Helllooooo Insiders!

Happy New Year travellers! We're going to put this out there that YOU are going to have an amazing year of travel ahead.

As we turn the page over to 2024, we're still on a high from all of the travel we did in Japan and so we've been busy creating content so stay on the look out and make sure you're also subscribed to our YouTube channel.

If you're new to the group, welcome! Before you go, make sure to follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook!

How We Create Our YouTube Videos

Thinking about what we could share with you guys for this issue, a friend recently asked me for advice about how to create travel videos for their family. In the middle of putting together my videos of the channel, I realized that what I do isn't necessarily too different from what I'd suggest for anyone pro or non-pro.

Without overcomplicating things, why don't I break down my video-making process and hopefully you'll be to take a few things away if you're interested in putting something together.

Prep

As easy it is to procrastinate this part of the work, we've learned over the years that thinking about the video ahead of time can make things so much easier.

To give you a bit of perspective, it's even more important for us because of how complex content creation is these days. While travelling, we need to shoot video, capture photos for articles, and creating social media content which require a whole other set of vertical photos and videos.

The key to planning is this:

Decide on how many videos - Is the plan to one video, break it down into distinct parts, will it be a series, will each video be thematic (things to do, where to stay, itinerary, etc.)
Decide on the style of video - Will it be a vlog, something educational, fun, or cinematic?
Script it out - When you're on the go, there won't be time to do the proper research and fact checking so we always have our intros, outros, and other speaking lines figured out. We don't use any fancy apps either - just Notes on iOS and to keep track of what's been done or not, we make them as checklists.
In-camera audio vs. voiceover - It's also worth thinking about how much talking you're hoping to use in your video versus figuring it out later. This could impact how you film things, how much commentary you'll have to consciously provide or do most of that in post.
Create a shot list - This is usually pretty loosely laid out but think of this as your list of dream shots you'd love to get. This could be a timelapse, people you'd like to interview, fancy transitions, slow motion, and where you hope to fly the drone.
Drone prep - On the topic of drones, it'll be worth figuring out where you're allowed to and where you aren't. You'll also want to get your drone registered in the country you're going to if that's a possibility.
Gear to pack - We'll get into these specifics later but for our projects it's worth walking through what we might need for every single activity so we don't miss anything.

Keep in mind that plans change while travelling. As a videographer, you're going to be rolling with whatever comes your way. The best things are always unscripted and unplanned.

Filming

This is the fun part. With prep done, you'll be on the road and following the plan closely, checking off boxes in your Notes app or flying by the seat of your pants.

Here are a few tips that I usually follow:

Keep your clips short - This goes for stuff that you shoot normally but especially applies to action cams if you're able to. The longer your clips, the more work it is to figure out where the good stuff is. It's better to have more small clips than one long continuous one.
Be ready - The best camera is the one that you have with you. The reason why I have my camera clipped to my backpack with the Capture Clip is because I want to have quick access to it at any time. Phones are great for this because they're always in your pocket. The Pocket is also awesome for this.
Movement - The key is to always factor in movement in your shot. It could be the subject moving while the camera stays static or it's you moving the camera by pushing in or out, sliding left or right, or panning up or down. You inject excitement and energy by having movement.
People vs. landscapes - This might be a stylistic thing but I always find that the best shots are those of people's reactions and funny faces. Don't be shy, you can't go wrong with filming quick clips of doing things.
Shoot less - This is a bit contradictory but always good to keep in mind. Shooting too much is also a bad thing because of the extra work you have to do when editing. K.I.S.S. is definitely in play.
Follow the plan - There's always room for more but you have to be confident in the plan you lay out. Sometimes you gotta film to the shot list and just move.

If you're curious, here's what we use for video right now:

Editing

This is the part that I think many of you get stuck on. You have all of this footage that you took but the daunting task of editing puts you off.

The key is to get to it right away. The longer you put it off, the more likely you just won't do it. It also doesn't have to be a scary thing

Here's a simplified view of the editing steps that we follow:

Import your clips and organize them into folders.
Review all clips chronologically, pick out anything that's useable and drop it into the timeline.
Find your scripted lines and put them in the right spots.
Look for royalty-free music from a platform like Epidemic Sound to match the mood and vibe of what you're going for. Music is always the key.
With music in place, you can time the clips to the beat
Add layers of text to label locations, breaks in scenes.
Create an intro that allows you to start with a title to start the video. This could be a montage of clips that you use later on.
Record voiceovers as needed.
(Optional) Colour grade your footage.
Export your video.

We edit with Final Cut Pro which we find can do everything we want without needing Adobe Premiere. If you don't have this, iMovie can do everything you need.

At the end of the day, you get better with practice. If you watch an early video from the channel and compare it to something more recent, you'll see a dramatic difference. All of that comes with practice and incrementally trying new things.

TIP: To slow your footage down, make sure your video project is set to 23.98 or 24 frames per second (FPS). For any of your clips that you've shot at 30FPS or higher, you can effectively slow it down to fit in 24FPS, creating that slo-mo, cinematic effect.

Sharing

Once it's done, you can upload it to YouTube or any cloud sharing service (i.e. Dropbox, Google Drive) and share it with friends, family, or the world.

Everything we make goes to our YouTube channel and so far we've completed these videos of Japan

We hope that helps those that want to do create more videos or at least gives you some insight into our process for how things go from concept to something up on YouTube.

Newsletter sponsored by:

This Month's Travel Deals

Here are some of the top travel deals that we spotted in January.

Remember, the most up to date page is the deals page and we also share the really good ones on our special FB group.

Enterprise: If you’re renting a car in France, you will be able to find deals on the weekends starting as low as 30 Euros a day. This offer is live from the Jan 8 – Mar 21, 2024.
Enterprise: If you’re looking to rent in the UK, Ireland, Spain or Germany, save 10% off all car rental bookings between Jan 8 – Mar 21, 2024.
Enterprise: Customers in the UK, Ireland, and Spain will be able to get 15% off Van rentals for mid-week reservations! UK & Ireland offers are live from the 15th of January till the 21st of March, Spain is live from Jan 8 till the Mar 21, 2024.
Airalo: Use the code FEB15 and new customers get an additional 15% discount on all Airalo eSIMs. For existing customers, use FEB10 to save an additional 10%. Expires Feb 29, 2024.
Burton: Don’t miss your chance to get up to 70% off all final sale gear! Ends 4/1/24. Canadian sale here.
G Adventures: Up to 40% off select Antarctica 23/24 departures.
Secret Flight Club: Use our exclusive code GOING45USA to save 45% off your membership AND a free 7 day trial.

What's next at Going Awesome Places

As Insiders, you're hearing it here first. We're headed back to Sapporo, Japan in February!

The tourism board loved our work so much that they wanted us to come back to see Sapporo in the winter. How could we say no!

We're also starting the month with the NHL All Star Game which just so happens to be in my hometown of Toronto.

Beyond that, we're still powering through everything we captured last year in Asia.

This Month in Travel

Here are a few interesting articles we found this month. This sure inspires wanderlust and could be your ticket to awesome ;)

Trends in Travel - Expedia unveiled Unpack '24, a comprehensive look at what’s motivating travellers and where they’re going this year.
Avoiding Crowds - Forbes put together a list of where to travel and avoid the crowds in 2024.
Awkward Selfies - BBC reveals a few European cities where it's awkward to take selfies.