--we filmed a wedding in Grand Blanc, are now in the post-production stage, and are planning some new projects, which we hope to get off the ground soon. 

The Michigan Admirals finished their 2008 season last month, a mildly successful one, now are looking forward to next season--should be an even better one.   We are looking to film the upcoming Flint Generals season, as we have done in the past--stay tuned for updates.

The Burns-Quinn Wedding was absolutely beautiful--a nice late summer day, blue sky, perfect for a wedding day.  We began with an establishing shot of the church, people arriving, the bridal preparations, then moved on to photos of the groomsmen and bride/bridesmaids and families being taken outside. 

Then, photos at the altar, followed by the ceremony--the bride, Samantha, entered from the back of the church after getting out of the car, then walked in escorted by her father--everyone gazed in wonderment.  A beautiful ceremony, followed by Josh and Sam greeting everyone inside the chapel--something we had never seen before.

Then off to the hall, with another establishing shot, the cake and guest book tables, followed by Josh and Sam arriving in a classic car--something new and unforgettable!  The bridal party entered, then the toasts, first dance, etc.  One of the highlights was the "alligator dance" during a fast song--again, something new and unforgettable. 

Plenty of fast and slow dancing, the kids were having an especially good time.  All in all, a day/night no one there would ever forget.  We wish Josh and Sam all the best.

That's it for this month, thanks for reading and stay tuned for further updates!