No words needed

If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many words is a video worth? In many cases, even a million words could not effectively describe what a video portrays. Two great examples of video that eliminate the need for words are the works of Travis Fox and of Border Stories.

Travis Fox doesn't just want to hear his own voice.

In his video Reminders of Agent Orange, the New Victims part of the video reels the viewer in much more than the wordy article does. But Travis Fox also knows that narrating a story for five minutes can lose an audience just as fast as a lengthy written page can. Therefore he lets the story tell itself, while still giving the video a professional vibe. Here are some instances of sounds that replace Travis Fox's voice in his Agent Orange video:

• boy child's laughter.
• a rooster crowing.
• motorcycle as father returns home from work.
• girl child's laughter as she walks.
• boy child crying.
• dogs barking.
• TV playing for the children.
  

Travis Fox knows there is just no way he can give viewers a sense of this family's everyday life with words. Therefore he directly immerses the audience in this family's household using images, but also strong sound. Not even a photo could give the same impact.

Border Stories helps eyes and ears become dance partners.

The story Tijuana: TJ Remixed is a sound-filled story by nature. No one is going to narrate the whole video when the story is about music. But the images also seem to come more alive because they are matched up with the tempo and words of the music. Here are some shots that are shown to the beat of the music:

• People dancing.
• Man adjusting dials in the studio.
• Cars driving by on the freeway.
• Police car lights flashing.
• Tijuana sign.
• Man hosing down building.
• Crosswalk counting down to red hand.
• Quick shots of TJ changing with the beat.

Once again, viewers get to experience something much more fun and interesting than a bunch of words thrown at them. Having both images and sound offers them an experience closer to the real story than words could ever offer.