Merry Christmas 2012

Well, the Mayan Apocalypse came and went. Thank God for that! So now here we are at Christmas.

From all of us here at McKenna Video, we want to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas. May today bring you love, peace and joy.

Blessings,

Chris.

Christmas 2012 Deadline

Good morning and happy December.

Just a quick note to let you know that we still have a little open capacity for guaranteed Christmas delivery. Normally, we cut off the week before Christmas, but this year we were able to work some jobs ahead and without issue (normally film-to-DVD transfers) letting us get a few more projects in before the holidays.

To talk about your project specifically, please send me an email at info@mckennavideo.com .

Blessings and seasons greetings,

Chris

Happy Independence Day

Happy Birthday, USA! from Chris McKenna on Vimeo.

Blessings to all our family and friends. Have a safe and sane 4th.

Chris. 

The Wal-Martization of Video Production

I found an interesting article on a 'video learning' site regarding what they call the "Wal-Martization of Video Production"-something that I have had to compete with here in the Puget Sound Region.

Here is what the article says:

"There are a number of companies that purport to “produce” very low-cost business videos by using inexperienced producers who audition their talents on the Internet and only deal with the business client after a contract has been made. Some of those companies include:

(names retracted so as to not give them free publicity on my site)

Not surprisingly, the videos are pretty lightweight. GeoBeats videos seem to be made entirely of still photos edited into videos with stock music and weak narration. Some are better than others, but it’s obvious that these types of videos are produced very quickly and by-the-numbers.

For a couple hundred dollars, it’s an easy sell to businesses. They may be thinking they are ahead of the game, but I like to look at the number of views a video has had. If only 50 people have seen it in six months, it’s pretty much worthless. And that kind of number is not uncommon in these cheapie videos.

At least they are not (yet) trying to outsource the production to China. These videos are shot at the business owner’s location so they require a local videographer. Young and inexperienced videographers get experience from this work and very small paychecks, but this makes it harder for real production companies to compete. That’s how business works many will say.

Wal-Mart does have positives: Great efficiency in buying and low prices, more choices for the consumer, employment for poor people who want to work. But don’t forget the negatives. Many 'Mom and Pop' stores are forced out of business. Wal-Mart wages and benefits are very low. No one knows your name when you walk into the store. The charm and sense of community of small-town businesses is lost. Economists says that overall Wal-Mart helps the national economy, but I’m not sure it’s worth the cost.(And don't forget the fact that these cheapie videos erode the value of the entire industry).

What’s your opinion of this type of video production company?"

I'm happy to say that McKenna Video is not one those companies. But having said that, we offer very affordable production rates for every type of business. We have served the large corporate client and produced very elaborate training videos, and we have produced entry-level promotional videos for the small and micro-sized business. We have produced everything from television commercials to wedding films. What's your fancy?

Call us for more information. 

Blessings,

Chris

(In the interest of full-disclosure, a few years back we had been a sub-contractor for one of the Wal-Mart video production houses (not any more), and in my opinion, you should call us before you ever call them. You'll be happy you did).

So What's New?

I think that I begin every post with something like "it's been a while since our last post." I'm not going to do that this time, even though it HAS been a while.

Anyway, all here is 'status quo.' We are still busy editing video, transferring video to DVD, transferring 8mm film to DVD (as well as 16mm film to DVD), and a plethora of other projects. We are probably not going to produce any weddings films this year (a smart decision given our current work schedules) and we are fine with that. We will miss the wonderful brides and groom and their families, but if God wills it we will meet them in another time, another place.

Anyway, so what is going on with you this summer. Drop us a line and let us know.

Until next time, blessings!

Chris.

Thank You

Just a real quick post this evening to say thank you for your patience with us during the transition to our new schedule. We are still here and ready to serve you!

Blessings,

Chris.

Online Ordering System Now Available

Greetings family and friends,

I am happy to announce that our online order system for videotape to DVD and 8mm film to DVD transfer services is now online and ready for your use.

At this point, the system will only accept orders for straight video and film transfers. It offers our customers the ability to send the film to us at their convenience and be free from the restrictions of our in-studio hours. And because it is online and simplifies the process, it allows us to drop the price a little.

While the ordering pages are 100% secure (payment is accepted through PayPal), keeping our costs down means that we don't have a programmer on-staff to complete a nice custom ordering page/shopping cart. But rest assured, our top quality film and tape transfer work will still be put into all of your projects.

The page is organized into 3 sections: one for silent film, one for sound film, and the last for videotapes. Be sure if you use this system that you place your order in the appropriate section. If you have a custom order, please call us or send us an email and we will either schedule a time in-studio or send you a custom invoice.

Let us know how you like our online ordering system. And please give us feedback if there is anything difficult or confusing that you find.

Visit the page at www.mckennavideo.com/orders.html .

Blessings,

Chris.