Presentation by Professor James Richardson at the CUNY School of Public Health on video technologies in use by faculty and students at the CUNY School of Professional Studies and the LaGuardia Community College Media and Technology Programs.

1. Video tips and
techniques
for the Web and Social Media

2. • 25+ years experience working in the fields of
Technology, Digital Media, and Higher
Education.
• I earned a M.P.S. in Interactive
Telecommunications from the NYU Tisch
School of the Arts.
– Concentrations in:
• web design and development
• video and audio production
• project management
• digital publishing
• e-commerce strategies
• gaming theory and design
• online communities (social media)
• Managed the deployment of programs and
initiatives for companies such as MetLife,
Century 21, ADP, Bankers Trust, Suze Orman
Inc., and the City University of New York.
About Me
James Richardson
Academic Director
Communication and Media Program

3. • Planning your video
• Basic Interviewing Tips
• Production Tips
• Selecting your hardware
– PC, Mac, or Linux
– Accessories
• Video cameras
• Microphones
• Lighting
• Selecting your software
– Commercial or Open
Source?
• Hosting your content
Today’s Agenda

4. Planning your
Video

5. • Identifying your strengths
– How can you best communicate?
• Interviewing
• Video Editing
• Cinematography
• Defining your goals
– What do you what to achieve?
– Who is your target audience and
demographic?
– Create the content your audience
wants!
– Choose how to display your
content.
• Determining your budget
– Take stock of available resources,
then purchase or acquire the rest!
Developing a Strategy

6. Key Considerations Before You Get Started
• Deadlines – Set a production schedule
• Budget (equipment, software, hosting)
• Ideas regarding the creative approach (brainstorm)
• Content Plan - Scripted/storyboarded/spontaneous?
• Talent – Feature yourself or get models/voice-
over/actors/professionals
• Location for shoot? (consider lighting and noise)
• What is the purpose of the content? – Key objectives you want to
achieve from the video
• What key message do you want to convey?
• Can you monetize your video content?

7. Why is it a Great Time to be a Video Creator?
• The tools have progressed to the point
where you can create your own video
production for very little money.
– Fewer barriers to entry (i.e., lower
startup and equipment costs).
– More powerful software and
hardware.
– Fewer hostile institutions to
overcome as financial barriers
drop (i.e., the elimination of the
“middle man”).
– The Internet as an effective
means of distribution.
– Numerous channels in which you
can monetize your content
(YouTube, AdSense, etc.).

8. Basic Interviewing
Tips

9. 1. The interviewer must be prepared.
What is the fundamental purpose behind your
video? You should have a clear expectation of
what each interviewee will contribute.
Interviews should NOT be scripted. This feels
insincere. If you want spontaneity, try to be
must be your natural self. Don't bury yourself in
notes. Prepare a list of questions on an index
card as a security blanket to leave you free to
have a conversation.
Know enough about your subject to know what
you should be able to get.

10. 2. Maintain Eye Contact
Maintain eye contact with subject and give visual
(not verbal) feedback as subject
speaks: Nodding, smiling, looking puzzled, and
signifying agreement or doubt are all vital forms
of feedback.
3. Set People at Ease
Let the subject know why they are a subject and
what topics you hope to cover--this will make them
feel comfortable with their role as expert.

11. 4. Prepare the interview subject for the occasional
interruption or redirection.
i.e., “We always shoot more than we use, so don't
worry if you say something wrong we can edit it
out”.
i.e., “I may interrupt you if I feel we're getting off
track, if that's alright”.

12. 5 . Interviews can be shot in almost any surroundings, but
you must consider the likely effect on the interviewee:
Subjects are more comfortable in their own space
(home, workplace, or home of a friend) and you
will often receive more intimate and individual
responses.
Subjects are more likely to feel like one of many
when interviewed in public places (streets, parks,
etc).

13. Production Tips

14. Lighting is very important
• Adequate lighting will generally help poorly shot
video. Basic lighting tips include:
– Set White Balance
Adjustment of the color channels in the camera to allow the camera to
produce accurate white picture in the available light at a location.
– Natural light can be a great alternative if you do not have
standalone equipment.
– Use Three Point Lighting if you have equipment
Using three points of light to create an illusion of three dimensions on the
screen.
–

15. Lighting Equipment
• Soft box Lighting equipment. Entry
level lighting kits can be
purchased from Amazon or EBay
from $50 - $250. Many use
standard fluorescent bulbs and
come with Chroma key Green
screen backdrops for special
effects/virtual sets.
• On-camera lights are great for
filming outside of a studio.
• Tripods and mic stands are
recommended for capturing
quality audio and video.

16. Three Point Lighting: uses three points of light to
create an illusion of three dimensions on the screen.

17. Three Point Lighting: uses three points of light to
create an illusion of three dimensions on the screen.

18. Lighting is Subjective
• Ultimately the final decision about whether or not
the lighting has been set correctly is a subjective
one that should be made on the basis of how the
scene looks on camera, not by whether or not the
various lights correspond to the ideal formula of
three-point lighting.

19. What is Sound?
• Almost all sound
fits into one of
three categories in
production.
– Music
– Dialogue
– Sound Effects

20. • Built-in Mics
– Part of the camera or computer.
• record general, not selective, sound
• Attachable Mics
– Microphones that are clipped to a
surface or a person (lavaliere or
lapel mics).
• External Mics
– Microphones attached to the
camera or computer. They can be
connected via a cable or wireless.
They can be handheld or mounted
shotgun style to a boom pole.
Microphones

21. Samson
C01U USB
Studio Mic
Rode
Video Mic
Audio-Technica
AT2020 USB
LogitechUSBDesktop
Microphone
Examples of Microphones

22. Producers are generally concerned with sound
in three different situations:
• Location Recording
– Recording sound in the field.
• Adding Sound to Pre-Recorded
Material
– Adding audio to field or studio
recorded sound (i.e., music, sfx,
voice overs)
• Sound Manipulation During Post
– Affecting sound by altering
equalization during the editing
process.

23. Types of Camera Movements
• Zoom – in and out
• Panning - side to side
• Tilting - up and do
Keep camera movement to a minimum!

24. Tips for Moving the Camera
1. Use zoom to adjust the magnification BETWEEN shots.
Avoid zooming while taping.
• For the camera operator, zooming imparts a sense of control,
power, and visual excitement. But for the viewer, zooming
imparts a sense of nausea.
2. Pan and Tilt only when you have a good reason to do so
• Most common reason is to track a moving object. Pans look
better if there is something moving to focus on (i.e., a person
walking, a car moving, and so on).
• Make an effort to pan smoothly and slowly and avoid panning
more than once in a shot.
• Practice the pan, tilt or zoom a couple of times before shooting.

25. Hardw are
Getting the Job Done without
Breaking the Bank

26. Computers
• Laptop or Desktop? Apple
or Windows PC?
– Doesn’t matter as long as it
is reliable.
– Invest in:
• A lot of RAM and a big hard
drive.
• A fast multicore processor
(Intel or AMD).
• A dedicated graphics card.

27. Digital Cameras
Canon
Vixia Camcorders
Canon
T2/3/4/5 DSLR Cameras
Canon
T2/3/4/5 DSLR Cameras
Contour
Roam 2 Camera
GoPro
Hero 4 Action Camera
HTC
RE Camera
Logitech
HD Pro Webcam C910

28. Smartphones
Most modern smartphones and tablets can capture and manipulate
photos, videos, and audio.

29. Accessories
On Camera
LED Lights
Standard Tripod
Mini Tripod
Soft box Light Kits

30. Softw are

31. No Cost Software Option
• Apple
– Free content creation software
included with the system
purchase.
– iMovie, Garageband, iPhoto,
Pages
• PCs
– Notably there are better options in
the Mac environment unless you
combine Windows built-in
software with open source and
freeware options.
• Windows Movie Maker or
Lightworks
• Photo Gallery or GIMP
• Audacity or Sony Acid
Express
–

32. Medium Cost Commercial Option
(PCs)
• Sony Movie Studio Suite Edition
– Vegas Studio 13 Platinum, ACID
Music Studio 10, Sound Forge
Audio Studio 10, Boris FX
Continuum, FXHome Hit Film
plug-ins, iZotope Vocal Eraser,
NewBlueFX 3D Titling and Video
Effects, 50 Sony Sound Series:
Production Music Soundtracks
• Adobe Photoshop Elements
– Scaled down version of
Photoshop for content creators
that do not need to become
professional graphic designers.

33. High-End Commercial Option
• Adobe Creative Cloud
– Subscription-based software
service that bundles nearly all
of Adobe’s major products
together for $50 per month.
Students and teachers can
subscribe for $29 per year.

34. • The free video editing and effects
software. Lightworks Free is a scaled
down version of Lightworks Pro.
• Lightworks Free allows you to export
only to MPEG-4 (Web, YouTube and
Vimeo) at a maximum resolution of
720p
• Currently available for Windows, Mac
and Linux.
http://www.lwks.com/

35. • Easy-to-use screen recorder that helps
you create professional videos without
having to be a video pro.
• Record your screen movements and
actions, or import HD video from a
camera or other source.
• Customize and edit content on both
Mac and Windows platforms, and
share your videos with viewers on
nearly any device.
• Similar in functionality to Camtasia and
ScreenFlow. Free ori $15/year for a
Pro account.
http://www.screencast-o-matic.com/

36. Where should you host
your content?
Your own Website or a Social Media Site?

37. The Answer is Both!
You should leverage your content
on your social media sites as well
as your own website.

38. Hosting video
There are a number of easy to update
sites such as Tumbler and Blogger which
can be created quickly. Or you can run
your own Wordpress site for greater
flexibility and control.
• Blogs and websites can create more
visibility for your personal brand while
building a trust relationship with your
audience.
• They create a community and encourage
the audience to connect with you. They
are a great focal point for tying together
all of your social media channels for
increased SEO.
• Video

39. Exampled of How to Tie Together your
Website and Social Media Sites
http://www.jamesrichardson.net http://newyorkcine.podbean.com

40. Thanks for Listening
Feel free to contact me at:
james.richardson@cuny.edu
Visit my website:
http://www.jamesrichardson.net