Creating the Videos

I have always dreamed of creating a YouTube channel, ever since I started watching videos on the platform when I was younger. I had attempted to make a channel in the past, but soon lost inspiration once I realized that I had no serious hobbies or passions that would gain attention from an audience. It was not until I was reflecting on this project that I realized I am passionate about minimalism and intentional living, and felt that it would be a good topic to focus on. Thus, Redefining Minimalism was born and I immediately dove head-first into project research and preparation for what I had to do. Furthermore, I created a project proposal that outlined my intentions for my YouTube channel and what I hoped to get out of creating the project.

CONTENT RESEARCH

While I was familiar with YouTube and creating content, I had no idea the exact steps it taking to make a channel. Furthermore, while I have read quite a few books on minimalism and watched countless videos, I knew I had to do more research regarding the topic. I wanted to get perspectives on why minimalism is good, but also how it can be bad. This allowed me to make my videos as informative and impactful as I could, while keeping in mind facts and information I had learned. As I read, watched, and listened to sources, I took notes and created annotations where I reflected on my thoughts and made connections to my personal experiences. My final bibliography amounted to 35 sources with a paragraph of annotations, creating an insightful and detailed document that explored my findings in-depth.

IMPLEMENTING PROJECT MANAGEMENT

There are a variety of project management systems available on the web or as phone apps. Options include Trello, Asana, Wrike, Monday, Hive, and countless more. It is important to take into consideration what the layout of the system is and how you intend to use it. When I was exploring my options, I stumbled upon ClickUp and became intrigued by the system as a whole. It is free and relatively easy to use, and I appreciate that you can create “spaces” that can be separated by project. So, I decided to use it for my project and divide it into phases of research, pre-production, production, and post-production. Being able to manage my project helped me to see what exactly needed to be done over the course of the project and keep myself on track.

Don’t get me wrong, marking all of my tasks as “complete” when I went through the process was satisfying and enjoyable. However, I found that I was more focused on the project itself than using the project management system. I had most of it in my mind, so there were times when I glanced at ClickUp, but that would mostly be at the beginning of the week. Other than that, I felt as though the project management system was not vital in my success, but rather a guide in case I felt lost or overwhelmed. While I may not use this for every project or large task in the future, I appreciated giving it a try.

CREATING A CHANNEL

After I created my ClickUp, it was time for me to make my channel. I believed that this was an important step to make before planning any videos, as I wanted to create my channel vibe and gain an understanding of what style I hoped my videos would be. After gaining inspiration from channels like Wear I Live, I created my banner to reflect the positive and fun energy that I want to exhibit both in my videos and on my channel.

I knew that I had to prepare for each one of my videos. If I tried to film without any sort of outline, it would take hours for me to plan what I wanted to say before I even started recording. I created three outlines that contained a summary, structure of the video, discussion points, research/quotes, and ideas for b-roll. These were extremely helpful when I was filming my videos and I am beyond grateful that I had them, considering that I would be lost without them. If you’re interested in seeing more of my behind-the-scenes content, here is a deliverables package with a variety of things that I created:

THE ART OF FILMING

I filmed a few times before my first video in order to test my equipment and footage. Furthermore, as shown above, I created a filming schedule so I could hold myself accountable. I was happy that I did this, considering if I did not have a schedule, I would have most likely filmed at inconvenient times and clashed with other work that I had to do.

Before I knew it, I was filming my videos. I felt very official with my setup that included my ring light, tripod, DSLR, and phone to record audio. I encountered a few challenges, like background sounds from roommates and my camera quickly losing battery. However, the overall process was smooth and I was proud of my work. Although I felt a bit awkward at first talking to a camera, I quickly became comfortable and sounded more natural. I think there is an evident improvement even from my first video to my second one, as I seem more confident in what I am saying. Regardless, I know that clear speech is something that I need to work on for future videos, as I tend to talk quickly and sometimes combine words. I had no issues with transferring my footage onto my computer, where I immediately organized it into folders for editing.

In addition, I knew it was important to capture b-roll for my videos. Without them, I knew I would just have plain videos of me talking to the camera and nothing else. I grabbed shots ranging from me looking out a window to pulling a pencil out of a jar. I pre-planned many of these shots, but I also found myself coming up with some at the moment as I thought of ideas. They may seem a bit random, but I feel as though they emphasize and show what I am saying in my videos in a creative way.

EDITING IN ADOBE PREMIERE PRO

Ah, editing. Honestly, it’s one of my favorite parts about creating videos, as I get to control what the outcome looks like. My first step in this process was to create rough cuts of each video, where I trimmed out all of the mistakes I made, awkward moments, and fluff. The next step was to add b-roll, which is where I really found the videos coming together (the above image is from when I was adding in b-roll). I also added music, graphics, and color-graded the footage. While this entire process took hours, I thoroughly enjoyed it and found myself happy with the outcome of what I filmed, even though I did choose to re-film my third video.

THE IMPORTANCE OF THUMBNAILS

YouTube thumbnails are one of the most important components of a video, especially when they grab the attention of a viewer. There is a whole variety of types of thumbnails, ranging from just a photo to fully Photoshopped and edited. I appreciate thumbnail designs that are on the more minimal side (hence, me creating videos about minimalism) and enjoy photos that are nice to look at. Furthermore, I have noticed that in regards to videos about minimalism, thumbnails that have items as the focus have a large number of views. These aspects served as my inspiration when I was creating thumbnails for my three videos. As shown below, they are minimal yet straightforward. The text on each one works with the title of the respective videos, and overall I am pleased by the outcome of them. Furthermore, I feel as though they match the vibe of my channel well.

UPLOADING TO YOUTUBE

After seven weeks of working on this project, my videos are ready to be shown to the world. In fact, one of them has already been uploaded, while the other two will be released in the upcoming two weeks. The overall process of exporting and uploading to YouTube went well, and rather quickly. Since I had my thumbnails and a description template ready to go, I had to make small changes and features to my outro before I was ready to schedule the videos. I’ve learned during this time that most YouTubers put hard work into creating their videos. Managing a YouTube channel is not as easy as it seems, which is why some people have it as their full-time job. Overall, this project has shown me that I can accomplish my goals (creating a YouTube channel has been a dream of mine since I was little) and achieve what I put my mind to.