Category: Video

Using Screencast-o-matic as a simple video editor

Screencast-o-matic video editor

David Lee King posted some great suggestions for video editing tools. One application that he left off his very-comprehensive list is Screencast-O-Matic. I’ve used SOM for several years to record the screencasts for my YouTube video tutorials and I have recently started using SOM to edit my videos as well. This has allowed me to simplify my process with a goal to create videos more regularly and efficiently.

For a few of my most recent videos, I recorded the introduction using my Logitech Webcam and included software.

a picture of the logitech webcam recording interface

Second, I recorded my screen demonstration using Screencast-o-matic.

an image showing the screenscast recording process

I then imported the video introduction file into SOM and then inserted the video into the screencast recording.

Insert video file into Screencast-o-matic video editor

Finally, I added a title and description, and uploaded directly to my YouTube channel.

an image demonstrating uploading to YouTube

While the editing functions are quite basic, if you’re just splitting, clipping, and splicing video clips together, Screencast-o-matic is an affordable tool to get the job done.

A change in my video recording process

screenshot of Logitech Webcam Interface
The Logitech Webcam Software

A while back I posted about how I was occasionally finding lip sync lag (ala “Kung Fu Theater” when I recorded my on-camera video introductions and conclusions using Screencast-o-matic.  No matter what I did, I would still experience some lag when recording my face, and my lips and words did not quite match up in the final video.  They appeared to be out of sync by a couple of frames.  I’ve since changed my process and have now removed the lag entirely.

I now use the Logitech Webcam Software to record my introductions.  I use my webcam to record my video, but still use the Blue Yeti to record my voice, as the Logitech software allows you to choose a microphone source separate from the webcam. This keeps the audio levels consistent between the Logitech software and Screencast-o-matic records, so I don’t have to do much fiddling with audio in my movie editor.

Since I am editing my videos in Windows MovieMaker (yes, it still works!), the additional step in recording in Logitech doesn’t really take any additional time.  After I record the Screencast-o-matic demonstration, I download the video file to my computer, and the file, along with the Logitech video file, into MovieMaker to edit.

Testing audio and video quality (and lag) with Screencast-o-matic, a Blue Yeti microphone, and Logitech C920 Webcam

I made this short video to test the audio and video quality of the Blue Yeti microphone and the Logitech C920 webcam using Screencast-o-matic. Sometimes if you use the audio from another mic like the Blue Yeti, but record your video another source, such as I do with the Logitech C920 Webcam, there can be some voice-to-video lag. When the lag is present, the lips of the speaker will be out of sync with the audio and it can look like a badly dubbed 1970’s Kung-Fu Theater film.

In the video below, I tested using just audio from the webcam, and then audio from the Blue Yeti mic, to see if there was any lag. I had just restarted my computer, so the internal memory and page file was pretty empty, and I had all other apps closed except for Screencast-o-matic. I did not detect any lag in the video from either audio source. The sound quality is also noticeably better using the audio from the Blue Yeti microphone. It appears that if you find lag, restarting your computer and closing all extra applications will help with producing better quality, and in-sync, audio and video.

My first best attempt at my YouTube channel trailer

YouTube had been nagging me forever to put a trailer on my channel so that unsubscribed viewers can get to know what my channel is about.  About 4 months ago I put together the clip below.  I recorded the opening of the trailer with my Logitech camera and Blue Yeti microphone. For the other video clips, I actually used Screencast-o-matic to record snips of my videos directly off of YouTube.  This was a bit easier than digging through old mp4 files on my local hard drive.  I then spliced it all together and did the voiceover in Windows Live Movie Maker.    The end result is not awesome, but it will suffice until I have the time to think of something more creative.

Bringing Christmas joy to final exams

I’ll be honest.  I’m as tired of exams  as the students are.  Our library is a wreck, students are grumpy, and it’s either too hot or too cold in the building.  It’s been a hard, hard week, but it ends tomorrow.  If you’re in the same boat, let this awesome video cheer you up.  It made me smile in a huge way.

 

How to edit videos shot on your Android phone on your iPad

I have a foot in both camps. I have an Android phone, but I also have an iPad. I occasionally shoot video on my HTC Evo 3d, but video editing options on Android are pretty sparse (hence one of my reasons for choosing an iPad for a tablet). The problem is getting your video off of your Android and onto your iPad can be a bit of a bear, although it’s not impossible. It can take quite a few steps to get the two ecosystems to work together, but this post shows you how to move your videos from you Android phone in order to edit them on your iPad.

1. First, you need to shoot some videos with your Android phone. So go out and shoot, but make sure your videos don’t suck.

image

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