Be brutal

[TerryToast]

Can I please get some brutally honest feedback on my latest video? This video has done very poorly on YouTube compared to my prior videos, which are very similar.

I understand that YouTube views is a poor gauge of quality, but if there is something wrong (or less engaging) about this particular video, I’d love to understand that mistake so I don’t repeat it.

 

[FLDave]

Question: Why do your really think someone would want to watch your video? What does it really have to offer the viewer?
I couldn't figure out any story. It is a lot of clips about something, but there is no audio or text to describe it. The surfers are out of sharp focus. And there there's the repeat back to the beach.
My suggestion is to start over and figure out your story.
On the other hand I have no idea what you expect of your YouTube viewers and what they want.

 

[Shayne]

Terry, I only see 2 other videos on your channel. The 2yr old video has 47k views and the 1yr old video has 18k views. This latest video, uploaded 9 days ago, has 1.5k views. In what way is this video not performing, compared to the others? What do your analytics say?

The only thing I would offer, in terms of creative comment, is that there are many clips I would've slowed down. With almost every shot being pretty dynamic (perhaps overly so), you may want to let a few shots linger, so your audience can take a beat. Other than that, I loved it. I was born in Sydney and have been here in the US for 30yrs. It's always great to see Sydney's beautiful coastline from the air.

Finally, if your core target market is tourism, consider reworking the title, to be a bit more enticing.

Great job. Good luck to you.

 

[TerryToast]

Question: Why do your really think someone would want to watch your video? What does it really have to offer the viewer?
I couldn't figure out any story. It is a lot of clips about something, but there is no audio or text to describe it. The surfers are out of sharp focus. And there there's the repeat back to the beach.
My suggestion is to start over and figure out your story.
On the other hand I have no idea what you expect of your YouTube viewers and what they want.

Thanks for your feedback Dave.

My videos are targeted at the residents and tourists of each location. My goal with each video is to capture not just aerial clips of the suburb(s) but also locals enjoying the activities which are available. That is, what it FEELS LIKE to live/visit there, not just what it LOOKS LIKE.

I have added a write up on each location within the video description. I could add it to the video itself but I find it a bit distracting, so I leave it in the description for people who need that information.

It’s great to know that you saw it as “repeating back to the beach”. I covered multiple different areas in the video, including four beaches, two marinas and a lighthouse. While the beaches are all quite different (large, small, city, country), I seperated most of them with non-beach locations, tempo changes of the music, etc, to help the viewer with location transition.

I wasn’t aware that the surfers were out of focus. Thanks, I’ll check that out.

 

[TerryToast]

Terry, I only see 2 other videos on your channel. The 2yr old video has 47k views and the 1yr old video has 18k views. This latest video, uploaded 9 days ago, has 1.5k views. In what way is this video not performing, compared to the others? What do your analytics say?

The only thing I would offer, in terms of creative comment, is that there are many clips I would've slowed down. With almost every shot being pretty dynamic (perhaps overly so), you may want to let a few shots linger, so your audience can take a beat. Other than that, I loved it. I was born in Sydney and have been here in the US for 30yrs. It's always great to see Sydney's beautiful coastline from the air.

Finally, if your core target market is tourism, consider reworking the title, to be a bit more enticing.

Great job. Good luck to you.

Thanks Shayne.

My other two videos had five times as many views (eg 7-10K views) within the first week. It’s pretty normal for videos to peak quickly then slow down. In comparison this video is doing much worse.

Good feedback on the length of each clip, thanks. It’s one of the toughest things to decide upon. Too short and the video can feel rushed but too long and the viewer loses interest and leaves.

You’re probably right on the title. I worded it to include the best keywords for SEO, such as “Bondi” and other beach names which are commonly searched upon. But it is a bit boring.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

So the Video is Fantastic but could have been so much better by adding the sound of the Waves, the wind, city sounds , birds ect.


At the 2 minute warning it should have sped up the clips to different venues instead of repeating them .

Your not going to ever get as many views as these videos are watched by those thinking about getting the drone and many drones have reached Saturation levels on the Videos.

You can see this very same Phenomena with the Fuji 100V camera and those making videos for the camera , the views have almost fallen off the map as that camera has been out of stock for almost 2 years now , thus the views for those doing Reviews are very low.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain. Land on the Water.

 

[KI5RLL]

Can I please get some brutally honest feedback on my latest video? This video has done very poorly on YouTube compared to my prior videos, which are very similar.

I understand that YouTube views is a poor gauge of quality, but if there is something wrong (or less engaging) about this particular video, I’d love to understand that mistake so I don’t repeat it.

I am more a flyer than a photographer/videographer. So you can translate my layperson terms into proper photography terms. I know the stuff, but not well enough to diagnose actual setting metrics needed.
(Respectfully)
I know you spent a lot of time assembling these clips. (I wish I could go there!)
First:
Nice syncing of audio to video (whale blow, waves crashing etc). Same wave sound clip each time? Used DJI stock audio song for clip?
Critiques:
Flying with ND filters? You know the formula to determine what ND to use based on current ISO? I didn’t memorize it—just wrote the formula and a few notes down. Lighting is important. Need sensor sensitivity at the point you get full resolution without artifact but have it bright enough also.
I checked my phone screen brightness and I don’t think it’s me.
Opening scene is foreground way too dark—instantly telling viewer “oh another dark or washed-out video with trite music….would be nice to see what was there….hmm is it my phone…no is just too dark…didn’t he notice it himself…?”
Over what time frame did you film this? Days or weeks or more?
Can see a big difference in lighting over time. Hard to warch a movie like that.
But other scenes lighten up. Then other dark scenes. A bit grayed out dark next.
Australia should pop! Bright vibrant colors! Show it! I wish I could be there.
Then a dark scene. Then one pretty good IMO. Then dark again.
The flipping between good/ok/bad tells the viewer it was tossed together. Needs work.

Post-editing:
If you could balance out the dark/light/dark/light flipping of scenes that would smooth out and “pro” it a lot. Maybe not possible with these clips already filmed.
*Properly calculating your ND setting for light every single film shoot, will give you consistently properly lighted clips. So all put together across days or weeks, it is smooth proper lighting the same each clip.*. For the full project!
I think even an full increase in brightness a few clicks of the entire video would be great as not a single clip seemed like it would wash it out at all.
You can always click it up a bit and see how it goes. If too bright, you can dial it back a bit.
Maybe try to increase brightness across the board.
Can you redo this one and repost it?
Certainly work on your ND use to get consistently lighted videos, of proper brightness.
I offer encouragement. Will go on Youtube and see more of your stuff.

Safe flying,
Mike

 

[TerryToast]

So the Video is Fantastic but could have been so much better by adding the sound of the Waves, the wind, city sounds , birds ect.


At the 2 minute warning it should have sped up the clips to different venues instead of repeating them .

Your not going to ever get as many views as these videos are watched by those thinking about getting the drone and many drones have reached Saturation levels on the Videos.

You can see this very same Phenomena with the Fuji 100V camera and those making videos for the camera , the views have almost fallen off the map as that camera has been out of stock for almost 2 years now , thus the views for those doing Reviews are very low.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain. Land on the Water.

Thanks Phantom. I did add some natural sounds to the video, which I hadn’t done in my previous videos. I could always add more and improve further, that’s true.

Saturation levels for drone videos is certainly foremost in my thinking, particularly in the area of the Eastern Suburbs where the new film is based. In the last week, I have found hundreds of drone videos of that area. So the locals and tourists may simply be bored of drone videos.

It is also good to hear that you felt the scenes were repeating. In truth the scenes were not repeating, the film showcases totally different beaches in each scene. However you are the second person who has given this advice, so clearly I didn’t do a good job of clearly differentiating between each beach location and adding variety. I’ll try harder on this in my next film.

 

[TerryToast]

I am more a flyer than a photographer/videographer. So you can translate my layperson terms into proper photography terms. I know the stuff, but not well enough to diagnose actual setting metrics needed.
(Respectfully)
I know you spent a lot of time assembling these clips. (I wish I could go there!)
First:
Nice syncing of audio to video (whale blow, waves crashing etc). Same wave sound clip each time? Used DJI stock audio song for clip?
Critiques:
Flying with ND filters? You know the formula to determine what ND to use based on current ISO? I didn’t memorize it—just wrote the formula and a few notes down. Lighting is important. Need sensor sensitivity at the point you get full resolution without artifact but have it bright enough also.
I checked my phone screen brightness and I don’t think it’s me.
Opening scene is foreground way too dark—instantly telling viewer “oh another dark or washed-out video with trite music….would be nice to see what was there….hmm is it my phone…no is just too dark…didn’t he notice it himself…?”
Over what time frame did you film this? Days or weeks or more?
Can see a big difference in lighting over time. Hard to warch a movie like that.
But other scenes lighten up. Then other dark scenes. A bit grayed out dark next.
Australia should pop! Bright vibrant colors! Show it! I wish I could be there.
Then a dark scene. Then one pretty good IMO. Then dark again.
The flipping between good/ok/bad tells the viewer it was tossed together. Needs work.

Post-editing:
If you could balance out the dark/light/dark/light flipping of scenes that would smooth out and “pro” it a lot. Maybe not possible with these clips already filmed.
*Properly calculating your ND setting for light every single film shoot, will give you consistently properly lighted clips. So all put together across days or weeks, it is smooth proper lighting the same each clip.*. For the full project!
I think even an full increase in brightness a few clicks of the entire video would be great as not a single clip seemed like it would wash it out at all.
You can always click it up a bit and see how it goes. If too bright, you can dial it back a bit.
Maybe try to increase brightness across the board.
Can you redo this one and repost it?
Certainly work on your ND use to get consistently lighted videos, of proper brightness.
I offer encouragement. Will go on Youtube and see more of your stuff.

Safe flying,
Mike

Thanks Kierll for typing up such a detailed reply. I appreciate it.

It is a common misbelief that ND filters affect exposure, darkness, colours and many other aspects of video. In truth, while filming video (not taking pictures) ND filters affect absolutely nothing except motion blur. I could be wrong but my film does not have motion blur issues, so ND filters would be of no assistance.

That said, I certainly take your point about the lighting in the film being inconsistent. Some scenes are darker than others. This is because most of the film was filmed in magic hour (dawn and dusk) when the lighting changes very rapidly.

The opening shot was certainly the darkest of them all. While I didn’t think was an issue, because most hardcore surfers paddle out prior to sunrise and thus it fits the dawn surfing scene (which I was portraying), I can certainly see how your average viewer would misconstrue this as “oh yet another dark or washes out video with trite music”. Next time, I’ll certainly avoid this.

 

[Cymru]

Flying with ND filters? You know the formula to determine what ND to use based on current ISO? I didn’t memorize it—just wrote the formula and a few notes down. Lighting is important. Need sensor sensitivity at the point you get full resolution without artifact but have it bright enough also.

That isn't correct at all. An ND filter has no effect on sensor sensitivity

I checked my phone screen brightness and I don’t think it’s me.

Impossible to judge colours or brightness on a non colour calibrated display, especially a phone.

*Properly calculating your ND setting for light every single film shoot, will give you consistently properly lighted clips. So all put together across days or weeks, it is smooth proper lighting the same each clip.*. For the full project!

Certainly work on your ND use to get consistently lighted videos, of proper brightness.

Again that simply isn't true. ND filters dont affect sensitivity, dynamic range, colours or brightness. They're nothing more than a pair of sunglasses to allow a scene to be filmed at a slower shutter speed than without to provide motion blur giving smoother footage. Thats all they do - block light and therefore allow a slower shutter speed for the same exposure.

 

[FLDave]

Now that I understand your intent and intended audience I'll add some more comments understanding also that I am not one of your intended travelers either.
I still would re-iterate my point that narration is needed. For me, watching a video means getting information from the video, not separate text. I view the video full screen and expect the video to tell the whole story and as a story. I don't know your geographic area but a story could be as simple as your scenes following a geographic route with no backtrack. Lead the viewer with your sequences without confusion of re-traces.
You need to make your video superior to the competition.
If you just want view counts the focus on the technical aspects of SEO and such rather than the best video.
For user enjoyment ambient sounds would be great.
I watch a lot of YouTube videos on drone flying, trike riding, and 360° cameras. They all have serious content. I just pass over videos with no interest content, like no narration. I know which creators to avoid as they may have no narration or even too much repeating narration.
It's hard to imagine a travel video with no narration of why the viewer would want to visit your area.
There are so many videos which showcase a pilots' ability to fly, take pretty pictures, even link them into a video, It takes more than that to me a superb informational video.
On another note is your intended audience casual phone viewers or serious full screen viewers.
So, do what works for your own business.

 

[PHZ]

There is a tome of good advice so I will suggest only two things:
1. Tourists/viewers want to see people having a good time. Close(faces) in shots of the surfers would bring more human interest and engagement to the story.
2. Drone videos/shots are so ubiquitous now viewers are getting inured to them. They are becoming table steaks and there is not much that hasn’t been seen/done, multiple times. I watched a National Geographic special a few days ago and about 80% of the shots were aerial (which was great for the story).

 

[RadioFlyerMan]

@TerryToast I might have missed it, but what are you flying? Also, what is your post rendered color space and codec?
Thanks.

 

[Wild Drone Pilot]

Can I please get some brutally honest feedback on my latest video? This video has done very poorly on YouTube compared to my prior videos, which are very similar.

I understand that YouTube views is a poor gauge of quality, but if there is something wrong (or less engaging) about this particular video, I’d love to understand that mistake so I don’t repeat it.

Some real nice videos
I think is has all been said already

But here is my two cents

Looks like you pulled up the [all my drone videos folder] and made one video with the selection being random
Sound track can make all the difference as well as times for speeding up the clip with the music change in sync
Many excellent tutorials by others far better than myself worth looking at
I would find the best drone videos you can and take notes for your next video project

HTH
The Wild Drone Pilot

 

[TerryToast]

Thanks Phantom. I did add some natural sounds to the video, which I hadn’t done in my previous videos. I could always add more and improve further, that’s true.

Saturation levels for drone videos is certainly foremost in my thinking, particularly in the area of the Eastern Suburbs where the new film is based. In the last week, I have found hundreds of drone videos of that area. So the locals and tourists may simply be bored of drone videos.

It is also good to hear that you felt the scenes were repeating. In truth the scenes were not repeating, the film showcases totally different beaches in each scene. However you are the second person who has given this advice, so clearly I didn’t do a good job of clearly differentiating between each beach location. I’ll try harder on this in my next film.

Now that I understand your intent and intended audience I'll add some more comments understanding also that I am not one of your intended travelers either.
I still would re-iterate my point that narration is needed. For me, watching a video means getting information from the video, not separate text. I view the video full screen and expect the video to tell the whole story and as a story. I don't know your geographic area but a story could be as simple as your scenes following a geographic route with no backtrack. Lead the viewer with your sequences without confusion of re-traces.
You need to make your video superior to the competition.
If you just want view counts the focus on the technical aspects of SEO and such rather than the best video.
For user enjoyment ambient sounds would be great.
I watch a lot of YouTube videos on drone flying, trike riding, and 360° cameras. They all have serious content. I just pass over videos with no interest content, like no narration. I know which creators to avoid as they may have no narration or even too much repeating narration.
It's hard to imagine a travel video with no narration of why the viewer would want to visit your area.
There are so many videos which showcase a pilots' ability to fly, take pretty pictures, even link them into a video, It takes more than that to me a superb informational video.
On another note is your intended audience casual phone viewers or serious full screen viewers.
So, do what works for your own business.

I agree that Vlogs style videos that have narration, maps and provide other great information to viewers are certainly very popular video styles. They also allow a much greater storyline, as the viewer can follow the vlogger along their route and be a part of the journeyZ. They also removing any confusion on what is being shown, so viewers don’t get confused if two different beaches are being repeated.

Changing my future films to a narration style video, such as a vlog, is certainly something worth considering. It would be a major change. The vlog market is also very heavily saturated, so trying to differentiate myself would require some serious thought.

Thanks again for your feedback Dave and the broader “channel purpose and strategy” bend.

 

[TerryToast]

There is a tome of good advice so I will suggest only two things:
1. Tourists/viewers want to see people having a good time. Close(faces) in shots of the surfers would bring more human interest and engagement to the story.
2. Drone videos/shots are so ubiquitous now viewers are getting inured to them. They are becoming table steaks and there is not much that hasn’t been seen/done, multiple times. I watched a National Geographic special a few days ago and about 80% of the shots were aerial (which was great for the story).

Thanks PHZ.

Point #1 is something I have been considering for while, even dabbled it and it would definitely improve my films substantially (if I got it right). When I watch drone videos that mix drone footage with regular hand-held video footage, I enjoy those videos a lot more. The only reason why I haven’t done this is because I don’t have a decent video camera (or stabiliser) to take the hand-held footage.

Of note, the up-close footage of locations (castles, beaches, whatever) is easy enough to get, but close-ups of surfers would clearly require their consent and a subject who can continue to behave normally (eg check out the waves) when the video camera is on them. Not always easy to find. I certainly don’t want to start using actors.

The skillset requires to take excellent regular hand-held video is also a whole new ballgame. For years I have dabbled in this area, used various cameras and stabilisers, filmed family holidays, family weddings and other similar stuff. I find it much tougher than drone videography and while my skills and footage are certainly better than average, they aren’t anywhere near professional level.

All that said, I do want to start doing this! I’ll bite the bullet, buy a semi-decent video camera and see what I can do.

Point #2, I agree. The Eastern Suburbs location which features in my recent film, has literally hundreds of drone videos showing on YouTube. Most of them are poor quality garbage, which not only saturates the market but has also driven many viewers away with poor past experiences.

 

[TerryToast]

Some real nice videos
I think is has all been said already

But here is my two cents

Looks like you pulled up the [all my drone videos folder] and made one video with the selection being random
Sound track can make all the difference as well as times for speeding up the clip with the music change in sync
Many excellent tutorials by others far better than myself worth looking at
I would find the best drone videos you can and take notes for your next video project

HTH
The Wild Drone Pilot

Thanks Wild.

There is certainly common feedback that the seperate locations/beaches I have filmed, are blending together. I’ll certainly work harder to differentiate these going forward.

 

[KI5RLL]

That isn't correct at all. An ND filter has no effect on sensor sensitivity



Impossible to judge colours or brightness on a non colour calibrated display, especially a phone.



Again that simply isn't true. ND filters dont affect sensitivity, dynamic range, colours or brightness. They're nothing more than a pair of sunglasses to allow a scene to be filmed at a slower shutter speed than without to provide motion blur giving smoother footage. Thats all they do - block light and therefore allow a slower shutter speed for the same exposure.

 

[KI5RLL]

Can you please link us to your portfolio a few pics? With ISO comments maybe? Nothing copyright if you are a pro of course.

Is good to see proper pics by example instead of the millions on Youtube all over the place. I don’t even know where I should be on “brightness” on much of this as I explained in the opening line of my original comment. I am mostly a flyer more than a shooter.
“Pedanticism tells—but an example tells, shows, and proves.”
So ISO affects the camera sensor sensitivity to light okay. Lower ISO is less sensitivity to light. Less light (ND filter), allows a bigger aperture to capture more of it. More light, close down the iris, less light incoming.
Right?

 

[Wild Drone Pilot]

Thanks Wild.

There is certainly common feedback that the seperate locations/beaches I have filmed, are blending together. I’ll certainly work harder to differentiate these going forward.

I think you have some very nice videos
I have a real short attention span for 1-2 min after that it hard to keep focus
You may want to do one location per video
I think we all have the same problem getting the perfect transition that every one will love
Keep us posted would love to see the next video