Strongandfree.ca

Getting your video onto your website – Vimeo, YouTube, JW Player, WordPress

mikooshka — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 21:43:14 +0000

I like to make videos and often I embed them on my websites. I always make sure to post to YouTube if I want to ensure that I will reach as many people as possible. For a long time I’ve been playing around with different hosts, from Vimeo and YouTube, to my current favorite, self-hosting. Let me break down some of the pros and cons of each and give you a lay of the land from my personal experience.

How do I embed video? This is super easy in general. What you have to do is copy and paste some html code into your web page. YouTube makes embedding a relatively simple task – currently, if you click on “Share” you will see the possibility of grabbing embed code, which can be customized. Vimeo has a similar process but you just click the “embed” link that floats atop the video when you hover. The only caveat is that some features of embedding are only available if you pay fees for “plus” or “pro” accounts (more related to this later).

YouTube - By far the daddy of them all, YouTube part of Google, and as I mentioned, no self-respecting video creator will not post here, if they want to reach as wide an audience as they can. Upload as large a resolution as possible, at a high bitrate quality and YouTube will then recode your video to suit smaller formats as needed (for slow connections, mobile etc). YouTube has its drawbacks, including ad serving, and a plethora of low quality content. But it’s the go to site for music and a lot of genres – it’s very reliable and has an aura of “everything is there.” YouTube has some amazingly sophisticated features. Concerned about accessibility? Want to reach people that might be unable to turn on their speakers or use screen readers? Try adding closed captions. One video I uploaded is Alan Rickman reading Goran Simic’ “Sarajevo Spring” poem: http://youtu.be/afvvVAhqq7U (my original aim was to clean up the audio another user had created for this same video, but later I used it for my captions demo). One serious deficiency for the regular aka “non partner” user is in inability to upload a poster image or choose a thumbnail from anywhere in the image to display when the video player appears. You are limited to choosing from only 3 screenshots! That is lame. It’s one of the few serious issues I have with YouTube.

Vimeo - I am not going to turn this post into a rant, but I am not a big fan, on a practical level, of Vimeo. It has great things going for it – it tends to be the province of video makers with an artistic sense: photographers, motion graphics people, documentary filmmakers etc. In general we’re talking a sensitive thoughtful group. Unlike YouTube, if you trolled randomly, or entered from an outside link, you’ll be treated to some fine quality artful video expression. One drawback is that Vimeo seems to suffer from very sever tech problems. I have observed that video streams quicker from YouTube. Recently I found that my Android smartphone will not play Vimeo videos! A discussion on a Vimeo forum has comments about problems with iPhone users as well! The staff are apologetic but can offer no solutions to any of the complaints!. A difficult service to recommend.

JW Player (self-hosted): If you are like me, you manage a few sites and have found different solutions for getting video on to your pages. One of the items that is crucial is to embed video that can appear in both Flash and HTML5 formats. All major browsers now support this new html flavor and if you want to serve video to an iPhone you had better be able to offer an MP4 via a Javascript (JS) player. You can also include a direct download link which will allow iOS users access to your content. My recent fave is the JW Player which claims to be able to embed video that can reach all visitors, regardless of platform or device. And why worry about Flash support? Well, some folks surfing on older browsers will not be able to see the HTML5 video – so the browser defaults or “falls back” to Flash. The JW Player basically does what YouTube does – allows video to reach all devices (a claim Vimeo just can’t manage right now).

One more note for WordPress users. Various plugins enhance the usability of video on your WP blog/site. I’d personally stay away from the WordPress video solution and go with something like the JW player plugin. My second choice is to embed using a Flash player and offer an mp4 download link (many browsers and devices will actually just instantly stream this content which is a bonus).

My recommendation? Depending on the site and your audience I’d choose to either embed YouTube videos or host your own player (like a licensed version of JW Player for example). There was a time just a few years ago when I considered embedding YouTube videos to be non-professional (especially for a corporate site), but in actual practise this is often a good decision (YouTube has sharing and is social media after all). The non-branded player is the slickest solution but is not always the best choice.

If you have other suggestions I’d be happy to hear them. Please post a comment (moderation is on) or send me a note via the “Contact” form.

Links:

Add captions to YouTube:
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=100077

Easy transcript files for YouTube captions:
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?answer=166810

Vimeo has an amazing number of quality vids – explore them through their categories page at http://vimeo.com/categories

My favorite video at Vimeo is a touching doc called “Last Minutes with Oden” (6 min)
http://vimeo.com/8191217

JW Player - Check out their site and see the video players in action!
http://www.longtailvideo.com/players

Website for Krisp Entertainment – Music and Sound Design Co.

mikooshka — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:13:52 +0000

Krisp Entertainment has launched a new website. The website utilizes WordPress for easy content management of blog posts and pages, and features audio and video players – which take advantage of the newest in HTML5 – compatible technologies to ensure compatibility with a variety of devices, from the desktop to the smartphone (on all operating systems including iOS – iphone etc). The site is a simple calling card site with a handful of essential pages that are crammed with cool examples of the work of Jay McGroarty, producer extraordinaire. SAF also participated in brand development – designing Krisp’s snazzy new logo. Check out Krisp Entertainment.

AK47 Illustration and Magazine Spread

mikooshka — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 00:34:24 +0000

For a high resolution view please click the image.

This illustration was created as the opening spread for a Wired Magazine article on the history of the AK47 (school project).

The light grey texture in the background resembles a Russian banknote, which I created from scratch, compositing real banknote elements with a photo of the inventor, Mikhail Kalashnikov.

This was a rewarding project – Wired magazine is one of the most cutting edge magazines on the planet, both in terms of content and design. The AK47 is also an ideal subject for a compelling illustration / editorial spread.

For a high resolution view please click the image.

Via composition of multiple images in Photoshop, Mike designed a fictional 10 ruble banknote to honor Mikhail Kalashnikov and the AK47.

Branding and Website Work for Toronto Retailer – Paradise Bound

mikooshka — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 00:26:38 +0000

Paradise Bound is a long-time client in Toronto’s funky Kensington Market neighbourhood.

Taking cues from the store’s earthy/natural interior, SAF developed a graphic motif based on wood grain, and designed business cards, a website and outdoor signs.

The business card also features a photograph of a turntable – which provides acoustic ambiance to shoppers perusing the collectible records and Kakejiku art.

Movie Poster Design – Close Encounters of the Third Kind

mikooshka — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 00:25:15 +0000

This was a school project. The brief called for an innovative use of imagery and typography in a movie poster design. The process of coming up with the logo was interesting. In an updated twist, the title “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” is reduced to an acronym “CE3K.” Read more about this process in the PDF Overview.

Poster design by Mike Simpson. mike @ strongandfree.ca

Graphics and Illustrations of 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games

mikooshka — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:50:22 +0000

The branding and identity work for the Olympics features some stunning illustration. Kudos to the Vancouver Olympic committee!

Today I fired up Google Chrome and saw the Olympic graphic (or “doodle”) Google created for their homepage. (It’s pictured at the end of this article). The image is subtle and appealing. It doesn’t even use the color scheme that the Vancouver Games have been using – relying instead on a range of subtle blues punctuated by a dull orange flame. On the other hand, I’m fed up already with the punishing barrage of TV commercials from CTV, McDonalds, HBC, and the dozens of other companies that have jumped on the back of the Olympics in an effort to increase their brand appeal.

Perhaps you have seen the amazing illustrations that were created for the games by the Vancouver Olympic Committee, led by Leo Obstbaum and Karacters Design Group. I didn’t know much about who created these icons and images until I picked up a couple of magazines recently – Applied Arts, and How Magazine – both of which feature articles on the talented people behind the look of the 2010 Olympic graphics.

Links:

How Magazine article on Olympic Design Process

http://www.howdesign.com/article/winterolympics/

Canada Post redesigns postal boxes

mikooshka — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:26:31 +0000

It seems Toronto streets have had some fresh new postal boxes appearing in the last few months. I spotted a couple on Carlton and King and took these quick snaps with my cellphone. I let out a big “Wow!” and had to stop and investigate when I realized the new colorful all-over wrap design with postal codes was meant to discourage taggers and other vandals. I don’t know if it will stop people from postering the boxes but I bet it will deter the marker taggers quite a bit. An impressive design that adds a little flair and color to the streets – and ironically/interestingly is a concept directly influenced by graffiti.

Radio Coco Rocks! New HD Video and Website Work for Mikooshka

mikooshka — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:24:10 +0000

Header graphic for Vimeo.com

Strongandfree.ca has been working feverishly on “Radio Coco Remix,” an “open source” music and video remix project presented by Toronto musician Mikooshka.

We’ve completed an HD video which is probably best viewed at YouTube.com/mikooshka but is also on Vimeo, and MySpace. Perhaps our proudest moment was the completion of the promo website which features some spectacular full-page graphic work. If you are interested in progressive music, video and design then check out http://radiococoremix.com