Module 2 – Recording & publishing video – practice

Explorer level

Recording video

The quality of the video is of course depending of the camera of your smartphone, but there are other issues that can ruin your video:

1) Always record with your video in landscape mode, not portrait orientation – this means never hold your smartphone vertically while recording

2) Completely fill the frame with what you want to record – some smartphones enable gridlines so that the subject is easily to position on a so-called “third” line

3) Don’t use the digital zoom as this will diminish the pixel quality of the video – if your smartphone has an optical zoom then there’s no problem               

Before you start take into account what your final product will be:

  • to make it easy make one recording (or record different shots using the pause button) so that no further editing is needed
  • if your aim is to create more complex videos then you can take as many different video clips as you want and don’t bother about their length, you will then need to edit the clips using software tools or an app (see 2.3.1)

Activity: 

Write down a script for the video you want to create on public spaces for youngsters in your city.

You want to show examples of where there are sufficient opportunities and facilities for young people (e.g. basketball court, skate park) and of some where there are opportunities. You can also interview young people and ask their opinion.

Take action and record, make sure that every shot is a separate product so that no extra editing is needed.

TOOLS DATA & RESOURCES NEEDED

  • smartphone
  • digital camera

TIME REQUIRED

  • creating a script: 2-3 hrs
  • recording depends of number of places and interviews, but count at least ½ day

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Publishing video

Once your video is ready you will want to share it.

There are two types of video sharing services. The first one lets you watch the video directly from the platform so that you just need to click ‘play’ and the second one lets you host and share videos without preview. These two types serve different needs.

 The easiest option is to share it as a file. It must be downloaded first before anyone can watch it. Services such as WeTransfer provide hosting opportunities.

 Another option is to share videos via publication websites such as YouTube, Vimeo or Microsoft Stream

  • YouTube: you need an account to upload a video. Disadvantage of YouTube is that – unless you pay for a premium account – you get a lot of advertising
  • Vimeo: you need a paid account for it (limited version is available for free).
  • Microsoft Stream: you need an Office365-account

Publishing videos on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok) gives more shares and interactions with the audience. An account (free) is needed.

 Whatever you do for distributing your video: take into consideration the consequences of publishing and the privacy regulations. You are not allowed to publish pictures or videos of people without their written permission. Also think of the consequences when filming someone in an awkward situation that could harm his future as once a video is online it will never disappear again.

 While publishing the video take into account the title, description and tags. This extra information will help users to find and to watch your video. Use the right hashtags and monitor the comment section to know the feedback of the audience.

 

Would you like to keep the video within the group and not make it publicly available? You may either send it directly via Messenger to your contact list (group of students) or adjust viewing settings on the hosting platform. On YouTube you can choose ‘unlisted’ . This mode will keep your video within your circles and will not be available to the external public. This option is useful if you upload a personal course or if you want to keep this video within your circles. 

Activity

Upload your video and make it visible for others

TOOLS DATA & RESOURCES NEEDED

TIME REQUIRED

Depending on the length of the video and the internet connection

Expert level

Recording video

In order to master video recording, always take into account the composition of the image. You may want to use storyboarding before taking video. Storyboarding is a sequence of images that help you to structure your recording. Scetch the composition of the objects that you want to take a video of to see if they go well together.

1) Avoid using the flash build-in into smartphones

2) Avoid backlit as this will result in an underexposed recording

3) Stabilise the recording. Although some smartphones have an electronic and optical image stabilisation it is advisable to use support: 

  • a (small) tripod for a fixed shot 
  • a so-called physical gimbal when recording while moving

4) If you want more professional audio recording use an external microphone that can connect with the smartphone

Activity: 

Create a storyboard for your video by scetching the key actors/ objects. Think of how many shots do you need and what is the length of each of them.

TOOLS DATA & RESOURCES NEEDED

  • smartphone
  • digital camera

TIME REQUIRED

  • creating a storyboard: 1-2 hrs
  • recording depends of number of places and interviews, but count at least ½ day

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Publishing video

To create a really finalized video you will need to edit it, that implies cutting and pasting parts of different clips adding sound and photos.

 Editing is a key part of video making process as it lets you add extra material or cut shots that don’t match. Editing is not complicated if you follow your storyboard and you know what to add or delete. It is always better to keep things on the paper first and then to modify them.

 YouTube Studio is an online tool that offers the possibility to adjust a video.

A good support material can be found on https://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/editing?

Windows 10 includes Video Editor, a full-featured set of video creation and editing tools that tell your story with music, text, motion, and 3D effects. Video Editor is the successor to Movie Maker on Windows 10, with a focus on easy-to-use creative tools that enable you to tell your story.

A good tutorial will help you to understand more https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/create-films-with-video-editor-94e651f8-a5be-ae03-3c50-e49f013d47f6

Similar is iMovie for Apple computers.

A good tutorial will help you to understand more https://support.apple.com/guide/imovie/welcome/mac 

One other example of a video editing software is OpenShot video editor. When you open the program for the first time, OpenShot Video Editor comes with a tutorial mode. By reading the instructions and clicking Next each time, you will get to know the basic features of the freeware.

Extra features are available in the specialized platforms such as Filmora

There are also apps to be installed on smartphones or tablets: Inshot, Kinemaster, Proshot

Video editing platforms give different options to edit videos and in most cases they all have the same features. Try to add text comments to the video. Today on social media users prefer to mute the sound because they consume media on the way or in crowded places. 

There are also websites with free photo, video and music to use in your project.

When you want to use the video you created online the size may be very big. Using Handbrake can help reduce the size.

Of course sometimes it is interesting to have extra video clips or photos to use in your project, and maybe also add music. There are numerous sources for free music, videoclips or photos.

Most of these sites offer direct downloads, if not there’s software to download the files.

Activity
Edit a video using sound addition, transitions between the frames and add text comments.

TOOLS DATA & RESOURCES NEEDED

Sources for free music, videoclips or photos:

TIME REQUIRED

3-4 hrs to edit standard video, depending on the duration of the video