Not everything that shows up on the doorstep of the Digital Image Group is serious - sometimes our members make little movies just for fun, without rhyme or reason. Here we have a slice of life over at the Stansel residence captured a week or two before Christmas.

Some of us are old enough to respect the energy it takes for the dad in this episode to handle 2 extremely energetic little daughters. Natasha, the author of this show is on sabbatical from our group while she studies to become an art educator. She has been one of our cheerleaders. She emailed us this little snippet recently to remind us that she hopes to return to DIG. Thanks, Stansel Ninjas!

Temple Georgia hosts a spectacular world-famous 5 minute Christmas Parade every year and this year was no exception. It appears that Santa comes very early in the procession followed by a joyful automobile, truck, freight train and boat cavalcade.

One thing is certain: the ceremony doesn't last long enough for anyone to catch pneumonia from the cold. Michael Barrett has captured the essence of the nostalgic 2009 Christmas Season starring those that hold this festive village dear.

It's time to light some joss sticks, bang on some tablas and put on your exotic indian clothes, lay your sitar aside for a few minutes and get into some Yogic and Mantra meditation along with Frank: Om Namah Shivaya, Manasika Japa

From October 4th through October 8th, 2006, the city of Cincinatti hosted their sixth Tall Stacks celebration populated by 16 riverboats such as the Belle of Cincinatti, the Mississippi Queen, the Delta Queen and the General Jackson. Tall Stacks is a one-of-a-kind festival that takes place in Cincinatti every three or four years since it began in 1988 as part of the city's 200th birthday celebration.

Jane Cupp, who is a member of both the Digital Image Group and the Sweetwater Camera Club here in Douglasville, attended this celebration. She offers up an 11 minute salute to the great paddlewheel riverboat tradition with this video slideshow punctuated by some knockout Dixieland Jazz.

On the morning of December 5th, 1957, a major natural gas explosion occurred in the basement of Berry Pharmacy in Villa Rica, Georgia here in the United States. The blast was so large that it leveled an entire city block, killing 12 people and severely injuring 20. It was the largest disaster in Carroll County Georgia's history, according to the historical plaque located outside the restored pharmacy building. Here is a brief YouTube video of a 1957 newsreel played in many movie theaters at the time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpe9V4pzUVY.

On December 5th, 2007, my wife Norma and I drove over to Villa Rica from the neighboring city of Douglasville to attend and capture the 50th anniversary ceremony in remembrance of this great tragedy. A large number of people still connected to the disaster appeared that chilly December day and participated in an exceptionally somber yet joyous celebration. This slice of Villa Rican history illustrates the strength, spirit and soul of a small town with timeless integrity. You may purchase a DVD copy of the 59 minute ceremony on-line by going to www.artondisk.com and clicking on the button in the right sidebar.

 Alan Cordrey presented this short video depicting "Iron Pour Night" at Elliot Street Deli and Pub in the Castlebury Heights section of downtown Atlanta. This strange place does more than serve drinks and sandwiches. Patrons of the pub scratch mirror images of their names, drawings and symbols into dies. Later in the evening (after a few drinks?) everyone goes out behind the pub where well protected metal workers pour molten iron into the dies to create permanent souvenirs for the crowd.

This video shows part of the process. The iron is just now hot enough to be poured into the die. At one point the metal workers pour molten iron into blocks of ice to create sculptures. You can view several of Alan's still photos of the process including one of the dies and some ice blocks by clicking here. The Elliott Street Pub is located at 51 Elliot Street, Atlanta GA 30313.

Bess and Joe Orenzow of Orenzow Video Productions create memorable wedding and event videos. Because they are perfectionists, they often find that many days have passed between the time they shoot on location and the time they deliver the finished video.

In order to give their clients previews to increase the anticipation and excitement of receiving the final video while giving themselves time to add artistry to their work product, the Orenzows send out "movie trailers" showing snippets of what is coming soon . . .

Here we meet Kelly and Shane as they prepare to ride off into the sunset to live happily ever after. As you watch the trailer, see how many techniques and ideas you find: from capturing the excitement and warmth of the moment to enjoying the extreme wide angle view of the romantic flinging of rose petals from on high (according to Joe it took 17 takes and a lot of petal picking up to get that shot) --to using a variety of lens and motion techniques, this little clip is much more complex that it first appears. Scenes go from monochrome to full color, the bride appears out of nowhere as she moves through space with a charming cabin as a backdrop. 

The Orenzows leave you with the feeling that YOU just married this beautiful girl. There are still photography images as well - the bride sitting on the porch with her voluminous gown all about her is an unforgettable portrait. This piece ends much like it begins as we are suddenly brought to reality long enough for the well-wishers to give the bride and groom a send-off

Quality wedding videography and wedding photography are not easy to do. It's much like having several tigers by the tail on a deadline with the pressure ever present to perform with maximum attention to detail.

"We have only one chance to get this right. There aren't going to be any re-dos."

Believe it or not, Atlanta has their own women's contact football team, the Atlanta Xplosion. Here Steve Taylor captures the essence of this award-winning team: