Video runs 3:57.

If you’d like to use the assets in this tutorial and view a completed After Effects sample project you can download the files here.

3d Screencasting Episodes

1. Episode I – It Ain’t Your Daddy’s Screencasting
2. Episode II – Rotoscope Our Problems Away
3. Episode III – Building a Screenshot / Screen Video Sandwich
4. Episode IV – The Magic of Inverted Masks
5. Episode V – Killer Animated Windows
6. Episode VI – Ultra Cool Shadows & Motion Blur

If you’d like to use the assets in this tutorial and view a completed After Effects sample project you can download the files here.

3d Screencasting Episodes

1. Episode I – It Ain’t Your Daddy’s Screencasting
2. Episode II – Rotoscope Our Problems Away
3. Episode III – Building a Screenshot / Screen Video Sandwich
4. Episode IV – The Magic of Inverted Masks
5. Episode V – Killer Animated Windows
6. Episode VI – Ultra Cool Shadows & Motion Blur

Now, I know what you’re thinking–this cat’s gone off the deep end. He’s read too many fantasy adventure novels and has swallowed the whole magical powers bit hook, line and sinker. You’re right about that last part, but in reality working with After Effects is akin to being handed Harry Potter’s wand, and the rotoscoping / masking techniques you’re learning in this series are a Defence Against the Dark Arts crash course. In 3d Screencasting Episode IV we’re going to be dashing around our screen footage, inverting masks and disappearing windows. It’s not learning. It’s magic! ;-)

Without further ado, it’s time to climb aboard my little screencasting wizards, we’re going for a magic carpet ride!

If you’d like to use the assets in this tutorial and view a completed After Effects sample project you can download the files here.

3d Screencasting Episodes

1. Episode I – It Ain’t Your Daddy’s Screencasting
2. Episode II – Rotoscope Our Problems Away
3. Episode III – Building a Screenshot / Screen Video Sandwich
4. Episode IV – The Magic of Inverted Masks
5. Episode V – Killer Animated Windows
6. Episode VI – Ultra Cool Shadows & Motion Blur

To build this sandwich, we’ll use the rotoscoping skills we acquired in Episode II to trim away screen video footage that we don’t want and expose our transparent window frame. Once we’re done editing we’ll pre-compose our layers together into a single composition (layer) that can be easily repositioned, scaled, or exploded (hells to the yah, as the kids in here in the States say). Whet your appetite and dig in!

If you’d like to use the assets in this tutorial and view a completed After Effects sample project you can download the files here.

3d Screencasting Episodes

1. Episode I – It Ain’t Your Daddy’s Screencasting
2. Episode II – Rotoscope Our Problems Away
3. Episode III – Building a Screenshot / Screen Video Sandwich
4. Episode IV – The Magic of Inverted Masks
5. Episode V – Killer Animated Windows
6. Episode VI – Ultra Cool Shadows & Motion Blur

If you’d like to use the assets in this tutorial and view a completed After Effects sample project you can download the files here.

3d Screencasting Episodes

1. Episode I – It Ain’t Your Daddy’s Screencasting
2. Episode II – Rotoscope Our Problems Away
3. Episode III – Building a Screenshot / Screen Video Sandwich
4. Episode IV – The Magic of Inverted Masks
5. Episode V – Killer Animated Windows
6. Episode VI – Ultra Cool Shadows & Motion Blur

To date, screencasting has been very utilitarian in practice and application. Cinematography,the art and craft of visual storytelling, is largely eschewed in favor of faithful description. The result is, all too often, a structureless, 2d, static point-of-view video that fails to emotionally connect and provides little to no visual stimulation. It’s a recipe for boredom. We need to change this stale, tired and lazy approach to screencasting and we need to change it now!

What if we could give our screencasts a sense of depth, bring windows, panels and other UI elements to life in a 3d like environment? We can and should give the screen a sense of energy and excitement for our viewers. In fact, it’s imperative for screencasts to visually stimulate the brains of the people watching them. Today, more than ever, with all the distractions and opportunities that exist on the Internet you must give people a reason to keep on watching.

If you’re interested in learning how to shake things up with crazy cool 3d screencasting techniques stay tuned for the next six screencasting episodes on my blog. In part one, Snagit Product Manager Tiffany Wood demonstrates how to use Snagit 10 to grab the transparent Aero windows we’ll use to begin creating 3d objects. Hold on to your hats screencasting nerds–we’re going to bring the fun. ;-)

If you’d like to use the assets in this tutorial and view a completed After Effects sample project you can download the files here.

3d Screencasting Episodes

1. Episode I – It Ain’t Your Daddy’s Screencasting
2. Episode II – Rotoscope Our Problems Away
3. Episode III – Building a Screenshot / Screen Video Sandwich
4. Episode IV – The Magic of Inverted Masks
5. Episode V – Killer Animated Windows
6. Episode VI – Ultra Cool Shadows & Motion Blur

• Configure your After Effects workspace to handle working with elements in 3d space.
• Manipulate the x, y, and z position of your lights.
• Adjust cone angle, cone feather, light intensity and light color.
• Animate the position and light properties.

The video runs 7:05 – feedback welcome.

Screencasting notes:

In this video, I again focused on narrative structure, pacing and humanizing the videos, but I paid special attention to making the production value of the talking head footage much higher. I once again relied on my trusty Flip Mino HD, but decided to try and frame things up a bit better and feed the Flip some light (the Flip really struggles in low lighting conditions). So after convincing Santa Claus (my wife Nancy) that I needed a soft box or two, I set up in front of a bare section of wall in my living room and filmed a couple of talking head segments off the cuff. They turned out well and, much to Nancy’s chagrin, have led me to set up shop in the living room permanently. ;-)

• Humanizing your video.
• Using narrative structure.
• The editor’s role in pacing and its impact on audience attention.
• Lifting production value with sophisticated bumpers / credits.

As usual, we’ll begin with an exploratory screencast and then return to the article for a bit more color on the intent / techniques utilized.

Humanize

Screen video alone is not enough. You need to humanize your content by getting in front of the camera and engaging your audience. And no, I’m not talking about long-winded monologues either. Several 5-7 second talking-head elements can go a long way toward winning over and maintaining the interest of your audience. Let people see your face and don’t be afraid to be emotive / loose. Let them see the twinkle in your eyes and the smirk on your face. As social creatures its how we empathize and bond with each other.

Viewers are most alert at the beginning and end of your screencast (true whether its a meeting, presentation, or screencast). In a recent webinar, noted presenter / storyteller Andy Goodman emphasized how important it is to take advantage of these naturally occurring periods of high focus. That’s why its critical to let viewers see your face and make a connection with you at the beginning of the screencast. It’s also why there’s a talking-head call to action at end of the screencast (during the closing credits segment).

Structure

Screencasts aren’t just raw data spewing out of an organic database. Make your screencasts accessible by breaking them down into logical elements that together accomplish the emotional, psychological and instructive goals of your narrative. Structure can help you engage your audience, build your brand, send your message, and motivate your viewers to take action. In this screencast, the structure – intro, bumper, message, bumper – was deliberately constructed to: create rapport and pique viewer interest, establish credibility and build personal brand, teach software functionality, and build brand while motivating viewers to watch other screencasts.

Making a connection with viewers, getting them to watch, and teaching them something they want to know are obviously the most important elements of this screencast. However, by thoughtfully utilizing structure we can add credibility, build brand, and make calls to action in such a way that they actually reinforce / enhance our top level goals.

Pacing

In the context of filmmaking, pacing is the speed or rate at which the narrative happens, transforms, or develops. It’s important to realize that pacing is more about the viewers sense of narrative speed rather than the actual speed of the event itself. Pacing, then, can be controlled by the rate at which you change what or how the audience is seeing.

In typical filmmaking, lots of “coverage” (extra footage) is shot from a variety of different angles and distances. This allows the editor to control how long any single shot is used by cutting to other views of the scene. This cutting can give a sense of activity and motion, or be used to create dramatic impact. All of these elements keep the viewer more interested in the scene than they would otherwise be if a single camera from a fixed position was used.

How does this all apply to this screencast you might ask? Good question. In order get good “coverage” I did two things:

1. recorded the entire desktop
2. filmed all of the actual hand / keyboard interaction.

Recording the entire desktop allowed me to create a versatile array of wide, medium and tight shots. If you notice, the majority of the shots are either zoomed in (medium / tight shots) or zoomed out (wide shots) from the actual recording dimensions (you aren’t limited to just selecting quadrants of the screen at 1:1 scale). Filming the hand / keyboard interactions allowed me to cutaway to an alternate view of the scene (the hands interacting with the keyboard).

In order to control pacing I alternated between wide, medium, tight, and keyboard cutaway shots every 2-8 seconds (2-5 seconds is the optimum range). This technique creates visual interest and lends speed to the narrative by changing the shot frequently. In effect, I never let the viewer’s eyes get bored by frequently changing what or how they are looking at the scene and I get to “weight” the importance / impact of each shot by the length of time the shot is on the screen.

Production Value

Production value: A method, material, or stagecraft skill used in the production of a motion picture or artistic performance; the technical quality of such a method, material, or skill.

One of the simplest ways to improve the production value of a screencast is to use sophisticated bumpers and closing credits. The quality of these segments affects the perceived value of the enclosed content, reinforces the message, helps establish your credibility as an expert, and, as an added bonus, can help you define your personal brand.

Remember, you’re not just presenting static information. You’re selling it. You’re selling your authority as a subject matter expert. You’re selling the quality of the content the audience is about to watch. And, all the while, you’re establishing a style and building your image / brand.

High production values set your screencasts apart and give your audience another reason to believe in their investment in you. At the beginning of a screencast you’re looking to make your audience believe they should invest their time. At the end, you want to reinforce that the message they just heard was special and significant. Use these elements wisely and you can make all that effort expended recording, editing and compositing worth it.

I highly recommend you check out a much more recent tutorial I did that illustrates how to use After Effects’ built-in 3d spotlights.

——————————

Sometimes you really just want to emphasize a particular area in a screencast which means if you’re like me its time to dust off your favorite compositor (After Effects in my case) and add a little visual magic. This short screencast (2:40) gives you a leg up if you’re chasing this technique.
Go fullscreen to see the video in full 1:1 pixel clarity.

This would allow you to import a Premiere Pro file with speech-to-text transcription and get markers automatically generated.

I had high hopes for a session called “Next-Generation Flex Skinning,” but Ely had covered most of the salient points in his Gumbo talk so this one sort of fell flat for me. If you haven’t seen Ely or you’re looking for skinning examples built on top of Gumbo then it’s probably worthwhile. However, it was encouraging to listen to someone UI nerdy enough to argue over beer about whether a radial knob (a range scrubber) fits under the same component framework definition as a slider (a range scrubber). Ultimately the Gumbo team’s answer was no, but those nerds are my kind of people.

The Sneak Peaks were also a big winner. Due to some smart tactical decisions (yay beer) this was a fun event. Nice work Ted.

Interlacing delivers half the lines of vertical resolution per frame. This is never a good thing for computer / web based video and was especially noticeable at the low framerate (10 fps) the Jing swf was recorded at. After switching to progressive (no interlacing) and taking the bitrates to the floor I got the pristine quality and small file size that h.264 is known for.

Its bizarre that interlacing is on by default and the encoding options dialog in After Effects isn’t exactly Adobe’s best UI experience ever, but at least the option is there and visible if you squint hard enough. Hope this saves someone else the frustration.

Any insights would be appreciated (I’m talking to you Steve Kilisky :) ).