Anyone using video?

[RickSab]

Is anyone using video in their inspections? I have a lot of out of town clients who invest in property they never actually see. I take a boat load of photos for them but I am considering a video tour to accompany the report.

I'm interested in the camera you use if your taking video.

[kurt]

Sometimes. I use the same camera for everything. AW100

[Marc]

There was this million dollar house with a cracker jack free standing rail on an open staircase that wobbled like a guitar string. I took a video while strumming it but it boosted the file size of the report too much to include it.

Marc

[Les]

I'm with Kurt. Camera mostly is for note taking and specific. I have little or no control over what a video will show in the foreground or background. Stills are more manageable for my use.

I want a "snapshot in time" not a "heavens gate epic". I guess I could have referenced "water world".

[kurt]

I've found video useful in showing folks stuff like water filled blisters under membrane roofing, document that something was actually running or spinning around, or to otherwise prove something that can't be proved with a still pic.

Which is rarely.

Video injects more hassle into the process, it doesn't simplify it. Pictures are simple.

[Scottpat]

I used a video last week to show a person water flowing out of the probe holes I made in an EIFS wall! In 15 seconds the little video showed the client that they did not want to buy this building! I bet that it saved me 20 mintues of writing trying describe what was going on!

Videos are not the norm for me, but occasionally they due send that message home better than a still photo or the written word!

[Rob Amaral]

I've used 'video' with that Eye-stick thing... and then grabbed stills from it.. that's all..

[Robert Jones]

Not to hijack the original thread, but, Kurt I just purchased the AW100(had the Pentax). Any advice as to what settings you have had success with?

Thanks

[kurt]

Very basic. Basic HI work is PC settings....1024 x 768, ISO 400, vibration reduction. I put more energy into taking the right shot and not so much with settings; if I'm thinking right, any setting is fine.

It's biggest selling point for me was it's "quicker" on focus and shooting than the Optio, it's really tough, and the screen on the back is big for showing customers stuff.

[Robert Jones]

Thanks Kurt.

[John Kogel]

I liked the video somebody took of termites running up and down from the dirt to the woodwork. It was very dramatic.

Scott's water drip example is also a good one. I will try to snap the water drop falling from the leak, and video would make that easy.

No, I don't use video for a report. My program HI Pro turns the report into a nice compact pdf that I can attach to an email.

[Bill Kibbel]

I've used video twice that show flame patterns in furnaces, to illustrate failed heat exchangers. These were both systems that were just serviced and certified, so the moving visual images stopped anyone from questioning my findings.

We attached the videos to emails, separate from the reports.

[Mike Lamb]

To film 1 minute of a low resolution video can be over 20 MB which is something that may not be easily e-mailed.

If I were to produce a video for a client (part video part photos) I'd want it to be good, which would take a decent camera ($600 min.) with good resolution and good lighting which in a lot of situations would not be easy. It would be a huge file that you'd have to put on YouTube or some host.

And the editing time would be extensive. 5 hrs. for 5 minutes of report. I would be looking at my normal fee for the house which might be about $400 plus the filming time, $200-400 ( I don't think you can film and inspect at the same time) and then another $500 or so for editing. It would be expensive if I did it.

I'd love to give it a whirl if someone would pay me about $1,500.

[Eric B]

HomeGauge's version 5 makes for easy video inclusion for HTML viewing. It's not an option for PDFs. Prior to version 5 I would occasionally upload a video to YouTube and then send the link to the client. Certainly my use of videos is not frequent.

[Marc]

HomeGauge's version 5 makes for easy video inclusion for HTML viewing. It's not an option for PDFs. Prior to version 5 I would occasionally upload a video to YouTube and then send the link to the client. Certainly my use of videos is not frequent.

Isn't that betraying the confidentiality of the report?

Marc

[Eric B]

Originally posted by Marc[/i

Isn't that betraying the confidentiality of the report? Marc

The for the stuff I've uploaded the Youtube videos does not identify the property or client and would be completely meaningless to anyone else who saw it. It wouldn't be any different than the pictures that are posted here.

[Inspectorjoe]

Two years ago, when I first started posting inspection pictures to a Facebook page, I was concerned about privacy issues, so I limited myself to using my oldest pictures dating back to 2003. That didn't last long, as I found it too hard to resist posting the latest 'catch of the day'. Since there is nothing in the photo identifying its location, I don't see it as a privacy or confidentiality issue. It's no different than using a sanitized actual inspection report as a sample report.

I even post pictures of personal property, although I do get a tiny twinge of guilt at times. Today's picture is of personal property:

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