Helpful hints for YouTubers making firearms vids...

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Best tip I've got for u tubers is to cut to the chase, the REASON for the video. If I wanted 50 minutes of crap and hip hop rapping for 10 minutes of information I'd turn on the television.

When I'm looking for music videos, I'm looking for videos by the artist performing the music NOT some guy in his basement with his first gun sharing his mom's play list.
 
I for one think music helps a video. If nothing else, just to fill in the quiet spots. As long as it fits the theme of the channel. I expect some channels to have something folk-ish or country, and others to have some rock or metal in the background.
In the background.
A big part of making a video is the sound work. My issue is when they obviously don't check anything, and the music is as loud or louder than anything else. It should always, always be as loud as the most quiet speech or important sounds, at most.
Not as bad on gun videos as some. There, they can follow a general rule of setting speech and shooting sounds to the 100% mark and music to 60%, or something.
It's a bigger problem for producers that do music program tutorials. There are a couple that drown out their speaking or even what they're doing in the program, when dealing with audio should be their entire job.
It's the equivalent of a gun reviewer showing himself loading up a couple 30-round magazines before packing out for the range and managing to get one loaded like the HK marketing department.
 
I base how much credibility I give a youtuber based on what he looks like. If he’s got a full beard, wearing Oakley mirrored sunglasses, has on a cool hat, wearing a dark t-shirt that’s too tight, tribal arm tattoos, 5.11 pants with boots and a serious “don’t mess with me” expression on his face, I automatically know I’m watching a truly knowledgeable gun enthusiast. Extra props if his channel starts with music that’s far louder than the rest of the video, even the gun shots, so it wakes up the napping baby I'm probably holding.

On the other hand if he’s wearing a Carhart pocket-t, cargo shorts with white socks and tennis shoes, and a hat he probably got for free, well then that guy’s clearly some sort of hack.
:evil:
 
I don't care how someone pronounces Leopold, Hornady or says clip instead of magazine. I know what they mean. But what I get tired of is pretty much every video now starts with an ad. I don't watch the ads, I turn my Ipad away and mute the sound. But what really gets me is the three michael bloomberg ads I have seen come on. I didn't go there to watch political propaganda. And since the left is wanting equal time on talk radio for their points of view how about some Trump ads on YT? Now that would be fair. I would love to see a MAGA and vote for Trump video. But it ain't gonna happen.:evil:

And yes I can do without the death metal music and big Hollywood introductions. Just get to work and make your point.
 
For instance, just "showing" a gun being held is a guy's hand and him narrating while he holds it and dry-fires it, and lists the same information that can be found on the manufacturer's page... pointless.

That applies to the gunboards, like this one.
I am seeing more - or maybe just noticing more - posts with glowing "reviews" of newly acquired guns not involving shooting. They have been known to run to three or four maximum length posts to get all the pictures and description in, with a concluding remark to the effect "It's great, it's wonderful, I love it. I'll shoot it a month from next Thursday."

I found myself with a disassembly - reassembly project recently and, lacking printed instructions, resorted to Youtube. I found a video purporting to describe my gun but when I sat through it, found it to show the gun in stock condition, the presenter said "then you put tab A into slot B", fade to gun with aftermarket part in place. Any illustration of taking out the old and the order of putting it back together with new was omitted.
 
If what you’re saying or shooting isn’t interesting on its own, music isn’t going to do anything but hurt IMO. ;)

Yes! And the opposite is true: If the content is compelling then bad music doesn't ruin it.

Why in the world did Larry Potterfield use that horrific music in some of his gunsmithing videos years ago? For the life of me I can't imagine the person who in some editing studio said "Yeah! This is exactly the music we need! It fits so well with the content!"

Even so (as one person said someplace.......Larry Potterfield is the Bob Ross of gunsmithing) I could watch those videos all day long. I have anti-interest in being a gunsmith. But watching Larry work is wonderful.
 
I really like youtube. I use it for all kinds of things I'm interested in - history, drums, scale models, golf, music, science... I've pretty much quit using it for anything gun related because so much of it is pointless. Some guy dry-firing and fondling his gun, or doing slow fire at a target I cannot see... ugh, I'll just go stare at clouds, thanks.
 
If you want to see an example of quality videos, try the Capandball channel. Extremely high quality work, he puts just about everyone else to shame.

Major points:
1. Know your stuff. Dr. Nemeth (yes, I know him) is an expert. In both the history and the shooting.
2. Multiple cameras. Cover your shooting with one...the other is focused on the target. Then edit.
3. Any background music should be low-key and appropriate to the topic.
4. Cut to the chase. A minute-long intro is about 50 seconds of wasted time.
 
I enjoy a lot of the videos on youtube, full30, getzone, etc and I'd say the most important thing is to have a personality. All the knowledge in the world just isn't entertaining or even watchable if it is presented in a boring manner. So many of the newer content providers miss on this point and I just can't waste the 10 minutes watching/listening to them. Some guys, I'll not mention the names, can make you want to shoot or buy whatever they are demonstrating, be it guns, holsters, targets, first aid stuff, backpacks, shoes, or whatever based purely on their presentation.
 
My complaints are more fundamental in nature . . .

- Myth perpetuation.
- Stating opinion as fact.
- Poor research.
- Argument fallacy.
- Statistical relevance (usually a sample size of one).

and last:
- Get to the point in the first 20 seconds or so. After that you can wander a bit in your proof, explanation, demonstration, or whatever, as long as it is entertaining. Two minutes of preamble gets a bit tiresome.
 
Your nit-picking....and I agree with most of what you have.
You're. (Sorry, couldn't resist)

I used to say less talking more shooting but many have come around to that.
My complaint is the poor efforts to have some funny intro bit at the start of an otherwise good video. Just say who you are, what the subject of the video is and get to it.
It's a firearm video, we don't need foreplay.
 
You say MOTOR I say ENGINE........... we all need to be more forgiving. I believe You Tube is for amateurs more than professionals. I've learned to be more forgiving. I say "clip" all the time as it has less syllables.
 
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