Instructional videos

I have watched a lot of instructional videos. If you want to know how to do something you can be sure someone will have filmed themselves doing it and posted it online… but how to make one that is interesting and actually instructs!?

Some simply are PowerPoint presentations with a voiceover, not what I am looking for as I want this to be a film, not just PowerPoint’s.

I did a lot of online research, there are plenty of sites telling you how to make a good instructional video, and mostly they are fairly common - sensical – if that is a word!!

http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/185/six-steps-to-creating-high-quality-video-training

http://www.ehow.com/how_2107969_make-instructional-video.html

http://www.emergingedtech.com/2010/01/creating-brief-instructional-videos-and-more-with-jing/

these sites above are just a sample of the many many on offer…

Main points seem to be : good planning, look at the camera, clear speech, try to make it interesting, keep it short, get the presenter to present/instruct and not to ACT,
Anyway, I looked at lost of these sites, and at lots of instructional videos too.

I decided to do an instructional video on how to do a magic trick with a coin, simple to explain, and my two wee brothers love this trick so I know it has some appeal!!

I got my friend to do the piece, and tried to keep it relaxed and informal.

We planned the trick and how to explain it and I think after a few trial runs we managed to whittle the trick down to the few key points in the vid.

Then once it was filmed, I thought that I would like to make it stand out so I added an effect using photoshop which I think adds interest to the trick and does not take anything away from the instruction.