Curating News and Updates

Hello Everyone.
The "should I include audio in my videos?" question has been popping up more often recently and Pond5 would like to clarify.
In the 'uploading specs' we mention: 'If there is no useful audio associated with the clip, please delete the audio track.'
We encourage contributors to leave the audio associated with a clip only if it is relevant to the video clip. If you determine that the audio needs to be left in, please be aware of the audio level. Most DSLRs do not have usable, in-camera audio capabilities unless external mics are attached. Also, some cameras have the ability to disable audio recording in the settings menu so this may make it easier for some of you.

This does not mean we will automatically reject all clips with audio but our curators will be paying more attention to this going forward. However, clips with bad audio such as wind noise, blaring sirens and shooters talking while filming will, most likely, be sent back so that the audio is removed.

Previewing clips with harsh audio is distracting when mousing over and selecting clips.

Hello @wheijnen. That may be a possibility for us to explore but it is not part of the plan now. Contributors need to be aware of controlling their audio. We will accept video clips with normal, well-balanced audio but we will ask contributors to remove unusable ones.

When a clip has good audio is it possible to put a P5 voice-over on it like the audio has? It seems that a person who likes the audio but doesn't want to pay can download the sample footage and get free audio.

Second Don´s suggestion. I do wildlife scenes of animals and birds. Recording ambient audio with external mic. Based on views vs sales of some of the clips, I suspect audio hijacking is going on!

Thanks much for clarification :-)
I also think that the voice over would be a huge step forward, and secure the sales of audio for contributors and P5.

Thanks again for letting us know and happy new year.

Can I also add my voice to the suggestion of a P5 voiceover on footage

This is an excellent suggestion and I will prioritize this with the team. I will update you all on the progress. Thanks!

+1 for P5 VO on videos with audio, some of my clips have fully produced audio tracks, not just ambient sound from a shoot

Are there any plans to deal with the serious problem of "Spam" keywording? Much of it is, I believe, due to careless use of templates but some people are clearly copying from other artists (including keywords that are not relevant to their clip).

Thanks

TE

I really don't believe footage that may have wind noise should automatically be rejected or require the audio to be removed. I've sold dozens or hundreds of clips that had somewhat distracting wind noise. If all that is heard is popping I would agree. It is real easy for a buyer to remove the audio and most will do so. Here is an example of distracting wind noise yet it still sold for $299 and this is a common sales with same or similar wind noise. Let's not be too strict on wind noise.