Commentary
Getting Started In Video Production
- by Danny Groner , December 20, 2013
But where do you begin? It's incredibly daunting to take on any new labor of this size and caliber. Ultimately, it'll be a three-step process to get from here to where you wish to be. Here's a look at ways you can go from novice to expert through some focus and dedication:
Getting started. This is always going to be the most difficult part of
any process. When it comes to online video, it's worth purchasing the industry standard program, FinalCutPro. Not only is it intuitive to pick up, but if you run into any questions along the way, you
can Google for answers. Often when it comes to the best online advice, you'll want to be working with the program that will be most talked about in online discussions, forums, and on social media.
Doing things this way will save you lots of time in the long run, as you will inevitably run into hurdles that can be resolved with the right wisdom at your fingertips.
Expanding your horizons. Step two will require you to broaden your scope. After you have the basics down, you'll want to uncover what else you can do with video. The best videos have
beautiful or provoking features and moments that stand out. You'll want to take your skills beyond the beginner's level over time, as it'll help you make your stuff memorable.
Marketing yourself. The last step toward gaining video domination is not on the creative front, but rather in the promotion of your finished videos. Too many people every day make a video
they're proud of, put it up on YouTube, and then sit and wait for people to find it. Only in the rarest of cases would someone accidentally stumble across it, really, because there is so much content
on that platform. Now, you can choose instead to try to conquer a different platform -- to become a big fish in a small pond. That can be an effective strategy that pays off for some. But generally
speaking, you want to be where the action, and the audience, is. There are ways you can bring people to your videos, through social media or through outreach.
I have to wholeheartedly agree - getting started is the hardest part. Then remembering that I'm not in competition with the other content producers .... yet.
I especially like the idea of being a bigfish in a small pond. Ive spent just under 6 months building social media efforts and introducing video to my "engagers" at this point will be fluid and organic.
I think this article is not accurate. I'm curious where you are getting your information. The easiest, most intuitive, most talked about, and cheapest video editing platform is Adobe Premiere, not final cut pro. Most marketers/media people have a cursory understanding of other adobe programs, such as photoshop and illustrator, and premiere is compatible with these programs and similarly intuitive. There are a plethora of adobe forums, blogs, and tutorials that are very straightforward and easy to work with - making the learning process an ongoing and smooth one. Having said that, the best videos are comprised of the best stories. People are often distracted by the sparkle of effects and tricks. If you want to be a good video producer, become a good story teller. This skill set is platform agnostic. The tools will continue to change, but good story telling is not going anywhere.