Old type of videotaping makes more memories

We were was just recently visiting my uncle in his cabin. When we got kids to sleep and night got darker, he found from his archives a 26 year old VHS-tape of an old birthday party. On that time (year 1985) videotaping wasn't that regular and taping was done in mentality of let it roll without planning.

Video was really full of memories. It was amazing to watch relatives and people from my childhood, some of them already passed away, having a party and just having fun. Also I was there as a little kid playing around with my cousins. Video was full of real life.

Video was a long one and there was no cutting done for it. I must say it would have been boring for anyone else that for those, who know the people on it. It was video that you can watch once in ten years to really live the memories again, more often it would just be dull.

Nowadays no one seems to be videotaping this way. All the videos I've seen shot are mainly these short ones and edited to be even shorter. Video from the party is minimised to couple of minutes full of action, filled with catchy music to prove the point. All are in this youtube format, 2-5 minutes is long enough.

This is fine now. No one would actually watch hour or two long tapes from a party. We're so used to these short videos that we lose our interest to longer ones after couple of minutes. For a longer term, that's a pity. In twenty, thirty years from now, it would be amazing to be able to really get into life of nowadays. We would laugh on our clothing, dancing, hair styles and the music. That's just how life goes on.

If you are one of those, who videotape on parties and everybody seems to hate it, I encourage you still to keep on doing it. Even most of people thing that it is annoying that someone is videotaping the party, there's going to people in future, who appreciate your actions.


Written by +Henri Hämäläinen