Note: This is an HTML web page that was downloaded to
your own PC. If you get a warning about content, go
ahead and allow the content to be shown. The only
content in question are the Youtube videos embedded into
this report.
I used HTML instead of PDF so I could add the videos
directly to this report. Plus, there's tons of links,
and links work better in HTML pages than in PDFs.
Warning: Terms
change and are often a matter of interpretation. It's up
to you to double check the license, terms and End User
Agreements for any and all of the following resources
before using them in your video projects.
Introduction:
My name is Kurt Melvin and I am the moderator and chief
content creator for the Warrior
Forum's
High
Voltage Video Forum. Over the years, I've been
exposed to some great video-making resources. Below are
some of my favorites.
One essential skill for video creation is the ability to
convert media from one format to another. Sketch
programs such as Explaindio may require that images are
in the .svg format in order for the program to "sketch"
them. Some video programs may output in .mov or .avi,
while another may only work with .mp4 videos.
Being able to convert image and video files from one
file type to another creates many more opportunities for
video creation. There's nothing worse than finding that
perfect background video, only to find it's in a format
that your video making program won't accept.
Video Converters
Any
Video Converter - FREE - I've tried and tested 7
or 8 video converters and I use an older version of Any
Video Converter to convert videos to convert videos from
one format to another. It's a great program. However,
the newest version may have additional "Ad Ware". Make
sure to pay attention when you install it and deselect
any additional installations you don't want to install.
Here's a video I made showing how to convert videos
using Any Video Converter. I used an older version of
AVC in this video, so if you're using a new version, a
few things may be a little different but the process
will be very similar.
HandBrake - FREE -
HandBrake is another good video converter that can
handle virtually all popular video formats.
Convert To SVG
SVG is a "vector" image format. I won't get into vector
vs. bitmap/raster here, other than to say you may want
to convert a common png or jpeg image into a svg image
so that it can be "sketched" by a white board video
making program.
Also, some vector images may come in AI of EPS format,
both of these are Adobe Illustrator file formats. If you
don't have Adobe Illustrator, it can be expensive.
InkScape - FREE -
InkScape is a free vector image editor available for
WIN, Mac and Linux and can be used to modify svg images
and convert png and jpeg to svg.
Remember that if you have any questions on how to do
something, Youtube almost always has plenty of helpful
videos. Here's a link to Youtube search results for
videos about InkScape
convert
png
to svg.
Blue Ribbon Paid Resources
VideoBlocks - $99 a year for unlimited
royalty-free stock video downloads. You can use your
downloaded media over and over, even after your
membership expires. Yes, this is an affiliate link. But,
VideoBlocks is something I've paid for myself for more
than 3 years and will continue to in the future. In my
opinion, VideoBlocks is an essential resource for any
video marketing professional.
PresenterMedia
- $49.95 for 1 year or $79.95 for a 2 year membership,
using this special link only. Another paid resource that
I've paid for myself. Unlimited downloads and you can
use your media even after your membership is over.
Presenter Media is primarily a PowerPoint media site.
However, if you have PowerPoint, not only can you use
the templates, videos and clipart directly, you can also
export PowerPoint presentations as video files to use in
other projects. Also, PresenterMedia has a variety of
clipart and video backgrounds that you can customize
online, then download to use in your own projects. This
link is a "refer
a friend" link. Use my link and you'll save $10
off the regular subscription price and I'll get an
additional free month membership for my paid membership.
Check out the video below. I hope it will give you
plenty of ideas of how you can use PresenterMedia and
let some of you focus on marketing and making money,
instead of trying to create pro quality videos:
Note: Only PowerPoint 2010 and 2013 can export as video
and only PowerPoint 2013 can export as an MP4.
PowerPoint 2013 has a free 30 day trial, so you can use
it to customize PresenterMedia's templates, then export
as a video to use in other video creation tools.
AnimationFactory
- $59.96-$99.95 per year, although they offer discounts
for recurring members. I've paid for an AnimationFactory
membership myself in the past. And although I let the
membership lapse once in a while, it's something I buy
again and again. You will really need to get the more
expensive "Platinum" membership level, as this offers
larger animations needed for video as well as video
backgrounds not available in the lower priced "Gold"
membership. AnimationFactory is PresenterMedia's "sister
site". While PresenterMedia focuses mostly on business
related media, AnimationFactory offers animations with a
much broader range.
Again, PowerPoint can import and play animated gifs with
transparent backgrounds, so you can play the animations
over just about any background, add text and other
media, then export as a video file to import into other
video creation programs.
Note: Not many video editors work with animated gifs.
And some of those that do, don't read transparent
backgrounds. PowerPoint does. Camtasia can, but has
issues with transparent gifs. Vegas Studio can handle
animated gifs with transparent backgrounds. I'm sure
there are other programs as well.
JewelBeat - JewelBeat
has a big collection of quality royalty-free music for
just $2.99 a song. This is a great resource when you
need a license for a music clip you want to pass on to
your clients. For just $2.99, be a professional and do
the right thing for you customers.
Blue Ribbon FREE Resources
Images and Graphics
Note: Be careful using public domain sites. What happens
is, someone uploads an image they don't have the rights
to. These sites do their best to limit this, but once in
a while an image that shouldn't be uploaded slips
through.
Pixabay - The largest
collection of public domain photos, images, clipart,
etc. Can be used commercially and without attribution.
Kozzi -
Kozzi is kind of flaky, but try to use my referral
link and see if you can still get $10 in free
credits. Kozzi has excellent photos, graphics and stock
video. I like paying for images (but not a lot). By
paying a little, it gives me more confidence the images
are OK copyright-wise. Also note that while the free
sites may have images of models, you can't be sure if
the models have signed a release. Because of this, I
suggest if you ever use a picture of a recognizable
person, you make sure the model has signed a model
release. All of Kozzi's images have model releases.
Public Domain
Pictures - An excellent source for high
quality, free images, especially background images.
Tip: Search for
"frames" for some good images to use in
slideshows.
MorgueFile.com - Another
favorite site where you can use the images commercially
and you don't even need to give attribution. Very
liberal usage terms.
Note: Both OpenClipArt and Clker are good sources for
vector SVG images, good to use in VideoScribe (affiliate link),
Explaindio, Easy Sketch pro, etc. (affiliate) Cliker
also has a free feature that will convert bitmap images
to vector images.
All-Silhouettes
- a great, free resource for graphics and it has a
liberal usage license. Most of the collections of images
have a svg version, but some come only with a AI
version, at least the 10 or so collections I downloaded
were that way. There are thousands and thousands of
images you can use for free.
Here's a very short 24 second video I made to show an
few examples of All Silhouettes images:
Free Vector
Characters - A wide variety of free mascots and
characters. Also has a sister site with paid mascot
collections.
MightyDeals
- Has various media, such as images, fonts, graphics,
etc. for free. Be sure to check the terms of each
individual package.
More Free Photo Sites: (Be sure to check the terms of
each...)
Internet Archive of Public Domain Moving Images -
Lots and lots of movies, films, cartoons and commercials
in the public domain. Be sure to do your own due
diligence, as not all resources listed here are in the
public domain. Some are listed as Creative Commons and
require attribution. But many classics such as Popeye
and Betty Boop cartoons are in the public domain. Think
about how you may be able to use them in your own
projects.
MovieTools.info
- Excellent resource for free video backgrounds and
animations
Muvipix.com
- This is a site created by, supporting and populated by
people who love making videos.
Neo's World - For TONS more free resources, including
video clips, effects and more, see Neo's World. Neo
focuses on free resources to use with Window Movie
Maker, but virtually all of the stuff can be used with
other programs.
MovieTools
- Good selection of looping motion backgrounds. Be sure
to read their license.
Dissolve.com
offers a few free stock video clips every month, if you
want to check them out. Their "regular" prices are $5 to
$500 per video, so VideoBlocks
at $99 a year for unlimited downloads is a much
better deal IMO, but if you just need a video or two, or
need footage for a client, you can check out Dissolve
and see if they have what you need at a low enough
price.
Bottled
Video - "All 12,589 Broadcast Quality
Stock Footage Video Clips are Free for you to Download
and Use in your next video production. Again all video
clips are Broadcast Quality and Totally Free."
Youtube/Google
Free music has over 160 royalty free songs you can
download and use in any of your projects.
Sure, Youtube has tons more songs you can use in your
videos, but that's only if you upload the videos to
Youtube first. What makes these songs good is that you
can download them and use them on all of your projects,
whether you upload them to Youtube or not.
AudioBlocks -
This is a spin-off site from VideoBlocks and offers
music and sound effects that used to be part of
VideoBlocks, but was spun off into a separate site,
needing an additional payment. They have a free 7 day
trial, allowing up to 20 downloads per day. Be careful,
they will bill you as soon as your 7 day trial is over,
so be sure to cancel before then if you don't want to
continue. However, $99 for a full year of unlimited
downloads is a pretty good deal if you need plenty of
music. And you can use your music over and over and
after your membership expires.
JewelBeat
Free - In addition to offering songs for just
$2.99 each, JewelBeat also has a good selection of free
music. However, the free songs require attribution and a
link.
Incompetech
- Incompetech also has a good selection of free,
royalty-free music. And like JewelBeat's free music, a
link and attribution is required.
PublicDomain4u -
"Great historical music recordings free to download,
play and share." Copyrights regarding music in the
public domain are complicated. For example, a song may
be public domain, the the recording of the song may be
protected by copyrights. Be sure to use due diligence.
SoundBible
- Public domain and Creative Commons sound effects.
Misc. Media Resources:
Some of these are listed above. I've posted them all
together for your convenience here, as these are all
free media sites offered by VideoBlocks.com.
There's some excellent stuff here, but there's a very
minor hassle that you need to sign up for each
individually: New Document
StockPhotosforFree.com
- " Download free stock photos that you can use in
all types of projects!"
FreeStockMusic.com
- "Completely free production music that you can
download instantly."
Make "Videos" From Still Images with The Ken
Burns Effect:
Windows Photo Story - FREE - This is a great free
sideshow program from Microsoft. It really excels at
creating the "Ken Burns Effect". The Ken Burns Effect is
adding a pan and zoom to a still image to give it
movement. The human brain is conditioned to focus on
movement and adding a little motion to a still image
makes them more interesting for the viewer.
Another advantage is, there's lots more free still
images available than free stock video, so your options
greatly expand. A good strategy for video creation is to
make a video that has a couple of scenes/slides that use
video, a couple more that use static images, a couple of
more that use images with the Ken Burns Effect, and a
couple of more with just text. This lets you "stretch"
your video content, while still creating interesting and
effective videos.
Here's a quick 4 minute video I made to show you how
easy it is to make a video out of a still image using
Photo Story 3 with the Ken Burns Effect:
The actual video created is smoother than the example
shown in the demo video due to Camtasia recording a
video of a video.
Here's a good video I found on Youtube that shows an
"advanced", but easy, technique using the Ken Burns
Effect and Photo Story 3:
Note: Photo Story will save videos in the WMV format and
the largest size is 1024x768. Generally speaking, you
will want your videos in MP4 format and a size of
1280x720 for video programs such as Explaindio. Just use
a video converter like Any Video Convert and change the
size and file type. The converted video will be somewhat
distorted, but for the vast majority of videos this
won't be noticeable.
Note: Many other video programs can do the Ken Burns
Effect using a pan and zoom feature. However, I find
Photo Story 3 to be the easiest. For specific info for
your video editor, just do a search on Youtube for
something like "Ken Burns effect PowerPoint" or "pan and
zoom using Camtasia".
Download
Photo
Story
from MicroSoft - (Note: The download says for
Windows XP, but it should still work on newer Windows
versions. It works fine on my own WIN 7 system.)
Tip: Virtually every major video editor has a free trial
period. From Vegas Studio, to Powerpoint, to Adobe
Premier and After Effects, you can use these programs
for free.
