In the early 90s I was asked to justify the use of sequenced still images instead of full-motion video on a ground-breaking multimedia project, a CD-I game disc, loosely based on the popular board game “Scruples.” The script included 50 social dilemmas which the producers needed to establish visually. The producer had originally budgeted about $100,000 for a video crew and 37 days of shooting. I came back with a proposed budget of $30,000. This covered my day rate, my equipment and an assistant. Since I proposed shooting the entire job with an electronic still camera, there were no film and processing expenses.

The first thing I learned was to shoot a lot, since the production cost of using one photograph or twenty is nearly the same, and to shoot much less discriminately. Many times a producer found value in my outtakes, wanting a particular color or minute detail to include in a photo montage.

Since this was the first time I had put aside my traditional equipment and shot electronically, there was a myriad of unforeseen problems. For example, the early electronic cameras had a limited exposure latitude, which meant that correct exposure was critical, a problem that no longer exists with the newer digital cameras. We also quickly learned that there was no consistency between the playback unit, the camera monitor, and the computer monitor. In other words, there was no guarantee that what we were seeing on the monitor was actually what was being stored as a digital image in the computer. This problem was solved by employing an analog engineer who hooked up a wave-form monitor (a type of oscilloscope) and calibrated the playback unit, the video board, and the monitor.

I learned many lessons which continue to be relevant today. I learned to think in terms of sequenced images that actually build to a narrative. Although this process may sound a lot like film, the model that I looked towards was the comic strip which uses a few related frames to effectively tell a story. When I shot a door, I shot it open and closed. When I shot a curtain, I shot it in different positions. When I shot a car, I shot it in three or four different locations. When I shot an individual, I tried to capture his or her eyes both open and shut. This gave the producer a chance to build narrative sequences. I also kept in mind characteristics of the screen. Vertical images are more difficult to work with. I centered the action, and kept the images simple because of limited resolution (which remains a concern today).

When the entire job was complete, the show was shown to a select audience. Afterwards, the audience was asked many questions. One of the questions concerned the still photographs: Did the use of still photos instead of full motion video bother you? No, they answered. Not one of the respondents even noticed still images had been used rather than full-motion video. For this test audience the important thing was understanding the narrative, which they did without difficulty.