We talk a lot about social networking channels here at Commando Headquarters, and web video is one of the keys to building out a truly successful lifestream.
Words just can’t express your ideas as effectively as video. Unfortunately, this isn’t always a good thing.
Poorly made video broadcasts can sink your reputation online irreparably. Let’s talk about how you can build a high quality broadcast studio — on a budget — to grow your online army of followers.
Background
We’ll get to the computers, microphones, and camcorders in a moment. First let’s check out the physical studio you’re going to need.
It’s fine to sit at the kitchen table with a webcam, but if you can carve out the space in a small home office or basement, start out by setting up a green screen stand to create a consistent background. You can buy an inexpensive green screen to use for adding special chromakey effects, or build your own in about 30 minutes:
Using a simple background helps create a focal point for your videos and adds a professional touch that most web content lacks.
Lighting
This could be the single most important element of a damn good web video, and you probably aren’t spending any time considering it. Movies and TV shows pay big bucks to production specialists to eliminate shadows and make stars look more appealing, but most of their tricks can be replicated with a few lighting tools.
Lightboxes, or softboxes, use florescent light bulbs and metallic siding to reflect an even glow upon their subjects. In other words, softboxes kill awkward shadows and make you look beautiful!
I recommend picking up an inexpensive setup from Cowboy Studio on Amazon.com or making a bootstrap version yourself:
Microphones
A quality microphone is every bit as essential as good lighting, but you shouldn’t drop a huge amount of cash on your first mic. I use a simple ‘Snowball‘ mic for most of my daily broadcasts and recording. You should check out a shotgun mic for your camcorder if you will be recording a person who isn’t sitting or otherwise able to be “miced-up”.
Again, don’t blow a wad of cash, but make a point of getting a higher quality version than your built-in computer microphone.
Headphones
If you’re really hurting for cash then it’s cool to use earbuds from your iPod. However if you can swing it then pick up a pair of Sony MDR-V150′s.
A good pair of headphones is key for rendering your videos and identifying sound quality before you capture (it sucks to shoot a video only to learn that the sound was terrible!).
So there you have it, everything you need to broadcast on UStream, YouTube, and on your own blog and/or website. I encourage you to get into the game no matter what your skill level or how much money you can invest. Learn as you grow and build that online army of followers!