Best Practices for Making Educational Videos at Home

When we use the internet, we’re faced with a deluge of fast-paced and flashy content, carefully crafted to steal our focus; it can be hard for a video to compete without employing some of the basics that viewers have come to expect unconsciously.

Well-produced and polished videos will help retain your students’ attention in the digital space. Here are some quick tips from Koby Leff, UMass Amherst IDEAS Animation Specialist, to boost the production value of your course videos without a professional setup or advanced editing skills. These tips and tricks will be helpful whether you are using a webcam, phone, or professional camera; no matter which editing software you’re using, if you’re even using any.

01 Choosing a recording location

Find a quiet spot, free of distractions like other people coming and going.

Some low level background noise isn’t a problem, but constant noise is better than inconsistent noise. For example, the low hum of a fan is better than a refrigerator sound that will stop halfway through your recording. 

Choose a backdrop that you don’t have to blurr.

This could be a blank wall or a curated slice of your space which highlights parts of your personality that you want your students to appreciate.

Never record with a window behind you in daylight.

This will turn you into a silhouette.

02 Framing your shot

Put the camera at eye level.

If you’re using your laptop’s camera, put the laptop on a box, a stack of books, or some other makeshift stand so the camera doesn’t shoot from below, which can distort faces.

If you’re using a phone, try to use the rear camera instead of the front facing one, as it has much better quality.

• Set up your phone on a phone tripod and use a friend as a stand in to get the framing just right. Once you’ve positioned the phone where you want it, note where your friend was standing and take their place.
• Alternatively, ask a friend to frame the shot for you, then don’t move once you start recording.
• As a final monitoring option, you can place a mirror behind the phone screen so that you can see yourself.

03 Set the appropriate lighting

• If you are using automatic recording settings, like on your phone or webcam, shoot in as bright an area as possible to get the best picture quality.
• Always have your brightest light source, like a lamp or a window, in front of you so that your face is the brightest part of the image.

Practice 3 point lighting:

1. Key Light: The brightest light positioned directly in front of the subject, aimed at their face. The lampshade was removed to create a more focused, intense light source.
2. Fill Light: A combination of a low overhead light and soft ambient light from the hallway helps to evenly illuminate the space, reducing harsh shadows and balancing the overall lighting.
3. Back Light: The dimmest light placed behind the subject, adding depth and visual interest by subtly separating the subject from the background.

04 Adjust your sound

• Audiences tend to be more forgiving of low quality video than low quality audio; try to use the best microphone you can find as opposed to your built-in laptop microphone.
  • Consider borrowing or buying a high quality microphone, especially if you plan on making multiple videos.
  • Take a thirty second practice recording in advance of shooting your video and listen back to the audio. Could you hear yourself clearly?
• Make sure there aren’t any background noises you didn’t notice, and consider moving location if so.
  • Ask yourself if you could understand every word you said without straining. If you are unsure, ask a friend or colleague to listen for you. If the audio is not clear, you may need to use a different microphone or adjust your distance to it.

05 Choose the correct outfit

Wear clothing that will contrast with the background, light on dark or dark on light.

• Take off any jewelry that could jingle and try to wear clothing that won’t make noise as you move.
• Don’t wear stripes or checkered patterns; they don’t show up well on camera.

06 Create the script

• Of course, the most important thing is what you’ll be saying. Practice and rehearse your script several times; the more natural your delivery, the more your audience will feel invested.
  • If you are recording a lecture or something that you don’t want to use an exact script for, make sure you are confident in the order of the major bullet points you want to hit so that you can transition smoothly through the material, even improvisationally.
• Keep your videos short. Try to stay under seven minutes for something scripted and under fifteen for a lecture. Whenever possible, break your video up into multiple short videos.
• You can either memorize your script or read it off of your computer screen or experiment with a free teleprompter app like BIGVU. 
  • If you are reading your script, put it as close to your camera as possible so that it looks like you’re looking at the audience rather than reading.
  • Scroll with your hand off screen or use a teleprompter app to minimize how much your eyes need to move.
• You don’t have to record your entire video in a single take. Feel free to cut after short bursts and then edit them together so you can spend more time on the delivery of a single chunk rather than your whole video.
• If you edit your video after recording it, you can choose the best takes of each section of your script and stitch them together.
  • You can also cut out long pauses and “um”s to quicken the pace of the video, mimicking modern social media styles and helping gain your students’ attention.

07 Adjust recording settings

• Record in landscape orientation with a resolution of 1920x1080.
• If your camera gives you the option, set your framerate to 30 frames per second (FPS).
  • You may also have the option to set your framerate within an editing program, if you’re using one.