As someone who's spent many years working in television, I usually get requests for advice on how to make videos look better at this time of the year.  A lot of people received new video cameras over the holidays, they've tried them out, and don't understand why their movies look pretty... Ed Wood-ish. I probably should have posted this BEFORE Christmas, but better late than never... So here is a list of my personal best practices and tips: Think about your end product before you start shooting. Is this going to be a 2 minute video?  Is it going to be a 2 hour opus?  Is it just for your family to watch or is it going up on YouTube for the whole world to check out?   Is it a montage of your kids opening Christmas presents or is it a documentary about holiday traditions?  Is it supposed to be funny, informative, sweet, sad, or dramatic?  How much context does your audience need to understand it?  Is your audience younger or older?  If you know the answers to these questions, you'll save yourself a lot of time and effort. You'll also have taken your first step to a focused video ...

I get sent resumes every week and since the financial turmoil kicked in a few months ago, the number of resumes coming in has increased noticeably.  This week, I received one that I will not soon forget and thought it was worth sharing here (with permission!). Creative vs Standard Resumes. There's always a great debate in resume-writing-land about how unique and creative to be with your C.V.   You want to stand out from the crowd, but you don't want to come across as a showboat, an egomaniac, or a weirdo.  Some will say anything you can do to get noticed is good, from using coloured paper to having it couriered directly to the hiring decision maker (so they have to sign for it, will open it themselves instead of H.R., etc). Others will say that you need to be professional, stick to standard formatting, and make yourself stand out with a customized version of your resume tailored to the particular position you're applying for.   I've seen both work and have hired people with each type of resume. As a rule of thumb, though, plain resumes are generally tougher to distinguish from other plain resumes.  And when you get a brilliant, creative resume like the ...