Publications & Articles
Video Compression Secrets: Smaller Files, Better Quality UPDATED!
October 19, 2015
This is an update to the original article published in Learning Solutions Magazine July 8, 2013. That article has had over 170,000 page views, so evidently readers are finding it useful! However, technology changes, so we decided to revise and re-publish.
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Practical Video Production for eLearning: Do It Right!
September 14, 2015
You’re probably making video for your eLearning, but are you making the best use of video? Here are ways to think about video and video production (including tips on equipment and location shooting) that make it practical and give it that big- budget look (on a shoestring)!
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How Much Does It Cost to Produce Video?
February 16, 2015
Making video for eLearning might have some of the same steps as for a Hollywood production, but it’s not the same in many other ways. In eLearning, we have to work harder and smarter for our productions to work for our audience. The hardest question to answer about eLearning video is, “How much will it really cost to make?” Here is how you can answer that question.
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Top Tips for Producing Better eLearning Audio
August 11, 2014
Most eLearning professionals will need to create a voiceover script from time to time as part of their job. But writing scripts for audio is different from writing text that a learner reads from a display. Where do you learn this skill? There aren’t many courses that teach this. Here are 10 tips that will help you to write better scripts!
Adobe After Effects: Not as Scary as You Think July 21, 2014
The first time they open Adobe After Effects, some people become so frightened that they close it and never come back. If you are one of those people, take heart! Here is a tutorial that will get you started on the road to mastering some of the most powerful video software out there. It can make a huge difference in the quality of video in your eLearning productions!
Consumer Electronics Show Report: New Video Hardware for eLearning January 29, 2014
The Consumer Electronics Show 2014 once again featured a lot of devices that eLearning producers can use to enhance and extend their capability. Here is a rundown of the video hardware that will probably be of most interest to our readers.
Avant-garde! Is Your eLearning Video Ahead of the Crowd? January 13, 2014
Can we really have avant-garde video in eLearning? If by avant-garde you mean innovative, you bet we can … and with good reason—to challenge and to engage learners. Here’s a quick look at making video that is outside the box, yet achieves the goal of supporting learning.
How to Manage Video September 23, 2013
If your organization includes video in its eLearning media mix, managing that content involves some different issues compared to other media. Here is an overview of the issues, and some specifics for dealing with them.
Video Compression Secrets: Smaller Files, Better Quality July 8, 2013
Video is a great resource for delivering content for learning, but it requires a lot of storage, and producing video that doesn’t have huge bandwidth requirements is another challenge. The combinations of ways to render video can be daunting. This article covers what you need to know about video compression, whether you are already using video or are just getting started!
Photeo Development: Dynamic Linking and Animation (Part 5 of 5) April 30, 2012
Wrapping up this series on the creation of Photeo presentations, this article will help you use After Effects and Premiere Pro to move compositions between these applications, dynamically link projects, animate your Photeo, and create simple 3-D effects. These are skills that will serve you well in many projects — not just Photeo!
Adobe Lets the CS6 Cat Out of the Bag April 24, 2012
Adobe has taken the wrapper completely off of Creative Suite 6. Here’s the rundown on the pricing, subscriptions, powerful new features – and a fly in the ointment.
Photeo Development: Making a Scavenger Photeo (Part 4 of 5) April 23, 2012
This week in the Photeo series, you will learn how to use Photoshop and After Effects to decompose images and to animate words and letters. These are essential skills in the creation of scavenger Photeos, and the process is faster than creating the same effects by using Flash!
Photeo Development: The Tutorial (Part 3 of 5) April 16, 2012
A Photeo is the digital evolution of the movie montage: it supports continuity and engagement by telling a story. In the first two articles of this series, you learned what a Photeo is, and you got an overview of the production process. In this article and the next two, you get the hands-on tutorial you’ve been asking for, beginning with Articulate Presenter!
Adobe Wants to Have a New Relationship With You April 4, 2012
Among software vendors, Adobe has what is surely the biggest footprint in the world of eLearning authoring. And at the moment, Adobe also has a huge controversy on its hands, because of their decision to go to a subscription model for Creative Suite. While we are slowly getting more details, here is a sketch of what has some customers upset.
Putting a Photeo Together (Part 2 of 5) March 26, 2012
In Part 1, you learned what a Photeo is and how you might use one. In this Part, you will walk through a Photeo needs analysis and the creation and execution process, and you will learn about the software it takes to make a Photeo!
Photos + Movement = Photeo (Part 1 of 5) March 5, 2012
A photeo is a video-like experience that creates a sense of movement and emotion out of still photographs, short video clips from other productions, music, and narration. Readers in North America may be familiar with photeos from Ken Burns’ series on Public Television, “The Civil War.” This three-part series will show you how to use the low-cost photeo technique appropriately in eLearning.
Is It Video Smackdown Time? Final Cut Pro X vs. The World February 15, 2012
Two weeks ago, Apple released the latest upgrade to their top video-editing program, Final Cut Pro X (FCPX), to a firestorm of controversy. Is FCPX good enough for eLearning professionals? Here is some analysis to help you think your way through the decision to adopt, upgrade, or abandon the product for your video editing.
Lighting Options for eLearning Video September 5, 2011
It’s easy to take light for granted, but light makes all the difference in the subjective experience of the person viewing a video. Here’s everything you need to know to begin lighting your eLearning videos more effectively!
Review: Adobe’s Latest Upgrade — Creative Suite 5.5 May 25, 2011
Upgrades just became a little more interesting and possibly a little more complicated, at least where Adobe’s Creative Suite is concerned. Here’s a quick look at CS5.5, and some guidelines to help you decide whether you need to buy the upgrade, rent it, or just wait for the next major upgrade.
How to Make eLearning Video with Digital SLR Cameras (and Why) April 18, 2011
DSLRs are wonderfully capable cameras, but they have their limitations when it comes to shooting video. If you understand the limitations, though, DSLRs can offer benefits for eLearning production. Steve explains how.
Video For The (Very) Small Screen September 29, 2010
Is mLearning on a tiny screen really the same as e-Learning on a larger screen? Can you simply use existing video or PowerPoint content “as is” for mLearning? Steve says “No, and … maybe.” Here are six tips to help you sort out the answer.
The State of the Art: Non-Linear Video Editing Software September 13, 2010
Non-linear editing (NLE) makes video editing nearly as simple as using a word processor. It also makes possible many kinds of effects, transitions, and fades. Here’s a quick run-down on NLE and the top three products that you need to know for editing e-Learning video.
The Right Hardware for Shooting and Capturing Video for e-Learning August 2, 2010
Video is becoming more important as an element of learning delivery strategies, through channels ranging from social media and mobile, to desktop and virtual environments. Yet it is difficult to find information about the basic equipment you need for video production. Here is an updated look at video hardware, and advice on choosing what fits your budget.
Ten Myths about Video in e-Learning – Part 2 May 10, 2010
Last week, Steve exposed five common myths about e-Learning. This week, he offers five more, beginning with the most pervasive myth of all.
Ten Myths about Video in e-Learning – Part 1 May 3, 2010
Video has been called the original rapid e-Learning method, and there is no doubt that it is now an important medium in our work. However, there is also a great deal of misinformation and misunderstanding about video, spread in conferences, online forums, and over coffee. This two-part series examines ten of the most common of these myths.
Making Letters and Words Move: Video Titles in After Effects February 9, 2010
Titles (letters and words on the screen) make a big difference in video, and they need to be done correctly. They shouldn’t attract attention to themselves, either by being too flashy or by being badly done. Here’s a quick tip on making use of movement in your titles, and it applies to almost any video editing program.
Making a Demonstration Video for E-Learning Use March 30, 2009
Video can be an excellent medium for truly rapid development of e-Learning content. However, not many e-Learning developers have much skill or experience with video. Two outstanding videographers will give you everything you need to get started.