About us
About Me – Michael Costello
I have been a lifelong Transport Enthusiast with a special “soft spot” for Melbourne’s Trams and Government Buses. It was around 1987 whilst traveling on these Government Buses to school that I finally decided that I would aim to join “The Met” as a Trammie! This aim was achieved in 1993, and I spent a total of 19 months as a Tram Conductor at South Melbourne Depot. Sadly, my career in the job was not to be a long one, so after leaving the Tramways I pursued another interest area – Television and Video.
I have been shooting video since December 1990, starting out with a Video 8 camera (a Sony TR50E). In the early days, my subject matter was mainly Trams and other Public Transport. In 1995, I became involved with Community Television through the Channel 31 production group Northern Access Television, resulting in big improvements over time in the standard of my video work. I started out there assisting in the Northern Community News on my Video 8 camera. During this time, I learnt to use Scala on an Amiga Computer for video titles and graphics. I also obtained an Amiga 500 and Genlock to do this at home, and to take in to other edit suites to hook up when required.
Later in 1996, I also became involved in Optus
LocalVision (now closed), where I also assisted in the studio, and started shooting, editing and producing my own program, “Transit”, again using my Video 8 camera.
Later, I shifted production of the program to Northern Access TV, where I edited a “special 1 hour edition” of the program in the RMIT studios using a BVU cut edit suite using footage dubbed from my Video 8 camera. In 1998, Northern Access TV obtained a 3 chip Mini DV camera (Panasonic EZ1) for members use, and my second series of the program was shot on this camera. The programs were edited by David McLauchlan using his non linear computer editing system, from a “rough cut” drawn up by me by doing “crash edits” between two VHS machines!
1999 saw me buying various equipment, such as lapel mics, hand mics, etc. I also got a small audio mixer for the camera, and better headphones. Later in the year, I obtained my Digital 8 Sony TRV310E, which enabled me to take good copies of my edited projects home in a digital format.
Since then, I’ve done editing on various projects for Northern Access TV using BVU and SVHS cut edit suites, and sometimes a Casablanca machine. These facilities were based in a “Member Group Building” built up by Channel 31 for the use of it’s groups. It has since closed.
This spurred me into action, and I finally upgraded our computer at home to do non linear editing. I have since done all my editing at home using a DV Editing Card, allowing footage input and output to/from Digital 8 and Mini DV and other formats via the Camera.
2002 saw the acquisition of a single chip Mini DV camera, a Sony TRV18E, which, in addition to being used for shoots, is also used for outputting my master tapes for broadcast on C31.
I have continued to acquire various equipment over time, and this has assisted in the increasing quality of our output. I will continue to obtain various equipment over time as finances permit.
Around 2003 I started offering my services for other video projects on a small scale basis, and a business name “Museum Link” was registered. Later in 2004, this was changed to the current name “VideBus”. However, I currently do not offer myself as a Cameraperson or Video Producer.
2007 saw the introduction of shooting on the HDV format, and the obtaining of a professional tripod.
Currently, my video work is confined to doing Video Projector Displays for Skate Victoria Speed Branch. I am taking a break from Community TV work, but working on some Web Video projects and other possible projects for the future.