WHY SHOULD I START MY OWN
YOUTUBE CHANNEL?
ere are all kinds of di erent reasons for
starting up your own YouTube channel.
Some people do it to share their passions and
knowledge with the world. Others simply want
to vent about life’s little annoyances.
If you have a particular talent, be it playing
an instrument or even playing video games,
YouTube is a great way to advertise yourself
and grow a following. Some of the more
popular YouTubers are watched by millions of
people every month, while the biggest vloggers
are now fully- edged celebrities with their
own clothing brands and sponsorship deals.
Yo u Tu b e r e a c h e s a l m o s t t w o b i l l i o n p e o p l e
each month in over 90 countries, making
it one of the biggest virtual stages on the
internet. So whatever you want to make videos
about, you’re sure to nd an audience.HOW MUCH TIME DOES IT TAKE?
Managing a channel can take as little or as
much time as you like. Hardcore YouTubers
post a video every day, while others upload
whenever they have a chance. However if
you’re hoping to build a dedicated following,
it de nitely helps to stick to a regularschedule. Even if it’s just one video a week,
posted on the same day.
Of course, the amount of time you’ll spend
creating each individual video really depends
on your subject matter. If you’re putting
together a directorial masterpiece involving
on-location shooting, complex camera angles
and special e ects, you might be on it for
days. If you’re basically going to rant at the
camera about how rubbish everything is, you
could be done in just a few minutes.WILL I NEED TO BUY EXPENSIVE
EQUIPMENT?
Not at all. Even the most basic smartphones
these days can shoot Full HD video, while
many can record at 4K resolution too. So if
you’re working to a tight budget, you can get
away with spending little to nothing. If you’re
planning on shooting with your mobile, you
can grab some accessories to help out. I’d
recommend buying a smartphone tripod to
hold the handset in any position you require,
while you can also improve the audio quality
with a plug-in mic.
If you’re serious about quality, try a DSLR
camera. I use the Panasonic Lumix GH5,
which is a couple of years old now, but still
fantastic for video. Otherwise, if you want
to shoot your more active exploits with
hands-free convenience, you can’t go wrong
with a GoPro.GOT ANY QUICK TIPS FOR IMPROVING
VIDEO QUALITY?
e two most important things to consider
are lighting and audio. You should always
shoot in a well-lit environment, and if you
can’t a ord studio lighting, try using natural
illumination from a window. Just remember
not to shoot against the light, or else you’ll
appear as a murky mess.
For good quality audio, get a lapel mic and
shoot your videos in a spacious room lled
with furniture. ose uneven surfaces will
help to prevent any pesky echo. If you have toshoot outdoors, get a mic with a mu er –
sometimes rather horri cally referred to as
a ‘dead cat’ – to dampen wind interference.DO I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO
EDIT VIDEO?
Editing video can seem like an incredibly
daunting task if you’ve never attempted
it before. Most editing apps such as Final
Cut Pro and Premiere Pro are a hot mess
of windows, menus and incomprehensible
jargon, but don’t despair. You’ll nd plenty
of stripped-down, simpli ed editors out
there, such as iMovie on MacOS and
VideoPad on Windows, which come
complete with built-in tutorials. ese
allow you to quickly trim and stick
together clips, which is all that most
YouTubers will ever need to do. Just
remember to save your nished video in a
YouTube friendly format, such as MOV.
If you’re brave enough, you can even
stream live to YouTube using your
smartphone. Not only does that cut out
the need for editing, but your viewers
can actually interact with you, asking
questions or throwing out comments. You
have been warned!FANCY HAVING A GO AT
VLOGGING? TECH JOURNALIST
AND AVID YOUTUBER CHRIS
BARRACLOUGH SAYS IT’S
EASIER THAN YOU THINK...“If you’re hoping to
build a dedicated
following, it definitely
helps to stick to a
regular schedule”
MAKING A YOUTUBE CHANNEL
Troubleshoot
CHRIS BARRACLOUGH (@se e b aru k)
Chris is a tech journalist and creator of the YouTube
channel Tech Spurt, which reviews gadgets,
phones, computers, wearables and apps.
youtube.com/techspurtRADARWHY SHOULD I START MY OWN
YOUTUBE CHANNEL?
ere are all kinds of di erent reasons for
starting up your own YouTube channel.
Some people do it to share their passions and
knowledge with the world. Others simply want
to vent about life’s little annoyances.
If you have a particular talent, be it playing
an instrument or even playing video games,
YouTube is a great way to advertise yourself
and grow a following. Some of the more
popular YouTubers are watched by millions of
people every month, while the biggest vloggers
are now fully- edged celebrities with their
own clothing brands and sponsorship deals.
Yo u Tu b e r e a c h e s a l m o s t t w o b i l l i o n p e o p l e
each month in over 90 countries, making
it one of the biggest virtual stages on the
internet. So whatever you want to make videos
about, you’re sure to nd an audience.
HOW MUCH TIME DOES IT TAKE?
Managing a channel can take as little or as
much time as you like. Hardcore YouTubers
post a video every day, while others upload
whenever they have a chance. However if
you’re hoping to build a dedicated following,
it de nitely helps to stick to a regular
schedule. Even if it’s just one video a week,
posted on the same day.
Of course, the amount of time you’ll spend
creating each individual video really depends
on your subject matter. If you’re putting
together a directorial masterpiece involving
on-location shooting, complex camera angles
and special e ects, you might be on it for
days. If you’re basically going to rant at the
camera about how rubbish everything is, you
could be done in just a few minutes.WILL I NEED TO BUY EXPENSIVE
EQUIPMENT?
Not at all. Even the most basic smartphones
these days can shoot Full HD video, while
many can record at 4K resolution too. So if
you’re working to a tight budget, you can get
away with spending little to nothing. If you’re
planning on shooting with your mobile, you
can grab some accessories to help out. I’d
recommend buying a smartphone tripod to
hold the handset in any position you require,
while you can also improve the audio quality
with a plug-in mic.
If you’re serious about quality, try a DSLR
camera. I use the Panasonic Lumix GH5,
which is a couple of years old now, but still
fantastic for video. Otherwise, if you want
to shoot your more active exploits with
hands-free convenience, you can’t go wrong
with a GoPro.GOT ANY QUICK TIPS FOR IMPROVING
VIDEO QUALITY?
e two most important things to consider
are lighting and audio. You should always
shoot in a well-lit environment, and if you
can’t a ord studio lighting, try using natural
illumination from a window. Just remember
not to shoot against the light, or else you’ll
appear as a murky mess.
For good quality audio, get a lapel mic and
shoot your videos in a spacious room lled
with furniture. ose uneven surfaces will
help to prevent any pesky echo. If you have toshoot outdoors, get a mic with a mu er –
sometimes rather horri cally referred to as
a ‘dead cat’ – to dampen wind interference.DO I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO
EDIT VIDEO?
Editing video can seem like an incredibly
daunting task if you’ve never attempted
it before. Most editing apps such asFinal
Cut ProandPremiere Proare a hot mess
of windows, menus and incomprehensible
jargon, but don’t despair. You’ll nd plenty
of stripped-down, simpli ed editors out
there, such asiMovieon MacOS and
VideoPadon Windows, which come
complete with built-in tutorials. ese
allow you to quickly trim and stick
together clips, which is all that most
YouTubers will ever need to do. Just
remember to save your nished video in a
YouTube friendly format, such as MOV.
If you’re brave enough, you can even
stream live to YouTube using your
smartphone. Not only does that cut out
the need for editing, but your viewers
can actually interact with you, asking
questions or throwing out comments. You
have been warned!FANCY HAVING A GO AT
VLOGGING? TECH JOURNALIST
AND AVID YOUTUBER CHRIS
BARRACLOUGH SAYS IT’S
EASIER THAN YOU THINK...
“If you’re hoping to
build a dedicated
following, it definitely
helps to stick to a
regular schedule”
MAKING A YOUTUBE CHANNEL
Troubleshoot
CHRIS BARRACLOUGH(@se e b aru k)
Chris is a tech journalist and creator of the YouTube
channel Tech Spurt, which reviews gadgets,
phones, computers, wearables and apps.
youtube.com/techspurtRADAR