Regardless of your digital religion, I think the iPhone 13 Pro is a point of no return for business videos. Here’s why…

This is not about iOS vs Android. This is about the past versus the future. This is about a new wave of video users. This is about New Video Professionals vs Traditional Video Professionals. It’s about where you invest your hard-earned dollars.

Come with me for a high-level view. If you stay in the weeds comparing data storage and sensor sizes, you’ll be missing one of the most important shifts of our time: decentralisation.

The 1950s was the height of centralisation.

The technology favoured centralisation back then. This was a time of big antenna towers broadcasting messages to mass audiences. This was a time of one phone company AT&T, two superpowers USA & USSR and three TV stations ABC CBS NBC. It’s a USA-centric example but it sums it up well.

Then it all started to go the other way. It started with the invention of the transistor, then the personal computer, the internet, smartphones and here we are working remotely, the most decentralised we’ve ever been. Decentralisation requires networks.

This is the network age.

• Google is an information network
• Facebook is a social network
• Apple is a mobile network
• Amazon is a retail network
• Microsoft is an enterprise software network
• Cryptocurrency is a monetary network

You’ll also have noticed that change is happening fast. Fast-growing networks require fast communication.

Let’s bring video into the mix here.

I propose there are now two types of video professionals:

Traditional Video Professionals and New Video Professionals. 

Traditional Video Professionals - who will always be required - work on maximum effort and minimum speed. Quality takes time, right?

New Video Professionals - professionals from all sectors who now use video because it has become an essential business and career skill to have - need minimum effort and maximum speed. That’s lots of personalised videos on time, every time. 

In a networked world, those who can create authentic videos fast will win.

A networked world presents many opportunities for anyone wanting to become a New Video Professional.

Yet video still scares most professionals, most business owners. The tech is overwhelming. We’re self-conscious. We don’t want to appear unprofessional.

What I have discovered after working with many people around video is that FEELING professional is very important. More so than I once realised. Looking and feeling ‘pro’ matters. As Seth Godin says, the wrapper matters. People want to look their best. Like it or not, right or wrong, our self-image drives our actions more and more.

One video effect that plays into our belief about self-image is out-of-focus backgrounds aka. ‘bokeh’. 

It is glamorous and for decades, was exclusive to TV and the movies. With the democratisation of video through YouTube tutorials and the affordability of the technology ‘bokeh’ is now mainstream. Many see this as the professional standard they aspire to. That I disagree with this doesn’t stop its growing popularity.

And now we get to the just-released iPhone 13 Pro.

It has a new cinematic mode that mimics the defocused background look available in professional video cameras. It’s not perfect but it’s REALLY impressive and it’s available to you right now. Watch a 90sec Whodunnit video. I think this is a big roadblock out of the way that will allow many people to start trying video for the first time.

You can look prestigious. Your status is preserved. You can achieve these while being agile and fast using your smartphone. And it is done automatically. No film school is required. Honestly, with a few tips and tricks, you can look pretty darn amazing.

If you think I am saying I think you should get an iPhone 13 Pro, I’m not. I’m saying you want to start basing your businesses video strategy around smartphones, not traditional video cameras. To me, the iPhone 13 Pro marks a point of no return to mainstream cameras. Watch this 90 second Whodunnit video shot on iPhone 13 Pro.

Traditional camera markets have been decimated by the rise of smartphones.

In the ten years from 2009 to 2019, traditional camera sales shrunk -10x and smartphones grew +10x.

For good reason. We don’t care about video. We care about ourselves. The benefit of having a camera when you need it without having to remember to pack your camera is too good to ignore. There will always be a core of high-end video professionals plus an army of highly skilled video amateurs keeping traditional cameras alive. The rest - and there are billions of us - will be using smartphones and every year we’ll be getting better at video, without even trying, as the technology improves.

Smartphones have been inching towards the blurred background over the past 4 years. The iPhone 13 Pro - in my opinion - is the first one to crack it and this will open the gates to millions of business professionals to have a crack at video with confidence.

Now you have a Hollywood level camera - yes, they are using smartphones to shoot feature movies - that is connected directly into the biggest networks on the planet. Now you can show up faster than your competitors and look great while you’re at it.

So this is my message for you. If you are a traditional video professional, keep doing what you’ve been doing. We need your expertise.

If you are a New Video Professional, investing in traditional video cameras is a backward step.

You’re swimming against the tide. 

In a networked world, video-first businesses built upon agile teams with smartphones, laptops and an internet connection will win.