I recently created a Fuji X Weekly YouTube channel with the idea that I’d be able to put my content in a different format and perhaps reach new people. I’m not a video guy, but my wife, who always gives me amazing advice, suggested that I should be making videos. What I’m trying to do, and it’s all a big learning process for me, is make short vlogs with quality content that are entertaining and optimized for mobile device viewing. I think that a lot of photography-related videos on YouTube are long, which can be good, but I feel that there is a need for concise content that can be consumed quickly. That’s what I’m aiming for, and hopefully I’ll get better at this the more I do it.
My wife has been telling me for awhile now that I should be on YouTube. She’s completely right about that! Almost two billion people worldwide watch YouTube videos regularly, and about one billion hours of YouTube video content is watched daily. YouTube is the #2 search engine, only behind Google. More than half of YouTube views are on a phone, tablet or other mobile device. There are a ton of statistics which demonstrate that those under the age of 50 are spending a lot of time watching YouTube videos, and about half of those videos are uploaded by people and not companies. There’s a massive audience I’m missing by avoiding YouTube!
I like to joke that I have a face for radio and a voice for print. That’s all in fun, but the truth is that I don’t have the eccentric personality to be a video star. I’m just a regular Joe. I don’t look or sound the part, and so I prefer not to be a video guy. I like to write and I’m pretty good at it. Even though I hunt-and-peck, I’m comfortable and happy typing out paragraphs. I like that I can lay out my thoughts in a clear and organized manor, and it’s easy to change the words if I didn’t communicate something well. I will continue to write the Fuji X Weekly blog because I love doing this!
When it comes to photography, there’s a lot of long-winded content on YouTube. Most videos exceed five minutes, many exceed 10 minutes and some seem to go on forever! That’s good sometimes, but what I often prefer, and I figures others might feel the same way, is content that’s short and to the point. I often don’t have time for ramblings. I feel that there is a need for quality photography-related videos that are under two minutes long, that get right to the point and concisely explain things. That’s my vision for the Fuji X Weekly vlog. I want to produce short videos that are mobile device friendly, that are interesting yet informative, and, perhaps most importantly, don’t feature me rambling on.
I just started the Fuji X Weekly vlog a couple of days ago. I think it will be a good companion to the Fuji X Weekly blog. I hope that it will reach some new people, perhaps some folks who wouldn’t normally go to an “old-fashioned” blog, but would definitely look at a video. I hope that it’s a fresh way to view my content, pictures and ideas. I’ve made three videos so far, which I’ve included below. Feel free to like and share them. Please subscribe so that you don’t miss anything! I appreciate any feedback that you have. Hopefully it just gets better and better as time goes on, because I’m very new to this whole video-making stuff. I hope that you enjoy!