Views and opinions on making a ukulele video?

Ive been toying with the idea recently of starting making videos with my ukulele.

I know i dont have a bad voice and im pretty good on a uke.

But for some reason the thought of posting a video really worries me!

Does anyone else have this problem?!

Has anyone got any tips for making a hit with a video?

Just turn on the cam and play, don't worry about making mistakes or you will end up doing 50 takes and end up driving yourself mad, the trick is just keep playing until you forget the cam is on. then go back and edit out all the rubbish stuff later and just keep the best bits.

hey Sam! well mate, if you already are confident that your voice is OK and that you play pretty well, I don't see any reason for your hesitation. There are thousands of people on yootoob who aren't that musically gifted and make lots of clips all the time. There's room at the table for everyone, and it should be like that.

It comes down to want you want to achieve from doing your videos. If you're 99.9% of people you just want to have a bit of fun, test yourself, perhaps look for some critical feedback, and share stuff you like with your friends. In that scenario there's very little if any real pressure. If you're after something more than that well then there's gonna be some pressure for sure. Never having had a hit I can't give you any tips there I'm afraid... he he

My advice: stop the worry and just enjoy the music for it's own sake. Once you go public you're cannon fodder anyway, so the thing is to do it for the right reasons and the rest will take care of itself. Most folks are pretty gentle and encouraging. Just do it; it's really enjoyable once you get your feet wet. All the best with it and make sure you post them on the boards here.

You could also take an intermediate step and just make audio recordings and post them on SouncCloud. If you want to do any multi-track work or dubbing its a whole lot less work than video. I have pretty much gone completely to audio, just because I like multi-track stuff and its so much easier. I know the MTV generation wants video, but we got by with records and CDs for a long time

Thank you!

So basically i need to stop moaning and get it done!

ill have ago asap and post it in here as soon as its done.

That was a good idea about doing it infront of the camera untill you forget its there,

i always seem to freeze up whenever i try and do anything infron of a camera, i suppose thats probably the best way to get over that!



Its been a couple of years since ive seriously sat down and played my ukulele, its been sitting around and i pick it up every now and then and have a quick blast.

But recently ive had an urge to get back onto it!

and it seems that this forum is just as friendly and encourageing as it was 4 years ago when i first signed up which is amazing to see!

Thank you again!

xxx

My hearts in my throat!


i had a quick play about, have a watch, have a comment and let me know what you think!

http://youtu.be/MMdgPnqAd0k

Thank you

Very nice Sam.

Really good pal. Nice voice, but there's only one "l" in "Roulette".

Remember it's a video make it visually interesting too. A nice outside setting or a close up of your playing for example.

Yeah nice deep voice with a nice spin when you relaxed into the note. You're lucky to be able to sing and play....at the same time.

hoosierhiver said:

make it visually interesting too.

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A lot of times you will see the real pros wear a mask. That always works. Great job.

Sam, one serious suggestion... When you think of a new song you'd like to to cover, write it down and keep a list. I was keeping a mental list and it got too long to remember. It also helps to see the order of priority when you see it all written down.

Captain_Lovehandles said:

Sam, one serious suggestion... When you think of a new song you'd like to to cover, write it down and keep a list. I was keeping a mental list and it got too long to remember. It also helps to see the order of priority when you see it all written down.

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I sort of do this Jas. Rather than writing it down, though, I usually just print out a chord sheet and keep it in my songs I am learning stash, rather than my regular notebook. I also try to get a recording of the song I like and put that in playlist on iTunes called, Practice Songs." Then I listen to it a lot to try and burn those songs into my brain.

Captain_Lovehandles said:

A lot of times you will see the real pros wear a mask. That always works. Great job.

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Okay captain...now how am I supposed to get this iced tea out of my keyboard?

@sam - the biggest "rule" is make sure you're having fun. If you had fun making it, and some people have fun watching it, that's all that really matters.

My vids are goofy, my playing is meh, and my singing is ok... but it is fun and no one has insulted me yet! And I think people who watch them have fun with me. And I like to get my kids involved and we have good family memories of making the videos. And check out the contest forum because sometimes you can win stuff! I have won 2 tickets to Disney on one, a Strobe clip on tuner, and $100. So... I guess I can say they are award winning! HAHAHA! Have some fun, get out there, and dont take yourself too seriously and post here when you get a vid up and we will all cheer for you!!!

The Big Kahuna said:

Really good pal. Nice voice, but there's only one "l" in "Roulette".

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aha thank you!

i dont know how people do it! the last comment i recieved has like knocked me right off of it!
how do people keep such a thick skin?

Sams_thebest@hotmail.com said:

i dont know how people do it! the last comment i recieved has like knocked me right off of it!
how do people keep such a thick skin?

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Actually, I don't think I've ever received a really negative comment on any of the approximately 35 videos I've got up on a couple of channels. However, that will certainly change given time. The point is to remember that there are people who troll around just looking for somebody's cheerios to pee in - they are miserable sods whose comments don't deserve a second thought!

I've never been particularly thin-skinned, and the fact that I'm old enough that I will probably never be dating or looking for a job or otherwise depending on anyone's approval, not to mention the fact that health problems ensure that I'm unlikely to live long enough to regret much of anything, make it pretty easy to ignore the naysayers! When I'm dead and gone in a few more years at least my grandkids will be able to visit YouTube for memories of their insane grampa! LOL

If the comments really bother you, though, remember that you can disable comments for your videos. "Edit" the video and go to the "advanced" tab - there you are offered the chance to disable comments.

Edit to add - oh...just went and watched the video and read the comments. Noticed you asked for comments - probably not a good idea to ask for comments on YouTube unless you're possessed of a pretty thick skin. Better to just post the vids and ask for comments here. The UU community is much more of a community than anything like YouTube will ever be. You are more likely to get comments that are constructive here. Well...maybe not, we tend to be so darned nice you'll not get a lot of criticism even of the constructive variety!


John

Mim said:

So... I guess I can say they are award winning!

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Heh, heh. After Dave announced that I won week 24 of the Seasons challenge I started toying with the idea of going to CafePress and getting myself a t-shirt that announces proudly and prominently - "Winner! 24th Season of the Ukulele!" - just to wear to UWC next year. Of course, only we "seasonistas" would be in on the joke - that I won because Melissa, wearing her belly dancing outfit, threw a knife at a board with the entrants names blindly written on it (and this only after the chickens had failed to poop on the scoreboard)! :biglaugh:

I still might get that t-shirt made because I literally laugh out loud every time I think about it.

John

OldePhart said:

I won because Melissa, wearing her belly dancing outfit, threw a knife at a board with the entrants names blindly written on it (and this only after the chickens had failed to poop on the scoreboard)!

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Great, now I have coffee in my laptop, that is very funny.