From Cameras To Thumbnails, Henry’s Creator Tips

Henry Bate is a photographer, videographer and editor raised in Australia and currently residing in Orange County, California. His experience is far reaching, having done work with MasterCard, People Magazine, KandyPens and here at TheWeedTube. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Henry myself and let me tell you, the dude’s got the eye for the vibe.

 

For those looking for advice on the crucial details that make up successful content creation, Henry is here to dope some knowledge. The following is a collection of tips gathered from TheWeedTube Virtual Creator Summit in April.

 

CAMERA SETTINGS

Know your camera. All cameras are different. Find a video about yours and learn about how to change settings, like:

- Timelapse mode

- WiFi settings - how to connect your camera to your phone

- Color profiles - some people like all the work to happen out of camera so they make their camera neutral 

 

Settings for recording via smartphone:

- iPhone camera app settings - set to 1080p 60fps for lower storage & 4K if you want  more detail or to have more control over zooming in and out without quality loss

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2g8kC3PQBU 

- Apple apps for mobile video editing:

          - Pro Camera by Moment app - makes high end iPhone lens attachments (not free)

          https://apps.apple.com/us/app/moment-pro-camera/id927098908

          - Fimlic Pro

          https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id436577167

          - Double Take - shoot with two iPhone cameras at same time

          https://apps.apple.com/us/app/doubletake-by-filmic-pro/id1478041592

 

CHECK THAT EVERYTHING LOOKS GREAT

- Get rid of any odd objects around the frame

- Make sure nothing is coming out of the back of your head

https://www.journographica.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/photo-polehead.png

- Lighting is important. Make sure you are well lit, but not causing a shadow. Two or three lights in a space all diffusing light around the subject always helps eliminate shadows.

https://fstoppers.com/video/diy-3-point-lighting-26-4115

- Always take your SD card out

- Check that everything looks and sounds good

          - PEOPLE WILL WATCH LOWER QUALITY VIDEO BUT THEY WON'T DEAL WITH BAD AUDIO

          https://vtrep.com/audio-is-more-important-than-video-picture-quality/

 

BACK IT UP

Phone/Mobile: 

          - Google Photos

          - Apple Photos/Files

Camera:

          - Hard drives on or off computer

          - Dropbox

          - Cloud service

 

HOW TO EDIT

Novice:

          - Honestly, the stock editor in the iPhone Photos app is amazing these days. Just make sure your phones have the most recent updates so you have the most recent features.

 

Intermediate:

          - iMovie on iOs or Mac OS

          https://www.apple.com/imovie/

          - FilmoraGO for Android and iOS

          https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.wondershare.filmorago&hl=en_US

 

Advanced:

          - Final Cut Pro - student pricing options or torrents (I don’t condone stealing, I just understand everyone has different needs and resources)

          https://www.apple.com/us-hed/shop/product/BMGE2Z/A/pro-apps-bundle-for-education

          - Adobe Premiere - Adobe subscriptions are a big commitment but you get Photoshop, Premiere Pro or Adobe Rush (the iMovie of Adobe) for video editing, which has

          animation software and cloud syncing

          - Davinci Resolve - really advanced and has a free version 

          https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve/

 

WHERE TO GET ASSETS

So there's always the option to buy graphic packs or music licensing subscription services like Epidemic sound, but that can get pretty expensive pretty quickly and some of the licensing can get a little muddy. So free, non-copyrighted assets were my go to for about 5 years. 

 

          - SoundCloud - commercially available music

          - YouTube - You can search for non copyrighted music and graphics for things like Final Cut and Premiere Pro, but not with iMovie or apps usually. A lot of people make them

          available for free through 3rd party seller sights that require sign-in but no payment info, which is great.

          https://lenofx.com/collections/freebies

          - Ryan Nangle

          https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_tusQ99Bno--GHjhb1Aa6g

          https://sellfy.com/p/lo7uio/

 

THUMBNAILS AND SOCIAL POSTS - KNOW YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA SIZES

- You don’t need a separate video editing app for mobile content

- Instagram

          - Stories - 1080x1920

          - Long Feed Posts - 1080x1350

          - Square - 1080x1080

          https://sproutsocial.com/insights/social-media-image-sizes-guide/#instagram

- You can input these sizes into editing apps like iMovie (on computer) or Final Cut Pro when creating a project. Programs like Adobe do it based on the first clip put in timeline.

- Apps like Photoshop Mix let you cut out objects for free!

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/adobe-photoshop-mix-cut-out-combine-create/id885271158

- You can make thumbnails in apps like Photoshop Express, which is kind of free, but you can also use other apps

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/photoshop-express-photo-editor/id331975235

- Canva is great and has a free app. It can be a little tedious at first but once you understand it, it's just like any other photo manipulation app.

https://www.canva.com/

 

Finally, words of wisdom from Matthew Kobach, Head of Social Media for the New York Stock Exchange

The 5-step guide to grow your social media following: 

1) Decide why people should follow you 

2) Create content in support of your why 

3) Refuse to post content that does not support your why 

4) Consistently post that content 

5) Post more of what resonates, less of what doesn’t