Tips to improve your holiday videos
so people will want to watch them instead of falling asleep.

Family videos don’t have to be boring!

First I want to caution you – Don’t go all crazy with getting video clips and forget to spend quality time with family and friends. With a little bit of forethought and planning you can have the quality time AND a fun video for the coming years.

Keep the viewers in mind. Next year when you announce that you have a video for everyone to watch you want them to sit down instead of run away. You know the reputation that home videos have – boring and long; so make your video better!

Think about – or even write out – what type of shots you want to get. Here’s some examples:

• the outside of the location and people arriving,
• groups of people talking,
• close-ups of each person – have kids say name and age,
• the food and decorations,
• activities throughout the day, etc.

Make sure you are in the video too!

If you want to record each person it’s a good idea to have something specific to ask them. Think of a question about them personally, like a favorite decoration or song; or ask them an opinion on something, like a current event or favorite family debate. 30 seconds to 1 minute per person is plenty. Some people will enjoy being recorded together; they are often more relaxed if someone is recording with them.

You don’t need hours of video footage to capture the day. A good 30 minutes to an hour of footage can be edited down to a short, fun video. Capture the general atmosphere and people in attendance without being annoying and you’ll have memories that last for years to come.

Happy Holidays and Happy Vlogging!

P.S. If you use a smartphone to record video footage I know a great learning resource. It’s geared to iphones but has great tips for recording with any smartphone. I know because I don’t have an iPhone and have learned things from the videos. At least go download the FREE ebook: iPhone Video Marketing – The Missing Manual.

Share so others can Enjoy!

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