During some recent reflection, I started thinking about this time last year. Many industry changes over the past 12 months have led to a completely new dynamic for video production and digital technology.

Among the many things that consumers did not have access to merely 12 months ago (today being July 28, 2010):

Panasonic Lumix GH1 and the Canon EOS 7D

Apple iPad and iPhone 4

Adobe CS5 and Final Cut Pro 7

What are some other things that did not exist 1 year ago today?

I can’t believe I haven’t posted this already. Matthew Smith is an incredibly talented photographer and friend who has decided to try his hand at short-format digital videography and stop-motion. His work has blown me away. This particular piece features an original soundtrack by Chris Huffman, selected photos from 2939 total shots and incredible cinematography.

The strength of this short is found in the high-concept delivery of a well thought-out theme. Check out some of Matt’s other videos, his blog and his photography.

In light of the recent launch of the iPhone 4, it is only appropriate to post the first short film shot AND edited entirely with the iPhone as this week’s top video.

What happens when photographers start embracing video? If you are Bruton Stroube, you come strong right out of the gates and create some serious material. This music video for The Nadas has a simple concept, original music and some incredible looking video! The reason? It is grounded in photography.

This is a prime example of what can be done with Canon HDSLR technology (5D Mark II and 7D). I’m not familiar with Bruton Stroube, but I can guarantee that this highly-produced music video came for a reasonable cost. I talk a lot about the merging fields of video and photography with Bryson in the Idea Head: Level episode, but the examples are really starting to improve. Keep in mind that this technology is still VERY young. The 5D Mark II was merely announced on September 17, 2008 (Not even a full year ago).

Overall, I really enjoyed this music video. It is easy on the eyes – very rare in music videos today. The song was also refreshing, highly original and carried a good flow. When you start with the fundamentals of photography as an art and you merge it with digital formats that have high resolution and very little set-up time, you can begin to see more expressionism shine through. Perhaps the greatest thing of all, however, is that finally video is becoming a true art-form through affordable, high-quality gear that simply didn’t exist one year ago.

Watch out for Bruton Stroube (check out their other ‘moving’ work here). They and other photography studios have a serious edge on the video industry. I’m excited to see what another year will bring!

Thanks to my C.D. Kate Andersen for pointing this one out to me.

Giving potential customers reason to doubt your product is never a good idea in the world of marketing. The infamous $19.95 priceline and phrases such as “Order Now,” “But Wait,” and “Act Now” are generally reserved for cheap gimmicks seen on TV.

Few people will trust their money to products without confidence in them – no matter how minimal the cost. I find myself baffled at a recent sighting in a retail store where a perfectly reputable brand, Gillette (owned by P&G), sported the phrase “guaranteed or your money back” on a product launch display featuring the new Men’s Fusion Razor. Who is responsible for feeding this cheap marketing into product lines that have little to no reason to be second-guessed? I’m just curious.

Perhaps this effort dramatically increased their sales, but for me it did nothing but turn me away (and get me to write a blog post about it).

*Note: I was going to stop here and not even publish this blog, but when the same phrase appeared on a second product’s website… I just had to follow through.

Shortly after, I was shocked to find “you’ll love it or your money back!” featured prominently on it on a major brand’s commodity website.

Did they hire marketing directors from QVC or Home Shopping Network? Do ‘guarantees’ like this actually help market a product? Do they offer a real incentive for purchase?

Most companies have return policies. Most consumers know this. So when a product sells for $10, (or $3 in the case of my second example) does offering a refund upfront greatly increase the AGS?

More than anything, I am disappointed. I thought marketing professionals would by now have noticed the impacting change the social revolution has had on advertising. Manufacturers are losing control in the arena of brand management; now, consumers control a product’s reptutation. Consumers can purchase, test and review a product in the matter of minutes. The iPhone 4 was distributed today and reviews sprouted up from brand new users within an hour of their purchase. Either way, tactics such as these seem overly cautionary to me. Confidence is key in product development. There are already enough choices for consumers to avoid self-inflicting and dubious brands.  Are you engaging believers or skeptics?

Less is more; a common phrase perhaps not heeded often enough.

Doing less is difficult. One of the most common mistakes we make while trying to solve a problem is to merely throw more solution at it. “If we just add more to it, it will fix itself.” “If we make it bigger it will seem like we did a better job.” “If we can just add one more section, this will be complete.”

I struggle with saying “no”, I have a pleasing nature and a desire to complete everything presented to me. Saying “yes” has always been and will probably always be in my nature. Along with saying “yes,” however, comes a noticeable lack in quality. A lack in design, thought-process (a term I am finally coming to understand), look-and-feel, message and delivery. Even though I know this, I still struggle to push back.

Why push back? Because exercising restraint could be the single, most important act to make the entire difference between a delivered project and a failed one. Seth Godin talks in his new book, Linchpin, about “thrashing.” Thrashing is the process by which an idea is developed. He talks about how it can happen early, or happen late during the stages of a project. The timing of thrashing dictates whether or not a project will be delivered.

I re-visited the film Apollo 13 recently, and while I was scrubbing through it, I came across the iconic scene depicting the crew’s return to earth on a chalkboard. In the dire and bleak situational analysis the commander comments: “Failure is not an option.” He’s right, of course, failure is not an option. Failure is not a decision. Failure is instead a result. A result of missed opportunity, a lack of planning or in the case of the designer – a lack of thrashing.

Stop talking about failures. Failures are a thing of the future, and can not be controlled. Success is also a thing of the future. Success, however, can be secured. It is secured by planning, designing and thrashing. So restrain yourself in your process. Scale back and think about the end result. That will get you where you need to be.

I know this has been out a while, but this was too good to pass up. Toyota recently launched a new Ad campaign featuring the ‘Sienna Family’ to push the Sienna minivan.

The great thing about this video is the fact that a few years ago, any corporation would have considered something like this a liability. But now, with one fell swoop, Toyota is picking up millions of views by allowing this music video to float as far as it will go. A search for ‘Swagger Wagon’ on YouTube yields over 16 different users posting this very video to their account. In the wake of corporate marketing privacy, seeing YouTube pull down many copyrighted commercials, now Toyota seems to be among the first embracing the potential of saturated web-based media-placement.

ROI on campaigns like this is measured in more than dollars, companies can make or break images this way. Many companies would do well to learn a lesson from Toyota and stop underestimating and doubting platforms such as these.

The next part of Rule 2 “Taylor Made”. This is from the siding and framing weekend. Pontiac Church is building a house for a family in need. View the post below for links and how to get involved.

Music is “All That I Am” by Parachute. I shot this on my iPhone. Nice.

This was just way to cool not to share. My friends over at Floor Plan just released a music video a while back that is from their EP “Purple Yes!”

This music video was all made by hand using construction paper and… a lot of people. Very cool, guys, very cool.

I have hit a brick wall in my creativity.

It happens all the time, but, this time is different.

I have a routine I typically use to get out of it:

1) Stop everything.

2) Focus on removing my frustrations.

3) Do something completely new.

This internal process normally works. It seems that lately, my mind has compressed even further. I can’t focus, I can’t stop what I’m doing because I have so little time and the trying to remove my frustrations only frustrates all the more.

So what can I do in this vicious cycle? I’d love to hear ideas, thoughts and other ‘processes’.