Linus Tech Tips Video Production

[Simon]

cmon, people actually had hobbies once, now they are too lazy, people do not have hobbies any more, a small minority have actual hobbies ond electronics as a hobby was saved by the advent of cheap microcontrollers and has now been hijacked by lazy people that think blinking an LED on an arduino is "doing electronics".

[Mr. Scram]

cmon, people actually had hobbies once, now they are too lazy, people do not have hobbies any more, a small minority have actual hobbies ond electronics as a hobby was saved by the advent of cheap microcontrollers and has now been hijacked by lazy people that think blinking an LED on an arduino is "doing electronics".

That would be called "Old Man Syndrome" 

"Never has youth been exposed to such dangers of both perversion and arrest as in our own land and day. Increasing urban life with its temptations, prematurities, sedentary occupations, and passive stimuli just when an active life is most needed, early emancipation and a lessening sense for both duty and discipline, the haste to know and do all befitting man's estate before its time, the mad rush for sudden wealth and the reckless fashions set by its gilded youth--all these lack some of the regulatives they still have in older lands with more conservative conditions."

Describes modern life and its electronic temptations, doesn't it? Not really, as it was written in 1904.

[SiliconWizard]

Well, all this online media consumption sparks new passions for some, but encourages passiveness for most.

[Simon]

The burst of the internet has only happened over the last couple of decades. streaming services and so called social media over the last decade if less. Once you had to work for your entertainment. Now you just slap the TV on and gawp at it with the content ever brain numbing, of if you can be assed to use one finger social media where you can fester in an evironment that reinforces your views. People who think that posting their outrage at politicians on facebook makes a difference are a waste of space but we have to endure them.

[dnwheeler]

There's an interesting video on LTT made by one of the editors showing his workflow. It's roughly four hours long, if I remember right. I think they've said that a typical 10-12 minute video takes several man days to produce, including research, writing a script (yes, everything is scripted, even it if looks candid), setup, lighting, filming, shooting B roll, recording product placement, and editing everything (color grading, text and graphics overlays, etc.). They typically have 3-4 such videos in production at once, just for their own content.

LTT presents and image that very finely tuned to their target audience, providing a very consistent platform for advertisers and other sponsors.

[coppice]

There's an interesting video on LTT made by one of the editors showing his workflow. It's roughly four hours long, if I remember right. I think they've said that a typical 10-12 minute video takes several man days to produce, including research, writing a script (yes, everything is scripted, even it if looks candid), setup, lighting, filming, shooting B roll, recording product placement, and editing everything (color grading, text and graphics overlays, etc.). They typically have 3-4 such videos in production at once, just for their own content.

LTT presents and image that very finely tuned to their target audience, providing a very consistent platform for advertisers and other sponsors.

Everything LTT produce sounds scripted, and most is narrated at a speed that suggests they target an audience that isn't trying to think about anything being said.

[coppercone2]

what he is doing is kinda easy compared to... electronics design and laboratory work? (potentially very frustrating but none the less easier).

its systems interoperability vs physics/nature

and dave jones is supposed to be unscripted.. its just not compatible (and it would be creepy)

[Simon]

Well all they do is script some waffle. It's 90% image, good if you can get it I guess. Not my thing.

[Nominal Animal]

I could never watch a full video of LTT, because he seems so.. insincere to me.  Being scripted explains a lot.

Some people want just bread and circuses, some don't.

[RoGeorge]

It's either quantity or quality.  Pick one.  Other said, can not be popular and elitist at the same time.

Guess which strategy will survive in the long run.   

[Nominal Animal]

Guess which strategy will survive in the long run.   

A billion flies cannot be wrong: excrement tastes delicious. 

My point was, I've never seen LTT as an educational/informational channel, more like one of those gag shows where they do funny stuff and show expensive products they got for free.  Some like it, fine.  But, please, don't see it like a model everyone should follow, because more viewers is better than fewer viewers.

[EEVblog]

There's an interesting video on LTT made by one of the editors showing his workflow. It's roughly four hours long, if I remember right. I think they've said that a typical 10-12 minute video takes several man days to produce, including research, writing a script (yes, everything is scripted, even it if looks candid), setup, lighting, filming, shooting B roll, recording product placement, and editing everything (color grading, text and graphics overlays, etc.). They typically have 3-4 such videos in production at once, just for their own content.
LTT presents and image that very finely tuned to their target audience, providing a very consistent platform for advertisers and other sponsors.

When you have to colour grade your Youtube tech review videos, it's safe to say you are over doing it a tad.
But hey, it works for them, so whatever.
And yes, a polished 10min video can easily take a couple of days work.

[rs20]

They always strike me as a well meaning bunch of amateurs who happened to get popular.

Isn't that almost the definition of a professional? I mean, substitute "popular" with "paid" and you're there.

[EEVblog]

It's either quantity or quality.  Pick one.  Other said, can not be popular and elitist at the same time.
Guess which strategy will survive in the long run.   

At the extreme end of the Youtube quality bell curve is Captain Disillusion.

[Mr. Scram]

When you have to colour grade your Youtube tech review videos, it's safe to say you are over doing it a tad.
But hey, it works for them, so whatever.
And yes, a polished 10min video can easily take a couple of days work.

Too bad they suck at it I feel a channel like Marques Brownlee's is getting it right. Great photography, framing, styling, grading and editing. They obviously think about what they're doing and then very deliberately do it right. Few television productions manage to get to that level, including the view count.

[EEVblog]

I could never watch a full video of LTT, because he seems so.. insincere to me.  Being scripted explains a lot.

For scripted I think he does really well at presenting, explains the popularity.

[EEVblog]

When you have to colour grade your Youtube tech review videos, it's safe to say you are over doing it a tad.
But hey, it works for them, so whatever.
And yes, a polished 10min video can easily take a couple of days work.

Too bad they suck at it I feel a channel like Marques Brownlee's is getting it right. Great photography, framing, styling, grading and editing. They obviously think about what they're doing and then very deliberately do it right. Few television productions manage to get to that level, including the view count.

He's another channel that uses crazy high end gear:



But even with all that insane I still hate the top down shot. Maybe it's just me...

[Mr. Scram]

He's another channel that uses crazy high end gear:

At least it shows! The results tell me they know how to eke out the performance of their gear.

[EEVblog]

He's another channel that uses crazy high end gear:

At least it shows! The results tell me they know how to eke out the performance of their gear.

Yes, I just don't see the same level of quality in a LTT video. It's like it could have been shot with the gear I have.

[Towger]

At the opposite end. Kermit Weeks channel is largely shot with a basic camera/phone on a selfie stick with minimum editing.  He has a steady hand and does a good job with it, there are interview episodes which almost look like he has separate camera man.  The ability to chat a way, look at an item and subconsciously take a decent video at the same time.

https://youtu.be/8im_ZghEpLs

[SiliconWizard]

@Mr. Scram: Well, yeah, I don't think they suck that bad. It's rather well done and it works for them. It attracts both viewers and advertisers/sponsors. Again they are apparently doing what it takes to get them where they want to be, so why would they do any differently? Of course you may not like what they do and that's fine, you may think they are using a lot more resources than needed for the result they get, but they don't appear to be in need of advice.

Anyway, to me it's mainly just computer hardware reviews. There are literally thousands of web sites, magazines and Youtube channels doing the same, so making it in this category is probably not as easy as it looks. The added entertainement, drama and funny projects are just excuses for doing reviews and showing gear.

By nature what they do is not a lot more than augmented advertising. Exactly like the web sites and magazines doing the same. I remember Linus even inserts an ad inside each of his videos, that he pitches himself. That should clearly tell you how LTT works. It's basically an advertising channel, with just the right amount of entertainment and tips to get enough audience.

Don't expect this to be an engineering channel. It has nothing to do with a channel like EEVBlog, and hopefully EEVBlog never becomes that! (Although I still wish Dave to make as much cash as long as it doesn't become an entertainment show, or an advertising channel to sell Keysight stuff...)

[ataradov]

There is another angle to having all that gear, which Linus pointed out on one of the WAN Shows. They objectively need to employ people, there is no way around it. And people need to be kept interested, otherwise they leave. And part of that increasing "toys" collection is that camera operators want to work with different and better gear and improve their skills.

And the cost of that camera compared to a salary of a good worker is really negligible.

[EEVblog]

There is another angle to having all that gear, which Linus pointed out on one of the WAN Shows. They objectively need to employ people, there is no way around it. And people need to be kept interested, otherwise they leave. And part of that increasing "toys" collection is that camera operators want to work with different and better gear and improve their skills.
And the cost of that camera compared to a salary of a good worker is really negligible.

That makes sense.

[EEVblog]

This just popped up, Smart Every Day's huge data problem that Linus attempts to fix

[RoGeorge]

Just seen that, and thumbed it up Austrian way 
I don't recall any other video so low from Destin's channel