Hello fellow micro 4/3 folks. I have just started a new video podcast on Youtube and I would greatly appreciate everyone checking it out when you have the time. I have two episodes up so far, the first introducing myself and the podcast and the second is a short video about the Olympus 75/1.8.

I would appreciate any feedback you are willing to give as well as subscribing and giving a thumbs up if you feel so inclined!

thedppodcast - YouTube

Thanks much!
Todd

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Olympus E-M5 with 14-42 kit
Olympus E-PL1 with 14-42 kit
Olympus 45/1.8
Panasonic 20/1.7
Panasonic 45-175
OM 50/1.8
OM 28/2.8
OM 80-200/4.5

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todd

some quick thoughts as feedback

1) Framing... think more about this - you look like you were sinking down the centre

2) Background/Set - put some more thought into what is happening behind you - oh and lose the swivel chair...your swinging backwards and forwards is distracting

3) Lighting - you seem to be using natural light.... kinda difficult to control

4) Audio - maybe invest in a simple lavalier mic - that way you can record the sound of your voice without picking up the room ambience. Also think about recording the audio onto a separate device.. that will give you more flexibility when editing

5) Editing - watching someone talking straight to camera gets dull - work out how to cut away to other images - i.e. when you talk about something, cut away to a picture/video sequence of what you are talking about.

6) retakes - if you cough then start again....and edit out the coughed version

7) work on removing the ummms - think about scripting out what you are going to say first and practice it a few times before filming

8) think about some sort of title sequence and credit/end sequence

making a good podcast is difficult - there is a lot of stuff to consider, especially doing it solo... you have to be scriptwriter, lighting guy, audio guy, cameraman, set designer, graphic designer, editor and front of camera talent!!!

good luck with your project - you will learn a lot by trying

cheers

K

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Wow, thanks SO much for your great feedback Kevin. Let me address a few with my thoughts as well...

Couldn't agree more. The framing was tough because I was using my iPhone and the screen of course was facing away from me. I'm going to use my HV20 for future episodes both for the higher quality and so I can flip the screen around and frame better.

Yep I definitely need to clean that junk up from behind me. And I'll try to stay still ;-)

I was using window light to one side and a desk lamp to fill from the other. Not ideal but it's the best I've got right now...

A lav mic is definitely a good idea. I used a Zoom H1 to capture the audio for the first episode but I think it would have been better if it was closer to me. I had it closer for the second episode -- did that one sound better?

I definitely have that in mind for future episodes. The first one was just to introduce myself and the podcast so it was just my talking head but future episodes will be more visually stimulating.

Yep, I did just this on the second episode.

I had an outline of what I wanted to talk about but I don't want it to sound scripted. I agree though, the umms need to go :-)

Working on that now :-)

Thanks SO much for watching and taking the time to leave me feedback. It's MUCH appreciated!

Todd

__________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Olympus E-M5 with 14-42 kit
Olympus E-PL1 with 14-42 kit
Olympus 45/1.8
Panasonic 20/1.7
Panasonic 45-175
OM 50/1.8
OM 28/2.8
OM 80-200/4.5

My Flickr photostream
My Photo Blog

As a podcast listener, consistent episode releases at least weekly is something I find most important. If you release sporadically and sometimes go weeks without an episode, you're gonna lose me.

If you rehearse everything, edit everything, and put a ton of work into every episode so there are no coughs or ummms, then there is a good chance you won't be able to do all that many episodes. If the content is very interesting, I'm willing to put up with a lot of coughs and ummms if it means that the episodes are coming out regularly and often. Plus, if you're doing it regularly and often, the coughs and ummms get to be less frequent.

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Amin
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Thanks much for your insight Amin. I am going to do my best to do at least an episode a week if not two. I'm not going to put out episodes just for the sake of doing one, but consistency is definitely something I'm going to strive for.

I guess the key is to find that balance between a well produced podcast and frequent releases of new episodes. As Kevin suggested, my first attempt is likely a bit rough around the edges but at the same time I don't want to be TOO rehearsed or so overly concerned with perfection that I am only putting out an episode every couple of weeks. Hopefully I can find that balance and come up with something that people want to see. Thanks again!

Todd

__________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Olympus E-M5 with 14-42 kit
Olympus E-PL1 with 14-42 kit
Olympus 45/1.8
Panasonic 20/1.7
Panasonic 45-175
OM 50/1.8
OM 28/2.8
OM 80-200/4.5

My Flickr photostream
My Photo Blog

I agree with most of Kevin's criticism. Episode 2 seems to have addressed many of them simply by replacing the video of you talking with a screen capture of you looking at a webpage. I'm not sure that's a big improvement.

Since it seems like most of our criticisms boil down to how you're using the video aspect, why not get started with an audio podcast?

The other opinion I would share is that you really need to figure out how to differentiate your podcast from all the other options. Frankly, if all you're going to do is recap the week's photography-related announcements, then I'm going to lose interest pretty quickly (especially if/when you start discussing non- products). I think that you need to narrow your focus...if you wanted to start the first podcast that deals exclusively with , you're more likely to build a following.

Please keep at it, I'm interested to see where you take this.

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Amin
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I did just want to do a brief episode talking about the 75/1.8 -- do you think it would have been better with something like an inset in the corner of me speaking?

I actually tried an audio podcast about a year ago and I gave up on it fairly quickly for a few reasons:

* You have to have a place to host the podcast files. This hosting costs a minimum of about $15/month which is basically money wasted if you can't monetize your podcast somehow
* Maybe it's because I've been using Final Cut Express for years and I'm familiar with its editing controls and I'm not nearly as familiar with Garage Band, but the audio podcast took me significantly longer in the post production than the video does. Of course a lot of that is because the episodes were 30-40 minutes long. I feel like a video podcast can be a much shorter format
* Getting the feed set up to work with iTunes is a pain the behind
* If you want to archive more than just a couple of episodes, the hosting cost goes up very quickly
* Video podcasts appeal to me more -- I like being able to include the visual aspect

I agree and the news portion is only going to be part of the podcast. I am also going to incorporate tips, techniques, and hopefully viewer submitted Q&A if I can gain a following.

I would LOVE to do an exclusively podcast but I just don't know if there would be enough content to keep up a weekly show. I do know that it would differentiate me for sure though because I don't know of any. I think Amin's that he mentioned above is mirrorless in general and not necessarily just .

Oh I definitely will -- I'm interested to see where it goes myself

Thanks!
Todd

__________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Olympus E-M5 with 14-42 kit
Olympus E-PL1 with 14-42 kit
Olympus 45/1.8
Panasonic 20/1.7
Panasonic 45-175
OM 50/1.8
OM 28/2.8
OM 80-200/4.5

My Flickr photostream
My Photo Blog