The Benefit of Having a Camera that Shoots Video
With most cameras that are released these days having video, it may seem like a pointless exercise to point out the benefits of having the feature. However, if you read the comments on reviews of new cameras (and you probably shouldn’t for your own mental health) there’s always someone who complains about the video functions, saying that they are a photographer and “real photographers” don’t care about video. Even if you don’t like shooting video, I think that there are times when it’s a real benefit to have video in your camera, and the other day I came across a perfect example.
In the centre of Dublin thee is a famous bridge called “The Ha’penny Bridge” (and yes, that is how you spell it. It’s pronounced “Hay Penny” for those not familiar with the term). I was out shooting some street photography the other day, and it was a cold but beautiful winter morning. The sun was low, and as I passed the Ha’penny bridge, I noticed that the low sun was having a very interesting effect on the bridge. It was casting shadows on the railings at just the right angle that it looked like one of those lenticular holograms that were really popular in the 80’s. (I remember collecting animal holograms inside the box of Rice Crispies when I was growing up)
Anyway, I took some stills of the effect but it really didn’t do it justice. I had my X-Pro 2 with me, and so I just started shooting video instead. I didn’t have to reach for another camera, or take out my phone (which wouldn’t be as good anyway). I just hit the record button.
So what’s my point? Well, one of the recurring arguments from the “we don’t care about video on stills cameras crowd” is that if you do care about video you should get a video camera. Well, I wouldn’t have been carrying a separate video camera with me, and I probably wouldn’t have gone to the effort to set it up even if I did. Instead, because I had the ability to shoot high quality video right in my camera with what I had wth me, I was able to capture the scene. So even if you don’t plan on shooting video, it’s still useful to have, and it’s still important that the quality is good too. I posted this on my Streets of Dublin Facebook page, and it’s been one of the most popular posts I’ve ever had on that page. So you may think you don’t care about video, but if something happens in front of you you’ll be glad you had the ability to capture it.
Incidentally, this shot is straight out of the camera. I shot it using the Acros simulation mode, and apart from trimming it, it’s exactly as shot. You can really see the effect towards the end of the video.
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