How many times have you been held hostage by a family member, friend, or neighbor and forced to watch seemingly endless home videos of their kids, a recent family trip, sporting event, or what have you.

Well, now there’s a book to prevent you from becoming one of the hostage takers. You can make videos that people actually enjoy watching! It’s written by videographer and reviewer Wally Cherwinski, ‘Video To Go’.

These days, making good video isn’t about having the best and most expensive equipment. Nor is it about the absolute quality of the footage. Instead, it’s more about being creative, preserving memories and learning how to tell a story well. With some well chosen shots, a few software editing tools and a dash of creativity, anyone can easily recapture their travels or life experiences in an elegant way.

Whether you’re new to home video or already have some experience, you’ll learn some easy methods to take your videography to the next level. Through screenshots, photo galleries, and video examples, you’ll get the how-to of shooting, editing, and fine tuning videos that bring your travel adventures or special occasions to life. Just grab your camera or smart phone, follow some simple story ideas and unleash your inner Spielberg.

This multimedia ebook is broken down into five comprehensible chapters: Shooting, Editing, Special Projects, Sharing, and Equipment. You’ll appreciate that they’re in the exact timeline that you should follow to create your project.

Each chapter thoroughly explains how you should accomplish things and the reasoning as to why. Once you finish a chapter, you’ll have the knowledge of ‘Oh, that’s why they do that.’ He pulls back the curtain exposing the simplicity behind the wizardry.

I particularly like the plethora of quotes liberally sprinkled throughout the book that are relevant to creativity. They’re all true and will inspire you to start right away.

Another nice touch is the book’s interactivity. To help get across certain concepts, there are short videos demonstrating just what the author is talking about, be it editing, shooting techniques, and more. As an example, you’ll see a breakdown of shots for one sequence. Then he’ll demonstrate how to order them into something captivating.

You’ll also learn about an equally important (yet commonly overlooked) aspect of creating an intriguing video – audio. From capturing the sounds of the location’s environment or the event that you’re shooting, to your choice of soundtrack.

Each step is explained in layman terms and removes any apprehension that you may have tackling such an endeavor. The author doesn’t talk down to you but to you, which will remove any trepidation that you may have.

The author explains various basics you need to learn. For example, two things stand out – shoot lots of footage and edit the duration of your shots to several seconds a piece. In the first instance, you’ll have plenty of footage to choose the right shots from. Secondly, It will make all the difference in holding your viewer’s attention.

Being a multimedia ebook, there are links throughout the book (these come in especially handy when he recommends various pieces of equipment and software). And his recommendations won’t cost you an arm and a leg, they’re quality purchases at inexpensive prices.

Such as editing software. You can accomplish more than you realize with iMovie! And that came free with your macOS! if you’re further along and own Final Cut Pro X, you can go even further down the road with your creativity.

The crucial point the book wants to impress upon you is that you’re not merely manipulating technology. At the heart of everything you do, like shooting or editing, the bottom line is to always remember that you’re telling a story. This will guide you through every stage and decision you make.

I have a B.A. in Film/Video. I found that this book covers the foundations you need to know about to how to produce engaging videos. You’ll see that you don’t have to have a degree to produce polished results.

‘Video To Go’ is newly available at Apple’s Book Store for USD $16.99. Well worth it, if only to keep friend’s, neighbor’s, and family’s sanity intact.

©2018 Frank Petrie
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