I finally finished my first YouTube video ever and it’s boring.
Yes, it’s boring, still I am very excited to have finished my very first YouTube video. I filmed everything myself, edited it for YouTube, and finally uploaded it today. All in all it was a very satisfying experience and I learned a lot of valuable lessons.
I went into this never having attempted to restore, refurbish or rebuild anything and I’m very happy with the result. This is also the very first time I have ever filmed a video and in the filming process I have found major weaknesses. (read opportunities for growth)
Borrowing from Wikipedia and paraphrasing, there are several phases of film-making that I attempted to work through.
Five Phases of Film Production for YouTube Videos
- Development
- Pre-Production
- Production
- Post-Production
- Distribution
The terms are fairly self-evident and the exact definitions are somewhat flexible based on the circumstance.
Here’s a quick rundown of what I thought of each phase and how I could have better prepared.
Development
I chose to restore an old Craftsman table saw and in the process of making a valuable tool for the shop I am building, I filmed each stage of the restoration to later put on YouTube. This scenario met three of my goals, restore a tool, create and upload a video to YouTube, and write in my blog.
Pre-Production
I had an idea floating around in my head that I would organize the restoration into three or four phases. I would film during the entire process and that if I filmed a lot I would have more material in which to make a YouTube video.
My pre-production was a fail. I wasn’t organized, I didn’t have a plan, and I didn’t have anything written down. During production I relied on quantity over quality thereby wasting a lot of time.
Pre-production needs to be well developed and documented from a film-making perspective.
Production
I put a camera on a tripod and went to work. I knew that I wanted tight shots whenever possible and I really just went with the flow. Without a pre-production plan I ended up missing key parts of the restoration process that I wasn’t able to show in the video.
Production depends on pre-production and ensures that the plan is followed. The project proceeds in sync with filming and the filming progresses forward once planned shots and scenes have been satisfactorily filmed.
Post-Production
Enter my nightmare. I tried half a dozen video-editing software and four different computers, going so far as to convert an old laptop into a purpose built Linux based machine. This, so I could try a free and powerful video-editing software called Davinci Resolve which ultimately didn’t work. Meaning, I couldn’t get it to work. The software is amazing, but unfortunately I don’t have a computer powerful enough to use it.
I started the project over too many times to count and ultimately, I learned. I gained an immense amount of knowledge and experience through my follies.
In the end I found myself once again exploring YouTube for the answer and stumbled across a video by Justin Brown in which he highlights an online editor. The service is called WeVideo and it solved all of my problems.
There is no software to download. No GPU or CPU computer requirements. They provide a beginner to intermediate software suite online that you access through a web browser. This means that you can edit your videos 1) anywhere with an internet connection and 2) with a PC / Apple / Linux / Chromebook / Android / iOS with a browser or application.
After my so called “nightmare”, once I started using WeVideo I had my first video for YouTube published that same day. There is no getting around doing the sets and reps required to get better at something.
Conclusion
Overall the project turned out great and I have a good-as-new table saw. I really struggled with all things film-making. Though I learned a lot of information and tried my best, I yet have a long way to go before I reach the level of quality that I desire. Hopefully, my YouTube videos will only get better from here.
I refuse to get discouraged. This is just the beginning and I had to start somewhere. I’ll keep trying and learning, and applying what I’ve learned. In one year’s time I will look back and see just how far I will have come.
Thanks for reading!
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