The Vlog It! Eight-Step

The title for this page was snappier when we had thought of only six steps, but what are you going to do? Still, we think it's pretty impressive that you can create a vlog in just five more steps than a standard waltz and four more than a Texas Two-Step (yes, there are four steps in the Texas Two-Step. Go figure.) This section boils the process down to these essential steps and provides links to the help pages that give detailed instructions on particular actions.

1. Create a Project

To use the Wizard, which gets you jump-started with several basic show elements, click its button on the Project Tab, select Wizard in the File Menu, or press CTRL+W.

To create a blank project, click the New button on the Project Tab, select New in the File Menu, or press CTRL+N.

2. Enter your Script

Click in the Teleprompter window to set the cursor there. You can then type your script or paste content from the clipboard by pressing CTRL+V or selecting Paste in right-click menu. For more information, see Using the Teleprompter.

3. Rehearse and Set Scroll Speed

Read through your script a few times in the Rehearse mode, adjusting the scroll speed to achieve a comfortable pace. Keep in mind that the ideal rate for performing to an audience, whether live or recorded, is a beat or two slower than most of us speak in normal conversation. The slower pace, coupled with careful enunciation, helps your audience better comprehend your message. Pauses can also be quite effective for emphasizing your key points and for keeping your viewers engaged. To build pauses into your presentation, put one or two blank lines in the teleprompter.

It's important to get the scroll speed dialed in at this early stage before you've positioned your transitions. Otherwise, when you adjust the speed later, you may have to manually reposition trays, particularly those containing video clips.

4. Add and Arrange Media and Effects

The next step is to drag and drop the desired media files (still images, video and audio clips, and title slates and lower thirds) into the Action Area, and then pair each with an appropriate effect by dropping it onto the Action Tray. (If you prefer, you can add the effects first and then drop media files onto those trays.) For the purpose of recording video directly into a vlog, the camera goes into the Action Tray as a media input. You'll find its icon in the Video Library. To record audio into your show, you don't have to add anything to the Action Area—if a microphone is connected to the computer and selected on the Setup Tab, then Vlog It! will automatically saved its audio when you record the show. To learn more about adding all types of media and effects, please consult Adding Media and Effects.

Keep in mind that while adding narration can set your vlogs a cut above, and featuring yourself on camera can make them cooler still, the simplest vlog don’t require a camera or microphone. They can consist of photos and other still graphics, video clips, and music or other sound effects.

The position of each Action Tray controls when it will triggered. To move a tray in the Action Area, click and drag on its frame. The section titled Moving Trays to Adjust Timing and Reorganize Show tells you all you need to know about positioning Action Trays. Other topics worth perusing: Customizing Effects, Trimming Audio, and Trimming Video Clips.

Note that you can add and reposition Action Trays and change their contents after recording your vlog as well as before. The recommended workflow is to put all the pieces in place before recording and then fine-tune the timing of events once you've laid down the audio and, if applicable, the video.

5. Record

At it's simplest, recording involves just clicking the Record button and reading the script like a pro. However, being well aware that even the pros don't always get it right in one take, we designed Vlog It! so that you can record your show in segments and do as many takes as it... well... takes to get it right. Learn all the ins and outs in the Recording your Show section.

6. Select a Thumbnail

A thumbnail is an image from the show that you can drop into your blog as a hyperlink to the vlog. Scrub the show to display the desired image in the preview monitor and then click the Set Thumbnail button on the Project tab. That's about all there is to this step, but if you're voracious for more details you can check out the page devoted to selecting a thumbnail.

7. Publish

The penultimate step is to turn your project into a buttoned-up vlog, ready to be viewed by your friends, family, and fans. In the free trial version, this involves nothing more than one click of a single button—to wit, the Publish button. In the retail version, you have more options, all of which become available when you click  Publish. The publishing wizard lets you upload to the Vlog Host, publish to another Internet server, save to disc in one of three formats, or send the finished video by email. For more information, please consult the chapter on publishing shows.

If it's the first time you've uploaded a show and you have not yet entered the necessary account information, another wizard will magically appear to guide you through setting up your account on the server's web site.

If you're uploading your vlog to the server, then clicking Next in the Publishing Progress dialog will take you to the Vlog Links dialog. Leave this box up and proceed to Step 8...

8. Make it Accessible: Post a Link in your Blog

At this point, your vlog is all done, but it's a veritable ship-in-the-harbor until you point people to it. Assuming that a) you're inserting your video into a blog or using it as a stand-alone vlog, and b) you're content with the thumbnail from Step 6 as the link, then this is a basic click-and-drag operation. After your vlog is successfully published, the Post the Vlog to Your Blog dialog will appear. Click and hold the thumbnail on that dialog, drag to the desired spot in your blog, and release the mouse button. Vlog It! will paste the necessary information into the blog. If you are using the WYSIWYG view in your blog authoring tool, you should see the thumbnail; if you are using the HTML editing view, you should see the code necessary to make your vlog part of your blog. When a reader clicks the thumbnail, a video viewer will pop up and begin playing the vlog. To learn more, have a look at the page about creating a link to a vlog.