Viewfinder: How Video Hobbyists Are Born

by Matthew York
November 1998

A hobby is a pursuit of interest, undertaken for pleasure during one's leisure time. Hobbies fill our free time and give us a sense of accomplishment. Many Videomaker readers are video hobbyi sts. You create video for the pleasure of the process and the satisfaction of the end-result. Even most of our readers who earn money by making video probably started shooting and editing as a hobby. And, chances are, they probably still enjoy it as a hobby when they have a chance.
Making video can be isolating. As with hobbies like painting or photography, the person behind the camcorder, canvas or camera is removed from the scene. This person is usually more of an objective observer than a participant in the events he or she is recording. But making video can also get people involved with group activities, where they are able to collaborate with other group members to achieve a common end result. One of the most enjoyable elements of any group activity, be it a sporting event, a family outing, a dramatic or scholastic presentation, or just some well edited random day-in-the-life footage, is getting together after the event to enjoy the video. For those of you who are indeed pure hobbyists, this is the payoff for your labors.
As a hobbyist, you are also fortunate to have the ability to choose the subject matter of your videos. Video producers who earn money make videos for other people, which means their customers choose the topics. Hobbyists, on the other hand, have the freedom to make videos about whatever subjects they want. The most popular subject matter is families. They are very available, require little coaching (because we usually want them to simply be themselves), and they are interesting. People usually videotape events like weddings, parties and vacations as a routine matter. After some years, they begin to notice all the hours of raw footage accumulating and begin to contemplate editing the video. This is exactly how many of our readers began making video as a hobby.
Producing video has become increasingly popular with retired folks. They've got time, and video production can consume lots of it. Videomaker has a noteworthy portion of readers whom are both retired and video hobbyists.
There are many other hobbies that lend themselves to video taping. Bird watching is a prime example. Bird watching is often called "bloodless hunting" because the stalking of the creature is the same, but the killing is replaced by the capture of images and/or sounds. There are entire magazines devoted to this pastime, and the majority of the advertisements in these magazines have historically been for binoculars, cameras and tripods. But it's easier to capture images and sounds with a camcorder, and ads for camcorders have lately been appearing. This is just one example of the hobby of video enhancing another hobby.
Performing arts and sporting events are other examples of activities worthy of recording. The performances or events are the fruits of many hours, days, weeks or years of preparation. As it turns out, there is almost always at least one person in the group that has the inspiration to record the activity on video. After enough recordings, the footage piles up, and thoughts turn to editing. This often leads into video production as a second hobby, equally enjoyable and complimentary to the first.
So if you are a video hobbyist, I encourage you to consider recording other hobby activities. As for your friends that are not making video, but who enjoy a hobby that lends itself to taping, consider videotaping their activity, or encourage them to bring their own camcorder to their next event. It will enhance the enjoyment of the event and may also lead them to discover the joy and satisfaction of making video on their own.

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