Erich Stauffer

Tag: Video

  • How to Use an External Microphone with an iPhone or iPad

    In order for an analog, external microphone to work with an iPhone or iPad, it must have 3 conductors (sometimes called a “3 conductor” or “3 pole plug”) or it must use an adapter to convert a 2-conductor plug to a 3-conductor plug.

    Affiliate links are below to buy adapters and mics from the video. 1/8 inch Adapters that Convert 2-Poles to 3-Poles:

    Native, External Microphones that Work with iPhone or iPad:

    The above links to Amazon are affiliate links. I earn a commission from Amazon if you use the links, but it doesn’t cost you anything extra.

  • How to Edit Horizontal Video into Vertical Video in Adobe Premiere

    Step 1 – Create a New Sequence

    Choose “Arris Cinema” and then go to “Settings” and change the size to 1080 x 1920. Once the video has been added, in Effects, choose “Auto Reframe” to zoom and crop the video.

    Step 2 – Export the Video

    Choose H.264 and then make sure the checkbox next to “Basic Video Settings” is checked. Click Export.

  • YouTube Simulator

    I recently started making funny comedy skits on YouTube. In this video, I act like I’m playing a YouTube simulator game.

    In this interactive-fiction type game, I act like I’m playing a game on the computer, which is really my son, Kevin.

    YouTube Simulator Shirts on Amazon

    Shirts from the video are available on Amazon.com here (affiliate links):

  • 16 yo Tries to Wake up for School

    I recently started making funny comedy skits on video and posting them to YouTube and Facebook. In this video, I act like I’m Jordan, the 16 year old who rode an Uber. He is obsessed with chicken nuggets and although he just bought a car, he still has to take the bus to school because he can’t afford to register it.

    This is continual build-out of the universe that contains The Substitute Teacher, The Driving Instructor, and most recently, The Principal. The one thing they all have in common is that they all love chicken nuggets and McDonald’s.

    Jordan, the 16 year old, shirts on Amazon

    Shirts from the video are available on Amazon.com here (affiliate links):

  • The Principal

    I recently started making funny comedy skits on video and posting them to YouTube and Facebook. In this video, I act like I’m Merv, the school principal. He likes to collect McDonald’s Happy Meal toys, make dad-jokes, and do bad impressions. The only thing he loves more than his students is his master’s degree.

    This is continual build-out of the universe first created by the 16 year old who rode an Uber, followed by The Substitute Teacher, and The Driving Instructor. The one thing they all have in common is that they all love McDonald’s.

    Shirts from the video are available on Amazon.com here (affiliate links):

  • The Driving Instructor

    I recently started making funny comedy skits on video and posting them to YouTube and Facebook. In this video, I act like I’m Gary, a driving instructor who is “only doing it for the money” because it is better than mowing lawns and weedeating.

    This is the second video in a series, the first being 16 yo Rides an Uber, in which the 16-year-old Uber rider asks his friend about whether he took Driver’s Education this summer and if he had Gary as a driving instructor. They both love McDonald’s.

    My daughter, Magdalena, is coincidentally in Driver’s Education right now and so she actually did the student driving in this video. My son, Kevin, did the videography. Kevin has his own YouTube channel where he covers video games, The Game Boys.

    Shirts from the video are available on Amazon.com here (affiliate links):

  • Video as a Marketing Tool

    Video is both one of the most powerful and underused tools in marketing, training, and communication.

    I think it would be wrong of any new endeavor in 2013 to not include video as an integral part of their marketing strategy. This is how I am going to include it this year:

    1. Work to create an “interview”-style of videos in a series where I talk about things that interest me published on Youtube and this blog
    2. Work to create videos where I go to events or to work for different clients as a way to showcase what I do in the field in my daily work
    3. Develop video for common IT helpdesk solutions such as how to add apps to your phone, how to setup voicemail, or search the Internet

    Just Get Started

    The best thing you can do is to just do something. You’re not going to get good at it until you try and fail. It’s okay to fail, it’s how you learn.

    Erich Just Doing ItThe video on the right is a perfect example of this. I have a stain on my [T-!]shirt, I didn’t shave, the lighting is horrible, there is no script, and the camera is wobbly. But what you don’t know is that I specifically bought paint and painted that part of my house AND bought a special light to make videos, but I only made them this one time. And the only reason I made this one was because I told someone that I would (she was supposed to make one too, but she did not). The fact is that I did something – and now I can do the next one better.

    Video as a Conversion Tool

    I ran across this article on video and it reminded me of how important video is in conversions. It encouraged and reminded me to keep developing video for my products, my services, and my clients.

    Video is a very strong conversion tool and one that is increasingly being used by companies to help customers learn more about their products or about the community you’re trying to establish around your products and company. Letting people know the ‘rules’ of your ‘tribe‘ and how to act in it will help your customers feel like they are part of something when they do business with you. It’s an intrinsic way to make each customer feel special. Video is one way to let people in on that culture.

    I’m not the best at making videos (SEE above), but it’s something I’m learning more of how to do this year. I’ve done some work for other clients (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) but for a professional, there are others I can recommend.

    Tools to Make Better Video

    Michael Hyatt uses a lot of video and talks a lot about the tools he uses to make video:

    I used a Canon 60D camera on a tripod. I did not use any special lighting. I also used an Audio-Technia ATR 3350 lavaliere microphone with a mono-to-stereo adapter from Radio Shack. I also used an iPad 2 as a teleprompter, using the Proprompter HDi Pro2 from Bodelin Technologies. I decided to invest in this gear, since I have a number of instructional videos I plan to shoot in the future. I edited the video in iMovie and then uploaded it to Vimeo, which I like much better than YouTube. It has many more options, including the ability to use a minimalist video player and custom thumbnail image.

    I have boiled Michael’s list down to a ‘bare bones’ and ‘all-out’ version:

    1. Camera: iPhone ($400) or Canon 60D ($800)
    2. Microphone: 2nd iPhone or Audio-Technica ATR-3350 Lavalier ($18)
    3. Tripod: Tripod Mount for iPhone: Studio Neat Glif ($20) and Vista Explorer Tripod ($25)
    4. Teleprompting: Paper and Marker or iPad with Proprompter HDi Pro2 from Bodelin Technologies ($1195)
    5. Lighting: Cowboy Studio Lighting Kit ($60) or Fancier Studio Lighting Kit ($160)
    6. Editing: iMovie on a Mac ($999) or Adobe Premiere Elements on a PC ($999) – both prices include hardware and software
    7. Publishing: Vimeo or Youtube – Why not both?

    You don’t have to buy all of this at once and can combine your resources with friends or clients who may have iPhones or iPads. Vimeo and Youtube are both free.

    Making Video a Habit

    If you make this a part of your marketing habits and start treating it as a must-do versus a maybe-should-do then you can start to do the things it requires to help make our business ventures a success. In this way, video can become part of your new Marketing Ecosystem. That’s my goal. What’s yours? And how can I help?

  • Indianapolis Video Surveillance Analysts

    The other day I was in downtown Indianapolis at the Circle Center Mall where I noticed two video surveillance cameras in one of the parking garage escalator areas. This would not have been a big deal, but all one camera was doing was looking at the other. It seemed like perfect fodder for Fail Blog, whose ironic content fits perfectly with Roman poet Juvenal’s famous line, “Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” from his Satires (Satire VI, lines 347–8), which is literally translated as “Who will guard the guards themselves?” One video surveillance camera had probably just replaced the other without the former being removed, but it still goes to show the value of a good Indianapolis video surveillance analyst.

    Who Will Watch the WatchersThe video surveillance system you choose to purchase and/or update could be purchased on Amazon.com or from a variety of different resellers, but how do you know if it will give you the results you need and how do you know if your IT system can support it? That’s the value that AllThingsIT provides with their Indianapolis video surveillance design services. They have been providing IT networking and video surveillance system support for over 30 years. Their new “Safe Small Towns” initiative is focused on helping small towns and municipality police and fire departments develop and implement video surveillance cameras that give them evidence they can use in court.

    As an IT business analyst myself, I can understand the value of working with a company like AllThingsIT for Indianapolis network management because video surveillance technology changes fast and there are hundreds of different cameras out there – each with their different light sensors and lens types that create a myriad of features. AllThingsIT has the tools to create a turn-key video surveillance solution for your organization that can be proven effective before it’s even installed. If you’re in the market for a new video surveillance system or are looking to upgrade, contact AllThingsIT at 317-755-0200.

  • Indianapolis Video Surveillance Systems

    We recently learned about a video surveillance vendor, AllThingsIT, who provides video surveillance systems and cameras to small towns, municipalities, and businesses in and around Indiana under the brand, “Safe Small Towns”. The idea is that video surveillance systems can help keep small towns safe by providing business owners and police departments with the evidence they need to find and convict criminals. They call this, “civic surveillance”.

    Safe Small Towns’ website talks a lot about educating the consumer on how camera and other technology works and about providing “performance-based work statements”. They seem to really be up on results-based solutions and the primary way they do this is through JPEG 2000 technology, which takes multiple still images to make a video instead of traditional interlaced video. However, the primary value AllThingsIT brings to the table is in their knowledge of not just how to choose the right video camera solution, but how to integrate that solution into your existing computer network.

    AllThingsIT has provided IT network support, video systems, and computer monitoring for a wide variety of corporate and government entities over the years. Their experience with servers, networks, video cameras, and monitoring makes them the ideal video surveillance vendor in the Indianapolis area. Safe Small Towns takes everything AllThingsIT has done with video and wrapped it up into a comprehensive package suitable for small towns, police departments, and other industries in order to offer them specific solutions for their video surveillance needs.