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84 P a r t I I Producing Your YouTube Videos
In terms of composition, move close to the camera. Although you might be tempted
to show yourself from the waist up, that shot makes your face too small for the
YouTube viewing window. Go for a head-and-shoulders shot or move even closer
for a pure headshot. Remember, it’s you talking directly to the viewer—so make
sure the viewer can see you!
Watch the Lighting
Most webcams don’t handle extremes in lighting very well. For example, you get a
lousy picture if the room light is too dark. So, you want lots of light—as long as it’s
shining on your face.
What you don’t want is backlight shining from behind you, which tricks the web-
cam into darkening the picture and throwing your face into shadow. That rules out
shooting with an open window behind you; close the drapes or blinds to cut out all
the rear light.
You need good lighting on your face, and no lights behind you, so you might need
to rearrange some room lights. This doesn’t have to be a big deal; you can dramati-
cally improve the look of the video by positioning a simple desk lamp behind or to
the side of the webcam, pointing directly at your face.
Tip
If you’re not sure whether you have the right light, shoot a test video and
see how it looks—before you upload your real video to the YouTube site.
Minimize the Background Noise
Most webcams don’t include a high quality microphone, which means that the
sound you get on a webcam video is often of lower quality than you might want.
You can compensate by sitting as close to the webcam as possible and speaking
loudly and clearly. Don’t mumble and don’t whisper; enunciate as if you’re speaking
to an auditorium full of people.
You should also know that the webcam will pick up any background noise in the
room, which can be distracting to YouTube viewers. Turn off any noisy mechanical
or electronic devices, including fans, coffee machines, printers—you name it. (Air
conditioners are particularly noisy, with their low humming.) And make sure that
anyone else in the room with you stays quiet!
