Resolution 2020: Produce more videos on YouTube
I announced on Facebook a few days ago that I was going to further develop our YouTube channel and I’ve been getting a lot of questions asking me why.
It is true. There are already millions of YouTubers, so why go into an activity that takes a lot of time and energy and end up with 10 views per video?
The answer is simply: because it makes me kiffer
Previously, our YouTube channel was only used to upload videos to illustrate certain blog posts. Or when it came to reviewing products with tutorials, we found it easier to make a video rather than an article.
After a few attempts to vlogs in the United States with my camera, I encountered two problems :
- not easy to be discreet with a camera (even a small one) pointed in front of me
- the editing: it was going all over the place, and I lost the overall purpose of the vlog
Not to mention the quality of the rushes: they were shaky, or they didn’t last long enough, or I made movements that were much too abrupt. It took me many, many hours of testing & learning to learn how to master my moves and how to capture enough content for each shot.
The click
And then one day, we went on an excursion to Sian Ka’an, where I noticed a tourist with a strange device. Too small to be a camera, but too big for a sports camera. We exchanged our contact information, and a few weeks later, I received an mp4 of the videos filmed underwater with this small camera. The video (and its content) is so impressive that I watched it over and over again. It clicked in my head: there are a lot of things whose emotion isn’t transcribed through photos, but only in video.
It just so happens that we filmed the same thing, me with my sports camera and him with his little camera and the results are just IN.COM.PA.RA.BLES. So I have proof that this camera isn’t only small and discreet, but also more efficient. So I decided to buy the same thing as him: an Osmo Pocket (335€, Amazon link, learn more about my video/photo gear now)
During this time, I joined amateur photographer groups and watched unretouched videos of drones, cameras of all kinds, stabilizer reviews…
At the same time, I followed the very inspiring courses given by the film pros on the MasterClass platform (which I’ve mentioned here) and one course in particular touched me: Jimmy Chin’s course. He is an accomplished sportsman, an Oscar winning director, one of the best sports photographers (if not the best in the world). Being a photographer for National Geographic, he has this very “documentary” approach, and that’s what I liked a lot. Photos and videos, although aesthetically pleasing, must also touch people and above all tell a story.
Doubt
I had doubts, seeing vlogs and videos (especially from Peter McKinnon), seeing the material he has with him, the sharpness of each shot, I was very afraid and ashamed to present my videos, shaky, badly shot, badly framed, with much less contrast, less depth….
But I’ve also seen other photographers, equipped to the teeth but who didn’t even bother to film with a stabilizer or make more “respectful” movements for the spectators – it was all over the place, go ahead, I’ll put the sun in your face, and I’ll rotate at 360°C to give you a headache. So it’s not just a question of equipment.
I decided to develop my chain, then I gave up the idea, then the next day I changed my mind again…
The Project
After hours and hours of watching YouTubers videos, watching my raw videos, thinking about my project, I remembered the advice given by Sara Blakly, the creator of Spank (and also a MasterClass trainer): “stay connected to the why“, and without a goal, you can’t start a project properly.
Purpose is simply three things, it’s the intersection of
Sara Blakly
:What do you enjoy ?
What you’re good at ?
How do you want to serve the world ?
i have finally made a decision: I’m going to get serious about YouTube. I’ve got it figured out:
- That I will never be able to rely on the quality of my images – because I can’t afford to invest in good equipment or to choose a camera that is too heavy. I will never be able to offer 8K films, nor drone shots
- What do you enjoy ? I love editing. I love reliving my travels. I love that satisfying feeling of finding THE piece of music that fits
- What you’re good at ? I can rely on my musical sensibilities, and background music will be the surest way to convey emotions, combined with storytelling (with my blogger background), it will bring a little touch to my videos
- How do you want to serve the world ? I wanted to transcribe in my videos the emotions felt during my travels – first for me, for us – to relive these experiences as many times as we want. Then, to serve as a source of inspiration, to make you want to visit a place, or taste a dish…
The goal being just to KIFF what I do
The equipment
On the material side, it just asks me 4 things:
- a discreet camera (so that I’m not ashamed of vlogging), but powerful, allowing me to film in 60fps minimum (to do slow motion). For this, I chose Osmo Pocket (335€, Amazon link) and some accessories(tripod, wireless, microphone)
- royalty-free music, but I don’t want to waste 3 days searching the net to find only mediocre sounds. For that, I opted for a 15$/month subscription to Epidemic Sound. One of the best purchases of the year. By the way, if you are interested, here is a link to bénéficier de 30 jours d’essai gratuits
- The story telling will mainly be done through voice-over, and I just bought a small one-way microphone (44€, Amazon link) to be able to deliver my message with more impact (without echo, wind, noise of passing cars…)
- an editing software, I opted for DaVinci Resolve, a free and Windows compatible software
On the training side, I have :
- an access to MasterClass training (which I recommend you, I’ve talked about it here). The courses are multidisciplinary, I advise you to follow the courses related to cinema, but also to writing, story telling and music
- peter McKinnon ‘s videos and tutorials on YouTube. He is known for his own color grading and b-roll
- sean Kitching ‘s tutorials : he is very meticulous in his tutorials, he shows precisely what kind of shots to take and compares the results “shots made by ordinary tourists” and “shots made by a pro”
So, my plan is to edit the videos I already have, do my hand as they say. Then, as I travel around, I’ll learn how to take more professional videos with a real story telling vision and an editing idea in the back of my head. And improve myself.
Here is the first draft, in the style I like. Enjoy! Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. From now on, I will upload one video per week.
