Lights, Camera, Vegan!

I filmed the first 70 or so videos with my iPhone 5 strapped to an old cymbal stand with a rubber band that regularly snapped. It can be done but the difference in the watchability of my videos after getting a quality camera setup is undeniable. Before I got a camera though, I got a couple of soft box lights off Amazon. This not only made the crappy iPhone look a little better but meant that I could film 24 hours a day instead of relying on natural light from the sun which really hindered my video output.

Then, because I didn’t want to sink a bunch of money into YouTubing, I waited until my Ad Revenue and Patreon support got to the point that I could buy a dedicated camera. I went with a Panasonic Lumix G7 which you can get with a full kit including a tripod, SD cards, etc. for $550-800. This camera does 4K, is really easy to use, and is a mirrorless camera which means it is way smaller than your average DSLR (Digital Camera). It is capable of timelapse shots which I regularly use on TIY, my tiny house channel, and has an articulated touch screen so you can turn it toward you and VLOG easily.

Here are a couple of other cameras that YouTubers often use:

• Canon EOS Rebel T6i EF-S 18-55mm  Kit.

• Sony Alpha a6000 Mirrorless Digitial Camera.

• Canon VIXIA HF R800 Full HD White Camcorder

• Nikon 1 J5 Mirrorless Digital Camera

My Rules for Posting Videos

Scientifically backed claims just make the best arguments. Much of my channel is founded on responding to ridiculous myths that people really want to believe and need hard facts to even consider reassessing. While many Vegan Youtubers might respond to “The dairy industry isn’t that bad” with “But calves are taken away from their mothers” but I would rather use hard-hitting facts like “According to the USDA, 97% of calves are taken from their mothers within the first 24 hours of life.” That is objectively more persuasive and communicates the reality of the situation in an undeniable way. Many stats like these with direct links to studies can be found at my Plantspace website on the facts page at https://plantspace.org/facts/. Here are some best practices when posting videos on YouTube:

1. Provide Sources: Link studies in the description with short explainers that connect when in the video you referenced them such as paraphrasing the statistic. For the above stat, I might say:

“USDA Paper: 97% of calves removed in 24 hours source: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahms/dairy/downloads/dairy07/Dairy07_is_ReprodPrac.pdf”

This isn’t exactly MLA format but it’s social media after all so it is about user experience and not perfection.

2. Use High Quality Sources: Avoid linking articles about studies and instead link the actual scientific journal. Like an academic paper, it is also good to avoid souces such as wikipedia.

3. Provide Visuals: Flash the study page so people can quickly Google the title of the study. Small citations in the corner may as well not be there.

4. Give Credit: Be sure to credit footage clips, music, and link to everything mentioned in the video that one may be curious to investigate.