200 steps, tips, shortcuts, resource links and more – that’s the number one reader counted in “Big Videos For The Smallest Pockets,” and in the manual we haven’t even scratched the surface yet.
There are so many more small steps that we can take to make our videos look more professional. Most of these are free or really inexpensive but they make a world of difference.
This difference is in quality perceived by your viewers. In turn, this perception will have a noticeable impact on your bottom line, which does not necessarily have to be financial. It can be your reputation or status as an expert, artistic satisfaction, awareness raising for your favorite charity or any other measure you wish to apply.
The tips, tricks, shortcuts and whatever else you’ll find here will cover all aspects of video planning and preparation, the whole range of video production and distribution.
Now, that you have your USB mic or headset, or another appropriate mic, you start recording. But it doesn’t sound all that great especially the hissing Ss and exploding Ps.
There is a problem with my last tip, that about listening to upbeat music to get yourself into a good mood:
What if your mood drops while you are recording a longer commentary?
The Problem
You cannot keep playing your music while you record yourself.
(Of course, we could do this if we had a proper recording studio. But then if we had this, we wouldn’t be here.)
The last few tips were all about pretty big things like the sound of your voice in your video and which microphone to choose and how to use it.
Today’s tip is tiny by comparison but nonetheless important. As the man said:
“Pay attention to the small detail to allow your big idea to shine through.”
I don’t remember whether it was Confucius or Plato who said this, but if it was important for these big guns it certainly should at least be considered when we create our videos.
Here is a tiny detail:
Do you have a steady hand?
I know I don’t.
When I have to pan across the screen during screencasting sessions, the line of my capture window resembles more a drunkard’s walk than a straight line.
You have two options:
Practice, practice, practice until you get it almost right, or use the lowest of low tech methods to train your mouse in an instant. It’s also totally free and easy.
Don’t you just love these amazing video introductions, all noise, the louder the better, special effects with colours exploding across the screen and whirling into infinity for at least 20 or 30 seconds until they work themselves out and slowly begin to reveal what the video is about?
I used to be fascinated by and marvelled at such artistry. No longer. I just shake my head, and when it gets too involved, I click away.
Why?
Actually, it’s two Why’s:
Why do people use these gimmicks? And why do I click away?
“If only I had the right camera, video wouldn’t be a problem”?
I bet anything that you actually have a perfectly usable video camera in your house.
Just to prove the point, I checked what I had lurking at home. I found 6 cameras.
Exceptional?
I don’t think so.
I have two older ones, a Flip camcorder and a Canon pocket camera, plus an ancient webcam. My daughter has a new Panasonic pocket camera.
She actually has two more: a webcam on her Macbook (yes, I know, my daughter has a Macbook, and I create videos on a Windows laptop with free software…) and an ipod 4 with a built-in HD video camera.
Given this abundance of old and new devices, I decided to test them for you.
From iPhone and iPod to iPad and all other mobile devices, their owners want to watch videos where and when they choose. They don’t want to be tied to their desks. With tablets forecast to outsell laptops, this trend is not going to slow down. Quite the opposite.
Are your videos ready for mobile?
Look at the format of your videos: they are generally one of four types: .avi or .wmv from the Microsoft stable, .mov from the Apple stable, and .flv for flash videos. None of these can be viewed directly on mobiles.
Of course, you don’t have to worry about this if the site you use to show your videos is Youtube. All mobile devices have an app for viewing Youtube videos.
However, when you leave Youtube the burden is on you to make sure your videos can be seen.
The safest way is to convert them to mobile video. By far the most popular format for mobile devices is MP4.
Fortunately, a number of reliable, free video converters are readily available.
In the video below, I show you my video converter of choice:
Youtube is free. It experiences virtually no downtime and streams content fast. It is universal, and it is very easy to use.
Wouldn’t it be great if you could make Youtube your own video hosting platform?
By this I mean being able to show our videos on our own sites:
without a Youtube logo,
without viewers ending up on Youtube when they click on our video
without other videos being linked at the end of our videos
and so on…
In this tip, I’ll show you how to do all this. Yes, we can treat Youtube as if it was our very own, private video hosting platform given one or two minor restrictions.
First things first, though.
Before we can host and distribute our video, we have to upload them to Youtube.
This is a brief reminder how you do it in 2011 (just click on the video, lean back and enjoy):
Private viewing on Youtube? Why would anyone want to do such a thing?
There are any number of reasons why you would want this, but generally speaking you have the choice between two principal scenarios:
You want to exchange videos only with a select number of people.
You want to keep your video(s) away from the general public.
To be able to do either, you normally would have to host your videos on your server or, if they are likely to have attract a lot of traffic, on platforms like Amazon S3.
Both these solutions are pretty complex.
However, if your videos are not too long and you want to do it quick, really easy and free, perhaps also with an option to making them publicly accessible later on, you can set them up for private viewing on Youtube.
Big Videos Tip No. 12:How do you create slideshow videos? Do you use PowerPoint and screencasting software? Or do you convert your slideshow directly into a video with PowerPoint 2010?
I cover these methods in detail in my Big Videos For The Smallest Pockets. And I did use them at various stages for my videos.
Yes, you are seeing it coming. I don’t use these methods any longer.
After testing and practising various ways of creating videos, I have settled on another method that I find more effective because it is far more flexible and ultimately faster than any of the others. I also teach it in Big Videos For The Smallest Pockets but I’ll go into more detail for you here. ”[Click Here to Read More!]
“Your Video Camera” is a series of tips dealing with the most pressing issues people face when they pick up a camcorder to create videos in which they address an audience be they followers, subscribers, clients, customers, fans…
Why did I create this particular series of tips?
Simple, you asked me to help you with these topics: “Which Camera?” and “How To…?”
First of all, thank you everyone for your questions, comments and requests. I really appreciate your emails. I hope my tips in this series deal with all of them. At any rate, please leave your comments and further questions below each of the videos.
As you’ll see, right from the word go I had to deal myself with the very issues I address. Which means that I do not pontificate from some lofty heights defined by expensive, state of the art video equipment and editing software. Instead, not only do I talk about hardware and software in these videos but I actually use both to create them.
Enough said. Here is the introduction to the video series:
This tip delves straight into the first question, “Which Video Camera To Use”, plus: which features to look out for if you have to shop for a video camera, and what to do about external microphones.
This is really more of a reminder than a tip. In the last couple of weeks my projects ran up against a few frustrating incidents. Things didn’t work as they were meant to, so I started checking my software and various resources again. Just as well because I discovered that the software I recommend in Big Videos For The Smallest Pockets has been seriously updated.
I suggest you update your software now. It’s painless and will save time as your software will provide you with much better functionality.
Here are the download links:
[Click Here to Read More!]
Big Videos Tip No. 14:Many obstacles pile up in front of a video camera stopping people from even trying to get started. In the last video, we removed one major barrier: technology. Now it is time to deal with the person in front of the camera.
In this tip, I show you how to deal with some of these obstacles that stop many from presenting in front of a camera. As this barrier has several different layers, I decided to deal with it in two parts.
[Click Here to Read More!]
Big Videos Tip No. 15:This is Part 2 of the shortcut through the obstacles that stop many people from presenting in front of a camera: In this tip, I show you everything about how to help yourself to speak freely by using extremely low-tech tools and not spend anything on hi-tech solutions when you use them.
Some think they suffer from fear of public speaking in front of a camera. I’ll show you what really is involved and how to remove this fear.
[Click Here to Read More!]
Big Videos Tip No. 16:Do you think you need a studio to start creating videos with your video camera? In this tip, I show you what to look out for if you don’t have a studio; what the minimal requirements are to still make your videos look professional; and, if you do have a spare room, how to equip your studio on a shoestring.
[Click Here to Read More!]
I fully understand that you’re now wondering whether I‘ve actually lost it for good. How can I possible advocate High Price Ticket Promotions on Big Videos For You?
I assure you, I’m fine. Actually, I’m better than fine because I have a few tips here for you that will allow you to get truly invaluable information for free.
In this tip, I’ll show you not only where you find the information, but also how you can download it to your desktop for free and keep it for future reference.
