I am writing this blog alongside my YouTube channel to document the channel's progress rather than to write about all the things I've seen and done. Now that may change over time, but I want to have an outlet for the challenges of getting the channel started so that I don't spend time talking about making a Youtube channel on the channel because that's not the most exciting aspect of travel.
But before I get into all of that, I should mention what the channel has become. Initially, I wanted to do a travel vlog On YouTube. Still, as I tried to make new videos and explored what was already out there, it became apparent that the novelty of a travel vlog has worn off, so I'm hoping for a more interesting and exciting take, which is an integral part of making a good product. That is having my friends call in while I sightsee, try new foods, and do pretty standard travel show stuff. I'm not that interesting alone. I can shoot the video and pick and organize, but I'm not very much in front of the camera.
Conversely, I'm lovely when I'm talking to friends. Also, I have pretty good taste in friends, so most people I know are pretty interesting, fun people. I'm hoping I can get my friends to call into the show that we're making. What I'm doing is more of a cross between a travel vlog and a podcast.
So there you go. That's it. That's the premise. The channel has shifted from being a guide to travel to a video podcast. I don't think I can add value to what's out there now. There are already good guides that help you see a place and get to know a place, from the most famous tourist sites to out-of-the-way places. There are also younger, prettier vloggers out there filling the screen with their faces and creating their videos with more experience and resources than I have at my disposal. The youtube video/podcast idea is an excellent alternative to a travel vlog or online travel guide. The concept of a video podcast intrigued me and made me excited about doing this. Hopefully, I can get friends to participate. Of course, we're not experts. But, podcasts are full of ordinary people who just did their homework on the topic. They get together with a friend and chat about their chosen subject. They talk, and you listen, and the only difference in mine is that the topic is travel, so it's very visual, which is why it's on YouTube.
So that's the premise. I certainly hope it works out
I wanted to start this blog about the experience of putting together the channel because it's difficult, and I want to have an outlet to blow off steam about the problems that I'm running into without filling the channel with that because the channel is about travel not making a YouTube channel. I'll bring you guys up to speed where I'm at right now:
I've had a personal YouTube channel for about ten years. Since I have lived in Asia, it's been a way for me to communicate things back to my friends and family and sometimes show them what exciting things I saw there. I often talked to the camera Vlog style, Updating on jobs, and whatever else was going on like visas, etc. recently, I started a different channel on YouTube to create this travel guide. I started posting some videos while we were in lockdown, so I was splicing together old videos I'd taken while living in China and traveling around Southeast Asia. I made those into videos, and the next thing I did was to take some of the videos that I've taken since I've been here in Hanoi into some quick videos, which was fun. Still, it became apparent quickly that if I had a YouTube channel, I'd have to do more than that. I made efforts at individual posting, even though much of the city was still closed at the time.
Some things are still not operating as usual because we are currently in a pandemic. Nevertheless, it became apparent quite quickly that there is a limit to what I can do to make the videos more engaging. I can learn to edit. I can get better at audio. But standing in front of a camera is not my forte. Most vloggers stand in front of the camera and make videos that aren't exciting either. They're 20 or 25 years old, so they can't imagine anything better than them, which is fine. Still, at my age, I look at myself in front of the camera and go, " Oh yeah, that's boring. Why would anyone want to watch that?" I don't want to produce something that I would not watch. So the current challenge is just getting people signed on with this. Most people I have talked to have been pretty willing. It's just a matter of getting it together and doing it. I'm hoping that will happen this week. I got a couple of friends scheduled, and I think I got the software issues resolved, but I'm sure if I don't, that's what I'll be talking about next week. Until then, wish me luck with this insane endeavor, and thanks for reading.
