A recent announcement by Flickr has the potential to change the face of the popular photography-sharing site. Flickr has added the ability to upload videos to its site, though it is taking a very different approach than video-only companies like YouTube. The video capabilities are intended to compliment, not compete with, the photo sharing features of the site. Part of Flickr’s strategy for ensuring that is to limit the length of the videos to 90 seconds. The ability to upload videos is also limited to Pro members, with memberships costing $25 a year.
This new feature opens up a world of photographic possibilities for the millions of Flickr members out there. A new genre that is gaining popularity since the announcement is the ‘long photograph,’ a single-scene video that resembles a photograph, but shows the (usually subtle) motion of the subject. There are several examples in the numerous Flickr groups dedicated to the topic, one of the most popular being A Long Photo Group (http://flickr.com/groups/alongphoto/). Many people are finding that long photos unlock their creative potential in ways that photography doesn’t.
Another way that photographers are exploring the new video capabilities is with time-lapse photography. Many digital cameras on the market today have time-lapse features that allow you to set the camera up to shoot at regular intervals over a long period of time. String the images together in a video-editing program, and you have a time-lapse video of a sunset, a flower opening or even a snowstorm.
A few of my favorite Flickr videos are below. Check back for a future piece on easy-to-use video-editing software coming soon!
time lapse by MattLaws
Clouds and the mountain by SilentObserver
Crossing Hot Metal Bridge by daveynin
