Los Angeles, CA—As a blogger
and multimedia journalist I occasionally put up videos here on Crimefile News.
Currently time and lack of
funding precludes me from putting up more video. Getting people to watch your video no matter
how good it is challenging. You need to
tease people with hot button words we’ve all seen.
“You better watch this video
before the censors take it down!” “Watch
Ms. X destroy so and so in this video!”
“Watch Mr. X meltdown under tense questioning!” “This video will make you break out the
tissues!” Frankly these are getting
very old. They’ve been used and abused
and I refuse to fall for them anymore.
The truth is that Internet
viewers are incredibly impatient and loading videos for some can be a slow
process. When you add in that many
videos turn out to be a disappointment that don't deliver on the promised hype you
better be creative rather than deceptive.
Putting in the proper key
words or meta tags in crucial. Having an
exciting thumbnail or start image is important.
Videos need to be clear with
great audio. They need to be short and always leaving the viewer wanting more.
There are other rules
regarding multiple angles and static shots that were established in the past
few decades. Are those rules
evolving?
GoPro cameras are high
definition cameras in a tiny waterproof package. They are incredibly for point of view video
and action shots. They go where other
cameras simply cant. Additionally people
don’t shy from them like they do the more noticeable cameras they are used to
seeing.
I’m no expert on video but I
have played with the equipment since it became affordable 20 years ago. It’s getting better and cheaper every day.
Viewers really don’t want
junk. They want to be taken somewhere
away from their surroundings and dull lives.
I put up a video a few weeks
ago at the largest gun show in the world in Las Vegas. It’s called the SHOT Show. The video is not about guns but rather how
the show is set up and my actual experience in Sin City.
The video shows my experience
from my own point of view. I broke lots
of established video rules.
My intent was to show you
what those few days were like through my eyes.
Yes, I shot this all on a GoPro Hero 3+ . I edited the video on Final Cut Pro X. Along with post production, unscripted
voiceovers. I also added some
copyrighted music for the mood.
My pals that love guns would
want me to stop and spend time with the actual products but the video would be
four days long. This was really a SHOT
Show teaser. There is little substitute
for actually attending this massive show.
A sign of a successful video
is that people think it was shorter than it actually was. So ignore the time markers until after you’ve
seen the video. Then compare your time
impression with the actual time of the video.
I kept it simple reducing
four days into minutes. I’d like
comments on the video.
