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How to Vlog, a Beginners Guide


Do you want to start vlogging? Jake Sloan begins with the basics when picking your equipment and shares his tips along the way for high quality blogs your viewers will want to keep watching!

Here is a summary of Jake’s fantastic video that covers start to finish content creation. Be sure to watch to get all the tips.

Camera/Lens:
While you can record a great video with any late model phone today, Jake Sloan suggests upgrading to a camera. Jake uses the Sony A74, A7C and the ZV E10. These cameras perform better in low light, will provide you with more audio options, and provide more types of lens options.

When it comes to lenses Jake suggests picking a lens that does a couple of things: Choose something with a versatile focal range (example: 17-28, 20-40, 17-70, 11-20, 28-200). Make sure the lens is wide enough so you can hold it and talk to it, but also long enough to not feel super far away from your subject. Lastly, Jake says you will need a lens that has an aperture of at least 2.8 or lower for low light situations.



Audio quality:
Achieving great audio is crucial for your audience to enjoy your blog. Jake suggests adding an external microphone to vastly improve audio quality. Most microphones cost under $100 such as the Road, Sennheiser, & Deity.



Lighting:
When filming outside, Jake says that it is important to make sure that the sun is not shining directly in your face, it is better to have it off to the side or slightly off to the back.



For indoor lighting, Jake says having an external light like the Aperture MC will help fill the shadows in your face. Another option is to utilize a window for natural lighting so that you can look your best!

Tripods:
Tripods will help to hold the camera more stable especially when hand holding. This also gives you the option to put the camera down and help you capture your vlog from different angles.



Here are some of Jake’s tips to becoming the best Vlogger:

Tip #1) Timeline:
The best vlogs tell a story with a beginning, middle, and end. The beginning usually starts with the character that wants something. Then the middle is where you have a conflict that the character must overcome. Finally, the end is the conclusion or resolution to the conflict.



Tip #2) Different Shots:
Vlogging is a great way to demonstrate different perspectives to a story. When filming there are two types of shots: A-Roll is the character holding the camera and telling the story. B-Roll is the fast-moving scenes of what you may be talking about. Jake says that having a good mix of both is important to keep your viewer’s interest.



Tip #3) Editing:
Jake uses Apple iMovie to organize all his footage. First, he suggests separating the A-Roll and the B-Roll footage by placing all the A-Roll in a timeline and then editing out all the parts that aren’t needed to tell the story. Then go over the timeline to add in the B-Roll to help support the story- this is also a good time to add in music. Then it’s time to export!




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