Breezy Boston Christmas (with Canon 7D) from Ted Chen on Vimeo.

Yet another one that was almost lost in the void. Last Christmas, I traveled to Boston for the second time. During the first visit, I hadn’t even gotten my first DSLR. Now I’m on my 4th and diving into the world of video.

Boston was really chilly but with lots of rain instead of snow. We hardly saw anyone on the streets because of the festive period. But once in awhile we saw the occasional couple and they reminded us what Christmas was all about – love and giving.

I tried to highlight both experiences in this video, starting off with a sobbing take on the cold, deserted Boston streets, followed by a lift of mood. It was what I genuinely felt on this three-day trip as I attempted to soak in the small details rather than look at the regular sights for the second time.

Once again, the video was shot hand-held with one lens mostly (Canon’s 24-105 f4). While I do a pretty good job, I still hope to get some kind of stabilizer in the future, and hopefully improve my perspectives on story-telling. Right now I feel I don’t experiment enough, relying on my photojournalistic eyes rather than incorporate more cinematic styles of shooting. Food for thought.

Comments most welcomed.

Couple strolling along a Boston wharf

AACIL – UM Art Collaborative Celebration, Shot on Canon 7D from Ted Chen on Vimeo.

After the recent release of Access magazine, the Ann Arbor CIL called me up to see if I was interested in covering their celebration event, which showcased the final works of a clay course. The course was held over several weeks in the fall, in collaboration with the University of Michigan.

Although I have been mulling over new video equipment for the past couple of weeks (was eyeing a viewfinder enlarger and some kind of stabilization system), financial constraints meant I would still shoot with the same Canon 7D and Rode Video Mic. Not that you can’t do a good job with it, but being hand-held, there is still some noticeable shake in the video.

One of the bigger problems from the day was the incredibly cacophonous background conversations. The exhibit area — where most of the video was shot — was no bigger than a conference room. With everyone trying to shout above each other and the walls echoing those voices, I might as well had been in a dance club. And here’s where I feel the Rode Video Mic performed admirably, picking up the interviewees voices above the din even though they were speaking to us in a low, muffled volume.

Solely relying on the 7D’s LCD screen to acquire pin-point focus is inadequate, I’ve come to realize. While the 7D screen is marvelous, it’s just too small. When I re-watch my video several times, I noticed the faces aren’t in exact focus (even though it’s close). I’ll need a viewfinder enlarger pretty soon, and I’m leaning heavily towards the LCDVF. I shot most of the video at f4, which doesn’t give thin depth-of-field at all, so it’s so hard to achieve focus accuracy at f4, imagine how bad it’ll be at f2.

I have to thank my colleague, Helen, for helping with asking the questions while I made sure everything was going right with the video recording. Hand-holding the camera requires deep concentration to keep it steady!

In case you’re wondering, the lenses used were:

Canon’s 24-105mm f4L
Sigma’s 15mm f2.8 fisheye

In future I definitely hope to have some kind of stabilization in place, and maybe I could try switching to prime lenses to get more separation between subject and background. But like I’ve said in all my previous video posts, photography is still number one for me, and should make sure it gets priority when it comes to gear. Good lenses can be used for either still or video, but stabilization is catered only for video and doesn’t help in still photography.

Prof Inuzuka talks about the importance of art in his life and the impact on his disability

Thanksgiving 2009 with the Canon 7D from Ted Chen on Vimeo.

While most partake in turkey and cranberry sauce during this American holiday, my friends and I chose to celebrate Thanksgiving with a bit more local flavor. Many Chinese enjoy hot pot (or otherwise known as steamboat in Singapore or 火锅 in Mandarin), where we throw all kinds of raw food into a boiling pot of flavored — and often spicy — soup.

But why explain it, when you can watch it in the video!

Now it was always my intention to shoot some kind of video for the occasion of Thanksgiving, but the final product turned out really different from what I had envisioned. At first I wanted some kind of narrative, to show my friend returning from New York and how we’d appreciate his company during dinner. However I failed to get the necessary footage to make such a narrative, plus as the night grew old, I realized there were plenty of candid and hilarious moments. Thus the ‘epic video’ was born.

Friends have commented that the video feels both funny and epic. What do you think?

As with the first video, the Canon 7D (my only DSLR capable of video) was used, along with a Rode Video Mic for audio. I’m still undecided on the performance of the Rode. The clarity is quite good in this video, but with my limited experience in the world of audio, I don’t know where this would stand with other mics. I do think audio is extremely important and want to get the best gear out there, within a budget. Eventually I’ll upgrade from the Video Mic, but for now it suffices. After all, video is still a very new venture to me, and rides on the back of still photography.

Getting ready to eat, on Thanksgiving 2009

Someone could have mistaken this year’s Halloween theme to be Chinese. But none of the estimated 450 participants of the China Entrepreneur Forum 2009 were dressed to shock. More like they were dressed to impress.

Held in the Ross Business School’s Blau Auditorium, this annual event’s focus is always on China, its future, and how those who are concerned — citizens or not — can be a part of it. The day started surprisingly early (considering it’s a Saturday) at 8:30 a.m. and keynote speeches, panels, and networking lasted the whole day. That’s how the Chinese do things – hard and furious!

I wasn’t the only photographer there, but I was for sure the most experienced and most focused. Others took a few shots here and there, but I was the only one running around the entire day. The Blau Auditorium is in the new wing of the Ross Business School, so lighting was quite good for a lecture hall. It was also the first time I used the Canon 7D for a real shoot. It performed marvelously.

Although I have good things to say about the high-ISO performance, what really blew me away was the improved focusing system. Now there’s the luxury of using other focusing points apart from the one in the center. And the point-expansion (the system I use) really helps in locking on. Even in an indoor setting, the focusing speed was near instant. Now I know how the 1D users must feel. After using the improved auto-focusing system of the 7D, it’s hard when I go back to the 5D (and every model below it).

Here’s a selection of the photos you’ve been waiting for! Many were shot with the 7D. Feel free to leave comments!

There was a time when I would slag anyone who suggested I jump ship to video rather than stay as a tried-and-true still photographer. How times have changed. I’ve seen some of the HD capabilities of the new DSLRs, from the Canon 5D MKII and now the new Canon 7D. And I am sold completely.

Perhaps that means I cheated on the love (for photography) that burgeoned about two years ago. But this is not a divorce. I’m merely embracing the new facet of video, and acknowledge that audio and motion combined with still imagery is one unstoppable force. Just look at the slide show-maker Animoto, or the Bebb Studios’ “Fusion Is Now” movement. Soon photographers will be expected to produce short video clips for their wedding couple clients.

I’ve never owned a video camera, but I’m planning to make the Canon 7D my first. Apart from being a competent video camera, the user reviews so far say the still images are impressive too. Even the specs of the 7D trump my backup 40D in almost every way. The $1699 price tag is a little intimidating, but at least still reachable compared to the 5D2‘s $2699 tag. I always believe in worthy investments and my goal would be to earn back the investment from future assignments.

The 7D’s are hard to find right now, but that only festers the itch of trying  out its video capabilities.