Introduce us to (educator) vlogging
December 16, 2018 12:05 PM Subscribe
My wife is a high school math teacher, and she is interested in recording short lessons for her former and current students. I read a bit about best ways to record videos, and I think the first clip is decent-ish, but we would appreciate insight, guidance and feedback.
The video in question, and a recap of the recording method:
- iPad on a tripod, mostly left in place once set up, focused on a white board and my wife
- Lit with a number of lamps and a non-diffused spotlight (I'll work on that for next time)
- Audio is only from the iPad's built-in mic
- No post-processing or effects (other than opening in iMovie and saving as 720p)
Questions:
- What are good Handbrake settings, or is there a good editing and compression app for the iPad?
- What are some good intro mics? She's 5-6 feet away from the iPad and often has her back to the camera, so if she's tethered to the iPad, it'd have to have a pretty long cord, and I'm not sure if a directional mic would work when she's facing the board?
- I know we could spend a ton of time editing the video, but how much is worthwhile for educational videos? And what are some preferred or suggested iPhone apps or Windows programs?
And generally, she's not sure if this will be a serious project or something to do to augment classes and answer questions, so we don't want to invest a ton of money into anything at this point. I also have a Nikon D3100, but I thought filming on the iPad would be a more direct conduit to getting videos to YouTube, which I realize now might be a false assumption. The video initially failed to upload via the YouTube app, but with minimal post-processing with iMovie, the video uploaded in about an hour.
The videos are for my wife's current or former students, not to gain an online following. She's not concerned about how she taught or presented this lesson, but we want to make the recording more clear, without spending hours editing and adding effects.
The video in question, and a recap of the recording method:
- iPad on a tripod, mostly left in place once set up, focused on a white board and my wife
- Lit with a number of lamps and a non-diffused spotlight (I'll work on that for next time)
- Audio is only from the iPad's built-in mic
- No post-processing or effects (other than opening in iMovie and saving as 720p)
Questions:
- What are good Handbrake settings, or is there a good editing and compression app for the iPad?
- What are some good intro mics? She's 5-6 feet away from the iPad and often has her back to the camera, so if she's tethered to the iPad, it'd have to have a pretty long cord, and I'm not sure if a directional mic would work when she's facing the board?
- I know we could spend a ton of time editing the video, but how much is worthwhile for educational videos? And what are some preferred or suggested iPhone apps or Windows programs?
And generally, she's not sure if this will be a serious project or something to do to augment classes and answer questions, so we don't want to invest a ton of money into anything at this point. I also have a Nikon D3100, but I thought filming on the iPad would be a more direct conduit to getting videos to YouTube, which I realize now might be a false assumption. The video initially failed to upload via the YouTube app, but with minimal post-processing with iMovie, the video uploaded in about an hour.
The videos are for my wife's current or former students, not to gain an online following. She's not concerned about how she taught or presented this lesson, but we want to make the recording more clear, without spending hours editing and adding effects.
This is so cool. As a random viewer, I have some opinions...
- Sound was very clear, whether she was facing the camera or back to.
- Lighting was fine but you have that hot spot on the right side of the board.
- I don't understand the Wulfhere's tablet setup but if the whiteboard essentially duplicates the classroom experience, then I think that is preferable.
- Your wife speaks fast which personally I really like in instructional videos because I can always replay it. Her students must be used to this as well.
- The instruction was clear and concise.
- She writes really fast too, I'm impressed.
I think teacher videos are important for parents too. I've told the story before how my nephew was struggling with large number subtraction homework. I was explaining the method I learned but he had been taught a completely different one that I never figured out. It was so frustrating. OTOH, nowadays he can add and subtract large numbers in his head and I'm never without a calculator.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 5:13 AM on December 17, 2018
- Sound was very clear, whether she was facing the camera or back to.
- Lighting was fine but you have that hot spot on the right side of the board.
- I don't understand the Wulfhere's tablet setup but if the whiteboard essentially duplicates the classroom experience, then I think that is preferable.
- Your wife speaks fast which personally I really like in instructional videos because I can always replay it. Her students must be used to this as well.
- The instruction was clear and concise.
- She writes really fast too, I'm impressed.
I think teacher videos are important for parents too. I've told the story before how my nephew was struggling with large number subtraction homework. I was explaining the method I learned but he had been taught a completely different one that I never figured out. It was so frustrating. OTOH, nowadays he can add and subtract large numbers in his head and I'm never without a calculator.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 5:13 AM on December 17, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
I've found that the main barrier to recording is time, so having an easy set up is key. Otherwise when teacher-life gets busy the videos will get planned but never actually get recorded.
My set up is:
- Windows tablet with pen (the kind with an active digitizer, like a Surface, though I currently use an HP.)
- ScreenCast-O-Matic software.
- Webcam for video of my face and audio in.
I too don't care about an online following or production value. Usually I'll just put a couple of problems into Onenote, turn on the recorder, and talk through solving them.
The big investment was the tablet. I also use it to teach daily in the classroom, so have had a lot of practice with it, and feel comfortable with all the inking features. The recording and inking isn't too hardware intensive, so something like an older Surface Pro 3 would do the trick for sure.
I've messed around with other recording software, but Screencastomatic is just right for me. Lets you record a window, speed up silence, add music, and upload to Youtube with just a few clicks. Also has other editing features if needed. The setup is minimal, which was key for me.
I recently got a second USB mic, which made the sound better to my ears. But I used a webcam quality mic for 3 years and I never had a kid complain or say anything about the sound.
Check your mail, I'll pm you a link to my channel.
posted by Wulfhere at 2:06 PM on December 16, 2018 [1 favorite]