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Ok, it’s time for some honesty here. I KNOW that most of you you have hundreds if not thousand images on your computer and most of them will never see the light of day on a printed piece of paper (myself included). Here’s a great option for you to share with your pictures with your family and friends. Animoto is a company that “automatically produces beautifully orchestrated, completely unique video pieces from your photos, video clips and music. Fast, free and shockingly easy.” It’s not really free, unless you just want a 30 sec video, for a longer video you will pay $5. You can redit it anytime, share it with family and friends, embed it on your blog or website, or send it as a gift. I LOVE this company. In fact, using it this last summer won me a prize package worth about $1,000.
I took these shots during a quick mini session in Southern California. We had just a few minutes before the sun disappeared below the horizon. As I usually I do, I just had this little girl be herself and as a result caught some great moments. As a photographer, I feel I only really need a few great smiles. By letting kids be themselves, they come up with better shots that I ever could.
Some tips to remember: It may take a while for your video to process. If you don’t like the result, you can re-edit it with a simple click. Your final output will be either a web version MP4, or Hi Res MP4 or ISO. The low res version converts easily to YouTube and other such sites.You can play these on your computer, but you will need a special program to convert it so you can play it on your DVD player or you can simply pay $20 and Animoto will send you a hi-res DVD. As a heads up, you may need to resize your images (they can not be larger than 3 MB). If you don’t know how to resize your images, remember Google is always there to help you out.
Janice and Susan use Animoto all the time. Here’s a fabulous video from the Ultimate Blog Party. What I love about this video is that it incorporates photos and live video.
Good luck! If you make a video with Animoto, put a link in the comment section so we can enjoy your moments with you.
Note: We were NOT compensated by Animoto for this post. We just wanted to share this fantastic site with you.
Dana says
Yes I agree I love animoto too. I use it to rank offline businesses in google. It works great. I am going to use it for christmas this year and burn the video’s onto a cd and give them out. Its just fun. Love your blog by the way. Have a blessed day. Dana
Fun Brainy Toys says
I appreciated you sharing the info. I agree that pictures of kids being themselves are so much better than when things are posed. I wanted to share this with my friends so we could see more of these neat videos so….
Retweet at http://twitter.com/funbrainytoys
Marcel says
Thanks for the retweet! I’m glad you enjoyed the info:)
When I make these videos for my clients, they often get teary. They are SO easy to do and make great gifts for family.
Bree Anderson says
Thanks for the information! I meant to say that I thought the video for the UBP was great and so is this second one. I loved the talking intro- ‘I am at the blog party’ and then the photos afterwards. Great job and what beautiful ‘models’!!! The children are adorable!
Marcel says
Isn’t it fun how you can combine the video with the stills? I think it makes it much more interesting!
Erica Mueller says
It’s been a while since I’ve played with Animoto and I’ve only used the free version, but here’s a little something I put together after my best friend’s wedding…
http://animoto.com/s/6SSZci58vS0v9wAWSO2tVw
Marcel says
Erica, what a lovely gift for your best friend! It’s a great way to share those “lifetime” moments:)
Susan says
Yes, isn’t Animoto amazing? We just love that site!!!
Marcel says
Your video you did for the Ultimate blog party was just fabulous!