I shot a 5 and a half minute video of my family vacation at Disneyland in California, or rather, just a bit of the vacation. Here’s the clip:
My thought when I did this was, “video should be fun, simple, and not exactly a complete capture of every moment of the vacation.” We had two solid days in Disneyland (honestly, I’m writing this from my hotel in Disney, so we’re still here), and I didn’t shoot every moment of it on video. I didn’t capture every breath the family took. That’s the difference. It’s nice to have some visual memories of the event, but do you really need every moment that takes place?
No. We think we do, because we want to capture every moment, but that’s not really the whole point, is it? The point is to make memories, not perfectly capture them.
What’s your take?
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Nice, and glad you had a chance to relax with the family. I think there are two ways to use media (images and video) on a vacation. One is to “memorialize”, and in that case you record and capture things you want to revisit and relive as accurately as possible. Think of memorializing as what a documentarian might do on your vacation. Lot’s of work. Detracts from the enjoyment of the real moments. The second, and perhaps more fun way, is to “capture” and in that case you only need to grab snippets of your vacation that will be enough to spark your own memories of the trip. And since you aren’t mucking around with your equipment instead of experiencing your trip, in the latter case you will actually have memories to be sparked! Lately, when I travel, I try to use media to capture more than memorialize. Thanks for reminding me!
I'm with you. Pictures and video are great, and I use 'em both. But I want to *enjoy* my vacation instead of spending it all trying to get a great shot.
Chris, you are right. You only need to capture a few moments of a special event on video. We found that the amount of photo/video taking seems to decrease with the second child. Our friends with children say they have noticed the same phonomenon. Do we become too busy or does the novelty wear off?
Great point Chris
Holidays with family should be spent with the family, not with a video camera permently attached to your hand.
Hope you had fun.
Tania
Hi Chris. Glad you got to have some fun with the family! You hit the proverbial nail on the head and you don't have to record every moment of a trip or adventure. I think there are two ways to use digital media (images and video) to record your vacation. One way is to “Memorialize” it and record as much as you can to try and relive moments exactly as they were. Think of what a Documentary Filmmaker would do on your vacation. It is a lot of work and you spend most of your time fiddling with your gadgets rather than experiencing your vacation… The second more fun way is to just “Capture” your vacation, recording just enough snippets that will easily spark your memory of the vacation later on. This has become my preferred method, as when I used to try and “memorialize” everything, I ended up not having any good memories of the trip (other than futzing with my cameras…)
Nice video, Chris. I enjoy taking lots of photos and shooting some footage on vacation, and usually end up producing a short video and a slide show. I think it's important to capture highlights, and I don't feel a need to document everything. Believe it or not, I also keep a traditional scrapbook, where I can write captions for some of the photos, and encapsulate how I was feeling at the time the photo was taken (and also jog my memory, since I can't remember the name of every monument or castle or restaurant).
I get caught up in trying to make media and share it as it's happening… which lands me in hot water with the Mrs. more often then most. There is definitely a fine line between trying to capture moments and actually experiencing them.
I really like the idea of the two to five minute video montage of a vacation. I also think that storyboarding out a trip's pictures in a program like Comic Life is cool. I really want to start doing that, with the end result being some sort of coffee table book, via Blurb, for us and the grandparents…
Making things for loved ones is so much cooler than glue and construction paper these days.
Great post, Chris
After the birth of my daughter I was given lots of advice, but two pieces stuck with me:
1. Pick her up at least once each day.
2. Don't watch her grow up through a lens
#1 has been easy, but I'll admit to sometimes struggling with #2. I still take pictures and video, but my focus is on enjoying time with my family rather than capturing every second. Additionally, each year's media is further distilled into a video yearbook, so the amount we share is even less, often just a few pictures of each “event.”
Sure, there are times when we miss capturing something, but we usually have enough photos/video to start the “remember whens.”
I concur with the observations from previous commenters. Video tends to get in the way of actually experiencing any activity. And shorter clips end up being more interesting anyway. I've become the family documentarian by default, so if I didn't shoot photos there wouldn't be many. But my daughter has now become a shutterbug, but most of her shots are of herself. (I'd rather be behind the camera personally.)
Chris, when my son was about your daughter's age he made the interesting observation (after going on some of the same rides) that there was an awful lot of terror and death at The Happiest Place On Earthâ„¢.
I agree Chris. Too many holidays I've spent with family only to spend the afternoon watching the video replay of the event I just lived!
I no longer try to capture the perfect moment. Rather I get some of it, which will cue the memory, then go join in.
I no longer try to capture the perfect moment. Rather I get some of it, which will cue the memory, then go join in.