Instructional videos are a valuable way to teach others. Most people learn better through visual applications than with auditory methods. Videos can be used to demonstrate how to do something or to promote products or businesses. However, if the video is not created with care it will be ineffective. This article includes 12 important tips on how to make a useful instructional video. To start, you need to understand the three phases you will go through in producing your video. The first phase is pre-production. In pre-production you will do your planning, organizing, writing, hiring, and additional steps necessary to prepare for the second phase; production. Production includes the taping, recording, and/or filming of the project. The third phase, post-production, entails editing and adding things such as graphics or special effects. The following gives you four key tips for each of these three phases.
Pre-Production
Define your topic and objective. Before doing anything else, write down the subject of your video. More specifically, document in precise wording what constitutes the purpose behind your video. This is important because as you write a script, think about your plans, and even when editing, you will have a tendency to stray from your objective. By writing down your primary objective you have something to refer back to every time you begin to stray from the main subject matter. When you are trying to decide whether to include something in your video go back to this statement and ask yourself (or others), “is this important in sticking to my purpose?” Don’t include things without a good reason for doing so. Stick to your objective!
Write a script. Many people throwing together an instructional video will set up the camera and direct their host to “do your thing”. The plan is to tape the demonstration and then put it together in post-production. This is a bad plan. With this type of production, you need to ensure everything is explained clearly, sometimes in a particular order. Your script is going to carry your entire production. You’re not likely to rely on talented actors, amazing special effects, or beautiful cinematography. This is an instructional video geared towards providing information. Take the time to write it out, proofread, rewrite, and repeat as necessary. While the video will be important, if the information being given verbally is not well done, the video won’t matter.
Create a storyboard. Sure, you can set up the camera in front of your demo and just go for it, but if you want something that’s going to work, be interesting, and be easier to follow, you need to plan ahead. Storyboarding is the process of sketching out what will be on the screen at each given moment of the script. When you talk about switching the third little toggle by the green light, show it. You’ll want a close up of your action, not a shot from across the room. Planning for different angles, different people on screen, or unique framing (like shooting with the action all to one side of the screen so that you can add text to the other side), will allow you to make things more appealing and will save you time and frustration when you get to post-production. To create a storyboard, you can sketch out your video much like a cartoon or comic strip. Your drawings do not need to be art. The images simply need to be enough for you to know what you want when you get to production. Another method is to make your script into two columns on the page. In one column you would write the audio (dialogue, narration, sound effects, etc.) and in the other column would be descriptions of the video to be on the screen. See the article photo for an example of this style. Keep in mind that you do not need to (and shouldn’t) tape your elements in sequential order. Use your storyboard as a guide to set up your shots. Obtain all the shots from one location, set-up, or angle before moving on.
Define the terms you use. Make sure that the first time you introduce vocabulary, which the general public would not know, that you clearly define the terms you use. Don’t assume your viewers will understand what is being explained unless you are fairly certain that your viewers are up to speed. For example, in this article I defined the terms pre-production, production, and post-production because they are key terms involved in explaining the content of this article. However, I am not defining what a camera, script, or a video are because I can make the assumption that you are already familiar with these terms.
Production
Stick to your plan. The whole purpose behind all the work during pre-production is to make things go easier in production. Improvising and adding may be acceptable and might even turn out beneficial, but don’t throw out your planning. You’ve documented what you want. If you don’t get it, do another take.
Obtain cut-away shots. Imagine that you are taping someone working on an engine in a car. You might obtain a lengthy shot of this work. After watching the same angle for a long period of time it can get pretty boring. Additionally, your mechanic will likely occasionally block the view of the work being done. Before the main action, get some close-ups of the area. Then, after you’ve finished with your main take, get some close-ups of the part that was repaired. When you go to edit your video you can start with your normal shot of the mechanic working, then cut-away to a close-up of the work area, go back to your main shot, and when the time is right, cut away to you’re repaired part, before going back to your main shot. I’ll give you the primary reason for having cut-away shots when we get to post-production. Look around when you’re shooting and think about possible cut-away shots. They’ll often be close-ups or wide angle shots. Generic shots tend to work even better. Some examples might be a shot of the garage from across the street, a close-up of the tools on the table, or perhaps the clock on the wall.
Use a tripod. I’ve spent years shooting videos and have said to myself countless times that I can do this shot without a tripod. I know tricks to steady a camera. Some basic cameras have image stabilizing. You can even fix shaky video in post-production. Now that I’ve said all that, let me state again; use a tripod! If you are unable to purchase one, there are businesses that will rent out equipment.
Record the audio properly. While you’re at the video equipment rental location you’ll want to pick up a microphone and cable. The specific type of microphone system will depend on what you are doing and your camera inputs. You’re probably thinking, “Oh, I can skip this part. My camera has a microphone built in.” Please don’t skip this tip and please don’t use the audio recorded by your camera’s microphone. Your microphone needs to be up-close and personal. You need to be able to obtain a clear and quality recording. Many people overlook the fact that 50% of your video project is the audio. Regardless of where the camera is located, where it moves, or whether the speaker is even on camera, the microphone should remain in position at or near the source of the audio recording. You may even be recording takes just for the audio itself.
Post-Production
Start with the audio. For the majority of instructional videos, the pace and flow of the production is led by the audio. Use the script to lay down the audio for the entire piece. You should have the audio track in place before worrying about fitting the video (you would do the opposite if you had a piece that was dictated by the video). Your video may look like a mess since you might have pieces where you are using the audio from someone not on camera, such as narration, or from putting together edits where you like the audio from take one and then jump to the audio on take four. Now you can overlay video elements where you want them to get the proper takes or alternate shots. Follow your storyboard.
Avoid pointless transitions. In an effort to make a video appear less boring, some beginners will rely on a vast array of transitions to make things more appealing. What they don’t realize is that the opposite is generally the case. When editing your video, stick to a basic cut transition or a fast dissolve. Your editing software will no doubt have a large number of transitions to choose from, but you’d be better off ignoring them. If you have a specific reason for a unique transition, then go for it. For example, let’s say your instructional video is on making scrapbook pages. In this case, a page turn transition might look very smooth. A white flash might transition well if you’re talking about lighting or having a slow fade to black to convey the passing of time could work. Similar to that of the first tip, the key is to ask yourself what lies behind the purpose of the unique transition. If there isn’t a solid reason, avoid using it.
Use your cut-away shots to cover jump cuts. There’s a good chance that as you assemble your video, you will have what is referred to as a jump cut. This occurs when you go from one piece of video to another piece where some or all of the items in the picture are the same. Since it is two separate pieces of video the transition is not seamless and it can appear that the person or object jumped to a new location. This can happen when you go from one take to another, when you cut a piece out of the middle, etc. To repair and eliminate these ugly cuts, simply insert a cut-away shot. We have Jill demonstrating how to mix the ingredients of a cake mix. When we edit the pieces together, we see her with one hand stirring and the other hand reaching for something. As the video jumps to a different take, suddenly she already has the object she was reaching for. Once we add the cut-away we see her reaching, then a close-up of the recipe, then back to her working. The cut-away covers the transition and smooths everything out.
Use graphics to highlight section headings, key points, or vocabulary. When your script recognizes an important term, point, or natural break in the flow, adding text over the video will make these elements stand out more. It also adds clarity and quality to the video.
There’s much more to each of these points and certainly more to making a video than just what is covered here, but by following the preceding tips you should be on your way to producing a better instructional video.
