What do you look for in airplane videos/channels?

Taft

Taft

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Dec 26, 2020
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21
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Austin, TX
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Display name:
Taft
I've spent the past few months making videos of my flights. They started out pretty bad — learned LOTS of lessons on what not to do — but I'm slowly starting to make videos I'm more and more proud of. I went from one subscriber per month to one per week, and now it's approaching one per day.

My goal isn't to make money or build a business. I want to create something interesting that people enjoy. I also do a lot of volunteer flying, so if I do build a following, I'll use the money to do more of that rather than pay myself.

My favorite videos show people incorporating aviation into their lifestyle. 310 Pilot and SoCal Flying Monkey are channels I watched often as I was working on my PPL and IFR. I also find myself watching lots of videos about whatever airplane I'm daydreaming about owning next.

Those of you who watch aviation videos — what sort of stuff appeals to you? Are there things you want to see more of but can't find?
 
Taft, I very much enjoyed the videos of your trip Austin to CA (pretty sure they're yours). I like the "journey" part of these and other videos, plus the chance to observe changes-to-plan (such as your adjustments to weather). Details of planning and conducting the flight (e.g. flight plan filed, clearance received, changes to clearance) are also enjoyable and informative.
Keep up the good work,
Wayne
 
Thanks Wayne. You're right — that's me. I didn't want to pump the channel here, but it's awesome to hear from someone who has watched one.

wayneda40 said:
Details of planning and conducting the flight (e.g. flight plan filed, clearance received, changes to clearance) are also enjoyable and informative.
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I like the idea of including more of the planning. That's something I haven't done a great job of, but it's easy to do with a little forethought!
 
For aviation, something that's like 3-5 minutes long. If your title says "shooting at approach into XXX at mins" and I see the video is 30 minutes long, that's a hard nope from me. I don't need to see someone plodding along for 25 minutes on camera with "contact ZXX on 124.65" repeated 12 times before FINALLY getting to the approach where they break out at 1000AGL. I've done that ish 1000 times. Of course if your video title says "flight from AAA to BBB" I'm probably still not watching it at 30 minutes long.

I don't need to watch what I can already do. Teach me something. That's why nearly all my YT subscriptions are lesson based.
 
you say you don't want to make money but then talk about using the money you're going to make to pay for flying. sounds like you're on the same road most of the other aviation youtubers take.
 
EdFred said:
Teach me something. That's why nearly all my YT subscriptions are lesson based.
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That. And, that's what I try to do in my videos.
eman1200 said:
you say you don't want to make money but then talk about using the money you're going to make to pay for flying.
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I've made enough money to buy a camera to replace the camera I wrecked trying to film some repair work. Fortunately, the camera was not that expensive.
 
EdFred said:
For aviation, something that's like 3-5 minutes long. If your title says "shooting at approach into XXX at mins" and I see the video is 30 minutes long, that's a hard nope from me. I don't need to see someone plodding along for 25 minutes on camera with "contact ZXX on 124.65" repeated 12 times before FINALLY getting to the approach where they break out at 1000AGL. I've done that ish 1000 times. Of course if your video title says "flight from AAA to BBB" I'm probably still not watching it at 30 minutes long.
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This is great advice. I've been working on stripping videos down to the important stuff — it's really easy to feel like everything is important when you're editing. I finally hired someone to help me edit (because I'm not great at it to begin with) and I keep pushing him to make them shorter and shorter.

I think this is great feedback. I may even try cutting videos down to their component parts when interesting things happen. From AAA to BBB for people who like that and if there's an interesting approach, then pulling that out for its own video. This happened the other day after dropping someone off, so I have one to try it on!

eman1200 said:
you say you don't want to make money but then talk about using the money you're going to make to pay for flying. sounds like you're on the same road most of the other aviation youtubers take.
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I suppose it's semantics, but yes if any money comes out of it I'll use it for volunteering, which means flying. I pay for it all out of pocket today. I don't have the money to take on all the volunteer work I'd like to. I suppose I'm fortunate to have found a way to use a hobby I really like to help people who need a hand.
 
I don’t typically watch aviation content. If I do, it’s typically been one of the jet channels as I get to see and experience an aircraft I’ll likely never fly.
 
I subscribe to Kevin’s channel, Bryan’s and Ted’s channel to give them another subscriber, but haven’t watched any regularly.

The only YT I regularly watch is a channel I’m not subscribed to that covers RVs…the ground based ones. For me, it feeds an itch to window shop, and I’ve yet to find an aviation channel that does that. I’m not talking about the here’s 5 …. genre of window shopping, but the 12-min or less walk thru/review that follows the same format, essentially building a library of comparison videos.

I understand why that formula won’t work for aviation though.
 
This is not really your target audience. So sift through the advice carefully.
 
Taft said:
I like the idea of including more of the planning. That's something I haven't done a great job of, but it's easy to do with a little forethought!
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@Taft
Post a link so those that want to watch can, and those that do not don’t have to click on it.
Thanks!
 
I really really really hate the "music" used on youtube videos. As much as you might think some group or band is completely awesome, there is no production value to it (unless, maybe, if it's a video about the group or band).
 
I don't watch much random aviation content. I have made a lot of friends from this particular forum and a lot of those folks have YouTube channels so I tend to just watch those guys to see what my friends are up to.

This forum is a great place to form and join communities.

I know that doesn't answer your question but I don't have any hard and fast rules about what I will or won't watch. Similar to Ed I don't like long videos but I just scroll to parts that look interesting if it's crazy long.

If you ask for input you're going to get thousands of different conflicting pieces of information. Just do whatever you want to do.

Eman is right. Everyone sort of ends up on a similar trajectory. Once companies start contacting you there becomes some external pressure that is difficult to ignore when you realize this video hobby can fund your flying hobby.

At the end of the day I would say just make the videos you want to see and learn to " kill your babies" to keep it the right length.


https://www.masterclass.com/article...-the-origins-of-the-phrase-kill-your-darlings
 
I agree with much of what has been said. Much more than 10 minutes is a no go for me. Thumpy, crappy, wantta be music is not staying on the screen. I don't care if guys make money but if I get the "subscribe" & "ring the bell" etc. up front and repeatedly I'm not coming back. And for me personally ... vulgarity will get you banned from me ever going there, recommending a channel, or even admitting I ever stopped by. JMHO
 
GMascelli said:
Post a link so those that want to watch can, and those that do not don’t have to click on it.
Thanks!
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Here you go: LINK. That's the most recent video. The follow up is coming in a few days.

Thanks to some feedback in this thread, I'm probably going to re-edit it before posting the follow up!
 
I look for videos of people having fun with little airplanes... bush flying, aerobatics, some antiques. Instrument flying and straight and level cross countries bore me (no offense, @Taft). Good camera work and good scenery helps (like GravityKnight's stuff). I'll watch Trent Palmer's stuff but skip past all the lifestyle stuff.

Bob Noel said:
I really really really hate the "music" used on youtube videos. As much as you might think some group or band is completely awesome, there is no production value to it (unless, maybe, if it's a video about the group or band).
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It depends. Most of my videos have music, because 5 or 10 minutes of nothing but wind noise is annoying, and 5 or 10 minutes of silence is boring. So I treat them as a music video, intended to be entertaining if not informative. I always try to use music that's flying related or related to the video in some way, unless it's instrumental. Maybe when I work out a setup to capture com audio and my own talking that will change.
 
Decide on your target audience. If you are looking for young, hip, then you can talk as they do ("I was like..."). You can use the hip music too, etc. If your target isn't young/hip, avoid that stuff. Avoid canned music. If you wouldn't put it on your stereo at home it isn't right for a video. Also avoid shots of whatever you ordered at the restaurant or at least make them infrequent and short.

Those I do watch all have an interesting story line, multiple cameras/angles, a script and excellent editing. I have been told many hours of editing go into even a short video. I know it when I start in on a video that hasn't had that editing effort and I stop watching.
 
Dana said:
It depends.
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And, that's the problem.
Different kinds of stuff for different folks.
My solution is to make videos that I would like to watch and not worry too much about what other people want.

Daleandee said:
if I get the "subscribe" & "ring the bell" etc. up front and repeatedly
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Yea. Gets old. Also, clickbait.

Daleandee said:
And for me personally ... vulgarity will get you banned from me ever going there, recommending a channel, or even admitting I ever stopped by.
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OOPS. I did have a word get past me during edit in one of my longer "project" videos. It was an accident. Really.
 
Taft said:
what sort of stuff appeals to you?
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Independent of what appeals to me as a fellow aviation-enthusiast, please put a description in the thread post when you drop a link. Please. Just a few sentences telling us unsuspecting viewers-to-be of what treasures we might find inside that deliciously tempting URL decked in the soft shade of hyperlink-blue. That's all. Just a description. Then each Pilot-of-America can make up their own mind to click and enjoy the bounty provided by the content-creator or simply pass on by.

Also this -
EdFred said:
put some cans in the video thumbnail
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Less than 10 minutes, no music, cut to the chase (as mentioned above, show the highlights, not extended straight-and-level leading up to the fun stuff), clear audio, if there’s any narration it’s clearly enunciated at an even pace, show the view from the pilot’s perspective instead of showing his face. If it’s video from the ground (spectator POV], use a sock over the mic to reduce wind noise and delete the parts where the camera isn’t steady.
 
The shorter the video, the more likely I am to watch it. Two or three minutes is awesome. If it’s over 15 minutes, very unlikely to watch.
 
eman1200 said:
if you have music in your videos or cursing, I'll subscribe!
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That is the real answer, here. If you post a link and a description that reads - "Music and cursing contained within..." I will subscribe, like, ask to be notified and also join your channel.
 
Out of curiosity, how many hours does it take to edit a 10 minute video? I did one...and it was probably 3-4 hours for 3 minutes. I did get one subscriber (son-in-law) so that should help on my next home purchase.
 
masloki said:
Out of curiosity, how many hours does it take to edit a 10 minute video? I did one...and it was probably 3-4 hours for 3 minutes. I did get one subscriber (son-in-law) so that should help on my next home purchase.
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Mine have averaged 23 minutes long with 3 cameras to go through. I would say 6 to 8 hours.
 
If I watch a video, it’s most often to learn something. So when I see someone post a video about just about any topic, my first thought is usually “what makes this person qualified to teach me something?” Now, in aviation, I’m able to be more skeptical than I am in other areas that I know less about. So if you post a video about “crazy IFR comms and vectors IN CLASS B!!!” not only am I going to ignore it because of the obviously overembellished title, but because I’ll be thinking “what does he think is so special about his video, and if he’s trying to teach something, what makes him qualified to do so?” Everybody with a camera seems to post their flights now, but what makes me want to watch YOURS?

As others have said, keep it short and with a point. I don’t need to see a video about flying from A to B, it’s boring and I can do that myself. But if you have a video of the last minute of a flight down to minimums to an airport surrounded by mountains, or something else interesting like that, maybe I’ll watch it.

Similarly, a landing on a island is interesting. The flight to get there is not (to me).

If you’re flying an unusual plane, the startup sequence and pre-takeoff checks may be interesting to someone who also wants to fly that airplane. But the next hour of the straight-line flight probably isn’t.
 
masloki said:
Out of curiosity, how many hours does it take to edit a 10 minute video?
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Bob Dole's underwear.

Stand in front of a camera and blah blah blah for 20 minutes and just need to trim out the oopsies? Multiple camera's with lots of unused footage? Lots of stills from various sources to insert? Dog trying to play tug while you type? Don't like what you got and re-film the whole stinking thing for the fourth time? And, after you render the video and watch it that one last time and you find a problem and have to splice in a bit even though you got a haircut since you originally recorded but you just wear the same shirt and hope no one notices.

Too many variables to give an easy answer.
 
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I just picked up a 1946 Swift project so I'm watching anything that has a Swift in it. Other than that I watch space and science channels like Scott Manley and PBS Space time. I used to watch Mike Patey but the guy is too hyper, he kinda creeps me out now. I think most YouTubers go through the same cycle. They have about ten minutes of material and try to stretch it out over a year or two until they just get tired of walking around with a GoPro in their hand. Then they disappear. Sure you have the hanger-ons like Trent Palmer and Tucker Gott but honestly, they just keep putting out the same thing, only the date stamp is different.

But don't get me wrong, anything from your transmission doesn't go into reverse to your pencil sharpener only grinds one side of the pencil, somebody has made a YouTube video on how to fix it so in that regard it's got it's uses.
 
1) if your description (of ANY video, aviation related or not) includes any variation of "MUST WATCH UNTIL THE END!!!", I will not watch it.

2a) I almost always fast forward aviation videos to the parts I find interesting. a 30 minute video that starts out with 8 minutes of atis, taxiing, runup etc before you even take off is not interesting TO ME.

2b) kudos if you include chapters I think they're called? makes it easier to fast forward to interesting parts.

3a) if there is some hint of a dramatic event in EVERY SINGLE video title, I will stop watching your videos pretty quickly. I don't want that much of my own drama in my life, forget about your made up drama.

3b) there is an aviation youtuber here on PoA that I was going to rip a new one last night but decided not to. however, if just about every one of your videos is a review of something stupid you did during that flight, it's great that you're using it as a learning opportunity (or more likely just a way to grab more views on your video), but how 'bout this......STOP DOING THOSE STUPID THINGS OVER AND OVER?!?!? prime example for this particular person, if you're editing one video after another after another and in each and every one your wife is literally in tears because she's completely miserable and really has no interest in being in your plane because she's absolutely miserable, maybe pick up on that and stop being selfish and putting her through that. it just leads me to believe that you're only doing it for the views and, well, basically clueless about what's going on around you. if your wife (or other passenger) is having a friggin panic attack on every flight and you're still reviewing your stupid avionics for the video or discussing the weather or whatever, you are selfish and clueless. so, like, don't do that :)

4) as pretty much everyone else said, keep 'em short.

5) put music in your video if you want and ignore the music haters. it's YOUR video, do what you want.

6) (prob should'a been #1) straight and level is b o r i n g.

7) for me it gets obvious once you get past "I wanna share my videos" to "oh wow, I'm making some money, let me step it up a notch". that's about when I stop watching your videos. enjoy catering to the non-aviation crowd who believes and enjoys any cr@p u put out.

hhmmm, there's prob more but that's enough outta me.
 
Deelee said:
Independent of what appeals to me as a fellow aviation-enthusiast, please put a description in the thread post when you drop a link. Please. Just a few sentences telling us unsuspecting viewers-to-be of what treasures we might find inside that deliciously tempting URL decked in the soft shade of hyperlink-blue. That's all. Just a description. Then each Pilot-of-America can make up their own mind to click and enjoy the bounty provided by the content-creator or simply pass on by.
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I can't tell if this is a reference to me burying a link in the word "LINK" above or something else. For what it's worth, I made an effort to explain what it was.

eman1200 said:
2b) kudos if you include chapters I think they're called? makes it easier to fast forward to interesting parts.
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Thanks for the idea - I need to check this out. I also really like being able to skip around but haven't tried adding chapters to my videos. I tend to skip through other people's videos looking for the juicy bits as well, so I'll add some as soon as I learn how!

Also...what's the thing about the cans? Inside joke here?
 
TCABM said:
I subscribe to Kevin’s channel, Bryan’s and Ted’s channel to give them another subscriber, but haven’t watched any regularly.

The only YT I regularly watch is a channel I’m not subscribed to that covers RVs…the ground based ones. For me, it feeds an itch to window shop, and I’ve yet to find an aviation channel that does that. I’m not talking about the here’s 5 …. genre of window shopping, but the 12-min or less walk thru/review that follows the same format, essentially building a library of comparison videos.
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You are looking for Flying Doodles and Flying with Rich, I think it is called.

Speaking of which, I got a flyer from some aircraft broker in LGB, looked closer, and was like “hey - it’s that guy!” He probably does it just for that kind of marketing, but the videos are good and interesting so more power to him.
 
AA5Bman said:
You are looking for Flying Doodles and Flying with Rich, I think it is called....
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I like Flying with Rich's vids. he keeps 'em short and reviews lots of different planes so it keeps it interesting.
 
Taft said:
I can't tell if this is a reference to me burying a link in the word "LINK" above or something else
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Nope. A reference to other people just fly-by-dropping links into a post with zero description. Not a reference to your post at all. Honestly, I didn't even see that you had posted a link.

Taft said:
what's the thing about the cans?
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Not an inside joke, as far as I know. I think some people just like seeing pictures of cans.
 
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