video stories

Posted on

adventure dog adventure

This may seem a bit silly, but I started editing together little one minute videos of my dog and posting them on Youtube.

We go for a long walk, explore some trails, capture some 4k footage on my phone or go pro camera.

I have a couple of these that I did with my last dog but I regret not taking more video of her when she was still around.

The thing is, people seem to like them.

Most videos I post get a few dozen views from friends or family.

These have crept into the 1000s.

Such as, our adventure walk through the snowy local river valley:

Or, the new one I posted earlier today about a wandering adventure through some local suburban trails:

I know she’s cute, but the interest has caught me off guard a little bit.

… in a good way, of course!

Check them out and tell me what you think. Cute dogs are an easy sell online? Or are people suddenly vibing for some dog-meets-world video fun?

Posted on episode 324

Campfire Club

Ahhhh… outdoor campfire season is upon us once again. I do try to get outside and warm myself by some flickering flames year-round, but from May through October it is always a little more favourable to casually cooking and gathering around a pit of hot embers.

So I did last night.

Sadly alone….?

Or maybe…advantageously alone.

Reluctant to waste a great opportunity to enjoy a perfect Monday evening in spring, I rather took it as an opportunity to indulge in two of my pastimes. Not only did I light a fire and enjoy a small outdoor cookout, but I tried my hand at recording some more video footage of the whole experience.

I hardly need an excuse to set up a grill experience on my firepit. I mean, it helps immensely to have someone to share it all with, but even our small family seems to struggle to converge our precious free time with great weather and perfect opportunity. Sometimes you just gotta get out there and do your thing, even on a lonely evening. All that said, it never hurts to add another reason to break down those barriers (and create a positive space to fill in my over-planned life) by planning to share those lonely backyard fires with someone… anyone, and if I can’t convince my family, friends, or neighbours to wander by for reals why can’t that “anyone” be with my internet friends?

I’m gelling this whole multimedia creation process, the effort to make more videos and record a podcast to accompany this blog, and part of that gelling means turning sparks of inspiration into creative opportunity.

So, a new video series… a series of one so far… called the Campfire Club:

And if nothing more, I think a good chance for me to break out my firecraft skills at least once per month, record some grilled eats over those hot coals, and share the fun here in a format that transcends words.

If only I could let you taste it, too.

Posted on episode 315

Glass

About a week and a half ago I wrote a post about trail stewardship.

Maybe you recall. Or maybe you just clicked here because of the headline and sassy thumbnail. But the gist of the aforementioned article was that after spending a few hours marshalling a trail race one weekend (and during that time noting how much man-made mess was there, including shattered glass all over the path) I made a plan to go back and do some cleanup.

So… I did.

And I recorded a bunch of it.

Because as I wrote in another post I’ve been dabbling in the idea of kicking off a YouTube channel. The little mini film that result from this effort was more about testing my toe in the waters with something simple and obvious, but the result is an eight minute short film about trail stewardship and taking responsibility for the spaces we all use.

And I actually did a little bit of good in the process, I think.

I’ve uploaded it here:

Enjoy!

Posted on episode 311

On Visual Storytelling

As the summer draws nearer, I’ve got it into my head to make some movies.

Well… filmmaking. Video production. Out in the wilds with a camera and an idea, at least.

I initially set up a Youtube channel for this blog over a year ago with dual intentions.

First, I needed a place to upload little video clips to accompany my posts. My cheap little hosting setup is pretty flexible, but streaming video directly from a discount blog host doesn’t make much sense when there are free services like Youtube.

Second, I had this crazy idea of trying to make some short films. Not a vlog. Not ranting into a camera lens. Not just reading my posts either. But putting together a little script, gathering A-roll and B-roll and mixing it all into a little short film about a very particular topic.

There are plenty of examples of this already on Youtube and my subscription list provides me plenty of inspiration.

So…

I’m finally jumping in with both feet and I’m going to make it happen.

I’m working on the first two films right now, gathering footage and writing the scripts, and this morning I finished editing and recording a short introduction and trailer for my new project:

To be clear, there’s not going to be any regularity, routine or schedule to this new thing.

It’s just a thing for now. It’s sporadic … and an effort I’ll pick away at until I can make that thing at a quality I’m happy with. Uploading as I find time and inspiration to make more of those things.

But stay tuned.

Oh, and I’m supposed to say something like “please like and subscribe” right?