Educational Media Reviews Online

Did you ever look at someone’s vacation photos and say, “How did you ever get that wonderful shot?” Okay, probably not often. But you’ll say that a lot in watching eBioMEDIA’s Biology of Lakes, Ponds, and Wetlands and Biology of Seashores. (Both are part of the larger series Life in Marine and Freshwater Environments.) It’s difficult to imagine that this film is done by just two videographers, who must spend their entire waking hours shooting and editing. The quality, clarity, and diversity of the organisms recorded here is amazing.

And there’s the rub. The stunning variety and detail becomes just that - stunning. The panoply of genus and species names crammed into 35 minutes is mind-dulling, and would seem to overwhelm a typical eighth-grader. (Both videos seem better suited toward juniors/seniors or to a survey/review in a first-year college course.) While the Biology of Lakes, Ponds, and Wetlands provides some context to these many organisms, the Biology of Seashores gives only a cursory outline of where and how these beautifully filmed animals and plants fit into the larger ecosystem. For instance, the narrator offers a one-sentence definition of hermaphrodite and a one-sentence definition of the far more complex concept of competition. And stuffing all of these organisms into half-an-hour requires a quick-cut, no-transition technique that rivals MTV—and has about the same numbing effect.

Truth is, the photography alone make these films worth it, but with reservations: Educators will need to carefully choose what segments to focus on, and to fill in the many concepts that are missing or glossed over in the narration. The teaching guides obviously help, but they cannot make up for the poor pacing and lack of context. Recommended only for instructors/collections without similar video resources.