Tips for Small Business
- Thursday, January 24, 2013
- Creating a Photo Light box for your Product Shots
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In this short video, I show you how quick and easy it can be to create a simply, yet effective photo light box for your product shots. This photo light box will help present your products in their best light and is perfect for anybody wishing to take simply shots that will be displayed on your website, in your shop or on promotional material such as brochures, newsletters, flyers, etc. The video demonstrates step by step how to create this light box and displays some example product shots at the end.
Make sure you use a tripod when recording your footage and capturing your shots. If, perhaps, you are not overly happy with your photos or your lighting, you can always retouch them using a free photo editing application such as Google’s Picasa and administer any edits that maybe required.
For the video itself, I simply used our Nikon CoolPix P7700 camera and a tripod. I kept moving the tripod around to try and keep the video interesting with different angles and shots. For the text, I simply downloaded this free ”YummyCakes” font from dafont.com to give the text that handwritten feel. Finally, I used our transparent PNG title bar which is available to download free here.
So why not give it a go and see how this simply contraption can really improve your product shots!
Here is a list of what you will need for creating your own light box -
Cardboard box
2-4 sheets of white tissue paper
1 piece of matte white poster board
1 piece of matte black poster board
Scotch tape
Packing tape
12” (30cm) ruler
Pencil or pen
Scissors & Box cutter
2 Lamps -
Posted by Colm in Tips & Tricks Tips for Small Business Site Notes |
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- Wednesday, December 19, 2012
- Excellent Fitness Promo Video (help increase post Christmas Sales).
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With the Christmas fast approaching, people will soon be filling up on Christmas dinners, chocolates and pudding. Now is a great time to create a quick promotional video of your gym and facilities to help entice those post Christmas clients. It can also be a great way to seduce active members into renewing their memberships.
To read the full article and view the video, please Click Here.
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Posted by Colm in Site Notes Tips for Small Business |
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- Wednesday, December 05, 2012
- How Fill Shots & J and L Cuts can improve your Video Production.
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An important part of the video production process is what we call recording “Fill Shots”. “Fill Shots” are the shots which lead from one scene into another or can be faded in over a narration. Basically, every piece of footage you shoot (other than a direct interview) is a fill shot. You can never really have enough “fill shots” and probably most of the footage you record will end up on the editing floor. However as a rule, it is always best to take more footage than you think you need. For example, you may have recorded some of footage which you think was fine on the day but during the editing process, you noticed that the camera or tripod wobbled or the light suddenly changed ruining your shot. This is why it is important to have extra back-up footage which can help when editing the final video. Below, I’ve attached a video which gives an example how fill shots can be used to connect an interview and link the video together as a whole.
If you watch the video from the start, you will see the first four video clips are our “Fill Shots”. These are shots recorded from different angles, cut together with no fades and followed by a J Cut (this where you hear the narrators voice before the corresponding video enters the frame). We then see Dan talking and been interviewed while working at his desk. For this shot, the camera has stayed in the same position throughout the entire interview process. The video is centralised on this main shot and interview, with all fill shots being edited around it. After this segment, we have an L Cut (where a new video clip enters yet we still hear Dan talking over the videos).
The video continues to be edited in this way, with fill shots being implemented between shots of Dan working and talking at his desk (basic J and L Cuts). This is a simple process which all aspiring videographers can implement and will instantly improve your video production and give it that professional look. To learn more about J and L Cuts and other tips and tricks, please Click Here.
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Posted by Colm in Tips & Tricks Tips for Small Business Site Notes |
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- Friday, September 21, 2012
- 5 Inspirational Videos for your Jewellery Shop
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I was recently talking to a man who owned a jewellery shop in the same complex as our office. He described how their main focus was usually on designing jewellery, however with the downturn in the economy a lot of their business was now in jewellery repair and cleaning. He was saying how he was completely new to social media and only recently was getting involved with online promotion. I asked him had he ever thought of using video to promote his company and he replied that they had just recently completed a video highlighting how they clean and repair rings. This gave me the idea to provide some more inspirational videos displaying how you can use different types of online videos to promote your company, products and services.
To read the full article and to view the video, please Click Here.
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Posted by Colm in Site Notes Tips for Small Business |
30 comments
- Tuesday, September 11, 2012
- 5 Ways Tradesmen Can Use Online Videos
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Hey Everyone,
We have just posted a new Inspiration article ”5 Ways Tradesmen Can Use Online Videos” on our business site, trakAxBusiness.com. The article concentrates on trademans working mainly in the fields of carpentry, joinery, steel work and electricity.
This blog highlights the different types of videos people can produce to help promote and market their company, products, services and skills. The types of video covered in this article include the company promotional video, customer testimonies, showcasing an interview, a 1 minute short video and a longer documentary style video. We also provide useful tips and highlight certain techniques in the creation process which should be implemented into your videos. We hope these post provide you with the inspiration and help you need to begin producing your promotional and marketing videos.
To read the article in full, please click here.
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Posted by Colm in Site Notes Tips for Small Business |
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- Friday, September 07, 2012
- How can I add a logo to my video using trakAxPC?
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In this second installment of our quick tips video, we demonstrate how easy it is to add a logo or watermark to your video. This logo or watermark could be any image or graphic and can help you personalize your video and make it recognizable to others. For example, if you are creating a family video, you may wish to add your family crest to the video. If you’re creating a gaming video, you may want to add your avatar image or call sign graphic.
However, when one thinks of the word “Logo” one may automatically think of a business logo like the golden arches of McDonald’s or the swoosh of Nike. If you own a business, are you currently adding your business logo to videos? If not, why not? In business terms, a logo is really like your company’s identity and can symbolise what your business stands for. Having a professional well designed business logo will help make your business more visible and credible. It will also help build brand awareness with customers and potential clients, as well as distinguish your brand from your competition. You can also use this logo with all your marketing materials such as business cards, letter headings, social media, etc., and start to create brand recognition in the marketplace. If you wish to learn more about creating and producing business videos, please visit our trakAxBusiness website.
This quick tip video simply shows you how you can add your logo or watermark to your promotional videos. You can use either transparent PNGs, JPEGs or Bitmaps to create your logo or watermark. Learn how to quickly re-size and place your logo anywhere in the video output screen and how to use the “Always On Top” button so your logo will keep playing on top of other media in your mix.
Why not try out trakAxPC today. It can be used for all your video editing needs. Take advantage of our special price - buy trakAxPC today for just $54.95.
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Posted by Colm in Tips & Tricks Tips for Small Business Site Notes |
3 comments
- Friday, August 31, 2012
- SmallBizTechnology & BusinessInsider.com give an excellent review of trakAxPC.
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Hi Everyone,
yesterday we received an excellent review for trakAxPC and trakAxBusiness which appeared on both the SmallBizTechnology and BusinessInsider websites.
The author, Miguel Leiva-Gomez, is the owner of The Tech Guy blog and has been working with computers and gadgets for more than a decade. In the article, he describes how many businesses are very nervous about venturing into online video and still hold this attitude without realizing the significance of this growing media channel. He confirms the importance of changing this mind-set by stressing ”It’s not a question of how you’re going to enter the scene. It’s now a matter of when you’re going to start gathering film equipment, shooting your films, and uploading them”.
Miguel continues by mentioning software programs users can engage with to begin creating their online videos. He decided to compare trakAxPC with the popular Adobe Premier Elements ($99). Firstly, Miguel compares Premier Elements to it’s older brother Adobe Premier and says that it ”is more compact and doesn’t contain all of the calamity that the standard version has”.
However, it is only when he begins to compare trakAxPC with Premier Elements that differences become apparent. He declares, trakAxPC ”is, honestly, a more intuitive application for use with beginners who want to make something professional, presentable, and noteworthy”. He follows this by confiming, ”The learning curve is, in almost every aspect, more simple than that of Adobe’s mammoth software, and has everything you need from a beat synchronizer, automatic crossfading, and picture-in-picture capabilities”.
Finally, Miguel finishes the article by declaring ”have a look at some of trakAx’s advice. It might make you a little less timid about getting out there and publishing”. If this isn’t a reason to start creating your online business presence with trakAxPC today, well then, you’re simply missing out on potential new customers and an increase in sales.
Why not try out trakAxPC today. It can be used for all your video editing needs. Take advantage of our special price - buy trakAxPC today for just $54.95.
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Posted by Colm in Site Notes trakAxPC Reviews Tips for Small Business |
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